Category: Blandat/mixed

A very long post

On By lillahjarnanIn Barnen/kids, Blandat/mixed, In English, Tävlingar/races, Träning/training, Utflykter/outingsLeave a comment

Everything happens in the fall. The nature turns to beautiful golden colors, the air turns crisp, school starts, work starts, life goes on, the car needs a tune up, I need a haircut and a serious makeover… It is fall! Fall is like a Kinder Egg (that I still can’t believe is illegal).

My regular work at my school starts Sunday. It is lots of new kids this year and some new staff. Very exciting. I am brushing up my principal and teacher knowledge and reading through the curriculum and the course syllabus from the Education Department. Nothing really new but linguistically better formed. I get kind of stuck on different formulations. When can you call yourself Swedish? Is it a passport question or a something you feel in your heart? Is it enough to speak the language? It is actually pretty important when it comes to who the course plan and syllabus include. Important to discuss.

I got my ski poles today, finally. Can’t wait to try my new gear out, really try it out. I made a halfhearted promise to not try it when I was home alone. That’s how much my husband trusts me. I know he is just worried since my track record is pretty bad. When I do stuff that includes wheels and helmets broken bones seems to happen. I listened, so I stayed around our house. I did not fall, don’t think that would have been possible since I rolled around so slow even the snake in the back yard stayed and watched. Challenging, that’s all I’ve got to say. It’s going to take some hard work. Phew.

I dusted off my mountain bike today. First time since my head and elbow smashed into the ground and left me in tears on the trail. The bike was full of spider web, that’s how long it’s been, 10 months. I was expecting a bad fall, handlebar in the stomach area, bad bruising… something. I didn’t even get a fly in my eye. Everything went really smooth. Biking is fun! And then I stopped by the pool, a short swim and then back on the bike to get home. 50 yards and I was dead tired, I forced myself to swim for 30 minutes. I’ve felt really good since I got back, not too tired and sore. But apparently I am worn out. Train wreck, my arms don’t want to move and my breathing is off. I guess that happens after a 9k swim. Who knew? And I thought I was immortal.

Life goes on. Kids started school when I was vacationing in the Swedish archipelago, swimming around with jelly fish, enjoying electrolyte drinks, thunderstorms and gel that tasted like lime slugs. I tried to take care of everything I could before I left (read: writing checks and signing papers). They are busy, volleyball and badminton takes more time than school. I feel sorry for the three little nuggets that we have to schedule sleep on Sundays, apparently that will be the only day of the week when I will see them in daylight. Less than a week and we are already questioning the importance of school and why the teacher mom forced the poor high school kids to take AP classes since volleyball is the most important thing happening in high school? And when will we have time for drivers ed? Hopefully not until everybody turns 20. And how sore can a body feel after two weeks of the season. Sitting on the floor is out of the question even for a teenager. I really tried to curl the kids today bringing Jamba Juice and food before the bus left for Whidbey Island. Curl kids you ask?? It is an excellent Swedish expression. It means that you sweep the surface for your kids, really try to help them out, make life all golden and they don’t have to do a thing or even think (and that is not always a good thing). It’s not always positive if you want your kids to grow up. Well, at the moment I am the queen of curling. I’ll take a chance here, they will probably grow up anyway. I kind of sense that the school year 2013/14 will be the year of curling.

Below I add on an old blogpost from January ’13. A reminder how much we care about our girls. New schools, new sports and new friends. Change is good but scary!

I have three amazing kids, three beautiful girls. I don’t know how it happened but they are growing up. What feels like a couple of years ago we worried about preschool and swimming lessons, now we deal with drivers ed and honors classes at high school. The days go by slow but the years fly by so fast. 15 years feels like 5.

