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The Newbie Guide to Sweden

The Newbie Guide to Sweden

We explain Sweden

children

Where do I shop things for babies and kids in Sweden?

18 November 2021 By The Newbie Team 1 Comment

Shopping stuff for kids. Eeeerm? My son is almost three and when I got pregnant I was such a novice to all things pregnancy, baby and kid related. I’ve just not had that many kids around me and it wasn’t until I got pregnant that I realized that there is a whole world of things that babies and kids need that I had no clue about! And so at lot of manic googling started.

Disclaimer: To keep The Newbie Guide free, we use affiliate links (marked with *) and may get a commission if you click and buy using these links. This does not affect our opinions and our writers always recommend their best for your Swedish experience.

I was born in Sweden so at least I had the advantage of doing my research in my native language, but if you are a newbie in the country on top of being a newbie parent – uff! So, here is a list of place to find things you may need for yourself and your child. And if you have any you’d like to ad – just do so in the comments and we will add them to the list.

Best in test

I am going to come out and confess – I am a bit of a control freak. Which means that I tend to read a lot of best-in-test websites. One that I like is simply called Bäst-i-test. It is in Swedish but has a huge parent/kid test section and it’s quite easy to get the results even in Swedish plus you can google translate the rest.

Second hand shopping for kids items

Another thing I quickly realized was that I bought way too much stuff and also that there is often little point in buying new things. Babies and kids in general grow so fast that clothes tend to be in really good shape even though they have a previous owner.

So before you go spending a months salary on cute little hats and shirts, make sure you check out second hand options.

  • Facebook Marketplace is a great place to look for baby clothes in your area.
  • Shpock is a pretty decent app and website where you can find sellers in your neighborhood.
  • Sellpy is my personal favorite. People can send their stuff of to Sellpy to be sold, they take pictures of it, sort the delivery and the returns and they mark all items according to a set standard of use. I started off buying baby clothes from Sellpy and now the entire family gets pretty much all their stuff from there. They sell more than clothes so if you have just moved to Sweden and are looking for things to your home – this is a good place to look.

Also when I became a parent it really hit me that what I do to the planet is going to affect my son many years after I’m gone. And if second hand shopping has some impact on what type of planet he gets to live on years from now – then second hand shopping is what I am going to do:-)

Places to shop new stuff for kids and babies

Now, if you can’t find what you are looking for in a second hand shop or if you are really against the second hand concept, then there are of course places for you to find things for your kid. There are of course a lot of physical shops all over Sweden but here we are focusing on online shops in order to cater to all our newbie readers regardless of where you live.

  • Clothes. Polarn och pyret* is another favorite of mine simply because their clothes last forever. I recently bought a winter overall second hand and there were FOUR other kids names in it. It had basically been worn by four other kids (at least) and it was still in such good shape that my child can wear it without getting wet or cold.
  • Name stickers. When your kids go to school or preschool, you are going to want name stickers! Filur namnlappar* is a big online provider of all types of name stickers. Or Namnlappskungen*. You can also get a special pen that doesn’t wash off. My child enjoys putting the stickers on, and he gets a bit of a pleased feeling when he sees “his” fox sticker on his clothes. Which is the main reason why I go with this option.
  • Baby buggy, baby carriage, baby stroller, buggy, stroller, pusher. Whatever you call it – you will probably be wanting one unless you prefer baby wearing at all times or have a baby buggy refuser baby. And if you do, you have my sympathies 🙂 Which type you prefer is really up to your life situation or preferences. Small and light or big with loads of room for bags etc. To be honest, I went with a second hand option here as well. A former colleague with bigger kids wanted to get rid of hers so I traded her the stroller, the sit up part, the lay down part and the car part for a few bottles of good wine. We were both happy 🙂 But here are some brands that are very common amongst new parents:
    • Buggaboo*
    • Emmaljunga
    • Britax
    • Cybex
  • Toys, clothes, strollers and everything else. There are, of course, a number of online shops that have all you can think of baby and child related and that carry a lot of different brands as well as products. Just browse for what you need and do a general comparison on price and delivery options. Here are some options to get you started:
    • BabyV.se*
    • Babyshop*
    • Babyland*

Ecological stuff

I also have to do a special shout out for some fantastic online and physical shops that cater a largely ecological set of products.

  • Nävatextil / Ekostextil is a massive favorite of mine. They have the cutest little felted wool overalls, soft and warm wool long johns, and onesies that are perfect for the cold weather. They are so nice, that both myself and my partner bought a set of long johns for ourselves 🙂 They are pricey but good.
  • Kokobello has a lot of ecological toys and tend to focus on open ended toys that keep kids entertained for a long time. Also, pricier than you find in the big online kid shops, but they have such nice things that are totally worth checking out.
  • Rekoshoppen focuses on toys that are totally free of chemicals. Both for little and bigger kids.
  • Ekobarn has only clothes, toys and other items that are ecological and/or GOTS marked. Nice slow fashion.

Further reading

We have a lot of blog posts on parenting and kids in Sweden. You can do a search on the website or get started with these ones:

  • Winter clothing for children
  • Social ideas for newbie parents
  • Förskola: a lesson for parents and kids
  • 9 posts on Swedish maternity and paternity leave
  • 5 tips for moving to Sweden with kids
  • Parenthood in Sweden: birth and early years

Have I missed something? Let me know in the comments and we will check it out and perhaps also add it to the list.

