creativity is in the Air

A reason 4 years in the making.

2012-01-16T19:13:00.000+01:00

For the past 4 years I have been thinking about how to one day write this post. Something I have been waiting for so long.

Now that the day has come, I can't come up with something witty. I only want to present you the reason for my lack in blogging in the past 4 months. Let's say the past 16 weeks. It is the happiest reason of all.

Baby Lindahl is due July 8th and we are thrilled.

PS: Sorry for the crappy Instagram photo in our un-renovated hallway, better photos to come in the near future. You bet.

Jul aka Christmas

2012-01-04T22:10:00.000+01:00

This was the first time our parents weren't with us on Christmas. Although we missed them it was quite relaxing I have to say.

Christmas Eve we spent with Tina & José, the kids and our Sister Missionaries. Mikael's other sister Milla and her family had the stomach flu unfortunately, but we met up with them on Christmas Day.

Here are a few photos:

This is a combination of Finnish, Swedish and Spanish Christmas food. From top left to right bottom: My moms ham with a mustard and brown sugar crust, dates and bacon, Swedish meatballs and little sausages called prince sausages, my moms carrot and rice casserole and Tina's Swedish ham. (My mom is Finnish)

More dates and bacon and a Swedish Potato and Anchovis casserole. This is one of my favorites!

A Swedish tradition is to watch "Kalle Anka" (Donald Duck) on Christmas Eve at 3 pm. It is a collection of classic Walt Disney cartoons.

Mikael was our Santa - and he was really good! The kids didn't recognize him at all! No wonder, he was pulling the hat down and the beard up as much as possible :) In case you wonder - in Scandinavia, Germany, Switzerland and Austria we hand out presents on Christmas Day.

Oskar got a telephone and was so happy. Now he doesn't need to sneek into my bag anymore and try to find my Iphone to play with.

I gave Mikael a GPS watch. Now he is able to find the way home from anywhere, find out his heartbeat as he gets closer and know how long it took him.

I got really comfy pj-pants, Daisy by Marc Jacobs, chocolate and some Muumin stuff from my parents.

I already told my parents and my brother and his family that I hope they will come visit us next time.

Love,
The Lindahl's

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T13:48:00.000+01:00

It's been weeks!

I've been sick quite often and just not had the energy to post really. But we did decorate at home and I love how it looks.

Today I am going to cook a typical Finnish Christmas dinner and tomorrow we are eating it all up (well, I do hope for left overs) and celebrating with Mikael's two sisters and their families.

We are both off next week and it looks like we are going to buy a fireplace and install it. I also plan to bake cookies and just relax, relax, relax.

Oh yes, I pray for SNOW!! :)

Have a wonderful Christmas time. I have missed you all and posting - it will be more, I promise :)

Love,
Senja

Our German weekend - part 2

2011-12-05T12:41:00.000+01:00

Christmas Dinner at my parents


The city where my parents live in. Celle. Very old and beautiful.

My best friend Meike and her fiancé Fred. So great to see them!

My tired brother and his other daughter Mia.

I miss everybody already.. :(

Our German weekend - part 1: Instagram

2011-11-29T22:41:00.000+01:00

Last Thursday we drove down to Germany to take part in our new nieces baby blessing. Here are the Instagram photos for now. More "real ones" to come this week :)

My mother had her traditional Finnish "Pikkujoulu" a few weeks before Christmas where she invites friends over. Luckily we were there to eat the delicious Christmas ham and casseroles.

We went shopping in Hannover and visited the Christmas market. We ate Bratwurst, Schmalzgebäck and drank Punsch. It was heavenly. I also went to Primark for the first time which opened in Hannover about 3 weeks ago. O M G. So many cheap clothes. I bought colored tights, tops, a cardigan, sweater, etc.. Poor Mikael, he had to stand in line with me to the changing rooms in 30 minutes.. But we also got something really nice for him :)

We also saw cool Lego Star Wars figures.

And the most important thing. Milla Naina Hoge. Black hair and curious eyes. And on Sunday I had the privilege to hold her during Sacrament Meeting and she fell asleep in my arms. Heavenly.

More photos from Celle and Milla to come.

Travelling with Mikael is the best.

Swanlake

2011-11-17T22:40:00.001+01:00

Our city is a favorite holiday destination but after summer is gone not much happens unfortunately.

But today husband took me to see Swanlake in our local theatre by a Russian ensemble. He has seen it in Moscow at the Bolshoi Theatre many years ago when he served his mission there and really wanted to see it again. It was beautiful to experience live what I have seen and heard on tv and from Mikael's stories. I admit that I had to read about it on Wikipedia during the play, I don't think I would have understood it all otherwise.

Mikael took more photos with our camera. I'll post those tomorrow.

Mixed Feelings.

2011-11-11T20:29:00.001+01:00

I am sitting on the train on my way to the airport right as I write this. My legs are swollen from two days of running around and standing in ballerinas so that I can't get my boots up all the way.

It was intense. 2,5 days of conference. Dry air, adrenaline, 380 people, english, swedish, german and finnish in my brain and little water. But it all went really well. I was in the city center of Stockholm and felt like a city girl again.

My colleague and I have been organizing a big EU conference for gay men and HIV in Europe for the past year and now it's over. The day has come. When you work so closely together with customers they become like colleagues and we all got a bit choked up when we said goodbye.

This conference has taught me, broadened my horizon and I have met fantastic people.

And as I'm sitting on the train to Copenhagen to go to the Temple tomorrow with our ward and can't wait for some uplifting and spiritual time with the Lord and Mikael I feel like stepping into another world. My world. And that makes me get choked up again. The best kind.

The Weekend in Photos

2011-11-07T22:19:00.001+01:00

Our weekend was filled with a lot of fresh air, sleep and laughter. I started to let my natural curls appear again and not straighten it, kind love it. We went on an early Saturday morning walk, it's just so beautiful outside now, watched "The Killing" (can't wait for it to start again!) and I continued reading "The Help". I don't want to watch the movie yet without finishing the book.

And! On my way to work on Friday I saw 3 wild bores cross my way! First time ever seeing them and boy, was I excited! Can you spot them on the photo? I called Mikael right away who thought something had happened :) Adventures in the country side..

(Keep in mind, they are quite agressive and can damage your car badly if hit..)

I have just packed up again, just need to iron two shirts and I'm good to go. Tomorrow I am off to Stockholm again to take care of our big 2 day conference with about 400 people which we have been working on for about a year. I'll be done on Friday where I'll fly to Copenhagen to attend the Temple on Saturday with our ward. That will be the highlight of the week. :)

I am looking forward to the adrenaline rush this week and excitement but I just don't feel like leaving..

I'll try to update as much as I can.

Have a wonderful week! :)

XO Senja

Halloween.

2011-11-04T20:33:00.000+01:00

So, on Saturday we invited our ward and we celebrated Halloween. I have never been a fan of dressing up but this time I really wanted to be Marry Poppins, I just didn't have the energy and time to fancy up. So I went as..

With a little help of the creative Micah, an exchange student from the US who is in our ward

We lit up the forest nicely

And put up a fire

Oh how boringly I was dressed.. An Elder on P-Day ;)

Mikael as a polo player..

It was a great and fun evening.

About Love: Stephanie & Mike

2011-11-02T22:43:00.000+01:00

Our story started like this:

First: on the grass outside of the old entrance to the library at BYU, Freshman Orientation Week. I see a boy in a blue Halley's Comet tee and a backpack. He is alone. I am with my brand new friends, standing on the steps that lead down to the grass. We are in a crowd, and yet, somehow no one is standing between us. I have a clear view of his bright blue eyes. We smile.

Second: passing through the Canon Center, at Helaman Halls. I see that boy again, and I know he sees me, too. This time he is walking with a girl. I probably hate her. (I don't really.) Could he possibly live in my dorm? (He didn't.)

Third: at Club Omni, Provo's hottest (and only) dance spot. It's ladies night. And there he is, dressed to the nines in disco attire. He is standing with a friend, watching some break dancers. I think that maybe if I go stand next to him, he'll make a move. (He doesn't.)

Fourth: the Fall Fling. I am dancing with my sister and some friends. It feels like the entire population of Provo is pressed around us. I can't believe it, but there he is, dancing right next to me. I whisper to my sister that this is the boy I keep seeing everywhere. A slow song comes on. She makes me ask him to dance. (I do.)

I know this sounds lame, but I knew there was something special about him the first time I saw him. My first semester at BYU was spent memorizing his schedule and then strategically placing myself in the right place so that I would "bump" into him between classes (I can still feel those butterflies!).

. . . and then he moved home. And went on a mission. And I dated some other guys. I will forever be grateful that he forgot that I had stopped writing him halfway through his mission and called me when he got home.

Marrying Mike was the easiest decision I've ever made. I knew it was so right that I hardly had to think about it. We were married in the Los Angeles LDS temple on a very rainy February morning. The sun broke through the clouds just before we stepped out of the temple for the first time as man and wife.

Now, more than ten years later, I love him more than I ever thought I could. Sure we have our ups and downs just like everybody does. But I have learned that life is better when we are together, when we are working for each other, and making each other the priority. It is easy to get side tracked by work or kids or our own stuff, but the days that I put an extra effort into my marriage are my best days.

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I have been following Stephanie's blog for a long time and enjoy reading about her life in Arizona with her family. She blogs about life, baking, sewing with beautiful photos and warmth.

- Thank you so much, Stephanie.

This post is part of a regular blog post series titled "About Love", inspired by Cjanes couples retreat stories. I have asked friends and favourite bloggers to share their love stories, telling us why they got married and what they have learned since then. I hope you will also be inspired. See here for previous posts.

If you would also like to share your story, I'd love to hear from you.

Apologies.

2011-10-30T18:47:00.001+01:00

I read somewhere that you shouldn't apologize when you haven't been writing much on your blog. One one hand I understand but on the other hand I do have a few readers.. Granted, not that many, but I do get messages if I don't update. :) So, I am sorry for a not updating much on the blog this week. Here is the reason: I have been busy with preparing our Ward Halloween Party at our place (photos will be uploaded today or tomorrow) and coming up with a cold.

So today it was no surprise that I was just exhausted and sick which left me bed-bound while Mikael went to church all alone. I always feel bad when this happens.

I slept a lot today and cozied up in my bed while the balcony door in the upstairs hallway let in some fresh fall air and brought beautiful sound of the trees outside.

I am just not looking forward to flying to Stockholm tomorrow. Getting up so early and flying with a cold is well, you know, horrible.

But I am a big girl and will not complain (anymore).

The next few weeks will be busy with different things and I might or might not be posting less. But About Love is still on and some updates. So now that you know what's going to happen, I won't be apologizing anymore. Maybe you are also one of the people who don't care. Oh, well.

About Love: Megan & Sonny

2011-10-26T21:37:00.000+02:00

I love love.

growing up I was always fantasizing about my wedding. my big princess dress, who would be there, what my cake would look like…but with each detail being put into place by the age of 10, I had left out the most important (and the only way the whole thing would go off anyways): who my prince charming would be.

that was as far as I had been, he’d be my prince charming. tall and handsome. that was it.

in high school I was always the girl with the boyfriend. my family makes jokes about it now, but back then it was a sad truth.

I remember summers by which boyfriend I had. “oh that was the mike summer”, “oh that was the baxter summer”. it’s not that I wasn’t capable of being alone, despite many opinions, it’s that I didn’t want to. again I state, I was in love with love.

by the time I reached my senior year, it didn’t matter who was on the receiving line of my valentines day hearts, as long as I got one in return I was happy.

I realized too young that when a boy says he ‘loves’ you, he doesn’t really mean it…especially when he’s asking for something in return.

which is why my hubby is so different.

I met sonny on new years eve of 2009. he was timid, shy, and despite the two of us being the only ones in the room with out midnight kisses, he was a gentleman and just tipped his glass to say ‘happy new years’ when the ball dropped.

this was way out of my comfort zone. I was used to the really aggressive type of guys. the ones your mother tells you to stay away from.

he not only didn’t kiss me, but let me leave without asking for my phone number.

my girlfriend decided to play cupid, again. and this time with a little more success.

after a birthday dinner with friends, when everyone else went out sonny and I stayed behind.

