Raking leaves with God, Örebro

Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees, and I have been slowly raking them up. Yesterday it was particularly windy, and I thought that I really need to get those leaves up. So, I put Jackie on the leash and went out. I started raking against the wind, only to have to re-rake the same leaves again. Then I decided to rake with the wind, allowing it to help me push the leaves into a pile instead of scattering them all over the place. Then I had a thought. God was helping me rake the leaves! He was blowing them together. When I tried to work against Him, my efforts were scattered in the wind, and I had to do it all over again! (and again and again!) How often do we forget to figure out what God's intention are and go into a project without his directions. The project might be right, but how we do it might be wrong! Out efforts are scattered in the wind, and nothing becomes of it. But when we listen to His voice, we see the direction we are to go. Suddenly the work becomes easy and light. The work load is "carried" by the Lord, and the job becomes fun, easier to manage and quickly completed!

This really spoke to my heart as I am getting a team together to do some evangelism this summer in Bulgaria with some of the youth. Things seem to have stalled a bit, and I couldn't seem to be making any progress. So, now I am stopping, waiting to hear and feel which direction to go in, and wait for the answer.

Last week, three youth and I went to a leaders conference in the south of Sweden, to Örebro (Penny Bridge). Traveling was an adventure! We took the car to the airport. Then we had to take a bus to the train station. Then we had to walk a little till we got to the church. We arrived late, and the evening session had already begun. We decided to take our things to the church we were going to sleep at, and call it a night. After a good nights snoring.. I mean sleep, we hit the day running. Three sessions and 2 large group gatherings in one day was a lot, added to the fact that we had to walk between churches to get where we were going- we were really tired by the evening. We all were really satisfied with the information we learned, and enjoyed sharing info - we all took different seminars. After the Sunday morning seminar, we had some time to kill, so we walked around Örebro a while, took some pix of the castle, and went to the train station. Our train was delayed. No problem, we had an hour and a half layover in Stockholm. It was delayed longer. And longer, and longer. Finally I realised we would not have any extra time in Stockholm, and we should get something to eat on the train. There was a Chinese restaurant across the street, so we went there and got a takeout meal, which we ate on the train. In Stockholm, we got bus tickets to take us to the airport, and arrived just as they opened the check in counter. Till we got to the gate, we had a half an hour to kill. We got drinks, something to eat, and relaxed a little. After the flight home, I delivered everyone home, went home myself and said hi to everyone. Then I went to bed! The next day, Katrina and I were going to Stockholm!! More about that later!

I have dinner guests coming tonight, so I need to get busy cleaning the house. Have a good one y'all!

A Word from Jackie

WOFF!

woff woff woff woff grr woff grr woff.

Oops, wronge language. That's better.

My masters are busy today- Björn and Katrina are at school, and will go into town later for haircuts. Pappa is working and Mom went to the gym, grocery shopping and took kids for haircuts. I really hate it when they leave me at home. I mean I am the most important one in the house! I guess they are afraid they will forget me somewhere or that I will get lost.

Since everyone else is busy, I'll give you the low down on what's been happening lately.

The frost has returned here, and that means that winter is just around the corner. It's a little cold on my paws to walk out in th mornings, soon time for my boots. And no, that's not a mustache on my nose, it's a blade of grass! I'm just checking out that no cats have been in my territory. I think the pack has decided to use these bricks to make a new fireplace next summer.

The leaves are changing colors on the trees. Miki said something about raking them up. Why doesn't she just keep the leaves on the trees to start with? They look nicer there than on the ground anyways. But then again, I wouldn't have any to play with then, would I. Decisions, decisions.

The whole pack goes out for a walk after supper every day. (At least the ones that are home) I love it! Then I can find out who all has been hangin out in the neighborhood. I also get to see other packs walking as well, get a chance to stretch my muscles and get a bit of fresh air. I sleep really well afterwards too. Miki says I snore. She should talk!! She snores loud enough to wake the dead!

Well, I recon that will have to do for now. Hope this will do for now. Miki says that she will add a new entry as soon as she can. Have a nice day everyone.

Woof!

Retreat, rain and Betty Boop

OK So I am horrible at keeping up and blogging. My mom makes an entry almost every day, though I can't imagine how she manages that! But I will keep on posting when I can. I finally have a day off after 17 days in a row. There are a million things I ought to do, a hundred that I really should do, and a dozen things that are on the critical list. But they will have to wait- I am blogging now!
The end of August found me at our church's camp. Our church and the Missions church worked together to have a teenagers weekend camp- we called it MP3- (Missions, Pentecostal and the 3in1 (Father, Son and Holy Spirit)) We had a blast. We started with a weenie roast and played a form of night time tag. Saturday we had 2 teaching sessions and a variety of stations to choose from. The afternoon was free time- swimming, water skiing,playing cards, etc. Arvid- the youth leader from Missions, was initiated into his job by being thrown into the lake- wallet, keys, phone and all! (I just got baptised with a glass of water!) An evening session of teaching went well. Our speaker, Emil, made Christianity real for the youth, and around 5 decided to either renew their commitment or start a new one. We took time to talk and pray with each one. Sat. eve was oppen for playing games and cards, talking till 2 am. We got everyone in bed by 4, and slept a few hours till 7. . Sunday morning, after breakfast and cleanup, we had a service for the parents and anyone who wanted to come. Right before the service started, we said our goodbyes with a hug ring. The service went very well- the youth were on the worship team, did a drama and a dance. Emil preached. We were pleased with the outcome of the weekend.


It has been raining a lot lately- really wet. The weather has begun to get cold as well.We had to turn on the heat in the house after a particularly cold evening. Kris thinks it is warm enough, and I think it needs to be a bit warmer. So, we turned it up a little, and I walk around the house in a thick sweater and shoes. (In Sweden everyone takes their shoes off before entering a house) So, the kids decided to go out and play in the rain. I wimped out for the first time. We usually do the running of the raindrops once a year. Katrina did a run around the house in the downpour, Bjorn stayed out a bit longer, smashing the puddles, and getting a bit more soggy. And yes, he did catch a cold afterwards!

