Diapers.

We bought our first pack of diapers this evening at the store! :D I am very determined to make Fredrik an expert before the baby shows up (as he has never once changed a diaper before!!!). :) We're going to practice on the Carebear. :/ :)

Persistant kitties.

The cat is definately trying to look cute and sweet and then it makes a run for the door. I'm tired of chasing it out of the house, and it is too warm to keep the door shut. Right now Caesar is guarding the door; we'll see how how long he actually stays put there.

Not sure why..

.. I think it is a boy.. :) Maybe just bringing myself to reality that it might not be a girl..? :)

Fredrik is in Smögen again today.. :/ And he will be there on Thursday as well. Lots of driving when he has to go there.. :/ Besides the dislike of going there, I think that he is enjoying his new job. :) His workmates are friendly and nice and I am certain that he is enjoying his raise in pay. :)

I am doing well. :) I get tired easily and I sleep a lot. I'm craving sweet things and chocolate. I need to be working on my Movie Review Blog but I always forget. Fredrik keeps wanting me to update it, and I just keep forgetting. Especially the last couple of days because the weather has been so nice that I've been able to sit outside and enjoy the sun. But I'll try to get some new movies on there.

We watched Maniac Cop last night, an 80's flick, and it was.. surprisingly really, really good. We expected something cheesy, but it was actually a decent film.

My childhood friend, the one throwing my babyshower in the US is pregnant! They are only 7 weeks along. :) But I know she and her husband are very excited. :) And my best friend from Uni, she is expecting her first the middle of August, they are having a little boy. :) Babies, babies everywhere. :)

Hmmm... *think*

Fredrik called like mad yesterday to the Volvo dealer, it was their first day back efter vacation. It was busy every time he called, but one - he got to talk to a secretary, and she knew absolutely nothing about the cars, she was just trying to help straighten out the calling queues. So, I am sure he will keep trying today and hopefully we can find out some information.

And the office for the parental leave stuff is open on Monday and Friday from 9-3 (closed from 12-1), so it will be interesting with us getting there and figuring everything out.

I think that is all for now.. :/ :)

Change of thoughts.

I think the baby is a boy. :)

Tack, Farmor o Farfar!

A big thanks to Farmor and Farfar for coming over today and helping us around the house.

Farmor helped with pulling some weeds, and spent many hours today working in the front yard. I really appreciate it, because I don't have the umph to stay out and do it. Not with my grass allergy and being unable to find a comfortable position to stay in the same place for awhile. We talked about what to do with the area, and I think we might be putting in roses (if I can learn well enough how to care for them). :/ :))




And Farfar went to town working in the cellar with the electricity. He installed a new fuse box, installed a light in the wash room, fixed the washer and dryer cables, so that they can run at the same time, and helped us put up a few lights (and maybe a few other things I'm leaving out).




Effortlessly, I finished the Harry Potter book this evening. It was.. amazing. I cried.. a lot. And of course Fredrik made fun of me.. :( It was.. spectacular, very well done. But a big relief is gone, though, to be finished reading - for the story to be over.

I took a few pictures of the house today - I've had several requests for house pictures, so I'll try to get that done and get them on here - so that people can see what our home looks like. :) I had a few pictures when we moved in, but that has been it, and I know people are curious.

And some gifts from Farmor o Farfar as well:

The cutest little shirt with rats on it! :))

A Classic Winnie the Pooh game! I've never seen anything like this before.

And some classic children's books.

The Terminator 3 is on tonight, soon, so I think we might watch that and try it.

I'll try to get some more pictures of the house and put them on the Net somewhere and share them (maybe not all at once - lots of rooms to take pictures of). :P

29 weeks.

Your baby is growing rapidly now. This week he weighs about half a pound more than he did last week (about 2 1/2 pounds total) (1125 g) and is a tad over 15 inches long (38 cm) from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is getting bigger to accommodate his growing brain — which is busy developing billions of neurons. Every day, about 200 milligrams of calcium is deposited in your baby's skeleton, which is now hardening. With this rapid growth, it's no surprise that your baby's nutritional needs reach their peak during this trimester.

Absolutely delicious!!!

