Sweden still surprises me

The dark, grey days are upon us, and I'm telling myself "It's not time to hibernate, you don't need sunlight, you don't need sunlight. . ."
The working day in Sweden often starts at 8 a.m. and the fact that the sun rises after this meant my 'all things garden-related- tuned' ears brought me to take a look out the window when I heard the whir of a lawn-mower. It's hum was steadily getting louder and then quieter as it was going up and down, clipping the last blades of growth of 2011. I was amazed at the punctuality of the gardener and the feeling of just-getting-on-with-it even before I'd got myself properly dressed. I was particularly amazed that anyone mows lawns with the headlights on on their grass-cutting tractor in the semi-darkness! But then most of Sweden would look a bit rough around the edges come Autumn time, and that would just not do!

It's half-term hols now, although I've got more than usual to do on the writing front. The elder two went to the archive centre today where they had detective activities for kids. I'd forgotten all about micro-fiches which DH had tried in vain to explain to the older ladies working there that they should be replaced with something digital!
H is still ill, with a chest infection. The doctor described it as bronchial pnenomia which sounds much more serious. H turned out to be allergic to the penicillin he was prescribed (about 7 quid, doesn't it cost 50 p to make or something?) and another 10 quid on the new antibiotics. Rant over.
 Alhamdulillah we have cures like these.
Hz has been adamntly refusing to go to the childminder-- it makes it harder when the boys are off school. But how people with 3 year olds hold down even a a part-time job is beyond me. But that is what the majority of Swedish women do--Hz, despite his Swedish citizenship, is not going to bow to these societal pressures!

I'm allowed to Home Educate in Sweden....

Myself, that is! I've just started an online Uni course in Creative Writing (in English)- no compulsory attendance, no need for social training (I'm supposed to have passed that unit by now, I assume)
So there you have it, home education is allowed in Sweden, as long as you have done your 9 years school-duty first.

 It's actually a pretty enjoyable course, no rights or wrongs really. This used to put me off English in a way, maths was either right or wrong and so less 'mysterious'. Now I've overcome that, may be through looking at education through different spectacles.
And if anyone's interested, if you're from the EU it's free and can be done entirely online- I think the basic requirement may be English GCSE, although maybe any A-level done in the English language. I got on with my British Uni degree, but they kept asking me for evidence of my A-levels done in the UK. (the Swedes who apply have to have an Advanced level in English (typically achieved at the end of sixth form college)- but that's not he same as a British A-level English, that's why I wrote about GCSE English being enough).

Summer hols- still lots to do locally

Biryani and M help out making the potato salad- made totally (save mayonnaise and black pepper) of allotment harvest- new potatoes, chives, and onion.

Here is where they get to cool off when we don't get to the beach/ pool/ water playground; a cheapo, tincy pool. Admittedly, the hose plus attachment, usually reserved for watering the plants, was the most entertaining. Well, who doesn't like making rainbows, or your sister scream by spraying her back with cold water?!

Yes! Biryani can now swing (without needing to be pushed). She happily swings back and forth for ages, and so trips to the park are much more entertaining for her nowadays.(The same cannot be said for indoor activities. The phrase 'I'm bored!' pops out almost every ten minutes.)
She wants to play a game with me (as she has no sisters, she complains, and I am a more worthy subsitute than any of the brothers). But it cannot be just any old game; it has to be one she's never played before. The same goes for computer games, which means the computer is not such an easy thing to keep her occupied while I make a phone call/ cook dinner/ have a shower etc! We must head to the main library which has board games you can borrow...(books, they're old hat, you know)

and the boys jump about in the forest playground, found in the middle of suburbia- fun!
So only 6 weeks of hols left- we've had 3 and a half already- what shall we do?

Some good news and some bad

Don't worry it's not so bad!
Yesterday I got the good news that a dear of friend has a new addition to the family, and now joins me in the madness joy of having 5 children.
And the bad, I received my first fästing (tick) bite. I was examining my knee for some reason and came across quite a fat one lodged in the side of my leg. I then tried to pull it out with tweezers.  It wriggled, I shrieked, and I had to wake up DH so he could remove it while I squeezed my eyes tight. I'm sure it was easier than giving birth, but it needed a good tug. A mouthpart is still in and I just have to wait a few weeks for it to grow out errgh!
Well this is one of the downsides of living in Sweden, insects that want to eat you.
How the tick got there I don't know, as I was all covered up, obviously, when I went out the day before. It's tuck your socks in your trousers time!
I was going to add a photo, but they were all too creepy on Google images, so look if you dare!
Must go, one of the boys has decided to hoover the living room, without me asking?!

