A Fig in Sweden

daycare anxiety

Every day we walk by the pre-school we hope Sophie will go to in January. And every day we dread the idea of somebody else taking care of her.

Until today.

Because, for the first time, we were on the inside, visiting with the staff in preparation for the sign-up process. What we saw impressed us so much that we actually feel excited for her. She is going to have a blast. She'll spend Mondays in the forest learning about snails, slugs and other critters. Tuesdays are focused on Montessori learning. She'll paint on Wednesdays, and do gymnastics and sports on Thursdays. And then Fridays are for singing.

Now let's just hope we get in. Daycare, or pre-school as they call it, works a bit differently here. You have to submit your top 3 choices to the kommun, and they place you based on that. You should get your #1 unless it's full, I guess. You also pay the same amount no matter where you go: for one child, it's 3% of your income up to a maximum of 1260 SEK ($200) per month. No, I didn't forget a zero. It's $200 per month. (!!!)

They also have a two-week introductory period when a child first enters daycare. The first few days, the parent and child join the group for about an hour. Then the parent leaves for maybe 45 minutes the next day, adding a bit more time each day until the child is there the whole day alone. Isn't that great? No separation anxiety for the child... or the parent.

I never thought I'd say this, but I can't wait until January!

gag me with a spoon

table for 3

Lewis and I have been together for 13 years, and we just bought our first kitchen table. Or as the Swedes say... a matplats. Growing up I always had one. It's where we had our everyday meals. The dining room was for special occasions.

For 13 years we've eaten dinner in front of the TV. Breakfast and lunch have usually been eaten on stools at the kitchen counter. But now we'll be eating our meals with Sophie at the table. We've been trying this solid food thing for a month now and had a big breakthrough last week. It was Sophie's first time sitting in her highchair at the table, and she actually opened her mouth and leaned into the spoon. Lewis and I were jumping up and down, and ran for the camera. It's hysterical that such a small thing makes major news around here.

(The table we got is the IKEA NORDEN table in beech. The chairs are SNILLE office chairs – super comfy and a great deal at $19.99 a pop.)

sweet slumber

It was an action-packed week... blog update coming soon. :)

german-designed fun

Our 10-hour drive to Wiesbaden, Germany, turned into a 15-hour adventure after we hit major traffic on the autobahn. Yeah, 15 hours for Sophie to sit in "the bucket" as we call it. Poor thing. She started to lose it at the 14-hour mark. Luckily all it took was a quick feeding, and we were back on the road and finally made it.

We're having a great time with Grandma and Poppy. And we've found some adorable German toys for Sophie that we're setting aside for Christmas and her birthday. The Selecta duck on a push stick pictured above has these leather feet that make it waddle. Cracks us up every time it moves. Here's what else we found:

Die Lieben Sieben ball

Sigikid pony comforter

Haba Flori – which was my ultimate find at a secondhand shop for just 2 euros!

no paparazzi, mom

Hey, c'mon... this is BIG news! We finally found a yummy vegetable: avocado. (We have also tried sweet potatoes, parsnips and corn.) It's been pretty hilarious over here the past two weeks with all the grimacing, gagging, shivering and spitting.

Incidentally, the Swedes advocate adding fat to the purées. A dab of butter or some oil. I can't bring myself to do it. It just feels wrong, and none of my U.S. baby food books say to do it. I've felt really lucky to be able to pick and choose the things I like from each country's philosophy. But in this case, it's left me a bit stumped.   

potatis = two thumbs down

pogy

Sophie has slept in 6 different places so far on this journey. And she has slept very well thanks to her little Pogy travel bed. It's a German-designed gadget that's available online at Target. It even comes with insect netting you can put over the top for naps in the park.

waasssuuupppp?

Sophie's version of Waaassssuuuppp while "airing out" on the floor. (This is also a test to see how YouTube works with the blog and the video camera on my phone. Please stand by.)

