Already? You're Kidding Me.

This drawing was on the kitchen table last week. Could it be the early emergence of the adolescent poetic soul. God, I hope not. She's only ten.

Oh Christmas Tree!

To Plantasjan we go to hunt down our Christmas tree! After comparing tree upon tree, we finally found one that didn't make someone cry. A victory for mothers everywhere!
The whole process was just like at home, down to folks tying tree to the tops of cars and cursing at tangles of holiday lights.

The lights, however, cost more than the trees, with a signal set of white lights topping the expense list at $35 each. Zoweee Momma! Welcome to Norway.

The Dentist Appointment Two

Well, we went back to the dentist. And had another adventure trying to get into the dentist office.

Upon arriving we hit our first roadblock. As you see in picture two, the entrance into which we walked last time, was just gone. The little entrance way just drops off and the place where the door used to be, is now a window.

So, we continued down the driveway to the side of the building. There we found seven locked door. Finally, one opened. And into a different dentist office we came. But, the waiting room was empty and the the inner door was locked. No bell to ring either.

So, we went to another door, another dentist office. And, there was no one there. I even went into the inner office and hollered, "hello". No one.

Then to a wine store. Where no one spoke English.

So we went to a dry cleaners. There was no one there either. So, we walked through a construction site and saw...miraculously... a set of stairs! And behind them, an entrance! But, alas, the stairs were blocked off at the top with orange fencing. And, even if we hopped the fencing, it was 3 feet of nothing between the top stair and the entrance door.

After 15 minutes and walking around the building, no exaggeration, we found a small break in the fence where we squeezed through to a back door to a pharmacy. No one even looked s us strangely when we emerged from the storage room.

Once in the office, we found that we were supposed to be able to get in through one of the first seven locked doors. Somehow it had been locked to folks from the outside. Bad for business. But, hey, its free, so they don't care!

New Bathroom!

This is the pictureof the bathroom that I promised ages ago...

Enjoy!

St Lucia's Day Procession

So, all things Swedish aren't horrible to Norwegians. One of the rare things is the celebration of Santa Lucia on December 13. Santa Lucia (Lucy) was a virgin martyr from Italy who is said to be the Queen of Lights. Rumor has it that "peaceful" Vikings traveled to Italy in the fifth century and brought stories of a woman of radiant beauty who bears food for the starving people of Sweden.

Wearing virgin white and a red sash, Lucia traditionally travels from home to home in a city, bringing baked goods and lighted candles to the townfolk on the darkest night of the year. When she returns home at day break, the long nights of winter over.
Nowadays, and in the Norsk spirit of privacy, many families have a lussibrud (Lucy Bride) who wakes her family in the morning on December 13, wearing her costume and bringing saffron rolls and coffee to the rest of her family. Often, in school, younger kids have a procession through the other classrooms. Boys wear long white shirts and cone hats. They are called "Star Boys."

We had our own procession around the apartment complex. Breaking all social more's of Norway, the kids, in costume, went from door to door, delivering baked good like the olden days. Literally half the people didn't' open their doors to our knocks, though we knew they were home. But those who did peek through their cracked doors were gracious, surprised, and seemed genuine.

Amusingly, I introduced myself to four people and not one of them offered me their name in return.

It felt good anyways!

Check out Peter's voice at the end of the song Culture Vulture at http://www.myspace.com/likeratsfromasinkingship
He sounds so sweet doesn't he?

Just Tryin' to Get Around

Folks here in the wild and wooley countries of Scandanavia have learned to marry function with fashion. Hence, the Ski Board. Totally Norsk. Totally Hip. Totally Impossible to Do.

HERE is the little sushi fishie...

Anna gets new dress!

Here is Anna in her element - with a beautiful new dress that daddy brought from Gymboree in the States. She danced around for hours. It was cute at first. Then long. Then annoying. But, joy in a good thing.


Today Peter is wandering around the house making up melodies and dance moves for his song, "Never underestimate the power of greasy bacon." My favorite rendition is the angry voice that ends in operetic tones. He was trying that one out upstairs as he danced alone naked to warm up after sledding. I think it will be a hit.