I am not surprised..

Swedish kids learn more English outside of school than in the lessons, according to this article .
(Google translate mistranslated a sentence, it should be 'the school is not good at exploiting' .  
I expect if they look at a lot of the Maths e.g. money, division (sharing) they will find a similar result!

This is a long Winter

Activities outside are still limited. I know the childminder takes them out most days but the sultry, grey skies and chilly wind hardly beckon me outside. Biryani decided to measure many things , including Mr Teddy, with my tape measure, the other day. Her feet are only a little longer than Hz's despite there being 2 years between them.

However the temperature outside has been veering upwards to a heady 4 or 5 degrees recently which got me thinking that digging trenches for the runner beans might be possible. The temperature, however, went back down to around zero by the time I got organised to go up to the allotment so I was only able to tidy up a bit and mend a bit of the fence - digging is impossible. I had spotted some rabbit droppings so this was just as well, especially as inshaAllah I'll attempt to grow some Brassicas this year (Brussel Sprouts).
I also took the opportunity to take some 'before' pictures. Here's hoping the 'after' pictures are not showing how well my weeds have progressed!

and finally an equally sombre-coloured picture, showing the numerous, large piles of dirty snow, collected and dumped around the city. There's just so much of the stuff that they are to be found all over the place.
I'm feeling like Spring should be here already, having had snow since November, but I do have to remember that we still have at least 2 more months of Winter, and that gardening (or not being able to do it) can be a test of patience.

Asalamoaleykum, Peace be on you, Hej!

We are back to civilization, back home (!) to Sweden. To my surprise, our recent trip to the UK, after such a long time, made me realize I had become accustomed to the peace and quiet (some would say 'dullness') of small-town Sweden. Even if the greeting is monosyllabic, you do not have sudden attacks of claustrophobia, be it in the streets or in the shops. The roads have far much more snow. but no-one's skidding about.
My flat on the other hand, has become a disaster on top of a disaster as the contents of our people carrier were unloaded. Bags of tea bags and dirty washing engulfed the place, and then some virus decided to overwhelm me, and it's been a slow process getting the floors just about clear. The children are glad to be back, with their internet and TV. They did have some good times and met up with friends, some who were babies when we last met in the UK. I noticed how the written English just in the general environment/ ads etc is a part of learning and which if course they have missed here (and have Swedish instead). M is still talking partly in a Yorkshire accent and they managed to mind their P's and Q's in front of relatives.
So I've been in bed trying to ignore everything buzzing around me, and unsubscribing from loads of email lists to inshaAllah free up my inbox a little.
Once I've got rid of this virus I hope this year can get going with a bit of organization, decluttering and growth, inshaAllah. Getting away, it's great for getting a bit of perspective!

It was blog or clean the kitchen floor, guess which won!

I had to document the amazing ability of a 12 year old boy to clean up the living room. The only thing missing is the 'before' picture. I recall the reward for this was some computer time.

And below are some of the various activities that go on, on our kitchen table, besides eating:







Some late pictures from Eid. I now realise that as long as it's pink, Biryani will be happy!





and now we have some hyacinths slowly growing, keeping the restless gardener calm(er). There's not much to do outside, what with the weather (snow being rather non-news I suppose in Sweden).



but these roses show the snow has come a bit earlier than usual

and here is a picture of one of the 'mobile nurseries' that they have in our city. I was on my way to order some new glasses. There is such a demand for childcare that they can't build enough premises and so bus the little ones around to different parks etc. It's quite a good idea, with on board tables/ facilities, but when I took this was maximum -7 C and they were all cosy inside the bus with the engine running. Not a soul in the playground nearby- I'm not surprised. As I was walking to the opticians I felt the rushing co-pedestrians thinking to themselves: 'Blimey, it's cold'. Waiting at the pedestrian crossing, I sneaked a quick 'dragon-smoke' breath, and then rapidly remembered I'm not 7 any more.

and now the shops have run out of sledges- well at least the reasonably priced ones- and we have only one intact, uh oh!
Anyway, now time to, er, ignore the kitchen floor a bit longer.......

Final snaps of colour..

The last of the flowers in the allotment, and gardens round our way.
Trees having their last fashion show before the curtain drops.
The days are pretty short round here,with S swapping leaving in the dark for coming home in it.
Winter is on it's way, I'll have to accept it, it's been nearly 8 years in Sweden and I should be used to it by now....

Some random photos...

Just thought to post these before they are completely out of date. The first is of the fishermens' cottages in the centre of town near the museum area. It's a nice area to have a day out with the children. Hope we can get over the recent illnesses (H with croup and Hz with a cold) and maybe visit them again. Anything to get out of this place, the suburbs...
Hz is into his art and craft aswell, diligently scribbling and modelling plasticine. His speech is coming on in leaps and bounds, using little sentences, and he must say 'OK?/ OK' about 100 times a day. Do I really say it so much? he must have got it from somewhere!

It's still the Summer holidays..

The sole surviving sunflower plant has now bloomed and below is a few days later.

and Biryani is ever willing to get cooking

and generally make good use of the kitchen table...

as did H and M who leap on my sewing machine when it comes out for carrying out a few, boring clothing repairs.
and so we made beanbags in the spare minutes while they were waiting for friends to turn up. I'd managed to aquire some free rice from the corner shop as I'd noticed it was past it's date stamp. They would have thrown it away otherwise, so that served well as filling for the beanbags.

and the chalks came out at the request of our visitor, and were enjoyed by all.

Charlie and Lola Butterflies

and what's been happening otherwise? Well the education bill went through at the end of June and has basically banned Home Education in Sweden. Here is a recent article showing how the phrase 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it' has not reached the Swedish government's ears.

We had a disappointing but not completely unsurprising experience when attempting to sort out some larger accomodation. A private landlord had a house for rent and agreed a time for us to have a look at the property. However as we drove up, gave us a quick scan and announced to us that it was already rented out, so we would not get a look in. This was possibly true that it could have been rented out within the space of 18 hours from booking the time, but I am surprised he managed to check their references and get contracts signed within that time. May aswell write on their adverts, instead of DSS, immigrants need not apply. Trying not to have a victim mentality here, just have to get on with it and hope and pray for something better, inshaAllah.

On a slightly happier note, Biryani and H began swimming classes today, although Biryani was not too happy in the water. She's been asking when her lesson is for the past few days, even waking me early this morning to ask again. She's been having to start learning the days of the week to get some idea of the time she has to wait. She's been all geared up with her new costume and shorts, beach dress and goggles- In the end it was all a bit scary and shivery I think, and I'm wondering if we'll be able to get her back in the water tommorrow at her next lesson. Otherwise she can just have a paddle in the kiddy pool, it's meant to be fun isn't it!?
Oh and Hz has now got chicken pox, so good job we didn't book any holidays away, alhamdulillah. It can seem like the holidays have to be full of excitement and fun, but having a real reason to take things easy takes off the pressure. I'm wondering if having this cloud of uncertainty drains the energy somewhat. However, of course, almost nothing is certain in this life...

So school's out...

and S holds his 'graduation' rose that is customarily given out to the students leaving the school.



and it's time to be outside a bit more, although the lure of computer is still there, but DH is making this pretty restricted.

and this is my usual view, of little ones running off, hopefully not to a busy road.

M saw a clip on the Swedish equivalent of Cbeebies on the computer several weeks ago, but somehow managed to construct everything himself from memory, mashaAllah. It involved making a pattern first.
and the finished article, which I must get round to uploading to the TV channel's website. H made the patio, well it was going to be another castle but didn't get to construction stage.

We went on a boat trip organised as a marketing ploy by one of the Electricity providers. Actually we already buy our electricity from them. The kids enjoyed the marketing sweets and windmills provided. I was v scared when the boat went right under the windmill blade. Of course it was completely safe (Sweden takes health and safety v seriously) but I buried my face in Biryani's shoulder while she clung on to me. As Hz and Biryani don't watch much British tv, the chance to exclaim 'teletubby windmill' wa not there. S would've loved it as a little one. Now he was thinking more of whether there'd be any more sweets remaining back at the dock.

and eventually the sun peeked out for a bit.