Lewis sounds pretty good too! :)

4 months and 4 a.m. wake-ups

The good news is that we're enjoying long sunny days now. The bad news is that we're not getting much sleep because of it. Sophie has been sleeping through the night for two months now, but this last week she has been waking up with the sun... around 4:30 a.m. Last night we blockaded all windows and finally got up at a decent hour: 7 a.m.

Our little monkey is 4 months old today. It feels  like any day she's going to roll over, and she's talking up a storm. She likes to talk to (and sometimes yell at) her animals. It's all baby babble right now, of course. Singing and dancing usually gets her to laugh. And she loves when daddy stands her up on the coffee table. She also seems to be getting more attached to us and becoming a little snugglemuffin.

best place to be a mom

Happy mother's day to all U.S. moms out there! Sweden celebrates the day in a few weeks. We wish we were in Denver right now so we could mark the occasion with breakfast at our favorite spot: Racines. Instead, I think we'll buy some potted flowers at the garden shop. We used to do that with my mom when we were growing up.

Anyway, even though we are lacking a place that serves french toast with strawberries, Sweden is the best place in the world to be a mom. Really! That's what Save the Children says in its Mother's Day Report Card. I think being a mom is the best feeling in the world no matter where in the world you live. But we feel pretty lucky to be so well taken care of in Sweden.

sand and surf

Yup, I bought that tent-doohicky from IKEA, and Sophie and I hit the coast yesterday for some r&r. I was in heaven, and Sophie seemed to really like it too. She was mesmerized by the ocean and never fussed the whole time we were there. The tent thing worked out well. She was shaded, and it gave me some privacy when I had to feed her. Not that I really needed it. Here's the view to our right and our left.

And my favorite view of all...

strawberry girl

It's my favorite time of year in Sweden. Not only is it warm enough to be outside in a t-shirt and see the sun on a daily basis (we had a total of 20 minutes of sunshine the whole month of December according to the Swedish meteorological institute), the strawberry girls have now set up their stands outside the supermarket. They're not Swedish berries yet... the ones we got on Friday were from Belgium. A little tart, but beggars can't be choosers. It's just nice to be able to have fresh berries again.

Sophie's getting into berry season as well, with her "strawberry hat" from the Gap.

baby cafe

One of the churches in town has a "baby cafe" every Wednesday from 1-3 – for mommies and babies up to a year old. I was a little intimidated about going, but luckily Anna agreed to let me tag along with her so I could see what it was all about.

It was really cool! On one side of the room are a bunch of mats for the kids to play on. On the other are fika tables for the mommies to chat. In the beginning there is a bunch of singing, which we missed today because we arrived a bit late.

Sophie really enjoyed looking at all the other babies. She seems really interested to look at the world around her. I took her to an Earth Day event yesterday in the sling and she quietly listened to two different speakers. She was just looking at the lights and all the people around me. She was totally happy just watching what was happening.

She's the best.

Here she is rolling around the floor with her buddy Lucas.

sassy sophie

I snapped these as we were getting the little diva ready for our morning walk today. Our girl's got some sass with a capital 's.'

rub a dub dub

That was Sophie at the beginning of baby massage class today.

And here she is at the end...

So I'd say it works! She liked it a lot in the beginning. I think JP is right... babies like to be naked. She was all smiles while I was massaging her feet and legs. Sophie and I go to baby massage every other week, with about seven other mommies and babies. The class is in Swedish, but I can follow along since she shows us how to do all the moves on that doll you see in the picture. And we have an instruction book.

I wish my Swedish was better because it's a mommy group as well, where people can talk about issues they are having. I understand some of it, but not enough to really take part in the discussion. Last week, the entire class time was spent talking about how our deliveries went. I think I may have been the only one who got an epidural if I understood correctly. (!!!)

Luckily, my mommy friend Anna and I plan to get together regularly. She's the one I met at the health clinic who found me on the Internet. Even though we barely know each other, I already feel really comfortable with her... like we've known each other much longer. It's really nice. We got together last week for a walk and then she came back to our house for lunch. This week I'll meet her on her side of town for a walk in the forest and lunch at her place. Her boy, Lucas, is 2 months older than Sophie. It's great because I can see what Sophie will be doing soon and get some tips from Anna on good toys, activities, etc. Especially when it comes to the Swedish stuff I don't know much about.

traces

I love these little signs of Sophie throughout the house. I find her socks wedged between the sofa cushions on an almost daily basis.

