I have a feeling it’ll be a while before we have this new house decorated. Like with any house, it is better to live in first and then see what you really want to do with your space. Already now some of the things that I thought I like are not working too well, and we have already moved some furniture.

We are also semi-addicted to going to flea markets on the weekends, and have made some great furniture finds for kids’ rooms. I also try to keep myself away from IKEA for a while, because this place started looking like from an IKEA catalog. The good about IKEA is the instant gratification – you haul it home, assemble and done. And the bad about second hand finds and more expensive design furniture is that it takes longer to find something or special order, so we are still waiting to find and have delivered – or found. In addition it’s the unfortunate limitation of the budget that keeps me from getting everything right on this moment.

But a quick update where our living room stands now..

We are really trying to go on the Scandinavian minimalism. The first pictures from our home looked like above – like the moving boxes threw up all of our memories on the top of the furniture and on the living room floor.

I’m happy to inform my junk has found their way inside the minimal amount of furniture we have. But even with as much stuff we threw away, donated and sold when we left New York, I still feel we have too much for the minimalistic lifestyle we are going after. And that’s why I already have a box in the basement with things that I will try to go and sell in a flea market later this summer.

But here is an update how we are doing.

The IKEA couch we ordered came, and while I LOVE the Barcelona chairs, I actually like it better now when we separated the two Barcelona chairs and added the couch in the living room. It’s not as dominant. It still needs new legs though, the wooden ones are not working for me.

So here it is for now. Maybe even too minimalistic, and the rug isn’t working that well, and we still need light fixture and a lamp. And the ottoman that works now as a coffee table/desk is going to be replaced with a coffee table soon.

Remember I cut the pear tree in the yard and got hurt? I saved all of the cut branches and painted some of them and they are now in our living room.

We also moved the office table, and the side table we had. The side table was great for the space (on the before picture above) but we are really trying to go towards more minimalistic look, so we moved the other Barcelona chair to that spot, and I love it there. While this space is getting almost bare, I am living it more and more each day. Now I really want to focus on NOT bringing anything else in here, unless I truly love it.

And yes, even these branches are from the tree in the yard. Just painted and tied with yarn.

I have so many ideas, but I’ve already noticed that super minimalistic decorating is actually more difficult than when you have more. For example we have already tried too different floor lamps for the living room but neither worked. Hoping we can make more chances to this space soon, and I can share more pictures. What do you think? Is this too bare, almost boring? Or do you like the minimalistic look?

Rovio, the Finnish company who created Angry Birds has a new surprise for us. And this is far more exciting than the Angry Birds Land news they are opening in Tampere, Finland.

Rovio announced they are developing a new game called Amazing Alex, which is expected to launch sometime during summer 2012. The game is developed from Rovio’s older game that never took the same following as Angry Birds and is based on a curious little boy, Alex, who enjoys building Rube Goldberg-esque contraptions. In the game, players can use soccer balls, toy cars, tilting shelves, scissors, magnets, pails and boxing gloves to accomplish a task – sounds like the perfect game for the 8-year old boy living inside us, the same who likes to throw birds on pigs. According to Rovio the game also has an educational element, which this mom loves and can’t wait to learn more about!

“The gameplay is a perfect fit in our arsenal with its approachable, fun and highly addictive take on the physics puzzler genre,” Rovio’s vice president of franchise development Ville Heijari told the website Gamasutra.

We shall see if Amazing Alex will beat Angry Birds in the popularity, and addictivity, but I’m looking forward to see this game launch. Stay tuned.

Satu tuolla Destination Unknown blogissa kyseli ja vastaili niinkin moneen kuin 33:n kysymykseen, ja kehoitti vastaavasti valitsemaan parhaat 11 päältä ja lähtemään leikkiin mukaan. Ohessa 11 kysymystä ja vastausta ja vastaathan sinäkin! Laita linkki blogiisi kommenteissa niin päästään lukemaan sinunkin vastaukset.