I would have posted a picture of the completed shower, but Katrina borrowed the camera and left it at school the past week! Hopefully she will return it this week. So, I will post a picture of one of my latest projects. I got this gas tank with the request for Betty Boop. The customer was pleased with the results, as was I. I still enjoy painting and have another tank in the shop, though nothing extravagant. Just a re-painting and pinstripinig. I just painted a pair of mens boxers with a picture on the front and text on the back that said "kiss this". I thought it was funny! I also was at a day care oppening and painted over 70 tattoos on kids, parents and grandparents! So, the buisness goes on!

I have a bit more resting to catch up on, and a few games to play. So, have a good one, ya' all!

Catching up

Oh how the years go by.... well the weeks at least! I have been a busy camper lately. The lazy summer days are over and I am back to work. I recently got a permanent paid position as youth leader at our church, and have been getting things ready for the upcoming semester. We just finished a weekend retreat with the teenagers, and had a lot of fun. My co-worker from the missions church and I had a great thought. When we were teens, we paid to be able to go to these weekends, and looked forward to them for many a weeks, and relished the experiences we had for years afterwards. Now we not only don't have to pay to go, but we get paid to go! Plus, we decide which games to play, who the speaker is, and what we will be doing! On top of all that, we get to be as silly as we want, eat ourselves stupid, and stay up till way too late! And, there are no dishes to wash, food that we have to make or dogs we have to walk! Yep, we have a tough job... and we love it!!
School has started here as well. Katrina and Björn finally go to the same school! Björn has been having trouble with a kid in his class that wouldn't leave him alone, and the school didn't put a stop to it. So, after a 3 year battle, we decided to move Björn to the same Christian school that Katrina has been going to for the past 3 years. The teachers love him, say that he is fitting in just fine, playing with the boys at school and doing well in class.
But the down part of seeing all those kids is the unfortunate mass invasion of germs the kids are suddenly exposed to. Both the kids got really bad colds, and had to be home for a couple days. Now, here is the fun-a 14 year old, super mature and somewhat bossy girl feeling the effects of a really bad cold with a touch of asthma as well in the same room (house, street, neighborhood, country) as her imature(compare to her) , super sensative, irritating attention needy and oh, so irritating little brother who is also ravaged by the sniffels and a much stronger case of asthma.... well, it wasn't a pretty sight. The finally went back to school, and the house is once again quiet and calm. Now I only have to deal with the mountians- dishes, wash (as usual) , socks (they are everywhere!) blankets and buckets, used tissues (gross!) magazines and books, food scraps and empty cough drop wrappers. Björn wanted to stay home Friday, but I am forcing him to go anyways- I need the peace and quiet!! (Seriously, he is well enough, just didn't want to get up so early!)
So, now that I am working as a youth leader, now I am starting to get all kinds of questions and jobs in the buisness! Right now I have a sign, a gas tank and a helmet waiting my attention. Plus I got a call to do a 5 week course in airbrushing! I am going into Umeå today to discuss which instruments are needed and how to set up as well as when to have the course. This is going to be fun!
Well, now mom can finally see something else on my blogg! Have a good one, y'all!

We went to Luleå for a wedding this past weekend, and had a really good time. We all wished we could have stayed longer, but the realities of life required us to return home on Sunday evening. We stayed in a cute little cabin at a camping area. There were a lot of wedding guests staying at the same place, and we started Friday evening with a bar-b-que. There were a lot of international guests, and I really enjoyed hearing the languages. French is a truely beautiful language. Though I did not know much french, and they didn't know so much english, I enjoyed the evening- including the grilled bananas! Then I played volleyboll with the youth for a while before going to bed at 2 am. The sunrise was beautiful, and the kids and I went on a photo safari before turning in. (We have 24 hours of light right now) Saturday we slept in till 10, then got up for some late breakfast. We walked around the camp a while, then got ready for the wedding. A bus would transport us all from the camp to the wedding and back again after the reception. We were to be ready and on the bus by 1:00, so till we got ready and ate a quick lunch, it was time to go. The weather was perfect- sunny and warm with a slight breeze. They had everything in swedish(Emma is swedish) and french (Sulvan is french).Tom Ruschman from Jokkmokk was the pastor that married them, and he was able to speak both languages. (And english)

After the wedding, the couple drove off in a beautiful old buick while the guests walked to the reception hall. The food was remarkable, as was the entertainment.

Katrina got a chance to dance with the groom, Sulvan. She was impressivly good! Kris and I danced a few dances as well, and Björn joined us for one dance too! We had fun, but got pretty tired by the time 2am came around. We took the bus back to the cabins, just in time to witness the most beautiful sunrise- even more georgous than the day before. After helping Tomas and Birgitta (brides parents and extra grandparents to my kids) I decided to go on a photo safari. I was out for 1½ hours taking pictures and enjoying myself. Then I thought that the prudent thing would be to go to bed and sleep. So I stayed up another hour helping the kids get settled in, doing sudoko and taking another walk. I finally turned in around 3:30, only to wake up at 5 for a bathroom call. And again at 6, and 7. Then Björn woke up and we went for a walk and talked for a couple hours. Katrina joined us later, and we decided to clean out the cabin and pack the car. We were invited to lunch with Tomas and Birgita at 1:00pm, so we needed to get busy.
After lunch, the kids decided to take a quick dip in the water. They scrounged up some towels, a change of clothes and in they went. I can't imagine where their thermostats are, the water was cold! But in they went anyways. Till they were done, it was soon time for us to leave. We had a long drive home and unpacking to do. So home we went (after a ½ hour of goodbyes) to prepare for the upcoming week.

That's it f or now! This week I need to prepare a sermon and do a little paper work. Then I am off for another 2 weeks.