Hoping for some more activities for the kids, they are really finding it hard to get along this holidays for some reason.

Daffodils and new shoots

I ended up buying some daffodils in pots, as I was feeling a bit low on the gardening front. My first batch of tomato seedlings had withered and died when I had tried to plant them in to bigger pots. I suspect it was because they'd been brought up without enough light, they were in my bedroom where there is generally someone sleeping at some point throughout the day. But it was there or risk being plundered by little hands. Alhamdulillah hadn't planted all the seeds so my second lot are thriving as I make sure they get enough rays.
Anyhow my tiny attempts at horticulture are inshaAllah to be scaled up, although whether it'll be this year is another question. On Thursday I got my allotment contract so now I have at least got a 'garden' , and have to be patientand wait for a few more bedrooms. M and H seem quite keen to help me and really I just want some space for us to potter. I am just a bit wary of the rabbits and will have to sort out some fencing I think. Just have to put up with DH calling me 'Arthur' (EastEnders) but then I can always call him 'Pauline' back if he does!
We're on the last stretch of the school year before the holidays. It does feel like a kind of penance of being able to live in Sweden, all this early morning rushing, and tired grumpy kids in the evening. M is plodding a long at school without having to do much homework. H is pretty good at reading and his writing has dramatically improved. We always seem to be behind with his workbooks as he's missed so much school with various illnesses, but I'm sure he's OK with all the concepts, just colouring in the lines is still a chore, although it may be useful as he wants to be an eye surgeon and they do have medical colouring books when you study anatomy....
S has got his place in the bilingual class and also was offered a place in the international school. We went to the latter for a morning and I could sense S was impressed as in the first lesson each student was on their individual laptops doing various projects, and then a boy gave a presentation using powerpoint. We the went to the French lesson which was, ironically the only time the international students speak Swedish. I slinked out after a while as my eyelids were drooping as familiar memories were coming back from my secondary education. In the end we have decided on the bilingual class so that S can keep his Swedish up, although they have let us have the option to change to the international school if later we think it would be more suitable. The students in the international school did seem more mature and commited to their work, but we will see inshaAllah how the bilingual class works out.
Biryani has been going regularly to the childminder, which at the moment is the ideal situation. There are 2 childminders who are also friends of mine and they are in one of their spacious house with a garden. The children are of different ages and they cook nutritious food, do educational activities, go outside a lot. I would like to have her round myself more as this age is very nice (mostly) , but it's also a good age to pick up the Swedish. However it feels like the best place she could be apart from home. I'm hoping it can continue as one of the childminders may start to work at her home instead.
Hz, well they don't have a place for him in the near future (!) . His langage is slowly coming on although I have to translate most words.
'Boo' - boots
'boo boo' lollipop, dog/ animals
'ayn'- orange
'up' - juice(cup?)
'bo' - ball

He also wants to start potty training and is always undressing himself down to nothing. Of course this was not appreciated when we were in the midst of a sickness bug last week. Yesterday it was a vest with lower buttons, dungarees and a jumper on top to stop him taking off his nappy. He knows to take it off just after or maybe just before doing something but the connection between potty and sitting on it to pee etc is nowhere near. It feels like I'd only just put away the potty after Biryani was needing it.
The 2 middle boys have not come back yet from running. We decided that DH should take them running regularly with some friends rather than paying £50 a term for some teenagers to tell them to run up and down at the running club. I expect they have gone for a browse around the toy shop afterwards.

Forgive me if some of the photos are a little blurred...

but my mobile phone camera is a little limited, and life does seem to pass by in a bit of a blur at the moment.
Here is an example of Hz using a game as, well, it almost was intended, and not just as a floor covering.


and a large scale lego battle took up most of the living room the other day.

and I've been noticing in many blogs for a while the beautiful pictures of the emergence of Spring. So here is our Swedish, relatively late, contribution. In fact looking out for the 'Signs of Spring' is quite a national hobby. M plucked these snowdrops from our park outside, and I'm hoping he left enough for the rest of the residents to admire.




and Hz has a little bit of spring in his step (groooan, pun intended) as he heads off in the direction of the lollipop storehouse (corner shop).