1. Liittyi se sitten matkustamiseen, ystäviin, sydänsuruihin, unelmiin tai hyviin kotikekkereihin, mikä on muistorikkain kappaleesi?
Ehkä ei muistorikkain – mutta kaikista eniten potkua peppuun antanut kappale on Ulta Naten “Free”, jossa lauletaan että olet vapaa tekemään mitä itse haluat. Oli vuosi 1997, ja tätä biisiä kuunnellessa sain vihdoin tarpeeksi uskallusta irroittautua normaalista, ja lähteä toteuttamaan unelmia maailmalle. Tätä biisiä tuli kuunneltua monta vuotta putkeen, ja samalla reissulla yhä ollaan nyt monta maata kiertäneenä.

2. Suurin osa teistä varmasti unelmoi kirjan kirjoittamisesta – mitä sinun teoksesi ehkä käsittelisi?
Kirjani varmasti käsittelisi miten elämän sitruunoista voi tehdä simaa – eli miten elää onnellisesti elämän loppuun asti, vaikkei kaikki olekaan aina täydellistä, tai miten siitä arjesta voi tehdä oman “täydellisen”.

3. Asutko nyt paikassa tai maassa missä voisit kuvitella asuvasi lopun elämääsi? Jos et, mikä olisi se unelmapaikka?
Asumme tällä hetkellä Ruotsissa Linköpingissä, ja kyllä paikka on niin ihana että sen puolesta voisin kyllä asua täällä, mutta luonto ei antaisi periksi asua samassa paikassa loppua elämää, vaan pitää päästä näkemään maailmaa. Unelmapaikkaa ei ole, muuta kuin niin monta paikkaa kuin mahdollista. Toivottavasti saadaan asua Euroopassa seuraavat 10 vuotta, sitten vaikka Aasiaan.

4. “Taivaanrannanmaalari” vai “haaveista totta”? Oletko toteuttanut elämäsi suuria haaveita ja mikä on niistä ollut sinulle se tärkein?
No kyllä mun mielestä voi olla vähän niin kuin molempia… Eli kyllä, moni hurjakin urahaave on jo toteutunut, unelmien prinssi löytyi jo 15 vuotta sitten, ja perheen perustaminen hänen kanssaan on ollut se tärkein juttu. Silti on vielä iso kasa haaveita jotka haluaisin toteuttaa…

5. Kerro jotain (tai kaikki) sinun ja puolisosi ensitapaamisesta?
Tapasimme Saksassa Frankfurtissa irkku-pubissa – katselimme toisiamme silmiin kolme tuntia ennen kuin kumpikaan uskalsi tehdä aloitetta. Kun kello löi keskiyön meinasin jo lähteä seuraavaan paikkaan, ja kun olimme kavereiden kanssa lähdössä, tämä ihana mies tuli vihdoin juttelemaan ja sanoi lähtevänsä mukaan. Tuossa se on mukana pyörinyt nyt 15 vuotta, ja uskon kyllä rakkauteen ensi-silmäyksellä.

6. Missä olet vuonna 2013?
Toivottavasti asun yhä Ruotsissa ja matkustelen paljon ympäri Eurooppaa.

7. Oletko muuten mukana sosiaalisissa medioissa (FB, Twitter…)?
Totta kai! Twittaan @katjapresnal nimellä ja Facebookissa on montakin eri sivua, jopa Skimbaco Lifestyle Finnish Editionilla on oma sivu. Ja olen ihan koukussa Pinterestiin.

8. Laukku vai kengät?
Kengät ja mielellään koroilla.

9. Lempivaatteesi?
Farkut!

10. Minne matkustaisit uudestaan?
No niitä paikkoja johon en matkustaisi uudestaan on aika vähän, ja muualle sitten kyllä! Mutta päälimmäisenä tulee mieleen että Singaporessa olisin mielelläni ollut kauemmin, ja toivottavasti pääsen sinne joku päivä uudestaan.

11. Paras elämänohje mitä olet saanut?
Carpe the shit out of diem.

Sinun vuoro! Vastaa blogissasi ja laita linkki kommentteihin!

Celebrate what you have right now

Part of being Scandinavian is celebrating the sunlight and warm summer weather when we have it. I think it’s the growing up in the north that taught me to enjoy basic things like light when you have it, and not take anything, not even sunlight, for granted. Winter months can be depressing with so little natural light, but during summers we Nordic people take back the lost light and party all summer long. There is a lot to learn about the Scandinavian lifestyle of enjoying what you have in the moment to the fullest, and it’s a big part of Skimbaco lifestyle as well.

We are entering the short but sweet summertime here in Sweden, read more about the midnight sun and what it really means.

Next sunset: in 72 days

This morning my daughter woke up at 5AM, brushed her teeth, got dressed, and went to kitchen to get breakfast and was ready to leave for school two hours before we had to leave. She couldn’t believe how early it was since the sun had been up way before she got up. Swedish summers are going to be a new experience for my family, we’ll see how they will adjust living with the nightless nights. Welcome midnight sun and Scandinavian summers!

The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon occurring in summer months in north. More specifically sun literally never sets during summer in latitudes north and nearby to the north of the Arctic Circle, and sun is visible at midnight local time.

Do this fun experiment.. Google “sunset today Utsjoki Finland” – that’s the Northern Tip of Finland – and you will get this result: “These days, the sun never sets in Utsjoki, Finland. The next sunset is in 72 days.” Crazy, huh?

While we live almost 800 miles south of Arctic Circle, and we will not be able to fully experience the midnight sun like in Lapland, summer nights here are still completely different than in the US (well, you can experience the same in Alaska). Now the sun sets around 9:30PM but you can still see light in the north in the horizon an hour later.

Short, but sweet summers

We celebrate midsummer each summer around June 22nd around the solctice, when the sun is in the highest position in the sky, and the longest (or shortest six months later) day happens. Midsummer fest is almost more important than Christmas in Nordic countries, and celebrating the summer light is a big part of the culture. While sun may set before midnight, the twilight and the northern sky will keep the summer nights lighted until the very early sunrise each morning. In reality it means that it’s common to party all night long beyond the sunrise, and that you have to either get used to sleeping in light or get good blinders in your home.

Summer’s lighted nights make BBQ parties more fun, but summer fireworks impossible (I’m still mesmerized by summer fireworks at DisneyWorld and during baseball games and 4th of July!). And when it feels like 8AM already at 5AM it makes you more energized and wanting to get up early and get stuff done.

The sunshine also has a big impact on our nature – and food.

Plants need water and sunshine, right? Imagine what happens when the plants get a double dose of natural sunshine during Nordic summers. Ok, I tell you – the fruits and vegetables actually TASTE better because of the extra sun they get. It took me a long time to figure out why fresh fruits and especially berries didn’t taste the same in the US. It’s the natural sunshine that makes Scandinavian fresh produce so good (and it could be the less pesticides and growth hormones too)!

Now, the seasons are short for fresh produce, and for most plants you only get one crop a year, so there is that. I didn’t say it was perfect all the time, but Scandinavian summers…. yes, we party all night long with nightless nights, and eat amazing fresh food picked from the forests and rolling hills.

With open arms, I welcome summer.

Stay tuned for a cool toy line launching at Targets later this year. The Beatles Yellow Submarine toys by K’NEX® are bound to be in the Christmas wishlists of the hipster parents, I mean, of the kids of the hipster parents. Music lovers, young and old, will be able to build and play with characters from the iconic rock band, The Beatles.

The Beatles redefined music for their own generation and generations to come; they also redefined art, fashion and entertainment. The Beatles were responsible for several films that were well ahead of their time, including their only animated and possibly most recognizable film, the animated classic – Yellow Submarine. K’NEX captured the essence of Yellow Submarine in all of its whimsical charm in a new collectible line that launches with a four-piece buildable figure set.

The Beatles Yellow Submarine toys are designed for kids, but I have a hunch they will have an older audience as well. The Beatles Yellow Submarine buildable figure packs will be available exclusively at Target, target.com and knex.com in Fall 2012.

