"Baby needs a new pair of shoes..."

Our son got his first backpack (an early 2-year birthday gift from Mom and Dad) to be able to join his parents next time we go hiking in the woods. It is a six liter Fjällräven trekking backpack, and it even has its own rain cover that goes with it!

As for springtime shoes, WC got a nice pair of Kavat leather shoes that make him look very sofisticated!

Art appreciation

"Aton", 1955, by Olle Baertling. Sold for 165 000 euros.

"Ksef", 1949, by Olle Baertling. Sold for 8 000 euros.

The Stockholm auction house (the world's oldest auction house) had their annual Swedish Modern Auction this past week. The Nilsson family was trying to bid for the less expensive pieces by Olle Baertling, but decided to drop out of the bidding war. "Ksef", above, was one of our objects of interest where Kim signed up for a paddle at the auction house. The starting price was 3 500 euros, but a tough bidding race soon pushed the price tag up 200 percent above the initial price. And as for "Aton" (top), and other more famous pieces (obviously inspired by Mondrian) by Baertling, it was simply out of our price range. But we still love his art! 

Ready for spring weather

Spring has finally come to Stockholm, and that means rain and more rain. Our son is now prepared for the puddles with his new, black Tretorn toddler wellies.

Vroom Vroom Weekend

One of Kim's colleagues came to visit this weekend, to enjoy some La Maison Nilsson Saturday Dinner, and play Settlers of Catan.

The three course menu for the day:

Opening Long Drink: Sidecar.

Cauliflower velouté soup with parsley (Swe: redd blomkålssoppa med persilja)
Homemade bread with thyme and cream cheese
Francois Lurton, Bordeaux 2009 (Sauvignon Blanc)


Chateaubriand with potato gratin, parsnip purée and Kim's red wine sauce.
Tenuta Sant'Antonio (Amarone della Valpolicella) 2007


Kim's homemade Tiramisu
Coffee and avec (Sandeman's Invalid Port)

 
Our dinner guest brought a present for WC, the Hotwheel Monster Jam truck "Stone Crusher" which soon became a favorite among the Nilsson car collection with its 4WD stunts!

For all you fans out there... below is a match-up between the real version of "Stone Crusher" and "Iron Man". Our son is hooked!

New addition to the hallway

A nice form of minimalism has been added to our hallway, right below the frames with our family portraits. This particular stool is called Icone, and is designed by Ashkan Heydari from the Danish designers at Bolia.

Saturday menu

We had the Swedish grandparents over for dinner. (Well, they were of course only here to visit Warren Christopher, but due to Dad's ailment and Mom feeling tired we decided against going out and instead had a nice evening at home, once our son had gone to bed.) This is what was on the menu:

Opening Long Drink: Dirty Mother.

Bélon oysters served with fresh lemon.
Champagne: Massé Brut

Cutlet of Atlantic wolffish served with oven-grilled legumes, sprinkled with trout roe sauce.
Fleur du Cap, Chardonnay


Vanilla panna cotta with strawberries.
Coffee and avec: Fad 6 Sherry/Courvoisier VSOP Cognac

 Cheese platter and "bricelet" wafers.

Graham Beck, Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon