My 'other' family

After living in the States for 9 years, my family decided it was time for them to move back home to Norway. Originally, we had only planned to stay in the U.S. for a year or two, so this desire to move back didn't come as a surprise.

I, however, was not ready! I had just finished my first year of college and loved it so far. I loved my school, my program, and especially, all of my new friends. I had really gotten comfortable there and did not want to start all over at a new college. So I made the decision to stay in the U.S. alone. This was a huge deal for me, as I had always lived close to my family, but it was the right decision!

When my parents and sisters moved to Norway, I leaned on my best friend, Nicole. She invited me into her home and let me live with her and her family in the summers when my college campus was closed.
Nicole and her family invited me to all of their holiday celebrations. They even made a bedroom in their house for me! They became my security and comfort to help me survive living on the other side of the ocean from my family.


I have tried to thank Nicole and her parents many, many times, but really, how do you thank someone who has done this much for you? How do you pay back someone who has offered you their home, their family time, and their love? I wish there was more I could do to let them know how much they've impacted my life and how thankful I am to them.

They are truly amazing people!!!

Another successful family reunion

We just spent this past weekend with 31 relatives in celebration of my grandparents who both turned 80 years old. We hadn't seen my cousins in a year and many of them have little babies now so there were a lot of little ones running around.

The hotel we stayed at was located up in the mountains so we were surrounded by beautiful nature. Although we had somewhat of a program with the relatives, we spent a lot of time just enjoying the outdoors.
They had a mini-golf course that the kids found a lot of fun, plus we ran into a herd of sheep one afternoon. The sheep came right up to us and let us pet them. They were so cute! Aiden said they felt like a blanket! ;)
Elliot's favorite part of the weekend must have been the pool (or getting to stay up late). My dad asked if Elliot wanted to go along on his morning swims, which Elliot was so proud to do! So every morning, Elliot woke up in a good mood and was ready to walk down the hallway to get his grandpa "Boff" so they could go swimming together!

We had a nice 3 course dinner for my grandparents on Saturday evening. My grandpa stood up while we waited for dessert to say a few words. His words were so extremely touching - it was a a moment I will never forget. Later that night, a few of my uncles and cousins brought out gitars and played some tunes while the rest of us sang along.

Around 1am, a lot of people started turning in. That's when one of my cousins found a piano and brought out his hidden talents - he could play the piano like I've never heard before! He played for two hours straight without a single stop to think about what song he would play next. The 10 of us who were still awake stood gathered around the piano with wine in one hand while we were bursting out songs. We even squeezed in some line-dancing at one point. It was a blast!

On top of it all, it was especially good to have a weekend away from home with Mike. We've both worked a lot of overtime lately so it was really nice to be together the entire weekend for a change. I loved waking up next to him (usually he's left for work before I wake up). I loved having meals served and then we could run straight outside to play without having to clean up.

Simply, I loved having a weekend away with my family and all of my relatives. It was a blast and I can't wait to do it again! :)

It's "Fårikål" season!

Norwegians are all about their traditions, especially when it comes to food. Last week, the season for Fårikål started. Fårikål is a meal which consists of lamb and cabbage. It sounds plain and simple, but it's absolutely delicious!



So thanks to my mom, tonight's dinner was Fårikål! Mike was called in to work (again) so my mom invited me and the boys over. Mike is not a big fan of lamb so this is not a meal I would've made at home, so it worked out perfect that she was having it tonight so that I could have a taste too!


Here's the recipe incase anyone is interested in looking into it:

http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/1452/f-rik-l.aspx

Packing our bags

We're going out of town tomorrow so I'm spending the evening doing laundry and packing our bags. My grandparents both turned 80 years old so my mom and her siblings decided to plan something special that would create a memory for everyone!

They found a hotel up in the mountains and invited four generations of family to spend the weekend with them.

I can't wait to just get away, have a relaxing weekend with my family, and to see all of my relatives again!!!

Everyone deserves a ME day once in a while

Being a mother of two with a full-time job and a house to take care of, I don't get a lot of time to take care of myself. Now that I finally had some time off with no kids to take care of (they were at daycare), I decided to head downtown for the day.

