Recuperation!

Well, my parents, brother, and sister-in-law left to go back to the States on Thursday. So I have spent the last couple of days recuperating (physically and emotionally). But now I believe I am back in business along with the rest of my family. (Although we miss you guys tremendously.) We all had a great visit and a wonderful time. Alex and Isabella really enjoyed playing with their Ka-Ka, Pa, Uncle Luke, and Aunt Jen. They love them so much! Erik and I were also able to catch a movie (Date Night!) while Mom and Dad kept the children. We want to thank them bunches for all of the HELP! Although I know they loved doing it. Everyone, along with Erik's parents, went to Stockholm this past Sunday for sightseeing and we also went to the amusement park, Gröna Lund. EVERYONE had a blast! Erik even got on a roller coaster! The weather wasn't the best. It rained OFTEN! But Dad and Luke were still able to help Claes and Erik with some of the outside work on the house. Dad painted our fence and built a gate and helped build a flower bed for me, and he and Luke both helped to lay sod in our yard. Thanks for all of your help while on vacation! We now have grass!

Isabella and Alex continue to do great. Isabella went back to the doctor on Thursday and we found out that she is allergic to eggs which she gets through breastmilk. So I have to stop eating eggs and anything that is made with eggs until I stop breastfeeding. Other than that she is fine. She has become very opinionated and she tends to show her disapproval often! She is such a lovable and happy baby though. Alex will be getting a haircut on Monday. He needs a haircut, but it will be cut shorter than usual in hopes that he will stop twirling his hair at the crown of his head. He is actually pulling it out and has made a small bald spot there. We hope this will solve the problem!

The Trosa Race was last night. It is a big event here with many runners! We had friends over for dinner (Pedro, Anna, Jesper, Maria, Joel-Jesper and Maria's son) and had a great time. Joel is only about 4 months younger than Alex so they played very well together. His family will be moving to Trosa in a month, so I am sure that we will have many play dates. The children went to bed, but the adults didn't get to bed until around 2:00 a.m.! What a night!

Isabella's Christening

Things have been busy the past week. And by busy, I mean EXTREMELY busy! Tuesday Isabella went to the doctor and the doctor prescribed a cough medicine for her cough and a lotion and hydrocortisone for her eczema. He also set up a time to have an allergy test done when we take Alex to the doctor.

We took Alex to the doctor Thursday. The doctors felt that everything was fine with his size, he is just going to be small, but just to be safe and to rule EVERYTHING out he had to give blood. So they put a cream on both arms that had to set for an hour so that it would numb the area that they were going to take the blood from. (He still screamed when he saw the needle in his arm. But atleast we knew that it didn't hurt.) They then took five valves of blood. He will also have to go back to have his hand x-rayed to make sure that his skeleton is growing at the appropriate rate. But we aren't really worried about the tests. They are more precautionary. Isabella also gave blood from her finger for them to test her for allergies. We will meet back with the doctor in 2 weeks.

My parents, Luke, and Jennifer came in early Friday morning. I think that they are finally adjusting to the time. It was rainy yesterday so we spent the afternoon in Ikea. The men really enjoyed themselves! We hope that the weather gets better.

Isabella was christened on Saturday along with another baby. It was very nice and simple and it was a beautiful cool day. Isabella was a little fussy, but she enjoyed when the priest took her, sprinkled her head, and took her around for the guests to see her. I think she really wanted the priest to put her in the bowl of holy water so that she could splash around! Afterwards everyone came back to our house to visit and enjoy sandwich cakes (a Swedish food), fruit, and mini cheesecakes. It was a fun but exhausting day!

Välkommen Lilla Jacob!

There is a new addition to the Gyllenhammar family. Ulrika (Erik's sister) and Stefan had a baby boy on Thursday, June 7. They named him Jacob Erik. We went to see them on Thursday and it is amazing how quickly you forget them being so small. He was TINY! Alex saw him and was a little unsure about it. He didn't like to hear him crying so loud. But he was the same with Isabella. Now he and Isabella are the best of buds. So, I know that it will be the same with Jacob. Now Alex will have two little ones to entertain!

Nice, Hot Weekend

We had a wonderful weekend. It was sunny and in the 80s, which I am told isn't typical in Sweden this early in the summer. The water in the sea is even a lot warmer than usual. We finally found a life vest for Isabella (thanks to Richard's parents!). So hopefully we will be able to use it soon.
The Trosa Market was this past weekend. It had over 300 booths and way more people. There was also a carnival set up down in the harbor. Alex and Isabella loved looking at all of the lights and rides. So, on Friday and Saturday night the family treated ourselves to ice cream and the carnival.
On Sunday, we went to Signe's birthday party, and Alex and Bella had a blast! I had never seen Alex so dirty!!
Isabella now has 7 teeth! and I am sure more are on their way so therefore she has been a little cranky lately.
We have a big week ahead of us. Bella has a doctor's appointment tomorrow for the doctor to check her skin (she has really bad eczema) and to check a cough that she has had for almost 3 months now. We have a parent meeting with Alex's new dagis (daycare/school) that he will start in Aug. tomorrow night also. On Thursday we take Alex to Nyköping (a town about 30-40 mins. from Trosa) to see a pediatrician about his weight (he is pretty small for his age). On Friday we pick my parents, Luke, and Jen up for their 2 week stay. We are really looking forward to visiting with them, and I know that they are looking forward to the visit also (just not the plane ride!). Then on Saturday we have Isabella's christening. So, I will try to keep you posted on how everything goes. I hope that everyone has a great week!

Summer is Here

We are now in the full swing of summer! The weather is warming up and it is staying light almost 24/7. The children are so confused. Alex doesn't want to go to sleep at night and Isabella wakes up at 4:30 and thinks it is time to wake up for the day.
I have Isabella in a new outfit every time you turn around, because she is outgrowing all of her summer clothes. We estimated her clothing size to be the same as Alex's was at her age. Well, obviously, she is a lot bigger than Alex so she will never be able to wear her clothes throughout the whole summer! On the other hand, though, Alex is able to wear a lot of the summer clothes that were too big for him last year.
Alex is really enjoying the nice weather outside. He plays in the sand and dirt outside constantly. He will be devastated when the yard is completed and his sand and dirt are gone. He and Erik have been out in the boat twice this summer. (Isabella and I haven't been yet, we still have to buy her a life jacket.) He loves the boat! He also loves to ride his tricycle, climb on everything, and entertain Isabella. She loves watching her big brother!
Isabella is growing like a weed. She now has 6 teeth and loves to eat food that she can chew. She also can get to where she wants to go in her walker. Therefore, she gets into a lot of things that she shouldn't. She claps for everything and loves taking baths. Her face lights up and she starts smiling when she hears and sees the water in the bathtub. She should love the pool and sea this summer!
We hope everyone has a great summer and we are really looking forward to our guests this summer (my parents, Luke, Jennifer in June and the Beans in August!)