Kate Spade 75% off Sale

Too good to be true. Right on time for summer, and right on time after Mother’s Day, so you can get the gift for yourself that you didn’t get but you deserve – Kate Spade has an amazing ONE day only online sale with deals as good as -75% off normal prices. Goodies start from $15. Yes, that’s happening right now.

Above some examples from the Kate Spade sale, but check it out yourself!

Monte Carlo, Monaco is the playground of the rich, and I loved visiting Monte Carlo for two short days this spring. I felt like I was transported to another world, that is not attainable for normal humankind, only for the Richie Rich-kind. But like my friend Zippy says, “you can live rich life without being rich” and boy did this come to my mind in Monte Carlo in so many ways.

We quite literally were homeless when we visited Monte Carlo – it was a week before we got our new home in Sweden, and our belongings from New York were still in transit and we left our luggage with friends in Sweden, and had no address anywhere in the world.

And right there between taking a photo of a 60 foot yacht and peeking through the window of a McLaren store I got it.

I got what the Monte Carlo experience for me was all about.

It wasn’t about the most luxurious experience of my lifetime (because we couldn’t afford it done right in Monte Carlo).
It wasn’t about feeling for one day you played in the same playground as the richest of the world (because walking on the same street doesn’t really qualify).

It was this huge realization how happy I was to be right there right on that moment with my family, and having no regrets in life, or wishes we had more money to do Monte Carlo “the right way.”

With so much of the best what money can buy surrounding us I felt prouder than ever that I knew how to be happy with less.

I had been semi-obsessed about visiting Monte Carlo, but once I got there I realized how silly I had been, and I knew immediately that the highlight of my life, year or even that week wasn’t seeing the richest country in the world. The real highlight of my visit to Monte Carlo was getting reminded how truly rich I was for having my family and for the amazing life we have together traveling around the world.

I was “homeless” in Monte Carlo, but felt the richest in the world.

Read more about our trip to Monte Carlo, in case you missed.

During our two week trip touring from Venice to Tuscany to French Riviera and we stopped for a day in Monte Carlo, Monaco. Visiting this luxurious destination for über-rich with your family is a MUST DO for anyone’s bucket list.

Monaco is the second smallest country in the world (right after Vatican) and has 0% unemployment and 0% income tax for its residents, but there is nothing else small about Monaco. This income tax free heaven on earth is nested in French Riviera, with over 4 miles coastline on Mediterranean Sea, between Nice, France and Italian border. The country is for rich and famous, and the playground for European royalty, and has the highest GDP nominal per capita in the world, and the most expensive real estate in the world. Monaco also has the highest number of millionaires and billionaires per capita in the world. Monte Carlo is the administrative part of Monaco, and the main tourist attraction for visitors with the world famous Monte Carlo Casino.

If you truly want to experience Monaco, add a few zeros to your typical vacation budget, but we were pleasantly surprised that the prices weren’t even higher (and I say this after living close to New York City, now in Sweden and visiting Monte Carlo on the same trip as Venice — all these three places are expensive travel destinations as well). We had done very little research prior our visit, we love exploring and finding new things as we go, but now in retrospect a better planning probably would have given us a more glorious experience. We had been driving most of the day from Tuscany, and would have liked to find a nice restaurant for early dinner. I was ready to pay for the most expensive meal of our lives, but we learned that most restaurants opened for dinner very late, and were not in the walking distance of our hotel.

Not to go: Le Méridien Beach Plaza, Monte Carlo

We stayed at the Le Meridien Beach Plaza hotel, close to the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort, both about one mile from the marina area and little less from the Casino. We paid around $400 for the night, and it was the cheapest place we were able to find on last minute. The room was fairly small for a double, but the bathroom was luxurious with wooden floor, and the room had a gorgeous balcony with a view. Overall it was not a luxurious experience, and definitely not what you would expect when visiting Monte Carlo. The customer service was bad in the entire hotel, and the food in the hotel restaurant was so bad we didn’t even finish it all (call us food snobs, but I think you are allowed to in a place like Monte Carlo). I wouldn’t recommend Le Meridien Beach Plaza hotel to anyone, unless you are OK for paying a ridiculously expensive price as the cheapest place to stay. Next time I go to Monte Carlo, I will be happy to pay more to truly feel pampered. In fact, next time I go, I want to stay on a yacht. (Reminding myself to buy a lottery ticket.)

