exploring

A morning trip to one of the parks by Fresh Pond. After seven minutes of sitting still, Silja says her usual "baba, bless, 'vel" (bye in Austrian German, Icelandic, Danish), turns around to wave and then wanders off. When we ask her where she's going, the answer is always the same: the playground. And we usually need to run to catch her, because she keeps walking looking for a playground, talking to ants, stomping in puddles (not always with rain boots on), or walking up and staring at people. I guess there is just so much to explore when you are almost two...

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harvard commencement

Today was the big commencement ceremony at Harvard. We pass through the campus area more or less daily, and have followed the raising of tents, flags and hundreds and hundreds of chairs throughout the area over the last week. Coming from Denmark where graduation ceremonies are not such a huge deal, I really like how it's celebrated here. I like the graduation outfits (which we don't have), and with the two universities we've been affiliated with, I love the international feel because there are people from near and far coming to celebrate, talking so many languages and dressed up in such different ways.
Unlike USC the area was closed off for the public in morning, but we passed through later in the day. In general Harvard seems a lot more restrictive towards people not affiliated with the university; you need an ID to go anywhere and do anything. Fortunately they do have very good support and opportunities for the family members of staff, so I'm not complaining.

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cambridge and beyond

I'm taking lots of pictures, but am slow with getting them posted (blame it on American cable TV... It's a wormhole!). After a lot of rain the weather turned around this weekend, and we rented a car and went to the beach up north. It was crowded, but it was goood! I hope you had a sunny weekend too.

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settling into new routines

While Bjarni is busy with a new job, the rest of us are also settling into new routines. Back in Vienna Silja was in day care, where her best little friends were Sophia and Jorli. When not with us, she was hanging out with the same nine kids every day, and she was well taken care of by Sandra, Brigitta and Marianne. I was working on my studies, and meeting fellow study mates for lunch or coffees dates in between classes or in the end the thesis writing.
Now we getting used to very cosy but also quite different routines. Together. We are rarely in a rush in the morning. We sometimes head to cafes for coffee/milk and to split a bagel with cream cheese, and we scout around for fun activities in the area, where we can play and talk to other kids and parents. So far we have joined sing alongs (and I'm getting the hang of American kids' songs: And Bingo was his name-o, shake your sillies out...), and toddler play groups for the Harvard community. There are so much available for a duo like us, so it's just a matter of finding what fits our mood and schedule, and getting the consistency of routines as well as the people we meet.
At least until my work permit is sorted out, we will continue like this. Right now I feel very confused about what I want to do after. I don't even have an overview of what is in fact possible (I'm working on it, but it takes time). I have to admit though that having the time to do what I do now, feels like such a luxury and if I'm able to balance it out with some time that nurtures my professional interests, well then I might as well grab the chance, and enjoy hanging out with my kid and watch her grow and develop, because I know it will be a time-limited thing.
Anyway, all this comes with lots of thoughts and considerations that needs more time to settle, but perhaps I'm able to share more later on? Till I'll know more I'm doing my best to enjoy the toasted cream cheese bagels, the library singing and my happy little sidekick.
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coffee, hula hoop and new friends

The highlights of the past weekend included finding a great coffee place/speciality store nearby and having new friends over for dinner. One of the big challenges of moving to a new place is building up a new network from scratch, so being able to have people over after less than a month here.. well that just feels great! Little Leon, who's also half Icelandic, and Silja are new best friends. 

Obviously establishing a well-grounded network takes time, and we basically just arrived, but we're off to a flying start on that area, and that is such a GOOD way to begin this stay.

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