The Prayer

You continue to amaze me, Dadio! 

♥ With every breath you have, you share your words of love. With every ounce of energy, you look into our eyes and smile. With every muscle of strength, you wrapped your arms around your grandkids and held them tightly to remind them you will always be here! ♥ 

PS - Thank you for giving me my first birthday hug today, Dadio :)

A smile means more than a thousand words

Tonight I experienced more memories that I will hold onto forever.

My dad was laying on the hospital bed resting from a high dose of morphine.  As I walked into the room, my dad opened his eyes and smiled.  Not just a welcome smile, but a huge smile with true excitement that I was coming to see him.  A smile just like Olivia's when her grandparents come over to visit.

After a few hours of small talk - mostly conversations between my sisters and my mom while my dad was resting, it was time for us to go home for the night.  As I leaned over to give my dad a good night hug, he whispered "I'm proud of you."

I am proud of you too, dadio!

My baby girl is (soon) 8 months!

I cannot believe my little girl is soon 8 months old.  The time has gone by so quickly!  She is definitely not a baby anymore.  She crawls around the floor really quick.  If she wants to get to her brothers' toys even faster, she skips putting her knees up and just pulls herself across the floor.

Two weeks ago she started pulling herself up on our coffee table, but usually fell half way up and bumped her poor chin on the table.  She has learned how to pass that challenge by going for softer items, like the couch or chairs instead, but today, she discovered the excitement of standing by toys!  Her eyes lit up as she crawled around the room and to a new toy!

As far as other updates so I can look back at this and remember the small moments, Olivia is the sweetest baby girl I've ever met.  She is very quiet and never fusses.  If she cries, she wants to eat or sleep.  She's as simple as that!  She spends most of the day just playing and smiling.  She doesn't like to be held to much, especially when people try to pass her around at parties - she'd rather sit on the floor and play with her toys.  She does like people, however, but at her level and with her toys!

This little girl LOVES her big brothers!  She looks up to them so much.  When either of the boys walk into the room, she starres at them and smiles, waiting for a reaction from them.  Elliot can make her laugh by the smallest noise or movement, while Aiden can comfort her with the nicest hugs and kisses!  They are quite the amazing trio who absolutely loves each other!  I can't wait to see how this will continue as they grow up.

My lil' sis' is home again :)

My younger sister is awesome.  She's 7 years younger than me, but I still look up to her.  She's has the most random talents that have nothing to do with each other, yet she's still seriously good at every one of them.  She's funny, yet serious.  I can talk to her about absolutely everything and she will always support me.  She never.ever. judges ANY ONE!!!  This just might be the most impressive personality trait of hers... it is at least something I especially love about her.  People can do something rude or thoughtless, and instead of looking down upon them, Anniken treats them the exact same until she knows the facts, and THEN, makes her own opinion without being affected by any one else!  She is so positive!  She has this energy about her that just makes people happy.  Seriously!

Best of all, she's BACK from the States!!! :)  She has moved back to live here with our family for a while.  It is so exciting because she just completes our family.  We really needed her here and this will be so good for us!  I wish she could've brought along her boyfriend as well because he's just as great, but until I win the lottery so I can ship him over, they are sacrificing time together so she can be with her family during tough times.

Today is a good day!

I told myself last night that no matter what, I was going to wake up with a smile on my face and make it a good day!

I woke up to a smiley 3-year-old walking quietly into our bedroom.  Instead of the usual "Good morning" or "Wake up!" he simply said "Du e fin mamma" (you're pretty mommy).  Perfect start to my day! :)  Together, Aiden and I made breakfast, woke Elliot up to join us, and then Olivia woke up shortly after.  It was a relaxing start to our day.

Now, the sun is shining!  Olivia is taking her morning nap in her stroller outside on her deck, while I'm sitting on the other side of the window from her enjoying my coffee while enjoying some quiet computer time.

Absolutely.perfect.morning!

Dear dadio

I've often heard quotes such as "Live life to the fullest" and "Live each day as if it's your last," but you've given me a new definition to those words.  You were given a challenge that not many can handle.  You were struck with a disease that we couldn't just take away.  You chose to fight!


From day one, you told us we are going to fight this by enjoying every moment, and that's exactly what we've been doing.  You never use the words "it's not fair" - you use words like "I have been blessed with an amazing life."  Your spirit has kept us up and reminded us to continue living, hoping and dreaming.  Your positive attitude has allowed us to truly enjoy life with you by our side and continue to make fun memories that we will hold tight forever.

We wake up every morning with two choices: to have a good day or a bad day.  You have taught me that every day can be a good day so I wake up with a smile on my face, thankful for those I have in my life, and appreciative of the wonderful times I've had in my past, my present, and my future.

I have memories that live within me and cross my mind every day.  I remember a childhood full of laughter and smiles.  You and mom were always great about taking us girls places and showing us the world.  You brought us on picnics, hikes, skiing, visiting family and friends.  We were often on the go and experiencing new things.  My most fond memory must be when you took me - only me without my siblings! - to the United States!  I was so proud that I got to travel alone with you to see our American family!

