my so-called boring life

Yesterday morning we drove about an hour to a dairy farm to watch them put the cows out to pasture for the summer. The Swedish milk company, Arla, sponsored it and offered free milk and cinnamon buns. The kids got to pet the cute baby cows, and the adults got to play a typical Swedish game - tipspromenad - which is basically a cross between Trivial Pursuit and a scavenger hunt.

When the cows were released and started happily running amok, a few came right at me and Sophie. And, for a split second, I thought that maybe they would ignore the itty-bitty fence protecting us. I stepped back. Right into a pile of sh*t. (What genius wears white sneakers to a farm? Luckily I had a back-up pair of flip-flops in the car. And luckily I did not have THOSE on when I stepped in the cow poo! Yuck!)

Afterwards we threw down some picnic blankets by a lake and enjoyed lunch with our friends Anna and Per and their toddler, Lucas. It was a really relaxing day, and Sophie loved seeing all her cow friends. (She absolutely loves animals. The Animal Planet meerkats are her favorite.)

When one of my friends from the States learned of our little adventure on Facebook, she thought it all sounded a bit lame. Like going to "watch paint dry."

REALLY?!

Has our life become completely boring and we didn't realize it? Lewis agreed that seeing cows being released into fields probably didn't sound all that exciting. I have to admit, though, when my friend Anna invited us to tag along with them, I was looking forward to it. Plus, it seemed like such a Swedish thing to do, and I wanted to see what it was all about.

The thing is, I love that I get excited about this stuff. I love that the highlight of a vacation or day trip to the coast is hearing Sophie laugh. And I love that living in a small town lets us appreciate all the little things in life. A lot of people might find that boring. Well, I'm going to miss the hell out of this boring little town when it's time for us to leave.

Comments

[Wendy]

I hope you don't mind, but I'm linking to your post for Small Town Snapshot Sunday. You should check it out and see if you want to participate next week. We have a lot of small town fun with it!

http://wendysees.blogspot.com/2009/05/small-town-snapshot-sunday-7.html

[tiddleywink]

I think your trip to see the cows sounds like an adventure! And I relish your joy in hearing your daughter laugh. Your daughter will, too. And if the three of you can laugh WHILE watching paint dry, I think you're setting a pretty dang good example. ;)

[Kevin]

OK, let's get real --- you move to Sweden on a whim and are experiencing a whole different world. Boring? Really?? Au contraire. I applaud your courage to live life to the full and take risks and relish in the "small stuff".

My partner Scott and I and our 3 year old son are spending this summer in Stockholm ---- doing a house swap --- (we live in Portland, OR) --- I've really enjoyed reading your blog as we get ready to go on our own little adventure. It's the small stuff that we are most looking forward to.

Best,

Kevin

[Vanessa]

No way, I don't think that sounds boring at all! Actually, I'm a little jealous. Except for that part about stepping in the sh*t :-)

[Hexe]

Sounds like a great family day - kids, animals, picnic. Perfect!

[Jenni]

Cool to find your blog.

We are living life in reverse. Only my Smaland-raised, Finnish-born husband moved to the United States, to Minnesota to be exact. I am a Finnish/Saami American who grew up in a little village in Wisconsin called West Sweden, peopled with Smalander descendents not far away from where Moberg wrote his books on Swedish emigrants in the United States. We have two children, Allan-John, 15, who lives with us and who is the product of my first marriage. And there is Jonathan, his child from a long-term relationship who lives in Almhult too. (His mother, Ingela, has a home-based web business selling baby clothing).