Sickness and Photoshop

December 28th a Monday and a very strange Monday indeed. Linn, Andrea, and Christofer all fell ill, since they are siblings and we have all been living in the same house for the past week, you may think nothing of it if they all fell sick with the same symptoms, but no, indeed not. Andrea was in Stockholm and at 7a.m her friend called worried and scared since she had no idea what to do with Andrea who was doubled up in pain, stomach pain. Eva jumped in the car and picked her up, while that episode was unfolding, Christofer was tossing and turning with a fever in bed, and shortly after Eva arrived home, Linn, Justin, Gunnar and Eva where eating breakfast together when Linn suddenly fainted in her chair. She hit her head against the table and her cheek against the chair and I, on my way to report that Christofer was sick, stepped into the kitchen to find Linn on the floor with her feet in the air and Justin and Eva looking worriedly down upon her, while Gunnar with a furrowed brow sat across the table drinking his first, of many, cup of tea. I received the story of Andrea and then looked upon Linn who was whiter than a piece of chalk written on a black chalk board. How in the world all three ended up being sick on the same day and with three different sicknesses is beyond me, but then one never does know what is lurking out there, perhaps its a conspiracy to bring down the Karltorp farm, or maybe the Swedish government is using them as guinea pigs for some evil plan ...well, probably not, but such thoughts do enter the mind at times.

  

  Anyway, things are looking better now. Christofer is feeling stronger, we packed up and are now back in our apartment. Linn was able to take the ferry to Finland, they are spending New Years there, though she did faint one more time before she left, hope she feels better by time they arrive. Andrea, not sure how she is doing, but I'm pretty sure she was able to sleep some. So, despite the awful attempt to destroy the Karltorp's immune systems, they are fighting back, I knew I married into that family for some reason :) 

 

  I have, on the other hand, been finishing off the last of the filing for inChris. Well, thats what I was suppose to be doing, I did, however, have a hard time concentrating, while Christofer counted and organized, I checked my facebook, wrote a little note to myself and played around with Photoshop. I'm absolutely rubbish at Photoshop, but I am rather a stubborn and persistent person, so after a few tries, I came up with a little idea for one of my photos. Its really rather simple and probably quite common, but hey, at least I'm one step closer. Oh, and I did get some work done. Now its off to bed and tomorrow I am committing myself to finishing every single accounting slip and trip.I won't even check my facebook, well I mean, I won't linger on facebook....one baby step at a time.

From a trying to stay healthy Karltorp...goodbye 

Julmys

So, today is a complete day of Christmas mys (translated cosy, sounds better in Swedish, one of the few words that actually do!) Only two more days before Christmas, so Christofer and I decided to move on in with His family over the Holidays. It is extremely cosy to all be together in the large house out in the middle of nowhere with a fireplace, lots of food, games, movies, and snow. The day was spent in baking, cooking, eating lots of yummy food, and, unfortunately, cleaning. We started by wading through the snow in search of the perfect Christmas tree in our very own back woods! We surprisingly found a tree rather quickly despite having to shake off every tree just to see what it looked like, but Eva(Mamma) went through several different trees before we lugged three home. On the way back I happened upon a very adorable little tree, I had to take it home, couldn't resist, it's an ugly little thing, but I just wanted it, I think I felt bad for such a little guy all alone out in the big snowy woods.We then buried Linn and Justin(Linn's Financé) in the snow, since they happened to sit down and it was to hard to resist throwing loads of snow on them. We took pictures, laughed, and then went inside and started decorating.
   Now, I'm sitting beside my newly decorated tree and I am in the mood for watching a good old Christmas classic.
   I'm going to try to take a picture on the mac so you can see my little tree.

Merry Christmas to one and all

God Jul

hmm, not going so well with the mac...but I will post pictures later. Ahh, the joys of having a computer nerd on call 24/7
I love my husband.

Avatar

We went and saw Avatar tonight. I was rather skeptic to the idea of something being half animated half real, but as usually, I tagged along. I must say I was impressed. They created a World so abstract, so beautiful, so vibrant that I felt myself being drawn in to the story, the beauty, and the culture with an excitement of a young child just being handed a piece of her favorite candy. I laughed and squealed with delight completely involuntarily. The colors where absolutely indescribable and the animation was so close to reality that I had a hard time separating the two, which I'm guessing was sort of the point, still, very well done. The movie did, however, as all Hollywood movies do, suddenly take a sharp turn into 'Oh, I'm sorry I broke your trust, I had no idea they(humans) were bad', even though he knew it all along. Sort of taking it to the level of Pocahontas and John Smith, but that was to be expected, and though it ends in the typical Hollywood 'go lucky' ending, it was still magical and enthralling. I definitely recommend it! Just be prepared to sit through 2 hrs and 40 mins of coolness.
 
