January 23, 2018 Tuesday #Variety#Angelsbesideyou!#kidscleanrooms?#RoyalExchange#happykids!

Get Fit
Wow that video I have had for 10 years has more workouts on it than I thought found another Pilates ring workout for legs only on it!  Find something new to pump up your activity!!  You can do it!

Get Faith
Psalm 34:7
"The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them."  Who doesn't like the thought of Gabriel hanging around you all the time? Watching out for you?  And delivering you safely to where you need to be?  God sends angels all the time to those who need it - I have had many visitations.  If I think of myself having a guardian angel I apologize to said angel for all the trouble I have caused it.  What's your angel doing?

On this day
1991  Nicole was in kindergarten and went in the afternoon so on this morning it says "Nicole I worked on cleaning up her room.  This brings a lot to mind.  I don't remember her room ever being bad until later - when she was a teenager.  I think she had the bunk beds at this time and shared the room with Aaron when he was here.  After I took her to school I went to church to work on the many jobs I had there.  I'm glad to keep busy in January so the time passes quickly and gets back to spring.  How about you?

1571 - The Royal Exchange in London, founded by financier Thomas Gresham, was opened by Queen Elizabeth I. 


Jonkoping Sweden Culture
Want To Raise Happy Children? Move To Sweden

Leading the expat life can have several ups and downs for a family with young children. 

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  

January 22, 2018 Monday #variety#Jesuslovesthelittlechildren#busy##@%*^

Get Fit
The daily dozen and I'm not talking eggs here.  I was watching an exercise show the other day and they said it is important to switch off and do a variety of things as in Pilates, yoga, weights, Zumba whatever you do, change it up.  The  only consistent thing I see is walking.  And then breakfast.

Get Faith
Luke 18:16  "Then Jesus called the children over to him and said to the disciples, "Let the  little children come to me!  Never send them away! For the Kingdom of God  belongs to men (and women) who have hearts as trusting as these little children's.""  We just read this 4 or 5 days ago as recounted by Matthew.  They knew a true scripture when more than one disciple mentioned it in their gospel.  It is so important!  Jesus knew how hard the heads were of those trying to follow Him, then and now.  Children can learn these stories and through life remember the lessons they learned and the love God has for them when learned at an early age.  Let the little children come to Him!

On this day
1990  I was still working at Quality at this time, a couple days a week.  They were paying me in health insurance for my family.  Mom took care of Nicole while I worked or Mark took her to the boat store to spend the day with him and grandpa.  She loved those days, Grandpa was a huge spoiler. When I got home I had to proofread the LSCORA newsletter and get it to the printing company.  I also had to call Sunday School teachers and remind them of a meeting later in the week.  My life is full and God is good to provide  answers and solutions to all my life needs.

1990 - Guns 'N' Roses guitarist Slash used profanity numerous times on live television while accepting an American Music Award. Now there is some big news!  Now it is common place.

Sweden Culture

The Ethnic Make-up of Sweden

The indigenous population of Sweden is comprised of Swedes with Finnish and Sami minorities. Foreign-born or first-generation immigrants are typically of Finnish, Danish, Norwegian, Greek and Turkish ethnicity.  

Siri gives a similar report as of 2017, not what I have heard.

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy birthday to Diana M.!!

January 21, 2018 Sunday #Goodfriends#Moms#nationalchurch.

Get Faith
Proverbs 17:17  "A friend loves at all times"  I have a lot of friends - good friends that I am socially active with and see regularly.  They are different groups, different in age, background and finances.  They are all great people and I thank God for them.  People, sometimes separate themselves from the people they love for many reasons.  Drugs and alcohol are the first thing that comes to mind.  If you have developed a relationship with addictive behaviors you might not want your friends to see that or know that about you.  In your battle to be better than your weaknesses remember that above all Jesus is your best friend.  While you are searching for Him, remember the above verse.  Most people have a lot of people that love them, even if they don't think so.

On this day
1989  The only thing I wrote on this day was "Aaron went to Florida".  He was 11 so I know he didn't go alone or with friends.  It means that his mom, Kathy and Rick took him on vacation with them.  And it tells me that I was privy to that knowledge, Kathy and I were good mothers that loved the same son.  We shared a child and knew that we needed that camaraderie to make it work well and we did.  We still communicate but don't see each other as much as we should. 

 1812 - The Y-bridge in Zanesville, OH, was approved for construction. Why? and why is it news?

