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 Well, tomorrow is the big day! First league game of the season at home! I'm soo excited!! Every session I feel like I get closer with the team, they are such a great group of girls. They come into training right after work and are so happy to be there,ready to train. And I'm so excited to be a part of that and do my best to help the team as much as I can. 

We had a great training session last night after pictures. Some set pieces, 3 on 2, and a lot of touches on the ball.

 I had a little trouble with one of the stations in our strength circuit. You lay flat and hold a wooden pole above your head. You kind of crunch with your stomach,  bring your legs up and the pole up over your legs and feet, and then bring it  underneath you, with your feet not touching the ground. Then go from underneath back to over your head. I've never done this before, a good exercise just a bit awkward at first, well at least for me haha. 

My roommates and I are going to start volunteering at a local high school, where we can sit in on their classes and assist the kids with speaking English, talk about our experiences in America and hopefully learn some Swedish. Also, we will help them with some football training sessions in the mornings. It will be fun to learn about how different our cultures are, for example:  in their high school's and universities, they don't have team sports, everyone plays on a club. Could you imagine life in America without high school and college team sports? Crazy to think about. 

Needless to say, I am really enjoying my time here already, the transition has been so smooth. The staff of the club are so on top of everything, making sure that things are going ok and that I feel welcomed. My roommates are great people to be around, live with, and I really enjoy their company. I've been very slack with pictures, but I will post some soon! 

Heyda!

 Hej!

Well this is my first full week in my new home in Borlange, Sweden. I am having a great time!! Everyone is so inviting and nice to be around! I've been trying to get into some sort of a routine, but this time difference is still taking some getting used to. Our first league game is Saturday, and I could not be more excited. 

I've enjoyed exploring the area, going to the gym, and looking forward to many bike rides. Also we played most of the whole practice yesterday which was so refreshing to finally be training with the team, and playing!!!

Well off to another bike ride to see a lake in the area!

Heyda!

 HEJ!

Finally I am  in Sweden!!!  I have been extremely busy with preparing before I came, so it has been a while since I have wrote on here! 

The week before I came to Sweden, I spent a lot of time with friends, family and continuing my training. I had a great training session with some U-16-17 boys with a club I used to play for when I was younger, it really made me excited to begin playing again! Although seeing and talking to some of my friends did make me pretty sad, I am going to miss a lot of people back in the States! 

However, finally meeting my roommates, coaches, manager, and teammates was really great! Everyone is  so welcoming and nice!! 

We had our first Swedish Cup game today, and won 8-0. My roomie Sarra scored the first goal, a nice header off a great cross into the box. I played in the last 15 minutes and scored off of a great pass into the box from my teammate Darcel. I didn't play the greatest however, I know I can do better. 

My roommates are really cool and very helpful with all the questions I have been having about how things work, and where things are. Even simple things such as pre game locker room routine, it is really funny how I forgot about things like that, and how much I have missed them. Especially the pump up music in the locker room. I'm so excited about the beginning of the season starting next weekend and really looking forward to it!! 

I apologize for the lack of writing, I just feel like time has been going by so quickly, especially with all this moving around!! Not to mention I do not have internet at my home in Ohio, crazy I know.

It has been pretty weird being back here in Ohio, the weather is touch and go, but pretty good for the most part. It has been great seeing old friends and family. I recently had a pep talk from one of my most well respected coaches that I have had, that really set my mind where it needs to be at this point, this being my last full week in the States!! It is a pretty crazy feeling knowing that I will be living in a different country for a while, where things (I'm guessing) will be very different from the States. I am getting more excited each day! 

I also am getting excited to meet all my new teammates especially  my roommate Sarra!! It will be great to have someone in the same position that I am in, to share experiences with! Also a whole new team from a new place to learn from! I cannot wait to finally train with the team I will be playing  with and actually PLAY!! I feel like it has been so long since I have played I cannot wait!!

My training continues this week, with great anticipation for the days ahead.

Well this is my final week in South Carolina, so crazy that the month of February flew by so fast! I will be taking some photos of where I have been doing a lot of my running around here, along the river, at River Front Park in Columbia. It may not be the clearest water, but there is just something about running along water that I really enjoy.  Tomorrow will be exactly 1 month until I go to Sweden, and I could not be more excited!! 

I will be heading back to Ohio on Sunday. I have mixed feelings about it, I'm going to miss training at Winthrop with my old teammates and coaches. Also my friends that are here that I won't see for 6 months, and the weather is starting to get so nice here! The 10-12 hour drive is not always the greatest thing to look forward to, but since I've done it so many times it really is not that big of  a deal anymore. 

I've been chatting with Sarra , my new roommate, I'm just so interested to hear what it is going to be like!!  Everytime we chat, it makes me so pumped to go over there. Especially to be a part of a team again, and start playing actual games soon!! 

So now my task at hand is just continuing to prepare. I'm hopefully going to find some boys teams to play with in Ohio, indoor games, and my own preseason, since I will no longer have a job like I have here. Each day I get closer to Sweden and I cannot wait!

"A winning effort begins with preparation"

"En vinnande insats börjar med beredning"