We still had Liz’s mom and Danely here until January 4 so 2024 started out nicely with family in the house. Karin, however, was still in Austria finishing up her second ski guide season. Anders went skiing up north at the end of January with his best friend Mats.
Anders has had a lot of travel this year with work, with multiple weeks away in Kumla, Tingsryd, Italy, Norway, Germany, and Finland, among others. Good thing he loves his job! It’s been a busy year, for sure, with lots of travel, and lots of moving. Martin moved in with Theo in February and then they moved again a few months later to a very nice apartment in Malmö. Karin came home from Austria at the beginning of April.
Liz is still at Axis, and celebrated her 20-year work anniversary there in October! She doesn’t really travel for work anymore, but she and Karin went to the US for 3 weeks at the end of April to stay with Grandma Linda and spend lots of time with Sarah and family. Especially nice for Karin as she hadn’t been to the States since 2018! We spent much of it antique shopping, visiting art fairs, eating great food, Karin playing pickleball with Bryce, and we got to see my niece Danely graduate from college. Karin promptly left again after our return for a week in Turkey.
Unfortunately, the day we got back from the US, Liz wrecked her knee coming in the door of the house, and ended up on crutches for 2 weeks. Most likely a meniscus injury, and it’s been a long recovery with a knee brace, physio appointments and exercises, an X-ray, and an MRI. It meant almost no daily walks during the summer, so Liz spent a lot of time creating crossword puzzles, as well as solving Martin’s, working on jigsaws, and painting pottery in addition to, of course, reading.
Liz continues on the board of the AIC, and participates in lots of events and activities, including organizing the best one of the year: Pie Night, and a tour of the Malmö Fire Station. Anders has been busy much of the year working on the MG and driving it around Skåne to various car rallys. He has also been hard at work repainting the garage, and keeping the yard and vegetable garden beautiful. He also built a perfect wood deck for the garden swing in the back corner of the yard; great for all the sunny days we had this summer!
Our garden really thrived this year and we had bumper crops of cherries, snap peas, cucumbers, kale, onions, carrots, AND potatoes. Whew! Lots of yummy salads! In May, Karin started working at Beachgarden in Malmö as head bartender as well as handling their social media. Martin joined her there later in the summer, working in the kitchen, before he started his new, current job at Folk Bodega in Lund. This has meant a lot of delicious foccacia, gelato, and pizza for all of us!
In August, we took a family trip to Ireland, spending 11 days exploring Dublin, Galway, and Belfast, and celebrating Liz’s big birthday at the Cliffs of Moher. Among other things, we saw the Giant’s Causeway, the Titanic Museum, the Temple Bar district, and the Guinness Storehouse. We had fantastic weather and loved every minute of it.
Karin turned 25 in July, and in the beginning of September she moved to Copenhagen with two friends from her ski seasons. College plans were sidetracked unexpectedly, but she is now settled in and is working two part-time jobs in Denmark, and planning for school next fall instead.
Liz’s mom and sister arrived in the beginning of November for a long visit, which was fantastic. Sarah spent part of the time disappearing for her own trip to Ireland with her husband, but we had lots of quality time together, and Grandma Linda even got to participate in our annual Friendsgiving party. Now we’re looking forward to the holidays, including Martin’s 27th birthday, and a quiet Christmas at home this year. But travel plans are already in the works for 2025!
We wish you a cozy holiday season as well, and hope it is filled with friends, family, laughter, and love.
Keep up with all the Ek Family happenings, apart from this journal:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/lizardek
Instagram: www.instagram.com/lizardek
Crosswords: www.crosshare.org/lizardek,
www.crosshare.org/Ekstraterrestrial
Mood: Christmassy
Music: Malou Prytz—Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year