Top Three

• Our new bed.  It's amazing.
• Ripe raspberries.
• Fantasy Homes By The Sea.  Swedish TV is running pre-recession episodes and the decadence at its most magnificent. 

Top Three

• Movie theater popcorn.
• Holding hands.
• Rain when I feel like being indoors anyway.

Top Three

• Heat.
• Comfy shoes.
• New friends.

Top Three

• Browsing Hemnet with The Swede, dreaming about our future.
• Jamie's Bamse outfit.
• Packing away all the winter clothes for a few months.

Top Three

• Finding something easily that I thought would take forever to locate.
• The garden Ray planted here lives on nearly two weeks later.  I haven't killed it yet!
• Popcorn balls, obvs.

Top Three

• Jamie's bedhead.
• Frozen Ikea pancakes.
• An outdoor fika.

Top Three

• Twinkies.
• Five hours of sleep. IN. A. ROW.
• Text love from the hubby.

Top Three

• A baby who maintained his good mood despite skipping his nap.
• Feeling Petra's preggo belly.
• My new jacket.  It is shameful how much I love it, really.

Every Mothers' Day

I was so excited, you guys.  I was going to be celebrating American Mother's Day with my mom.  Last Sunday I gave her a big hug and the customary greeting and she was all, "Thanks, sweetie, but it's next Sunday."  Yeah.  If we were in the same place today I'd take her to breakfast, but only if that place were America because breakfast is totally slammin' there and it's not so hot here.  Literally.  They eat cold sandwiches for breakfast.  So since I can't do the breakfast thing I thought I'd honor her with a donation to CARE via Every Mother Counts, an organization that aims to help prevent the hundreds of thousands of annual deaths of women and girls during pregnancy and childbirth.  My mother could have very possibly died while giving birth to me, but was able to become my mother due to access to modern medicine and the ability to deliver in a safe, sterile and reachable environment.  Jamie's birth, while long, was uncomplicated and low-risk but I cannot imagine having had to do it without drugs, outside of a hospital, or even alone as many of the world's women do.  It's easy for us to take these things for granted, the same way we often take our moms for granted, so today I'm going to try to remember how lucky we are to be alive to be mothers and to be extra grateful for the fact that I got to give mine a hug in person this year.  Just a week early.

Top Three

• Hugging my mom.
• Watching Jamie laugh with the the grandfolks.
• The arrival of my new phone.  Hello, mobile blogging!

Top Three

• My husband.  Everything about him.  He's my best friend and he's hilarious.
• Sharing in someone else's great news.
• Butterflies-style excitement.

Top Three

• New clothes for Jamie courtesy of Sarianne's expert secondhand shopping.
• Red days.  That's what we call public holidays here.  Today was one and The Swede had the day off.
• The end of a big countdown: Mom and Ray fly TOMORROW!

Top Three

• Sleeping within hearing range of a freeway. 
• Hotel breakfast.
• The Swede's mood after he's had a couple cups of coffee.

Top Three

• My husband's sick days.  Even if he's not feeling well, I still love having him around.
• Actual warmth coming from the actual sun.
• Rosey baby cheeks.

Top Three

• Ranunculus.
• Jamie charming train and bus passengers into talking.
• Seagulls floating on the now totally ice-free lake.

Top Three

• Two baby naps.  Unheard of.
• The Swede picking up dinner on the way home.
• Mad Men.

Top Three

• Hershey's kisses. 
• Driving.  I missed it.
• Petra.  I missed her too.

Top Three

• The best cole slaw I've ever tasted. 
• Getting a little yard work done while Jamie napped outside in his stroller.
• Fresh tulips on our kitchen table.

Top Three

• Getting good customer service.
• Franco's Pizza Sundays.
• Having lots to look forward to.

Top Three

• Greek yogurt.  Yeah, I finally got the memo.
• Free and willing childcare á la Mama Swede.
• Being right on time to catch the bus.