(I was too young to go out, and he was on a fast…God works in awesome ways)

we spent the next couple of hours talking about basketball.

that’s right, sports.

and I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

our first date ended up being the orlando magic, boston celtics game. january 22, 2009.

{this is us on our first date!}

he opened up my car door before I got in, paid for not only my ticket but my dinner after as well, held my hand, and made me walk on the inside of the sidewalk by a busy street.

I was being swooned…and I didn’t even know how to let that happen.

the next couple of weeks were just about perfect. until I freaked out. it’s almost as if my brain set the ‘he’s a good guy’ signal off that made me rethink totally what was going on.

if I haven’t stated yet, I had an awful track record of attacking the worst guys. the ones who didn’t even know where the passenger door was to open it, the ones who made sure to tell the waiter we had separate checks, the ones who made me walk on the outside of the sidewalk.

after a couple weeks of me being a total sketch ball, we both knew things weren’t going to work out.
so the day before valentines day, sonny and I met to break up with each other.

seriously.

to this day we have no idea why we decided to ‘give it another chance’ but all we can do is thank God.

I realized quickly what it meant to be swooned and I took all the swooning I could get. sonny treated me (and still does) like the princess I always wanted to be treated like.

our relationship started and continued, to be so far from my previous relationships…which is why I know we were meant to be.

we committed our relationship to God at the get go and honored Him in all that we did. something I had never done in a relationship before.

before I knew it, I realized that this was my prince charming.
sonny had come in on his white horse and saved me from every terrible relationship I had ever been in.

{my favorite engagement picture}

and the most important thing to point out: it was through my relationship with sonny that I realized, the only way I’d truly love someone is if I love God first.

my whole dating life, and even after I was saved, I loved boys first. I loved having the title of ‘his girlfriend’ instead of having the title of ‘Daughter to the King’. it wasn’t just that sonny was my prince charming but he was also the one to help me find my way back to God after walking away so long ago.

I’ve been asked at least 50 times how I knew sonny was ‘the one’.

and my answer is always the cliché, ‘when you know, you just know’.

it’s not that one morning I woke up and realized he was my future hubby, I think I knew it all along. things just went too well for him not to be. he came into my life when I could have gone down a totally different road, and helped me find the map to the right road.

it’s only been 8 months (of bliss) so I don’t have this long list of marriage to dos and don’ts to share.

but what I do have to share is simple: glorify God in your relationships and He’ll reward you.

getting married at 22 was really nerve wrecking. I wondered what I’d do, since I wasn’t done with school yet. how we’d make it with money when I decided to go to school full time. I worried at times that I might be getting married too young, and that I hadn’t experience life alone long enough to know if I wanted to do it with someone.

but again…I just knew.

I prayed a lot during our engagement and God gave me all the answers I asked for.

and I realized shortly that sonny showing up really was (to get really cliché on you girls) the answer to my prayers. and in fact the answer to the prayers that I hadn’t even prayed yet, but because God knows my heart better than I do, He put sonny in my life.

so on january 22, 2011 while I wore my big princess dress and had the perfect cake, we were pronounced husband and wife surround by all our family and friends.

{and we’ll live happily ever after}

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Megan also wrote me and wanted to tell their story. Megan, I love that you wrote that you just "knew" - I know the feeling, I also just knew that Mikael was the right one for me. What a great feeling to get that confirmation. Congratulations again for newlyweds! What a beautiful sleigh you had! :)

- Thank you so much, Megan.

This post is part of a regular blog post series titled "About Love", inspired by Cjanes couples retreat stories. I have asked friends and favourite bloggers to share their love stories, telling us why they got married and what they have learned since then. I hope you will also be inspired. See here for previous posts.

If you would also like to share your story, I'd love to hear from you.

Fall is all around.

2011-10-25T20:40:00.000+02:00

One of my blogger fears is that I always have the same titles..

Well anyway. This is what fall looks like in our little village. We toured a little on Sunday...

Hope you are having a great Tuesday! Tune in for "About Love" again tomorrow :)

Pancakes á la Sweden

2011-10-24T20:24:00.000+02:00

We have the best missionaries. As they visited us last Sunday they asked if they could do something for us, help around the house for example.. And we asked them if they could help us get some of the cut wood from the forest down to our shed.

So, on Saturday we all got to work, but first we had some Swedish pancakes on the open flame in the forest. Sooo great! We used a Muurikka we got from my parents-in-law.

Here is the recipe to make original Swedish pancakes at home. It is super easy.

3 eggs
600 ml milk (2,5 cups)
pinch of salt
500 ml flour (2,1 cups)
25 grams butter for the dough (0.8 oz)
butter for your pan

Beat eggs, milk, salt and flour together.
Fry butter and pour into the dough, mix.
Lower heat a little (our stove goes up to 12 and I lower the heat to about 9)
Pour about 100 ml of dough in the pan and wait until the pancake top is cooked.
Turn and fry the other side.
Melt a bit butter in the pan after each second pancake.

Done! :)

Serve it with strawberry jam, sugar or ice cream.

Today...

2011-10-19T20:42:00.001+02:00

I am sitting here on our couch, with my wool cardigan and socks on. Our wood heater in the basement is on and warm air is filling the house while a hale storm is going wild outside.

And during all of this I just thought: "I'm happy" - and here's why:

~ I had a good day at work, I wasn't stressed and left at 5.30
~ I worked out {I never thought that working out would make me happy, but lately I noticed that I really need it}
~ The weather outside
~ I am really excited for the future. I have felt discouraged many times this year and felt that life is hard. But I still had hope and knew that at one point everything would be better. Mikael has so much to do right now that he even hired help. He smiles much more and we are happier together.
~ Although I was craving candy, I didn't give in.

And, last but not least - check out my awesome over 90 year old grandma. Want to hear a good joke and get sharp remarks? Visit her in Finland.

Laughing yet?
I can't look at that photo without giggling.

About Love: Eryka & Daniel Clark

2011-10-19T19:23:00.000+02:00

You've heard of people coming into your lives for a reason, right? Well our story basically begins like that.

I grew up in California my whole life and always had a feeling I was going to marry a Utah boy. I never really saw myself marrying someone I had grown up with. Daniel grew up in Utah his whole life and was called to serve in the Santa Rosa, California mission. During his last 6 weeks of his mission he served in the Rockville Branch in Fairfield, CA. Which so happen to be the singles branch I was attending at the time. I remember talking to him a few times, but didn't really think much of it I was dating someone at the time, so I was other wise occupied {how cheesy does that sound}. Daniel went home and we kept in contact through Facebook. You know the occasional comment, or like of the status.

A year passed since he had returned home, I was now single and not really looking for anyone. I noticed he started "liking" status more and pictures. Still, didn't think too much of it. I do remember telling friends "Dan Clark, you know Elder Clark keeping liking my pictures" and they all said "Maybe you guys are gonna get married, maybe you're soul mates." I just laughed those comments off. A few weeks later during the end of March 2010 he Facebook messaged me asking some random question about the missionaries serving in the Branch then. I responded and that started the speaking to each other everyday, and everyday since. I even gave him my phone number, which is something I would have never have done. {that was quite brave of me!} Little did I know he would change me and my life forever.

We started texting constantly about little things, just getting to know each other, slowly realizing how much we had in common. That led to talking on the phone, and having chats over Skype {we called them Skype dates}. I was slowly starting to really like him, and he was feeling the same. Every time my phone would buzz I was get all giddy like a little girl. {ask my mom, she was make fun of me.} Also, during this time I was making some serious decisions about my life. I was 21 and was thinking about a mission. Really thought I was going to go on one. Then one day I got the strongest impression that my mission wasn't to be served then. I had no clue why and it cause major confusion, but I quickly learned my Heavenly Father had a plan for me to be with Dan forever.

In May, I was planning on going to Utah to visit some family. I told him I was coming out and he said he would love to see me, maybe go on a date or two. Well, the time came for my visit to Utah. He picked me up at the airport. Let, me backtrack for a second. That flight was the longest ever. I was so nervous, like nausea nervous. It was horrible. So I got to Utah, and there he was waiting for me at the airport with a rose and a sign saying "ERYKA" in hand. We both we're supper nervous. We went to Sushi at the Gateway, and then watched "Hot Rod" at this house. Where I met his parents for the first time. They were very welcoming, and made me feel loved. Then Dan drove me to my cousins house where I was staying. Long story short....we kissed for the first time that night. It was totally unexpected. {this is debatable if you ask Dan, he thinks I was asking for it the whole night. I was not. I promise. I was not expecting it at all}. It was perfect. I think at that moment I knew I loved him.

We saw each other everyday but one day that week. It was the best week of my life. As my trip came to an end we spent that last Sunday in Provo with my family. We went to the Provo temple and sat and talked on the grass for 2 hours or so. Somehow, marriage came up and we looked at each other and basically just knew. Trust me, when someone tells you that you will know when you find the right person. It's true. When you know, you know.

We were Engaged in August of 2010, and did the whole long distance wedding planning thing. {let me tell you, it wasn't easy!} We had several visits in between August and when we were married in March 2011. Those kept us going, but it was still hard to be apart from each other.

We were sealed for time and all eternity on March 12th, 2011 in the Sacramento, California Temple. It was the best day of our lives. We were able to be sealed by my Grandpa. What a special experience that was for us. It was such a beautiful day, and we loved everything about it. We felt so loved to of have all our family and friends there to love and support us. The whole was perfect, and I wouldn't change one thing. It was a dream come true.

It has been almost 7 months since that special day, and I can tell you we are still head over heels in love today. I feel so blessed to have met Daniel when I did and to have him in my life. He is my best friend, let me tell you how awesome it is to be married to your best friend. We love seeing each other every day, and learning new things about each other. We are so grateful for the chance we had to be sealed together in the house of the Lord. Something so special about, knowing that we and our future children will be together forever.

So, as you can see...in our love story, it's true that people come into your lives for a reason. I am so grateful that Daniel was put into my life for me to love, and speaking for him I am pretty sure he would say the same about me.

What I have learned about marriage, in these 7 months:

+ Sometimes the best date nights are when we don't go out somewhere. It's when we just sit at home, snuggled up on the couch watching a movie.

+ It's important to communicate with each other. You can't just keep your feelings inside, if you are mad about something. You have to tell your spouse what is going on.

+ Couple prayer is a very important principle in ones marriage. When we have couple prayer, our days seem to go smoother, and days when we don't I can tell the mood is different in our home. Couple prayer is one of many ways to grow closer together.

+ Laughing together is the best medicine.

+ It's ok if you don't agree on everything, you will have your differences at times. Don't think you are the only couple. Trust me all couples have they're disagreements.

+ Being married to your best friend is the BEST thing in the world.

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Eryka sent me an email about a week ago and wanted to participate :) I was excited! Also, hurray for newlyweds! You can check out Eryka and Daniel on their cute blog.

- Thank you so much, Eryka!

This post is part of a regular blog post series titled "About Love", inspired by Cjanes couples retreat stories. I have asked friends and favourite bloggers to share their love stories, telling us why they got married and what they have learned since then. I hope you will also be inspired. See here for previous posts.

If you would also like to share your story, I'd love to hear from you.

The Weekend

2011-10-18T22:27:00.000+02:00

Our weekend according to Instagram. :)

From left to right:

Saturday

- Mikael was at a church meeting the whole day and I was at home

1. A Swedish breakfast: Yoghurt

2. Making little thank you notes for the shop

3. Packing up a few orders

4. .. and making a bit more jewelry

5. Cleaning the car :)

6. My favorite wellies

7. I put my summer shoes in the storage (we are going to get real shoe racks when we renovate..)

8. Cleaning the house as well

9. I made this soup for Sunday and watched Rachel Zo

10. I also made a fish soup for the night

11. Ice cream with a hard shell cholate topping :) soo good!

12. Prepared my Sunday School lesson

Sunday

At church and we had the missionaries and an exchange student from Wyoming over

13. Mikael scrapes the chocolate cake bowl

14. Our guests

15. The beach at night

As you can see, the weekend was filled - but it was great. I love to be the host and take any chance welcome to cook and bake :)

Have a fun week!

XO Senja

Hello Frost.

2011-10-14T15:03:00.000+02:00

This is what my morning looked like at 8 am. Right outside our front door. 0 degrees celcious, it's time to get my winter jacket out.

So cozy.