Have a great day and a big hug to you all!
Julieta from the Newbie Team

Filed Under: Blog, Parenting Tagged With: babies, children, shopping in Sweden

Why ‘When the Clock Strikes’ is a must-have for your child this spring

17 April 2019 By The Newbie Team 1 Comment

You won’t regret buying this book about Halloween for your child this spring. Why? Because, no matter if you like ghosts, pumpkins or dress-ups, your child will learn a lot from When the Clock Strikes on Halloween – especially about learning to tell time.

Created with Lisa Ferland

As a parent, you’ll find inside not only a great story but also (and most importantly) a cultural lesson, rhyming patterns and a great tool to learn to tell time, all hidden between the lines, so your child can learn and have fun at the same time. Sounds good? Read an interview with Lisa, the author of When the Clock Strikes and see where can you order the book.

Who are you and why have you decided to publish a book about the American Halloween in Sweden?

I’m Lisa Ferland and I changed careers from the public health sector to the creative arts/writing and publishing sector when we moved to Sweden from the US. 

My writing has evolved from documenting our lives in Sweden as foreigners to being inspired by all that’s around me which is a lot of Swedish folklore of elves, witches, and spirits.

Now that my kids are entering the Swedish school system after years of förskola, I’m discovering that there are cultural gaps in their education. As parents, we need to provide the non-Swedish practice of our family holidays and traditions. 

My new illustrated children’s book series, When the Clock Strikes, was inspired by a conversation I had with my seven-year-old son. Last year, we had a conversation about all of the spooky things that happen on Halloween night and together, we wrote the rhymes for everything that happens on Halloween.

Since Halloween is a relatively new holiday in Sweden, we see the classic ghosts, witches, and zombies. This classic celebration of the Halloween spirit inspired the book as well as my kids’ inability to tell analog time. Teachers are always struggling with new ways to introduce time telling concepts to kids and the book was born.

The next book will focus on the different ways Christmas is celebrated around the world but the first book has this fun Halloween theme that kids love year-round.

How is the book supporting children’s development?

Parents with kids between the ages of 4-8 years will really get the most out of the book but it’s enjoyable at every age. The large clock on each page introduces kids to numbers and the rhyming pattern helps them learn to read and speak English.

The cover of When the Clock Strikes On Halloween

You can buy the book at https://bit.ly/clockstrikeshalloween or head over to lisaferland.com.

Would you like to read more about the American and Swedish culture? Click here.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: children, halloween, literature

Förskola: A lesson for parents and kids

23 August 2018 By The Newbie Team 5 Comments

My baby and I have been inseparable since birth and I could not imagine her being taken care of by a stranger.  In India, where I come from, there are grandparents at home to take care of children so kids have to go to school after 2 years of age or later. But since living in Sweden, I have started working and I had no option but to send her to förskola. 

Disclaimer: To keep The Newbie Guide free, we use affiliate links (marked with *) and may get a commission if you click and buy using these links. But you can be sure that our writers always recommend their best for your Swedish experience.

One of the disadvantages of living away from your family is that you do not have help to care for your kid if you work. Also, I feel that kids do not see many people around. It is just mama and papa which makes the kid’s world very small. My baby doesn’t really like to be around strangers. I also realized I am too attached to her and I needed to distance a little bit so that she grows as a person and learns new things. As we all know, being overprotective can hinder your child’s growth. 

The basics of förskola

Here in Sweden, kids need to be minimum 1 year old in order to go to förskola. In Gothenburg, you need to apply here and there is a queue to get admitted. They give you a place usually very close to your home to make the commute easy. It is advised to apply at least 6 months before you want to start school.

Timing is everything

We started förskola when my baby turned one and did inskolning for 3 months during winter time. However, my baby cried a lot and could not settle down. Teachers and I tried our best but it was just too much.  I was then advised by teachers to take a break and start again the next semester in a different school as she will grow a little and might respond better. My best tip is to judge the situation and understand the right age to send your child to school. Every kid is unique.

I failed in my first attempt and I am trying again in August. My child responds better when I am not around now. Teachers are fun and patient and they are helping us with a flexible schedule too.  One week it will be just 2 hours of my baby being alone in school, then in the second week, she will be eating food at school.  The third week she will get to sleep there. Teachers have been patient enough to take a step by step approach to settle kids. 

The first day I cried like a baby myself as I could not bear the thought of abandoning her. Leaving your kids with strangers for long periods of time is a tough task. But when the Swedish förskola system gives you so much help, you feel mentally strong enough to go ahead and send your child to them. 

Here’s some information that I have found useful about förskola in Sweden: 

    • The “inskolning” is for 15 days but can be longer or shorter based on the child’s needs. Some kids settle down in just 3 days. For others, it might take 1 month or 2. Kids can start at age 1 and you will find kids until the age of 6. 
    • Teachers are extremely patient and loving towards kids. They give personal attention to each kid particularly when they start. 
    • Kids are fed healthy meals and the menu is different every day of the week. If Monday is soup and salad, then Tuesday is pancakes and salad. Wednesday is rice, curry and salad. Thursday is mashed potatoes and falafel. These are vegetarian options and there are non-vegetarian options too. Preferences need to be provided on the first day of school. 
  • Förskola usually starts between 8.30- 9.00 depending on the parent’s schedule. Then 9.00 to 10.30 is playtime and activities such as singing and dancing to nursery rhymes. They play with water and floating boats (during summer), build Lego castles, cycle, play on swings or colouring and drawing. During this time, kids are given fruits snacks such as apples or bananas. Then 11.15 to 11.30 is lunch time. 11.30 to 1.30 is sleep time and 1.30 to 4.00 is play time. Schools close at 5.00 so parents have to pick up kids before that time. 

