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some places we've visited so far

  • maui, hawaii
    The day we got home, we started saving for our next trip. See my blog entry
  • antalya, turkey
    I miss hearing the call to prayer before sunrise every morning, the sunshine and the small winding roads in the old city. But I don't miss the olives for breakfast. See my blog entry
  • helsinki
    The cruise from Stockholm was the highlight. Breathtaking, really. We found Helsinki to be down-to-earth, friendly and a just-right size. See my blog entry
  • london
    Why on Earth did it take me so long to visit London?! Rivals Paris for best city in Europe. Avoid Oxford Street and Covent Garden, and head to Chelsea and Holborn. See my blog entry
  • paris
    It was my third trip to Paris, but our first while living in Sweden. And, more significantly, our first with a baby in tow. Metro ≠ baby friendly. Centre Pompidou = 10x more fun with a little one. See my blog entry.
  • bergen and oslo, norway
    Think Colorado. Flooded. Oslo is a refreshing little city and the fjords offered beautiful views in all directions. Not love, love. But definitely like, like. See my blog entry.
  • prague, czech republic
    Yes, it has beautiful architecture. But no soul. Skip it and go to Budapest instead.
  • berlin, germany
    We only spent a night here, but I could tell immediately that this was a city I could live in. Hope we can get back there sometime soon. Loved the new architecture, friendly people and the gigantic, wooded park.
  • tavira, portugal
    A great place to relax, see endless fields of daisies, drink sangria and be surrounded by the smell of orange blossoms. See my blog entry.
  • amsterdam and delft
    Amsterdam was one of our favorite European cities and Delft is a little gem you wish you could fit in your pocket and take home. Loved the individual style and easy-going nature of the people. See my blog entry.
  • budapest
    Hurry, it's already been discovered. Wonderful cheap food and an outdoorsy mentality. See my blog entry.
  • dalarna, sweden
    Reminds us of home. Really relaxing and laid back. See my blog entry.
  • hong kong and tai pei
    Super friendly people and so romantic. See my blog entry.
  • nice
    Loved Villefranche and the whole area east of Nice. See my blog entry.
  • barcelona
    Loved the tapas and eating paella on the beach. See my blog entry.

about me



  • In November 2005, my husband and I moved to Älmhult, Sweden, for my dream job. Five years later, our little family of three moved back. Except, back turned out to be a brand new place called Portland.

    email me

« label shopping, PDX-style | Main | home is... ? »

October 17, 2010

a boo-tiful day

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I'm not sure if there could be a better time to move back to the States. You've got Brach's candy corn (I think I'm addicted), Starbuck's pumpkin spice lattes... and pumpkin farm festivities! Along with everyone else in Portland, we headed north to Sauvie Island to pick out our pumpkins on Saturday. Sophie was more interested in the pony ride than the hay ride, while I was more interested in corn eating than corn mazing. And all three of us enjoyed listening to a fun country band. The whole afternoon felt so American! Can't wait to take Sophie trick-or-treating for the first time in 2 weeks...

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Comments

Looks awesome. JEALOUS. And no Swedish winter to worry about, either!

Posted by: Antropologa | October 17, 2010 at 11:32 PM

Looks like a good time!

Posted by: Sue your IKEA fan from Cincinnati | October 18, 2010 at 06:32 PM

I love Halloween! And I will never forget the strange looks I got in my Swedish korridor at Lund University as I was carving my pumpkin... one Swede even asked me, "Are you doing that for Christmas?"

There was an excellent pumpkin patch in Bjärred, but we were pretty much the only people there...

Glad you're having fun!!

http://linneainlund.blogspot.com/2007/10/pumporna-i-bjrred-this-morning-i.html

http://linneainlund.blogspot.com/2007/10/pumpkin-carving-i-cant-remember-last.html

Posted by: Linnea | October 19, 2010 at 11:08 AM

The hands-down best pumpkin patch/harvest festival is at Bauman's Farm (www.baumanfarms.com) down in Gervais. A ton of activities, and fresh cider donuts to boot. It truly is an all-day affair (no joke . . . at least with slightly older kids), and we even got to see them smash a car with a 500-pound pumpkin dropped from the sky. LOADS of fun for all and awesome food. We literally stumbled upon it back in 2000 when Nathan was one month old, and have gone back every year since. It's a much bigger affair now, but still really well run.

BTW, in case you haven't yet figured it out, Halloween is basically the biggest holiday of the year in Portland. We get about 1,000 trick-or-treaters (not hyperbole) in our neighborhood. I like to say that our house dresses up as the Las Vegas Strip fro Halloween.

Enjoy it, and welcome (again).

Posted by: Andrew Reilly | October 26, 2010 at 12:41 AM

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