We spent seven straight hours shopping today for things we need. Ugh. And we spent well over $1,500 on mostly little stuff… stuff I should have packed up from home (in retrospect). But we were surprised to find a few bargains out there… like some high quality folding outdoor chairs (that will work well indoors too) for 70% off (we only paid $16.50 each). Woo hoo. We went to the hardware store, the “Linens and Things” equivalent, the grocery story, the almost “Ikea” store and the closest thing to the “Dollar Store” Norway will ever know (but nothing is under $5). I bought most everything on my list and Kaleb even found a duvet cover with nothing but dogs on it, so he was thrilled. It was fun to see what’s available, should we ever have money again.
When we got home, the neighbor girl, Sabine, was waiting for Kaleb. She’s ten and speaks some English (I’m sure she doesn’t understand much of what Kaleb says because he won’t speak slowly enough), but they played for hours together anyway. She started teaching him some Norwegian phrases, which warmed my heart. They rode bikes through the neighborhood and went to her grandmother’s house and watched a little TV. They talked about Ben 10 and Pokeman and Kaleb introduced her to the neighbor dog, Alfred. Two peas in a pod. It was exciting for me to see him kick into this whole “kids to play with in the neighborhood” thing that he doesn’t have at home. (I hope dogs will become less and less important and real people fill the void.)
After dinner we headed out for a little walk to explore the neighborhood. Just as we were leaving, cousin Kari came by with Anne Lisa (the woman we were going to rent the house from initially). Kari wanted to show her how God provided for us so she could stop feeling so guilty about changing her mind. We had a great time showing her our place and telling her how it all came about. Kaleb put water in a pan on the stove to offer them some tea, but they couldn’t stay long. I turned off the stove and after they left, we headed out again.
We were completely surprised to discover a little cove about a five minute walk from our house that’s perfect for swimming, rock skipping, fishing and picnicking (see photo). There were wild blueberry, raspberry and gooseberry bushes lining the path to get there so we’re going back tomorrow to pick more berries. We kept wandering through some woods along a peninsula and discovered yet another beach opening up into the nearest fjord. It was breathtaking.
We were enjoying the absolute serenity of the scene before us, the colors in the setting sun (at 10:30pm), the sound of the fish splashing as they jumped out of the calm water, the quaintness of the little boats along the shore, the coziness of the boat houses with grass growing on their roofs, the invitation from the picnic tables along the beach… it was all more than we could take in. Kory and I were feeling so blessed as we realized that God gave us everything we wanted out of living in Norway – kids and relatives in the neighborhood, quick access to the sea, and mountains close by. We were almost giddy with excitement but we just wanted to take deep breaths and enjoy the moment. And then Kaleb piped up, “Good thing there’s hot tea waiting for us when we get home.” “WHAT!!?” We both asked. “I turned the water back on right before we left,” he said.
Both of us went from absolute calm to unbelievable panic as we were sure the house was now on fire. We had been gone from the house at least 45 minutes, maybe an hour while we explored the shoreline around this cove and nearby peninsula. You’ve never seen anyone scramble over slippery rocks and through wooded trails faster than Kory. I’m not nearly as sure on my feet as he is so I got slightly damaged in the process of trying to keep up. I yelled at Kaleb to run on ahead and see if he could beat Kory back to the house (then I wondered why I told him that because what was he going to do when he got there?) I started yelling out prayers of protection “In the name of Jesus!” Oh, how I prayed (while looking for smoke in the direction of the house.) I only had hope in the protection that God promises and I was calling down all the angels I could to put the fire out…. Kory and Kaleb got to the house at the same time and Kory found the oven on the HIGHEST setting under a 2 quart pan that had about five cups of water in it initially. There was still a small sliver of water bubbling (about 1/3 cup) in the bottom of the pan! I was a total miracle Kaleb even told us about it!
