Day 37, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!

Today's my 22nd birthday! :) Happy Birthday to me! :) 


I woke up at 5 am this morning, had some cereal and coffee, and biked down to the bakery. I helped the bread baker from 6-8. He had me working with a lot of dough. I had to cut off 2000 kg sections and then roll those out onto boards, and then put the boards in this machine that cut them into circles. Then I had to slather different creams onto dough for cinnamon rolls and some other kind. Then he showed me how to roll them, and then he cut them, and showed me how to twist them around my fingers for cinnamon twists. 


From 8-10 I worked with Helen again. I coated the sides of a cake with cookie crumbs, and then cut them into pieces and moved them onto a platter. Then for the rest of the time she showed me how to roll out this pie crust stuff in the machine, and I used a cookie cutter to cut small circles and put them into tiny cupcake cups, and then those set over night. After that, I turned cookies upside down, filled the middle with cream, and then placed a cookie on top. 


I left the bakery at 10:15, and biked back to the house. I napped from 10:30-12, and when I woke up my birthday package from home was waiting outside my door for me! I got a bunch of running tank tops and spandex bottoms, the water mixes that I love, a can of my favorite almonds (blazin' buffalo wing), lotion, self tanner, antibacterial soap, and birthday cards. 


At 12:15, Kelsey and I went for a very leisurely 20 minute jog/walk. My knee has been bothering me since walking for 10 hours around Stockholm yesterday. After we got done exercising, I showered and got ready. At 1:30 I went upstairs and everyone was outside for a surprise get together for my birthday! One of the girls on the team made me a strawberry cake (typical swedish birthday cake), and My and Louisa made chocolate balls! We ate that and had lemonade. I also got some presents... Kelsey got me sour cream and onion cashews, and this wine that tastes like apple pie. Ingrid bought me a sweden shirt and visor, and some swedish candy. Karin and the family bought me 2 swedish elementary books so I could learn basic words, and then at dinner they gave me measuring cups with swedish and american measurements, as well as dry ingredient measuring cups (same with the measurements), a swedish cookbook full of desserts, a cheese slicer, and a small scale that you can weigh ingredients on (it has grams, oz, and lbs). 


After we had fika, we had some real food, they made some tortillas and I had bread with butter and melted cheese and tomatoes. I also tried a couple squares of their marabou chocolate. Afterwards we sat around outside. I jumped on the trampoline a little bit, and then Kelsey joined me and she fell off, lol. We helped Karin fold clothes outside, and then My, Kelsey, and I had to change so we could bike down to the softball field and teach the little girls at 5. We played a few games with them that they really enjoyed and we kept score so they would stay interested in the games. 


Afterwards, we biked back to the house and sat around outside until dinner was ready at 7:45. We had (upon my request) different types of herring, cold smoked salmon, grilled salmon, corn on the grill, tomatoes on the grill, red peppers on the grill, bread with cheese and butter, boiled potatoes, and boiled eggs with caviar on top. Micke bought me a bunch of coke zero cans for my birthday that he said are off-limits for everyone else in the house, haha. 


After dinner, Kelsey and I biked down to the store so I could buy a bunch of apples, and Karin asked me to get pesto and ham for a pasta salad they are making for a picnic for us tomorrow. I also bought myself a Marabou premium dark chocolate mousse bar  and a bag of mixed nuts w/ fruit :) I paid Karin back for those 2 things though. After biking with Kelsey to her place and then dropping the food off at the house, I took my ipod and went for a long 11.5 mile bike ride around Enkoping. I just got back from that and am now planning on relaxing and reading for the rest of the night. 


I had a great birthday, the family did everything to make this day special for me, but I miss my family back home very much. It's not the same celebrating without them. 


Tomorrow we are going some place to see another castle, supposedly very nice, and there we will have a picnic. I've got practice at 6 tomorrow night, though, so we won't be gone all day. 


That's all for today :)