Week of 21st of December

We are excited to see the longest night of the year pass and we look forward to more daylight. Right now it is getting dark at 14:30 and is getting light at 8:00. The snow on the ground has made it look lighter.
The temple has been closed this week because of Christmas celebrations. One night we drove into Stockholm with Pre and Sis Oscarson and ended up eating at a cute little Italian restaurant. On the way home we went grocery shopping at MAXI’s. It is almost fun to go shopping because they have so many choices.
I also went with Oscarson’s to get our hair cut. This place was highly recommended and he did speak English, at least we think! My hair cut is so short I will not have to have another one for three months! Oh well! On the way home we again went shopping at MAXI’s for food for our Swedish Christmas Eve Dinner.
One evening we went to dinner at Bruno and Harriet Klarin’s house and it was most enjoyable. The Oscarson’s were also there and two of their daughters and their husbands. We had a wonderful fish dinner and an awesome frozen chocolate cake/pie. The Klarin’s are our Swedish teachers.
The Christmas Eve dinner at the Oscarson’s was super. We went over an hour early to help with last minute things. Sis Oscarson wore a traditional Swedish costume and looked darling.
We ate: ham, meatballs, herring in sour cream sauce, herring in mustard sauce, boiled potatoes, scalloped potatoes, liverwurst, pickled beets, cold beet salad, pickles, 2 kinds of breads and 2 kinds of crackers, 4 different kinds of drinks and rice pudding. We sang Christmas songs and read the birth of Christ from Luke and it was a very fun, uplifting and spiritual night. Jultomten (Santa)...
Because Sweden’s big celebration is the 24th they open all their gifts then. SO we are in Sweden so we opened all our gifts. Wow, thanks for the camera, food, goodies, lip cream, games, socks, money, cards and letters. How blessed we are to be blessed with so many friends and awesome family.
We were able to Skype our family while they were having the family party and it was great to see Kenley and Dante there with the rest of the grandkids and our kids and spouses. It made us happy to see you having fun. We were also able to Skype each family on Christmas Day or the day after. We love Skype!
Christmas Day we went to the Bertilson’s for dinner. He is a doctor (attended BYU before his mission and he was on the track team) and their family and extended family are a big part of the strength of the church here in Sweden. They live in this beautiful house in Handen and it overlooks a lake. We had another Swedish Christmas Dinner plus sang Christmas songs,
told of a special Christmas memory and played a word game. Before we knew it, it was 23:00 and we needed to be to the temple by 6:30. It was a beautiful ride home in the snow.
We wondered if anyone would come to the temple the day after Christmas but we went prepared to serve the Lord and He did provide. We had to have double sessions at 10:00. It was an awesome day. After the temple was closed we all met in the kitchen and ate Christmas Eve left over’s. A great day!
Sunday we had great church services and then we went with Anita and Eric Lindquist to their house out in the country. Chuck had helped train him as the temple engineer once in Sweden and once in Salt Lake when the temple engineers from around the world came for training.
They built their house and have lots of fruit trees and have even rebuilt their Laplander home on their property. Such a cute little couple but hard to follow in Swedish or English. We had a great dinner, met their daughter and family, and rode the train home.
We love it here in Sweden and so grateful for the wonderful friends we are making, being able to serve the Lord together and for the love and support of family and friends. We are so blessed. May each of you have a Happy New year and be blessed in the year 2010.

Week of December 14th

On our p-day we went into Stockholm to see the Christmas windows, like ZCMI used to do. They were darling and the street was not too crowded. The windows were at the exclusive NK store
and there was a rotating Christmas tree that could be seen from all four floors. We looked in other stores, street shops and then went to dinner at a food court. It was a fun evening.
We woke up to our first snow fall and it was absolutely beautiful. I would have made snow angels if I had the right clothes to wear!
At the temple this week there was a couple from Denmark. When they heard Chuck talk they could tell he was not from Sweden. It was Torben and Victoria Valgren from Amager,DK and in talking with them he was the branch president when Brent was in Denmark on his mission. What a fun connection and great people.
On Wed a couple (Bro and Sister Blindaruk) came from Lithuania to be sealed. He is 24 and she is 23. They are both return missionaries. He is from Lithuania and she is from Latvia and they don’t speak each other’s language so they communicate in English. He is the Branch President and she is the Relief Society of a branch of 300 with 80 active members. Because of the expense of coming to the temple they were only eating plain pasta for meals. So they were invited to our full time temple workers and employee’s Christmas dinner.
Our special friends we served with in the SL Temple Presidency gave us some money before we left to buy temple clothes for someone in need and the spirit prompted us that this was the couple. What a marvelous experience we had to taking them to the Distribution Center (after the dinner) and allowing them to have a full set of temple clothes to take home. They were like little children, full of excitement and could not stop smiling but so full of gratitude. A tender mercy experience from the Lord.
We went to a Stake Concert in Gubbängen and it was so impressive and professional. The missionaries were there and it was for members and friends. We have decided you have to be able to sing to be born in Sweden. After the concert it was snowing again, what a beautiful walk back to the train.
Sunday they changed our meeting schedule from 9:00 to 2:00 and we had a 1 ½ hr Sac. Meeting, Priesthood and Relief Society and then they had dinner for us in the cultural hall. We had open faced ham and cheese sandwiches, drink of juice and Risalamond (rice pudding).
Hot off the press! We have a new member in our family. Rowdey Charles Ke’Koa Rose born Dec 20 about 5:30p.m., 5lb 7oz and 181/2”. Details will come next week.
We wish all a Very Merry Christmas

Week of December 7th

This week has been a very busy and fun time. We made several trips into Stockholm. We viewed the open markets on the street and in the square. Listened to the street musicians and saw very awesome and old buildings dating from the 1600. We did find a bargain on a winter coat for Chuck and got him a cute hat. Now he looks like others walking on the street.
We went to the Ericsson Globe and watched and listened to the beautiful celebration of Luciakonsert. This is the Lucia celebration that started in Italy and celebrated now in lots of places around the world but Sweden has celebrated it for many years. Lucia had the crown of candles on her head and there were 800-1000 youth dressed in white holding candles and singing. The Globe is like our Energy Solutions. Five couples and one sister from the temple went into the concert on the train. It was a great event and beautiful singing.
Our weekly FHE was a farewell for the Malmstrom’s where we sang Swedish Christmas Carols, ate bread, cheese, hot soppa and risalmond (rice pudding) with a sweet red sauce. It was a delightful evening and we really were sad to see them leave. They were the first ones to show us what to do in the temple, in town and in Stockholm. Great people and great friends, his motto is ‘be rigidly flexible.
Syster Mejer (from the temple and in our ward) fell and broke her leg so the ladies from the apt house went to see her and gave her a basket of fruit, bread, goodies and we sang her Christmas songs in English. She does speak English so that was good. Her husband said she was receiving so much attention he was going to break his leg next week!
We have had our 2nd Swedish class and it is helpful. This time the men went into a different room and had their own ‘advanced’ class.
The temple counselor (from Norway) took us in their car to MAXI a store like Costco. It was so fun to have a choice of kinds of apples and other food items but especially to be with them. She is short and very bubbly and lives next door to us in the apt house. They will be eternal friends. The Evensen’s (from Norway) and the Syvänen (southern Sweden) are the two counselors in the presidency and they will be leaving this Sat and will be gone for two weeks.

Week of November 30th

Wow here comes Christmas! This Christmas will be very different without family, the excitement of grandkids with want lists, family and church parties and friends. All the homes have lights in every window and it is so awesome to see. As far as Sweden is concerned we are now in the second week of celebrating the season.
Monday we went to Stockholm with the Malmstroms so could walk us through the process of using the train and how not to get lost. It seems everyone wants to take care of us, and we let them!
We saw the changing of the guards at the Royal Palace, saw the church with St. George slaying the Dragon, the littlest street in Stockholm, streets lined with tent shops, the big store NK Christmas window display (like ZCMI) and walked down cute little cobblestone streets. We even saw a street that is so small that you can stand in the street and touch the buildings on both sides of the street.
Wednesday we started a Swedish class for the ladies but it was our first time so most of the husbands came for support. Sister Klarin is the teacher and she will be very good. We take them at Pre Oscarson’s house. After the lesson was over she asked the guys not to come back because she was the teacher and they were trying to be too helpful. I am excited to receive some help in speaking this musical language.
Chuck asked Brother Klarin if he knew where we could find a guitar and he said a man in the second ward repairs and sells them. Chuck called and he brought two over. We talked him into renting them as we will have no way to get them home. We signed no contract and he does not know exactly when we go home but said just call and he will come and get the money. We did bring a couple of books and it is fun to be able to practice again.
We had a glorious week at the temple. Sat we were very busy with big youth groups doing baptisms. I worked the clothing counter and washed towels and suits and folded and restocked the shelves. While I was waiting for the second group to come and listening for the washer to be done I was talking to this cute little lady from Sweden. She is losing her memory, and kept losing her family name cards, so I decided I would try some Swedish on her as she would not remember if I was correct or not! When she would understand me her face would light up and she would say ‘bra, bra’ (good, good).
Church services are still hard to get much out of except when they provide a translator for us. Same in Sunday School and RS and Priesthood. This Sunday was fast Sunday and the spirit was very strong. So grateful for the church and for the help it gives us in our lives.
Hope you all had a great week also and we will talk again next week! Thanks for your emails and letters. We love you!