Our move to Washington was a big change in our girls’ life, both good and bad. As a parent you always question your decisions that involve your kids. You always wonder if you did the right thing, made the right decision. We have all learned and experienced so much and it has been a lot of laughter but also tears. I can’t even remember the first year we lived here, my mind blocked it somehow. Did we make the right decision? I do think so and I really hope so. This adventure will be a lifelong experience that we will all carry with us for the rest of our lifes. And I am sure growing up in different cultures has shaped their lifes. They will always view life through a lens that is different from their friends. Friends that lives on two different continents. We live in different cultures instead of reading about it in textbooks, we meet people that are very different from us every day. What awesomeness.

The only thing you really want for your kids is happiness. Not power or money, just for them to find their sweet spot, their thing that gives them goose bumps. You want them to grow up doing what they like to do, enjoy their lives. And you don’t want them to make the same mistakes as you did. But maybe they’ll have to. To get the experience and to feel some sort of pain. If I could I would pass my experience down to them but I can only give some advice. Just a few life lessons on the way, some more serious than others…

Keep swimming girls… before you blink high school will be over.

  • Be nice to your sisters, always.
  • It is ok to be homesick and long for all loved ones in our other country… they will still be there next summer.
  • Never get in a car with a drunk driver. Call home, any time.
  • Work out. As much as you can and as hard as you can. And it is ok to look sweaty, not very cute and feel like you are going to puke. It is actually good for you.
  • Always work hard in school, it will pay off. But remember, you can only do your best.
  • Never be afraid to ask for help.
  • It is ok to spend a lot of money on shoes, especially running shoes.
  • Don’t worry about love when you are 15, you have plenty of time. I am sure you will not even remember the name of the cutest guy in 9th grade when you turn 30. Life goes on.
  • Accept people around you. Nobody is perfect. Not even you.
  • Do your thing. Be different. But don’t wear too short skirts.
  • Travel as much as you can.
  • Laugh often and hard. And laugh at yourself.
  • Keep your eyes on the ball, in sports and in life.
  • Learn how to drive a stick.
  • Learn how to cook and bake bread. Enjoy food, it is good for you and it brings people together.
  • Change is good, scary but good.
  • Do things that scare you.
  • No tattoos or visible piercings. And no, I will not change my mind about this.
  • You are all three so much stronger than you think.
  • If you can’t think, go for a run, a long run.
  • Don’t stress… you have a long life ahead of you.

This week’s favourite song:

Dan, före dan, före dan…

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixedLeave a comment

I natt ville inte sömnen riktigt infinna sig. Jag var så trött att jag knappt kunde sitta på kvällen och gav vika tidigt. Första gången jag vaknade var klockan 00.30 och det kändes som om jag hade försovit mig. Sedan fortsatte det, jag somnade och vaknade var tjugonde minut och varje gång kändes det som om det var dags att gå upp. Vid tretiden började jag läsa Marcus Samuelssons  bok Oui, chef! Klockan 6 gav jag upp och åt fil och musli. Så spännande har natten varit. Vad är det egentligen som händer i kroppen?

Det är mycket funderande och surfande på vädersidor just nu. Hur många sekundmeter blir det? Det ser inte speciellt ljust ut men än hinner det vända.

Har jag inte lite ont i foten, eller i ryggen, eller i låret? Det gäller att inte känna efter för då gör det ont över allt. Men lyssnar man på min med medtävlare Anna så är det enkelt. När man tror att man håller på att ge vika och kroppen känns som om den ska lägga av då har man 80% kvar att ge, det känns betryggande.

Framme

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixed, Resor/travelLeave a comment

Är på plats i Uppsala och har till och med hunnit med en tur till Västerås. Flygresan var ganska händelselös men självklart finns det ju en hel del att fundera över. Hade Icelandair kuppat när jag blev placerad bredvid en hostande man som behöll sin beiga garbardinjacka på sig under hela resan Seattle-Reykjavik. Han knaprade halstabletter och hostade i armvecket. Han så också lite allmänt skum ut. Jag drog mig så långt bort som det bara gick, på yttersta kanten av sätet. Men det är svårt att hålla sig på sin kant på ett flygsäte uppe i luften. En förkylning skulle nog vara det värsta som skulle kunna hända. Nästa tur, Reykjavik-Stockholm blev jag placerad bredvid en 2 årig pojke. Det är nästan första gången på 16 år jag flyger utan egna barn och då blir jag placerad bredvid en rätt trött och skavande yngling. Men jag hade ju i alla fall tur med vädret.

Idag har Anna och jag träffats i Västerås. Vi klämde i oss varsin pizza och diskuterade paddlar och ylleunderkläder. Allt känns toppen och vi ses ju igen på söndag när skärgårdssemestern börjar. Om bara vinden lägger sig så skulle det vara tipp topp.

Nu har det passerat sovdags för länge sedan. 

  På återhörande!

Vi önskar oss en ljum svag vind och lite solsken

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixedLeave a comment

Japp, det närmar sig. Borde vara i full gång med packningen men så är det inte riktigt. Jag fyllde precis en plastpåse med russin och nötter, om jag skulle bli hungrig på planet. Ungefär så långt har jag kommit med packningen. Det hakade upp sig när jag inte kunde hitta mina kompressions calf sleeves under eftermiddagen så då gav jag upp. Men passet är i alla fall framlagt och våtdräkten och skorna hänger på tork efter sista simmet igår. Idag har jag ägnat mig åt massage, ett besök hos kiropraktorn och så en pedikyr. Man vill ju ändå ha släta hälar om tånaglarna åker av. Uppladdning på hög nivå.

Regnet står som spön i backen för första gången på hela sommaren. Tjejerna är på try outs och skolan närmar sig. Hösten har kommit. Skönt eller inte, det spelar ingen roll. Jag vet i alla fall att ö till ö är om mindre än en vecka. Äntligen! Som vi har väntat på olika sidor av världen. Och nu äntligen får ut och knata i skärgården en hel dag. Kan det bli bättre. För er som vill vet hur det går för oss så kan man följa loppet live. Vi ska göra vårt bästa för att komma i mål. Och vi håller tummarna att vädret blir bra, lite ljumma vindar vill vi gärna ha men ingen storm.

OTIILO-BannerL-Live-Eng_131717

 

 

 

 

Sista veckan har vi sugit ut det sista av sommarlovet med kvällsbad och turistattraktioner inne i stan. Så här kul har det varit:

 

Kräftskiva. Och jag måste bara få tillägga att moi vann årets tipspromenad. Yes, otroligt men sant!

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Spännande brand på gatan.

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Kvällsbad, Lake Sammamish

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Seattle Great Wheel, hisnande högt och fin utsikt

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Och det är inte varje dag man får se ett hembyggt takräcke.

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Varmt och skönt

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixed, OkategoriseradeLeave a comment

Det fortstätter att vara sommar på vår sida av världen. Solen kommer fram titt som tätt och himlen ser blå ut. Allt som oftast är det kvavt och luften är tjock men det är ju trots allt varmt och så länge det är sommarlov så är det sommar.

Idag for vi alla iväg före klockan slog fem för att jobba som voluntärer på Iron Girl Triathlon inne i stan. Himlen var ovanligt grå fram till det blev förmiddag och solen kom fram lagom till målgången och nedrivningen av transition area. Det var fullt av kvinnor i våtdräkter, baddräkter, cykelkläder och snabba skor. Det åts bananer, granolabars, gels och choklad. Många hade fjärliar i magen, andra var mer rutinerade och lugna. De allra flesta kom i mål med ett leende på läpparna och lättnad i kroppen. Vi kände oss nöjda med dagens insats och speciellt glada var alla att tre tonåringar ställde upp nästan mitt i natten och hjälpte till. Väl hemma la vi oss alla i olika soffor och sedan försvann nästan hela eftermiddagen i dimman.

Imorgon börjar första steget mot ett nytt skolår. Skolan börjar ju inte officiellt förrän den 3e september, dagen efter Labour Day och Ö till Ö. Imorgon är första incheckningen på high school och sedan drar det sakta igång. Imorgon ska alla papper och checker in och sedan sätter volleybollen fart och då börjar allvaret. Äntligen!

Jag kom precis från simhallen. Söndag kväll och tomt i bassängen trodde jag att det skulle vara. Helt fel. Det var fullt i varenda bana och till och med barn i familjebassängen. Det är uppenbarligen fortfarande sommarlov. Jag smet in och fick i alla fall en egen bana i djupa poolen och där höjde livvakterna den klassiska musiken och dämpade ljuset. Bra avslut på helgen.

Söndag

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixed, Tävlingar/racesLeave a comment

En kort och varm halvmara efter frukost med Brjann där vi båda fick chokladmedaljer och stumma ben. Efter det, familjemästerskap i minigolf. En hård match med en ganska jämn utgång. Vem som vann tänker jag inte avslöja.

Efter rundan handlade vi mat och fann denna:

Slimcado-Avokado lite, 50% mindre fett och 35% färre kalorier. Va? Inte klokt.

Fann detta på twitter (Runnersworld) och kände att det var passande efter veckans långa timmar löpning som jag gissar har blivit runt 10 mil. Nu blir det en lugnare vecka med långsammare löp och massage.

Och kanske något annat än löpning?

foto: runnersworld.com

Vad vi gör när vi kommit hem

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixed, Träning/trainingLeave a comment

Vi är vakna konstiga tider på dygnet.

Vi sover, mest hela tiden.

Äter nygrillad majs och ananas.

Vi ligger i soffan och tittar på tv på alla möjliga tider på dygnet.

Vi läser ikapp all post och tidningar som kommit.

Vi äter Red Mango frozen yoghurt och frozen lemonade.

Vi äter enchiladas och quesadillas med massor av guacamole.

Vi springer.

Vi simmar i sjön.

Vi kör bil utan tak och tittar på den blå himlen.

Vi är på gymmet kl 5 på morgonen och undrar varför ingen annan är där.

Back home

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixed, In EnglishLeave a comment

We are back! We arrived after a long trip with 8 suitcases and one dog. Heavy suitcases and a dog that felt very happy to get out of his box and find a bush after a very long time. It’s good to be home and it was good to be away.

We all slept better than we thought we would and our morning has been filled with gluten free panncakes and lattes, many lattes. We’ve started to unpack but it will probably take us days to finish. The only problem so far, one bag filled with blueberry- and rosehip soupmix, two big boxes exploded and left a nice scent in one of our bags. We brought an incedible amount of candy and books, and it will hopefully last for a year.

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Thank you all for dinners, lunches, crawfishparties, walks, runs, coffeedates, hugs, talks and swims. Thanks for making our month in Sweden great!

Back in the hood

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixed, In English, Träning/trainingLeave a comment

The girls and I left Redmond Friday around lunch and took our first steps on Swedish grounds Saturday in the afternoon. No sleep for more than 24 hours. The kids did great as always, they are travelling pros. They plug in their music, get their books and zone out. The only thing they complain about is screaming kids and smelly people.

It’s good to be back. Not much have changed since last summer, maybe a few new houses and shops but that’s all. We managed to stay awake until 9.30ish the first night, not bad actually and slept until 11.30 and thought it was morning. It never gets dark here. After sleeping and waking up all the time I started reading at 3 and forced myself to stay in bed until 4.30 before I went for a run. The sun was up but the city was sleeping. After a couple of kilometers I ended up down town and started meeting people that was on their way home from pubs and restaurants. That never happens in Redmond or Kirkland. You meet runners, commuters and animals at 5ish in the morning but never drunk people. I met a few paperboys with their bikes and a lot of birds. I ran into two scared hares by the castle and a deer behind the hospital. No cars for more than 75 minutes but the bikes are still around. Summer in Uppsala is very sleepy, no students and kids. And it is not every day you get to run on cobblestones that’s been in the same place for hundreds and hundreds of years.

