Another Tuesday Post

Sorry it has taken so long to post again, but this 'going to the library or mall' thing gets old. As you may guess, there is still no internet at home. They now say it will be installed in a few more weeks...ugh. So here is a quick recap of the past week (for me, at least):

Wednesday - went to lunch with the Americans I met online. They are both really nice and were so helpful in answering all my dumb questions. We met at the subway and then walked over to TGI Fridays. Apparently it is one of the few places that serves a decent burger (other than McDonalds!). After that, we strolled around downtown Stockholm and into the Old Town (mom and dad should remember this area - it is were our hotel was located). It was really great just to hang out and get to know them better.

Thursday - went to the Migration Board and received my permanent resident stamp in my passport. It went so smoothly. We arrived shortly before 9am and immediately plopped ourselves in front of window #5. Anders understood the lady behind the glass (everything is like this here) that she was to sit there as she was told 2 people would be coming in to finish their appointment from Monday. Lucky us - we were the first ones! She took my mug shot (HORRIBLE) and within 10 minutes I was a legal resident of Sweden!!! YIPEE!!! Of course, that still doesn't mean I can apply for a job or start my Swedish classes. I have to have a Swedish SS# for that. And you know what that means, right???? Another freaking government building we have to go to. And of course they are no where near eachother. That evening Anders and I decided to have dinner out (a very un-Swedish thing to do...I might have to rethink my TexMex restaurant since no one eats out). We went to the local hotel in Taby (Taby Park Hotel) and had an excellent meal. It was so cozy and delicious. I was really happy to find such a nice restaurant so close (since we are car-less) that was pretty reasonable and really good. It will be an excellent place for visitors to stay too, if they so desire!

Friday - Today was take Reagan on the train day. We wanted to do a practice run together to see how she handled so many smells, people, etc.. We took the train from Taby to Stockholm Center and then from there we went into the southern part of Stockholm on subway. Reagan has an incredible desire to smell EVERYTHING and eat ANYTHING that is accesible to her and trains are filled with all sorts of goodies. We took her with us to the Tax Office so I could register in the country and receive my SS#. We also wanted to find the only dog park in the entire Stockholm area (funny, really. Dallas has a billion parks but most people live in homes with yards. Here, most people live in apartments and there is only one dog park to be found). It was a really drizzly, dreary day so the dog park was a bit too muddy to let her go in. Poor thing - she hasn't been off leash outside since Chicago. She did really good on the entire trip and even mastered the escalators (which run a light speed compared to Texas - maybe everything is slower in the south...ha!!). Once we got back, I made chili and cornbread. It was also laundry night. Anders and I felt pretty pathetic...doing laundry on a Friday night - how lame!

Saturday - today Anders worked all day. Nothing too exciting - he was a test moderator for the university - but it gave him something to do and a little pocket change. I got a haircut since the last two pictures I have taken have shown that my hair is just too long and ugly. Besides, all I kept doing was throwing in a ponytail or bun. Funny thing was, the girl spoke Swedish and Spanish perfectly, so we talked the entire time in Spanish...small world. That afternoon, Reagan and I met him in Stockholm and took the train to Nyköping (his home town). It's so nice to be able to travel ANYWHERE by train. We arrived to Reagan being showered with gifts. She received a brand new bed(s) (one for Tåby and one for Nyköping), pig ears, new food bowl and a raincoat!! She is too cute in her coat and it is even lined with shearing...it's nicer than my new coat, ha!

Sunday - hung out at the house and then went to Morton and Eva's to see there new baby girl, Sofie.

Monday - Anders' dad took us to buy some things for our apartment (coffee maker, food processor, toaster, mixer) and then we went on to Anders' mom's summer home. It was a nasty, drizzly day again, so we didn't stay long. We did however get to pick up fresh eggs from the 'happy hens*. Can wait to start eating these - they are so fresh and taste way different than grocery store eggs. Took the train home, but realized we would be arriving exactly at rush hour. We had two extra bags with our stuff in it so we knew it would be almost impossible to deal with that, Reagan and all those people on the trains. OOOHH, TAXI!!!!

So that's it in a nut shell. Anders met with another friend today about some job possibilities and is applying for a few other jobs he saw in the paper. We found out yesterday our stuff arrives in Gothenburg on Wednesday and will be trucked up to Stockholm and delivered on Monday. Thank goodness!!! Thanks to everyone who posts comments - I really appreciate you checking in on us.

Monica