50 year celebration in Dalarna and Midsummer

 

The hotel or rather B&B

Last weekend we went to the beautiful little hamlet Svardsjo in Dalarna to celebrate Gunilla who turned 50 (in January but since it's so cold then she wanted to have the party in the summer).
We were 24 people gathered, all the closest family members, which was Hasse (father), Gittan (mother), me (current wife), Staffan (current husband to Gittan), Gunilla (of course), her sambo Per, Gunillas 3 girls Lisa, Malin and Klara with their spouses, Malin also have two girls (our great grandchildren). Then Staffan (son), Lena (his spouse) and their 3 children Linnea, Henrik and Oskar with their spouses and of course our own Jonas with his sambo Mandy and Emil.

Beautiful setting

We had booked room at a little hotel, more B&B, by the lake Svardsjon and the only ones in the hotel were we! So we owned it :-) So nice and very picturesque, chicken happily picking around in the garden (and their egg we had for breakfast). 

The days started with games. There were quiz, jumping the frogs, throwing boots, running with potatoe in a spoon, running with balloons between members in a team, throwing balls to throw down a pyramide of plastic glasses (more difficult than it sounds) and also a music quiz.

Breakfast with the family 

We had a wonderful dinner, lots of singing during dinner and games. All in all a wonderful day and night. Because it really doesn't get dark this time of the year so at 1.30AM the young ones went for a bath in the lake. They said it was around 18C in the water. 

Next morning the whole clan gathered in the sunshine on the veranda to have breakfast together before we all went home to our different places. A wonderful weekend filled with laughter, singing and good food. It's not easy to gather everyone at the same time.

Elin and Emil and folk dance

Hasse at the viking village

Folk dance

Yesterday we celebrated Midsummer Eve with all traditional stuff that goes with it. Dancing around the May Pole, doing the "Small frogs" and other silly but fun dancing and singing. Then home for some food. Emil's girl is gluten intolerant so I had to adjust the food slightly. We had hot smoked salmon with fresh dill boiled potatoes, asparagus mousse, herb sauce and Västerbotten pie (without the crust) and to that a fresh green salat. Linnea and Hasse wanted herring but none of us other likes it.
For dessert I made a meringue cake with a layer of lemon curd mixed with whipped cream and topped with fresh strawberries and grated chocolate, then another meringue and on top of that whipped cream, lots of strawberries, grated chocolate and also chocolate cakes (Noblesse) around it. Very good.

After the main course and before dessert the youngsters went outside for a game of kubb. The girls won, or so they said.
 All in all a wonderful Midsummer's Eve!

Beautiful place by the sea where we had our dessert. 

Today me and Helen went to Vaxholm hotel for lunch. I wanted to go to the sea because we have had +34C here today and it's so hot. And as you know we don't have AC so it's rather nice driving around in the car, which has AC.

Me and Helen at Vaxholm's hotel

After the lunch we went to a little café beautifully set by the sea and of course there were so many there on a day like this so we had to wait for a table to be free. But finally we got one and had our dessert which was a lemon cake. It was so nice to spend quality time with my sis and although we live in the same city it's hard when we both work and are so busy. She's like me involved in a lot of other stuff than work. For instance she's now chairwomen in her housing society.

The fort at Vaxholm called Kastellet

This is actually a steamboat

Ah well, now I'm going to relax and watch some TV before I try to get some sleep. It will be late when it maybe has cooled off.



Take care and be nice to one another!