I called a friend of mine (Stine - the nicest, funniest girl you'll ever come across) so we decided to meet up for lunch. She brought me to a sandwich shop similar to Big Bite and Subway, only I guess it's run by students. As soon as you walked into this cute little place, you could smell the delicious bread they had. They had a bar with tons of different spreads, meats and veggies to choose from. It may not sound that exciting, but I tell ya, it was delicious! I couldn't resist but to get a coffee as well. It wasn't Starbucks or Caribou, but it hit the spot anyway.

After that, it was shopping time! Mike had given me a rule before I left home about this: I was to shop for myself and only myself. No kids' clothes. No gifts. No surprises for him. Just stuff for myself!

My mom sent me a message after I had already shopped for a couple of hours. She was in the same area so she met up with me for more shopping.

Needless to say, it was pretty nice to have a day to just focus on me for a change! But now, I miss my boys so I'm heading to daycare to see if they're ready to come home :)

Baking day with the boys

Elliot and I love to bake and usually try to bake something every Sunday together. Well, since I have some days off work, I decided to have a fun day and bake with Aiden and Elliot today.

The kids were so excited. They ran up to the sink to wash their hands, then got out the recipe book to decide what we should make. Our final choice ended up being cinnamon rolls :)

We made WAY too many, which was perfect because then I had enough to freeze some. Mike was so excited when he came home from a long day of work to a warm house filled with a yummy cinnamon scent.

The boys got to make their own of course so we had all sorts of shapes of rolls. We had some normal round ones, some cute heart rolls (Elliot's excellent idea), and Aiden's creative shapes. hehe ;) It was really fun and they ended up tasting delicious too! :)

P.S. I didn't have the digital camera near by so I took some pictures with my phone but they didn't really turn out. I had a picture of the finished product but that one I can't find. Sry!

Hunting week

Elliot's daycare is really good about having different themes and trying out new activities. This week they've decided to have a "Hunting Week." Since we don't hunt, I think it's great that Elliot gets to learn about it from someone with experience.

The staff put a lot of focus on hunting being a form of gathering food and that it doesn't have to include weapons. However, you know boys and weapons... They could've easily done without the blueberry picking and chit-chat about what a hunter is, etc. Their favorite parts were definitely when they got to hold the weapons and try out shooting with a bow and arrow (at balloons which were hanging from the trees).

They made a lot of good food this week, which Elliot really appreciated. Some of their lunches include salmon, veggie pitas, and moose meat in a stew.

Elliot was excited to wake up every morning to get to daycare and he came home every afternoon filled with great stories!

A day off work

I had the day off work today, which I was absolutely STOKED for! I had so many things I wanted to get done, plus this meant more time with my wonderful boys. Elliot really wanted to go to daycare today since they were starting their "Hunting Week," so I decided to send them both for a short day.

It was so nice and relaxing to wake up without an alarm. We sat at the table and enjoyed our breakfast together for such a long time. Elliot told stories and Aiden copied everything his big brother said while laughing. It was precious!

After a couple hours at home, we were ready to head out for the daycare. Since we weren't in a hurry, we decided to walk there. It's not that far away, but usually I drop them off on the way to work since we're often limited on time in the mornings. The walk should've taken us 15 minutes or so... we probably took half an hour! It was so fun though! Aiden kept getting distracted by toys and bikes that people had out in their yard so Elliot and I kept having to chase after him to get him back on the right path. We were laughing so hard!

I only took one picture... I was running and laughing too hard the rest of the time! :p

I can't believe that Elliot starts first grade next year (FYI: we don't have kindergarten here) and will be walking to SCHOOL! I'm sure I'll walk with him and pick him up once in a while, but since we live so close he'll most likely just walk by himself.

I can't wait to look out the window and see my son walking down the street carrying a backpack! Awww! *melt*

Great-grandparents <3

Sunday has always been a day for family and friends for us. We spend every Sunday by going out (hiking, boating, picnic, or whatever)... sometimes it's just the four of us, but most of the time we get together with friends or family.

Ever since Mike has started his new job, our Sundays have changed quite a bit. They have had so much to do that they've asked if people can come in on Sundays to get them ready for a new week. Being that Mike really wants this job and still hasn't been hired permanently, he helps out in any way that he can.

So once again, Mike had to go to work this Sunday. The weather was crappy, which usually doesn't stop us from going outside, but today I was in a mood to just relax inside with good food and warm drinks.