Have a good one y'all!

roofing,shower, and manacures

Yesterday the neighbors started to repair their roof. There were only 2 guys working on it, so I decided to give them a hand. I knew it was going to rain in the afternoon, and that they really needed to get moving. Then I went to the garage to finish painting a motorcycle gas tank that is in. Today I hope to start the cartoon figure- betty boop- which will take quite a while. It has at least 7 different colors, and 39 small and large areas. Each area has it's own mask which needs first be places correctly, then removed to get that area painted, and replaced to protect that area from other colors. A tedious job that has many steps and takes a lot of time. That's my job!

While I was working yesterday, another customer showed up. I had repainted a moped for him last year, and he has a new project going. He wondered if I would be willing to do another moped for him. Cool! But that job won't be in fo a month or so. That is fine with me, I know he will come back.

Yesterday afternoon and evening were really painful for me. I was super tired too, and slept most of the day. I am feeling a little refreshed, but still have a bit of pain- I guess I am not as use to doing construction work as I want to believe that I am! (A long way of saying," I am NOT getting old!)

I was planning on working on the shower yesterday, but that didn't happen either. The day before I did a little. Here are the next round of pictures. After working from the bottom up, I neened to find out how far down from the roof I would go before I could not lay in a new row. This was a little more challenging, because the roof is even more uneven than the floor. So I found the lowest part of the roof and started working down from there. Working down was more challenging than working up from the floor. Than nasty thing called gravity worked against me, pulling on the tiles. I has to have the perfect amount of mud on the tiles so they would stick on the wall, but not wilt or sag. Then it was just to lay one tile after another. When I got to a pipe, I skipped over it and continued on the other side. At the end of the wall, I measured how much to cut off, layen in the right piece, and continued the next row with the part I had cut off. That ment almost no tiles to be thrown away! When I finally got down to the shower spiggot, it left a gap of almost 10 inches. That was a little bigger than I had planned, but OK! Then came the fun! I had chosen mosiac triangles that are blue and in different sizes for the floot and boarder. That is what I will be putting in the boarder , around the pipes, and on the floor. So, I started with the boarder and around the pipes up at the roof. So, what do you think? Oncethat was done, the mud needed a day to dry before I can put in the fog. (That's the gunk that goes between the tiles and filles the gaps between the mosiac piececes.) I will do that next, right before I do the final touches on the floor.

While I was working on the shower, Katrina was working on Kris. This is how a man shows his daughter that he loves her! Kris let Katrina give him a french manacure! When he came down to check on the progress of the shower, the ironi struck me. I had rough hands with cement on them, and my husband had a beautiful french manicure! I wasn't at all jelous and I don't think he was either. That' called complimenting each others strengths and weaknesses. And Kris' manicure lasted longer than Katrinas!

That's it for now, folks. Have a good one y'all!

The Swedish Chef and moose

We just couldn't resist a few things when Anthony and Lori were staying with us. There is a really good resteraunt in Umeå called Viktors, and we decided to take them there. Kris' sister played driver, and we headed in on Thursday evening around 6. We had the 4 course meal with a cheese platter- something the boys really enjoyed. (Lori was pretty full and I am not a huge cheese fan- but it was good!) As usual, the food was absolutly delicious! We took a walk around the block between the 3rd and fourth course- we were feeling quite stuffed and in need of some fresh air. After the desert we sat and chatted on the sofas a while before Anette picked us up. It was a lovely evening!



















The other thing we just had to do was to take A&L to the moose farm. There is a small place just west of us that raises moose, milk the mothers and sell the calves to various zoos and parks around the world. The milk is sent to be made into cheese. We went through the museum, watched a slide presentation, ant then we went out to see the calves. There was a maze made that you can go through (If you can find your way!), so we did that fo a while. Then there was a group that had seen the slides and were going into the calves, so we joined them. That was exciting!





After petting them a while, we went into the next enclosure which had a 3 year old bull and one of the mothers- 2½ years old. They were a little bigger! We took some more pictures and petted the bull, asked a few more questions and decided we were hungry. So we went in and had a wonderful moose meat stew and potatoes. When our bellies were sufficiently stuffed, we went home to the couches.


I have been working some more on the shower, and can see that it is going to take a few more days. I will be so glad when it is done! Here are the next pictures: The walls are spackled, but the floor needs a new try to get it to lean towards the drain. I decided to start laying the tiles on the walls and work on the floor after the walls are done. So, out came the level, string, trowel, fix and tiles, change into grubby clothes and start laying . First I did a corner near the faucet for the shower, from the bottom up. When I couldn't lay a whole tile without hitting the pipes, I stopped. The rest would have to wait for the next day. Then I poured a little more cement around the drain and against the walls. The final floor finishing would be done a few days later. To be continued...


1.fix on back of tile 2. put on wall 3. keep it level 4. add another
tile, and
another...


Yesterday I went into Umeå with a friend. We went to a few stores, ate lunch at Mc D's, did a few errands,(I needed to get a screw for my exhaust pipe- need to inspect it on Thursday morning, so the muffler needs to be quieted to pass the noise requirements.) and went to the spa for a swim afterwards . We had a fun time getting our feet tickled and getting rasin hands. A quick fika of garlic bread, tomatoe sauce and roast beef sandwich with a side od wasabi nuts finished off the day. NICE! Today I will put the muffler on my bike back together, go to the dump with some trash.


Have a good one y'all!

US Visit

The house seems empty today- Anthony and Lori have continued on to Stockholm yesterday afternoon. We had a great time!

We spent a lot of time just talking, sitting on the couches outside and having a good time. We did some kind of activity (mostly to keep the kids happy) every day, but not near all the things the kids wanted to do. What a wonderful couple! I really enjoyed their visit and already anticipate their next visit.

Even Jackie had alot of fun. She had a larger pack to play tug of war with! We did a lot of things, like make sushi together, go on a motorcycle ride (both Anthony and Lori went for a ride), did a beer tasting evening, went to the moose farm, and had an evening out to a nice resteraunt- Viktors. (No kids along on that trip) The youth group came over on uesday and we played Kubb and watched a movie. We went shopping in Umeå, ate at Max (hamburgers) and visited the chocolate store. Unfortunatly the truffels we were going to eat melted in the car because we all forgot to take them in! Lori made supper for us on Saturday and Kris' sister and her 2 girls were with us for the meal. Yummies! Hard to believe we crammed it all in within 6 days! Hope it wasn't too much running around for Anthony and Lori! All too soon it was time for them to jump on the plane for Stockholm. We will miss you both! Come back soon- PLEASE?!

