Glimpses of Our First Month

Our first month in Sweden is behind us! We've gone from being house guests for a couple weeks to having our own home in which we have been able to host Bible studies and dinner guests, from not knowing north from south in our new town to having a slightly better concept of how to get from place to place, and from knowing a handful of words in Swedish to knowing both words and some phrases. We are slowly becoming more accustomed to life here, knowing there are many things we still have to learn.

Our days now are setting up a new sense of normal and routine, staying busy with the day to day life of a family with two little boys. We have had multiple appointments in Tranås and in larger cities about an hour away to piece together all the paperwork needed to become an official resident in Sweden. Because of the step by step process of doing this, our language classes had to be put off to begin until November. Ben has done an excellent job of self-study with various resources to get a jump start on the language.

Enjoy some pictures of our life here the past few weeks!

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"Fika" is an important part of Swedish culture. It's a time to pause and enjoy coffee, perhaps a sweet, and a conversational time with coworkers, friends or family. Most people simply enjoy fika at work or in their homes, but there are a few shops around town that are cozy places to partake as well. Towerland is one place we have enjoyed, and Jack especially likes looking out the top windows and playing with the train set inside. 

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Jönköping is a city about an hour away from Tranås. We had a meeting there with the migration office early one rainy morning. It is a beautiful city set on the southern end of one of Sweden's largest lakes, though that day it was too cloudy and chilly to enjoy much of it. "No bad weather, only bad clothes" is a saying here and we are learning what it means to have the right clothes in all sorts of weather!

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Jack and Elliot are adjusting well to their new home. There are several families in the church with boys Jack's age, and families with older girls who are sweet to play with both boys at fellowship events. Jack is quickly picking up Swedish words and it won't be too long before Elliot joins in as well.

This is Immanuelkyrkan (Immanuel Church), an old building given to the EPCEW church, home to the only known Reformed Presbyterian congregation in Sweden. Our prayer is that from this body of believers we will be able to be sent out to add to the Reformed number in this country. We could not do it without your prayers and support!

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