Christmas 2022

We had Christmas this year in SJ.  We had originally thought we would go to the cabin but it became too much coordination to get it done so we stayed home.  We enjoyed a day of brunch, opening gifts, games and smoking a prime rib.  We ended the day with a huge dinner of prime rib and lobster.

This might be my favorite gift of the year - a Polish Pottery honey container.

We had lots of dogs for the holiday:  Ahi, Hops, Astrid, Oakley, Lydia and Chip!  And for the afternoon, Dan's dog Cali joined in the on the fun.

Grace took a break in the middle of the day and tied some flies.  She got a whole bunch of gear from Joey Z, that was his dads and his grandfathers.  

Lots of talking about, scheming and looking at the meat!

It was a meal where we said grace for our good fortune and remembered those who we miss:  Grandpa Roy, Uncle Don and Janet.

Thanksgiving 2022

Thanksgiving 2022 was a bit of a mess!  Jim came home from Stockholm with covid and as soon as I was confident he would be ok, I headed to the cabin.  That (hopefully) would mean I would stay negative and he would have the run of the house, instead of being isolated in the bedroom.

So it was just me and Ahi and Hops (Lydia was with Grace).  We had a lot of quiet time binging tv shows, making pierogis, reading, getting organized and getting a jump start on xmas shopping!   We also did hikes every day, including the hike above which was a beautiful example of fall colors in the sierras.  I love the way the selfies turned out and could not pick my favorite so included them both.  Old Ahi did a 6 mile hike today!

Stockholm

I had a business trip to Stockholm, Sweden and Jim came with me so that we could do some sightseeing.  It was a great city and we really enjoyed wandering around.

Above was one of the views from our hotel room.  They were replacing pavers the whole time were were there and we were sure Roy was looking over us watching to make sure it was done right.  They finished the last day were were there.

This is the other view from our room.  That building is the City Hall which is where the Nobel Prize dinner occurs.

Our hotel was across the bridge from Gamal Stan and Old Town.  It was a lovely place to wander around.  The first night we were there we ate at a vegetarian restaurant.

This is the changing of the guards at the Royal Palace. 

We went on a boat tour so we could see different parts of the city from the water.  

We were fascinated by this Christmas tree which was a real tree with all the limbs cut off and then put back on.  We watched them work on it all week long.

Loved this basset hound in a cart.  He was barking at people as he rode by.

Vasa Museum

Junibacken - a museum for children stories

In the evening, we would sit looking out the window in our room and plan the next day.  It got dark around 3:30 pm!

We really enjoyed the Vasa Museum which showed a fully restored ship that sunk in the 1600's and was found and recovered in the 1960's - 333 years after it sank.  Ninety percent of the ship is original.

Loved that they called out that social distancing is a canon length away!

The weather most of the week was overcast or broken clouds, but one day we got this beautiful weather.

We went to Skansen, a two year old outdoor museum and zoo.  We saw arctic fox and lynx!

At the end of the day at Skansen, we had fika, a traditional cinnamon bun and coffee break.

Fika was so nice at Skansen that we stayed and had a waffle with lingonberry jam.

The weekend we were in Stockholm was the day that they turned on their Christmas in Stockholm lights.  It was fun to walk around the city and see the different lights.

Jim had traditional Swedish meatballs a few times!  The food there was great and there was always good vegetarian options.

We managed to have sweets every day at least once!  Loved stopping at a little cafe for tea and treats.

On a sunny afternoon, we took a boat trip out to the archipelago to see the summer houses where Stockholm citizens go to vacation.

We went to city hall, below, with one of my co-workers and learned all about the Nobel Prize dinner that is held there every December.

The children's tree at city hall.  It is where children gather to share ideas.  The idea started here and has been replicated around the world.

The gold room in city hall.

Lots and lots of cool statues in the city.  Big and small.

We ran into St Clare Church while out doing a walking tour of the shopping district.  A beautiful church to stop for a respite.

One night we tried to eat at a popular restaurant but could not get a table.  So we headed back towards the hotel and stopped at a Lebanese restaurant.  We got 15 vegetarian dishes that were so delicious.  It was super fun to try something different.

 All in all, it was a great trip.  Stockholm is beautiful, clean and the people are super nice.  I would highly recommend a trip there.