We have a BAPTISM this week!!!!

Heeeello from the North Pole *insert snowflake emoji* :)

Things are just going so well up here! In fact, we have a BAPTISM this coming Saturday :) Unfortunately, it is not the one we were planning on with Ehsan...he kind of stopped talking to us. Won't answer our calls or texts, doesn't answer the door...I feel like his stalker but it's fine. Anything to bring the sheep into the fold ;) I used to get so sad when people didn't text me back at home, but now it's nothing. Going on a mission makes you as tough as a rock :) But anyway BAPTISM!! We had a family home evening with Stefan, his dad, and his stepmom this week. We talked about how setting a baptismal date was totally his choice, and then he pulls out a date in December. Syster Bolton and I just looked at each other and were like "lol NOPE". The boy is so ready and does not need to wait until December! Äldste Allsop came in and saved us by telling him how hard Satan works on a person when he knows they have decided to do something good. It would be unnecessarily hard on Stefan to wait until December. I completely agreed because I have seen that with Ehsan :( But we talked to Stefan yesterday at church, and he said he wants to be baptized this Saturday!! (There may have been happy dancing after he turned around). He is so excited, we are so excited, and his family is so excited. YAY GOSPEL! :)

Our week was great with other investigators as well. We had 2 really awesome guys come to church. One is named Abood. He is very solidly Muslim, but has read the Book of Mormon twice (in two different languages) in the span of 4 weeks and feels something very different about the book and meeting with us. He always has so many questions and it is way cool! He participated in Sunday School a ton because he actually knew what they were talking about when they were reading from Alma. I was proud. Haha! The other guy is named Henrik. He has read the Bible like 5 times through (I KNOW right) and, in his words, is "taking a leap of faith" by trying to change his life with us! He came to church, he is reading the Book of Mormon, and really trying to believe. We were so excited they came to church!  

And of course, I know you all are dying to hear about the surströmming fest. My verdict: it was really really really gross and I will never ever ever eat surströmming again. We watched the elders and one of the young men open all of the cans of rotten fish...the cows in the field we were next to came running because it smelled so bad. And the fish tastes like it smells! No thank you! Some Swedes absolutely love it......they are crazy.

Surströmming.....Mmmmmmm. Or not.

Erin's reaction! Hahaha!

At the surströmming fest.

Now this is how it's supposed to be eaten!

Yesterday after church, we were able to eat dinner with the Tolleys and the Kohlers, two missionary couples here who were on a road trip through Luleå. The Kohlers have their daughter with them as a missionary too, and it was really fun to get to know and talk to all of them. We ate Hawaiian haystacks (oh my goodness I miss those) in the elders' apartment (that was too weird. haha). We were going to eat at our apartment, but I guess no one wanted to squeeze into a one room-er...#livinginstyle ;) It was SO FUN. I encourage everyone to serve a senior couple mission because the missionaries absolutely will worship you ;)

Syster Bolton, Syster Mod, the Kohlers and the Tolleys.

Facts of Sweden:

-it gets dark at 2:30 *erin dies*

-IT GETS DARK AT 2:30!!!!! *erin dies...again*

-we don't have snow anymore, but I heard Utah does! hehe! ;)

Älskar ni alla!!!!!!! xoxoxox Erin :)

She was in the newspaper AGAIN!! This time in Luleå!

A guy just came up to Erin and Syster Bolton and asked if he could ask them a few questions. Most people featured are from Sweden, and then the two missionaries from Utah.

The RS sisters from Meadow, UT (the Beckstrands home stake) knitted mittens for ALL of the missionaries in Sweden. This is just a small group of them. Each pair contained a cute little note. What a sweet thing to do!

Some of Erin's favorite girls! Aren't they darling?