Kids usually love the förskola atmosphere as it is very positive and child-friendly. There are numerous toys and books. Every corner is child-friendlyy so that they do not get hurt while playing. 

All in all, it is a wonderful and safe place to leave your kids as they learn new skills and develop values such as sharing and caring in a fun way. At the same time, one as a parent learns to let them grow on their own one step at a time.

Final tip:

Make sure you mark your kids clothes somehow. And I mean EVERYTHING they bring to förskolan. Shoes, socks, hats, favorite cuddly toy, blanket etc. With 15-20 kids in a group it is impossible for the teachers to keep track of every kids every clothes item and things will definitely disappear. Also, you will find items arriving home that do not belong to your child – and it’s nice to be able to send it back to the rightful owner. You can mark with a pen, embroider if you are ambitious or use stickers.

Find out how to make the most of your experience as a parent in Sweden here.

Written by Jyoti Kadukar

I was born and brought up in Mumbai India and have lived in different parts of India before arriving in Sweden. Luckily after coming to Sweden I got pregnant and had an extremely good experience delivering and caring for my child full time. Recently I started working full time and have been enjoying the work culture here. I love the fact that I can work and take care of my child here without compromising family life. 

 

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: children, education in Sweden, Förskola, Kids, parenting, parents, School, Sweden, Swedish school system, working parents

How To Prepare For Baby’s Arrival When You’re Disabled

10 May 2018 By The Newbie Team Leave a Comment

Pregnancy and childbirth can make any new mom nervous, but for disabled parents, the worry can be even greater. However, with proper planning and the right nursery items, you can make your home safe for baby and more convenient for yourself.

What To Prepare Before Baby Comes

For your baby’s arrival, you want to make sure of two things. First, ensure that your home is safe for both you and your child to navigate in addition to standard baby-proofing. Next, you’ll need to think about nursery products and innovations that can help you care for your child whenever he or she is in need.

Modifications In The Home

Statistics from the CDC show that more than 7,000 children and teens age 0-19 died because of unintentional injuries in 2019, and the numbers are high for adults as well. This and other safety concerns are important to consider when you bring home your child. Follow these guidelines from Babycenter.com for traditional baby-proofing safeguards. You may need to take a few extra precautions to adapt your home to your needs, such as:

  • “Remove any loose carpeting or rugs; it can get caught in wheelchair wheels or cause slipping,” and, “Replace door knobs with levers. Door knobs can be difficult for a wheelchair-bound person to turn, but a lever can be easily pushed down,” instructs Angie’s List.
  • The bathroom can be a treacherous area. Install grip bars in the bathroom to help you safely bathe and toilet train your child. You can also replace standard faucets with levered faucets for ease of use.
  • Use non-slip mats and install skid-resistant flooring to help prevent falls and trips.
  • Navigate your home as you would with your baby beforehand to ensure you haven’t missed any hazards.

Setting Up The Nursery

Fortunately, there are some adaptive nursery items that can make your life easier. Here are some ideas:

  • Buy a swivel car seat for your vehicle.
  • You can purchase a side-opening crib for easy access if you are a wheelchair user.
  • Research adjustable-height cribs, bouncers, changing tables, and high chair options. For example, you can purchase a chair that attaches to your dining room table instead of a traditional high chair.
  • Hearing-impaired parents can buy adaptive baby monitors.
  • Use textured tape or braille labels on bottles and baby food if you are visually impaired. You can find more tips and tools in this article from the National Federation of the Blind.
  • If you can’t find a solution you’d like but have an idea in mind, contact the Lurie Institute for Disability Policy to see if they can recommend a resource to take on your project.

Want first-hand advice? You can check out DisabledParenting.com, which has resources, information, and even podcasts that can help you on your journey to parenthood.

Welcoming Home Your Child

The one thing you shouldn’t worry about when bringing home your child is bonding with him or her. You will face challenges, but over time, you’ll learn to resolve any issues that come up when caring for your child. Don’t even worry about buying the “right” adaptive solution. You and your baby will adapt to each other.

In fact, research from the American Psychological Association backs this up: “Mothers developed ingenious baby-care strategies, without the help of adaptive technology,” says infant/family therapist Megan Kirshbaum, PhD, who developed and conducted a groundbreaking study of mothers with physical disabilities.

A new baby can bring joy as well as stress, but with careful planning and modifications, you can create a home that serves you both well.

Written by Ashley Taylor

Ashley Taylor is a disabled mother of two wonderful, amazing, energetic children. She met her husband, Tom, while doing physical therapy. Tom had suffered a spinal cord injury due to a car accident and uses a wheelchair for mobility. Ashley and Tom knew they wanted children and knew they would have to adapt their lives and home in order to make this dream come true. Ashley is happy to say that they are the proud parents of two healthy, wonderful children and their disabilities haven’t stopped them from leading a happy, fulfilling life.

Filed Under: Blog, Parenting Tagged With: baby, children, disability, disabled, disabled parent, parent, parenthood, parenting

Expat Grief – The Tougher Side To Moving Abroad

3 April 2018 By The Newbie Team Leave a Comment

I recently did an article on top tips to help children moving abroad.  That post was designed to help them settle in and make the move a smoother experience for them.  However, even if you follow all of these and more, you are likely at some point, for someone in the family to experience expat grief – the mourning of the loss of their old life.  For the adults who made the decision to move it may happen to them as well, but in this post, I want to talk about the children, who moved because of their parents’ decision. 