What really takes me back every time I come back here is the smell. The smell takes you back years and years gives you a sense of deja vu. The beautiful smell of flowers, trees and grass that takes you back and memories turns up in your head. You start thinking of people that reminds you of roses, jasmine and lilac. The nice smell of coffee outside the market, fish outside restaurants, the smell of the river that goes thru Uppsala. It gets very clear when you don’t smell it every day. And when I finished my run and got back into my parents garden I smelled the tomatoes from the green house. That is a lovely way to start your morning.        

I went to the pool this morning, that is not as relaxing as running. You need to bring your own towel, lock, shampoo, fins, buoy… I forgot how that works. Surprisingly I met a few people I know 6 in the morning. Very nice. I swam the 50m lanes and felt out of breath and tired. It looks like it is regular crowd that swims at this pool and I was clearly the outsider. A couple of old ladies in the slow lane took me to the side, against the wall by the sauna and asked if I planned to come back, in a very friendly way. And they say Swedish people are cold and unfriendly… I am part of the group ladies 85 and up now, the cool group that somehow manage to walk in and out of the pool without getting their hair wet.

Fail, magplask, belly flop…

On By lillahjarnanIn Blandat/mixed, Tävlingar/racesLeave a comment

We packed our swim bags and left after breakfast this morning, headed up north to Lynnwood. Brjann decided to come with me, he probably had a feeling he needed to be there for support. (Thank you!) Martha Lake 1 mile swim, that’s only 1,6 km. Not much! My problem was that Martha Lake is not a pool, it’s an actual lake. And I had to leave my flippers and my shoes at home.

It was a nice day for a swim and it was a big crowd getting ready by the water. I felt too calm, it felt easy. The water was warm, sky was blue and I will be on my way home in a heartbeat. Yeah, really.

We all got in to the water in waves. The 2 milers took off and 2 minutes later it’s time for us with the pink caps. I decided to go slow and took off. And here we go… I’ve got this! I swam beautifully last night into the sunset. Not a problem. Easy!

I stopped breathing after 5 strokes and then I basically never started again. So I decided to breaststroke for a while to calm down. Tried to go back to crawl and no… not breathing again. Gliding on one side… not breathing. Awesome, it’s going to be a very long mile. Brjann swam beside me and told me to inhale/exhale and go on my back for a while. Not going to happen, I just need to move forward. One buoy down, two to go. Let me tell you, this was the longest mile in my life. I could have jumped on one leg faster than this, in the water. But now I know I can breast stroke for 1 mile.

The interesting part is how I felt. I guess this is how you feel when you panic but stay in a very good mood. I didn’t understand that I panicked until after I was done, I just thought I had breathing problems. It felt like my wetsuit was too tight over my chest, like I put it on wrong. I had problems with this a couple of weeks ago but it’s been all good since then, getting better and better every time. Last night when I swam I felt like a million bucks, fast and strong.

We chatted the whole way, breast stroking slow around Martha Lake. I had time to check out houses and boats and I realized pretty fast that I will be the last one in. The only reason I didn’t turn back was that I don’t do DNF’s. My heart rate was really high the whole time, too high. I could actually feel my heart in every part of my body, it was all over. And my breathing, not good. After the second buoy I heard wheezing and and squeaking. Was that me or my wetsuit? Have no clue?

And then we walked up from the water over the finish line. I am pretty sure Brjann and I were the last in and that’s a first. Interesting day! I thought I would feel exhausted after but not at all, so I guess my heart worked really hard but the rest of my body was gilding around Martha Lake house watching. It would be so easy to pack up the wetsuit and never get it out in the sun again. But that will not happen. We all have good days and bad days. And I am pretty sure tomorrow will be a better day. And now I’ve done the first leg in my race and I only have to do 5 more miles that day. Not too bad.

Have you seen Piglet and his magic earmuffs? If you don’t have time to watch the 10 min video I’ll explain why I posted it here. My flippers are Piglets earmuffs. Piglet can’t ice skate without his earmuffs, I can’t swim without my flippers. Magic flippers!