Good food + warm drinks = my grandparents' house <3

My grandparents are always ready for visitors! I don't know how they do it, but they always have food ready incase someone stops by. Elliot was my grandparents first great-grandchild, so they've always had a special connection. They are so proud of him - it's so cute! They tend to go a bit overboard with some of the compliments, but he loves it so it's all good. It didn't take long before Aiden stole the attention away by jumping into his great-grandpa's lap with a book. They sat there reading together for such a long time, while Elliot helped his great-grandma in the kitchen.

Elliot and Aiden are so blessed to have their great-grandparents so involved in their lives! This ended up being the perfect day for a nice, relaxing day indoors.

A productive Saturday

Mike and I were so motivated to get stuff done this weekend. Our to do list was long so it was impossible to get it all done, but we were excited to get going on some of the projects at least.

Coincidently, my mom and dad asked if the boys wanted to come play at their house today. My parents are so good with them and always find fun things to do that would've never even crossed my mind. They let the kids help them with projects, they spend a lot of time outside with them, and they do so many fun things together!

We dropped Aiden and Elliot off at my parents and rushed out on some errands. We got TONS done! I could list it all, but I'm not so sure that actually interests anyone. ;)

When we came back to my parents' house, the kids were having a blast outside and were not ready to go home. Elliot was helping my dad clean out the gutters. It may not sound that exciting, but climbing a long latter all the way up to their roof was quite fun!


My mom and Aiden were looking at the neighbor's pond and fish, which apparently was pretty interesting because Aiden did not have time to give us a hug.


Seriously, I am so thankful for my parents and I'm so happy that my kids are so lucky to be so close to them!

Remembering 9/11

On the morning of September 11th of 2001, I remember being suddenly woken up by my roomie, Erika. She came running upstairs and yelled so loud that all three of us other roomies could hear her. She told us to hurry downstairs to watch the news. She said a lot more, but we were all too tired to realize what had actually happened. We dragged our bodies down the stairs with our eyes still half closed.

My eyes opened wide when I saw the Twin Towers under attack on TV. I couldn't believe my eyes. It was surreal. This couldn't really be happening! A sound wasn't made. Tears were rolling down my cheeks as I heard the details of what was happening in New York City.


I immediately started thinking about all of my friends who lived on the East Coast. I thought about the people who were on board of the airplanes that crashed and their families who were sitting at home watching the news, just as I was.

It's been exactly eight years now since this tragic day. It's beyond words how I feel about what happened that day. I am so proud to be a dual citizen and half American on days like this. I'm proud of how united the citizens stood after this horrific day. I am proud that the citizens stood together - no matter their race, sex, or religious beliefs - to prove to the terrorists that we cannot be broken.


I will always remember the victims and those they left behind on this day eight years ago!

I heart skype

AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo Msgr, Myspace, Facebook, Twitter..... The list for online networks to make socializing easier for us lazy people who can't pick up a phone could go on and on. It has gotten completely out of hand, yet I'm right there in the front row following along with the continuous changes.

My most recent addiction this past year has been Skype. I absolutly love Skype and am so thankful for it! It allows us to call our family and friends on the other side of the world for free (if they have skype) or close to nothing (if you call from skype to a normal non-skype phone). We use Skype all the time and can talk for as long as we want without ever worrying about the cost of the conversation. It's amazing!

The only negative thing about it is that the connection can be bad at times, so there have been times where we've gotten so frustrated that we've simply given up and called from our normal phones. This isn't often though!

So for you guys who are choking on expensive phone bills, I definitely recommend looking into Skype!

You don't have to use it for long-distance calls only. We have actually called my family on it a few times too (they live only 15 minutes away from here. hehe), but that has been so that the kids could talk to them using the webcamera. :)

Well, my skype contact list is up and a few friends are on so I think it's time to Skype a little. Have a good day!

107 days 'til Christmas

I am SO excited for Christmas!!! Both Aiden and Elliot are old enough now to understand it better and they will appreciate it just that much more. I have so many fun plans for us, and can't wait for all of the simple things:

Playing in the snow

Time with my family

The neighborhood Christmas tree lighting

Taking our kids on sleigh-rides

Taking our family to Pre-Christmas Fun Days

Having extra time at home with our boys

Decorating the Christmas tree

AWWW!!!! I looooove the Christmas season!!! <3

My very first diaper cake

A friend of mine had a baby early this summer and it's a girl, which means I got to go shopping in the pink section of the store. Being that I only have boys, it's not often that I get to buy girlie stuff so I get especially excited when my friends have baby girls that I can shop for! :)

Because there were quite a few friends that were going in on the gift, I decided to put some extra time into it and make it a bit more creative than my usual 'wrap-it-in-the-store' gifts. I bought a pack of baby diapers, a rattle, a baby book, pacifiers, bath stuff, a teether (one of those that you can put in the freezer so the baby can bite/suck on it when they're teething), and a stylish pink retro'ish dress with this adorable white sweater. I also bought some supplies to put together this creative package: A diaper cake!