It is a scary and traumatic life-changing event for any child. But generally, the older the child, the more they stand to lose, as the more they have built their little lives up where you were originally living.  Plus, it is usually not their decision, and all control of the situation is out of their little hands.

What Is Expat Grief?

Expat grief is the mourning of the things you have lost by moving away from one country to another.  This might be friends, old homes, their hobbies, or family amongst other things.  Twin 1 desperately misses a certain play park we used to go to near where we lived.  He is very open about this, but it may be something totally unexpected and less obvious.  It is very important that these losses are worked through, and that time and energy is put into doing that, as and when it is needed.

From our experience with our eldest child, this doesn’t happen when there is a space free in the diary, it happens when you are up to your eyeballs in everything. But at that moment, the most important thing is to drop all the balls you are juggling and focus on that child grieving…be present right then.  This is by no means an easy task and is a big ask of parents trying their hardest, but it is so important.

Children manifest any grief in a different way from adults, and this is no different for expat grief.  They are different from adults in that they live in the here and now, so while they play and laugh still, it would be easy to misinterpret that to mean that everything was rosy and the move had not provoked any emotional issues.

However, the sadness might still be there.  Their sadness is not as consistent as an adult’s, and we mustn’t forget it will still need handling sensitively and delicately even though it isn’t present and making its presence known all of the time.  Just because we can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.

  1. Recognise that they feel isolated at that moment.  Don’t say “but”, or try and remind them they have made new friends.  Their feelings of isolation are very real at that moment, and so trying to point out positives is not what is needed.  That is needed later when they feel a little more positive, and then you can discuss what you do like about where you have moved to.
  2. Let them know they are not alone dealing with this, and that you are totally there with them 100% at that time (hence dropping everything for them there and then).  Be fully present with them.
  3. Tell them, that whatever feelings they are experiencing, whether anger, confusion or sadness….(with our little lady at the moment she gets bouts of being very sad for her 2 best friends in the UK) that they are totally normal.  Don’t make light of their feelings or brush them under the carpet.  You need to be open and responsive to them.
  4. Be non-judgemental with your listening.  Be quiet and just LISTEN.  Don’t try and reason, justify, or explain. Just listen.
  5. Look for behaviours that flag up that your child is perhaps not coping as well as you thought.  This might be not wanting to do activities/hobbies they usually enjoy. They may be retreating away to their bedrooms and being less interactive with everyone else in the family. Or they may be suffering from mood swings that are unusual for them.
  6. When they are feeling a little bit better, and you have chatted about the losses that have happened, talk about the things that are not changing together.

It is so important not to leave expat grief unresolved or brush it under the carpet.  It will only rear its ugly head at a later date in the form of behavioural issues or emotional difficulties, or both.  Then as adults, they may even suffer from difficulties connecting with others or depression.

I hope this post sheds some light on what your child/children may be going through after an international move (or even a move within the same country can have the same effects) and gives you some ideas of how to handle it.  Whilst I am not a psychologist or a counselor, I am a Mamma that has three children that go through this in various ways or intensities.  I have felt the guilt all too strongly of taking them away from friends, family, much loved bedrooms, play parks, hobbies, and an area they loved when they hit about of sadness at their loss.  After all, I miss family and friends too, but at least it was mine and Dadda’s decision to move.  The children had very little say.

We have now been living in Sweden for over a year, but grief has no timeline and we are still coping with it and will be for a while.  Don’t get me wrong, they are very happy in between, but remember children live in the moment.  I can only hope that what we are doing when episodes do occur is helping our children to deal with their losses and come to terms with being an expat living in Sweden, and not giving them more issues to contend with as they grow into adults.

I would love to hear any comments or thoughts you have on this subject in the comments below.  Maybe you have made a move, international or otherwise, and you have some tips you can share on handling the grief when it arises. I hope if you’re thinking of moving to Sweden you will find these tips helpful (if you have already moved you may well agree with them).  If you like my photos of Sweden in this post, over on Instagram you can view some photos of beautiful Sweden 🙂

Written by Sonia Cave

I’m Sonia, Mamma to three (our little lady, 9, and our twin mini men, 5). With Dadda, we’re on our dream adventure having moved from the UK to Sweden in October 2016. We’re happiest in the outdoors. We like playing in nature, climbing trees, and cooking in the great outdoors. We moved to Sweden to bring our children up the Scandinavian way, and to enjoy all things Swedish, especially their ethos of living. 

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: children, expat, expat grief, expat. Sweden, grief, Kids, moving, relocating, Sweden

Open Preschools in Sweden: the perfect hangout for you and your baby, toddler or preschooler

13 February 2018 By The Newbie Team Leave a Comment

If you are arriving in Sweden with a baby or young child, you will no doubt be keen to find activities to fill their days with almost from the get go.  Sweden’s fantastic network of öppna förskolor (open preschools) can be a wonderful place to start.

Open preschools (sometimes known in English as ‘stay and plays’) are often run by the kommun, but also by Svenska Kyrkan (the Swedish church) or private organisations. They are aimed at babies and children between 0-5 years old, and many have dedicated sessions on their schedule just for babies.

So how does it work?

Once you’ve found the open preschools in your area and found a session to match your child’s age, just show up!

