We spent 3 nights in the sunny city of Karlstad last week. From our home, it is about a 3.5 hour drive. We really miss having the van when all five of us go anywhere together! With one car seat and three growing children squished into the rear, it is a recipe for aggravation! We packed a lunch and stopped at a roadside picnic area to enjoy it (very Swedish--they don't do roadside restaurants). Kris and I regretted forgetting to fill up our thermos with hot coffee! We made our first stop in a lakeside town called Karlskoga, about 45 minutes outside of Karlstad and in the area of the country known as Varmland, which translates as Hot Country. They do receive lots of sunshine here, and it is common to see the typical Swedish red-painted barn-style houses and fields full of cows and horses. We planned to have a visit with Kris' former boss from home, a Swede named Jonny and his wife, Inga-Brit. They welcomed us into their amazing home on a steep hill over a lake, the name of which escapes me. Kris and Jonny got caught up and discussed common acquaintances, and the kids explored amongst the rocks and gardens on their property. We spent the afternoon enjoying their gracious company, then scrambled back in the hot car to finish our drive to Karlstad. We were booked into the Scandic hotel and the kids were thrilled to discover an indoor pool there. Kris and I were apprehensive about how the five of us were going to get any sleep in the tiny room, which contained only two twin beds (movable, at least) and one murphy-style twin bed. Somehow we managed! We left the car at the hotel that evening and walked a short way into the downtown. We ate dinner outside at a pizza place and enjoyed watching the local pastime--cruising around town in refurbished cars, windows down, music playing! We said NO! to ice cream (promising some the next day to celebrate Elise's birthday) and walked back to the hotel, swatting at mosquitoes and jumping out of the way of cyclists the entire way. On an aside, we almost lost Graeme to one of the many cyclists zooming along the waterfront pathway....He let go of Kris' hand, and like a flash crossed over into the bike lane to get a closer look at something that caught his interest. A woman had come up silently behind us on her bike and she had to brake hard to avoid hitting Graeme, who never noticed her but stepped directly in front of her when Kris yelled his name. She was obviously startled and Graeme cried at the close call. I hope he learned his lesson!
We spent Friday touring around Karlstad. We explored the city park called Mariebergskogen, a child's wonderland of animals, play structures and beach. We grabbed a hot dog for lunch and after a few wrong turns arrived at the parking area for a short hike that would take us to overlook Lake Vanern, the largest lake in Sweden. There were lots of people laying out on the smooth rocks, sunbathing and swimming in the cool, reddish-brown coloured water. Our next stop was the beach so that we too could cool off in the refreshing lake water.
We were up bright and early on Saturday. We had come to the purpose of the trip...to celebrate the wedding of Kris' coworker Shahin and his beautiful bride, Lovisa. The kids woke up with butterflies in their stomach this morning, for today was the day that they were meeting a family that had kindly offered to keep care of them while Kris and I enjoyed the child-free wedding. Kris had sent out an email back in the spring to a couple of friends that lived and worked in the Karlstad area, asking for help and suggestions with babysitting. Two very kind offers of help came back and it was decided that the best solution was for the kids to spend the day and night with a family that had two small children. Jan-Erik and his wife Susanne had offered to entertain the children for the afternoon and keep them overnight. We were thrilled by their kindness! We drove from Karlstad to their gorgeous home in Blombacka in time to enjoy a delicious lunch and give the children time to get comfortable with their surroundings. Jan-Erik and Susanne were so welcoming and so thoughtful, and their children so interested in playing together, that Kris and I had no worries about our children. Elise was a little emotional about our departure, but as the big sister who felt a tremendous responsibility for her younger siblings, that was to be expected. We left her with a cell phone in hand and promised to call later. We were hardly on the road 15 minutes, heading to Rottneros park and the wedding, when the phone rang and it was Elise informing us that she had applied sunscreen to herself and her brother and sister in preparation for their afternoon at the beach! She was looking after them very well, indeed!
The wedding of Shahin and Lovisa was a relaxed, lovely affair. They celebrated with both Swedish and Persian ceremonies. Lovisa made a beautiful bride, and Shahin looked very handsome in his white waistcoat! The Swedish ceremony was very similar to a civil ceremony at home, but the Persian style of celebrating was fun to witness with it's sugar and honey. We made and received many phone calls that night from Elise, but they were so well looked after that we never worried. Jan-Erik returned the children to us at the hotel the next morning. Kris and I tried to express our thankfulness for their excellent care of our children. We hope they take us up on our offer to come and visit us in Stockholm!
So our mini vacation to Varmland was over. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing the countryside and lakes of the area. We returned home very thankful to sleep in our own beds and looking forward to not having to spend time together in the car again for a while!
Some time has passed since Elise's 11th birthday, but the celebrations were stretched out over the last few weeks so I'm just now getting a chance to write about it. Elise turned 11 while we were spending the weekend in Karlstad for a wedding. We celebrated in a low-key fashion with one small gift at breakfast (the pair of earrings from Aeropostale that she just had to have!) and her choice of dinner out that night. The real party happened back in July, in Canada, with six friends and the "best birthday I ever had" at the cottage on Charleston Lake. 