Luxury Yachts & Cars Galore

Is anyone else obsessed with boats? In case you love boats like I do, Monte Carlo is like candy store for kids for luxury yacht sightings. Same goes for car enthusiast – if you want to see Ferraris, McLarens, Porches and Lamborghinis in their natural habitat, Monte Carlo it is. And I am not just talking about the Formula-1 weekend each year – the F1 Monaco Grand Prix is on 24-27 May 2012- but any day of the year.

The ideal Monte Carlo experience would be of course watching the high octane F-1 race from a luxurious yacht. But if you don’t have the zeros to add to your vacation budget, visiting off season and when there are no large events can be thrilling as well.

Monte Carlo Sights

When walking the marina and the streets of Monte Carlo close to the famous Monte Carlo Casino and the famous Hotel de Paris, you couldn’t but feel like you were in a movie, and James Bond could drive by in any minute. Fifth Avenue in New York comes second when it comes to shopping – you could even buy a million dollar car with your casino winnings right from the luxury car stores close to the Monte Carlo Casino.

Monte Carlo is full of museums and historic buildings. Our visit was so short, that unfortunately we didn’t visit any museums. Most of the museums are located in the Monaco-Ville area, and while looking from the map it looks like from a walking distance from the Casino area, it is on the top of a huge hill, and we didn’t even think of walking it with the kids after all of the traveling we had already done. Driving around Monte Carlo might be mission impossible unless you have a GPS, which made it easy to find parking halls etc. and adventure out from the walking distance of the hotel.

Every day at precisely 11:55am the changing of the guard takes place in front of the Princely Palace, and we enjoyed seeing our second royal guard change within a month.

We visited the Monaco-Ville area on the second day of our visit, and the touristy shopping streets and cheap cafe galore surprised me. You CAN do Monte Carlo on a budget, and this was the area where the majority of the tourists were hanging out. Now, this wasn’t the Monte Carlo I wanted to see, but it was a relief to see Monte Carlo had so much to offer even for those of us who travel with a limited budget.

Our mission here at Skimbaco Lifestyle is to bring you ideas to live life to the fullest every day. Sometimes happiness requires big life changes, but sometimes making your day better starts with as simple thing as wearing the right shoes. And if you ask Cinderella – having the shoes fit you can be life changing. When it comes to shoe fitting well and comfort, and yet the shoes looking fun and fashionable, we often draw a blank (we did find Earthies and love them!). Sometimes in fashion it’s difficult to combine it all.

Hush Puppies has been there for as long as we all can remember (50 years to be exact), and Hush Puppies is one of those brands that have always also focused on the comfort. This year they teamed up with world-renowned fashion designer Anna Sui to bring us a footwear collection that combines happy feet and fashionable mind. Anna Sui for Hush Puppies shoe collection is a happily-ever-after marriage of classic American footwear and today’s pop culture spirit. The collection has a vintage with a rock and roll vibe, and above all – you can’t help but smile when you look at many of these styles. Anna Sui interpreted many of the Hush Puppies classics in her own way, adding shearling to a motorcycle boot to give it a new vibe, and selecting additional fashion colors for the collection.

Now, these shoes are meant for enjoying life, now aren’t they? Which one is your favorite? Check out the entire Anna Sui for Hush Puppies collection on their website.

If you are not one of the close to million people who have already seen this cover-song-gone-viral video, watch this cover of LMFAO’s ‘Sexy and I Know It’ by Noah. Honestly I’m not into cover songs on YouTube, unless it’s my friends singing. But this cover of ‘Sexy and I Know It’ is amazing, a blues version, performed by Noah, an 18-year old YouTuber from South Carolina.