I'm sorry, no pinterest favorites today.. It's this upcoming cold's fault.

Have a fun weekend!

XO Senja

Moby's Castle

2011-10-13T15:40:00.000+02:00

Look at this house - isn't it gorgeous? Simple and elegant and the location is breathtaking.

See more of Moby's castle in the New York times article.

When I was 21 my family and I toured San Francisco, San Diego, Las Vegas and Utah. Since then SF has been my favorite city - I have yet to fly back but hope to do so next fall with husband.

During our stay in San Francisco I was brave enough to take a cab from our hotel to an old theatre where Moby and other acts were playing. Earlier that day I had picked up a flyer at Height Ashbury and decided to go to that party all by myself. I saw Moby standing naked on his keyboard after his performance, promised a homeless woman to give her a dollar if she called me a cab after I had tried without look and not paying her, coming home later than I had promised, only to find my dad waiting in the lobby for me, horribly worried.

Papa, I am sorry but this experience was so worth it :)

Attempt on Photography

2011-10-12T21:11:00.001+02:00

Mikael gave me a Canon portrait lens for my birthday in April and today I got to really use it at work when I took photos of my co-workers. I really love shooting with it as the photos get sharper and have a nice blurry background.

I then adjusted only a little on Photoshop and used Pioneer Womans B&W action. (You should really download her action set for Photoshop if you haven't already, it has all kinds of variations.)

XO Senja

About Love: Annie & Jordan

2011-10-12T14:07:00.007+02:00

I was always an independent girl, one with dreams of living in the big city, writing for magazines and newspapers, traveling the world.

This isn’t a story about a girl who gave up those dreams for a guy.

Instead, it’s about how life can change for you, how marrying your best friend can make your dreams better, can bring you something you never thought you needed.

Jordan and I met our freshman year of college in a class dedicated to the world’s “great books.” He was outgoing and a little bit dorky, popular and well-liked by our classmates. I was quiet and nerdy, often with my nose in a book. In such a small class environment, the two of us quickly became friends, often spending time together outside of class, doing homework and studying and eating horrendous meals in the cafeteria.

We were friends first. I think that’s what I’ll always remember most.

I had traveled to Alabama to attend college, and I was lonely. Jordan’s friendship helped me through those first few weeks of culture shock, and before I knew it, the curly-haired boy from my honors class was the best friend I had ever had.

Summer came, and the two of us traveled to Italy for a study abroad program through our university. In Florence, we exchanged I love yous for the first time, laughing and nervous. And I wondered: Is this what really loving someone looks like?

In high school, I didn’t date much. There were crushes and the occasional movie, but dating didn’t interest me. My focus was on family, friends, school. So when Jordan and I met our first week of classes, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Certainly not I love yous and anniversaries, years of dating while we watched friends break up and make up all around us.

Jordan graduated, went to law school. I stayed behind, finishing up the honors program, completing an internship at a popular magazine. Despite distance — which, as anyone will tell you, really isn’t much fun at all — we stayed together, determined, I think, to make it work. I didn’t want to lose my best friend, and, I suspect, Jordan didn’t want to lose his.

So with an internship completed and the first semester of law school done, Jordan delivered the biggest surprise of my life. He traveled to my parents’ home, hid the ring in a pair of blue Converse tennis shoes, and right there on the front porch, as we sat talking in my favorite swing, he proposed.

Four years of dating behind us, we were ready to say “I do.” He in a tweed coat. Me in my blue Converse tennis shoes.

Here’s what I love about my story with Jordan: I can’t really tell you where it begins.

Our friendship eased so beautifully into dating and love that neither of us is quite sure when it happened. We joke about what was really our “first date” (breakfast at a pancake house or a play at our school’s dinner theatre?), laugh about awkward discussions trying to define “us” and what made us different. We were friends, and before we knew it, we loved each other.

This November, we’ll celebrate our third wedding anniversary. I cannot believe how time has flown, how already our wedding pictures look old, how we have conquered law school and student loans, leaky ceilings and adorable new pets. We have argued and cried; we have moved and made decisions.

I got married at 22, younger than I ever, ever imagined. But I was never worried. I’m still not worried.

Yes, I was young. No, I wouldn’t recommend it for everybody.

But when you meet your best friend, there is trust. There is a confidence. There is the knowledge that someone knows you, wants the best for you, will help you meet goals and accomplish dreams. There is love.

People talk all the time about growing old together. Jordan and I get to grow up together, too.

Is it hard?

Yes. Marriage is hard, no doubt about it. At 22, you’re still figuring out who you are. It’s a challenge to help someone else figure out who they are.

But it makes you less selfish and more kind. It makes you slower to anger, more thoughtful in speech. It tests your limits and extends your boundaries.

In other words, it’s one of the greatest adventures you’ll ever take.

Today, Jordan and I are 25, and we are happy. Our story is a good one. He’s working as an attorney; I’m a writer and editor. We are conquering our dreams, and we are making new ones. We laugh a lot, cook and take walks together, watch Parks and Recreation, cuddle on the couch. We read and go on dates and eat breakfasts at our favorite restaurant. We are equally content traveling and staying put.

We are a family. Our home is a haven, and our marriage is a gift.

Are some days hard? Sure. But you know what? Some days are really easy.

Love, I think, is a little bit of both.

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I can't remember anymore how I found Annie's blog, but I'm so glad I did. She is a beautiful and insightful writer who blogs about her life, her faith and books. I have pinned so many of her reviews. Currently she is blogging every day in October about how to celebrate life - each post is more inspiring than the previous one.

- Thank you so much, Annie.

This post is part of a regular blog post series titled "About Love", inspired by Cjanes couples retreat stories. I have asked friends and favourite bloggers to share their love stories, telling us why they got married and what they have learned since then. I hope you will also be inspired. See here for previous posts.

If you would also like to share your story, I'd love to hear from you.

Not Lost, but Found

2011-10-11T13:44:00.000+02:00

I was going through my Iphone today and thought: "Eh, I do have a few photos from the weekend!" Here they are :)

All Americans - this is the real kind :)

On our way home from Göteborg

Our missionaries

My new fake fur vest - I really love it. (I was so tired that day..)

... and my new boots. I got them half off with a voucher - one happy gal! :)

I'm working from home again today and am enjoying it so much. I get so much done here and it's just relaxing.

Hope you have a great day! :)

XO Senja

Destroyer

2011-10-10T22:04:00.001+02:00

This is what makes Mikael happy :)

This weekend was really great and special.

On Friday we drove to Göteborg and spent the evening with Mexican food and 8 couples at a friends place. It was so much fun! I even met someone who is as clumsy as I am. (My mother calls med "destroyer".. ). The next day we both felt quite "empty" being back home all alone..

We spent the night at Evelinas and drove home early on Saturday morning as Mikael was going to baptise a new member. She had been investigating the church for 16 years and finally decided to join - so great!

On Sunday we had a ward conference which was very inspiring, were home around 5 pm and went to bed very early.

How was your weekend? Did you do something fun?

Are you also a "destroyer"? :)

XO

Friday Pinterest Inspiration

2011-10-07T14:03:00.001+02:00

It looks like we will be hosting a Halloween party at our place in a few weeks with a halloween hunt in our forest. I'm really looking forward to it and have so many great ideas already. I will share them with you along the way. :)

I have been checking Pinterest today for some inspiration. I can't wait to start planning this party!

Here is a little selection of my favorites. Check here for more Halloween ideas on my pinterest board.

I love Marry Poppins - I think this is my outfit. Let's hope Mikael plays along. Via keiko lynn.

This food station via One Charming Party {You should check out her website, filled with great party ideas!}

Do you have other good websites for Halloween Party ideas?

Have a lovely weekend! We are off to Göteborg tonight for a dinner party. Can't wait! :)

XO Senja

A Good Day

2011-10-06T22:27:00.001+02:00

at church on Sunday

Today was a good day.

I got some nice emails, work went by fast, I hurried home and spent the whole evening in the kitchen, cooking and baking. The living room is filled with the smell of banana and chocolate cake. So yummy but it's too late to enjoy the cake.

Now I'll go upstairs, crawl under the blanket, read my magazine and talk to my best friend.

Tomorrow I have an early appointment at 8..

Good night, sleep tight.

XO Senja

About Love: Megan & Tanner

2011-10-05T15:36:00.001+02:00

It all started on January 13th 2007 at Banana Republic where my sister Christie and I happened to be shopping, when 3 boys walked in.

At first I glanced at the boys and thought nothing further. I turned around and one of them had come over to talk to my sister and I and said: "Can I ask you girls a question?" My sister and I both just replied: "Well, I'm 6'1" and I'm 5'11". He acted all surprised that we had answered the question he was about to ask us but we told him that we get asked that all the time. By this time the two other boys had walked over and I locked eyes with this boy in a black jacket and jeans with Converse lace ups and wild thick surfer hair who told me his name was Tanner. I was totally taken back because he wasn't my usual taste at all.

The five of us continued making small talk and exchanged names when I said: "Well, I'll ask the awkward question, let's exchange numbers." I had to have this boys number or I was going to throw a tantrum like most kids do in a department store when they don't get what they want, except I was 20 years old.

We decided to move our conversation out of the store besides Tanner who stayed inside to buy a jacket. Once outside the store, Michael, the guy who first came up to us, asked me for my number. Since Tanner was still in the store I gave it to him to make sure that at least one of the guys had my phone number - just in case. My sister and I started to walk off but ended up coming out of the other entrance and saw Tanner talking on the phone. As O passed him by I looked him straight in the eyes and said: "Hey, your friend has my number, you better call me." Well, Michael heard me say that to Tanner because I noticed him looking at me when I pointed to show which friend got my number.

About 2 hours later I received a text message from Michael asking if I wanted to hang out that night. I told him that it was great, and that him and Tanner should just come over. By this time he was well aware of the fact that I was head over heels for Tanner. He then dropped the bomb and told me that Tanner had a girlfriend and was taking her out that night. I was so bummed and didn't want to hang out with Michael that but my sister ended up talking me into it because he was cute and a cool guy.

We had been hanging out for 2 weeks when one night Michael sat me down and told me he had to tell me something. It took him forever to tell me because he was nervous of how I'd react. When he finally had the courage he said: "Since things between us are going really well, I just figured I'd tell you this, so if it ever came up you'd laugh about it." I didn't know what he was trying to tell me because he just kept beating around the bush. Finally he told me that Tanner didn't really have a girlfriend, he had just said that. I acted like everything was fine because I don't like confrontations. He went home and I rushed to tell Christie (remember, my sister) and Courtney what had happened. Courtney said that she would see Tanner at school the next day and explain everything to him.

The next night I went to the Sundance Film Festival with Michael. Courtney hadn't come home from school yet or answered her phone and I was dying to know if she had talked to Tanner yet. While driving up, Michael and Tanner talked on the phone, I tried to stay calm but just hearing his voice gave me butterflies.

On the way home Michael stopped at a gas station to use the restroom. As he walked in I noticed he had left his phone in the car. My hands reached for it and looked for Tanners contact info. I quickly transferred his number into my phone, shut it and put it back. At that point I was literally sweating. But when Michael got in the car he didn't notice a thing luckily.

I arrived home and I just couldn't wait to hear what Courtney had talked to Tanner about, but no sight of her. So I just went right ahead and texted him saying: "Tannnnnnnnnner!" When I read his quick reply: "Who is this?", I died laughing. I can't remember what else was said that night but I knew that I was smitten and had hoped he was, too.

I woke up the next morning to find a message from Tanner saying: "Good morning, sunshine". I knew I had scored big and that he was a keeper. A total keeper. I ran into Courtney's room to ask her about what had happened at school and she told me she asked him how he felt about me and if he'd date me. He told her he wanted to date me, too. Now that we were both on the same page someone had to break the news to Michael and it had to be me.

To make a long story short, it didn't go very well. Tanner and Michael weren't friends for a few months which left Tanner very sad. In fact, Tan didn't hang out with me for 2 weeks because he really wanted to show Michael that he meant a lot to him as a friend. Another reason why Tanner is such a good man.

I felt terrible about breaking up their friendship, but we were talking about the man of my dreams here. I guess I was thinking of the future already then. Tanner and I had many longs talks on the phone into the early hours of the morning for those 2 weeks. Then one night while I was doing my laundry and talking to him on the phone he told me to turn around. There he was in my laundry room looking at me, no make up, in pj's and we hugged for the first time. I made him grilled cheese sandwiches and we finally hung out for the first time - just the two of us.

Our first date

Ever since then I knew I was going to marry him, even though he broke up with me 4 times and we dated for 2.5 years. Somehow I just stuck around untill he made up his mind and it was worth it.

We were married for time and all eternity in the Salt Lake Temple. we just celebrated our 2nd anniversary on June 27th, and are looking forward to many more together.

Meg's thoughts on marriage:

Marriage has taught me a lot.

+ Good communication skills is a must. Don't let things fester, explain your reasoning and let your spouse explain his or her side, if you still don't see it their way, learn to compromise.

+ Putting your spouse first is easy at times and harder at others.

+ Keeping the love going was a little different while dating from when you are married, it can die if you don't tend it.

+ Remember the small things. Don't make a big deal of the way the dishwasher is loaded or how to put toilet paper on the spool. Those things don't matter in the long run anyway.

+ Remember to write messages telling your spouse how thankful you are for the deeds he or she does to make you happy.

+ Being a good listener is something I can always work on being better at.

+ Remembering to laugh and not take offense easily will help you get along.

+ Be honest.

These are just some things I've learned that have made a difference in our marriage. I've picked the perfect spouse for me. Our marriage hasn't been hard, although we've had to work at it everyday. I've truly been blessed.

Tanner's thoughts on marriage:

Things quoted from Tanner that he has learned from marriage:

+ I've learned that marriage is fun and not a drag, as I had perviously conjured up in my mind

+ I've learned that my wife can talk me into letting her buy anything

+ I learned that marriage isn't that big of a transition in life

+ I've also learned that I'm always right, and my wife will even admit to it (remark from Meg: As soon as we got married it's like I'm always wrong!)

+ I've learned that I hate being tickled

+ Taking part in each others interests keeps us close and allows us to try new things together

+ I try to pick a few things that i know Meg doesn't like doing, and I do those things for her. I do the dishes and she always appreciates that.

Basically we just try to make each other laugh on a daily basis. We have a lot of handshakes we make up, I still get her door every time, I tell her she's beautiful even though she knows I think it. Marriage can be hard, only if you let it be.

xo- Meg

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A few weeks ago, Meg left a comment on my blog and when I visited her blog I fell inlove with the beautiful photos of her life in California with Tanner. Megan is a true sweetheart and has great style.

Megan blogs at That's a Wrap. You should definitely check them out :)

- Thank you so much, Meg!

PS: I wish that we had so beautiful wedding photos. They are gorgeous!

This post is part of a regular blog post series titled "About Love", inspired by Cjanes couples retreat stories. I have asked friends and favourite bloggers to share their love stories, telling us why they got married and what they have learned since then. I hope you will also be inspired. See here for previous posts.

If you would also like to share your story, I'd love to hear from you.

Hail to the Bun

2011-10-04T22:15:00.000+02:00

Today is the day where Sweden is celebrating the cinnamon bun. I contributed to the festivities with buying a few for Mikael and myself today and already enjoyed one with my colleagues during the afternoon. :)

Sweden loves to celebrate food. And I don't mind having an excuse to eat good food.

XO Senja

High On the Mountain Top

2011-10-03T23:28:00.000+02:00

We live in a beautiful place of the earth.

On Friday evening we hiked a little in this place called Hovs Hallar, it is one of my favorite outdoor places in the area - about 20 away minutes by car. (I need to get better in photographing with limited light..)

I hope you all have a great start in the week! What can you expect this week from us?

+ IKEA word of the day will be back!
+ A new love story on Wednesday
+ New items in the shop
+ A fun Friday evening in Göteborg with a bunch of friends
+ A baptism on Saturday
+ Big decisions - buy that big and brand new company car for Mikael? (It comes with an all-inclusive 2 week vacation to Thailand.. ;))
+ more updates on the blog design

XO Senja

Exposed

2011-10-02T22:16:00.000+02:00

The thing with this internet is that you often can't see people live or hear their voices. So when I get to see a video of them it makes such a difference.

So, today Mikael and I took a little video for our niece Mia who is sick at the moment. She has had bad stomach pain the past few days and the doctors don't really know what's going on. She is in Germany and it breaks my heart a bit that I can't be there..

Well, to make a long story short, here is the video in all my glory. :) I'm speaking German and you can see/hear my stuttering. But you know what, that's me :) (and I don't usually stutter that much as on the video, I was just - exposed)

gute besserung mia! from senja lindahl on Vimeo.

Today...

2011-10-01T23:36:00.000+02:00

... was an awesome day. Here's why:

Babysitting Agnes. She is so fearless, has a dirty laugh and I love her hair color!

We ate outside in front of our barn as it was so warm! (I usually put our food in nicer dishes but today I was in a hurry :))

Fall leaves in our front yard


Watched General Conference in church with the Sister Missionaries. We could have watched it on the internet at home as well but we always set it up there in case someone comes. We put on our Sunday clothes and ate candy. I loved it!

Can you guess the movie? :)

A burger! :) It has been such a long time ago that I had one and although it was 10 pm when I ate mine, I enjoyed it thoroughly!

Dessert! We usually don't have Reese's in Sweden, only sometimes in the bigger grocery stores. Today we got lucky!

Now I am sitting on our green chair and am happy. It was a great day. At first we couldn't get the satellite to work at church and watched half of the Relief Society meeting on my Iphone. In the middle of Elder Uchtdorfs talk Youtube wouldn't continue loading, what a bummer.. I'll watch the whole session tomorrow from home.

I love Elder Uchtdorf. He is such a great, fun and inspirational man. When he served as the Frankfurt Stake President my dad was one of his counselors and I remember him from that time, although I was about 12 if I remember correctly. I wrote him an email a few months after I got married and his reply was very special.

I am thankful that I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I know how it feels to not being an active member and I can see such a change in my life since I got back to church 7 years ago.

I also started with a hormone treatment today (if we are friends on Facebook - please don't mention anything there), so we'll see how that works out.

Hope your Saturday was fun!

XO Senja (& Mikael from the other side of the couch)

ABC of Senja & Mikael

2011-09-30T22:24:00.004+02:00

I thought this was kind of fun and I have a few new readers who don't know me/us that well yet..

Get to know me ABC's.

Age:

Senja: 36; Mikael: 33

Bed size:

Queen

Chore you hate:

Senja: Washing the dishes. I don't hate it but our kitchen is (still) lower than modern kitchens and I get backpain easily; Mikael: can't come up with something.

Drive:

We have a BMW 3 series from 2002 in silver and a little truck for Mikaels construction work.

Essential start of your day:

Senja & Mikael: Hit the snooze button. Seriously, first time my phone rings is at 06.00 and I get up at 06.30.

Favorite color:

Senja: Purple; Mikael: Army green :)

Gold or silver:

Senja: I have always been a silver girl, but lately I love gold as well; Mikael: My wedding band is white gold

Height:

Senja: 5'5"; Mikael: 6'1"

Instruments I play (or have played):

We both know how to play the piano but need serious practice. The right hand side is great, but left...

Job title:

Senja: I am a Meetings & Events Project Manager. But a beloved person has many titles, right? ;) I am also a designer, blogger, wife and business partner in our construction company; Mikael: Contractor and CEO

Kids:

Yes, please.

Live:

In a house on the countryside with a forest in the south west of Sweden. Previously I've lived in Frankfurt, Munich, the North of Germany and Finland; Mikael: I grew up where we live but have lived in Moscow, Russia where I served my LDS mission

Mom's name:

Senja: Leena; Mikael: Raija (Both our moms are from Finland :))

Nickname:

Senja: My dad calls me Kleine which means "little one", I wish husband would call me sweetie or honey but he never really does! :) Mikael: Mikko (Finnish abbreviation for Mikael) and honey/älskling

Overnight hospital stays:

Senja & Mikael: Not yet.

Pet peeve:

Senja: People who crack their knuckles right next to me and are unkind to others; Mikael: People being too pushy and agressive.

Right hand or left?
Both right hand, but Senja irons with her left hand and eats with left.

Siblings:
Senja: 2 brothers, Lasse who is 33, Simo would be 31 now, but he passed away when he was 13; Mikael: 3 sisters and one brother - he is the second youngest.

Travels:
We both love to travel and have done so quite much together since we got married. We've been to: China, USA, Caribbean on a cruise (Mexico, Jamaica, Bahamas, Cayman Islands), Paris, Finland, Germany, Croatia.

Vegetables you dislike:

Both love all kinds of vegetables, but Senja likes them more.

What makes you run late: Mikael sleeping too long ;)

X-rays you've had done: Senja: back, neck, hips; Mikael: same actually and foot

Yummy food you make: I love to cook, only if it doesn't take too long. Mikael is a great cook too but he cookes to seldom

Zoo animal: Senja: Giraffes and FISH

Quote from a movie:

Senja: Although I don't really apply this in my life but this has stuck with me - from My Big Fat Greek Wedding: "Men are the head of the house, but the women is the neck and she can turn the head anywhere she wants to" :)

Well, that's us in a nutshell..

(via: That's a Wrap)

Friday Pinterest Inspiration No 2

2011-09-30T17:20:00.025+02:00

Crazy! Another week has passed. The sun is shining outside and I can't wait for Mikael to come home so that we can make Spaghetti and eat something with sugar. I am craving sugar so bad this week, it's b a d!

Well, here are this weeks favorites:

love the one you're with from Amazon pinned on my Books to read board

So true! I love this quote via a glimpse of the girl next door pinned on my Inspirational Words board.

cute leather bow tutorial via Ruffles & Stuff pinned on my DIY board

Cardigan, blouse and skirt via see jane pinned on my Clothes Inspiration Board

Such a great decoration idea via Craftiness is not Optional pinned on my Holiday Decoration board

Hope you have a fabulous weekend! What will you be doing?

We will be babysitting Agnes tomorrow morning and watching General Conference. I can't wait!

XO Senja

PS: Now I hear the car outside, gotta run and greet my man at the door with a big hug & kiss :)

Someone Like You.

2011-09-30T12:45:00.000+02:00

I wish I could sing like Adele. I'm trying really hard - everytime I sing along in the car to her album while driving.

Hm.. I haven't had any bird poo on the car for some time now, maybe I'm scaring them away? Come on, I'm not that bad.

I can do hard things.

2011-09-29T20:30:00.002+02:00

The view from my workroom

This morning I woke up feeling tired and just exhausted. The last few months have been tough and I have felt overwhelmed a lot. My returning bladder infections (knock on wood, no infections in the past 6 weeks), Mikael not having work so much before the summer and not feeling so upbeat, family challenges and seeing so many friends getting pregnant has not been that easy for me. I felt I needed friends around which I don't have here.. Our ward is so small with no young couples/fun girls my age and my friends are all over Europe and family in Germany. Work has also been heavy in the past 3 weeks and I've travelled a lot. I can't remember that I have ever cried so often..

But for the past 2 weeks Mikael and I have been working together and getting stronger again as a couple and it feels so great. We have started to bring more structure in our life again and just laugh a lot more together. When you and your partner are strong, everything else seems so much easier, right?

So this morning I texted my colleagues and said that I would be working from home and this day has been great. I still don't feel well rested, but I am working on it and will also be home tomorrow. It is just so quiet here and the view from my window is relaxing.

Although I have felt frustrated, lonely and overwhelmed the past few months, I have felt blessed to have a job I like with a new responsibility, a house with a little forest I can call my own, an awesome husband (who, btw did 71 push ups yesterday in one round - you should see his shoulders and arms now - yummy!! ;)) and a bright future ahead. I can feel it!

I remember when I started following Cjane and read that she had waited 5 years to become pregnant I was wondering how ever she managed. In October it will be 4 years since we started trying and time just flew by. You just live day by day and try not to think about it so much. It hasn't always been easy and now when it seems that everybody around me is pregnant Heavenly Father has made me feel glimpses of what it will be like when I am finally pregnant again with a good ending. I know He cares for me and has a plan.

And that is the biggest blessing of it all.