LIttle sushi fishies

At the grocery store today I parused the paltry sushi take-out section near the huge vats of crayfish and shrimp one sees everywhere. I came upon these little fishies. Filled with soy sauce for take-away orders, they, and the food that surrounded them, exemplify Norwegian food to me. Elegant packaging with all the details precise and lovely - flavorless and efficient (and as in the case of the sushi, frightening) entrees.

Not to worry though, Mike brought me a suitcase full of candy last week, so my waistline will continue to rival the Nile river in inundation season. Cheers!

The Dentist Gets Better

Happily, the dentist did get better, much better. Opening the scarey door to the office we were greeted with new lighting, bright colors and clean, fancy little do-dads all around. I laughed out loud.

Then we meet Elizabeth. She's our dental hygienist. She was lovely. Each hygienist does their own appointments here and has their own space in which to work. Elizabeth's chair room was enormous and very high tech, with a person-sized tooth brush and tooth stools on which to sit. It also featured her tooth brush collection, which was hilarious. I an out of batteries, so I couldn't get any pictures, but I'll be back later.

So, Peter hops into the chair, Elizabeth spends about 2 minutes poking, he gets a squirt of fluoride and he's done. No cleaning, scraping, flossing, or polishing. I asked why not and she said that in Norway they do very little work on milk teeth. THEN, Anna and Peter both got a prize. Pretty easy.

Peter does have to go back to see the dentist in December.

The funniest part, though, was leaving. I started to explain to her about the receipt I would need for our insurance at home. She listened politely, bright smile on her face, and then explain that my request would not be possible.

Why? Because dental care for children is free. The kids are not even "legally" on our work permits yet. But, we have an address and that's all they need. Everyone has appointments in December. I know that dental care will be substandard, or at least minimal compared to what we are used to in the US, but I want to get the kids started now. Orthodontia is heavily subsidised too. Can you believe that?

At The Dentist One

Peter and I had an exciting adventure at the dentist here in Norway. He had an aching tooth last week, one that we should have had fixed before we left for Norway. But, alas, we didin't. So, with help from our friend Lisa, we scheduled an appointment at the Eberg Skoll Dentist. In Norway, children are assigned doctos and dentists based on the public school they attend. So, every kid from the area goes to the same health care providers. Kind of cool. Not much choice.

We had an adventure. Beginning with the building itself being quite difficult to find. Can you imagine why? When we did find it, we weren't so very sure we wanted to actually go in. The scene was not reassuring or soothing. It did get better...

Best Buds

Toasty warm!

We got a package from Grandma and Grandpa yesterday. It was full of amazing cozy treastures. Maggie and Anna wear their matching hats around the house. Peter and Anna discovered that the driving gloves grandma has retired give them amazing powers of strength. They wear their "power gloves" whenever asked to lift enormouslly heavy objects - like their pajamas. Phew.

On a tragic note, the photo card has disappeared from our camera here, so I can't record any new pictures. Of course they sell them somewhere in Trondheim. But where? And where did the old one go? They don't just fall out, you know? My children cliam innocence. Hummmm.

Cosy Seng

Look at our new bedroom! (Guess which one?!) I couldn't stand it any more. My friend here, Maree, reminded me that we were going to be here a year. And that not having mixing bowls, a microwave, a dryer, or matching sheets was not a situation in which I had to be content. She was so right. I feel like Norwegian princess getting into bed now, and it didnt even cost me $100. Quite a price to pay for contentment and a false sense of importance.

Brownies?

Here are the brownies that I made from a mix with margerine instead of butter. It was disgusting. I kept eating bites, trying to make it flavorful enough to satisfy me. It didn't work. It has been confirmed... Always use butter.

Hamster Dance

Hamster races were the other big entertainment of the week-end. This is Adam, Maggie's best buddy here in Norway. His dad is at NTNU for three months in EE from Australia. They leave for home next week and we are all very sad.

In the meantime, hours of fun are to be had with our four dwarf hamsters. Not quite chickens. Definately not Boomer. But, soft and managable and low maintenance. Plus, they race! Turns out, if no one remembers to feed them for a day, they rush for whatever they see that resembles food. Go figure.

The Rock Star

Peter had his album debut on Friday. A local band called "Just Rats" emailed the school looking for a young boy with an American accent who would read a line for them to play over the end of one of their hardcore, electronic songs. Peter was the only candidate who had an American accent AND could read.

So, we went down to this tiny studio and Peter went into the recording room and said his line beautifully - "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God." The band guys called him a rock star and agreed that he should be thanked as "Peter the Great" on their album cover. Rock On Dude!

This was a snowy week-end. The kids tried cross-country skiing and built four snowmen. Well, Maggie and Anna tried skiing. Peter couldn't because his ski boot fell the the ground next to his ski and he couldn't find it, no matter how hard he looked. Its tough to be seven and a boy. Maggie fell down about every 30 seconds, mostly because she was laughing too hard to keep her skis straight. And she was soaked in 10 minutes, which happens when you go skiing in your jammies.

Folks were skiing all around in front of our apartment. There were ski tracks leading this way and that and lots of dads pulling their children on sleds down to the grocery store. The best thing about the snow, though, is that it just lights up the outdoors. Even in the night, with the white frosting on the houses and cars and ground, things feel brighter and more cheerful.

Unfortunately, we've already lost all of our mittens. And after a long search for contact solution, I found that you can get it at a pharmacy for....$15 US a bottle. Gssgggghlhhhack.

Catfood?

Well, I thought it was supposed to be chili. When I opened the can it turned out to be catfood. Not really, but it looked and smelled just like it. Turns out it was some sort of Spam in brown gravy. A popular treat here?

The kids wouldn't touch hit because I said the word "catfood". I had it - twice. It wasn't horrid. But, this is one piece of Norwegian culture we won't tangle iwth again.

October 31 – 15:00

Today was Halloween, even in Norway. We had a traditional American celebration in school, with bobbing for apples, donut races, etc. in class. Here are some of mystudents showing off their wares. The newspaper came and wrote a big article about our day and all the learning we did . Cool. Anyhow, pumpkins are not native to Norway, so its cost about $40 for a decdent carving pumpkin. Needless to say, I didn't spring for that. So, we carved decorative gourds instead.

October 31 – 18:00

The kids trick-or treated, or "sugar or slash", as they say here. We went with some kids from Maggie’s class, Stine, Hannah, and Cecile. Stine’s mom, Berit, and I stayed home and ate bolle with brun ost and blearber jam while the kids raced around din the complete darkness.. No Snicker Bars. Lots of gummy coke bottles.


October 31 – 19:30
After trick or treating, we had kokao all together at Berits traditional Norsk dining table. The tables here are all sturdya dn slid wood and long enough for a banquet feast. Berit’s table will seat 10 easily.

Every female in Trondheim dressed as a witch on Halloween. Of the six girls in Magie's class, 5 were witches. Maggie was partly cloudy with a chance of rain (squiret). Mostly becasue I was the only mom in town who didn't have the energy to halp her make a real costume. She loved her creative one though. At the Halloween Party we went to on Friday night, 15 of the 18 women there were witches. And elaborate and beautiful witches too, with organically shaped hats adn slinky black gowns. I wore jeans and a sweatshirt. I gotta get alittle more spirit here!

October 22

FOREST DAY
Here in the great northland, spending days of school time in the forest, just walking about is generally thought to be a good idea. So, we had a whole school forest day. These two photographs illustrate the marked difference in school atmosphere between Norway and the States. Photo #1: My whole class (+Peter) In a tree. No lie. Photo number 2: Students spontaneously making a fire on a school trip. We actually had three going as little groups of folks would break off and make their own. No adult assistance of supervision necessary. Is that crazy or what?! And, so much fun.

SMASH!

October 10

This is one little slice of culinary delight I have found in Norway. SMASH – Bugles covered in chocolate. Oh my goodness. It’s a little drop of sin in every bite.

Ohhhh. Borg Colony.

October 14

This is an anthill. The little colored thing in the bottom right corner is Max’s shoe. Pretty darned big!

Mmmmm. Mushrooms!

October 15

MMMMM. Mushrooms. Allan took Max, Maya, Anna and me mushroom hunting again. The ground oozed into our shoes immediately, but glorious patches of hidden mushroom gold beckoned behind every tree. We were in heaven. The spongy ground and constant moisture make Norway prime mushroom hunting territory.

This back-to-nature moment was soon followed by a devistating bicycle accident where I was certain Anna had broken her arm. But, she was just fine in a few hours