Jonkoping Sweden

The Church of Sweden (Svenska kyrkan) is Evangelical Lutheran and has its secretariat in Uppsala, a city that has been the centre of the Swedish church since the Middle Ages. The Church of Sweden has been separated from the state since 2000, which means that Sweden no longer has an official state church. While most countries in the world have no official religion, Sweden is in fact the only Nordic country without a state church, as Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Finland have all retained theirs.

Sixty-four per cent of the Swedish population are members of the Church of Sweden. It is only since 2000 that Swedes don’t automatically become a member at birth and record numbers of Swedes have left the church in recent years. A continued decline in membership is predicted as young Swedes fail to take the place of older members. Surveys also indicate that only eight per cent of Swedes attend any religious services regularly.  As sad there as it is here.

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  

January 20, 2018 Saturday #shortcircuit#heartcontents#Aaron40#Swedishya?

Get Fit
Some days are better than others working out with Jillian.  I was strong for the first circuit but I started fading early on the second circuit.  Do what you can!

Get Faith
Proverbs 23:7 "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he (or she).  Do you know someone that comes off gruff and tough?  They put on a show of being hard or mean but you know that inside they are a teddy bear.  The gal that talks big about not putting up with anyone's crap is usually the kindest person who will  do anything for you.  God knows their center, He knows the real person.  That outward shell is usually a front to protect a tender heart from being hurt.  Don't tell them I said this though because there is no surer way to bring wrath than to mess with someone's protective cover.  What's in your heart?

On this day
1988  Aaron's birthday was yesterday - turned 40.  In 1988 he was 10 and his dad and I went shopping for his birthday presents.  His mom and us shared him which worked out great for the kids.  They literally had two families and two parties, etc.  At 10 years old I'm sure we poured on the toys still.  I wonder if this was the year he got the black and red checked pullover shirt that he loved.  Boy those 30 years flew by, sniff.

1801 - John Marshall was appointed chief justice of the United States. Seriously that seems like a more important job than the presidency, don't you think?

Jonkoping Sweden Culture

Language in Sweden

The official language of Sweden is Swedish and it is spoken by the majority of individuals living in Sweden. One of two key minority languages is Saami, which is spoken in the Northern regions of Sweden and finally Finnish. There are also a number of Romanies in Sweden who speak in Romani.

Swedish is not only the official language of Sweden. It is also one of the official languages of Finland.

Influences on the Swedish language have come primarily from Latin, German and Danish. 

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy Birthday Don!!  Carly and Steve!

January 18, 2018 Thursday#Walk#GiftofGod#Oldfriends#lotsofculture!

Get Fit
Caught up with a friend (literally) at the gym at church and walked a while with her.  Inside walking is such a drag, she had music playing on her phone which made it better.  Of course her and I can chatter on about anything and she finally turned off the music.  Grab a friend and go for a walk.  If alone you can go to the mall - they still have the walkers and at least you have something to look at other than gym walls.

Get Faith
Matthew 19 14-15 "But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and don't prevent them.  For of such is the Kingdom of Heaven." And he put his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left."  Some people only need to be asked.  Children are a much softer target.  They are open to a good story and accept God's word with little argument.  I was blessed to be a Sunday School teacher for 25 years with children ranging from 3 to high school.  Each age had its struggles, the littles can't sit still and the oldest are distracted.  Ok,  they all have a hard time sitting still and most are distracted.  It is a very rewarding role though and I pray for many of my students, still, on a regular basis.  Take your children to church - give them the everlasting gift of faith and the strength of family in church attendance.

On this day
1983  It was a Tuesday and we had all worked but we met at the Wishing Well for dinner. Pat and Pam, Ty and Norma and Linda and I.  It doesn't mention it being a special occasion, just good friends keeping in touch and sharing conversation.  I wish I could replay the conversation.  We are all still good friends and actually all had dinner together last summer at Mike's.  Wow 35 years ago.

1778 - English navigator Captain James Cook discovered the Hawaiian Islands, which he called the "Sandwich Islands." Got any ideas on why sandwich ?

Jonkoping Sweden culture
The 25 historical provinces (landskap) of Sweden, which early in their histories had poor intercommunication, each have a distinct culture. The provinces long ago lost their importance as administrative and political regions, but are still seen as cultural ones, and the population of Sweden identifies with them. Each province has a specific history, each with its own robust nature. Some of them constituted separated parts of Sweden with their own laws. Other regions have been independent, or a part of another country, such as (Denmark or Norway), etc. They have different indigenous dialects of North Germanic, and some have ethnic minorities. For more information about these cultural regions, see the provinces' articles:

  So go to each province to see the individual culture?  Wow!