About Love: Elizabeth & David

2011-09-28T13:00:00.016+02:00

I met David just a few months after I had broken off my engagement to another man. David had just ended a drama-filled relationship that had brought him a lot of suffering. Neither of us were prepared for anything serious but I fell hard and fast. One month into our dating I was writing in my journal about this amazing guy I was dating. The next entry was filled with confusion, hurt and anger when he broke up with me. I was heartbroken. David knew the timing wasn't right and that time apart turned out to be a gift. It was a wonderful time for me to date a few other guys who taught me important lessons and gave me the opportunity to move cross country for an internship and really get to know myself a little better. Luckily, a year later we got back together and ended up getting married.

When we were first married I would spend a lot of nights either crying in bed or crying on the bathroom floor. I didn't understand this man I was married to - why nothing seemed to bother him, how he was annoyingly happy all the time, how he never wanted to talk about our relationship and what we could work on. It would drive me crazy that even while I was sobbing in a heap at midnight on our bathroom tile, my husband never woke up from his coma and never came into the bathroom to console me. In fact, he later told me he didn't even know anything was wrong. After several months of these dramatic scenes I realized the most important thing - I didn't understand myself. Even since I was a teenager I had either been in a relationship or I had been consumed with thoughts of the boy I liked. I never got to know me. Why I was so emotional about certain things, why I seemed to enjoy wallowing in self-pity and beat myself up for it later, why I was interested in the hobbies I liked and I certainly never asked myself the kind of questions that would answer - what kind of man would be right for me?

After I ended my previous relationship and engagement I had to repair a lot of my family relationships (it's a long, dramatic story) so when I started dating David my family was ultra-cautious about accepting any guy after my poor choices a few months earlier. I remember calling my mom from Idaho and telling her about David during our first few weeks of dating. I told her about our dates, what he was like and reasons why I was attracted to his personality. She listened and then said, "Elizabeth, you sound like yourself again. You sound happy." I think that's when I realized that David brought out so many good things in myself. I liked myself when I was with him and that's still what makes me crave being around him after almost five years of marriage and I know it will always be a driving force in our relationship.

Three things I know about marriage:
1. Know who you are.
2. Know who your spouse is and why they are right for you and why you are right for them.
3. Love is always the answer.

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I started to follow Elizabeth's blog about a year and a half ago after I had found her through NieNies blog, Elizabeth is Mr. Nielsons sister, and we connected when both of us had a miscarriage about the same time last year. It really helped me to know that there was someone out there who knew what I was going through. And now I'm super happy for her that she is pregnant again. :) It gives me hope.

Elizabeth blogs at lizzie writes about her life in San Diego with her husband Dave and adorable son William. You don't want to miss her recipes and beautiful home photos.

- Thank you so much, Elizabeth.

If you also feel like sharing your story, I'd love to hear from you.

And we have a winner!

2011-09-27T23:02:00.000+02:00

Congratulations, Verena! :) You are the winner of the giveaway!

Please send me your address so that I can send you the bracelet. :)

Books & Celebrities

2011-09-27T22:03:00.001+02:00

On Friday we spent the night at a local hotel and had dinner at a restaurant in town. I didn't take photos as we were busy and having fun, sorry. We planned our responsibilities in the company - it feels really great!

On Saturday we drove to Gothenburg which is about 1,5 hours away east to go to the yearly book fair. I have never been and always wanted to.

One of my favorite things to do is reading and strolling around bookstores. In Frankfurt we had a really huge book shop with a big English book section where I bought quite a few books. German books are not that pretty, really!

The fair was great, I only bought one English speaking book. I am not so fond of reading Swedish books yet, it still doesn't feel so natural.. Mikael bought a few business books which were also signed by the author.

Fredrik Skavlan, a popular Norwegian tv-moderator who has a show on Swedish TV.

If you have been following the blog for a little while, you will know my l o v e for Muumin. This book fair was heaven! :)

This is Maria Montazami who is playing in a reality show on Swedish TV called: "Swedish Hollywood Wifes". She has become the most popular person on that show.

Can you guess who that is?

Add caption

One of my favorite bloggers Ebba von Sydow - she is also a TV host.

The End.

tomorrow is a new day.

2011-09-26T22:24:00.000+02:00

I downloaded all the photos from our fabulous weekend, I wanted to announce a winner for the giveaway but I feel sick and need to go to bed.

Here is a sneak peak from Saturday. More tomorrow.

XO Senja

Friday Pinterest Inspiration

2011-09-23T16:37:00.001+02:00

I thought I'd have a new series where I post my Pinterest favorites every Friday.

{At the moment Pinterest is still invite only - if you don't have a login yet, comment below with your email address and I'll invite you.}

Super cute Christmas card by A Bryan Photo - pinned under my Christmas board

My dream office via rikshaw design pinned under my For the Home board

10 healthy breakfasts via keep your diet real - pinned on my Healthy Living board

Pumpkin Cookies with Caramel Frosting via let's dish recipes - pinned under my Recipes-Baking board

This pretty outfit via Les Composantes - pinned under my Clothes Inspiration board

Hope you received a bit inspiration.

Tonight husband and I will check in at a local hotel and have a little kick-off for our business

{my husbands construction company} to define our responsabilites as I am getting more involved.

Tomorrow I hope we can drive to Gothenburg to a big book fair. I've never been and have always wanted.

I'm excited for both!

Have a wonderful weekend.

~Senja

PS: Don't forget my giveway which closes tonight! :)

Apparently..

2011-09-22T23:05:00.000+02:00

... I'm so vain..

When I de-installed Disqus, all comments now have my name.

I'm laughing, blushing and feeling quesy at the same time.

About Love: Lyndsay & Wes

2011-09-21T13:36:00.004+02:00

You wouldn’t know it from looking at any of the photos in our collection that my husband and I actually inhabit the same space. Tonight over dinner we realized we could count the times on one hand that we’ve had photos taken together (engagement, wedding, and “that one fluke time up at the ranch”). Even our family holiday photos are usually photoshopped together. That is because my husband is a photographer-turned-cinematographer, and his life is spent behind the lens, not in front of it (as he likes to say). So you’ll just have to take my word for it that we’re in love. Because we are. And I can prove it.

It started when I was in graduate school. I was dating a guy in a going-nowhere kind of relationship, and I had suffered greatly for it. I was stressed out over my upcoming thesis year, my impending summer European design trip for school, and this deadbeat relationship that I’d been enduring for way too long. I had to make a change. So I broke up with Mr. Going Nowhere on a Monday morning. Then I immediately set off for my first day of work as a note-taker for the hearing impaired students in a photography class, for only two short weeks (to raise money for the impending trip to Europe).

Let’s just say that Rochester, NY is not a place where people, oh, say, talk to each other out of the kindness of their own hearts on the first day of class. Or any other day of class. There’s a great respect for the “personal bubble.” Except today. Photography student Wes Johnson was the first to come into the classroom. He sat right behind me, even though the class was still empty, and said “Hey, Note-taker!” I almost fell out of my chair. This type of social interaction this early in the morning was unprecedented. There was no other explanation: He had to be from the southwest (I am a Texan, and we’re so friendly that it borders on personal bubble infringement). Sure enough, he was from Arizona. We started to talk about our regional similarities when something strange happened. It was as if the room tunneled out away from me, and I was seeing this person who I’d been waiting to meet. A voice inside of me said, “Oh there you are! What took you so long? Let’s go!”

I’ll back up a bit to qualify this statement. To second grade, in fact. I knew when I was the tender age of seven that I would meet the man I would marry one day and just know it. I could never explain it, but my entire life I knew he was out there, and would come along at the right time. Apparently History and Aesthetics of Photography at RIT was the right time.

So naturally Wes and I went on a date. As soon as possible. And on that date I knew that I was looking not only at my future husband, but at someone who I somehow already seemed to know. It was very surreal. I came home from the date and called my mom at an ungodly hour (remember, she’s in Texas). I told her I met the man I was going to marry. I think she wanted to hang up the phone. I don’t blame her. It was pretty crazy.

Luckily for me, Wes also shared the same romantic lunacy, and confessed (a mere week later only because he was trying to at least be sensible) that I was the gal for him. But we were in a bit of a predicament. First there was the issue that everyone thought I was in a rebound relationship. So there was convincing to do on that front. And then I had to go to Europe for the summer (agony, but we all survived).

And then there was the bigger issue. Wes was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (a.k.a. “Mormon”). I didn’t know much about the Church. I am glad for this because otherwise I might have let common misconceptions overshadow the gravity of what I was about to enter in to. If this man who was so important to me had a faith that was so important to him, than I had better learn a little something about it! And I wanted to do it without any preconceived notions.

So I prayed, I met with missionaries, I studied, I prayed some more. And I ultimately made the decision to join the Church. It was no easy decision, and it weighed heavily on me. To emphasize importance of this, I will tell you that coupled with marrying Wes, it was the most significant decision of my life. It has changed my life. It is my life. I could not deny that I knew I needed to marry this man. And I could not deny the truth that he had brought with him. It was a gift meant just for me. I look back now and can clearly see that both needed to happen in conjunction. Wes and the Church were a double whammy of a life-changer. That was my intended plan.

Then we had to wait a year (agony, but we all survived).

Finally…on November 1, 2003, Wes and I were sealed for time and all eternity in the Mesa, Arizona LDS Temple. That means that we are quite literally bound together as husband and wife forever. We’ve since added two children to our mix to sweeten the deal. We can’t believe how blessed we are. In the past almost 8 years of marriage, we’ve endured trials, we’ve celebrated successes, we’ve watched our life evolve, we’ve evolved ourselves.

I honor the gift that I’ve been given in my husband. He was meant for me. Our marriage isn’t perfect, but we are the perfect combination. All of the best gifts that I’ve been given in my adult life begin with Wes. And I am ever grateful.

Wait!! I found one of us together. Ha! Or should I say aaarrrrgh... :)

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Lyndsay and I met through blogging - I needed help and she had the expertise. Since then we have become friends and she also designed my logo which I really love. She blogs about her life in Burbank at Lyndsay and the Johnsons and gives awesome blogging advise on The Blog Guidebook.

- Thank you so much, Lyndsay

If you also feel like sharing your story, I'd love to hear from you.

Giveaway!

2011-09-20T21:42:00.000+02:00

I am giving away one of these new bracelets!

red, blue and gold plated elastic bracelet

white, green, red and gold plated rope bracelet

What do you need to do to win? :)

{be sure to comment for each and let me know which bracelet you would like to win}

- be a follower of www.creairtive.com with google friend connect

- twitter about the giveaway

- facebook about the giveaway

Don't forget to add your email address so that I can contact you.

Giveaway is open until this Friday midnight.

Good Luck! :)

Excuse the dust

2011-09-19T13:25:00.001+02:00

Please excuse the "mess" around here this week (and if I am realistic next week as well..) as I am giving this blog a new look.

What do you think so far of it all? :)

XO Senja

Out in the Night

2011-09-16T21:46:00.002+02:00

Right now Mikael is in the woods in a national park about 1 hour away with the Young Men from our church. The will have a 1-2 hour hike through the night and camp outside. He was really happy when he left and smiling all over - this is my outdoorsy man! :)

What am I doing you wonder? I am cuddled up on the couch with my blanket and watching TV. I didn't have time to rent a movie and was too lazy to drive into town and all the good movies we have are with Tina and José right now.. After I am done with this post I will start tweeking the website, can't wait!

Have a wonderful weekend, we'll see each other next week again!

XO Senja

Catching Up

2011-09-15T23:03:00.001+02:00

Berlin was wonderful. When we arrived on Sunday it was super warm and then after dinner a big thunderstorm followed. Monday and Tuesday were perfect late summer days and I was so exhausted when I came back home Tuesday night after two intensive days of meetings.

It was so great to catch up on some German food, speak my language, buy my magazines and other little food things I missed.. Here are some shots.

Berlin is my kinda city. It is green, big but still so cozy, modern, funky, so many cute little restaurants, diverse food, friendly people, beautiful buildings and history.

PS: I am really happy about the positive response I have received on the new blog series! Three more of my favorite bloggers have agreed on posting their love stories and I am so excited! This is going to be so great. :)

About Love: Senja & Mikael

2011-09-14T21:08:00.002+02:00

About 6 years ago I had a dream where I saw myself getting introcuded to a guy. As I was watching myself from a far I knew who he was, he wasn't a stranger to me. I also knew that he would be my future husband.

Two years later in the fall of 2006 my best friend Meike decided to move to Switzerland which meant that I would need to find a new apartment.

As I was figuring out what to do I felt strongly that I should move abroad. It felt so right that I quit my job about two weeks later and left my boss quite crushed. I told him that I would work until March 2007 so that he had enough time to look for a replacement and take April off with remaining vacation days. At that time I didn't know yet where that journey would take me.

About that time I was a member on an LDS website for young people and had seen the profile of a cute red haired Swede with a Finnish username. I wrote him, he replied, but I didn't. See, I had never been super shy around guys, I was flirty and fun but all of a sudden I was fed up with being proactive, I wanted the guys to "hunt" as my mother had taught me they should do.

My best friend moved, I sold my furniture, saved my earnings and moved in with a friend.

At first I thought about moving to London - I speak English, love London and have friends there - but it didn't feel right. Then, I thought about moving to Helsinki - I speak Finnish, it is half my home country and part of my family lives there - it felt more right than London, but still not 100%.

It was getting winter and my boss told me about a job opportunity in Göteborg, Sweden at the same company I was working for and all of a sudden Sweden felt 100% right, no doubt in my mind.

The second Christmas day I flew to Helsinki to spend some time with my uncle and his family. My cousin Ami invited me to spend a few days at a 4 day event for young LDS people in Lomma, near Lund on the west coast of Sweden and on the way down Ami told me about his friend, a really great guy, who would also be there.

On the first night in Lomma he introduced me to this friend Mikael, who turned out to be the cute red haired guy to whom I had written a few months before and never replied after his answer. The next day I remembered the dream again which I had two years earlier and realized that my dream had became reality and that I met my future husband.

Evelina and I in Lomma at a fancy dinner

It didn't matter that we said goodbye a few days later without exchanging email addresses or phone numbers. I felt so calm and knew that at some point we would see each other again.

In February I flew to Göteborg for my job interview and spent a few days with Mikael and Evelina. From that weekend on we spoke on Skype for hours every night, met a few times and in March Mikael and I started dating. I didn't get that job but moved to Göteborg on April 1st and Mikael proposed 4 weeks later.

Our first evening as an official couple

I never thought that I would get engaged that fast but when you know it's right and supposed to be, why wait. On August 3rd, 2007 we got married in Helsinki and the day was perfect.

Since that day we have gone through good and bad but I can honestly say that as time goes by I forget the bad things and remember the good. Every couple receives {good} advice when they get married, so did we. But what I have learned most by experience in the last 4 years is that in a marriage one needs to humble oneself and constantly reflect on ones actions. Thinking about what I can change, how I can be a better wife and partner and not focus on what my husband can/should do better. Focussing on my husbands needs first. And humbling oneself in adjusting to circumstances, not being selfish - stepping out of ones bubble/box and not to forget and realize that this is an ongoing process and will never stop.

I love you Mikael, my "dream come true".

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This post is the first of a regular blog post series titled "About Love", inspired by Cjanes couples retreat stories. I have asked friends and favourite bloggers to share their love stories, telling us why they got married and what they have learned since then. I hope you will also be inspired.

If you also feel like sharing your story, I'd love to hear from you.

My "Coffee"

2011-09-09T15:54:00.001+02:00

I don't need coffee to work fast. {In fact, I don't even drink coffee.}
I just need my ipod/Iphone and a real good beat in my ears - today: These Swedish Mafiosi.
The result: head nodding, butt wiggling, faster heart beat and fast typing.

Awesome.

PS: Good thing I have my own office.

Growing Pains

2011-09-09T13:41:00.001+02:00

I have been growing my hair out for some time now. All the times I have done so before I got to a certain point and then cut it again. I m u s t resist now..

I saw this beautiful haircut from Olivia Palermo on pinterest today. This is how I want it to be in a year. Isn't it gorgeous? We might even have the same haircolor.

Tonight I'll be baking two blueberry cheesecakes for my mother-in-laws 60th birthday celebration tomorrow. {Sooo delicious, I will post photos and the recipe next week.}

My parents-in-law came from Finland last night {they are staying with Mikaels sister Tina}, Evelina and Magnus are on their way right now. So, tomorrow we will celebrate and then I'll pack my bag for my Berlin trip on Sunday. Can't wait to be in Germany again, stock up on my candy and magazines. And - German language. :) I hope the meetings will not be too long so that I can shop a bit..

Happy weekend to ya'll! :)

One Day

2011-09-08T22:36:00.001+02:00

When I was in my teens I read a book a week, I really loved reading. Now I don't make time for it as much as I should and when we travel, Mikael is driving most of the time as I am sitting beside him, reading. Poor guy.

I bought this book in the beginning of the year but never really started to read it, besides two sides (!) during my vacation at home.

I took it with me when I flew to Stockholm and read 222 pages, I finished it on my second trip to Stockholm the week after. And I was sad when I was done. I had a similar feeling when I watched the last episode of Felicity.

Do you also feel like this when reading a book.. the giddy feeling when you want to use every free minute to continue reading? That's what I felt with One Day. It was a great story and well told, although from the middle of the book onwards I did skip a few paragraphs..

Now I cannot wait for the film to show in Sweden in October. I hope it will not dissapoint.

What should I read next? I am flying to Berlin on Sunday-Tuesday and have some time to fill in the plane..

The Help maybe?
Do you have other suggestions?

XO Senja

Sneak peak.

2011-09-06T22:36:00.001+02:00

Many have asked for photos of our house. Here is a start: The living room and our library/my workroom. {For the new visitors: We bought this house last September and moved in early December. It is an old fixer upper house from 1920.} We heard often that one should live in a house for a year before making big alterations. And I am so glad that we followed this advice.

It is not nearly finished but I already like it a lot.

In the living room, library and hall we are going to change the floor into leaned pine wood. The floor looks good but we want to have the same flooring in the whole house. We will also get new windows this fall and I am fixing the sliding door between the living- and work room in my spare time.

Eventually we will also get a new couch and chairs. And I will paint the table white. And a flat screen TV :)

I am a big fan of Muumin and got this book from my parents for Christmas.

The illustrations are from etsy. {I will post the link as soon as possible as etsy isn't working right now..}

The horse is a Dalarna horse which is very typical Swedish.

And the vase is IKEA.

The red chair will also be replaced with a fireplace this winter - I can't wait.

More to follow soon!

Almost forgotten

2011-09-06T21:52:00.001+02:00

The weekend before last we attended a wedding which I also photographed. I had totally forgotten to post photos.

I usually don't feel comfortable posing like that for photos, I feel so awkward. But they turned out quite nice and I loved my outfit. Also, the photo of me and husband is pretty nice.

oh pear

2011-09-06T13:52:00.001+02:00

Look at these beautiful pears - right from our garden!

New Shop Section!

2011-09-01T22:17:00.002+02:00

Friends,

I have added some more cute fabric covered earstuds and a new section - you should really check it out.

All button earstuds and rosebuds are "buy 3 get 4th one for free"!

Any questions? :)

See through.

2011-09-01T21:14:00.000+02:00

I got my first glasses when I was 8. I should scan in a few photos of frames I have had in the past. Red, black, metal, etc..

A few days ago I read about Bonlook on I believe in unicorns and thought I'd try them out as well.

Do you have a favourite? I sure do.. :)

Country Road Take Me Home

2011-08-30T21:56:00.003+02:00

Today I flew to Stockholm again for the last time in a few weeks. We had beautiful weather and I was not that tired.

On the plane this happened today: I usually reserve an isle seat as I will need to go to the restroom often. As I was sitting on my seat, a tall and somewhat heavy guy stood besides me and said: "I wouldn't mind sitting on the isle seat if that's ok". His voice was not kind, he was not polite or asking kindly if I would like to change places with him as he gets so uncomfortable in the middle seat. My reply was: "Me neither". He was a bit surprised that I didn't grant his request but I got up and let him take a seat next to me. A few minutes later boarding was completed, the plane was really warm and I could imagine that he was uncomfortable. I saw that an isle and middle seat were free on the left row so I told him that I would move and he could take my seat. He was suprised. But I believe in being kind to people, even if they are rude.

After a long day in meetings and a plane ride home I put on this song in our little BMW real loud.

The bass was pumping, the car was going fast and I felt like the Queen of the Countryroads on my way home.

videos

2011-08-30T13:36:00.004+02:00

Have you seen these amazing videos?

MOVE from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.

"3 guys, 44 days, 11 countries, 18 flights, 38 thousand miles, an exploding volcano, 2 cameras and almost a terabyte of footage... all to turn 3 ambitious linear concepts based on movement, learning and food ....into 3 beautiful and hopefully compelling short films....."

See eat and learn here. I also really like their music.

1+1=2

2011-08-29T15:13:00.000+02:00

I met Mikael and his sister Evelina in January 2007 at an annual 4 day long event where Scandinavian young people from our church have fun together with workshops, sports and dances.

I had been dancing with Mikael the night before when I met Evelina the next day as she was sitting at a table with mutual friends. From the first time we talked, we spent the next 5 hours and talked, talked, talked. I can't remember how often either one of us said: "really? me, too!" and we became great friends immediately.

Today she is one of my closest and dearest friends and my sister and on Saturday she got engaged! I/we couldn't be happier for both of them as they make such a great couple :)

January/February can't come fast enough!

Congratulations Evelina & Magnus! I'm looking forward to a lot of laughter and fun memories together.

Music in my Ears

2011-08-28T18:40:00.002+02:00

I was born in Finland and raised in Germany where we lived in the suburbs of different cities in the west, middle and south during my teenage years.

When I was about 22 I moved into my first apartment in a city called Augsburg from which I moved on to Munich and Frankfurt until I moved to Sweden.

I have always been a city girl and tried to live as close to the city center as possible but I never wanted to raise a family in the city. I always dreamt about a house in the country side not far away from town with 5 kids, having little adventures. When I met Mikael my dream evolved into him teaching our kids about survival in the forest, picking berries, making fires and showing him what he had learned throughout the years.

When I first visited Mikael he was a bit hesitant as he was living together with his older sister and her husband in the house where he grew up while they were waiting until Mikael was finished building their house. He thought the house was old and not fancy for that city girl he was dating who didn't know much about nature but was open and wanting to learn.

But, I fell instantly inlove with his cozy Swedish wood home, with the noisy wood floors and the beautiful scenery. At night I would lie in his sisters bed (she lived in Stockholm at the time) with the window open and hear the trees in the wind. The sound made me so happy.

When we bought our house a first part of my dream came true and now I can lie awake in my bed listen to our trees in the wind and phantasize about our future kids playing in the forest and picking cherries, plums and apples from our trees.

This is music in my ears.

Untitled from senja lindahl on Vimeo.

Taken with the 8mm app showing our barn.

A Day in the Life of..

2011-08-25T23:36:00.001+02:00

This week has not been that interesting and I had a bloggers block.

(I don't feel confident in calling myself a writer..)

So this morning as I was sitting in the car at 5.15 a.m. to the airport I thought that I should give you some insight into my life today. (It isn't really a compensation, is it? :))

So, here is what I was up to today:

I got up at 4.15 and drove to the airport to catch my flight at 6.45 to Stockholm

where I had meetings. I'm always excited to fly.

Underground train

.. after 5 minutes..

I had started reading One Day a few weeks ago but for some reason stopped after page two.

So I took it with me today and...

... when I came to the office I had already read 91 pages. It is such a good book and I can't wait to read more during my lunch break tomorrow. (Now I am on page 224!)

When I took this photo I was thinking if I should have rather put on my other shoes as it was starting

to rain outside and my feet were a bit cold..

OK - I am sorry, I was really tired then and my hair gets out of order in the rain.

I also look so scared!

Our Stockholm office.

I was back at around 8 p.m. - just in time to celebrate my favorite persons 33rd birthday!

We went to our favourite Swedish food place..

Excited about my gifts! ;) This and this.

A little posing..

And some traditional Princess Cake.

Next Tuesday I will do the same thing all over again - sans birthday dinner.

Mikko, I love you and am so glad that you are mine.

Now - picture a big bed. That's where I'll be in 5 min.

Over & Out.

Senja

PS: The wine glass is filled with water..

Oh joy! Vol.25

2011-08-22T22:27:00.002+02:00

Guys,

I just bought these photoshop overlays from vol. 25 for our Christmas card. Aren't they beautiful?

Go check out their shop - they also have a 50% sale right now. Just write SAVEAUG at check out.

Don't know what an overlay is or how to add it? Check out their tutorials.

Our weekend in photos.

2011-08-22T21:58:00.000+02:00

On Friday we had some Swedish candy and watched a movie - have you tried it before? Soo good! I need to take some photos of the big isle where you just scoop the different candies into a little paper bag or bowl and enjoy.

On Saturday I took photos of new pieces for the shop - it will be uploaded this week, I'm excited!

Then we cleaned up and drove to Milla & Jonas to babysit Agnes. I love babysitting her - she is fun and adventurous. Do you see the strangled moose? That's what Agnes likes to drag behind her when she goes! :)

XO Senja

Change.

2011-08-19T14:53:00.000+02:00

via pinterest

This is what I have thought about a lot in the last weeks. Change. I need to change in some ways and I need to start getting out of my comfort zone more. I have realized quite a few things and I am on a good way but the thoughts are not all very clear in my mind yet. Once they are I will share them with you.

This first work week went by so fast!

Tonight I will go to the gym again, make tacos and we might do some more renovations.

Tomorrow it is cleaning and laundry day and babysitting Agnes in the evening.

Sunday it's church day and relaxing.

What are you up to? Any thoughts on changes?

Have a fun weekend! :)

XO Senja

A new beginning

2011-08-17T22:20:00.000+02:00

This was me at work yesterday. Oh how I love my Iphone and it's instagram app. Makes this tired girl look less tired and younger.

Tell me, is it still appropriate to call myself girl? I'm 36..

Today I had my first gym session in a long time - sure feels great! I will go three times a week now for 30-45 minutes cardio and then meet with my trainer again after 6 weeks for a new strength training schedule. He told me to measure my waist tomorrow morning and weigh myself and not do it again for the next 3 weeks and I will be suprised by my results. I'm looking forward to that and to my next session on Friday!

In order to keep up with my training I have made these resolutions:

No new clothes until I weigh 66 kilos (145 pounds) - that means I need to loose 7 kilos (15 pounds). Fast!
No sugar from Monday-Saturday. I started with that last week and it was tough the first days but now it is fine. It's all in your head!
No diet coke. In all honesty - I drank one today as I was so tired and we went out for lunch at work.. But this was my first in over a week.

I just packed an order and will try to go to bed asap. It is 10 pm and already super dark outside. Just a few weeks ago it was still so bright sunshine outside..

Do you train regulary? What keeps you motivated?

XO Senja

PS: Check out my new follower Meg from "That's a wrap". Aren't she and her husband so adorable and fun!? I put her on my "daily reads" list right away!

Change of plans.

2011-08-15T22:24:00.000+02:00

My headline was supposed to be "Healthy Choices" and I would start by writing that when Mikael isn't home for the night I can have a salad instead of cooking something hearty for my physically hard working man.

As you can see, I did have the salad and I did sign up at the gym today. But when I was done eating, my man came home after all as he was done with his job down south and was hungry.

To his dismay his wife was having a bad headache and just made two sandwiches and heated up a ham and cheese pie for him. Also honey, I'm sorry - not even desert. You know - bad headache.

Good night.

Past & Future.

2011-08-14T22:33:00.000+02:00

Bold title, right? Here is the past:

* I made some new bracelets which I love! Will be in the shop this week with other new items and a new special!
* Bridesmaids was full unfortunately so we saw Captain America in 3D which was a good choice. Although I will not buy the DVD.. :)
* After the movies we walked around and saw two green guys - can you spot them in the foto? Very strange..
* I made a triple batch of brownies today (I decided I will break my sugar fast every Sunday) - we took the double batch to Tina & José which we had with some ice cream and gave the other batch to Milla & Jonas.

This is what is planned for next week (= future):
* Mikael is working in Lund tomorrow and Tuesday so I will be home alone tomorrow night.
* I will sign up at a gym tomorrow and am so excited about it!
* Babysitting Agnes
* Going to the gym
* Work..
* Continuing with the door and showing you the finished product
* I will try to blog every day!

How will your week look like? :)

XO Senja

A few thoughts & lessons learned

2011-08-13T00:05:00.002+02:00

via pinterest

I got another bladder infection Wednesday night which kept me awake until 3.30 in the morning. It sucks but I feel less discouraged about it. I am waiting for an appointment with an urologist to check why I keep getting them so often and hope we can find a solution fast. In the meantime I have cut diet coke (not even when I am super tired..) and sugar. I want to see if that helps. Today is day 2 and I am craving Friday night candy/ice cream really bad!
I have felt much better and more positive this week. A big part is because I have been prioritising right. Said my prayer and read scriptures right away in the morning and not during/after breakfast.
Another boost was doing service this week. As I wrote before I cleaned our chapel with our Sister Missionaries and met them later in the evening for an appointment with an investigator during which I realized again that every experience, trial or situation we go through in life is valuable. I have always known that but during that appointment I was able to genuinely connect with that person in a way that she needed it because I knew what she was going through. It is important that we are open and share our experiences with other people.
Last week would have been my due date if I hadn't had a miscarriage. I was fine but I guess that due to that it hurt a little bit more to find out that I wasn't pregnant again. I have been thinking a lot about what I can do, what I should learn/do during this time of infertility (as I believe there is a reason why it hasn't been our time yet. I know that I am able and will get pregnant.) and then I read this post from Jordan - Oh Happy Day where she wrote "if you are going through a hard time in your life, just put your head down and work. Really good things are just around the corner." It matches the thought I have had of Gordon B. Hinkleys father when he wrote to Gordon as he was on his mission having a hard time : "Forget yourself and get to work". I have taken these suggestions into action and service was one of it. I will be less selfish and see how I can help others. It will take away my focus from my own wants to others needs. And I can already see how it is changing and healing me. I can't wait to see more results.
On Monday work starts again. I have mixed emotions about my last 4 weeks of vacation. They went by so fast and I didn't accomplish everything I wanted to and got to spend too little time with Mikael. I did manage to set up my work space in our "library" and will show you some photos next week. It is not done at all but it's nice to have my own study :). I also managed to do some new jewelry which will be photographed tomorrow. We also had more rain than sun unfortunately. AND - I didn't even read at least one book!! But - I will start with this book "One Day" next week or maybe tomorrow. However, I feel rested and ready to work and start a new internal project next week. I will explain more about that a little later. :)
Here is a glimpse of what I have been up to yesterday and today. It includes painting the sliding doors (one additonal time will follow tomorrow), washing the car (no photo) and ironing a huge pile!!

Have a happy weekend! :) I want to hang up some shelves and pictures, go for a walk and to the movies to see Bridesmaids. What are your plans?

XO Senja

9 November 1989

2011-08-11T01:15:00.000+02:00

Tonight I was watching The Lives of Others for the first time while ironing. I really liked it and it reminded me of when the Berlin Wall fell.

On 9 November 1989 I was 14 and lived in Königsbrunn which is about 60 km south of Munich. I was at my friends house and her mother had just come home from work and was supposed to drive me home. I remember that I sat into her car as she was waiting outside for me and she was super excited and said: "The wall is down! The wall is down!" I couldn't really understand what she meant but when I came home and saw the news I knew.

Two years ago Mikael and I were in Berlin and saw remnants of the wall. Here are a few photos from our trip. Berlin is magical.

East and West

Do you remember when you heard/saw that the Wall fell?

XO Senja

Fall outfits.

2011-08-10T19:59:00.000+02:00

I really love the Zara fall/winter collection. Here are my favorites - they are really me - just better. Can't wait to order some!

{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}

What do you think? Is there something you would like?

XO Senja

Something is happening.

2011-08-09T23:31:00.000+02:00

Usually there is not so much going on in our city.. Besides last weekend when The Tall Ships Races was in Halmstad. We had concerts of Swedish artists, carneval feeling, big ships and sunshine. Here are a few photos:

Here is one of my favorite Swedish artits: Timbuktu - sorry, Iphone camera. He was fantastic and his show was so energetic.

We drove on one of Mikaels old military boats. Boy was he happy. :)

And then we got to sit in the "captains lounge". Mikael had also driven a ship like this before. So great to have that experience together.

Service.

2011-08-09T16:52:00.000+02:00

Today is a really good day. I am blogging from our chapel which I just cleaned with our female missionaries called Sister Missionaries. We have two in our ward right now.

Later on I will meet them for a teaching appointment they have with someone who is investigating our church.

What are your plans for the day? What are you up to?

XO Senja

Our anniversary.

2011-08-08T14:25:00.001+02:00

Guys, I'm sorry.

Things just got a bit hectic around here with some emotions rolling wild in the family so I didn't have the energy to update you. But I am back on track!

Here are some photos of our anniversary celebrations on Wednesday & Thursday. When we drove into town we didn't take the camera with us as we just wanted to grab something little to bite. Hence the bad Iphone photos.

Also, it seems we didn't take that many photos anyway - it must mean that we had fun and forgot about the camera. :)

Somehow blogger resizes my photos. I need to adjust that.

We spent the day and night at a beach spa hotel in Varberg, about an hour away from home. It was really nice and relaxed and the next day we lay at the beach got a bit tanned and drove home where we changed and continued the day downtown. Currently there are many big ships in our harbor for the "Tall Ships Races" festival. They also had military ships where Mikael got to see a boat that he sailed on during his military service. We also rode in it this weekend - pictures will come today or tomorrow.

He also flew in an airplane simulator and was really good at it! Very accurate.

I'm a bit sad that this is my last week of vacation and our anniversary was the only time we drove somewhere but also thankful that Mikael has a lot to do right now as the beginning of the year was very low..

I hope you all had fun weekends!

XO Senja

Sneak Preview...

2011-08-04T23:21:00.000+02:00

... of what our anniversary looked like. More tomorrow, now I need to sleep..

Dress, T-Shirt and bracelet: H&M, bag: bought in China, earrings: made by yours truly.

XO Senja

Lucky number 4.

2011-08-03T00:47:00.000+02:00

Today is our 4th wedding anniversary (on my side of the world it is as I am typing this at 0:26) and I already look forward to celebrating our 5th next year.

There is so much to say about Mikael and us but I'll keep it short. I love us - we are not perfect, we go through ups & downs like every couple and single person but we always work it out. And although everyday daily life can suck us in hard we know that if we spend quality time together we always have a great and fun time.

In these 4 years we have travelled a lot and experienced different cultures (Paris, Germany, Finland, Denmark, China, The Caribbean, Dubai, USA, etc), we bought a house and are steadily progessing our construction company and much more. But most of all - we have had fun.

Here are some photos from our wedding. I love looking at them as they show how genuinely happy we were. They really reflect us as individuals and as a couple.

I didn't get too cheesy, right?

XO Senja

Just us.

2011-08-02T16:43:00.000+02:00

A friend of ours recently took these photos and I thought I'd share as I haven't really shown so many photos of myself with a bit longer hair :)

Tomorrow we are celebrating our 4th wedding aniversary at a Spa Hotel at the beach. Couldn't get any better.

XO Senja

Last week.

2011-08-02T07:59:00.002+02:00

I wrote this post last evening as we were babysitting and then Emma joined us in the living room and continued sleeping on my lap so I couldn't continue.. :)

My Dears!

Sorry for the silence on the blog, I got sick last week with another bladder infection and didn't have any energy.

But I did take some photos and am so inlove with the Instagram app!

The sky one night.

We had a barbeque at the beach with the ward last Saturday.

On Sunday evening we were in Kristianstad, which is a about 1,5 hours south from us in Skåne where David L. Beck and his first counselor from the Young Men General Board spoke. Brother Beck was entertaining and gave really good thoughts.

It was raining that evening and the sky looked as if it was falling on us..

We babysat again on Friday.

I made a resolution to go out for a 5-6 k walk every day - here are some shots.

No photo editing.

I will post more regulary this week and even update the shop with new button covered earrings and necklaces.

Do you live on the country side or in the city? Do you miss living in either?

XO Senja

Two Days in the Life of.

2011-07-27T22:42:00.001+02:00

Some Iphone photos from yesterday and today (I just love shooting with the Instagram App..)

The first 4 are from yesterday when we celebrated my sister-in-law Evelinas 30th birthday. They made some delicious chocolate cakes!

