Week 1: Down and Still Kicking

OK everyone we have officially been here over a week and we are still kicking.  Some more than others but we are here! LOL After a wonderful week in Sweden we have learned so much and look forward to 2 more years of learning ahead! Several points in this blog...grocery store, parks, dining establishments, bikes, emergency medical care and we are loving it!

Ok ladies...let's start with the grocery store! You must bring your own bags or you pay for bags at checkout!  I have never been more thankful for pictures on items in all my life.  If it weren't for pictures I have no idea what we would be consuming! For the most part things are relatively the same.  I do say that with a bit of a grin because we have had several trial and errors that have been hilarious.  For instance...Mark went to pick up some milk(which is one of the easier items) and he came back with a fermented Lattfil.  It tastes a bit like liquid sour cream.  The swedes are huge on their fermented milks and they love yogurt.  Not the kind of yogurt we are used to though.  They drink yogurt out of a carton.  It tastes like what you would find in the states just a more liquid substance.  The kids love it as long as I mix it with a little milk to thin it out.  It is like a smoothie to them!  The love for coffee here is evident everywhere! Coffee houses are on every corner and they take great pride in their coffee!  I am adjusting just fine! LOL Ok I could go on forever but lets skip to...

Parks! They are everywhere!  Not just small corner parks, but huge gorgeous parks with lakes and canals trees and fountains.  The swedes love to go Bathing(sunbathing) in the summer when they can.  You will find people all over enjoying the sun and there is plenty of room to go around.  These pics are of a park just next to our apartment!

Pizza in the park!  A fun outing!

 Here are some other parks within walking distance of the apartment!

The Food is wonderful!  We have found so many new Yummies! Zachary has discovered Nutella and that is a morning must on a rice cake. Dining establishments vary considerably though! Some places you just go in, order, pay, sit and eat.  Others you go in, order,sit, eat and pay.  We are figuring it all out though! They have some great sweet treats that are unbelievable!!!

This week our Express shipment arrived!  Hooray! This also delivered a new kind of turmoil for me! The bikes were delivered in our small shipment of business books and so the Sawyer's set out on wheels!  That was scary!  Our kids are not exactly used to riding in traffic.  Although they are learning quickly and doing a great job I am needing some serious TUMS for this heart burn!  Fortunately the drivers here really are mindful of all the bikes and such.  We are storing our bikes at the apartment...

Yes we have seen the apartment! IT is FABULOUS!!  It is so much bigger than we need!  I do not possibly have enough furniture to fill it!  The children are excited because I don't have a need for all the extra space, their rooms are unusually large! We cannot wait to move in!  However, we found out this week that our things are not set to arrive in Denmark until the 15th!  We will not be wasting our time though...this week we are headed to Stockholm to check out the capital city.  It is about a 4 hour train ride from Malmo Central Station and are looking forward to seeing the countryside.

We have been rather anxious about figuring out the healthcare while we are here, but not a family to wait for anything we dove right into the Swedish Emergency Healthcare last night! Unfortunately Brooklyn had a bit of a mishap climbing a tree in the park with her brother!  She went too high and hit about every branch on the way down.  What finally stopped her decent was a tree branch on which she ended up astride.  She is fine but we were rather frightened!  She is bruised and scratched up a bit but will heal.  The doctors and nurses were amazing with her!  They have a special emergency room for different specialties so that was very helpful!  Her nurse was so reassuring and her English was outstanding! The doctor was so polite.  HE made sure she was going to be ok and reasurred her she would not need stitches this time! She was a happy girl!

Well that about sum up our week!  I will finish with some other fun photos at the waterfront park!  Love you all!