Mom’s South-Coast Birthday-Trip & Bjarki’s 16th Birthday
[Photos taken 25 – 30 June 2023, posted online 16 March 2024 from Brussels. Yesterday I saw dinosaur fossils, and The Smile (nearing dinosaur-status, but not fossilized, yet).]
We went on an afternoon-trip with mom to celebrate her birthday a few days prior with a fleet of four cars, then attended another university graduation party (we know so many studious kids!). A few days later, we celebrated Bjarki’s 16th birthday, and he took his first driving lesson, thankfully returning unscathed.
Sunday 25 June 2023
Mowing-time, Birthday-time, Biking-time & Ducks!
[Photos taken 10 – 15 June 2023, posted online 14 March 2024, from a cafe in Brussels that has a smoke detector that is almost out of battery. Peep!!]
Upon returning home from California, the grass had grown to time-to-mow-length, there was a birthday, more work to do in the garden, bread-baking, insensibly fed ducks, purchased kayaks, and e-biking along the rocky coast.
Saturday 10 June 2023
46th Birthday, Jamie & Júníus, Druk-Play & Dinners
[Photos taken 01 – 17 March 2023, posted online 26 November 2023. Long time since last post, I got swallowed up prepping for Christmas, lots of computer projects. Not long now until I’m a year behind, sigh!]
It was my turn to celebrate a birthday, as I crossed the 46th annual age-increase-threshold, and two days later we had a 23rd wedding anniversary.
The month included a literal avalance of events and outings. We attended a play, went out to dinner, and visited the summer house. I did a photo-shoot, a hike in the freezing-cold, attended not one but two (!) concerts in Harpa, hosted a sewing club, kept going to the gym, hunting for furniture, arranging hair-cuts, and generally trying to keep my head afloat in the water.
Wednesday 01 March 2023
Social Life Catch-up Begins
[Photos taken 23 – 25 April 2022, posted online 18 September 2022. Two weeks left of my current job. Got two flat tires out in the country after a hike yesterday.]
Iceland had declared Covid-19 done and over with. Thus, in a fit of optimism mixed with blissful ignorance, I signed up for an e-biking group that would go on 1-2 rides per week for 9 weeks. It caused a bit of a scheduling mess, as in one week I was due to go on two hikes, and two e-bike rides… also known as couch-to-insanity.
The weekend before the first bike-outing set the tone with a lunch, a reunion, and a birthday-party! (25-ish images total)
Saturday 23 April 2022
Comedy, Spring, Birthday #2 & Denmark!
[Photos taken 01 – 10 April 2022, posted online 25 July 2022. The weather is calm.]
We took the big kids to see a year-end-themed comedy show that had been scheduled for late December. It was interesting that the audience-appetite for covid jokes was low, it seems like we kind of just want to be done with the whole thing.
Then spring began to really spring forward, and it was time for some gardening. Just before departing for Denmark, we managed to host the 2nd birthday party for Emma for my side of the family. Then we departed for Denmark as the Easter holiday was up on us! (50-ish images total)
Friday 01 April 2022
Celebrations, Ice-Removal & Recovery
[Photos taken 01 – 09 March 2022, posted online 18 July 2022. Summer vacation has begun, and I’ve spent the first days painting the living room. Got the wrong white and ugh, lots of wasted work!]
We slowly but surely shook off Covid as the big domestic wave of infections began receding, and all restrictions were lifted. The vaccination campaign was a huge success, as very few people landed in hospital. However, the jury is still out on how Iceland’ll do with regards to long-covid.
We birthdays and our wedding anniversary, cleared away a lot of ice, went to house #2 in adventurous conditions, and I tracked my post-covid progress on the rowing machine at the gym. (30-ish images)
Tuesday 01 March 2022
Emma’s 9th Birthday, Skis & Bagels
[Photos taken 12 – 14 February 2022, posted online 10 July 2022. Sitting in rainy Borgarnes, on my way home after some house #2 time. Trying to get over feeling like a parental failure.]
Emma’s last single-digit birthday was super-legit, with a party and everything. Mindful of covid, we first had a party with just Finnur’s family, and then had some health-hiccups before we could get to mine.
The day after I went and bought cross-country skis for myself. It’s a thing middle-aged women do apparently. I even went out for a bit!
Snow kept falling in copious amounts, and Anna made bagels while on a school-break. (30-ish images total)
Saturday 12 February 2022
Bjarki Turns 14 Years Old!
[Photos taken 28 June – 01 July 2021, posted online 26 September 2021. Elections yesterday, for the first time in Iceland, women hold more than half the seats in parliament.]
Bjarki’s long awaited birthday finally appeared and he’s now officially 14 years old, and busy checking ever more boxes on the “stereotypical-teen checklist”.
We again held two parties, one for each family, a few days apart, in between life as usual. (25-ish images total)
Monday 28 June 2021
Emma’s Birthday #2, Earthquakes Swarm
[Photos taken 24 – 28 February 2021, posted online 26 June 2021. As of today, Icelandic authorities have revoked all domestic Covid-19 restrictions, but border restrictions remain in place. The reason is high vaccination rates, with about 80% of 16+ year-olds having at least begun vaccinations, and 50% being fully vaccinated.]
After our fun ski trip, it was mostly back to life as normal, except for hosting Emma’s birthday party #2, going out to dinner, aaaand a sudden rise in earthquake activity close by (that would culminate in an actual volcanic eruption a month later!). (25-ish images)
Wednesday 24 February 2021
Emma’s 8th Birthday!!!
[Photos taken 12 – 17 February 2021, posted online 18 June 2021. It’s been a rather cold June so far, but thankfully a little wet along with the dryness. Also, Finnur and I have been a couple for twenty-seven years now, eeek!]
At long last, Emma’s 8th birthday arrived! She requested breakfast in bed with a little bit of chocolate, and I obliged. With Covid-19 momentarily mostly under control, we invited people over and had a proper birthday party (part 1)! Then we moved on to cream-puff-day, eat-till-you-explode-day, and ash-Wednesday-aka-second-Halloween, while preparing for an actual ski trip (with more people!) to the north of Iceland. (30-ish images total)
Friday 12 February 2021