I will have to add some details that we just don't want to forget as I continue blogging. But for now, the shower is calling. I did not mean that I am taking a shower- already did that!! I am renovating the shower in the basement- an ongoing project that I started a couple weeks before Anthony and Lori came. My goal was to get it done before they came, but it didn't quite happen that way.This picture is how it looked in the beginning. I had already started to fix the walls when I remembered to take a "before" picture.

Here I have spackeled the walls and started to pour the cement for the floor. It was leaning in towards the wall so the water pooled next to the wall instead of going down the drain.

I have done a lot more, but now you will have to wait till next time to see the next step!

And now, Kris is up and watching West Wing, so I will get some breakfast and go work on the shower.

Have a good one y'all.

Confa hike 2007

Well, folks, it's been a while, and I appologize for my lack of blogging. Life has been so increadibly hectic this past month and a half. I have had a rutine of getting up in the wee hours of the morning and crashing in the evenngs. Life is good, just could have used an extra 10 hours per day or so! I wonder if maybe the Lord even stopped time a few times so I was able to get everything done that needed to be done!

This hectic period began a week before we took the younge believers group to Hemmavan. We had a 5 day retreat with them to the mountians- the last chance to get in a few teachings before they had their "Confermation Day" (completion of the course). I was not able to go the previous year, so this was the first time for me as well. I had been to the camp before, on my trip to Norway last summer. So it was nice to know where I was going.

The whole schedule was packed with activities, teachings and food- a perfect recipy for a good retreat. We had combinded our group with a group from Kvarnåse, and a group from Kirina (way up north in Sweden). We had a kitchen staff of 3, and 6 older youth to help with activities. That freed up us leaders to prepare lessons, meet to discuss any problems and pray.

We had planned a "walk in his shoes" for friday, and that seemed to be the event that really made things start to happen. We blindfolded the youth, and guided them through a series of stations. The first one was a foot washing, then they were sent to a dark room where they were "whipped and mocked" (just the noise of a whip- never touched them). Then they were shoved to a room downstairs and tied their arms to a plank, and they heard the sound of nails being driven into wood. W splash of vinigar was put on their lips, then they were pulled up and left to "hang" a while. Then they released form the plank and taken to a room that was dark and quiet (the grave) Blindfolds were removed. then a strong light was shone into their eyes and an "angel" told them that "He is not here, He is risen. Go and meditate on what you have just experienced." They were led to a room where they could draw, paint, or sit by candled. Two leaders were there to pray with them or to talk to.

There were a few youth that were hanging on the edge of believing, and a few that were already believers, but needed to make it personal. For the ones that already had a strong faith, their faith was boosted. There were, however a few that had decided to not make a decision to follow Christ. But we see this as good as well- no more fence walking! They know what Christianity is about and didn't want to pretend. "I wish that you were either hot or cold..."

There were a lot of talks with people, a bit of follow-up. We chose two of the youth to help next year, and are looking forward to helping develope these two into leaders of tomorrow.

When we returned to "civilisation" there was a full week of preparing the last bit of the class. On Thursday there was preparing and practising for their graduation, learning the songs, geting fitted for the confirmations suits, etc. Saturday there was a big party. The parents, family and friends were invited in. There were over 100 people there, good food, and a lot of skits. The church was packed on Sunday morning! It was a real "WOW" factor to see so many there. I couldn't help but to think that that was how it should be- packed so there is only standing room- every Sunday!" We baptised 3 of the youth that morning, and had a cerimony for the completion of the class. "Fika" (coffee and cake) followed, and lots of people to talk to. I got home around 2 in the afternoon and CRASHED. I slept for 5 hours straight. Then I ate supper and went to bed!

There were plenty of meetings the following week, and a bunch of paper work. There was a party for the end of sunday school (10-13) and a meeting with the youth group. Then there was a meeting with the elders to report on the past 5 months, and to discuss if I would be given a permanent possition. It went well, and they seemed satisfied with the work I did. The Missions church has a new youth leader, so there have been a bunch of meetings with him to set the ground work for the next round of work, after the summer break. I am looking forward to a few of the ideas we came up with.

Well, I need to get moving. Lori- my brothers wife- is coming today, and I have a few last minute things I want to do. (Eat breakfast, shower, shave, and last minute cleaning up) Enjoy some pictures from Hemmavan and the Confirmation group. Have a good one, y'all.

Tag, Damas,and a busy day

I never did play childrens games with Mom, but I guess she decided it was time! She just "tagged" me! Apperantly there is a game of purse tage that the ladies play, where you have to reveal the contents of your purse. Well, I usually don't carry a purse, opting to stuff my pockets instead or to carry a backpack. So, since the closest thing I have to a purse is a backpack, I will (to show good sportsmanship) reveal the contents of my backpack.

Starting with the outside pocket, I have:
a deck of playing cards and a deck of water Uno cards
3 sets of keys- one to my car, one to Kris'car and the church, and one set to the motorcycle.
a hairbrush
a pack of fruit mint gum
2 bus schedules
the wrapper from a cough drop
a broken rubber band
a pack of matches from a weenie roast with the youth
3 ball point pens (all blue ink)
1 black permanent marking pen
2 pencils
a pencil sharpener that looks like an engine (pistons move when you twist the pencil!)
an eraser
a florescent orange small superball (to remind me that I am Gods CHILD)
a good tablespoon of dirt,dust and crumbs
my daytimer (if I don't write it down I will forget!)
my wallet with 5oo swedish crowns (about 50 US dollars) and a lot of reciepts and cards
a money pouch with the earnings of doing tattoos on Saturday (460crowns - 10%)
a pair of sunglasses

the inside pocket:
a pair of leather motorcycle gloves
teachingnotes from this past thursdays younge believers class
attendance records for my mentally handicapped painting class
assorted colored paper- A4 size
a (filled in) questionare about our congregation
an old insurance claim from when the stereo was stolen from my car
a sudoku magazine
a book- Sherk- in Swedish
A NIV study bible with at least 5 different teaching notes within the pages
the study guide we use with younge believers and its workbook
a chocolate cookie (not to be put back in!)
a candy bad with 10 small superballs, a guitar pick and 6 crowns in it
a pair of scissors
a mechanical pencil
assorted small paper scraps, crumbs and dust in the bottom
a coke light bottle filled with water