I had a plan of how I wanted it to look but I had never actually made one before. Elliot wanted to help me, and he did a great job!

The final product:


I love attempting to be creative and making fun things like this, especially when it's for someone else. So if anyone wants a diaper cake, either for yourself or to give to someone else, let me know! I can't wait to make more!!! :)

Daddy's little helpers

Aiden and Elliot are so lucky to have such an incredible daddy! I had to work a few hours this morning so Mike had the boys home with him.

He had taken the boys outside to help him get some work done on some building project he's working on. Both of the boys had their own tool-belt on with their own little tools placed in all the little pockets and loops. They were so cute!

I'm so proud of my three working men! <3

Mom to the rescue!

Today was one of the crazy days that is the perfect example of yesterday's blog topic: balancing your family and your job! Mike had to work the evening shift and it's a new job so he really didn't want to take time off. Aiden was sick so he was home with Mike during the day and Elliot was at daycare/pre-school. I usually leave work around 3-4pm, but had to stay late today. Since Aiden was sick, we were trying to juggle around our schedules to see what would work best.

We lucked out and didn't have to stress about it because my mom came to the rescue! :)

My mom went to our house to take care of little Aiden-bear so that Mike could get to work on time. Then the two of them went to the daycare to pick up Elliot. I sent a message letting her know that I would be home as fast as I could because the kids were probably hungry for dinner.

In response I get a message telling me that I don't need to hurry home because she had it all under control. I came home a little after 5pm to the dinner table set and three smiley faces waiting for me to join them around the table. <3


What almost became a stressful day instead became a relaxing day THANKS TO MY MOM!

Balancing family with a job

Nothing is tougher than finding the right balance between your family and your job. This is a problem I'm constantly trying to deal with, especially lately! I need the job for financial reasons and I like my coworkers so I want to do a good job as well, but no matter what, I will always prioritize my family.

Mike and our boys are everything to me! I would do anything for them and they are the one thing I would drop absolutely anything for! Lately, this has been a struggle because Aiden and Elliot keep taking turns being sick. This means that Mike and I have to trade off staying home from work to take care of them. We are required to get off work with pay in order to stay home with a sick child, but I still feel terrible when I have to be away from work and causing them the hassle of doing my part, finding people to cover for me, etc. I hate that feeling! You shouldn't feel bad for taking care of your children when they need you. You shouldn't feel guilty for prioritizing your family before your job when your sick child needs you to take care of him/her.

Mike and I have a system for how to balance our family and our jobs when one of us has to stay home with our kids. We take turns depending on the days and what we have going on at work that day. We do our best to be respectful to our coworkers and not cause them any hassle. However, I still get the guilty feeling when I prioritize my family over my job. It shouldn't be that way and I want to find a way to change that because it drives me nuts!

Enough said... Let's just cross our fingers and hope that our kids stay healthy for a while so that everyone can be happy :)

She's leeeeaving on a jetplane :(

My younger sister, Anniken, left for the States today and I'm already counting down the days until I get to see her again. She's going to Cali to study and I couldn't be happier for her! She has found a house with three guys and a girl (and a pizza place... haha, Anniken!) and has all her plans set to go.Her boyfriend, Padrick, lives in the States so even though he's not in California, at least she'll be closer to him than she's been this past year. He's an awesome guy, both as a friend to us and a good guy for my lil' sis', so we're really happy for her that she finally gets to live closer to him!

It's going to be so weird! I'm used to seeing her several times a week, sometimes every single day, and now I won't see her for 4 months! I'm already betting that Aiden and Elliot will ask about her a lot because they're absolutely addicted to their aunties!

WE'LL MISS YOU, ANNIKEN!

('member when Aiden wouldn't stop hugging and kissing you before you left? haha)