Back Home After A Vacation in Sweden!

This is the first thing that I have written since my arrival back from Sweden, and it is safe to say that I am still battling jet lag.

A few weeks ago, before my departure, I wrote a column noting some of my own personal struggles with battling through depression and I have received a few letters from readers. I want to say that I appreciate you all reaching out! I hope that it was in some way useful to someone. To those struggling, we need you here and love you.

My family’s trip to Europe was quite the adventure. I love experiencing different cultures and Sweden did not disappoint.

The town of Jonkoping (sounds like Yon-Shopping) was amazing. We stayed with Malta Alumni Sam Fauth, who is my brother-in-law, and his awesome family during a very popular Swedish holiday called Midsommar (Midsummer). I didn't know Midsommar existed until a couple of days prior to coming. It was a very pleasant holiday. I ate so many strawberries that week, which is a tradition. Stands selling the delicious fruit were everywhere, and locals had opinions on which stand had the best berry.

We even had the chance to experience an American Wild West-themed theme park called High Chaparral. That day we all walked around the park with cap guns, some of which looked very realistic, and walked through old western-themed towns.

It was awesome to see another country pay tribute to a part of American history, to see Swedish people dressed as cowboys and cowgirls.

I will miss the sights, sounds, Swedish language, and even the cardio! We walked almost everywhere and to my credit, I felt like I kept up despite being the heaviest!

The food there was amazing, the people were kind, and it was nice to escape for a bit while seeing another part of the world.

It was so neat seeing pieces of history that predates the United States of America. This includes a cottage that was built in the 1600s and a castle that was built in the mid-1500s.

We also had the chance to escape the city of Jonkoping for a time out at the family cabin in the countryside. While out of town, I was able to fish for the first time all year. That was nice.

Along the trip, we landed in Germany as well as Belgium (yeah, the waffles were awesome).

I did have a fear of being stuck outside of the United States for some reason. But it wasn’t until we got to Denver that we were truly stuck.

Our flight to Billings from Denver was pushed back twice before United Airlines canceled it. That was rough with jet lag and two very tired boys. I will say the boys did great despite our issues.

We tried getting onto a flight via standby tickets but it didn’t work out. Rentals were unavailable across state lines, so we couldn’t rent a vehicle. We were truly stuck. Thankfully, Jim and Nancy Fauth (my in-laws and their son Aaron Fauth came down to save us).

We were extremely tired after the trip, but grateful that we had a chance to experience a very beautiful country and culture overseas.

We are also extremely grateful to be back home in Phillips County and for the love we received on social media from you all.