I live in Stockholm with my family and I think it is one of the most beautiful cities ever, extremely child friendly (eg bus trips are free if you have a pram, there are heaps of great museums for kids) and in particular December is a lovely month, with gorgeous traditions such as Lucia (google it) and people putting lights in their windows to counter the dark.
Here are some points for you to think about:
it is dark - the winter solstice around December 23 is the shortest day of the year with only a couple of hours of light. When I pick up my son from preschool at 3, we have to rush to the park as it gets dark at 3.30pm
in Stockholm, snow is not guaranteed at Christmas - it just started snowing yesterday - it may or may not be below zero, it has been freakish weather this year and +10 a few days ago. If you wanted guaranteed snow, try Åre or one of the other snow-holiday destinations
one of the tough things you will need to keep in mind re: cold weather is that getting out the door with kids is even harder.
if you are contemplating going for more than a week, i suggest you consider sub-letting someone's place to save on accomodation costs, given that half of sweden migrate to Thailand for Christmas anyway
it is exxy when travelling there - keep an eye on coupon sites for tour, restaurants or attractions discounts. Even if you don't speak swedish you try groupon.se, with the help of google translate, you could usually tell what the service/product is
Having said all that - I would warmly recommend you visit, providing you are mentally prepared for the dark. (Infact, the winter lights up north are beautiful). I heart sweden!
We will be back there on Monday the 9th - so if you have any more questions, I can answer them for you from there!
We have decided on Stockholm. Mainly because we know someone there, will most likely get snow, and I would prefer to do the whole of Italy at once. (My 30th Birthday).
Thanks for your reply Tanyaya! May be picking your brain a bit Have found The Stockholm Card, which I think will be the best value for us as it gives the free transport and entry to most of the museums and things. We can get one that lasts for 5 days, and the girls are covered by it so it is super cheap.
We are thinking of taking the train to Gothenburg for a few days, but aside from that, were just going to stay in the city. I don't fancy renting a car, and have totally zip experience driving on icey/snow roads. Plus really don't want to take the car seats if we can avoid it.
Do you know of any websites I can search for apartments? At the moment I am looking at the Rica Talk Hotel, purely because of their child-friendly focus... and I know Charlotte will get a kick out of having her very own breakfast buffet! Plus, for the few weeks we will be there, it is fairly well priced, breakfast is included every day.
I had a look into Lucia and I am so looking forward to it, it just seems magical!
I must say I was amused to read that smoking almost everywhere is banned, even at the bus stop, but that restaurant's need only provide a non-smoking area! lol
Anyway, having a lot of fun researching and planning already!
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Have found The Stockholm Card, which I think will be the best value for us as it gives the free transport and entry to most of the museums and things. We can get one that lasts for 5 days, and the girls are covered by it so it is super cheap. 
Plus, for the few weeks we will be there, it is fairly well priced, breakfast is included every day.
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