We decided to go ahead and put off making the drive down to the neurologist, a decision that felt doubly good when we woke up this morning to -20°C (-4°F). Over the weekend and into the beginning of the week the temperatures had been up near freezing, but yesterday — just in time for Tage’s first ice-skating of the year — the cold showed up again.

After standing outside the ice rink for an hour yesterday afternoon, I didn’t at all feel like venturing out to take the kids for their vaccinations, but as it’s my incredible good fortune to be married to Olof (seven years today, folks!), I didn’t have to. He first took Lydia this morning, then went again to take Tage and Petra this afternoon. I had thought that Lydia was past the age of needing two shots, but apparently she’ll have to go in for another in three weeks. After than, then, all of us (excluding Brynja) will be fully vaccinated against the dreaded “new influenza,” as we’ve been instructed by the Swedish authorities to call it.

I probably would have given Brynja the shot as well, but when we went last fall they weren’t vaccinating kids under three years of age. Now they’ve lowered the younger limit to 6 months, but we decided to go ahead and skip it anyway. Since she’s not in daycare, and pretty much everyone she has contact with is vaccinated, I think she’ll be okay without it.

So, it’s turned out not to be as hectic a day as I had anticipated, but that’s all to the good. I’m so over hectic.