A few various shots of our little hooligans.

Some at the beach, some here at home, some of us, some put in crooked (sorry bout that) and some of our little pirate (Max is all about swords, knives, hooks for hands, patches over eyes....). Max also just recently received a bike from gramma/grampa. It's a bit big still, but he thinks it's "super cool".

Life is busy, but it is also blessed...

The Easter Bunny Cometh!

This is the first year we've been able to really get into explaining what Easter is all about (for a 3 year old, anyhow): The Easter bunny and chocolate. Even if you don't understand Danish, it's easy to hear that he's just downright excited!

Our hare-y friend (heehee) visited both our apartment and grandmas yard and was the talk of the town for many a day afterward. Even now, on occasion, can Max "see" an egg out in someones yard. "Shouldn't we go check it out, mom?" he asks.

Here's also a couple of shots of Max with his grandma and grandpa Denmark, filling up the bird feeder in the warm sunshine and investigating, what appears to be, a bug of some sort with grandpa.

Bless you, Sammy!

The weekend before Easter was Sammy's big day at church: his dedication/blessing. We had a lovely day - with a church full of friends and family, a lunch after and loads of presents for our little dumpling.

One of the ladies at church is a gifted artist who arranges flowers from her own garden and made some lovely arrangements for Sammy. Here's a sample.

And here's big brother with his buddy, Ulf, playing with his dinos.

Thanks so much to everyone who came and celebrated our special little guy!

Samuel Oscar - 3 months

Here some new pictures of Samuel Oscar, a.k.a. Sammy, SamO, Sam... He's our little sweetie, no matter what you call him.

Sam just recently had a little operation under which he was fully anæsthetized and intubated. So when he came back to me, he had a little green surgical cap on to cover up the needles in his head, EKG monitor stickers on his chest, and stick marks in both of his little feet. He also got this little bear from the hospital - a new program from one of the insurance companies that provides all hospitalized children with a little friend to take care of while they are in the hospital. Sammy is a bit small to realize what it was, but mommy sure thought it was a nice gesture. And Sam is doing just fine...

As you can see, all is rolling along as it should. Sam holds his little pumpkin head up as much as he can. He's working on his rolling and goo-ing and gaa-ing in true baby fashion, looking especially like the CEO of something or the other in the 4th picture from the top.

And here is a long and, admitedly, boring video clip (for those who really just can't get enough Sam time in, which is most likely my mom...) of general Sam cuteness.

February Fun

A little glimpse of life at our house the last couple of weeks...

Max is getting used to having another little person in the house. "Sammy is MY little brother!" he reminds the kids at daycare, and has told the daycare workers that the coziest thing he knows is "My Sammy." Here is the two compadres watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles... the newest film sensation here at the Mølgaard house.

We also took a daytrip out to Dyrehaven (Animal Park... so poetic...) to see the Queen's collection of wild deer. It's a great way to get out of the house, burn off the stink and it's free. We brought apples this time, thinking the poor deers (hee, hee...) would like a change of pace from carrots, only to find that all the other 3 million people who visited them that day did the same, so our furry friends were quite uninterested in our provisions. But we got to get close and touch them, which is really all it's about when you're 3.

And here is a couple of pictures of Morten's cousin, Christina and her husband, David and their 2 kids, Noah and Naamah. They came by to see Samuel and to wish us congratulations and we enjoyed a cozy evening with them and with Morten's folks. The boys got along famously, both equally crazy with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, guns and cars. And Naamah was thrilled about "the baby" which she wanted to hold, dress, undress, cover with blankets, kiss and hug all night. A lovely evening...

Grandma's Birthday Package

A little sneak preview of what I (wish) am sending to grandma/mormor America this year for her birthday:




"It's Just Me!" he says. Happy Birthday Mom!

Cozy January

January has been a cozy month - not so full of "fun-filled" activities as December, and with a bit more time for just being home. Here are a few pics of Samm-O. He's getting bigger, having just turned 2 months. He observes his little family from his box, and is beginning to smile and soon will be laughing. He's also starting to look like, yeah, one of us! See for yourself....