Daddy will be home from Greece in 23 minutes!!

first date

Sophie had her first date yesterday with a nice, handsome Swede named Dennis. He even made a move to hold her hand. Very cute.

It was my first mommy date, as well, with Dennis' mom, Sara, and Eva and her little girl, Simone. It was so great to see them and chat about mom stuff.  Then we went over to visit my coworkers at IKEA. It was fun to be back. Seemed exactly the same... like I had never left. Except now I'm a mom carrying my baby down the hall!

I have my next playdate with a woman I met at the baby health clinic. Lewis and I chatted with her one day while we were waiting for our appointment. Amazingly she tracked me down using Google, and found this blog. I got an email from her over the weekend and was totally shocked. Yay for Google and blogs! This blog also reunited me with my best friend growing up. I had been trying to find her for 10 years or more. So at least some really good things have come out of all my ramblings. :)

tummy time

Doctor's orders to try and round out the back of her head. The girl is sporting a major baby mullet these days too.

ready for takeoff

I didn't get a passport until I was 28. I had to get it so I could work in Antarctica. (I also had to get my wisdom teeth pulled so I wouldn't create a dental emergency at the bottom of the Earth, but that's another story.) After that, I was hooked on seeing and experiencing new places. I often think that if I hadn't gone to Antarctica I probably wouldn't be living in Sweden right now. Although I became a world traveler pretty late in life, I've made up for lost time. My passport is about to run out of pages after visiting New Zealand, Fiji, Italy, France, Switzerland, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, The Netherlands, Hungary, Czech Republic, Germany, China (Hong Kong), Taiwan and Portugal. (I still really want to see Japan and Iceland.)

Sophie just received her passport in the mail yesterday, and actually she's already been to another country (Denmark) to request it. I wonder if being born in Sweden and having a passport so young will make her want to experience the world at a much younger age than I did.

I thought it was going to be impossible to take Sophie's passport photo when she was only 6 weeks old and meet all the requirements – eyes open, both ears showing, closed mouth. Here's the trick: I draped a white sheet over her bouncy seat and sat her in it. And I took it in the morning when she's especially happy and alert. I got a good photo within minutes. Somehow I don't think the same techniques will work for Lewis when he takes my new passport photo this weekend...

Speaking of world travelers, Lewis' mom and stepdad are leaving the U.S. for the first time... TO MOVE TO GERMANY. In fact, Barbara has never even been on a plane before. Her first flight and big move happens on Monday. We'll be thinking of you guys and can't wait to see you on this side of the pond!

hot wheels

Just a glimpse of pram culture here... the pram parking "lot" at the baby health clinic.

I love being able to walk everywhere with her in the stroller. Earlier this week we walked to the big grocery store, which is on the outskirts of town. That's the one place we usually drive to because it's a bit further out and we tend to really load up. But I think I'll just put a backpack on and head over there on foot with Sophie a few times a week instead. And yesterday we walked to the IKEA store. It was Sophie's first time inside. She slept through the whole thing, so unfortunately I could not show her all the cool products that she will come to love. :)

Yup, I am starting to get out more. With Sophie past the two-month mark, I am less concerned about germs. Plus we're heading into spring, so there are fewer nasty colds going around. On my walk the other day, I bumped into a photographer I work with at IKEA. He is on "pappa leave" and was waiting for a train with his little girl. They were on their way to the Louisiana Museum north of Copenhagen. I told him he was so lucky to be able to get out and do things like that (because his girl is a toddler rather than an infant). He said, "You can, too." I guess he's right. Although breastfeeding does make it a bit more difficult. But I think I'm going to make a list of some good destinations and make a point to go. Museums are perfect because they have easy access to bathrooms, food and private places to breastfeed. Funny how having a child makes you see places in a whole new light.