We had quite the safety talk with Kaleb after that about heat sources and that he should NEVER leave the house with anything left on. It was a lesson we hope he never forgets. Both Kory and I are so full of adrenalin that we can’t get to sleep now and it’s well past midnight. It’s a miracle similar to Hanukkah but instead of the oil in the lamp lasting eight days… the water in the pot lasted over 45 minutes. (You’d think we’d already had our share of miracles, but apparently not.)Aug 8, 2008
When we got home, the neighbor girl, Sabine, was waiting for Kaleb. She’s ten and speaks some English (I’m sure she doesn’t understand much of what Kaleb says because he won’t speak slowly enough), but they played for hours together anyway. She started teaching him some Norwegian phrases, which warmed my heart. They rode bikes through the neighborhood and went to her grandmother’s house and watched a little TV. They talked about Ben 10 and Pokeman and Kaleb introduced her to the neighbor dog, Alfred. Two peas in a pod. It was exciting for me to see him kick into this whole “kids to play with in the neighborhood” thing that he doesn’t have at home. (I hope dogs will become less and less important and real people fill the void.)
After dinner we headed out for a little walk to explore the neighborhood. Just as we were leaving, cousin Kari came by with Anne Lisa (the woman we were going to rent the house from initially). Kari wanted to show her how God provided for us so she could stop feeling so guilty about changing her mind. We had a great time showing her our place and telling her how it all came about. Kaleb put water in a pan on the stove to offer them some tea, but they couldn’t stay long. I turned off the stove and after they left, we headed out again.
We were completely surprised to discover a little cove about a five minute walk from our house that’s perfect for swimming, rock skipping, fishing and picnicking (see photo). There were wild blueberry, raspberry and gooseberry bushes lining the path to get there so we’re going back tomorrow to pick more berries. We kept wandering through some woods along a peninsula and discovered yet another beach opening up into the nearest fjord. It was breathtaking.
We were enjoying the absolute serenity of the scene before us, the colors in the setting sun (at 10:30pm), the sound of the fish splashing as they jumped out of the calm water, the quaintness of the little boats along the shore, the coziness of the boat houses with grass growing on their roofs, the invitation from the picnic tables along the beach… it was all more than we could take in. Kory and I were feeling so blessed as we realized that God gave us everything we wanted out of living in Norway – kids and relatives in the neighborhood, quick access to the sea, and mountains close by. We were almost giddy with excitement but we just wanted to take deep breaths and enjoy the moment. And then Kaleb piped up, “Good thing there’s hot tea waiting for us when we get home.” “WHAT!!?” We both asked. “I turned the water back on right before we left,” he said.
Both of us went from absolute calm to unbelievable panic as we were sure the house was now on fire. We had been gone from the house at least 45 minutes, maybe an hour while we explored the shoreline around this cove and nearby peninsula. You’ve never seen anyone scramble over slippery rocks and through wooded trails faster than Kory. I’m not nearly as sure on my feet as he is so I got slightly damaged in the process of trying to keep up. I yelled at Kaleb to run on ahead and see if he could beat Kory back to the house (then I wondered why I told him that because what was he going to do when he got there?) I started yelling out prayers of protection “In the name of Jesus!” Oh, how I prayed (while looking for smoke in the direction of the house.) I only had hope in the protection that God promises and I was calling down all the angels I could to put the fire out…. Kory and Kaleb got to the house at the same time and Kory found the oven on the HIGHEST setting under a 2 quart pan that had about five cups of water in it initially. There was still a small sliver of water bubbling (about 1/3 cup) in the bottom of the pan! I was a total miracle Kaleb even told us about it!
We had quite the safety talk with Kaleb after that about heat sources and that he should NEVER leave the house with anything left on. It was a lesson we hope he never forgets. Both Kory and I are so full of adrenalin that we can’t get to sleep now and it’s well past midnight. It’s a miracle similar to Hanukkah but instead of the oil in the lamp lasting eight days… the water in the pot lasted over 45 minutes. (You’d think we’d already had our share of miracles, but apparently not.)Aug 8, 2008
1 comment:
And...what else will you find to do in that cove if it's like your secret spots back home. I really enjoy your writing, I could picture your panic mode. Love and blessings, Gail
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