Sweden

On Leaving Summer

/ Leya / 19 kommentarer

As we leave summer behind and enter Autumn, I want to express my gratefulness to the Swedish summer I experienced in Abisko.

Abisko och Lofoten 2018 1010-Redigera

Abisko is forever connected to my first hike on the King’s Trail when I was young

But now it will also be remembered for giving us the only real Swedish summer in 2018

For its lushness, colours and Linneas – and for the only raindrops for three months.

No one can deny the beauty of the mountain forest and its shy inhabitants…

…hiding their freshness in the cool air –

…and  silently showing off their finery –

But Autumn is here now – hopefully with more colourful strokes from Nature’s palette

Thank you – Abisko – I am forever grateful!

 

 

Top of The World

/ Leya / 18 kommentarer

This weekend we had the great joy of having Milo’s little sister, Arena, here – and there he really got a match…wrestling for two days without end. But also learning things and exploring the world together.

OK, so you’ve got something there, have you…

Let me think…

Maybe… if I try to look really bored..

Well –  women’s list – you know…

Thursday Thoughts – Autumn Hints

/ Leya / 29 kommentarer

Some cool autumn days at our summerhouse – Much is in progress…and nature is slowing down. Totti is adjusting to having Milo around, but as you can see he has also found out how to effectively get away from him…one of his favorite solutions is to jump into the car cage again. Milo cannot reach him there – yet.

 

Autumn is coming – the crispness of the air, the clear skies and the colours of the trees.

Our little fishing village is preparing for the next season – boats on shore and summer guests gone. Silent mornings, only the swallows’ swift wings dipping in the water.

He is growing so fast…too fast, just like little children do.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #7: Everyday Moments

/ Leya / 56 kommentarer

Everyday moments – maybe it is easy to forget how important they are, because (I) we seldom succeed in living as mindful as we should… Thank you, Amy, for the opportunity of highlighting some of those precious moments.

Everyday I have to care for my best friends, Totti and Milo. Following their lives is a gift.

Even if I see to their daily needs, sometimes a professional grooming is necessary – especially if you want to win next competition!

Not yet….are they best friends, but it is coming. Milo is slowly learning what he can do… or not…Totti has an angel’s patience – he is really too kind and considerate for his own good.

So, I try to walk Totti alone, just him and me, once a day. Picking berries, finding wild animals – and apple trees – in the forest and meadows.

Some days we go to our summer house, or just to the sea, to relax, and only – exist…

…which is so important…Life is short – someone will soon grow out of those sandals.

Taking a boat to one of the small islands in the archipelago is always a treat.

Driving home to our ordinary house again, the farmers are usually busy in the fields, but this year there is not much left to harvest. The drought has taken its toll.

Every month – not every day – we usually visit some interesting exhibitions. It could be about almost anything. Here a fashion and theater theme by designer Camilla Thulin.

This summer there was no rain – but all the other summers there usually are everyday moments with umbrellas!

During summer, spring or autumn – or all of them – we sometimes get a bit tired of everyday life, and decide to hop on the train/ferry to our neighbor country, Denmark.

Somehow I love train stations…

…and ferries. Some guys are very, very tired of the everyday thing…but there is always room for a ferry feet stretching!

Strolling the streets of Copenhagen is always a treat. To us, Denmark means good food, fantastic exhibitions, lovely people and yellow houses with cosy corners!

To see how others interpreted the challenge, visit our Lens-Artists reader section, or click on Amy’s challenge here.

 

 

 

 

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: Blue

/ Leya / 37 kommentarer

This week’s Lens-Artists host is Patti, and she challenges us to share our interpretation of blue—the color, the mood, or the time of day.”

My choices are from Kosta Boda Art Hotel in Sweden and in the header, the village Å in Lofoten, Norway.

Last year we spent a night here at the SPA-hotel, and marveled at the world famous artworks in every room. All of them for sale. No doubt my favorite was the glass bar, where Kjell Engman has designed and finished everything in blue glass.

 

 

 

Even the chairs…

 

For more information about participating in the lens-artists challenge, click here.

To see Patti’s BLUE challenge, click here.

To have your post show in the lens-artists tag section of the WP Reader, please tag it as

lens-artists. Be sure to include the hyphen and the final S !

Welcome!

 

Searching for Summer Beauty

/ Leya / 26 kommentarer

Tonight I went out to search for flowers in the nearest marshland.

And what joy to find they are still there!

Even by the road some have survived –

In the stillness of the late evening

Sommarkväll blommor och grodor 2018 087-2

– I rejoice in their presence

Sommarkväll blommor och grodor 2018 041-2

 

 

 

Thursday Thoughts – Reality is…

/ Leya / 16 kommentarer

Thinking about reality and truth…

This is what my garden looks like today. Everything is dried out, and a single survivor is standing there, in the middle of what once was a lawn. A sweet Marguerite.

 

Then, if I look closely, I might find some more survivors – in the flowerbed at the back of the house, and of course I have tried to save some of my outdoor plants – the Tejas lilies and some begonias are coming now. Everything develops very fast though, in less than a week, they come – and go.

My most faithful friends are the Lavender and the Buddleias. I water them every day, and the wine as well. So – this small part of my garden, about 4 x 2,5 meters – is this the true picture of our summer 2018? No, but sometimes we can choose our own truth. I believe some people always do, but I prefer honesty and trying to show different angles or both sides. Life is never only going one way, and I think that is a good thing.