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Tuesday, August 5, 2014

My Summer in a Nutshell

A lot has happened for me this summer: I was home in America for 5 weeks, during which time I revisited my alma mater for the first time in over 2 years and was wowed by the renovations of the Bob Martinez Sports Center and various other improvements around the University of Tampa's campus. I met my sister's boyfriend (finally). I received confirmation that my work-visa for the 2014-15 volleyball season was approved by the Swedish Immigration Board. I was able to spend a lot of time with my dad's mother who, on July 2nd, passed away peacefully after a third battle with cancer.

Showing Grandma pictures of my new home in Gislaved (Kadie got to visit, too!)

Most importantly, I was able to share with my parents and sister a piece of my life in Sweden. I cannot express exactly how it is that I have become to appreciate this new country and all of the opportunities it has afforded me, but I am lucky to have a family that is supportive of my choice to relocate across the pond.

Family tour around Ljungby, Daniel's hometown
My family came to spend a week in Sweden, and although it started a bit rocky, we were all able to enjoy our time together. From Copenhagen (Denmark) to Ljungby, up to Göteborg, and finally a visit to my new home in Gislaved, we journeyed around south-central Sweden. My parents celebrated their 26th wedding anniversary during our day-trip to Göteborg, met Daniel's parents, brother, and sister, as well as his nieces and nephews. It's always an exciting time when your family meets that of your significant other. Even more-so when the two parties don't speak the native language of one another. Regardless, they made it work, and it was much less stressful than Daniel and I had imagined.
Celebrating my parent's 26th anniversary in Göteborg

Left to Right: Barbro & Kurt Magnusson, CJ & Bill Sherman