I made two loaves of homemade banana-nut bread. :) And it is absolutely delicious! My first time making it and it turned out great. Fredrik (the ultimate banana hater) tried it and loves it. So, I am very pleased with myself.

TV.

There is actually something on TV today!
Canal+ is having a SouthPark marathon! (For about 6 hours!) So, that will give me something to do while I am ironing the last set of curtains. :)

And Terminator is on TV tonight, too, so, *phew* finally a decent movie on TV. :)

It rained yesterday and it has rained quite a lot today so far.. :/

We are hoping that when Fredrik gets home we can go to the... office where we can find out info about our mommy and daddy leave. Since I am unemployed, I won't get very much, which isn't a big deal. The office here in town is only open on Monday's and Friday's (told to us by the Midwife) but we don't know what hours.. :/ And it says nothing on the Internet.. So, we are going to go by there and see if we can turn in our "proof of pregnancy" paper. :/ :)

And we've been looking for a washer/dryer set. Fredrik found a set for.. 20.000+ SEK (3,000$), which is slightly ridiculous.. :/ :) There are only 2 stores in town that sell anything, and they have those extremely high prices. So, we will probably have to go to Karlstad, where there is hopefully an OnOff, etc, and we can get a decent set (brand name) for a good price. :) My two requirements are that: it has to be digital, and that they can't have any lower than a 'B' with electricity usage. :/ :) I'll be okay if one of them is a 'C' if the other one is at least a 'B'. :/ :))

I think we have both really missed having a holiday this summer.. :/ With a combination of the baby and his new job, made it sorta difficult this year.

We were going to try to take a 3-4 day road trip through Norway, just to have something to do, without going too far from home, but as soon as summer started, it was never mentioned again.. :/ :) I think we've been more interested with getting things in the house fixed. But I think this is the first summer that we haven't taken a "proper" vacation. :/ :)

We will be going to the US in December, so that will be a nice vacation. :) And my parents will probably be coming to visit us for July and August next summer, and we've already discussed taking them to Denmark. So, we'll make up for it next summer. :) (Hopefully it just won't rain as much next summer as it has this summer.)

The baby is getting a bit forceful with the hits and blows.. :/ :) My whole belly moves.. :/ :)

Not that much has been happening.. :/
I'm half way through the Harry Potter book. Fredrik told me to slow down so that I can enjoy it longer.. :/ :) The book is 607 pages (the 3rd longest book, tied with the 6th book in length, in the series of 7).
I am anxious to finish, and then start the series over again. If you haven't read them, I definitely recommend them. They are fantastic, for children as well as for adults.

Ugh.. I'm sweating.. :/ Our office room is the warmest room in the house.. :/ No fresh air gets back here.. :/ If we redo any other windows in the house, this room will have to be first - so that we can get some air circulating in the room. (I feel sorry for my parents, because this is also the guest room (with the pull-out bed), it is going to be pretty toasty for them in here next summer.) :/

29th Week of Pregnancy

How big is your baby?
Your baby now measures 14 ½ inches (37 cm) and weighs 2 ¾ pounds (1238 g).

What is happening with your baby?
Your baby is rapidly growing at this point. Obviously your baby is continuing to gain weight, and his/her head is also growing. This is due to the rapid brain development that began in week 28. Muscles and lungs are also continuing to develop and mature.

Because there is so much development and maturing going on, it is incredibly important to ensure that you are getting plenty of nutrients and rest. Make sure that you are getting adequate amounts of protein, vitamin C, folic acid, iron, and calcium.

The best husband in the World! :)

I have the best husband in the World. :)) He bought me (preordered) the new Harry Potter book. :)) It showed up in the mail today. I read the last book in less than 24 hours, so I'm curious to see how long this one will take. :)




What a wonderful surprise. :))
I know he is just as anxious to read it as I am, but he is going to have to wait! :)

T-80 days.

Poor Fredrik. He spent 1½ hours yesterday carrying pellet bags.. :/

We had an order delivered yesterday, and I can't carry any of them.. :/ They weigh 16 kg each (35 lbs), and I just can't carry them. So, he carried them 2 at a time to the back of the house (they were delivered and set at the front of the house), and then he positioned them in the basement. It is a total of 1½ tons of pellets.. :/ he was very tired.. :/

So, here is our new supply of pellets in the basement:




And here is our pellet machine. This supplies our warm water to the house, tap water and heat.
And we think Caesar has an admirer. :)))
This is (we think) a little female kitty that really likes him. :/ :))

She must be a neighbor kitty, and we find her in our house very often. Yesterday she was eating Caesar's medicine food for his urinary tract problems ... so she must have been pretty hungry, because Caesar will usually eat anything, and he hates the stuff.. :/ We have a feeling it isn't very tasty.

And she wouldn't leave the house yesterday. She was laying on the deck and kept trying to come inside, and Fredrik finally threw water on her, and then she just left and went and sat at the front door... :/ :D Poor thing.. :/ I try to push her out of the house with my feet (I shouldn't touch her), and she just rubs against my feet or goes around in circles.. :/ :)

So we think she is a bit hungry and desperate.. :/

We think the cat is a girl because Caesar doesn't like her.. :/ He is usually very, very friendly with male cats, but this one he hisses at, and we've never seen him hiss at a cat before. So we are guessing she's a girl. :)

We've had several neighbor cats in our house already, but when they see us, they usually run as fast as they can out the door, but not this one.. :/ :)

Why do we always get the scraggily, nasty, unclean and unfed cats attached to us?!?! :/ :)
So my suggestion to Fredrik yesterday was that we just start feeding it and adopt it. :/ :)) Which he wasn't too keen about.. :( :)

And then this morning, I found this on the deck:

It is a cute cat, but a very strange body proportion. And the smallest, silliest looking tail I think I've ever seen.

And this is as close as Caesar will get to her:



So, it will be interesting to see if they become friends. I think Caesar might fight it, but he might not have a choice. :/ :))

We're doing well. :) I'm washing more baby stuff today... :/ :)
Fredrik is in Smögen today, hoping for plenty of rain. :)) To keep the people away so that he can get done faster.

Around 2½ months left now. :/ :) Getting close.

I think the belly space is getting a little cramped now for the Little One. It still moves plenty, but I don't feel as much as before. But what I do feel, is very strong. So, hopefully, it is gaining plenty of weight and having trouble with space. :)

#&!%# washing machine!

Argh.

I washed baby clothes today. Washed the first load, and everything was.. "okay." And then I put that load in the dryer and put in another small load of baby clothes. Then the fuse blew..... :/ Can't run the washer and dryer at the same time!!

We fixed the fuse...
Start the washer, then both loads can dry at the same time.

Go check on the washing machine later - clothes are done, open the door, take out the clothes, and they are soaking wet.

I ring out one of the white blankets.. and decide to run the spin-cycle again, thinking that maybe this time it will work. I run it again, take everything out... the blanket that I rang out, is even wetter than it was before!?!?!?!

So, I ring out the clothes, and when I ring them out, soap bubbles appear.......

Now finally everything is in the dryer ...
And it takes extra long for everything in the dryer, because everything is so wet.

We knew when we moved in that we were going to have to replace them, so that isn't surprising, we were prepared for that. But this is ridiculous.. :/
We've already priced a new washer/dryer set and we are thinking about going ahead and getting that, too. I don't think we can go all winter with a washing machine that doesn't use the spin-cycle properly... oohh..! And it doesn't use the softner either! The same softner is still in the little compartment from the first washing load I ever put in the washer!

We were going to wait to replace them when we tried fixing the room up a little nicer, paint, and replace a few other things (sink, etc..), but I don't think we can wait that long.. :/ With a new baby and winter.. :/ So, maybe we should invest into that as well.. :/

Week 29

Your baby measures about 10.4 inches (26 cm) from crown to rump, or a total length of about 16.7 inches (43 cm) from head to toe, and weighs about 2.7 pounds (1215 g). At this stage a fetus's eyes are almost always blue and can distinguish bright sunlight or artificial light through the uterine wall. Baby is performing fewer acrobatics as conditions in the womb become more cramped, but still doing a lot of kicking and stretching.

Car craziness.

