Fall is here

Fall has definitely arrived: the air is decidedly cooler, brittle leaves line the streets, some kids have started wearing their Michelin Man snowsuits to school ... and every woman from Malmö to Jokkmokk now seems to be wearing a uniform consisting of black, knee-high boots over skinny jeans and a sweater in some shade of grey. I don't think Ava is QUITE getting the concept of skipping through the autumn leaves. She has been doing a sort of kung-fu maneuver every time she encounters a pile (see above), much to Julian's delight.

We are ridiculously content at the moment. Really, I hope this blog isn't becoming a boring string of Isn't-Sweden-Great entries. I hate those! I mean who wants to read about how terrific someplace else is all the time? Please know we haven't forgotten the joys of California (weekends in Sonoma and Calistoga with friends, having a coffee with Mom [for less than $10], and getting a bagel in Noe Valley on Sunday morning to name just a few). Sweden just happens to be a great place for families with young kids. It's not the most exciting or visually dramatic place on earth (shocker!), but it's very comfortable with great work/life balance, and that's perfect for us right now. If we didn't have kids I'd probably be bored out of my noggin! I think another reason we are so content is because our time here in finite. We know we have about two years to enjoy the differences of life over here before we go back to our "real" life.

I'm off to Lund tomorrow night to do my first work assignment with Lorensbergs, and I've booked a two-day training (a presentation skills workshop) for November. As my friend Merel said last night over a tasty glass of Australian pinot (because I was just NOT going to pay $16 for a glass of merlot from Lodi), "Well, that is definitely part time!"