  Heading off to Göthenborg tomorrow. Must go to bed. The snow continues to fall, and hibernation is over, so very sad.
  Until next time

Plotting, Planning and Preparing

Christofer and Taaniel have lots of plans up their sleeves and among them one includes us moving, moving very soon, but in the wrong direction. Well, what I consider the wrong direction, but it will only be over a short period and hopefully it will produce something positive. It is all for the sake of zerply, little zerply has become very hungry and seems to want to eat up all our lives. Hopefully big zerply will be able to aid the guys in their dreams. I just tag along for the heck of it. Well, no that’s not true, I love Christofer too much to be left behind and I have a feeling Christofer's feelings are mutual. We are, after all, a family.  Once in awhile selfishness takes over and I start stressing over the fact that I don't have a career, but then I remember that God has a plan for our lives. Us, not just Christofer, or not just me, but us together.

    It’s exciting, stressful, and definitely not the normal thing to do, but I'm pretty sure it will all work out. Actually God promises that 'all thing work together for good for those who love him and are called according to his purposes'. I just hope we are working within his purposes.

  I think the hardest thing is trying to keep my head on straight. I have a tendency to see doom in all circumstances, but I'm trying to be excited and see this as an adventure of a lifetime.

  On to today, the snow is still here and I went outside to take some pictures! I shall post them below. I had to track through the lots to make it to the laundry room.

  See you on the flip side.

                                                                       Yesterday

                                                                           Today

Me

 

Sunny

         On my way to do the  laundry

days

  Have you ever had those days that are just plain good days? It's not like you wake up and decided that its going to be a good day, it just ends up being a good day. I'm I making sense? Anyway, yesterday was a good day. Christofer and I woke up early expecting Taaniel to arrive soon after. We noticed right away that it seemed unreasonably quiet, usually in the morning you can hear our very little but still audible traffic rush, Christofer peeked out the window and moaned, which in turn made me smile and shout with joy. Snow! Lots and lots of snow. We heard from Taaniel that his train was delayed and then cancelled. So Christofer drove to pick him up while I made breakfast. The rest of the day was spent in conversation, we planned, processed, and sorted thoughts and ideas regarding our futures and the future of zerply. Meanwhile the snow continued to fall and about half way through we trucked to the store and came back with an assortment of goods that turned into very yummy hamburgers. Then Taaniel rested, he is getting old ;) 
while Christofer, Robert, Anders, and I worked out. The day ended with cellgroup which was not only encouraging but also challenging and fun. As already mentioned, a really good day. 


  Today, however, was not a really good day, but I shouldn't complain, you can't have really good days everyday, it just doesn't work that way. Yet, today was a hard day. I worked, which I prefer not to do. Its not that I don't like working, its just that I would rather have a job where you can work for something. Being a substitute teacher is like being thrown into a puzzle that has been torn apart by a hurricane and your job is to put the pieces back together, in any where from 6 to 8 hrs,  without having any clue where they actually go. I started at 7 which made me the first one of the two other teachers I would be working with. In the next half hour seven small children, who had know idea who I was, where dropped off by their parents. Two cried, three wanted me to hold them and the last two started throwing things around. I managed to calm them down by singing and making silly faces, but by time the other teacher showed up, an half an hour later, I was already yawning. 
   After breakfast I went outside with three, after getting their winter clothes on, I was faced with helping them through the snow piles that where in certain places up to my knees. You can just imagine two and one year olds trying to play in that amount! They were three very, very wet, and crying snow men by time all the other children made it out. It was less then an hour of running around pulling them out of snow drifts, yanking back on their hats, gloves, scarfs, and boots before we gave up and went back in. Hahaha, poor kids, we surely do put them through torture.
   
  I'm home now, and I have feeling I should take a long, hot bath, in order to finish off this day in a orderly fashion. Ahh, life sure is an interesting experience.


Oh, almost forgot. Today is my sisters birthday. Happy Birthday Gabby!

Fish and Rage

  I hate fish. I am an official fish hater. I have tried with, well almost, everything in me to like fish. I know it’s one of the healthiest foods, and I know it’s one of the delicatessens of fine dining, yet I hate it. I hate the smell, I hate the taste, and I even hate the look of fish, dead fish that is. I can almost taste the slimiest and feel the grittiness by just envisioning myself eating it. So it will come as no surprise to you that this afternoon, when Christofer pulled out a can of sardines, I very nearly passed out. He then promised to go and eat it in the living room, which in my opinion is way too close to the kitchen, but I can't exactly make him sit outside and eat them. Well, actually, that’s a rather good idea, hmm.

 Anyway, he had eaten all of it when I came in to say hi, yet it still smelled awful. I made him wash the can out with soap and water and open the window, then and only then could I enter the living room. Ahh, my poor husband. I try telling him that its just because I feel bad for the little fishes, yet for some odd reason he never seems to believe me.