Oh, but back to the health clinic visit... It was Sophie's two-month checkup, which included a visit from the doctor. That's how the free system can work here. Up until now, we've only seen a woman who's like a midwife for babies, not a real doctor. If there was a problem with Sophie, we would have seen the doctor earlier. But as long as a child is developing normally, babies only see a doctor at 2 months and again at 6 months, 12 months and 18 months. Sophie got the thumbs up from the doc, and now I start a baby massage class with 8 other Swedish moms on Monday. This will be interesting, especially since the class is in Swedish!

feathers, falafel and some vitamin D

IT WASN'T A FLUKE! Our girl wonder did it again. She slept straight through till 7 a.m.

So the well-rested fam took a drive to Sophie's birthplace – Växjö – a 45-minute drive away. It's the main city in our "county," and our main reason for going was so I could change my last name to Lewis'. Yup, I'm no longer a fig. Now it's my middle name.

Why the delay? I like my name. I've liked it for 37 years. And I guess the feminist in me didn't see why I should have to change it. But I guess this cold, dark place has softened me. I've been planning to change it for about a year now, and having Sophie got me to move my butt and do it.

It was easy peasy, and the way the Swedish government works means I don't need to really inform anyone about it. It will be automatically updated since it's tied to my personnumber. And the personnumber drives everything. They use it much more than a social security number. Next I'll change it in my U.S. passport, which is up for renewal soon.

While we were in Växjö, we decided to stroll the shopping street, which was all decked out in Easter feathers (a lady even handed us a bunch!). Yes, they decorate trees with feathers for Easter. I don't know the significance. Usher in spring or something. The little girls also dress up as witches and go door to door. And instead of Easter baskets, they fill cardboard eggs with candy. We picked up 2 eggs today  (see photo) – one for Sophie, and one for her future little sister or brother (whenever THAT happens.) I love that we'll raise her with all these neat Swedish customs. I think I'll buy a bunch of feathers, too. The neighbors will think we're nuts when we move back to the U.S.

Here I am with my feathers and a big ole falafel sandwich as I take in some really bright sunshine.

was it a fluke?

This is a day to be remembered. Marked down. Celebrated for years to come.

Sophie slept through the night last night. (!!!)

Mom and dad didn't though. Because we kept waking up to see if she was breathing.

This wonderful event happened after I was panicking most of the afternoon because she was spitting up A LOT and acting really fussy. Very unlike her. I started looking up all the scary things she could possible have. That didn't help.

Then I had a glass of wine (don't worry... the Swedish government gave me the OK) and miraculously everything got better. Ah, yes, the elixir for all that ails you.

fig duds!

Sophie is now the hippest girl on Knutsgatan. She's wearing FIG, the cool eco-label I mentioned a few weeks ago. Thanks mom and dad for this adorable super-soft sleeper!!

I like the copy on the label: Let's face it, kids would rather be naked. Nude is fun, but it leaves no room for style.

simple pleasures

If only the rest of us could be as easily entertained...

Her new stim-mobile arrived today and it was an instant hit.

united states of denmark?

Sophie got her first taste of the U.S. on Friday... when we took a trip across the bridge to Denmark.

Huh?

Well, it started with a visit to the U.S. embassy in Copenhagen to register Sophie's birth and get her passport and social security number. We had an appointment at 9:30 but it was kind of irrelevant because we had to wait in line anyway, behind all the people who lost their passports and were trying to catch a flight. Oh and one woman was giving up her citizenship so she wouldn't be a target for terrorists. Luckily I pumped on the drive down so Lewis could feed Sophie a bottle while I waited in line and dealt with the woman behind the counter.

After turning in all our paperwork (her passport will be mailed to us), we decided to keep the American theme going for the day by going to a mall. I mean, I am a Jersey Girl at heart after all. Sophie needs to know where she comes from! I have to say that the mall is a great place to go with a baby. Easy access to bathrooms with changing tables plus it doesn't matter what the weather is like. A big plus when living in Scandinavia.

The mall even had an American restaurant called The President. We couldn't resist. Lewis and I both ordered the Reagan Burger (a fish sandwich). And it was a little fishy! Haha!

