Folkhögskole-room glow-up

Linnea moved from Östhem to Västhem, another part of the boarding. The whole school area is pretty and all the different houses that offer boarding are nice, but also all a bit worn down and old.

Her new room felt much bigger than the room she previously shared, with even a small little extra room attached to it! Still with the ugly red plastic floor though, ha ha, and not very cosy or inspiring... Time for a change! 
Here it is before:

After:

From another angle, before:

And after:

It's amazing what a bit of colour and greenery can do! I also loved the rug, the lights, and the chairs - my favourite part! Those were a super second hand find, 300 SEK for BOTH! Linnea wasn't convinced at first, she didn't quite have the vision, but fortunately she let herself get talked into them cause they really turned out great!

One of Mormor's handmade rugs for the little room, a battery driven lamp on timer, and a fake flower even in there. Very happy girl with her new room!

We celebrated the successful make-over with some (massive!) kebab sandwiches from the local pizzeria, om nom nom!

 

Single room shopping!

Three weeks into the term, Linnea finally found out that she was getting a single room! Hallelujah!
So one part of our Skåne-weekend was the mission to go shopping for what else she might need now, that she had a whole room to herself. I had promised her a big rug for example, as the plastic red floor in the rooms is super ugly; and some big (fake) plants.

So after our overnight in IKEA-land we picked up Linnea and continued to Helsingborg. The plan was to cover Väla Shoppingcenter, but it took us all day to browse the second hand, and furniture shops. 
All three of us stayed in a hotel in Helsingborg for the night, went to Pinchos for dinner, and the next day we returned to Väla for some "normal" shopping. There was a need for new jeans for Linnea, and some other bits and pieces. 

All in all, mission complete, and we returned to Svalöv with all our new treasures. We set Linnea up, had dinner, and then stayed in a Guesthouse nearby for the night, before we continued on to our next stop.

Starting Folkhögskola

School starts in the middle of August in Sweden. Those who were moving in were welcome on the Sunday before school start, so Linnea and I packed Mormor's car full and off we went on the long drive. It takes about four hours from Skara to Svalöv.
Linnea had got a part in a room in the Östhem part of the school, the building you see here:

It didn't exactly feel like this was a double room... More a single room where they had just put in an extra bed, desk and chair... hmmm..? Only one small wardrobe to share, one tiny shelf in the bathroom. Not a really great start to be honest. We had already put her on the waiting list for a single room, but no guarantee of course.

So we tried to make the best of it. After Linnea had unpacked a bit we went and got some more things that were lacking, her "starter pack" of food, and a fan - because the room was extremely hot.

I am hoping this will be a great year for her! It will be very exciting to hear all about it once it kicks off!

Ullared shopping raid

Linnea finally got on a flight back to Sweden, after having been bumped several days in a row. She was home in Abu Dhabi to reload a little bit, before she is now going to - live in Sweden!

She has applied to and been accepted into Fridhems Folkhögskola in Svalöv (Skåne, about 40 minutes away from Malmö), to study at 'Allmän Kurs' and get her general qualification in Swedish that she needs for higher education. 
A brand new adventure awaits, and she will be boarding at the school; which means that she took the train from Copenhagen when landing early in the morning, and I drove down to pick her up in Varberg for us to go straight to... Ullared!

I had promised her a shopping raid when she got back, to kit out her new room. 
Unfortunately, she will be in a shared room, so we couldn't get too many things as we weren't too sure how big the room was going to be. We have put her on a waiting list for a single room, but until then we concentrated on her bedding and some storage. Still came away with a completely overfull trolley!

Happy happy shopper!

I bought her a Harry Potter Lego-set as a moving in gift, which she decided to build straight away.

She came in time to spend another week with Mormor, Morfar and me in Skara, before school started. Lots of organising, packing and repacking was done.

Linnea Graduation family photos

Throwback to this time last month!

This time we took the family photos at graduation, before the ceremony. It was a long queue of families who wanted to commemorate the big event; and I felt the session itself was rather rushed by the time it was our turn.
Linnea was focused:

Linnea and her big brother. I love this photo. It meant so much for all of us that Lucas could be here for her big dag. I really hope they will always be there for each other throughout the rest of their lives.

The family photo:

Den ljusnande framtid

Linnea and I set out for Scandinavia a lot earlier this year than we normally do. Normally school doesn't finish for the summer until the beginning of July. But this year, we could take off already now in the beginning of June - a novelty for us!

We flew into Copenhagen as we were invited for a Studentfest (a Graduation party) in Malmö. Pia didn't have space for us at her house as they had many other guests staying over, so we treated ourselves to a couple of nights in a hotel.
Before going to the party, as we waited for Lucas and Tove to arrive, we took a drink in the hotel bar.

Maybe it was that drink, or maybe just general confusion, but then we managed to take the bus in the wrong direction, ha ha. A little tiki-tour in the Malmö suburbs later:

We managed to arrive though, and the weather kept clear even though the skies were grey. At least for the first bit of the celebrations. Here's Linnea, Lucas and Tove:

The Hybholts had mounted a party tent in the garden, which was lucky because later in the evening the rain did come. Well, Swedish summer in a nutshell.
Here's Sofies Farmor (grandma) delivering a cute speech, about carrots (!) as a metaphor for life:

Pia had been cooking for weeks and weeks, I especially enjoyed the dessert table. I didn't manage to get to the Pavlova in time to taste it, I only got the photos - and it sure was pretty! My favourite though was the little macarons shaped as Swedish graduation hats:

The next day we checked out of the hotel and into Casa Hybholt. The other guests were gone, and we helped tidying up, breaking down the party tent and generally enjoying the day-after-the-night-before mood. Sofie got so many lovely gifts, as is tradition in Sweden:

 Congratulations Sofie - Den ljusnande framtid är din!

A new chapter begins

The world is your canvas, so vibrant and vast,
Each step that you take, a moment to last.
With your diploma in hand and a heart full of dreams,
You are equipped to delve into limitless streams.

The books you'll explore, the tales you will weave,
As you embark on life's journey, ready to achieve.
Each chapter your turn, each story you find,
Enriches your soul, broadens your mind.



Remember the lessons that shaped who you are,
The friendships, the mentors, the journeys afar.
Celebrate this achievement, your hard work has paid,
A new chapter begins, with memories made.

We are so incredibly proud of you Linnea.
Your DP journey hasn't been easy, but you have been determined and resilient and you never gave up. Keep dreaming big!
We are so excited to see the bright future that awaits you! ♥︎♥︎♥︎

Class of 2024

Time for the Graduation Ceremony of the Class of 2024! We were all so excited!
For some reason this year, they would only allow one extra flag (apart from the UAE one) on the sash. I was so happy I thought of ordering one in Sweden that Lucas could bring down, and I ironed it on the same morning so she could represent both her countries properly.

We did our family photo shoot before the ceremony this time, here are some behind the scenes from the gymnasium, while waiting for it all to kick off:

The ceremony was as ceremonies are most, some speeches were a bit too long, some a bit stiff... ha ha, but at least we were all there, with Auntie Nikki; and my parents were able to watch along live too, thanks to a live feed during the whole thing.

There she came! We had good seats, in the right direction to spot her in the crowd:

Linnea's time to shine, and go get her diploma:

And finally - the cap throw! Hourrayyyyyyyy!

We received her outside after the ceremony, to congratulate her and her friends. I love this photo I took:, with wind in her hair!

The family ❤️

Linnea and Auntie Nikki:

Linnea and one of her favourite teachers, Ms Eoifa, her English teacher:

The Watson kids and Mr Walter.
Lucas thought it was rather fun to be back on campus. He said it felt like it was a lifetime ago, and I guess a lot has happened in his life. For us it feels like he graduated last week..! He met a lot of his old teachers, and quite a few of his friends who also had siblings graduating.

When the celebrations at school came to an end, we drove up to Mamsha and the Raclette restaurant, where my friend Susanne had organised for a dinner for some of the girls and their families. Here's Linnea and the other graduates:

Susanne's girls, Anjelica and Daniella. Linnea and the twins have been at Raha together ever since Linnea arrived back in 2014. Imagine, now they are graduates..!

Siblings, young and old:

The parents:

A lovely evening to celebrate these gorgeous girls!

All the best to you all - good luck for your next adventure!