...getting older!

Hej!

Wow, its been ages since my last post! Time really has flown by! Well, since my last post I am now a year older...and of course so much wiser.....!

I had a really nice week back in the UK with my family and friends, did a lot of catching up with people and seeing people I hadn't seen for 5 months. As well as doing the family stuff on Sunday and Wednesday (and my Mum, Dad, Big sister, her husband and my nephew came to the airport to see Sarah and I off) I went out in Sheffield with Sarah's uni friends as it was one of their birthdays, went to the cinema 3 times (Angels and Demons : 3*, Star Trek : 4*, Fast and Furious : 2*) and spent Friday night with my uni friends. By the time I came back I was in need of a holiday! :)

Got some very nice birthday Pressies too...a very nice watch, an iPod, a very nice Ralph Lauren T-Shirt, some English Chocolates, an iPod docking speaker set thingy, a book on F1 circuits, money for iTunes just to name a few! Was a really really nice birthday, so thank you to everyone who contributed to making it special for me!

So coming back to Sweden last Saturday was a bit strange...that has been the longest time I have spent back in the UK since leaving, and while it was really nice, I was still kinda excited to get back to my house! And even more weirdly, I was looking forward to getting back to work...I had things I wanted to do, and catch up with, as well as having the last couple of days of my Personal Leadership training course to do. That was on the Monday and Tuesday of this week, and I really really enjoyed it! I think it has really encouraged me that I am aiming the right way in my career, and massively improved my confidence in my own abilities, as well as letting me reflect on what I can do to improve on my weaknesses.

So this last week has been spent with Sarah in Sweden, having lots of deep and meaningfuls, as well as a really nice week in the relatively warm sunshine. Sarah and I have also spent quite a lot of time with my Swedish friends (well...friends that live in Sweden, I don't think she has met my "Swedish" Swedish friends so much yet...) and that has been really nice too! Felt very couplie, and really nice to know that we can integrate into each others lives so easily :)

My friend Keri moved into a new apartment this week, and Sarah was free while I was at work so she helped Keri out...was quite scary knowing that my girlfriend was talking to one of my friends without me being there...who knows what horrible things they could have been discussing about me! But Sarah seemed quite happy with me after a day with Keri, so I guess she must have been singing my praises at least a little :)

So basically I have had a really really good 2 weeks! Amazing birthday, amazing times with Sarah, and really nice weather too!

This weekend is a long one for me too....Thursday was Assertion Day, so a "Red Day" here in Sweden, so I decided to take Friday as holiday which has given me 4 days with Sarah with nothing planned...a rarity when she comes to visit! We don't usually get the chance to spend so long together here, and I think it has been really good! We have had a few walks down by the seafront, and some days just sat in the sun, as well as some evenings in the bars and restaurants around Helsingborg. All in all, a really really nice time for us!

So what have I learned this week (or so) :
Birthdays can still be exciting and really fun, even at 28
I am getting used to Sweden being home, even if I do miss UK Home too
Helsingborg would be even lovelier if it wasn't for the wind that drops the temperature so much!

PS. Life sometimes throws curveballs at you, and how you deal with them defines you afterwards. Try and be as honest as you can with those you love, as it is easier to deal with things as they happen rather then when things are found out bit by bit. Thank you for everything that has made this birthday amazing, and for understanding and trusting me when I mess up.