The inside inside pocket:
pair of extra contact lenses- daily wears
a small bottle of liquid soap
a small bottle of shampoo
2 panty shields, 2 cotton mice with string tails.
I think my list was a little longer than Moms, but so is my bag!! She taught me well.
There is a man, Damas, that just moved to Vännäs from Burandi(I think). He has been coming to our church a couple weeks now, and I had invited him to eat dinner with us yesterday. He is still learning swedish, and is bored most of the time. He offered to come and do some work outside later on today, plus that I need to take Katrina into town, workout at the gym, get groceries, and make supper!
I need to get ready for my special painting class now. (starts at 11:00) I hope to write more tomorrow.

Nothing exciting

No speeding tickets this week! Today I am going to start the official planning for out sunday school summer camp. The place I was originally planning on using is already rented out, so I will be looking into a few other alternatives. One of the ladies at church had a few ideas, and is willing to help during the camp, so I will be meeting with her later today. Some of the youth are going to a weekend confress this weekend, so it will be slim pickings at the youth meeting. That's OK, I don't mind a smaller group every now and then!
Kris has been in Gothenburg since Wend. He is suppose to come home sometime today. SAS airline has had a strike, and a lot of flights are canceled. We'll see if his flight home is effected or not. Otherwise, he will have to spend a little time doing R&R- how sad!!
Well, I do have a bit to do today, so I guess I ought to get to it. Have a good one, yall.

fine, fines and Finns

I finally have a full 24 hours with absolutly nothing on the schedule! I haven't had one of these days in a long time, and I actually feel bored!! I was hoping to spend some time with Kris today- feel like I have been neglecting him lately- not even sleeping in the same bed. (Didn't want to get his heart going too much in the middle of the night) But he came rushing down the stairs this morning at 7 and said that he had to go into the hospital. I was petrified at first- thinking his heart was giving up on him! But he had forgotten to tell me that he was on call today. So, he was actually going in to take care of a patient. I will call him in an hour or so to see if he wants to grab lunch in town. It would be nice to have some one on one time with him.
I think I will do a double light pass at the gym today- first work out with weights and then go swimming. I think it will be fine day.
Last night I was driving to a youth activity, jamming out to the Newsboys and generally not concentrating on my driving. Way too late, I saw the police man with a hair dryer. I was sure I knew what the speed limit was, and was 5 kph under it, but didn't have a seat belt on. Grrr- 70 bucks! Unfortunatly, I was wrong about the speed limit, and was 15kph over then limit- a 70 dollar fine would have been a blessing! Instead I have a 240 dollar fine!! Big GRRRR! I could just kick myself for not seeing the signs- I must have driven past them 5oo times! There goes my savings for this month!
I was at a leadership meeting at church, and we had a couple fellows as guests. They were from Finnland, and were on a tour to raise funds for a bible school they support in Russia. I read their information pamplets (which were in English) and translated them to english. It was so nice to be reminded that our spiritual battle is not one we are alone in- we are internationally joined through our faith in the Lord. They might speak Finnish, Swedish, Russian or English- but we have the same heavenly father! So, blessings to our Finn brothers as they wander on through Sweden and Norway.
Now I am going to wander into the kitchen and find some breakfast. Have a good one, yall!

Cops,robbers,hockey and Grease

Keeping 2 jobs going is not as easy as one would think! The advantage is that I can afford to have someone come in to help with the cleaning. I love it, as do the rest of the family- they don't have to do as much! Cleaning is not one of those things we really enjoy- except when ít is done. As I am writing, our helper is running around dusting and getting ready to clean. Later today I am hoping to take a bunch of bottles, paper, plastic and glass for recycling. (Tired of the piles of bags and boxes and in need of some quick cash!)
I was suppose to go to a meeting today in Northern Sweden, to a town called Kalix. But I admit that I am overjoyed that something came up and I needed to stay home. It was a 4½ hour drive up, a 3 hour meeting and another 4½ hour drive home. I love riding my motorcycle, but that was a little too much- even in a car! Besides, now I have time to clean up a bit, get a few odd jobs done, and do some prep work for the younge believers group on Thursday.
Last week I had activities for the youth during the easter break. We kept active Monday with a game called Captured at the Church. They had to do certian tasks to earn a key. At the end, they had to use the keys to get clues. The clues led them to the final treasure. We had 4 hours of fun and stopped at 5 for a 1 hour supper break. In the evening we played board games till 2am. Tuesday we were to play burnball (similar sort of to baseball) But it snowed and was really windy. A few die hards went and played anyways, and the rest of us decided to make supper for everyone to eat together. We ate a little late, but enjoyed the company. In the evening we watched Bruce Almighty and Forest Gump, then played penalty Uno. (If you make a mistake you have to pick up two cards from the draw pile). We went home at 1am. Wend. we started with games at the local gym. We layed out mats, got out the ropes, some gymnastic equipment and spread them around the gym. Two people were chosen to be "it" and a game of tag/don't touch the floor ensued. Two hours of that wore us down so we swithched to dodgeball. By th time 4 rolled around we were too tired to do anything else. So we cleaned up and went for supper. We met at the church and played a game of photo treasure hunt. I gave everyone a list of things to get a picture of, and how many points the picture was worth. They went out to get as many as possible, and returned to the church at 8pm. Then we walked/rode bike to a place where we could build a fire and grilled stick bread and hotdogs. We had a short devotional and talked about what to do next.After a vote, we played cops and robbers! Four "prisoners" escaped, and the cops had to find them. Those who were not cops or robbers were citizens who could call the police and tip them- or lead them astray. We met back at t he church at 12 and played PIG and Uno till 2. Then I had to close shop- I was beat!! On Thursday, most of them went on another retreat with the Missions church and were away till Sunday evening. We had a lot of fun!! But man was I tired! I slept most of Thursday away and fought through the weekend to regain my energy.
Kris is doing better. He has worked all this week. He is tired when he gets home, but is feeling stronger and stronger each day. Last Tuesday, he and our son, Björn, went to an ice hockey game in Ö-vik. It is a 1½ hr drive from Umeå, and he had worked allday. I was really worried about him driving, the long day and that it is somewhat exciting at a live game. I had a hard time releasing my worries, and even had a few people pray with/for me all day. Kris called home at 10 and said that he had found someone to ride down with, and someone else to ride back to Umeå with. Would I be willing to drive into Umeå in the evening and pick them up? What a relief!! Boy was I willing!! Thank God for even answering the prayers of a worried mom/wife! They both said after the game that they had the wrong seats- all the goals were scored at the other end of the rink! (No mistake there! God knew just where to put them!) So they made it home safe and sound.
On Saturday evening we took the kids to see a musical- Grease. They got all dressed up- Björn even had a shirt and tie! The only thing we forgot was to get cash! The stands didn't take bank cards! So at intermission, the kids were thirsty, asn we had no cash. Luckily I had done some wash earlier in the day and had just enough money to get a can of soda, which the kids shared. They were really great. We stopped for ice cream on the way home. It was a noce evening together.
Well, now this entry is more than long enough. Have a good one yall. My dishwasher is done as is my washing machine, and it is lunchtime as well. Bon apatit!

Happy Easter everyone! My week has been full and fulfilling. It has also been full of irritation and worry. I know we are not to worry, but to put our trust in God. I am trying! (My kids say that I am very trying!)
For the past 3 weeks Kris (my hubby) has been dealing with a major problem which he downplays a lot. He works as a cardiologist (heart doctor), and was giving ekgs one day. He had a few minutes free, and true to his nature couldn't be still. So, he turned the machine on and gave himself and ekg. He had been having a little heart pain, which I didn't know about. So curiosity and boredom got the better of him. His picture showed that he has liquid around his heart and the heart muscles were inflamed. Not good. He had another doctor he works with check him out, and was confirmed. So, he came home. At first he tried to go to work anyways, and that didn't work out too well. Then he stayed home a full week, and even took some medicine to stop the heart palpitations. We all did our best to not stress him, and to keep him on the couch. No chores, driving or excursions, walking the dog or even making coffee. I stayed home most of the week, only leaving to go to meetings that could not be rescheduled. He slept most of the week, getting exhausted from walking to the bathroom! Toward the end of the week he started to feel better, He worked on his tan, sitting outside a couple hours a day. After the weekend, he decided to go to work on Wend. and Thursday this past week. I thought he was nuts, and advised against it. But I am just the wife, and he is the doctor... so of´f to work he went on Wend. morning. He was only going to do paper and computer work, have coffee with his colleges, and then come home. He was completely wiped out! He should not have gone. But the stubborn man went back to work on Thursday anyways!
Why are men so stupid, especially when they are educated? They can't even blame their stupidity on ignorance! Pig-headed, thick sculled, ...#¤!½&%¤½# Grrrrrrrr!
Since then Kris has been home. We went out for a couple hours yesterday to a birthday party, but a couple hours was all he could handle. He stayed awake till late, and went to bed. We will see if he can muster up the energy for church today.
On Tuesday he is planning on taking Bjorn to a hockey match in Ö-vik, a town 1½ hours from here. I am beginning to wonder if he will be able to do it- especially the driving. We will see what becomes of it all. I might have to drive them down, wait for the game to be over, and drive back.
Björns birthday is on Wend. this year. Middle of the week. We got him an electric guitar and an amp. He has been taking acoustic guitar lessons for almost a year now. Bjorn and his friends have been talking for a couple of years about building a band. They each chose an instrument to learn, and have been working on it for a year now. Who knows, maybe the next Abba band will be forming right here in Vännäsby! I think it is great that they have a plan and are working towards it.
Katrina really made me proud! (again) Her school has a talent show every year. This year, she and a group of girls decided to do a Disney theme. Each girl picked a character to portray. Katrina was Bell from beauty and the beast.The others were Tinkerbell the fairy, a mouse from Cinderella, Cruel la De Ville, Pocahontas, Snow White, and an Arabian girl from Aladdin. Each girl made their own costumes- nothing store bought. Katrina sat at the sewing machine and made her dress from an old sheet, and a recycled zipper. I was so impressed! I didn't help her at all except to show her how to thread the machine! Anyways, the girls did a fantastic job with the choreograph, content and costumes. They won! We are so proud of all the planning, practice, and work that they put into it. It will be exciting to see if and what they do next year!!
My jobs have kept me running. It seems like there are more and more painting jobs coming in. They keep me busy on the days I am not working at the church. It is starting to feel a bit much, but I love both jobs so much! It is hard to keep up with everything though. 2 jobs, a sick hubby to keep track of, 2 kids, a dog and a house. (If I don't keep an eye on him, Kris will try to "help out" by vacuuming, doing dishes, cleaning up... I told him that it won't help at all if he does theses things and wind up having a heart attack! He's no good to me dead!) Life is good, and we are re-examining how to keep it that way. Since Kris can't work or have any over time for quite a while in the future, we need to pull in our belts and rethink our budget. I do believe that trip to France is off for the time being, as are the new sofas, redecorating and the new car. These things are just material objects and are of no real importance. We have each other, and that takes priority.
We do have a few things to look forward to. Summer weather has come early, and I always look forward to riding the motorcycle. Warm days are a definite plus, as is the thought of vacation. I found out earlier this week that we will be getting some guests from the stated in June- and I really am looking forward to that! (We have only had one other visit from the states- when Mom visited a few years ago) The kids are really looking forward to the visit as well.
While I was writing this blogg, I had some eggs on the stove, boiling them to be able to paint them later this morning. And I promptly forgot them. I was hearing some popping noise, and thought it was Björn bouncing a ball in his room. It's early morning and I was enjoying the solitude, and didn't want him to wake everyone. So I went to the bottom of the stairs and asked," Who's awake?" Kris answered. But then I heard the popping noise again, from the kitchen! Then I remembered the eggs. Sure enough! The water had boiled out, and the heat was still cooking the eggs, making them pop. Mmmmmm, the beautiful smell of burnt eggs! I guess I will have to try again.
So, keep your eyes on cooking pots, your feet on the ground, your heart a pumping and your hands busy with doing good things. Have a hop-py egg day and I will try to write again before the end of the month.

Myan Hot Chocolate and colds

As I sit here writing I am drinking a wonderful cup of Mayan hot chocolate. (Recipe below) I am realizing that I have been fighting a cold for the past 2½ months. A bout with laryngitis, sinus infection and bronchitis has taken it's toll, but I think I am on my way back to the land of health. The cold is protesting with a huge overproduction of thick green slime that persists in my nasal cavity and down in my lungs. Horrors of all horrors- I am making that same sound that Mom made every Sunday morning on the way to church- a deep rich reverse gargle, coming from the bottom the toes and gaining momentum the whole way up!Add a slight half scale up from Do to fa or so, a bit of vibrato and a mighty push on the diaphragm, and we have a real symphony going here!! Now all that's needed are the lyrics! Which music style? That's easy! Boogie woggie of course!

Anyways, I am really enjoying my job. I love hanging out with the youth, teaching and having a lot of fun. I am really blessed with some great coworkers from the Missions church. I really appreciate Pastor Tomas and all the discussions we have together. Erik is a blast, lots of craziness and fun.

Now that I am on the way to getting well again I hope to be a little more diligent in blogging. Of course I am getting in a lot of orders for my business- both motorcycle parts and a big order for body painting- twice in Umeå, and once in Stockholm. Plus an event in July at the local home craft store. They are going to have a graffiti workshop, and I will be doing tattoos (temporary) the same week. Besides that I also have the local market the first weekend in July. Seems like the body painting is taking off more than expected. It is fun!

Here is the recipe for Mayan Hot Chocolate. Enjoy!

Mayan Hot Chocolate

2 cups boiling water
1 chile pepper, cut in half, seeds removed (with gloves)
5 cups light cream or whole or nonfat milk
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 to 2 cinnamon sticks
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate or
3 tablets Mexican chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
2 tablespoons sugar or honey, or to taste
l tablespoon almonds or hazelnuts, ground extra fine
Whipped cream

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, add chile pepper to boiling water. Cook until liquid is reduced to 1 cup. Remove chile pepper; strain water and set aside.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine cream or milk, vanilla bean and cinnamon stick until bubbles appear around the edge. Reduce heat to low; add chocolate and sugar or honey; whisk occasionally until chocolate is melted and sugar dissolves. Turn off heat; remove vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. Add chile-infused water, a little at a time, tasting to make sure the flavor isn't too strong. If chocolate is too thick, thin with a little more milk.

Serve in small cups and offer ground almonds or hazelnuts and whipped cream.

My Celebrity Look-alikes

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

Bad phone day

We all have bad days every now and again. What makes the bad day can even determine just how bad the bad day is. If´, for example, you are having a mildly bad day, you might call it a bad hair day- slightly irritating, somewhat embarassing, but able to cope with the most of whatever comes. If, on the other hand, you are having a really bad day, it might be refered to as a bad migrane day. This would entail that the events of the day can not be coped with at all, and the best solution is to simply stay home, under the covers (maybe even under the bed!) in a dark room. Don't answer the phone. Don't answer the door. Seclution is the best recorse!
But there are a whole berrage of possibilities in between those two options, and even a few possibilities on either side. Let me explain. Today was a mixture of two days. I was having a bad phone day. For me, that ment that I didn't want to talk on the phone. Why? I have a really bad cold with one of those gut- wrentching coughs that leave your throat feeling like you swollowed the knuckle buster. My voice was gone, my stomache and ribs hurt from coughing and I just wasn't feeling too sociable. (And my hair was a mess too!) To make matters worse, Hubby forgot to take his phone with him to work, and my daughter never even turned hers on- battery was dead. Not much help when she missed the bus home! So, I had to answer hubby's phone (until I got smart and turned it off!!), trying to talk to the insurance company was a real treat! Then there were the calls from church... and around 3:30, Katrina calling to get a ride home. She got frustrated because she couldn't hear me and hung up. I tried to send her a SMS, but since her battery was dead, she never got the message. I was so glad when Bjorn came home and could be my interpreter/voice. But of course, there was only one call since then- and it was for him! Figures!
Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. I am supose to teach on Thursday at younge believers, and we are going on a retreat with the same group on Friday till Sunday. So, I really hope and pray that this cold will warm up till then.
Till next time, I wish you all a warm smile day! ;P

Take two

Today I got my car back from the shop- fixed after some vandals took my stereo and broke the lights. I was on my way home when I saw Bjorn on his way to a friends house. His mom had just got a new job, so I went to congradulate her. We chatted a while. Then it was time to go get Kris. He had so generously let me use his car while mine was in the shop. So, at 4:30 I was on my way to get him. There were some kids on their way home walking on the road. I swung out to pass them and got caught in the deep ruts in the road. Quicker than you could say "Gimminie Crickets!" I was on my way into the ditch. I prayed a quick prayer to ask for protection, and it was over. The plastic bumper and the fog lights are gone, and the hose to the wind shield washer is off as well. But I drove the care (VERY SLOWLY) home and put it into the garage. Tomorrow morning I have to call the insurance company again. They are going to have a hard time believing this! But I am thankful for so many things! I was not hurt, nor were the 3 kids that were walking along the road! The car was not totoaled. (I guess I am thankful for that. We will just fix it and move on! I will wait a little longer for a new car) I was not driving Kris' Lexus! (Really thankful for that!!) I was thinking of not having fog lights- they are just a nusience and expensive to fix, abd break easily because they are so low in the bumper.