With her first outing into a public place, it was a big day for Sophie. But it was also a big day for me... because I had to breastfeed Sophie for the first time in public. She was having a meltdown just as we sat down for lunch. I guess I was nervous because breastfeeding is not totally accepted in the U.S. I mean, you hear about women getting kicked out of stores and restaurants all the time by ignorant people. It's different here, luckily, but I guess I'm still used to the U.S. mentality. It went fine, and I'm glad to get it under my belt.  Now I think I'll feel more comfortable about it.

battling the brown with a little green

When we learned that we'd be adding another person to this planet we decided to try and lighten their footprint as much as possible. We're not perfect by any means! But we try. Like using hand-me-downs and buying used clothing and supplies.  (Which also appeals to our budget, of course.)

But the #1 (and #2) way to be more eco-friendly, of course, is how you take care of the #1 and #2. We use unbleached prefold cloth diapers during the day and disposables at night. (See... not perfect.) The cloth diapers just get soaked so quickly. It's more comfortable for her to sleep longer with the disposables on. So that's what we do. Luckily Sweden has an eco-labeling system, which makes it easier to make the green choice. (I wish the U.S. had this.) It's called the swan label, and it's only placed on two brands of diapers in Sweden.

So far I've only been able to locate one of them, and only at one store in Älmhult: Coop. They're the Coop brand diapers. And they're actually the cheapest.

We'll see how they stand up to Sophie's poo-fests. A co-worker told me she tried Pampers and Libero and liked these the best. You gotta love when the green choice is also the best choice.

sophie has a question

Is it...

a. Can I be reassigned? These people are nuts.
b. What's for dinner?
c. Could someone take care of the juicy stuff in my diaper?
d. Uh, yeah, I pooped again. Can you get that?

The raised hand is one of Sophie's signature moves. Sometimes when she's laying in her bassinet all you see is her hand poking up. Hysterical.

good wood

My friend Karin, who was the HR person responsible for hiring me, came by the house today for a little fika and brought Sophie her first Swedish toy: this classic from BRIO. I was JUST saying that I want to find nice wooden toys for our girl, so I was so excited about this great gift! I've heard of BRIO – they make the wooden train sets popular in the U.S. What I didn't know is that the company's roots are right here... like a 15-minute car ride away! A guy named Ivar (not to be confused with IKEA's Ingvar) started the company in 1884. I found a bunch of things that I want to buy, like this cute pull-along dog and push cart. Turns out their main office also has an outlet shop, so Sophie and I will definitely be paying it a visit sometime soon!

1 month!

Happy 1-month birthday, little angel.

the swedish stork - part III

(I promised a part III about coming home with Sophie and here it is... finally!)

For the first hour home with Sophie, we were petrified. I was starting to wonder why we were stupid enough to leave the hospital. Plus I hadn't slept in 4 days, so I was mumbling and delirious.

But that quickly changed after we got a call from our friend Alisa, who reminded us that we are, in fact, capable adults, and then the child health clinic (BVC). I swear when I heard the woman on the other end of the line say she was from the BVC – and that she understood we just left the hospital and wondered if we needed anything – I could have kissed her. What service! We had only been home for about 2 hours.

She explained how the BVC works and set up a time for me to bring Sophie over so she could be weighed and chat a bit.

In the meantime, I had two burning questions that couldn't wait: 1. Our home is a bit colder than the hospital. How could we tell if Sophie was warm enough? (Answer: Babies' hands and feet are always cold. The only way to tell is to feel between their shoulder blades on their back. If it's warm and clammy, they are too warm. Warm is good. Just not clammy.) 2. Is it normal for her to be sleeping so much? (Answer: Yes. Newborns sleep 20 hours a day.)

The woman at the BVC is not a pediatrician. She's like a midwife for babies. In other words, she specializes in child health but she's not a doctor. I met her two days later for Sophie's appt, where she weighed Sophie and measured her head and length. Then she offered to make a home visit the following week. The home visit was great because she could see Sophie's environment and make comments. For example, she saw Sophie's bassinet (pram thingy) and asked if we had a pillow for her head so she won't get a flat spot. She also saw that we had a bouncy seat and said Sophie shouldn't use it until she is 6 weeks old.