  Well, as no surprise, once again I didn't get in to University over here. I know they don't understand home schooling, but I am beginning to wonder if they understand any other school system than Swedish. For some strange reason the woman I have been communicating with insist on writing in English, which is obviously not her strong side. Ahh, what to do, with a system that won't accept me?!

  One positive, or not so positive, thing is she is allowing me to take a Swedish class. Which for some reason really seems strange to me since the classes I tried getting in to where mostly English classes, I'm not allowed to take those classes since my High School degree doesn't match that of a normal Swedish High Schooler, but I'm allowed to take a Swedish College class? I hate to be mean, but wouldn't it make more sense to allow me to take the English classes, since I obviously know my language. AHHH, off with her head...or, as my friend James from England would say. 

'I hate her, bless her heart.'

Enough angry Eliza for one day.

Adjö gott folk...

Beautiful day

It really was a beautiful day. We slept in late, woke up to the sun shinging, ate a yummy breakfast and took a long walk in the woods.
  Yet, as always there was a hitch in the day. When we arrived back home I started singing U2's 'Its a beautiful day,' but I sang 'Its a beautiful day, today' Christofer, if you didn't know, is a volunteer lyrics police and he instantly told me no one sings its a beautiful day today. The following conversation ensued:
  Me: 'Well, I'm singing it, so obviously some one sings it.'
  Christofer: 'But its not the right lyric'
  Me: 'So, who cares. Its my lyric'
 Christofer: 'So, its your song'
 Me: 'No, its just my lyric'
 Christofer: 'But the song doesn't go like that'
 Me: 'You see, thats why I never sing anymore, because your always correcting me.'
 Christofer: 'I can't help it, it comes automatically'
 Me: 'Its really annoying!'
 Christofer: 'Alright, I'm sorry. Lets rewind. bla, bla, bla, bla. Now we walk in the door and you start singing...'
 Me: 'I don't feel like singing anymore'
 Christofer: 'But, älskling'

 Don't worry, it turned out well, but for some reason on reflection our coversation cracked me up. It is so us! I like that, the thought that we really do match perfectly. Christofer, Mr. Right, in almost everything, and me, Miss. Sloppy. He is the one with everything under control, and I fly around worrying about the things that haven't happened. We really do make a good couple. Its amazing that God can bring two people from completely different background and, in our case, countries, and they still match up! He sure knows what he is doing.
Hint: Leave it to God to be your matchmaker,  he is rather good at it.

  On a new note, I love mint chocolate. Especially with coffee. I sent a Christmas package to my family yesterday and I had a box of mint chocolate that I couldn't fit, guess who gets to eat that chocolate? Me, well, and Christofer, oh, and I did promise to save some for Taaniel. Chocolate is absolutely devilish, so entirely irresistible!
  
  Well, I have work to do, have to finish inChris books by Monday, and then I'm planning on working on my book. We shall see how it goes.

  See you later
 

Time fly's

  ' Time fly's when your having fun', is usually how the expression goes. I have to agree. I've been to the Americas and back. I did write while I was there, but my parents internet was slow and Bethany and Abe's internet, is well, non-existent. I had a wonderful two weeks running around with family and friends. Was able to have two days with Maddy, my cousin and very close friend. Loads of fun with Jayne and Char, my two youngest sisters, and time with mom and sometimes reluctantly with dad. It did get easier, however, and all the bad memories, sort of, gave way to allow me to enjoy my small moments with him. He, my dad, is not an easy person to be around, but as time subsides I pray and hope things will fall into place. Time is a healer, many claim and I hope it is true.
   Besides all that, Christofer and Taaniel, had their big début in San Fransisco, but alas, things did not go as planned, but they are not giving up, atleast I hope not. Haven't really talked to Taaniel, but when Christofer arrived in Ohio, he seemed to be even more excited about zerply.com. We shall see what happens. Exciting. For now, I am just happy they continue to dream.
    
   So back to present day. I am going to try hibernating. It true, you see, I have been back in Sweden a complete week and it has been grey and dark the whole entire week! Such weather truly makes you feel like doing nothing and crawling back into bed as soon as you awake. And that is exactly what I did this morning. Christofer woke up and I made him breakfast since he was in a rush, and then when he ran out the door I went straight back to bed. I re-awoke at 10 and decided to have my breakfast in bed. Unfortunately human hibernation includes eating, since we can't shut down our bodies, well, we can, but I don't think I would survive a whole winter without eating. So thats my one exception. Besides that I am going to do completely nothing until after Christmas (or until it snows your the sun comes out) because then I have to find a job and start some sort of studying, but until then I am going into hibernation mood.

   Well, except for Betelsgänget tonight, our childrens church, sort of have to be there.

  I shall try to be diligent henceforth in my blogging and inform you of my hibernation process.

 Until later.
Tootles...
                                                      
                                                        Proof of my need for hibernation: