Tuesday

Eric and I were talking about my recent blog posts and the posts we've seen on facebook.  Isn't it interesting that everything that is going on in the world right now (you know - and blocking up your news feed) is happening on this sacred week?  This has helped me keep things in perspective and have helped me to keep it sacred. I hope it helps you too.

Although Tuesday was a sad day in the Savior's life, studying it has brought peace into mine.

Jesus went to the temple to preach the gospel.  His authority was questioned and with that he shared 3 parables.
1. The parable of the 2 sons (Matthew 21:28-32): I loved this parable.  Of course it was sad but its very hopeful for people like me.  No matter what we've done or how badly we've screwed up, if we repent, we can be forgiven and we can be redeemed.
2. The Parable of the wicked husbandman (Matthew 21: 33-41)
3.  The parable of the royal marriage feast (Matthew 22:1-10): In the which he states: "Many are called but few are chosen."  We must live the commandments always, and repent when we come up short.

These were the last parables given publicly in the Savior's life, so I guess they must be important. 

James Talmage wrote, "On the last day of our Lord's teaching in public, Pharisees and Herodians joined forces against Him; the one watched for the smallest technical infringement of the mosaic law, the other alert to seize upon the slightest excuse for charging Him with disloyalty to the secular powers" (Jesus the Christ, pg. 544).  He was questioned and put on the spot just to find a reason to arrest Him.  He taught The Great Commandment as His last teaching (Matthew 22:34-40, Mark 12:28-34), "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself".  He denounces them and he leaves.  The Lord them laments over Jerusalem and predicts the destruction of it (Matthew 23: 37-39, 24:1,2).  

I cannot imagine how sad the Savior must have been.  I go back to the saddest days on my missions when people just wouldn't believe.  Wouldn't listen to the spirit.  Wouldn't keep the commandments, even though they knew they were true.  And my heart just broke and I would just sob.  I felt like all my hard work had been for nothing.  I felt helpless.  And hopeless.  And so discouraged.  I'm sure what I felt was just a small taste of what His heart was going through that day as he left the temple and looked out over Jerusalem, knowing full well what was going to happen.  

Monday

Jesus and the twelve returned to Jerusalem.  On the way Jesus hungered (Matthew 21:18).  They came along a fig tree which didn't have any fruit so Jesus cursed it (Matthew 21:19-20).

He taught his disciples, "...but also if yea shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.... and all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." Matthew 21: 21-22

Him and His disciples spend most of the day in the temple.  They cleared it of the wickedness going on inside of it (Matthew 21:12-13 and Luke 19:45-46) and then once it was clean he taught and healed (Luke 19:47).

Easter Week

Palm Sunday:
Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey (which is the ancient symbol of Jewish royalty) and as He did so, a great multitude came out to greet The Master and carpeted the path before Him with palm leaves, branches, and even their own garments. Matthew 21:7-7

As he entered people shouted "Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest!"
"Hosanna to the Son of David: blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest." Psalm 118:25
(Hosanna= "save us now" or "save we pray")

Pinning and pinning

Some days it just seems like all I do is pin.  but i love it.  my hobbies these days include:

-pinning
-skyping
-insta-ing
-napping
-walking
-whining
-cooking

its actually pretty great.  but i am a little anxious for the rest of our stuff to get here already! mostly my kitchen aid, recipe books and sewing machine and crafts.

anyway, here are some pinterest inspired meals i have made since we've been here.  i am pretty simple so i like recipes where the ingredients are things i've actually heard of.  click on the name and it will link you to the recipe.  you're welcome.  or you can find them on my pinterest board "for dinner"

Beef and broccoli  - I just used regular soy sauce and it turned out fine. Oh and regular sugar because I was out of brown sugar.
Carrot fries - WE LOVE THIS ONE! But I cooked it way longer than it said to make them crunchy.
Parmesan Chicken
Strawberry Bacon Salad with Greek Yogurt Poppyseed Dressing - we couldn't find poppyseeds here so we made them without and it was still delicious.  We used the dressing for 2 weeks after until it ran out.
Lemon Pasta with Chicken and Spinach
Taco Pasta - This recipe didn't come up when I clicked on it on Pinterest so I just used the directions straight from the pin! Delicious!
Banana Oatmeal Muffins - I didn't love these but Owen did.  I prefer just banana bread.  Which I also made.
Swedish Pancakes - we've had them with fruit and ice cream, with ham and egg cooked inside and also with this delicious caramel syrup (but again I didn't have buttermilk for the syrup so I just used milk with some lemon juice and it turned out great).

What recipes do you love?  I need MORE!  What are you making for Easter?  I need some ideas!

Sunday (no fun day)

Ok maybe I just need to vent a little bit and get some advice from some other mothers out there but I HATE SUNDAYS. I dread church.  Never in my life have I felt that way until now and I kind of feel bad for saying that.  Kind of.  It was really hard.

I've heard moms (mine included) talk about how hard church is with toddlers because they're all over the place and then they can't listen and its just a nightmare.  Yes.  We've reached that point.  Owen does NOT sit still.  EVER.  And then when we wont let him down he just starts crying.  And then you get the faces from other people.  You know what I'm talking about.  The "you're the worst parent ever" face. The "control your child" face.  The "take your child out" face.  Even the "I'm never going to like you when I'm a parent" face.  I even had someone ask me if my child was hungry and needed food.  No he's not hungry.  I have a bag full of food that he wont eat.  He's not hungry.  He's annoying and doesn't sit still but thank you for trying to parent my child.  Every second is a battle with him.  We'll get out a toy, a book, his church quiet book, another toy, another book, his church quiet book, some snacks, a sippy cup, a bottle, a binkie, another book, another toy, his church quiet book.  Nothing seems to keep him satisfied for longer than 45 seconds.  FOREAL.

This face may look innocent...

To make matters worse, I don't understand ANY Swedish so I have no idea what is going on in church. I know Gud is God and Kristo or something is Christ and that's about it.  (yes, probably my fault, i know I need to learn Swedish).  The branch is very kind that they work extra hard to provide English translation for those of us that don't know Swedish.  They have these headsets that we put on and listen to somebody translating.  Its great! However, it is also Owen's favorite toy.  The second one of us puts them in our ears they are ripped out and put into his mouth so that doesn't work out so well.  Therefore, beneath the screaming and a language I don't understand I don't feel the spirit.  I just don't.  Is it my fault?  I believe so.  I have never wanted to leave church before.  I was beyond ready to leave.  I kept asking the Mr. to leave and I was serious.  He said no. Am I bad person for it? Probably.  But I'll apologize.  Sorry.

Maybe I'm just being a little over-dramatic because I'm cold. 

And cranky.

A day in the life of

>One of the first questions people from home ask me is, "what do you do all day?"  Its a great question.  Here it is.  Not as exciting as you would have imagined I'm sure.  This below 10 degree weather is making it real rough to have a life.  Ok here goes....

This happened on his coat because he was breathing heavy. 

Mr. wakes up super early to go ice skating on the bay.  Someone from work gave him some ice skates so he likes to go real early so no one is there in case he embarrasses himself but because its so early, its freezing!  He went out the other day and it was -9.  Fahrenheit.  He's a champ.

The frozen over bay.  Gorgeous!

Owen wakes me up around 8 which is followed by about 15-20 minutes of snuggling in my bed watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on the iPad.

Then we have breakfast.  We usually have oatmeal, granola, or Special K berries and fruit.  Owen is obsessed with fruit. 

Then we'll play for a bit.  Or read books.  Mostly right now, its a train set we got him from Ikea.  

Then he goes down for his morning nap.  Thanks to the Phillips family for motivating me this is my work out time.  I mostly do workouts on YouTube (Denise Austin).  They're cheesy but they're fun.  Then I shower and clean and get ready for the day.  The first week here I had zero motivation to shower, do my hair, or wear make up but I feel better when I do it and I KNOW Mr Phillips feels better when I do. ;)

This is our ham and cheese sandwich.  In Sweden they usually eat their sandwiches open faced so we just stick this in the oven and its amazing!  They sure know how to do their bread and cheeses! 

Owen wakes up and we have lunch.  We usually eat chicken nuggets (the frozen ones are like 1,000 better here than in the states), quesadillas, ham and cheese sandwiches, etc. with fruits and veggies (again, thanks to the Phillips family for motivating us to eat right).  

After lunch is when we go for a walk. It usually takes like 30 minutes to get us both ready and bundled to go so sometimes I just don't feel like doing it.  But we try to go outside at least once a day.  

The frozen over bay.

I really love going on walks but it is just too cold here.  I could walk for hours but after about 20 minutes my face and legs are totally stinging.  I have even tried to wear leggings under my jeans.  I guess I need to do like the swedes do and buy some snow pants.  We have enjoyed our walks though and getting to know the town.  Its absolutely beautiful and makes me so excited for summer.  Its going to be way prettier outside when there isn't snow on the ground. 

Owen goes down for his 2nd nap and I blog, good dinner, take a nap, pin, clean, you know.  I haven't taken a nap in the middle of the day since O was a newborn so it feels weird but I just run out of things to do.  I'm not working anymore and I'm taking a "term break" from school and my crafting things haven't gotten here yet so until then, I'll enjoy watching Gossip Girl and taking naps.  

Then we eat dinner and hang out.  After dinner is when we do our laundry (at the facility - I'll tell you more about it later), go grocery shopping, run errands, or take another walk.  Owen goes to bed and then we watch Lost and go to bed.  Its a sweet life just not what I'm used to.  I miss people.  my friends and family.  Thanks goodness for social media.  

Birthday Bash Weekend

Owen helped me clean for my birthday present.  Love this kid.

I am so lucky.  I have the best husband ever! He really spoiled me for my birthday this year.  We talked about going to London, Norway, and Finland but Eric's surprise was even better!  He asked around at work at a good place to go so he did it all himself and it was perfect!  We drove 45 minutes south to a town called Pitea and stayed at the resort called Pitea Havsbad.  

Just eating on the way in his carseat.

This is the outside.  On the right you can see the indoor water park!

Just hanging out before the show.  My guys. 

Outside in the lobby waiting to go into dinner.

Hotel lobby.

Enjoying some grub at the show.

The food wasn't great but that's Sweden for ya.

Owen enjoyed the show from his stroller.

So we went to dinner and show.  The show is called "The Hits" and 6 Swedish kids sang US songs for a few hours.  It was pretty entertaining.  Especially when they (and the audience) belted out "Born in the USA".  We had a lot of fun and a good laugh.  We're pretty positive it doubles as a strip joint.

Saturday morning we woke up and went to breakfast and then went to the pool and did some swimming and water slides.  It was a blast! Then Eric reserved a spa time for me.  I got a massage and a facial (my first one ever!) It was amazing!  Then we packed up and drove home.  When we got home we went out to eat at a place nearby (we walked - just like the locals).  Restaurants here are not good at all.  Its actually really sad.  We just talked about all the food places we miss from back home and the ones we're going to go to as soon as we get back in May.  But we had a good time of course.

Sunday (Birthday morning) I made Swedish pancakes.  It took me a few tries to get it down but I eventually got it. 

They turned out awesome topped with berries and ice cream.  My kind of breakfast.

We went to church and then Eric made a delicious dinner (one of my favorites) and then he made 2 desserts (yea, he's that awesome) and we had some friends from the ward (our Sweden family, we call them) for cake.  Then we talked with some of our family (Eric's family) thanks to FaceTime and Skype.  It was a perfect day.  I'm so grateful for Eric and all his hard work and everything he has done to make this transition easier for me and to make my day perfect!  Thank you guys for all the texts and facebook messages!  Miss you all!

baby its cold outside

you may think that 14-19 degrees Fahrenheit isn't that cold.  But with the wind chill from the bay, that just honestly bites your nose and stings your toes, it is absolutely FREEZING!  

