new heating system and a dead car

These past two weeks have just flown by! I can hardly believe all that has happened since I wrote last. Where to start?
Our neighbors have moved! They bought a newly built condo in Umeå and sold their house. I am sorry to see them go, but I also understand their need to start out new again. I wish them well in their new home and look forward to visiting them in the future.
After a couple of years of heating our home on electricity, and having high electricity bills, we decided to dig a big hole and use the natural heat from the earth to warm our house instead. It will cost a bit for the initial installation, but it will pay for itself in 6 years. Plus that we will have a HUGE savings on our monthly electricity bill and increase the value of the house.
The ford died, but will soon be resurected! The engine in my car got fried and died. The car is not too old (97), and there is still a bit of worth in it. So, we decided to have it fixed. It will cost us 7000 Krowns (650 dollars) but then it will hopefully last a couple more years.
My painting classes are almost over. I only have one more oil painting class on Monday night, and then they are all over. I am looking forward to the extra income too. (To pay for the car!)
I need to try to get some sleep, so you all have a real sweet week now, ya hear?

Yesterdays class went well. Katrina followed along to keep me company and have a little mommy time as well. On the way home we stopped off at a family in Vännäs for a short visit. Katrina hung out with Evelina (our youth leader) and Olivia, and I had a cup of tea with Karin. Then we headed home for a relaxing evening. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep, though. We had given Jackie a lamb bone after supper. She disappeared from sight for 2 hours! Man she liked that! Unfortunatly, all that went in, had to also come out! Her digestive track decided that the right time was during the night! We went out 4 times during the course of the night, finally settling in at 3 am. Then she had to go out at 6 am again (normal rutine) and has been awake since then! I feel a nap coming on this afternoon.
Bjorn had his first match yesterday. He played defense back, because one of the other players was too tired to play forward. So they put him in the goal. They didn't win, but Bjorn says that he had fun anyways, despite the rain! (A true sportsman!)
We had snow and hail yesterday afternoon. The temps have dropped a bit as well. We had freezing temps overnight and it won't get too warm for the rest of the week here. I liked the weather a couple weeks ago better! Sunny and warm! Man, give me summer again!!
My work week will be caotic again. Not near as much pressure, but I do need to get everything ready for Saturday's tattoo session! A few mechanical parts need to be bought and put together, and check to make sure the tent parts haven't gone on vacation. So, I recon it's about time to get busy! Have a good one!
Love and colors...

Jet another week has past. The first full week with Christoffer in the shop has gone fairly smooth. He is picking up on a lot of things. He's got a really nice personality, easy-going. He even has a good sence of humor, something needed in to be able to work with me!
Today I have the second to last class for my Sunday group. I will miss the rides to Bjurholm on Sunday afternoon, but look forward to being able to go visiting with friends! Kris is palying piano at church today. The free churches in Vännäs are having one service together today, and I am sure it will be packed. So I decided to stay home this morning. Katrina is still in bed (missed the 9:00 am deadline to get up) so she will get to do the dishes after lunch! I just heard her on the stairs, in heals! She is all girl!!
Bjorn has a soccer match later this afternoon, but Kris will have to see to it that he gets there on time. He will be playing goalie most of the games. Last year there were 2 goalies, but this year it's just Bjorn. We are glad he likes playing soccer, but want him to be more active. We will see how it goes.
I have been preparing for the summer, making t-shirt stencils. They turned out nice for a start. It will be nice to expand the options as the weeks go on.
We need to go do some grocery shopping now. Have a good one!