One of the great things about open preschool is that you and your child don’t have to sign up in advance (or even have a personnummer), so it is a great option for newly arrived families, stay-at-home parents and parents on parental leave.

The majority of open preschools follow a similar format.  There will be a play area where your child can explore the toys, books, and arts and crafts with new friends, and somewhere you can get a snack.

A simple fika with bread and butter, cheese, crackers, fruit, milk, juice and coffee is often available, and usually for a very reasonable price, perhaps 20kr. Sometimes the fika is even free for children, and of course, you can always bring food for your child along with you if you prefer.

Imse Vimse Spindel and Bää Bää Vita Lamm

Sångstund or songtime is often a child’s favourite part of open preschool, as they get a chance to join in with new and old favourites (Imse Vimse Spindel and Bää Bää Vita Lamm sound familiar at all?), have a little boogie and shake the odd maracca.

If you yourself are new to learning Swedish and attend open preschool songtimes regularly, you may well find your Swedish vocabulary consists disproportionately of words for farmyard animals, body parts and types of weather in the early days!

For you as a parent to a young child, open preschools can be a lifesaver as you start to settle, establish your life here, get to know people and fill your days.

Many even offer special sessions including baby massage, Swedish conversation practice, first aid, parenting skills and information about applying for preschool. Depending on the season, some open preschools have trips (for example to the forest or local farm), bbqs and summer cafes.

Keep an eye out for the open preschools’ avslutningar – these are special end of term celebrations at Lucia (luciaavslutning) Christmas (julavslutning) and before the summer holidays (sommaravslutning) and usually involve seasonal costumes, songs and baked treats ????

What to do about the language barrier?

Of course, despite open preschools generally being super open and welcoming places, it isn’t always easy to get chatting with other adults when there is a language barrier, even if you share common ground due to similarly aged children.

Going to open preschool armed with a few icebreaker phrase in Swedish can be a good idea to enable you to get into conversations with other if needed. Hur gammal är ditt barn? (How old is your child?) is always a good one, as is Har ni varit här förut? (Have you been here before?).

It can take a few sessions to find the open preschools which suit you and your child best, so visit a few and get the feel of them, and hopefully you will be able to take full advantage of this wonderful resource. Enjoy!

Written by Sarah Campbell

Hej! I’m Sarah. I’m from the UK and I live in Uppsala with my husband and our two children. I am a language teacher and freelance writer, and my husband is a researcher. It was his work with moss (yes, moss!) which brought us to this beautiful country, and we absolutely love it here! Highlights of our life here so far include experiencing the midnight sun in Abisko during an epic Arctic Circle roadtrip, blissful summers in Dalarna, and meeting Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria (along with Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge!) in Stockholm’s historic Gamla Stan.

Filed Under: Blog, Parenting Tagged With: activities, babies, children, Family, fika, kommun, open preschool, parental leave, parenting, playgroup, Preschool, singing, Swedish Church, toddlers

Fiction books to learn Swedish

15 January 2018 By The Newbie Team 4 Comments

In high school I wasn’t very good at English. I struggled with grammar, which I still detest. I didn’t like the idea of memorizing rules that made no sense to me. It didn’t help that our teacher spoke Spanish or Catalan, either.

One day they gave us a book to read: “Black Beauty” by Anna Sewell (I still remember). I absolutely loved it, and decided to read more books by myself. Over time, my English got better and better. I managed to interiorize those rules instead of trying to memorize them. I know this can’t work for everyone, but if you like books and want to learn Swedish, this is the way to do it.

It’s important that you pick up a book that attracts your attention, that you want to read despite the possibility you won’t understand most of it.

While learning Swedish at SFI, I borrowed some children’s books from a friend and got some others from the library. The books I present bellow are from Scandinavian authors and are the ones I enjoyed the most.

 

Vem? – Stina Wirsén

Stina Wirsén is an illustrator and writer of children books. Her collection “Vem?” is for children between 0-3 years old (she also has a collection for children between 3-6 years in case you think it’s too easy). Her stories are very simple and funny, her characters have a very unique style and personality. It’s also a TV series for Swedish television (SVT), if you want to check it out.

Photo credit @kospialidosa

Pippi Långstrump – Astrid Lindgren

I couldn’t miss this world famous Swedish character created by Astrid Lindgren and illustrated by Ingrid Vang Nyman.

Did you know Lindgren came up with Pippi Långstrump when her daughter was sick and asked her mum to tell her a story?

The one I got “Här kommer Pippi Långstrump” is a good start if you have a basic-almost non existent Swedish. The TV show is also worth trying once you’ve achieved a certain level.

Photo credit @kospialidosa

Hon & Han – Ann Gomér

These books require a bit more Swedish. Ann Gomér describes the everyday life of a couple, Ebba and Philip. The stories are short, always positive and can lead to a moral discussion. Like the one in the picture where the couple find a wallet in a park and decide to hand it to the police.

Ann thinks there are plenty of books describing drama and loneliness, she wants to give the reader a brighter sight of life.

The books come with a CD. I find this very useful, as most Swedish words are pronounced in a different way as you read them. What I did is read it out loud and then listen to the CD to correct my mistakes.

Photo credit @kospialidosa

Mumin – Tove & Lars Jansson

Photo credit @kospialidosa

Another famous Scandinavian character created by finish authors Tove and Lars Jansson. At first sight, it might look very childish, but they have far more text than the books I mention before, and more complex stories.