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy Birthday Jenny T

January 17, 2018 Wednesday #Jumpingjacks#theLordismystrength#Peterthespy#1970feminists

Get Fit
I started out with 20 jumping jacks and I realized how much this simple exercise warmed me up and energized me for the next exercises I would do.  Just the act of jumping up and down gets the heart pumping but when you add the arms going up over the head it is really a good starter!  I did another 20 just because and then went on to leg work outs.

Get Faith
Exodus 15:2  "The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.  He is my God, and I will praise Him."  The study writer on this days devotion speaks my language.  They keep very structured days and very often overload the calendar.  The difference is he is learned to settle into prayer mode at the end of the day and give all the craziness to God so he can sleep.  I'm going to try it with a little more enthusiasm than just saying my prayers at night.  How about you?  Having trouble getting to sleep and getting good rest?

On this day
1982  This year was setting record breaking cold weather like this year.  That probably is why I had to pick up Peter and take him to his car. (Maybe it wouldn't start and got towed in)  Anyway, Peter was Tatjiana's friend that she met after her husband Erich died.  Tatjana and Erich were my ex, Pete's parents.  I might have mentioned before I had a hard time separating from the rest of the family after a divorce.  Tatjana and I had stayed close.  She met Peter, who was a younger man, where?  IDK but he was a correspondent that wrote letters for Europeans.  He was well versed in many languages, very smart but irritating somehow.  When I got home from having coffee with him, other friends of Tatjiana's stopped by.  Hans and Ilse.  They did not like Peter.  I didn't write down the content of our conversation but I'm sure the whole scenario would make a great story of spys and love drama! They are all gone now so I might someday write THAT book.

1562 - French Protestants were recognized under the Edict of St. Germain. Interesting this happened so soon after Martin Luther's intro.

Jonkoping Sweden Culture

Swedish culture is generally seen^{[according to whom?]} as egalitarian in nature, and since the early-1970s, the Swedish establishment^{[clarification needed]} has very deliberately embraced feministic, anti-racist, progressive and anti-fascist stances and views.^[1][2] Swedish society and its culture is concerned with the welfare and well-being of others, both within and outside Sweden;^{[according to whom?]} (See also; Income inequality in Sweden).

Prehistoric Sweden was the source of Viking culture, which was dominant in all of Scandinavia for many hundreds of years, and the Temple at Uppsala in Sweden was a site of pilgrimage and worship for all the Scandinavian peoples who worshipped the Aesir gods. Though western culture mostly recall the Vikings from present day Norway and Denmark who invaded France, England, Scotland and Ireland, the Swedish Vikings left huge marks on Byzantine culture (where they were known as Varangians) as well as being the founders of the Kievan state.

Of the country's many monarchs, a few of the more powerful ones, such as King Gustav III and Queen Christina, have been exceptionally important to its cultural development.

In modern times many Swedes have been internationally celebrated for their cultural work, among them Jenny Lind, Anders Zorn, August Strindberg, Ingrid Bergman, Ingmar Bergman and ABBA.

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy Birthday Kaitlyn and Sharon!

January 16, 2018 Tuesday #Doyourbest!#Forgive#

Get Fit
New Pilates video - I don't have the stretchy band they use but it is basically the same Pilates moves I am used to.  I love the leg exercises but laying on my side on my hip doesn't work too well for me.   So, I have to renegotiate some of the positions to accomplish them.   Don't beat yourself up when you can't perform to their standards!  You be you and do what you can, just don't misjudge a position and hurt yourself. 

Get Faith
Luke 6:37  "Forgive, and you will be forgiven."  That is pretty simple isn't it?  Well, maybe.  We too often forget that our short comings or errors have been forgotten by others but do we repay that? Or do we labor over something that someone has done to us.  Do we carry a grudge?  "I can never forgive her for doing that"? kind of thing?"  Remembering those things are like having a ball and chain around your neck.  Bad for them, bad for you and horrible for your forgiveness.  Your Father in heaven knows how important it is for you to forgive others - so He has set the bar high for you to attain that forgiveness you want.  Give it a try!  You can do it.

On this day
1981  It was a Friday and my old boyfriend Denny called to see what I was doing.  I had plans.  Andy must have been working.  Adele brought Merri and Lindsey over along with the makings of a steak dinner and we had a girls night at my house.  (I wonder what movie the girls talked us into - like the night they assured me that their Mom let them watch Poltergeist.)  Nice memory of a winter evening.

1547 - Ivan the Terrible was crowned Czar of Russia. Who would crown this guy with that name?

Jonkoping Sweden
How nice does this look on this January day?

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy Birthday Cheryl!