Fredrik finally got ahold of someone that could give him some answers. And the car dealership here said that the dealership where the car is (in Mellerud) are on vacation until the 30th of June. So we have to wait until then.. :( :) I have a feeling we are going to be very jumpy until after the 30th and Fredrik gets to talk to them. But at least we know that the car can't be sold until after that point. So, we have as good a chance as any to get it. Fredrik really has his heart set on the car. :) I'm not that crazy about the color.. :/ It is a dark gray, but the inside of the car is very pretty. And it has 210 horsepower! Which is a selling point. :) The other car we are interested in (the back-up option) only has 140hp/hk. So, a bit of a difference in the engine, but they are both automatic.

And he called the chimney sweep! There are 2 in town, and he actually called the one that already had information about our chimney. So, they knew what is wrong with it, which will save us some time and money. He said that the top half of the fireplace needs to be rebuilt....... :/ :) But he gave us a number for a place that can fix it! And the good thing with me being home every day - is that what might would take a month to fix, will only take a week.. ;) Because they can't work only an hour a day and pretend that they are working more.. ;) So, we'll try to get started on that. Not sure if they need to fix the ventilation pipes in the attic, too, or what else needs to be done, but that is where we have to start.

Here are some presents from Farmor and Farfar that we received on Saturday! :)

A small baby shirt. I love the socks. :)


A warm Winnie the Pooh outfit for winter.


A stripped onesie that will work well for a boy or girl. :) And the cutest little bear outfit.



A stuffed trout. :) Which Fredrik has already claimed as his own. :)))

Happy, tired kitties.

Caesar came in this morning when Fredrik left for work. He was very loving and has been sleeping on the bed with me all morning. Which is where I think he will stay for awhile. :)

Ugh.. yesterday felt like Saturday and now today feels like Sunday .. so it is going to be difficult getting the days right this week.

I think Fredrik is going to Smögen again this Wednesday. :/

We've decided to start washing baby stuff. So I'll try to do some of that today and finish up on the curtains if I can. The iron decided to stop working last night around 22.30. Grr...

No kitties.

Mr. Kitties hasn't shown up tonight.. :/ It has been well over 24 hours since we've last seen him. And of course we are going mad. :/ :)) Fredrik checks the front door every 5 minutes and he checks my cell phone every 10. (My cell phone number is on Caesar's tag.)

I think we have decided which car we want to get. :/ :) It is the same dealer "brand" as the one in our town here, so Fredrik will call our dealer in the morning (as early as possible) to reserve the car. Hopefully it hasn't been sold already (and the website just hasn't been left unupdated - it is summer, so that is very possible). And if that doesn't work, we actually have a back-up (which is much less expensive, but not nearly as nice of an engine). :) With some advice from the Saab dealer in town, he told us that if we plan on switching cars, to do it as soon as possible, so we don't lose even more money on our BMW (by putting more miles on it, etc..).

Hopefully I'll post in the morning and say that Mr. Kitties has come home. And hopefully Fredrik will have some good news about any car switching.

Disgruntled.

We are a little disgruntled. :/ :) The cat went out last night and we haven't seen him since. :/ So, we want him to come home so we can give him hugs.

We had a very nice day on Saturday. We met Fredrik's parents in Örebro around 13.00, and they brought Gittan along, too (Fredrik's great-aunt)! So that was a nice treat. :) We had a nice fika (a tea) outside the hospital and chit-chatted a little. :)

Around the table, left to right, Fredrik, Kerstin, Eugen, Gittan, and Lars.

We stopped by IKEA and picked up a few things- baby sheets and curtains for a couple of rooms. We woke up this morning and pulled some weeds and Fredrik mowed. And then I started working on the curtains. It wasn't very sunny today but warm and so it tired us out completely working outside. Fredrik's cold is still hanging on.. :/

We also bought a new keyboard yesterday and I'm having a horrible time getting used to it... :/ :))

We just had an early dinner. Grilled some steaks, and peppers and corn on the cob and fixed some baked potatoes. And some yummy cider. (We surely thought that Caesar would show up to have some corn on the cob.) Didn't have any A1 sauce though.. :/ So I had to use BBQ sauce. Going to have to stock up on some when we are in the States.

Now I think I am going to stretch out on the couch for a few minutes and then finish up with some curtains in the living room. :) And see what I can get Fredrik to help me work on. :)

We received some gifts from Farmor and Farfar so I'll try to get those on here tomorrow!