Moomin books talk about love, education, respect for each other, family bonding and personal freedom.

Mödrar och sönner – Theodor Kallifatides

I got this book from the library a month ago, feeling confident about my progression with Swedish (I’ve been studying it for 6 months). It’s an easy version of the real book of Kallifatides, a Swedish author born in Greece. It also comes with a CD.

Although I found it hard to read, I really enjoyed it, not just for the story itself, but also because the book repeated words and expressions, so I ended up memorizing them.

I checked the publisher’s website, and found out they have lots of interesting easy-to-read books like Anna Frank’s Diary, a biography of Astrid Lindgren and The Great Gatsby.

Photo credit @kospialidosa

Books can make our long run through learning Swedish interesting and amusing. You’ll not just learn a language but also acquire knowledge and a better understanding of Scandinavian culture.

If you have any other books to recommend, please share them with us 🙂

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: books, children, fiction, moomin, pippi langstrump, reading, Swedish

Children Moving Abroad to Sweden

23 November 2017 By The Newbie Team Leave a Comment

There is no doubt about it, any moving house event is stressful, so add into that the fact your children are moving abroad, and you have a very stressful event for them to handle.  However, there is also no doubt that moving abroad can be beneficial too.  It can provide a broader perspective about the world, whilst giving new experiences, and seeing a different culture, language, and way of living. 

This is learning outside the classroom as its very best! Children moving abroad needn’t be a recipe for disaster, but a wonderful experience.  I have a few tips that may help any children moving abroad.

Before You Move To Sweden

  1. Learn about the country together.  Make time to read books together, maybe make a scrapbook, and have a little look at the language with you child before you move.
  2. See if you can find any stories about children moving abroad.
  3. Discuss their feeling and emotions.  Allow all emotions need to be vented.  Keep the communication channels open, so if something does crop up at a later date, they know they can come and chat it over with you.
  4. Before your move, make sure thay say a proper goodbye to their friends.  Take photos or swap little presents.  We had a little forest school party too as a way of getting everyone together one last time before we left.

On Arriving in Sweden

On arrival, life could easily run away with itself if you let it.  There is paperwork to be sorted, maybe a car, a house etc.  For the children moving abroad, they could easily get left to fend for themselves for a few days (understandably) while the grown ups deal with what is being thrown at them.  So, here are a few tips to help you during that immediate arrival period.

  1. With the arrival of the hugest lorry load ever of worldly possessions, that have taken 6 days to arrive, it is very easy to get caught up in the task of unpacking it all.  The grown ups, as well as the children, need a break from this.  Make sure there is designated time in the day set aside for connecting time with the children.  Whether this is a walk or a play outdoors (maybe exploring the new neighbourhood), or collapsing with a drink and a story together, it needs to be done.  The children need to feel they are remembered and not a hindrance in this extremely stressful time.
  2. Try and maintain some of your usual routines.  This will help make the children moving abroad feel a little more secure and less anxious.
  3. Talk, talk, talk.  Allow them input in the unpacking (especially their own areas).  I know it can be frustrating as we could do it in half the time, but they need to feel useful, and that they have had input into the move too.  Let them bring up what they are feeling when they need to.  They have a lot of emotions to work through, maybe mirroring a grieving process.
  4. Get out exploring!!  Make it exciting for the children.  Go and find new play parks together.  Go on walks or bike rides to discover what is in the area.

Settling Down Into Life In Sweden

It’s an ongoing process for a long time, helping settle children moving abroad into their new country, in our case Sweden.  Issues will crop up from time to time, and when you are least expecting them, and about something you would have never even thought would have been an issue.  However, it is important to value them all.  I have a few little tips that have helped us along our journey so far.

  1. Get the children started in a Swedish school asap.  This will help with language and making friends, and ultimately settling them quicker.
  2. Find clubs/activities they enjoyed where you lived before in your new place, so they do not feel they have had to give up their lives/interests fully to move abroad.  This again helps with language and making friends as well.
  3. Allow for face time to their friends and family back home.  This one takes a lot of parental commitment, especially with younger children, as firstly they need your device, secondly they need you to ensure it is set up and happens, and thirdly you need to find the time to do it with them.  But it is so worth it.  Our little lady has played games and performed magic tricks with her friends as if they were in the same room as her.  It has been a great thing to have.
  4. Play dates…set up play dates with their new friends and encourage them to invite people back.  This can be very daunting at first as your language skills need improving, but get the google translate app and muddle through together…it is worth it I promise.
  5. Have lots of photos from your previous life printed and accessible to your children.  Then they can sit and peruse their memories, and again get talking about them.
  6. Continue to get out and explore your new area.  Go on adventures together and make it exciting for them.

Written by Sonia Cave

I’m Sonia, Mamma to three (our little lady, 9, and our twin mini men, 5). With Dadda, we’re on our dream adventure having moved from the UK to Sweden in October 2016. We’re happiest in the outdoors. We like playing in nature, climbing trees, and cooking in the great outdoors. We moved to Sweden to bring our children up the Scandinavian way, and to enjoy all things Swedish, especially their ethos of living. 

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: children, Kids, moving to sweden, relocate, relocation

5 things to expect when pregnant in Sweden

12 June 2017 By The Newbie Team 13 Comments

Being a Newbie, I was a bit nervous and scared when I discovered I was pregnant. Not because I wasn’t prepared to be pregnant but because I was far away from my family and I didn’t know what to expect. Even though I still have a few weeks left to meet my little one, I have discovered some many things about being pregnant in Sweden. This might be useful to any Newbie planning to get pregnant, already pregnant and nervous like me or just anyone wondering what being pregnant in Sweden is like.

