And now for something entirely different.

It's taken me awhile to sit down at the computer and type up a post about what we've been doing since we left the ski resort. First because I just didn't have time and then when I did have time I didn't have the energy to rehash the whirlwind. 

A few weeks ago I got an email from a staff worker at Migrationsverket, the Swedish immigration authority. Back in August I had been granted a visitor's permit to stay in Sweden for an additional three months beyond the standard three-months that the European Commission automatically offers all US passport holders. I had applied for a nine month permit which would have given me permission to stay in Sweden for a year, but they instead offered me just three months with the recommendation to apply for an extension. When I applied for the extension of that permit in December, however, they denied the extension request and gave me one week to leave the EU. In the same letter I was told that I could appeal, but if the appeal were denied I would be immediately deported from Sweden and risk potential EU re-entry in the future. So that made my decision to leave rather clear-cut, to say the least. Since Hans was scheduled to be at work in Wisconsin within two weeks, I had to take the kids with me. We decided to go to Florida where we all have friends (me, Hans, and the kids), and the friends have space for us. It was especially important to us that our kids had some friends to play with to make this abrupt transition a little easier. (And it's sunny and relatively warm.) 

Once we decided on Florida, we scrambled to find flights out within one week that didn't require a negative covid test. We didn't have time to even get a test, nor did we want to run the risk of getting a negative result, leaving us in Sweden where we weren't allowed to be anymore. So within four days of getting the letter from Migrationsverket, we had driven 12 hours, unpacked winter clothes, packed summer clothes, and we were on a plane to Florida. Hans stayed behind and spent a week by himself scrambling to get the boat winterized and secure for below zero temperatures. He then flew to Wisconsin to work his regularly scheduled shifts.

The kids and I went from a ski vacation in northern Sweden, to an old-school Airstream camping vacation in north Florida. We wanted to fully isolate and get covid tested before we mingled and mixed with friends. After about ten days of camping and a negative covid test, our friends joined us for a couple nights camping and then we left the campground and moved into their house. 

It's hard to describe the feeling of being with good friends whom I haven't seen for almost three years on top of not seeing many friends at all for the past year. We talk and talk and talk some more. From morning coffee to late night wine. I think we're all caught up, but the next day starts fresh with more conversation and laughter. The kids too. They are bouncing off the walls with energy and excitement. I'm happily surprised that even after months of being away from English-speaking friends, the kids started playing like they had just seen each other last week. They are all learning from home--homeschool or virtual learning--so it's been easy to get back into the school groove since everyone is doing it. 

Hans will join us in Florida next week; we'll isolate for a week with him then move to other friends' house. After that week...we don't have any plans yet. I am allowed back in Sweden without any special permits or visas on April 18. Hans has to go back to Wisconsin around the beginning of March for his second vaccine jab and he has to work again at the end of April/beginning of May. So it'll probably be the second week of May before we can go back. 

It is admittedly very nice to be in the warm sunshine of Florida after the short and cold winter days of the Swedish winter. But it is also disappointing. We had planned on the kids going back to school for another couple months, at which point we expected their Swedish would be pretty good. We also looked forward to hunkering down for the winter months and experiencing not only the dark winter but also the rebirth in the spring. 

It's also unsettling to leave our brand new boat halfway around the world in the most frigid time of the year. Thankfully we have amazing friends who send us almost daily pictures of our boat and go inside and check on her often. Hans rigged a remote battery monitor so he can check the battery charge/discharge status on his phone. On a couple occasions he's noticed that the batteries haven't been charging. He suspected cold temperatures so our friend went over, confirmed that it was freezing down below and added a heater to get the temps back up.

So, generally speaking, we're all good. The boat is good. We're all happy and healthy. We feel so much love from friends and family in Sweden and in the US. We knew that getting me just a visitor's permit that expired in the middle of January had the potential to backfire, but we were willing to run the risk. Of course, we really assumed that they would renew the permit. But in the time of covid, assuming is probably a bad idea. We are usually very detail-oriented people when it comes to future planning, and this was one of the only times that we've played with risk like this. And it didn't turn out. Oh well. We'll be back in Sweden in time for the tulips and spring flowers and will be happier than ever to be back home on the boat.