My teenage years hold even more great memories.  You were "the cool dad" and all my friends wanted to visit me to hear your jokes.  I often found them at our house before I was home or calling me but talking to you for five minutes before I finally got the phone.  Not only did you take me and my friends to concerts, you brought us early to sneak in so we could see the band warm up (I won't mention when you fell asleep during one concert).  

On top of all the fun, you also taught me to be responsible.  You helped me find a good balance in life, trying to multitask school, work, yet still enjoy my social life.  Although I probably had to learn a few things on my own (like working 90 hours/week made for nice paychecks, but who needs money when you don't have time), you are a huge influence on how I think!

Dadio, you are one amazing person and I am taking everything you've demonstrated through your life into mine.  You've taught me how I can be a loving parent, a faithful friend, and a supportive spouse.  You've shown me how to be a good communicator and a great listener.  And although things will not always be easy, you've taught me how to live life to the fullest!

I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being the incredible DAD that you are!  Thank you for being my best friend.  Thank you for guiding me through my role as a parent.  Thank you for influencing my children, who absolutely love their Grandpa 'Boff'.  Thank you for being best buds with my fiance.  Most of all, thank you for just being you!

I love you Dadio!

It's time to get personal

I've taken a break from the blog world these past few months and today I will explain why.  I want this blog to be ME, meaning I want it to be stories of my life, both good and bad.  For the most part, I love my life and am perfectly content so I usually blog about the fun moments I'm blessed to experience.  These past few months, I've been through the hardest times of my life.  Therefore, I didn't feel that it would be right to write about the happy moments while ignoring the tough times, so I simply took a break from blogging to focus on my life.

Life has been hard these past few months!  Really hard!!!  As many of you know, my family is my world!!!  They're the people I hold closest to my heart.  The friends I go to when I need support.  The parents I go to for advice.  The sisters I go to if I need a shoulder to cry on.  The family I go to when I want a good laugh.  

My family is my everything!

November 2010, my parents received some terrible news.  My dad's cancer has spread and the chemo treatments are no longer effective.  There are currently no other (proven) options as far as treatment so his only option was to discontinue the chemo treatments and simply enjoy life to the fullest.  Neither my parents nor us kids wanted to know the full picture as far as time.  My dad is a miracle and his positive energy and attitude will spread cheer and love to everyone as we continue to enjoy every day together.

I can't lie... I'm PISSED and sad, both at the same time.  I spent a long time in denial, refusing to believe the truth.  My dad is my hero and heros don't die.  After a lot of conversations and tears with my family, I realized I had two choices: 1) to be upset that life is unfair or 2) live life to the fullest by continuing to make memories!

So here I am today.  Still sad and upset about the truth of life, but doing my best to be thankful for my past, my present, and my future.

The reason I am telling you about this is because writing is therapy.  I want to write about my life, both good and bad, so our family and friends on the other side of the world can stay updated.  Although we're beyond upset about the truth of life and death, this allows me to blog about the moments we're taking to enjoy life and live it to the fullest.

Love at first sight

It's been eight years since the day that changed my life:  The day I met the love of my life!

It was Thanksgiving Day.  My family had moved back to Norway three years earlier, so I had been invited to spend this holiday with my friend Lori and her family.  Lori's high school had their annual reunion this evening at a local bar.  Although I wouldn't know any one, she convinced me to come along.  We were going to meet a few of her friends who had gone to the same high school and then drive to the bar together.

In the door walks this cute guy I had noticed at a karaoke bar a couple weeks ago!!!  I was SO excited!  It didn't take long before we got into a conversation.  His name was Mike and he had moved to Minnesota from California.  He was two years older than me and working as the manager of a country club (where I had been with my roommate because she wanted to apply for a job there).  His dad actually grew up in Minneapolis just a few blocks away from where I used to live, and his twin sister studied in the same program as me at the same college!

When we got to the bar, everyone ran off greeting and hugging friends they hadn't seen in a long time.  Mike, on the other hand, went up to the bar and bought me a drink (a Smirnoff Ice - my favorite at the time)!  What  a gentleman :)  After hours of conversation, I had already developed a huge crush on him.  He was simply amazing!  He was so easy to talk to, and such a funny guy!  At the end of the night, he told me that he had actually seen me at the karaoke bar a couple weeks ago and had asked a friend about me. hihi :)  Too cute!  To skip all of the cheesy details, it was the best evening of my life.  We stayed up late talking and listening to music, and I couldn't wait to see him again!

I knew it was meant to be!  There had been so many events in the past that we had both been at plus we had so much in common, so if it hadn't happened this Thanksgiving, I believe it would've happened anyway!

The following days were so exciting!  We were both falling very deeply and very fast!  Less than a month after we met, I was going to Norway to spend Christmas with my family.  Mike got his passport and came to visit me while I was there.  He met my family, they got along immediately, and... well, the rest is history! :)

Guess why I'm so happy this morning???

Ut på tur, aldri sur!

We brought Olivia on our little hike today and she LOVED it! She slept most of the time, but was really happy during the little time that she was awake. She was so comfortable and absolutely loving the fresh air!!!