There are a lot of beautiful things to know about your clinic when you get pregnant in Sweden. I have picked out the top 5 things that were the most fascinating to me.

1. Generally just one ultrasound

It was very strange and worrisome for me when my midwife told me at 10 weeks that I would only have one official ultrasound. I used the word ‘official’ because this ultrasound is funded by the government and you don’t have to pay for it. However, if you cannot wait till week 18 like me, you can opt for a private ultrasound (cost depends on how far you are in your pregnancy).

The official ultrasound is generally done around 18th week and called fetal morphology or anomaly scan. The scan takes a close look at your baby and your uterus (womb). The person carrying out the scan will check that:

  • your baby is developing normally
  • see where the placenta is lying in your uterus
  • and tell you the gender of the baby (if you wish to know)

2. Your first appointment is around week 8-10

So, you take a pregnancy test, it turns out positive and out of excitement you call your health centre to inform them about the good news. Then you expect an appointment with a nurse the very next day? Sorry, but that is not the way it works in Sweden.  Instead, you will be directed to a midwife who will ask you a few questions like “when was your last menstrual day?” and “how do you feel?”. Based on your answers you will get your appointment, probably around week 8 or thereabout. This doesn’t mean that you cannot call your midwife before the appointment if needed.

For me, I had my first appointment at week 10 which was fine since I didn’t have any complications or major sickness to worry about.

3. Your midwife does more or less everything

It was a bit puzzling to me when I discovered I might not be meeting a doctor throughout my pregnancy (in case I don’t have any complications).

This was puzzling to me because I am used to the system of seeing a doctor for most of my consultations and questions. I have been meeting my midwife all through the pregnancy journey and I can say that I have been nicely attended to by my midwife and it has truly been awesome for me.

4. Antenatals are free of charge

As a first time mom, I had a lot of worries and concerns. I also had to plan my budget so I wouldn’t get unnecessarily worked up before the baby’s arrival. So it was important to know about hospital costs, but I was amazed, happy and surprised when my midwife told me that I didn’t have to pay for any of my visits.

I knew you get the free health care system after you’ve reached a certain payment threshold during a year, but I thought it would not be the case for a pregnancy,  but, it’s totally free and you don’t have to worry about any bills. So for any pregnant Newbie it’s good to let you know that, as long as you are a resident and have a personnummer, you are entitled to free antenatals throughout your pregnancy.

5. Listening to your Baby’s Heartbeat

This has been the best part of my pregnancy. I love to meet my midwife simply because from the beginning of my second trimester, we always listen to the baby’s heartbeat rate to be sure everything is going properly.

This has been an emotional experience for me every time I listen to the heartbeat and wished I could listen to the heartbeat every day, over and over again. A handheld Doppler will be used to do this and it is just very beautiful.

There are other things to know about being pregnant in Sweden such as:

  • You will be assigned a health centre near your home, where you will do your check- ups.
  • Your blood pressure, and salt level will amongst other be checked on every health check appointment.

However, I have only listed my own top 5 which I found either strange, amazing or fascinating. I hope this will help a pregnant Newbie or anyone curious to know about to what to expect from the clinic in Sweden when you get pregnant.

Written by: Wemimo Ibidunmoye

My name is Wemi and I recently moved to the Northern part of Sweden (Umeå) with my husband. I’m originally from Nigeria and I blog at www.wemiibidun.com where I share a bit about everything such as living in Sweden, motherhood, hacks, tips, life experiences amongst others. My hobbies are reading, writing, making new friends and listening to music.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: children, health care, mother, newbie story, pregnant

Learning Swedish through Jazz

14 March 2017 By The Newbie Team Leave a Comment

A year has passed since I came to this northern hemisphere, and I have to admit it took nearly one year for me to begin to appreciate and learn the Swedish language. Perhaps I was discouraged or blatantly ignorant because I was surrounded by international communities, and the only useful Swedish words were hej and fika. But not until the end of summer last year, did I decide to do something different and change my routine.

Through a series of events I pushed myself to network with gig-goers or music enthusiasts, I slowly let myself become immersed in life outside the laboratory or conference halls. I took Swedish classes and now I force myself (and my Swedish friends) to speak Swedish whenever we meet.

It is not uncommon for English speakers to survive without a word of the local language here, unless they want to live in Sweden for a long period. Five years or more. And to my surprise, I kind of feel refreshed after learning more and more words.

I find that even a little knowledge of the language helps break down barriers. And I would like to share an idea about what I think could assist those who’s a beginner in Swedish. Having fun and learning the culture while improving your language skill.

Passive listening can play an important part in learning new languages. Hence, adjusting your ears to Swedish radio, podcast or music will come in handy. However, when I try to follow Swedish music most of the pronunciation is distorted by the sound of the instrument and lyrical sentences are mostly indirect. The end result is quite frustrating. So maybe no pop music for a beginner.

How jazz helped my Swedish

A while back I stumbled upon the work of a Swedish jazz-folk-pop musician Edda Magnason and her 2016 film called Monica Z. The song I share here was performed by Edda, who played Monica Zetterlund who was a Swedish celebrity and jazz singer. The story of Edda’s career and Monica Zetterlund’s life are such fascinating themes that they must be discussed separately.