Then she gave me some Vitamin A and D to give to Sophie starting at 4 weeks because we don't get enough sun here. (And you thought we were exaggerating.)

The other unusually Swedish thing we have encountered is the Swedish feeding cup (pictured below).

When we were in the hospital they needed to give Sophie formula because of her difficult birth. They used this feeding cup that looked a little like a gravy boat. We picked up one at the apoteket so we could continue supplementing her diet with some formula. Now at 1 month, we give her one formula bottle before she goes to bed and I pump instead. Our reasoning: It fills her up more so she sleeps longer at night, and we want her to be ambi-food-rous if that makes sense. We figure if we keep her on a little formula we can always feed her formula if we need to.

Other highlights of home life with Sophie:

- Poop, lots of poop. When I told the BVC nurse (Ann-Katrin) about our dirty monkey, she laughed and said, "Well, she's eating a lot." (Yes, the girl can eat. Sophie was getting hungry every hour on the hour in the afternoons, but Ann-Katrin told me to push it to 2-3 hours.) We have finally figured out the secret to folding cloth diapers so her poo-fests don't result in blowouts. Though we're also using more disposables than I thought we would - mainly at night.

- Harley the cat and Tilly the dog have pretty much steered clear of Sophie, though both are curious.

- The Pram!! My beloved pram is certainly proving it was worth every krona. The three wheels make it easy to manuever with one hand so I can hold Tilly in the other.

- Sleep or lack of it. Actually Sophie is pretty good at night. When she doesn't amaze us with a 6-hour block, she usually gives us 4-hour shifts, waking up around 2 or 3.

- Sophie loves being in the sling. Mom loves it, too, because then I can use two hands. This one is the organic cotton CuddlyWrap.

 

life is a circle

That handsome couple is my mom and dad, and that little peanut is me. I wasn't sure Sophie looked much like me until my mom showed me these pictures.

Fast forward 37 years, and here they are again holding a little infant in their arms: their granddaughter.

They flew out here for two weeks to help out and get to know Sophie. It was a REALLY great visit. You gotta love it when a two-week visit feels too short. We got so used to them being here, it felt like they had moved in (which would be A-OK with us... I know Sophie would love it too). Both my mom and dad seemed to have the magic touch in lulling Sophie to sleep. And when Sophie started to get a little fussy for the first time, they made me feel sane and that I wasn't doing something wrong. (Luckily Sophie isn't fussy very often, or I would really be in trouble.) We even managed to make three short excursions to Lund, Växjö and the antique market in Moheda. My mom and I also hit the sewing shop in town, where I picked up some fabric to make Sophie a dress.

Going to Lund and Växjö with Sophie proved to be a little difficult. Mainly because she isn't supposed to be inside public places yet since it's winter and illness spreads so easily. That meant we had to stay outside. So basically I had to feed her and change her diaper in the car, which was more of a hassle than it sounds like. It will be much easier to get out and take her places when she can go inside.

Grandma (aka "Mimi") and Grandpa (aka "Doc") fell in love with Sophie, of course. And Sophie gave some of her very first smiles back at them. Their visit - and teary departure - made me miss home. I love the fact that we are raising a baby in child-friendly, no-crime Sweden. But now that Sophie is in the picture, sometimes it feels like we are too far away from the people we care about and the people we want Sophie to know.

fig kids

Sophie isn't the only fig kid out there. Turns out there's a whole bunch of fig kids thanks to a Canadian Fig... Fig organic kids fashion. Now that's a label Sophie can wear with pride!

My friend Mary Jo tipped me off to this cool eco-company based in Whistler, British Columbia. I emailed them a few months ago to spread some fig cheer, and it turns out they had a little fig kid of their own about a week ago. A little fig girl, too! Too bad she and Sophie are on opposite sides of the world. I can just see them heading to the slopes on a powder day in their little snowsuits. (Speaking of which, how early can we teach Sophie to snowboard?) :)

Anyway, co-owner Michael Ziff and I have been emailing back and forth about our little figkids. He's a great guy trying to help "Spaceship Earth" one certified organic cotton thread at a time. I, for one, can't wait to support the cause... and Sophie's eco-wardrobe.

Julia Roberts' daughter Hazel already does...

happy valentine's day

 

sophie is on the move

Sophie got a taste of the urban life yesterday when Grandma, Grandpa and I drove down to Lund and met daddy after class for a little clothes, cheese and coffee shopping.

newparentcameraosis

new·par·ent·cam·er·a·o·sis, n. A condition in which parents, particularly new parents, grab any camera in sight to photograph their children and then mass-distribute the images to everyone they know.

the swedish stork - part II

OK, onto Part II: Once the delivery was over, Lewis, Sophie and I were taken to our room. Most rooms are doubles, and the husband can stay overnight only if there is space for him. We knew it had been a busy day for deliveries and had little hope that Lewis would be able to stay over. But for some reason we were placed in a single room so it was no problem for Lewis to stay.

Click here for a video tour of our room at Växjö hospital

Some things we found interesting:

- Babies are never apart from their parents. When the doctor was worried that Sophie had gone #2 in the amniotic fluid and swallowed some, they asked Lewis to follow them to another room where they suctioned out her lungs.

- Food is not served to you in your room. You need to walk down to a common area to get it. Breakfast is buffet-style while lunch and dinner are based on your meal preference (ie. they gave me vegetarian meals). 

- The babies are placed in these wheelable bassinets, so it was easy to take Sophie with me to eat every day.

- Everything you need for diaper changes is in your room. They don't do that stuff for you. I don't know what it's like in the U.S., but I was under the impression that the nurses did some of that. I guess it depends on the facilities.

- You are expected to tidy up your room and throw out the garbage before you leave. (Which I did, but then the midwife came in and told me they would clean the room. I've read on message boards that other hospitals in Sweden really expect you to clean up your room.)

- You need to bring clothes for your baby to wear during his or her stay. They put Sophie in an outfit to start, but then we needed to change her into ones we brought the next day.

- The only real negative thing about the way they do it here is that I didn't have one point person to go to to ask questions about Sophie's well-being. Yes, you get to hear many different perspectives, but I was also a little frustrated that the guidance I was given was based on who was working that shift. We were told the day after Sophie was born that they needed to feed her formula because she was starting with "negative money in the bank" so to speak due to the fact that she was pulled out with the vacuum extractor and I received antibiotics during delivery. Since I planned on breastfeeding, I wasn't too happy to hear that because I was worried it would screw that up. I had to just trust her judgment and agree to it. On the last day, when the midwife we love found out we were giving her formula, she made it seem like we demanded it or something. I got the impression that she didn't approve of it. So maybe things would have been different had she been there instead. (We actually don't have a huge problem with the formula. It hasn't gotten in the way of breastfeeding, and we're still feeding her a little to supplement. She's a big eater!)

- And we didn't pay a dime.

she sleeps

...and we all sleep. We said we wouldn't bring Sophie into our bed to sleep. That was before we were her parents. She starts in her bassinet but often ends up with us in our bed around 3. Cosleeping is very common in Sweden. Some agree with it, some don't. We're happy with the arrangement because Sophie is sleeping 8+ hours every night and wakes up once for a feeding (anywhere between 2 and 4). Jättebra!

the swedish stork - part I

Hi everyone! I've been a mom for 6 days, 16 hours and 44 minutes!!! It's been incredible and wonderful from the very first moment. Sophie is an angel and is making being a first-time mom feel pretty easy so far. Thank goodness she is such a calm baby, because her journey into this world was anything but stress-free. And she handled it all so well. Mom? Well, I think I did pretty good too.

Here's the exciting chain of events that led to her birth:

1 p.m., Jan. 24: Lewis, his uncle Dick and I take Tilly for a long walk to the lake. We get 45 minutes out and turn around just as Tilly hurt one of her paws and couldn't walk. Dick and I stay behind with Tilly while Lewis runs home to get the car. I tell them it would be funny if I started having contractions then. Nobody thinks it's funny.

