Dec. 12: Arrival!

Mats' brother and dad met us at the airport, waving the Swedish flag. When we walked outside the Copenhagen airport, the cold was shocking - twenty-something degrees. Henrik said, "It's so cold, I can't breathe."

A rented trailer to fit all our bags!

Seeing our house for the first time, snow and all! Mats' parents had made it a home for us- washed sheets on our newly-purchased Ikea beds, towels in the bathrooms, kitchen stocked, and even adorable lights in the windows. And the heat was on, so it was nice and warm. Couldn't have been a better welcome.

The first thing Henrik asked to do was take a bath. The first thing Lucas asked to do was shovel snow. I just walked around and looked at things in the house, and the views from the windows. It seemed unreal.

Dec 11 - 12 : Traveling to Sweden

8 bags each weighing 50 pounds, plus carry-on.

Thankfully Lucas is old enough to push his own cart!

Kids slept pretty well on the plane.


Announcement from Copenhagen airport:
"Attention travelers - there will be a slight delay in luggage delivery as the luggage door is frozen shut."

The Day Before We Leave

Wow, so much to pack, so limited time. The past two days had been spent driving around trying to find an open passport agency as we realized last-minute that Lucas' passport had expired (we'd forgotten that kids' passports are only good for 5 years vs. 10 for adults.) Luckily we had his Swedish passport to use for travel, but we wanted to renew his U.S. one before we left.

The final day had come, and we had a lot to pack. My mom, sister, and brother all came to help. Without them, it would not have gotten done (as well as help from other friends earlier that week!)

My mom arrived with Shadow to give us some pet therapy. She stayed with the kids in the hotel that night so we could finish packing.


Mats helping Henrik with a video game at the hotel, before bedtime.

Move Preparations

Quick update: We've moved to Sweden! After 2 years of debating, we decided to go for it. Here are a few pictures from the past few months.

61 boxes packed and ready to be shipped by boat to Sweden. ETA: 10 - 12 weeks from early November.

Sale pending, phew!

Storage containers arrived:


We shipped the Prius. ETA: 10 - 12 weeks from early December.


Packing