So I won’t talk about them here. Instead what I will share with you is my opinion that both Edda and Monica’s songs are perfect for Swedish training. And if you like jazz, well, then this is perfect for you.

The simplicity in the lyrics requires less effort to understand than most Swedish pop songs, and each word is sung in a comfortable pace. Listeners can focus on the sentences easily, and if you’re eager like me you can play a game. You can try to guess the words and write them down while listening, then only crosscheck the lyrics after. Just try and listen.

There are more Swedish jazz songs from other musicians that should not be missed off course. But then again, it doesn’t even have to be jazz. I found a lesser known artist, My & Mats, who I believe make Swedish children’s songs. And just like most classics for kids, the repetition and clarity of the lyrics help one practice the language.

Written by: Totto Pastime

Originally from Indonesia, Totto has been living in India and Singapore before moving to Sweden. While pursuing her passion in life science and medicine in Stockholm, she is exploring her new Swedish environment through music and lyrics. You can find her spending weekend nights either jamming or attending indie gigs. Besides blogging for The Newbie Guide to Sweden, Totto also writes for Infective Perspective to discuss human viruses.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: children, jazz, Kids, learn Swedish, music, study, Swedish

6 things you should know when becoming a parent in Sweden

9 February 2017 By The Newbie Team Leave a Comment

We have prepared an informative list for you who are parents-to-be (or considering to grow the family).

1. Pregnant Newbie in Sweden: First Steps Pregnant

Newbie Jessica Arifianto shares her experience on several steps of becoming a parent, including confirming pregnancy, choosing between public and private systems, midwives, first appointments, and birth location.

2. Giving birth in Sweden: an introduction to Newbie moms

In Sweden, parents are offered guided tours at hospitals so they can feel more familiar with the whole process of giving birth. You get information on what to pack in the hospital bags, pain relief methods, c-section rates, and more. Check it out!

3. Maternity care in Sweden

Newbie Wafa Saif tells us what she has experienced during pregnancy (appointments, laboratory tests, ultrasounds, etc), what the vårdcentralen is, and some of the procedures regarding newborn care.

4. Svenska for Children, Immersion or Bilingual Education?

This time Jessica talks about how to adapt kids to the Swedish language. Here comes a minor spoiler: “kids are sponges, immersion works”, she says. Curious? Take a look!

5. Making the most of your Parental Leave

“When you see 480 days to be divided between you and your partner, you may think that you have all of the time in the world. In reality, your time with your baby will fly by.” Newbie Lisa Ferland shares 6 steps to take your parental leave wisely.

6. Why it’s awesome living outside of Stockholm

Lisa lists several reasons about why her family loves their “small-not-Stockholm-town” and the advantages for children.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: babys, children, maternity, parental leave, pregnancy

Beating the winter blues in Stockholm

4 January 2017 By The Newbie Team Leave a Comment

The festivities are over at Littlebearabroad HQ. The twinkling strings of lights have been taken down and we’re bracing ourselves for the bitterly cold months of January and February in Stockholm. The kids are sick of wearing their winter-overalls and are just… well, sick.

In collaboration with LittleBearAbroad

Parents all over Stockholm are dreaming of the long, hazy, summer days spent at the City beaches and lakeside playgrounds, hatless, gloveless, and fleeceless. Despite edging towards lighter and brighter days (1 minute a day) the darkness can become all-consuming during these months. Even more so for those of us tasked with entertaining pre-schoolers and toddlers.

Depression in the winter months reaches epidemic proportions and, even though it seems like an impossible task, keeping active, social and getting out and about is vital. Even in Stockholm there are small gems of exotic escapism where you can remind yourself of what it feels like to be warm, without breaking the bank. And, you can bring the kids!

My favourite of these exotic escapes is right the middle of Hagaparken.

Fjärilshuset & Haga Ocean is one of Stockholm’s most popular tourist attractions in the summer. In the winter it’s somewhat overlooked. But, with its hot houses, tropical jungles and stunning collection of exotic creatures, it is the perfect remedy to beat those winter blues. It’s got fantastic facilities for kids of all ages and it’s the sort of place you can end up spending a whole day in.

When Littlebearabroad pitched the idea of producing an event in the middle of January to a couple of our friends we were met with a lot of scepticism. But, when we announced that the event would be taking place at Fjärilhuset & Haga Ocean, we had nailed it.

On January 16th Littlebearabroad is hosting the first English-speaking, family tour of Fjärilshuset & Haga Ocean. Join us amongst the butterflies, insects, lizards, frogs, fish and the largest shark aquarium in Sweden.

The tour will start with a presentation about the environmental conservation and facilities at Fjärilshuset and be followed by an exciting guided tour of the hot houses in which you get to meet tropical terrapins and turtles and feed giant catfish. You might event get to see a butterfly emerge from its cocoon. Most importantly, you can spend the day basking in the steamy, warmth of their jungle foliage and forget the wintery world outside.

For ticketing information and further event details check out littlebearabroad.com and for more events by Littlebearabroad check out their events and activities calendar.

Written by Jill Leckie

Jill is a Scottish Lass who lives with a Viking and is raising a mini-Viking, life is a cross between smorgasbords and deep-fried curly wurlies. Her second baby, Littlebearabroad, was created whilst she was on maternity leave and learning about her new life and adopted country. Littlebearabroad is here to support international families settle in Sweden with kids, meet people and make friends.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: babys, children, culture, events, networking, winter

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