8 p.m.: Steve Carell induces my contractions. We sit down to watch 40-year-old Virgin and I start feeling a new sort of pain in my back and abdomen. That guy is talented.

9:26 p.m.: I keep my eye on the clock and these weird pains are coming every 10 minutes. They get a bit faster over the next hour or so, so I call the hospital. They say it's too early and to wait until the contractions are 3-4 minutes apart. "Try to get some sleep." Yeah right.

3 a.m., January 25: Contractions are hard to bear and the midwives at Växjö hospital tell me I am welcome to come in. It's a calm, quiet ride in the dark even though Lewis manages to find every pothole.

3:45 a.m.:  I'm placed in my birthing room and they check a bunch of stuff to make sure that I am indeed in labor. I'm 2cm dilated.

3:46 a.m.: WHEN CAN I GET AN EPIDURAL?? Silly me wrote in my birth plan that I wanted to deliver the baby naturally. Ha! Time for a new birth plan. The midwife says I can't get the epidural until I'm 4cm dilated, but I can try alternative pain therapy. I decide to take a hot bath and then tried laughing gas. Laughing gas is banned in the U.S. for some reason, but I'm happy it's available here. I wasn't exactly laughing through the contractions but it "chopped the peak off" as the midwife says.

2 p.m.: I'm fully dilated and should be ready to push at any moment. The midwife we love is about to end her shift at 3, so we're hoping we can pop Tito out in an hour. But Tito has other plans. Her head hasn't dropped enough and I have a fever, which is affecting the baby's heartrate. They give me antibiotics and boost my contractions with some chemical in my IV. Nice.

8 p.m.: 6 hours later I'm ready to push. Oh, but not before my epidural ran out and the new midwife said they weren't going to renew it. Thanks. (We don't like the new midwife.) Unfortunately, after about an hour of pushing, Tito's head isn't budging much. A doctor is called in and he says he can get our little munchkin out with a suction cup or vacuum extractor.

9:20 p.m.: After trying the suction 3-4 times, they try the heavy-duty vacuum extractor a couple times. Finally in the third push/pull, Sophie Grace was born. Turns out I was trying to push her head, hand and shoulder at the same time, because the little peanut had her hand over her head. Little rebel. Girl power!

They placed her immediately on my chest. I looked down at her first and then over at Lewis, who was bawling. What an amazing moment. I have to add that during the entire 18+ hours in active labor at the hospital, Lewis did everything right. He always knew what I needed and where to rub me. I know men must feel like they don't play an active role in the birth, but I couldn't have done it without him right there with me.

A lot of people have asked me about the language barrier in the delivery room. With the first two shifts of midwives, it wasn't a problem at all. I felt like I was in the best care possible and was in constant communication with the staff. Even the older midwife assistants who weren't the best in English were the sweetest people and we always managed to find a way to understand each other.

That all changed when the last of my midwives came on at 2. We definitely felt neglected and sometimes she would only speak Swedish and be like, "You understand, right?" It's a bummer that after 2 great midwives, this woman delivered our baby. It's awful to think this, but I can't help but feel she gave us attitude because we're Americans. I can't think of any other reason. Oh well, the important thing is that Sophie is here.

Here are some more labor pictures. Part II on our hospital stay and Part III on bringing baby home will be posted in between feedings and naps...

Our arrival at the hospital in the middle of the night.

During labor, I tried to stand as much as possible to get some help from gravity. They had these special contraptions on wheels so you could move around and get support when you needed it. They probably have these in the U.S. too.

When the contractions were easy, dad tried to catch a few Zs.

need 24 more hours in the day

Because I would love to be able to send each and every one of you a personal thank you for your well wishes. We are so lucky to have so many people care about us. Including those of you whom we have never met. Really incredible.

I also need more hours in the day to catch up on sleep and on this blog. But sleep is taking priority right now. :)

In the meantime, read Lewis' humorous account of the delivery...

Good night!