A Conclusion, But Also a Beginning...

For anyone who is still occasionally checking or faithfully reading this blog, your commitment is commendable (and apparently far exceeds that of the blogger). My longest overdue blog posting is also going to be my last, at least for this season of life.

When we last saw our super hero and his heroine, their three-week escapade across the country visiting long lost family and friends, and making some more-than-overdue introductions, was commencing. So three weeks later - oh yeah, plus another month, my bad - these were the highlights:

-a walk down the Vegas strip, highlighted by the Bellagio's famous dancing fountain

-a river rapid ride down the Arkansas River outside of Colorado Springs where we even managed to stay in the boat

-some good, hearty Texas cooking and warm Texan hospitality

-the best of friends, and their four new baby daughters since I left for Sweden, in Kansas City

-an excursion up the Washington Monument, among other sites, in D.C.

-Polo with a prince (Harry), the arrival of a President and his Lady (Obama & Michelle), a bike ride all through Manhattan and a boat cruise around Lady Liberty in New York

And three exciting weeks of places and people came to an end, but not before...

...an engagement in Central Park.

So what started as a simple Swedish blog for family and friends soon became a jätte spännande look at Swedish culture and adventures, then unexpectedly turned into a blog about pursuing love in Thailand and concludes with an engagement after a successful American journey and an even more successful courtship!

Paige and I will start our life together in September.

I am blessed beyond my wildest dreams.

Perhaps one day the blogging will continue, but for now I will conclude with an article I wrote for Transitions Abroad, arguably the top online resource for those of us in the U.S. moving abroad for work and/or life. You Swedes will have one last kick out of my Swedish language attempt:

http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/study/articles/learning-swedish-in-sweden.shtml

Pictures above:

1. Soon after our engagement, Paige and I are as radiant as the sun behind us.

2. This diamond was my late Grandmother's. I am bewildered with blessings.

3. The U.S. Capitol building behind us.

4. A baseball game in Kansas City, Missouri.

5. The two most common blog contributors also made the final picture. From left, Sean, Paige, brother Todd, cousin Angela and husband Craig. Todd and Ang's faithful reading and comments, along with so many others, made this blog what it was. Thanks to all of you, family and friends, from Sweden and Europe to Thailand and SE Asia and back home in the States. Hej då, Sa-wa-dee, k'ap and good-bye for now.