Category Archives: A mother’s diary

An ode to my friends

September 8, 2015A mother's diary, Callouts and thanks, Contemplations, Favorite quotesvica

This week’s post is a very short one. A wonderful and inspiring quote about friendship and a great thanks to all who support me and reach out to me. I love and cherish our friendship! Hugs to all of you from Denmark.

Here is the quote as I found it in German:

“Der beste Weg, einen Freund zu haben, ist der, selbst einer zu sein.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Interpretation:

“The best way to make a friend is to be one for others.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Pictures: selfies with two of my truest and most honest best friends — my children, Emma and Niklas. They are like my little mirrors. Most beautiful mirrors. If there is an upset to see in them, most probably there is one in me. And if I smile, they smile too. My family and my friends are the best motivators and reasons to smile and enjoy life as much as possible.

Summer impressions

August 25, 2015A mother's diary, Contemplations, Memories, True Storyvica

You might not have noticed but I was away for two weeks with my family. We visited my parents- and my grandparents-in-law in Germany. We all had a wonderful time.

It makes me smile as I see reactions on most people’s faces when I mention my parents-in-law. It is amazing how the prejudices against in-laws are ingrained into the cultures we grew up in. All those fairy tales and jokes about the awful mother-in-law.

I love seeing how the faces relax when I tell them how much I like my in-laws and that my mother-in-law is one of my best friends.

My family and I try to spend Christmas every year with my parents-in-law as well as the whole of my husband’s family. And we love spending our summer holidays with them. Every time we spend time with them we tank energy and good mood.

Also this summer we had very colourful and wonderful holidays including three celebrations on my Mom’s-in-law birthday.

Here are some impressions from our vacation.

We …

hiked on a motor-cross test track close to were my in-laws live:

enjoyed my grandparents’-in-law garden, some of us awake and aware of the blooming and ripening beauties:

some of us asleep:

inspected damages after a summer storm:

made selfies:

enjoyed the world and ourselves from the top of a rock called Grandfather:

went for a walk:

enjoyed natural and human creations:

verified quality of Mama’s writing:

and finally unpacked our bags today:

Did I exist before reading a book?

August 4, 2015A mother's diary, Books I read, Contemplations, Favorite quotes, Memoriesvica

I can’t imagine my life without books. I rarely go out of the house without a book.

Yesterday I’ve downloaded an app allowing to read books on my mobile. So even if I go out without a book but have my mobile with me, I am still not book-less. A very nice trick.

I read in several different books during the day. Some I use for reference, some I read for pleasure, some for both work and pleasure.

But I can hardly imagine that I ever existed a day long without holding a book in my hands. These days definitely were present in my life, but fortunately I can’t remember them.

First I copied love of others for books. In my toddler years I imitated my father in reading. I took his books and pretended reading by holding my index finger against the text and making some unintelligible sounds. I was reading. Then I was eager to read what my elder sister read. I envied her in many things. So I repeated her in many ways. Including reading. I picked the books she did. And this is when it hit me. Literally. You can find the story on how I grew dependent on reading here.

Whatever the format, books are incredible creations and creatures, which have lives of their own.

My dependence on them grew so strong that at some point I wanted to create some of my own. And this is what I am doing. Reading and writing books. And I am having a blast. One of the dependencies, which I hope will never lose grasp on me.

Today looking into my notes with favorite quotes I found the following wise words about books from a hilarious and intelligent little book “The Uncommon Reader” by Alan Bennett, featuring a queen who falls in love with books.

So here are the quotes:

“Books did not care who was reading them or whether one read them or not.”

“A book is a device to ignite the imagination.”

“You don’t put your life into your books. You find them there.”

Alan Bennett “The Uncommon Reader”

Pictures: Niklas back in the beginning of 2012, when he was a few months and a year old, happy about a big thick book Mama have ordered for her work.

How to protract successfully, invented by Niklas

June 29, 2015A mother's diaryvica

Have you ever wondered how you could postpone the point in time when you have to go to bed? And how to do this successfully? Meaning that none of the parents gets angry.

Here is one of approaches invented and thoroughly tested by my son Niklas.

Make the parent, who brings you to bed (for example, Papa) to wait by giving the other parent (in this example, Mama) three kisses on each cheek and on the forehead too; nine kisses in total. Then correct those kisses that were given too briefly. Meaning give them again, or make the whole procedure from the very beginning. After that give a big hug to this kissed parent. This parent is so happy that she holds you in her arms and completely forgets that she wanted to urge you to follow the first parent, who is in his turn tired at the end of the day but doesn’t dare to tear this happy bonding apart.

Picture: here is my sweet Emma, who is currently also testing various approaches how to delay falling asleep.

Trial and error

May 26, 2015A mother's diary, Contemplations, Favorite quotesvica

Unpacking into a new home can be quite revealing. Seconds after I think a cupboard or a case is readily filled in and in order I find more things to put into it and things to be sorted out. No end of possibilities to change the arrangements, although my brain tries to find the final arrangement for all times.

The quotes below made me smile and reminded that experimenting is definitely worth it and never wrong.

From blog post by Elizabeth Gilbert on September 25, 2014 (said by her mother and quoted by Liz in her blog) :
“You can only make the best choice possible, based on what you know RIGHT NOW. Later, you may know more. Then you may be tempted to judge yourself harshly for the decision you made today. But decide right now to forgive yourself in advance for what you did not know — and could not know — today. So make your decision, and move on.”

From “Don’t Squat With Yer Spurs On! A Cowboy’s Guide To Life” by Texas Bix Bender, p. 29
“Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.”

Pictures: (1) Trial and error can be so sweet. One of the Emma’s first attempts to turn from her back to belly ended up with her being rolled up into a Niklas’s old play blanket. (2) One of the first arrangements on my new desk. I am curious to see how it will evolve with time. I suspect only one constant. A coffee cup will always be present.