Tagged: holidaze

13
Jan
2019

MEMORIES, PART THE THIRD

I don’t take as many photos as I should…these days I tend to spend more time in the moment, and whipping out my phone to stop the action in its tracks and document it rarely foremost in my mind. So it’s a good thing that I have friends and family who manage to step up and take photos so I have them to remember the good times by! Down in Detroit by the big tree, enjoying the lights and the sights Grandma Linda with Martin and Karin Cousins at Christmas! Happy mom reunited with a kid who is too far...

09
Jan
2019

HOLIDAYS, PART THE SECOND

It was kind of a weird Christmas, gift-wise, since we waited until the last minute to do all our shopping, and we were with each other while we were shopping and so everyone knew pretty much everything we were getting, even though things still got wrapped and put under the tree. But it meant that we were getting things we really needed and wanted, so that worked out well, and both the kids were thrilled with their “big” presents: Karin got a gimbal stabilizer for her phone and Martin got a tripod, at which he exclaimed, “Now I’m a real...

08
Jan
2019

TRAVELS, PART THE FIRST

I’ve been clubbed by the hard hand of jetlag. I’ve been meaning to write a post since Saturday, when we arrived but due to countless factors, this is the first time I’ve actually gotten started. Reasons for not posting, besides jetlag: too many other things to do, sleeping, working, constant computer crashes, reading, catching up on other more important stuff, procrastination, and also, feeling as if the amount of things I have to write about is overwhelming. Despite all my good intentions, my road to posting is paved with excuses. It’s crazy how fast a 3-week vacation can go, but...

28
Dec
2018

RETROSPECTIVE

here is something crazy about how fast time goes…it flies, it swoops, it zooms and I am left gasping again by the fact that it is once again the end of a year that sped by. It’s been a good year for all of us, and we only see good things for the year to come. Family & Personal Highlights of 2018 Keeping myself diabetes-free and my weight down Singing with Karin in a huge 1000 participant Gospelfest concert Anders participating in the year-long X-Cup mountain biking tournaments and Cykel Wasa My oldest best friend visiting for a week Martin...

28
Dec
2018

EK FAMILY CHRISTMAS LETTER 2018

The beginning of 2018 was pretty calm and we hosted a New Year’s Eve dinner with friends here in Flyinge. Liz was recovering from gall bladder removal surgery, so she was taking it pretty easy. Anders went skiing again with colleagues, now an annual tradition. Martin returned to college in Detroit for the second half of his freahman year, even though his flight was cancelled and rerouted, and he ended up getting to spend a couple of nights with Liz’s sister in Connecticut. Karin and Liz participated in a gospel fest choir festival together, Karin’s first big choir event. In...

11
Dec
2018

SOON THE BELLS WILL START*

I don’t feel very Christmassy. Even though my cards were all signed, sealed and mailed over a week ago, and I’ve been to a Christmas market and bought and shipped several presents, I am just not in the Christmas spirit. I suspect part of the reason is that we are not decorating for the holidays. Normally by now, we’d have a tree (even if it wasn’t yet all the way decorated) and the smell of fresh pine would have filled the house. There are no cheerful Santas or tomtes or reindeer or angels peering at me from various nooks and...

02
Dec
2018

TRADITION, REPETITION OR RUT?

I wrote my first Christmas letter in 2002. We had just built and moved into this house, Martin turned 5 and Karin was 3.5. Anders had turned 40 earlier in the year, I was working at Ericsson, and he had just returned to Tetra Pak after a 2-year stint at ABB. I wrote in MUCH more detail about the things that we did each month than I do now…where did I find the time and energy to gather all that information? My Christmas card now seems to have settled into a rut. I wrote this year’s Christmas letter this weekend,...

23
Nov
2018

GATHERING, GIVING AND THANKING

The whole house smells delicious. Anders is taking turkey 1 out of the oven right now. Tomorrow he’ll cook turkeys 2 & 3 in the final preparation for our annual Thanksgiving (or Friendsgiving as everyone refers to it nowadays) potluck dinner. It’s our 20th anniversary of having Friendsgiving with our best friends. 20 years! Some of them are the same friends that came to the first one. Some of them have joined along the way, and some are fairly new to the celebration. As we have done every year, Anders and I provide the turkey(s), mashed potatoes, stuffing (in the...

08
Jan
2018

BACK TO REALITY

I don’t think this was the first year we didn’t watch any holiday movies, but it’s definitely the first year where I threw away all the ones we have…they were on VHS tapes and we don’t even have a player anymore. Goodbye Rudolph! Goodbye Fred Astaire in Santa Claus is Coming to Town! Goodbye Grinch! Goodbye Ralphie! Goodbye (and good riddance) Little Drummer Boy! I recycled all the cases and Anders will take the videotapes themselves to the dump the next time he goes and make sure they get put in the right place. It made me a bit sad...

25
Dec
2017

HAPPY HAPPY MERRY MERRY

It’s been a very relaxing long holiday weekend here in Flyinge. Unlike most of North America, we’ve had no snow, which is a pity…it’s been the usual southern Swedish mix of rain and grey, but inside candles, advent lights and the Christmas tree area all lit. Martin arrived home on December 19 and time is already flying by. I took two days off so we could get some things done and enjoy his being home before finishing up work before the holidays. It was SO NICE to see him and give him a hug and it’s SO NICE to have...

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