The new (and last) Harry Potter book was released yesterday. I desperately want to read it.. :/ And I'm having a hard time trying to keep away from articles, etc, that can give any spoilers about the plot or ending. Need to get that book... :/

28 weeks

By this week, your baby weighs a little over 2 pounds and measures almost 15 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can open and close her eyes, which now sport lashes. This movement is more of a reflexive blink than a deliberate opening and closing, but it won't be long before she's batting those beauties at you.

How your life's changing:
You're in the home stretch! The third and final trimester starts this week. If you're like most women, you'll gain about 11 pounds this trimester.

At this point, you'll likely visit your doctor or midwife every two weeks. Then, at 36 weeks, you'll switch to weekly visits. Depending on your risk factors, your practitioner may recommend repeating blood tests for HIV and syphilis now, as well as doing cultures for chlamydia and gonorrhea, to be certain of your status before delivery. Also, if your glucose screening test result was high and you haven't yet had follow-up testing, you'll soon be given the 3-hour glucose tolerance test. And if the blood work done at your first prenatal visit showed that you're Rh negative, you'll get an injection of Rh immunoglobulin to prevent your body from developing antibodies that could attack your baby's blood. (If your baby is Rh positive, you'll receive another shot of Rh immunoglobulin after you give birth.)

Around this time, some women feel an unpleasant "creepy-crawly" sensation in their lower legs and an irresistible urge to move them while trying to relax or sleep. If this sensation is at least temporarily relieved when you move, you may have what's known as restless legs syndrome (RLS). No one knows for sure what causes RLS, but it's relatively common among expectant mothers. Try stretching or massaging your legs, and cut down on caffeine, which can make the symptoms worse. Ask your caregiver if you should try iron supplements, which can sometimes relieve RLS.

A few other things.

Here are a few other things we managed to get in Svinesund.

Tummen sheets for the stroller! And a Tummen blanket. I thought it would be good to have something nice and warm to wrap around the baby during the first few very cold months after the baby arrives.

And a few bath toys that were cheap, a pacifier attacher to clothes, and a couple of pacifiers.

This weekend at IKEA we hope to stock up on some cheap sheets for the crib. (Hint for Farmor o Farfar: I think Fredrik would like some Laban sheets for the crib.) :))

We went today and talked to the Volvo dealer. Seems like they will give us an okay amount for our BMW. But it might be difficult to find a car that we want, because Fredrik doesn't like the new Volvo V70s (I don't either really), he wants the 2007 model instead of the 2008 model - which aren't in production any longer.. :/ So, the dealer is going to try to help us find a car that matches as close to what we want as possible, that has already been manufactured and sitting in a lot somewhere. So, lets keep our fingers crossed! (For once we had a decent Volvo dealer - usually they could care less about selling a car - but this one was good at his job!)

I have a tummy ache.. :/ And a headache.. :/ Grr.. :)

T-85 days.

My leg and foot are doing better!
It never really itched at all, it just really hurt. :/

By the time we went to bed, we decided that it stung my leg, and then what was left of the stinger must have poked my foot. Because my foot ended up not being nearly as bad as my leg. The whole front of my calf was completely red.. :/ But when I woke up this morning it was gone..! So that is good and it hasn't hurt at all this morning.

I have to mention something sweet that I remembered the other night.. :)
It was Wednesday night when I was having trouble falling asleep. I was laying in the couch doing a SuDoku puzzle and listening to my mp3 player. A Metallica song started playing and for some reason this memory popped into my head.

It would be almost 9 years ago.. It was a couple of weeks after Fredrik and I met..
And we were talking about what type of music we both like .. and he was incredibly relieved that I like heavy metal.. :/ :)

We were going through what albums we own.. and we realized that putting our Metallica albums together, it made a complete collection. I had the albums he didn't have, and he had the albums I didn't have (with a few doubles of course). :)) And he said to me, "See, we are meant to be together - we complete each other." :))
And that was just the sweetest thing ever. :))
(Okay, I've probably embarassed Fredrik enough for one day.) :)

He and I have come to a couple of conclusions about our child/children. :)
We have decided, that if it is healthy and all that, that it will definately be an intelligent child. :/ :)) I don't think that he and I could produce anything but a nerd. :D

The weather is beautiful today. Sunny and hot. A very nice change from our last couple of months. So we hope to grill some hamburgers today and sit outside and enjoy the nice weather. And then tomorrow we will be meeting Fredrik's parents and go visit Fredrik's morfar (mother's father) in Örebro. And there is an IKEA there, so I think we will try to stop by there and pick up a few things that IKEA doesn't deliver.