Snake teeth and busy wek

Time sure goes by fast! Now it's Sunday evening and I am looking down the barrel of yet another busy week. It was so nice to get everything done last week, but now there are new projects to get going and a few things to prepare for this summer. I need to contact Vännäs to reserve a stand for the market in July,and find out when the markets are in Umeå and how much they cost. I decided not to go to the markets further away, but to only do those which are a reasonable driving distance away.
This week I will get Kristoffer to start preping a table top for repainting as well as to keep practicing his airbrush skills. I don't think he will be able to pinstripe, as he has a shakey hand. It will be interesting to see how much detail he can manage once he gets the airbrush teknique down.
Monday night I have the oil painting class. Tuesday our small group is to go to clean out the camping area that our church has part ownership of. Wednesday is a working day, and if the weather is nice, I will do some yard work in the evening, as well as some wash. (Hung the first loads of wash out on Saturday. Boy, did they smell nice!!)There is a group of scouts coming to get tattoos in the early evening, but that should only take an hour or so. Thursday's another work day, and I have no idea yet what the evening will call for. I know that Bjorn has soccer practice on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. He likes it when I watch the games and the practices. It's a nice chance to talk to the other parents and to get away from the house and work.
Friday- work day. Friday evening- nothing on the schedule. I am looking forward to the evening off and plan to do as much of nothing as possible!
Kris will be at work late on Monday eve, and away (in Vindeln) from wednesday till friday. Friday night he practices piano with some ladies that will be singing at church on Sunday. This weekend Katrina has a youth retreat weekend and will be gone Friday till Sunday.
Gotta write about a little prank that's going around! When I was in high school we did a little thing called rattle snake teeth. We took a hair pin and bent it open into a "v". Next we threaded a rubber band through a button and put it into the middle of the rubber band. The 2 ends were threaded over the ends of the hair pin like a sling shot. Then we twisted the button around and around. Carefully placing this wound up button and hairpin into an envelope was tricky, but if you hold onto the button from the outside of the envelope, it would not release. Next, you write "American Eastern Diamond Back Rattle Snake Teeth" on the envelope with a danger symbol. Now, it is set, just look for a victum, and ask if they want to see some rattle snake teeth! Most people will cautiously agree and carefully start to open the envelope. Curiosity.... When they open it to look inside, the button releases and taps on the side of the envelope, making a sound similar to a snake rattle. The force usually makes the hair pin "jump out" of the envelope, and you have got your first victum!
Well, of course I had to test it on someone, and there was Kris! He didn't jump or scream, but he did jerk a little! Good enough! Next came the neighbor lady. I told her I found a strange bug in the basement, could she take a look? Sure! (he hee!) She jumped, screamed and threw the envelope down! I showed her how it worked and let her open it a second time and she ... jumped, screamed, and threw the envelope down. We laughed histerically and agreed that we HAD to do it to her husband!! (He had the same reaction followed by threats of revenge!)
Most everyone I've tried it on have reacted the same way. The youth loved it and have promised to take one home and show their parents!! (I am expecting a lot of mad emails and threats from said parents within the next week!)
If I don't write any more entries, it is because some frantic histeric parent has had enough and has done me in. Either that or the snake teeth have found their mark!
Love and colors y'alls!

Gold Flame is DONE!!!

Finally it is all done and assembled! Kris was one happy camper last night when he took it out for the first ride of the year. I needed to do a few adjustments last night and put on the sissy bar and pack. But now it is all done! Not too bad for a crazy american, huh? Gotta say thanks to Fredrik Granroth for helping with the disassembling and re-assembling. I never could have done it on my own! What would I do without a friend like you! It was fun to work together! (Even when Jackie stole the screw drivers and wrenches!)


Here is one happy pappa on his little baby!











And here is the other side of happy Pappa's helmet.

I am so glad the job is done. The gold leafing looks good and the complete look is so nice!

I also finished my taxes yesterday- both monthly and for 2005. So, that headache is over for another year. Now I just need to wait to see if I did it right! Unfortunatly, because I have a buisness, I won't get anything back until December! GRRRR! But that will be better than not at all!

I am hoping that today will be a lot less stressful than the past 3 weeks have been! I have finished one water color painting class, the gold flame bike, income tax (both month and year), and will soon be done with the other water color class and the oil painting class! I have a fellow working for me now as well, and am getting him to re-learn the basics. Nice to have someone else to answer the phone, run errands, walk the dog or just hold down the fort for a while.

Time to get busy. I need to hand in the time sheet for the painting course and go to the bank. Otherwise, it will hopefully be an easy day. Love and colors!

Bike being assembled!

Today we will finish assembling Kris' bike. I need to polish it a little, get out a little dust from the last clear coating. The hardest part will be the rear fender. There are a bunch of electrical wires and lights and stuff attatched to it, but I am confident it will get put together. Then it's just to attatch the hoses to the gas tank, plug in the electric wires, put oil and gas in and hope it doesn't explode when we start it up!
Today I have a 20 yr. old guy starting to work for me. I hope he works out! He seems a little unsure of what he wants out of life- never finished high school. I hope I can be an encouragement to him. I am not sure if he will work out or not, so he is on a trial employment for the first 3 months. Then we will talk about how it is going. But I also let him know that I use the 3 strikes and you are out principle! (Late 3 times, you're out of a job, leave early 3 times, you're out of a job...) His name is Kristoffer. So, we will see! He starts this morning, and I will need to keep him busy with work 40 hrs. a week! Should be interesting!
Gotta go for now. Have a good day. Pix of the bike comming as soon as it is all together!
Love and color!