Hawaii Party and big headaches

I can hardly believe it has been almost 2 weeks since I wrote last. Worse, I have continued to have really bad headaches ever since that fall on the ice. It didn't help that I smacked my skull good and proper 3 times on the stairs either! Getting a bit clumsy in my old age!

I had a belated 40th birthday party on the 21st, theme- Hawaii! We had a lot of fun! There were lots of fruit drinks, fruit and nuts and Hawaii music in the background. We took in lawn chairs and cranked the heat. Everyone got a lei as they came in. It was a fun time with a few speeches and a lot of laughs.

After the party we had juice and fruit for the next week! A nice change that I have decided to

I soon need to leave for young believers class, so enjoy the Hawaii pix!

continue

Losing and gaining!

Time flies when your having fun! I have also learned that if I read while on the treadmill or bike, it make the time go by faster, and I don't have to take time later to read the paper! The only problem is that no one wants the paper after me. (I think it has something to do with the smell or the soggy sweat spots, but I am not sure. Really I think it's because I ususally solve the sudoko puzzle.)
Wookouts have been going well. I am still seeing a reduction in my size and my pants rely heavily on the belt to keep them up. My weight went up a little over Christmas- big surprise there, huh?. But it was limited to a couple kilos. I haven't been able to shake off those kilos, but my waiste and other measurments are on the decrease again. I've heard it said that 1 kilo of muscle takes up ½ the space as 1 kilo of fat. So, I recon I must be toning those muscles and losing the fat! Progress in all forms will be taken as encouragement. But I still have a long way to go!I am still FAT!!
The dietary changes have helped as well. I limit the amount of white flour and sugar harshly. When we have fika (usually cinnomon rolls and coffee) after church, I go and make myself a hard bread sandwich instead. I don't even take any cake or rolls at all any more. And I ask for a picture of water instead of drinking tea or coffee. (I don't like coffee anyways!) At home I simply do not have any sweets! Otherwise I know I would eat them in the middle of the night. That is my weakest time- around 10 at night. But I do have a pile of fruit! And no leftovers either! They are given to the dog or thrown away. It is waiste food- if I don't throw it away, it will wind up on my waiste! The kids have adjusted fairly well, though I have noticed that they have a hard time between meals to only eat fruit. And watching a movie without pop corn or chips is a bit of an adjustment. But it is working.
I have still been going to the gym at least 3 times a week, up till this last week. I was on my way to pick up a friend and drive to a meeting 2 hours away in Skellefteå. Our freaky weather had neeb cold, hot, cold, hot, cold. We are fairly accustomed to the icy conditions, and I was not being so careful as I should have been. Sure enough, I was walking in the drive way and suddenly Bjorn was standing over me asking if he should carry me into the house. (Yes, that is funny! He is ½ my size and 10 years old!) I decided to get up on my own, and pulled two muscles in my neck trying. Then I rolled over, got on my hands and knees, and did a pretty good impression of Bambi on ice. After a few attempts, I shimmied over to the yard, and crawed onto the snow covered grass. Then I finally stood up, though my knees were strongly protesting. After a few minutes, I assured Bjorn that I was fine, he could continue on to school along with the rest of the snickering crowd that had gathered. I wobbled my over to the car and went on to get my friend, and finished the day as planned.
But on Saturday I woke with a KILLER headache. My neck was increadibly sore, I couldn't turn my head at all. Just holding my head up was painful. I spent most of the day on the max dosage of Alvedon (tylenol) and holding my head with my hands. Luckilly we didn't have one of those neck braces at home. Then I didn't have to admit that my vanity wouldn't allow me to wear it! But I probably would have had it on at home anyways!
So, I didn't get back to the gym again till Wednesday. But I excused myself and am now back on track. I did 3 weight wookouts and 1 swimming. I am hoping to get to the gym later this morning. I have a meeting at 9 am, and will go swimming after that.
Now on to something else.Gaining. Our youth leader has decided to discontinue and served her last day on Monday. I knew about it since December, and had applied for the job the same day that she handed in her notice. Over Christmas break there were too many things to do, and the leaders didin't have time to process my application. In the beginning of January, we began talking about different aspects of the job and what I was willing to do and not. I am proud of myself for finally learning to say no to some things and sticking by it.It is difficult when you want to be a help, but know that you just can't do it all. Better to give one bale of hay to 1 cow than to spread it out for the whole heard and do little to no help at all. So we went back and forth, discussing how much time I would be paid for and what I would be responsible for if I got the job. Finally, we all sat down together. The elders and I had a meeting on Wednesday noght to talk about it. We finally agreed on a 75% job where I would be responsible for 10-13 year olds Sunday school, youth meetings for the teens, and younge believers class. We have a new youth worship team starting, and I will help out a little there, as well as a summer camps and helping to plan the big summer youth meeting (similar to Creation Festival) to be held in July. My job will officially end July 15th. Hopefully by then we will have found a pastor. We want to give him the freedom to create his own leadership team, so that is why it will only be until then. Hopefully I will be chosen to continue, but that will have to be the pastors decision. (If we have on by then) Otherwise, I will negotiate for another half a year, God willing. So, I am now officially hired as the youth leader at Vannas Pentecostal Church! I am both grateful and humbled to be able to serve in this capasity. I am honored that the leaders of the church have faith in me , and have put the future of the church in my hands. Being entrusted with other people's children- the most valuable thing they have- truely is an honor, and I hope to be able to serve in a way that will give them a hope and meaning for the future through Jesus Christ. So, pray for me often over the next ½ year if I come to your mind. As with all church service, I know I will wind up doing a lot more than 75%, but I pray that God will continue to give me the ability to lovingly say no as well.
Well, need to go to my 9am meeting. Hope to hear from you all soon.