That is all for now. :P :)

I have the worst luck in the World.

I got stung by a wasp - not once.. but twice......
(Yes, the same wasp.)

I felt something under my left pant leg. And I pulled my pants up and a wasp either bit me or stung me and I flung it away with the back of my hand, and it then proceeded to land on my right foot, and stung/bit me again......

I've only been stung by a wasp one other time, and that was soon after I moved to Sweden.

Now my foot and leg are swelling up. (I have a small allergy to all bites/stings.)

I rubbed on some of my hydrocortisone cream (anti-itch cream), and it has helped the pain. (Hurt a lot.) :/ :((

Grrrrrrrrrr........!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
How did a wasp get UP my pant leg ?!?!?!?
I am incredibly annoyed... :/
Fredrik thinks it is hilarious of course...... :T :))

Changing table.

So here are finally some pictures of our changing table that took 4 hours to put together. It is very nice - we are pleased with it. :) We both wanted a table that could be used after the need of changing diapers, so this one should be useable for many years.

Our American changing pad. It even has a strap, to help keep baby from rolling off.

We've been keeping our Carebear on the changing pad. :/ :) (I love the Carebears - I was very attached to them when I was little. Fredrik had to keep me from buying each different type when we were in the store. It is difficult to find them without special CDs or DVDs or ones that make noise or sounds. But this Carebear is just a Carebear - no whistles or bells.) :))

Week 28

Your baby measures about 10 inches from crown to rump, or a total length of about 15.75 inches (38-40 cm) from head to toe, and weighs about 2.4 pounds (1100 g). Brain waves show rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, which means your baby may be dreaming. Eyelids are opening. Branches of lungs are developing, so there's a good chance that baby would survive if born prematurely now.

Your uterus extends well above your navel. As baby gets bigger and stronger this month, you may be experiencing leg cramps and mild swelling of ankles and feet, difficulty sleeping, shortness of breath, lower abdominal achiness, clumsiness or scattered Braxton Hicks contractions (hardening and relaxing of the uterus, like rehearsals for labor). You may also be urinating more frequently again as the uterus continues to push on your bladder.

_____________________________
It is interesting to read the different sites and see how they all say different things - about the average length and weight of the baby. :))

But anyways - I've definately had some leg cramps when trying to fall asleep, especially last night. And I have trouble staying comfortable while sleeping.. :/ My body is craving so much to sleep on my stomach.. :/

And I'm always clumsy - so that is nothing new. :P

So unproductive??

So are the midwife appointments supposed to feel so unproductive?!? :)

Even though we are there for 20 minutes, it feels like we are there for 5 ... And it doesn't feel like we really do anything.. :/ :)

But anyhoo..

Bloodpressure was 120/65.
Glucose was 5.8.
Didn't do iron.

Baby's heartbeat was between 150-160. But stayed on the lower end, mostly around 152-153.

Next appointment we'll go over what we want in our birthing plan. And we'll get info on our car seat we'll be renting.

She measured my tummy, and she was pleased with the curve. The growing has slowed down from the last couple of measurements, and she said that is normal.

The baby was on the right side of my tummy, of course. :) Where it likes to be.

Not that much else.. :/ :)

Went shopping, but didn't do the car test driving. Fredrik is pretty tired. :/ He is feeling much better today but still sneezing. He was so busy with work he didn't get to stop by and see the Volvo, but he hopes to on Friday.

Next barnmorska appointment is the 14th of August.

A couple of outfits.

Fredrik and I did manage to get a couple of outfits this past weekend. There wasn't anything we could buy in the Babyproffsen store ... only blue or pink stuff there. But we went to a really, really cheap store called "Karlssons" to pick up some things, and they happened to have a children's clothes section ... and so we managed to get some onesies ("bodies" på svenska) at a great price. So, now we know where to go to get some very cheap clothes for the baby to throw up in and grow out of within a couple of weeks. :/ :)) And we bought a couple of bibs as well.

Being a cheap store, the price was great and the clothes not too bad of quality.

The baby is moving around a lot right now, and when it rolls around, it makes me have to pee.. :/ Very, very annoying.. :/

Right now we are waiting for Pappa to come home. He is in Smögen today. He was going straight there in the morning and then he was going to come home after he was finished. His bosses and workmates have been great with letting him off for our appointments. He has been with us to every single appointment! :)

On the way home, though, he was going to stop in a town near Smögen and look at a Volvo V70 that the dealer has on the lot. Swedish car dealers don't carry very many cars on their lots ... not like in the States, where a dealer will have 100 of each type of car sitting on the property. But this dealer had a new V70 - as an automatic! So, he was going to take a look at it and see if it has most of the things we want with a car, and take that as a consideration.

I think we have narrowed it between a Skoda Octavia, and a Volvo V70 ... but I think we are leaning more towards the Volvo. We'll see what we end up with.

And we hope to get rid of our IKEA boxes today. And maybe go test drive a Volvo and Skoda. Probably depends on how long the appointment takes and how tired Fredrik is.. :/ :) We have to go grocery shopping, too.. :P

28th Week of Pregnancy

How big is your baby?
Your baby is about 14 ¼ inches long (35.5 cm) and weighs in at 2 ½ pounds (1125 g). This still seems very small, but remember that during the last several weeks of pregnancy your baby will gain a significant amount of weight.

What is happening with your baby?
Your baby’s brain is really beginning to develop into a more complex organ. Up until this point, your baby’s brain has been relatively smooth, but beginning this week his/her brain will develop grooves and indentions along its surface. The amount of brain tissue also begins to increase during the 28th week.

The development of hair also continues. Eyebrows and eyelashes are visible, while the hair on your baby’s head grows even longer. Your baby is also starting to look a little rounder as the fat storage under the skin continues to develop. This is an important part of development that will continue through the remainder of your pregnancy.

Famous Pappa.

Our famous Pappa on the front of Göteborgs Posten. :) They did an article on the sanitation project he is working on.

Presents from Mormor and Morfar.

Adorable newborn 3-piece outfit.


Some socks and hats.


My parents found one of my baby blankets! :)


A handmade cloth bib and a handmade, washable, cloth baby book.


A little American outfit. I love the little flags on the bottom of the feet.

A set of 4 white t-shirts (can never have too many!), and 2 newborn outfits.

Lots of sleep.

I got in the couch and later Fredrik left for work. Then he came home at 08.30. :/ :) He was there for 10-15 minutes and left. I slept in the couch until 11.30. So lots of sleep for me, as well, which never hurts. And he is still sleeping. So, hopefully, he'll be able to start feeling a lot better by this evening. And he can make it to Smögen tomorrow. :/ :)

Early morning.

Early morning for me. :))

Fredrik's tummy has been a little unhappy the last couple of days, and last night, he was definitely showing symptoms of a cold. And so he has been tossing and turning and sniffing and all that ... so I couldn't sleep any longer in bed.. :/ :)) I think he got up and spent most of the night on the couch. Maybe a little cooler down here last night.

I asked him this morning if he was going to go to work, and I think he is.
Now I just need to politely keep my distance and make sure I don't get or carry any of his germs. One cold during pregnancy is enough for me. :P :)

Pictures of food room and bedroom.

Windows that need to be replaced. (Still going to try to get started on that asap.)


Our new dining table, with the older chairs we had. We are going to try to go tomorrow and find a decent looking, cheap tablecloth for the table. The table has an extension and can seat 6 if necessary.


Lots of boxes to get rid of (tomorrow).


Even more boxes to get rid of.


And today we easily finished the clothes storage.

Another view.

Fredrik had car service on the Toyota today (a regular check-up). So he took the car in at 7 AM and walked home (just down the street). And then he called them at 12.30 and they said it was finished. So he got to work around 1 PM and then he was home by 3 PM. :))) So not a very long work day for him. :)

Things are well. The baby has been sorta quiet the last couple of days. :) Caesar has been behaving well.

And Fredrik was on the front page of a Gothenburg newspaper! :)) I'll try to scan that and put it on here tomorrow.