Here's a video of Max, doing something he has always loved to do: Sing. He got a REALLY expensive toy from a McDonalds Happy Meal that plays this REALLY great song, and it has been Max's favorite ever since. The song is a rip-off, re-make of the classic "Hey, Baby" (Heee-yy, Hey, Baby! I wanna know-oh-oh, if you'll be my girl!)
Here's Max's version (Heee-yy, Hey, Baybuloos! I wanna know-oh-oh, if you'll be my chuuz!) Don't ask me... I'm just the camera guy.

And here's a bit of footage of the thing that is making Morten and I MOST happy these days: Max has entered into THE Rite of Passage: the moment where a boy becomes a man, where he recognizes his own masculinity and finds his place beside his father and his father before him: the reading of catalogs on the toilet.

And if you'd like to see a bit more of what we've been up to this month, check out Allison and Theis Brøggers blog - the link is up top. Theis made a great little video of our wonderful weekend at a summerhouse here on the east coast town called Ebeltoft. Our kids played together all weekend, and all that was left for all the moms and dads to do (when we weren't breastfeeding, making dinner or changing diapers) was to act, well, like kids! We played ping-pong, swam, jakuzzied and talked our tails off. There's no better therapy in the world than hanging out with these guys for a weekend!

Into the New Year

After all the parties and celebrations and general business of the holidays, our little family has been able to enjoy some relatively quiet days together - all of us.

Here's Morten, trying to read a bit (ha!) with Sammy. Sam's a cuddle-bug, and it took him awhile to get us to understand what he wanted since Max loved to be by himself in his box most of the time. Max hardly ever WANTED to be held, he just tolerated it. But Sammy craves it. But as you can see, it's not really that hard to adjust to...

Here's also Sam, all bundled up for a trip outside. It's been below freezing the last few days, so we really pack on the clothes. It's like going to the moon just to get outside with two adults and two kids, but we manage. Thank God for our car...

And here is also a picture of Max in Sam's lift. This is his new thing....just a reminder that he is also our baby, I think. We certainly haven't forgotten our big boy. He's adjusting well to Sam and is very sweet with him, touching his head, comforting him when he cries ("Leah, Leah - he's crying. You should carry him. He wants a pear!" or "It's ok Sammy... you don't have to be scared of firecrackers. They don't come inside."). Here Max thought he should sleep in Sam's box and Sam could sleep in the big boy bed, but that only lasted about 5 minutes once that long legged 3 year old tried to get comfy.

Here's also some footage of the dusting of snow we got the other day. Not much to speak of, just got the roads icy, but it made everything look fresh after the New Years excitement.

The first clip is of Max racing down our road on his daddy's old tricycle with his stuffed dog in the back. The second is of the 4 of us at the Botanical Gardens feeding the ducks. Well... I guess we were really feeding the seagulls. They were more fun anyway...

Christmas Eve in Århus

Ho, Ho, Ho! A few pictures of our Merry Christmas at Anni and Jens'. Morten's Aunt Ruth came, which always makes everything much more fun. And this year, we had lots of new-ness around us: Anni and Jens have redone their living space, with wooden floors, designer furniture and a new paint job. So the spiffy house looked lovely as we danced around the the tree, glowing in the middle of the room.

Here is Anni with her newest grandbaby, Max with his newest "Cars" edition (it was Flo's cafe), a pic of my 3 boys, and another of the 4 of us.

Party, Party, Party

It's been a busy, busy December - full of festivities!

Max's daycare hosted a Christmas party, and Santa even had time to drop by. Max waited patiently until the next to last, with his hands behind his back, for his little bag of candy and then smiled and almost bowed to Santa with a big TAK! We were so proud of his manners, but aren't quite sure where how he got them, as we have never taught the royal bow..

There was also a Santa Lucia parade - with all the pretty girls dressed in white, with candles on a wreath around their heads and in the hands... very festive.

And there was an unveiling as well. All the kids got to draw a picture of themselves - and here is Max's rendition. We must admit we were also very proud of this. Here at home, we are happy about circles that (almost) meet and knowing that red is red and blue is blue. But a decided face with arms, legs and hair - we were most impressed! Those daycare workers are definitely earning their money!

Here is also a picture of me, mom, all dolled up for my Christmas party (all dolled up meaning I actually showered and put on mascara). Sam-O came with and got ooh's and aah's from all my classmates. He was good as gold.

And up top is Max at gramma and grampa Denmarks celebrating Christmas Eve with "wine" in his own glass - Diet Coke. We are all junkies over here, and admit it. We don't overimbibe alcohol or smoke, but man alive... we can't quit the DC. Though we only drink it on weekends (it's more expensive than booze), the thrill that comes on Friday when we know we can have Diet Coke has made an impression on Max as well. The other day, Max and I took the train into the city and enjoyed a day together, just the two of us. I bought him a new wallet with Lightning McQueen on it and he got 10 crowns in it to buy what he wanted, which of course, was candy. He bought gummi soda bottles. On enjoying them on the train, he shouted, much to the amusement of the kids sitting over from him, " It's Coca-Cola Light!" Mom was busted...

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas og God Jul! We hope all of our friends and family have a peaceful and "hyggelig" (Danish - cozy) Christmas. We have already been blessed with the best Christmas present ever - our little Samuel, and the gift that Max is doing so well with another little man in the house.

Life marches on, even on several hours less sleep every day. Here are some pictures of our December up til now.

The first is of Max's "julekalender." It's a Danish tradition. You buy the kids this little cardboard box where you can open up a little door every day and there is a piece of chocolate behind it. Max figured that system out quick and ca. 6 hours after we had bought the thing, quietly closed the kitchen door (we should have suspected right away), climbed up onto our bar stools, found the dumb box and promptly ripped it to shreds to get at the chocolate. We did notice the silence before he managed to eat the entire box, so we salvaged the last half. Here is Max, with his tail between his legs....
The next picture is of Max's BEST friend - Magnus. The two boys went to daycare together but have been seperated for about 2 months since they had to go to two different "big-boy" daycares. So, I invited Magnus over for lunch and the boys got to be rowdy together.

The next picture is of course, Samuel. This is pretty much what he does, so far. Lays there, eats, sleeps and looks cute. Not a whole lot of hassle there.

And the next pic is of Max getting a haircut. His face says it all, don't you think? (That's about how his daddy looks too, when I cut his hair. Actually, it is easier to get Max to sit for a haircut then Morten. You can bribe Max with jelly bears.) You can also get a sneak-peek of how I tend to look these days. Despite my best efforts, I am most often in pj's and just happy that I have been able to take a shower in the last 72 hours.

And last but not least, the Christmas picture. It was truly a Griswold family photo op to get this picture, so please be impressed. We have about 20 others of us running to and from the picture, jumping up to clean up spilt water or spit-up or looking bitter and cross, pointing at something or the other. We are a REAL family now. And we send REAL wishes for a healthy, happy Holiday season. Happy Birthday, Jesus!

Welcome, Baby Sam!

Yea! After 40 weeks and 2 days (just like big brother!), Samuel Mølgaard decided to make his entrance! He was born 11 minutes after midnight on the 29th of November, so now I have 3 boys with birthdays in November!

It's true what they say about a quicker labor the second time around: I had relatively mild, irregular contractions all day from around 6am until around 7pm when they all of a sudden went to 5 minutes apart. Anni and Jens came to watch over our already sleeping Maximus, and we went up to the hospital, where they told me I was already about half way open.

I had contractions another hour and a half when the midwife suggested that she rupture the amniotic sack and get the water works going. THAT set things in motion, and 45 minutes later, he was out! Not to say it didn't hurt (good grief!!!) but it was over so much quicker, it just didn't seem so bad. Even though it was around 2 am when we all fell into bed, I felt good and have been up and about cooking and cleaning (slowly...) since we came home later the day of the 29th.

Samuel is, so far, easy greasy. He weighed in at 3700 grams and is BLONDE! Anni joked and aksed "What little Norwegian baby we drug home?". We weren't born blonde in this family, to our knowledge.... but Morten did get reddish-blonde curls until he was around 2. And of course, my mom was a blondie.

My mom had a dream, about 4 years ago that we'd have 2 boys - one dark, one blonde. All of a sudden, all the family here in Denmark is commenting about how right my mom was!

Here the star of the show: poppin'-fresh from the oven!