This year is about connecting as a family. Stating the obvious, quality time the four of us will be on overdrive. That said, there will be exceptions . . .
Do Your Own Thing
One of the things Doug & I fully support is letting each other break away for alone time. We both strongly believe that nourishing the many parts of ourselves - as individuals, as friends, as partners, as parents, as professionals - is super important to help us be our best selves. It takes work to prioritize all those aspects of ourselves.
On this trip, getting solo time becomes even more important! As challenging as it is to make happen sometimes, it’s a win/win proposition. One person gets to bug off for a bit and do whatever strikes their fancy (take a run, visit a museum, sit at a coffee shop & read, etc), while the other gets dedicated time with the girls, which equally fills their tanks. And when the four of us come back together - whether it’s one hour or four hours later - we’re all genuinely excited to see each other and exchange stories of our time apart.
Danish Design Museum
I was keen to check out the Design Museum of Art & Design in Copenhagen. Our time in the city was relatively limited; two full days was not nearly enough time! After our canal boat cruise, Doug encouraged me to split & hit up the museum on my own as it was highly unlikely we'd otherwise get there. I happily obliged!
Checking out the Design Museum was a real treat. Denmark has one of the finest & most renowned design traditions in the world. It was interesting to learn more about their heritage of design, both its functionality and flair. My two favorite museum exhibits were:
Danish Chair exhibit: Who knew chairs could be so interesting & entertaining?!! The exhibit featured about 100 Danish chairs - from wooden to rocking to lounge to dining to stools, etc. Totally captivating.
Denmark’s Next Classic exhibit: There was a reality TV show in Denmark earlier this year where five professional designers competed for the title of “Denmark’s Next Classic”. Each episode they were tasked to present their original idea for a new furniture classic. They had three weeks to work through their idea for each item: dining chair, dining table, lamp, furniture for kids, sofa and an armchair. This exhibit showed all the final designs of each of the contestants.
After the museum I navigated a massive downpour of rain and two forms of public transport to meet back up with Doug & the girls. When the girls saw me on the street they came running up to give me big hugs. Over the course of the next hour or two, each girl individually asked me how the museum was. Doug might have encouraged them prior to ask me, but they were genuinely interested in my response & pictures, and it 100% filled my bucket.
We proceeded to scarf down some tasty liquid nitrogen ice cream and stroll the gorgeous, bike-filled streets of Copenhagen.
Mission accomplished: Today I got to experience something that was important to me (and I'm grateful for that), and I returned feeling brighter & ready to re-engage as a family unit the four of us.
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