The last two are from today. We finally had a sunny and warm day during my vacation and I got some color on my pale face :) Have you read "One Day"? If you have, what did you think about it?

A great tradition that Mikaels family has is that each guest says 3 wishes to the birthday kid for the upcoming year. I think that is really sweet. This time we all told our fondest memories of Evelina.

What kind of traditions do you have in your family for birthday celebrations?

XO Senja

PS: Thanks so much for your orders!! :) I packed all and send them out today!

Happy Shopping Hours.

2011-07-26T23:43:00.001+02:00

This is what yesterday looked like:

Mikael had to work in Malmö which is about 1:15 h away and it has all the fun stores! IKEA, Bauhaus and Stoff och Stil, my favourite fabric store. I didn't go all out at IKEA though, I want to have done more renovations in the house before I indulge more in curtains, frames, etc.. At Bauhaus and the fabric store I bought more though - you will see the result in a few weeks! :)

Then I returned to the building site and helped Mikael put in two windows on the roof. There are really no floors inside, just wood panels where you can see the lower floor and I was so scared! I was not able to really walk, I was doing the moon walk and sliding slowly.. Silly, me..

The weekend was fun but nothing really worth telling about, I also didn't take many photos. We went into town with our twin nephews and their sister and my mother-in-law where we walked around and had a pizza. What an experience being in a restaurant with two 1 year olds and a 2,5 year old. She was eating nicely but the boys were tired and didn't want to sit in their kids seats. So I took Alvin out and suddenly my lap felt warm.. His diaper leaked.. I took him to change the diapers and when I was done my mother-in-law came in and handed me Oskar who had left "his mark" on her pants :)

I am getting good experience here. But in the end I was also happy to drive home alone with Mikael.. :)

XO Senja

PS: Today is your last chance to order items for 20% off - use the code BACK20 at check out! :)

Round 'n about.

2011-07-23T00:07:00.000+02:00

Today was more like laying low. My mom cut my hair a bit so that it looks more even (I am letting it grow right now) and then we drove into town, running some errands.

When we got home, Mikael had come home from his meeting at church and we drove around a bit. My dad wanted to see the lake which is only about 5 k from home.

I love living here - I hope you can understand why:

PS: Don't forget the 20% off sale, just enter the code BACK20 when you check out. I have already sold quite a few pieces!

PSS: Have a lovely weekend! :

Labor Day.

2011-07-21T20:14:00.000+02:00

My parents arrived last night on their way from Finland back home to Germany and will stay until Saturday.

We heat our house and warm water with wood, we have a big wood heater in the basement which saves us a lot of money on electricity every month. The heater needs to be fired up once a day but once we have better windows we will only need to heat every other day. It is environmentally friendly and with our forest behind the house we are quite self sufficient if we need to be.

We got our first yearly supply of birch tree logs a few months ago which needed to be cut. Mikael did most of the cutting with his motor saw a few weeks ago and then we rented a machine which cut everything in oven size pieces.

This left us with 3 big piles which needed to be stocked and will dry for about a year until we can use them.

So when my parents came we put them to work right away and work we did! After about 4 hours everything is piled up and ready to dry.

Now we are all tired and exhausted but I love this kind of manual labor and working together.

Here are some pictures from the day.

PS: We are storing the wood at Mikaels sisters place as they have more space currently.

New Arrivals!

2011-07-21T19:26:00.000+02:00

Have you checked out all the new arrivals in the shop? What is your favourite?

Check them all out on the front page of the shop. :)

PS: Don't forget about the 20% sale until July 26th! Just enter "Back20" at checkout.

SALE!

2011-07-20T00:09:00.000+02:00

In order to celebrate the new logo, new items {check out all items on the front page!}

in the shop and back to blogging,

I'm having a 20% off sale until July 26th CET!

Happy shopping! :)

Anybody here?

2011-07-19T22:42:00.000+02:00

My dears!

Is there still someone reading and following? I hope so.

I'm sorry for the long silence, I have thought about posting almost all the time, but the time off was good for me. I didn't accomplish as much as I wanted but I feel less stressed - and now I have 4 weeks of vacation, first time ever that long!

Here is a brief roundup of what I/we have been up to:

My cousin Ami and his wife Emilia visited us while they were on vacation in Sweden (they live in Helsinki) and we had such a great time at the beach.

I flew to Dubai on a study trip from work with about 7 other people from the travel industry. It was so amazing, I loved every minute of it and will return as soon as possible with Mikael. Travelling without him is not as fun.

I got an Iphone 4 - I wanted to wait for No 5 but I was too impatient. Get ready for some camera phone shots. Below is our forest, taken from the garden.

Mikael ran his 2nd Marathon and was 30 minutes faster this year than last! I'm so proud of him.

We spent a lot of time with family. Our twin nephews are growing up so fast, they turned 1 in May and have a tendency to get attached to me once I put on some chunky necklaces. I love it.

We also spent a week in Hannover, northern Germany where we visited the worlds biggest wood fair. It was fun and interesting and I enjoyed spending time with my family.

And - I have a new logo! Thanks to my friend Lyndsay from The Blog Guidebook and Lyndsay & the Johnsons designed it and I really love it. What do you think?

I'll also be making changes on the blog layout in the next weeks.

I'm pretty sure I forgot a lot - oh yes, I turned 36 and had a birthday party but I can't find photos right now.

Much love,
Senja

PS: Watch out for a big one week 20% sale - maybe starting tonight? You'll just see!

I can't do it all...

2011-03-14T10:54:00.000+01:00

... I wish I could, but I can't and don't want to.

Therefore, I'm taking a break

in order to set my priorities straight again

and to dedicate my time to

the one I love.

I don't know when I'm back

but I'd love to stay connected with you.

If you would like to add me on Facebook,

I would love to be your friend.

Just send me an email and I'll add you.

Thanks for understanding!

Much love and see you soon!

Senja

My little secret, not kept for long.

2011-03-11T22:57:00.000+01:00

I'm a positive person.

I am a hopeful person.

I see solutions when faced with problems.

I believe in a Heavenly Father who has a plan for me and my family.

When faced with challenges I try to think about what I can/should learn from the situation I am in.

I smile and laugh a lot.

I am never sad for a long time.

But there is one thing that has kept the sadness come up from time to time.

Something that happened 2 weeks before Christmas.

After 3 years of trying to get pregnant I finally was.

During all the moving stress it happend.

The test showed the long waited plus sign after just a few seconds and I was so happy.

So, this is how it feels like.

I had always wanted to know, I had longed for it.

The moment I had been waiting for so long and had been envying so many people

around me feeling.

We found out on a Saturday and as I wear my heart on my sleeve

I had to tell my family and Mikael told part of his.

On Sunday I went to Church with a proud feeling,

a secret was growing inside me.

On that same day I saw hints of a possible miscarriage.

People around me said that slight bleeding is quite common in the beginning.

So I waited, prayed and tried to stay positive.

I went to work and life went on as normal.

On Wednesday I got a deep pain in my stomach and I knew that something was wrong.

I stayed home the next two days which my midwife advised me to do

and I got an appointment for an ultrasound the next Monday.

She also said that it doesn't have to mean anything as I didn't bleed much.

But deep down inside me I knew..

I felt that I was being prepared for what was happening.

My Heavenly Father helped me with thoughts,

love and peace.

I was able to get used to the idea of a miscarriage

as dauting and sad as it seemed.

But I knew that I would be alright.

At least I knew that I could get pregnant the natural way.

The next few days were very long.

Monday we went to the doctor who confirmed that I had lost the baby.

The ultrasound was empty.

So was I.

But my heart was full.

Of sadness, love, gratitude and hope.

3 months later I am fine, I am happy, but this sadness creeps up inside of me at times.

I wish I could control it.

But instead of trying to ignore it, I just let it in a little bit.

Enough to remind me of the hope that hasn't left me.

The hope for a future where it still possible that I have the 5 kids I would love to have.

The hope and knowledge of a Heavenly Father that has a plan especially for me and my family.

And for this I am so grateful.

And I am grateful that in those sad moments I can feel His love for me making room

for contentment and excitement for what is to come and for the promise He gave me which

I know He will keep.

Weekend project.

2011-03-11T12:58:00.000+01:00

Dear all!

TGIF!! :) And for me that means that I will leave work in about 30 minutes. I took some overtime and looking forward to an afternoon, starting this project - I can't wait and will document it for you all to see. :)

I will also take care of some new additions to the shop and some scores at home. Maybe also go to the movies tomorrow evening. We will see.

Have a wonderful and fun weekend and I'll see you next week!

XO Senja

PS: It snowed a little last night - and I thought that spring was coming.. Sigh..

Homesick.

2011-03-10T22:09:00.000+01:00

Many people ask me if I ever get homesick.

It is almost exactly 4 years ago that I moved to Sweden from Germany and I have never missed the country itself. I miss things I am used to. Language, food, just knowing how everything works, the easyness, not needing to think about grammar for example. But mostly it is my family I miss and candy during Easter and Christmas. We have a few German stores here where I can get some things and Nutella is available everywhere.

But one thing I miss a lot is German magazines. Especially my favourite magazine InStyle which they don't have in Sweden - something I can't really understand as fashion and style is very big in Sweden..

Today I ordered a pre-birthday present for me. A year full of monthly German InStyle magazines starting next month. I'll be the happiest 36 year old woman around. Maybe even the most sylish I can be. :) And maybe this helps a little bit with the horror I feel creeping in inside me. 36 is one year closer to 40. Shiver..

If you live abroad, what are the things you miss from back home?

Comfy.

2011-03-09T09:20:00.000+01:00

I'm loving this couch and armchairs from the Danish furniture store called Ilva. The couch and two of the purple armchairs in the living room and the other one upstairs in the hall, right next to the balcony.. I think it would lovely with the light floors and imagine sitting in the armchair with a good book and a cup of tea? Sigh..

90 km = near death.

2011-03-07T23:38:00.000+01:00

Not really, but I got you, didn't I? ;)

Well, I guess it was almost a near death experience for my poor sister-in-law Evelina who got a huge blister on her foot and two smaller ones after 17 km of cross-country-skiing with 73 km more to go. What a champ!

As I told you before, we drove up about 6 hours by car up to Sälen in the Swedish mountains where the Vasalopp Race started last week Monday. The worlds longest cross-country-race. We had -15 Celsious at 7.00 in the morning and beautiful sunshine.

I put on movies & music on the Ipod, took some crafting with me as I am always afraid I might get bored with nothing to do. But far from it. If I wasn't at one of the stops waiting for Mikael and the others to stop by to cheer them on, I was in the car driving and getting warm again.

Mikael arrived in 8:58 hours - my hero! We waited for the others to come and drove home through the night, arriving at 4:00 a.m. in Gothenburg where we stayed at Evelina's. We also got stopped by a police car. Apparently it's very unusual to be driving at 4.00 on a Monday/Tuesday night in Gothenburg... Sober..

Anyway, it was a lovely day. See you again, Sälen - maybe next year? Thanks for welcoming me/us with such open arms.

Love,
Senja

Visitors from North.

2011-03-06T20:02:00.000+01:00

Last week Mikaels parents came down from Finland to help us as well as Tina & José. And help they did! Heikki was a real Finnish lumber jack and cut down some trees from our forest. Next cold winter can come!

I hope my mom-in-law comes back soon so that she can teach me gardening.

Swedish Traditions - Breakfast

2011-03-06T19:50:00.000+01:00

Hard boiled eggs with Kalle's kaviar. Delicious.

decisions, decisions.

2011-03-02T13:07:00.000+01:00

Hi friends!

Did you all have a great weekend? {I do realize that I am asking this on a Wednesday, but it seems that today is the first day I am back to reality, a full report from an awesome weekend in the snow will follow in the next 2 days}.

I knew that renovating a house would take time, patience and energy but I never really knew how time consuming decision making was. And there are so many decisions to be made. Which floor, which kitchen - what kind of countertop, cabinets, etc - windows, tiles, bathroom interior, walls, wallpaper, etc.

First things first, this is the floor we have decided on {the last "yes, we'll do it" still has to be said, but I am hopeful that it will be made soon}. It is a pine wood floor which has been made lighter. We think it is so pretty and it will make the house look a bit country, but modern and light.

How about you? Have you experiences with pine wood floors?

{photos from google picture search}