Any kids we see at grocery stores or outside are in full on snow suits.  Any time anyone goes outside it is full on snow clothes.  For a reason.  I used to think they were just wussies.  But now I know better.  It stings.  But people here just embrace it.  They still go about their days.  They even just go on walks like its no big deal.  So, because we're trying to fit in, we tried that too.  I lasted about 10 minutes.  Just enough to go around a block.  

Life has been different because this was Eric's first week back to work.  Although Tuesday but Owen and I were sick so he stayed home with us to take care of us.  What a sweetie.  It really has been lonely.  I've never known what it has felt like to have no grown up interaction all day - until now.  Its not that fun.  I have a hard time trying to entertain a one year old all day when he only has a handful of toys!  We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of his toys.  and my crockpot and kitchen aid.  Then all will be right in the world again. We try to go outside at least once a day.  and at least for 10 minutes.  pathetic i know. but I cannot be inside all day. and I don't have a car.  Owen LOVES going outside.  He'll always just grab his shoes and bang them on our front door.  And then he'll sit down and try to put them on.  and when he fails at that he'll bring them to me for me to put on him.  at least he is embracing the cold.

i do get awfully lonely.  thus the over-instagramming and facebooking.  and pinteresting.  pinning i guess.  and I've been watching a lot of Lost.  I mean a LOT.  Its all i think about!  i need to get some hobbies.  again, things will get better once our stuff arrives.  like my sewing machine and crafts.  

Milk comes in cardboard boxes. It took me a week to open one all by myself.  I was nervous about the milk but it actually tastes the same as in the states.

We get bored so we take pictures of ourselves.

On Wednesday we went to a town called Boden to get our "person numbers".  They are like their social security numbers. We can't get a bank account here until we have them. It was quite a trip. We spent 2 hours in the migration office with some SMEEEEEELLLLLLY people.

I took this on our way to Boden.  Its gorgeous here.  You can't tell in this picture but it was a snow storm.  It was crazy!  Good thing we have studded tires to keep us safe. 

Wednesday was sunny so we decided to go for a walk.  It was so sunny so I didn't think it was cold so I didn't wear gloves or a hat.  I learned the lesson the hard way.  I thought my hands were going to fall off.
Mom, the roads and sidewalks are covered in snow and ice.  Thats how all the roads are.

I made this Swedish dessert called kladkaka meaning "sticky cake".  It is SOOO good.  It was an Elder's birthday so we made him desert.  You put whipped cream (or ice cream) and berries.  Can't wait to make it for ya'll when we come back.

I know its blurry but Owen followed Eric to the door.  He wanted to go with him to the store.  See his shoes in his hands?

Then he sits down and tried to put them on. 

I didn't buy Owen a snow suit until we moved so he has never really played in the snow until now.  

He LOVED it. 

He loves pushing the buttons on the elevator in our building.

At the grocery store last night.

I LOVE this picture.  Taken at breakfast this morning.

 

His cheesy smile.

I miss you guys.  I miss my friends and family and having things to do during the day.  I miss target and taco bell.  and zupas.  the restaurants here are NOT good which is such a bummer.  Going out to eat isn't even fun anymore.  They have a TON of pizzerias so we've had pizza twice already and that has been good.  Miss you guys and love you!  Please feel free to email, comment, text (if you have an iPhone or iPad or iTouch).  I love hearing from friends and family!
Tonight Eric is taking us 45 minutes south to Pite havsbad (google it).  Its a hotel and resort for the family.  Today we're going to go to a show where they serve dinner and then we'll spend the night and in the morning I'll go to the spa and then we'll go swimming at the indoor water park!  He spoils me!  Happy Birthday to ME!!!  I'm way excited.  

Love you all!  XOXO