A Perfect Summer Day

After a much needed good night’s sleep, we had breakfast with Morgan and Ruth and headed to the beach with them again today. But this beach was something special. We took a small walk-on ferry from downtown Arendal out to Merdø, the southern most island in this area. It’s a pretty quaint place with no cars or vehicles of any kind. All the streets are just walking paths that in most areas two people couldn’t fit side by side. The houses are all hundreds of years old and it’s received much recognition for how undisturbed everything is from its days of glory. The island’s occupancy has been dated back to the 1300s but it reached its peak of importance during the sailing ship years in the 1600-1800s. Ships from all over Europe would use the island as a stopping point along their route. (It’s about 150 miles from Denmark.) Smaller islands dot the coastline between Merdø and the mainland of Norway, and often ships would be docked side by side for such a distance out from the dock that they would form a bridge from Merdø to the next island over.

When we got off the ferry we headed west out of “town” past the summer houses where people were sitting in their lawn chairs sunning themselves – a common sight in Norway. We walked through an area that was a genuine fruit tree jungle – completely impenetrable except for a small path to the sea that was constantly being bombarded with the new growth of blackberry branches. There were so many wild cherry trees in one small little area they would be impossible to count. I’m sure someone had quite the orchard there at one point but now it’s madness as future generations of the trees have popped up in every conceivable place. Honeysuckle vines had equally gone wild and entangled the plum, cherry and apple trees to the point it’s just downright scary. I’ve never seen anything like it.

We first planned to take a walk around the perimeter of the island but by the time we made it to the beach overlooking a majestic lighthouse on another nearby island, we decided to sit down and have a cup of coffee. The beach was full of more interesting boulders and rocks of all kinds so Kory and Kaleb couldn’t wait to continue honing their rock sculpture skills (see photo). Even Morgan decided to give it a try and came up with a pretty impressive tower of rocks himself. There were only two groups of people that passed by in all the time we were sitting there and they were mightily impressed with the art work. Maybe it will start a trend and others will give it a try, as the supply of rocks is phenomenal.

After several hours of sunning ourselves while chatting the day away, we continued on along the shore, then cut across the island to the central hub – a small café located next to a museum and the only sandy beach around. One of the three year-round island residents is a fisherman that owns the local café. He has two items on his menu – something that looked almost like fish and chips, and fish soup. People come from far and wide for a bowl of his famous fish soup (to the tune of $20 a bowl). Morgan and Ruth treated us to this local delicacy, which was well worth the trip and expense. We dined in the outdoor patio in one of the funkiest spot I’ve seen so far in Norway. It was more like a place that would be found in the San Juan Islands, than in Norway, but it was kitschy and cute and a perfect place to eat. Afterwards we took a tour of the museum – a home once owned by a successful shipping captain. The house has been completely untouched for over 150 years and the portrait the owner had done of himself sitting in his living room, showed the room to be exactly the way it was back then – including the now well worn imported silk wallpaper and every stick of furniture. It was almost eerie. The whole house was like that.

The last ferry off the island left at 5:30 so after a little more coffee and cookies on the sandy beach, we headed back to Arendal. Kaleb was so well behaved today that we thought it was OK to leave him home alone to watch TV while we all went to an outdoor restaurant beside a large river on the outskirts of town. (Kaleb was happy to stay home with a bowl of risgrøt – rice porridge.) The evening was so warm and wonderful none of us wanted to be indoors. We continued our non-stop chatting - Kory and Morgan are first cousins but have never gotten to know each other so that was the point of our visit. All the while we were entertained by watching all the boats coming and going up and down the river, kids diving into the water from nearby cliffs and seeing the setting sun change the colors in the sky. I haven’t had a day like this that felt so much like summer in a long time. I like it. I love it. I want some more of it!

Happy 18th Anniversary to US!

It was the kind of day that had something perfect in it for all of us. We got to spend the entire day visiting with Kory’s cousin Morgan and his wife Ruth. We hadn’t gotten to know them before because Morgan moved away from Aalesund when he got married 34 years ago. He is a brother to Axel and is much like him, as we found out today. There’s nothing I like more than chatting the day away, so it was good for me to hang out with someone who hasn’t heard any of my stories. Kory was pleased to have time with his cousin and to not be rushing here and there. Morgan and Ruth took us around their town and showed us all the beautiful places and then we spent the entire HOT afternoon down at the beach, which couldn’t have been better for Kaleb. We didn’t have a plan, or a schedule and both Morgan and Ruth had the day free from work to spend it with us so it was wonderful– which was just what we all needed.

When we were walking around downtown Arendal, there was a group of six young people singing in a square, asking for money. They were part of a youth group from a local church trying to raise money to go on a mission trip to Africa to help install a well in some remote village. They group split into two and each half was working a different side of town, competing to see who could raise the most money in a short period of time. Ruth gave them all she had, and Kory, ever longing for a good prank, told them if they ran to the top of some high steps nearby, raised their hands toward heaven and shouted HALLELUJAH as loud as they could – he would give them money. The whole bunch of them raced off to the top of the stairs, raised their arms and shouted loud enough I’m sure the whole town heard. And then when they returned to Kory, he asked them to do it again. And they did. It did Kory’s heart good as he hasn’t heard many other people in this country shouting Hallelujah and as Kaleb says, “He’s just crazy about those Hallelujahs.” So the youth group got 200 kroner from Kory (about $35). Some guy was filming the whole thing so I’m sure that little stunt will be long talked about. Kory was so proud. Morgan thought he was crazy.

After we left downtown we headed off to one of their favorite beaches that surround this coastal area, but the sand was missing. Apparently the sand comes and goes, and today it went. The rocks were not too inviting so we stood around a while and let Kaleb explore. I laid back on a larger rock and soaked up some rays with my eyes closed, as Kory was busy talking to Ruth. All of a sudden I heard Morgan yell something and go running off past me so I sat up to see what was going on. Kaleb was inching himself along a crack in a very large rock (see photo), walking further and further out over the water. One slip and he would be in for it – and surely we’d be heading to the hospital. Morgan saved the day by talking him off the ledge and pulling him up to the top of the rock where it was much safer. Kaleb thought it was exciting but from where I was sitting, it was anything but that. Why he insists on these daredevil stunts, I have no idea. I’m sure if he didn’t get a reaction out of me it wouldn’t be nearly as much fun for him but it was all my heart could take for one day.

We ate lunch outdoors at another beach that was much safer, but Kaleb decided not to swim in the water since the stinging jelly fish were a bit too abundant for his liking. He skipped stones and found beach treasures and thankfully entertained himself in a less daring way while we all visited. On the last beach we walked to, there were so many cool shaped rocks that Kory got the idea to start stacking them. He didn’t stack them in a logical way with the flattest and biggest parts on the bottom – no – he had to be artistic and balance them on their narrowest point and then stack addition rocks on top. How he did it, I don’t know, but it got Kaleb motivated to do the same so we were there much longer than expected as the two of them made rock tower creations. They were quite artsy and impressive.

Morgan and Ruth grilled us a yummy dinner tonight about 10pm – as we celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary. Kaleb picked a wild daisy for the occasion and gave it to me. He also found several heart shaped rocks on the beach he insisted I keep as tokens of his love for me. Sweet boy, but at times a challenge. I had to sing him “his” song a few times today (it it sung to the tune of “You are my sunshine.”) It goes like this – “You are my son, my only son, you make me happy, when you obey. You’ll never know dear, how much I love you. Please don’t take that good boy away.” Ruth said she’s never heard that version before. That’s because this was our first visit. Hopefully I won’t have to sing it so much tomorrow.

A Long Day's Journey

I only slept three hours last night. Maybe this is how addictions kill. I was sitting in the lobby of the guesthouse writing my blog until the sun began to rise and all the hotel employees were cleaning up after the reception. I’m sure they were wondering what I was doing there all alone clicking away on my keyboard at such an odd hour of the night and I’m pretty sure they were anxious for me to leave so they could clean the room I occupied. But I took my time, because I didn’t want to delay documenting the day and risk forgetting details. Even as some things happen now throughout the day, I’m formulating the sentence I’ll write about it in my head. Turid thinks I’m not fully experiencing the moment because I’m too busy taking pictures and thinking about writing. She quoted some famous photographer that said something along those lines as proof. I can’t say that I disagree with her, but I can’t stop doing either one of them, so my experiences may be a bit shallow, I’m afraid, but at least they’ll be well documented.

We were up early this morning as we had to catch the 10:15 ferry off the island, or wait two hours for the next one. We had a chance to talk with a few cousins we hadn’t seen in a long time at breakfast (aunts to the groom). One of them said she may come visit us in September, so that was exciting. We visited her in Bergen when Kaleb was two years old, so it’s been awhile since we’ve spent time with her. Another cousin is moving to Thailand in September and we told her we will plan to come for a visit this winter. Her husband is a minister and will be taking over the Norwegian Seaman’s Church in Bangkok. There are so many Norwegian men marrying Thai women now that just that one church alone performs over a hundred weddings a year. He will also be the pastor for merchant marines and sailors in port from Norway. So that will be a big thrill for us to go there. Kory has so many relatives here in Norway it’s mind-boggling.

Our destination today was the city of Arendal on the southern coast of Norway – at least a ten hours drive from where we began the day. I was worried about the drive with so little sleep last night, but we traded off and let the other take a short nap when it got too bad. It was so hot the heat didn’t help our sleep deprived state either. We chose to take a slightly longer route through the mountains, rather than along the coastline because we’d just traveled the coastal route during our Easter vacation. We wanted to see what Norway looks like in the middle of the southern tip, and it was quite different than the landscape along the coast. For most of the way, it was as if we were back home in Washington state as there were tall evergreens and rivers all along the road side. Kory thought it was a combination of Western Washington and Yosemite National Park as many places had huge sheer rocks jutting up out of the farmland below. It was beautiful and so different from other areas we’ve seen. The diverse landscape here is something else.

Most of the roads were just one lane with no center dividing line which meant we needed to pull far to the right when another car came toward us. That’s always a white knuckle experience when it’s a bus or big truck. We drove over the speed limit most of the day and looked for chances to pass other cars when we could. We only stopped once along a mountain river to have a picnic lunch and to enjoy the sunshine for a few minutes before we were back in the car. About an hour from our destination we stopped to have dinner at a café in one of the bigger towns we went through, which was tiny by American standards. Most towns on the maps here have nearly everything a person would need located under one roof so often when we drive through them, if it weren’t for a few houses being closer together than they are in other places, we might not even know it was a town. A bigger town might actually have the bank, the grocery store and café in their own building (but not the post office, that’s most often combined with the grocery store). And not every town on the map has a gas station, so planning and being prepared are the keys to a successful road trip.

While we were at dinner, Kory’s cousin Morgan called. We’re staying with him for the next few days. He wasn’t home yet from a weekend trip he took so he wanted to let us know. We slowed down after that and stopped at a few places along the way. One river was fabulous – not even a foot deep and very wide (see photo) so the water was warm and perfect for wading. We’d passed so many gorgeous swimming holes today we only dreamed of stopping for a dip, but we were on a tight schedule. But none of our days now have more than three hours driving in them so we can stop if we want and see what other unexpected blessings might be waiting.

Wedding Day (Bryllupsdag)

This was the first Norwegian wedding I have attended from start to finish. Actually, it’s nearly 2am and it’s still not finished, but I’m holding out. The whole event has been going for almost 12 hours now but that’s a far cry from the three days weddings used to last in Norway. It is some kind of celebration.

All of us who stayed on the island of Austevoll last night had to take a ferry to get to the church for the wedding. The bride and groom, Bent-Jarle and Birgitte are both preacher’s kids. Birgitte’s father officiated the ceremony at his church. It was sweet and beautiful. It followed the Norwegian tradition where the bride and groom sit facing each other through most of the ceremony. After they say their vows, they sit side-by-side. And instead of saying “I do” – they say “JA!” (Unfortunately, Kaleb was so tired he fell asleep in Kory’s lap and missed the whole thing.) I was surprised the first kiss wasn’t until AFTER the ceremony, outside on the steps with all looking on. So many cameras were going off during and after the ceremony it was almost like a paparazzi blitz.

After an hour we all took the ferry back to Austevoll where the reception was held. It was quite a sight to see so many dressed in formal attire, bunads and all, riding the ferry. It was as if the ferry were hired just for the wedding. People came from far and wide to attend this wedding (Australia, New York, all parts of Norway) so adding a ferry ride to the day was as quaint as it could be. (The little islands we passed along the way barely stuck up out of the water – unlike the scenery around Aalesund where they mountains are so high and dramatic, but it was beautiful just the same.) It was another extremely sunny and warm day so it made for beautiful photos even if I was sweating while taking them.

The Guesthouse where we are staying was the location of the reception. There was champagne waiting outside on the patio for us when we returned. After some mingling time we were all invited to find out seats at a very formal dinner (there was a seating chart). Speeches ranging from 15 to 45 minutes were given by the parents, best man and bridesmaid and wedding couple between the appetizer, main course and dessert. The mother’s wrote songs for their children and everyone sang them to familiar tunes. Interspersed into the meal (which took hours) were short breaks and time for some smooching. If everyone banged their forks against their wine glasses, the bride and groom had to stand on their chairs and kiss each other. If the knives were banged against the tabletop, the parent’s of the bride and groom had to stand on their chairs and kiss. But it seems the speeches are the main focus of the wedding reception.

After dinner was over, we took a little break and those that wanted could go upstairs and see the gift table. When the gifts arrive, there are assigned gift openers who open the gifts immediately, document who they are from and set them out in a beautiful display on a decorated table so the guests can see all the loot. The wedding couple usually don’t see the gifts until the next day as they are busy with other things.

During dinner we had a chance to talk to those sitting around us and I sat across from a kid who just finished a year in America as an exchange student. He was in Arkansas so he had some interesting observations about that whole experience. He said he felt like the school there was similar to a prison with police, metal detectors and security cameras everywhere. He didn’t like it so much. We started talking about the differences between the two countries and I told him how shocking it is they print so many swear words in the newspapers here. He said, “That’s because we have freedom of speech here.” I told him we have that in America too and he said, “No you don’t. You say you do, but when you say something you can get fired for, or get sued for – that’s not freedom of speech.” Good point.

Just before midnight we moved outside to hear accordion music while the wedding couple took their first waltz together and others joined in. At midnight we headed into another building where about 20 cakes and coffee were waiting, along with additional speeches from siblings and friends. Most of the speeches revolved around revealing embarrassing information about the bride or groom, but it made for some good laughs. Kaleb lasted until midnight then went back to the room to sleep. He enjoyed the wedding, but thought it “went on a bit too long.” But if it ended any sooner, it just wouldn’t have been the same - as there was nothing that should have been taken from this day. It was like a storybook wedding in some dream land, far, far away. It couldn’t have been any better. We were blessed to be able to attend it.

And We're Off...

Some people might describe the inevitable ferries one must take along the coast of Norway as “charming”. This morning I would have described them as “inconvenient.” We were up early, ate breakfast in two gulps without even finishing our good cup of American coffee, and were quickly out the door to catch the first of many ferries on the road south out of town. We even waited to brush our teeth until we were on board. Only then did I realize I left my computer carrying case back at Odd and Turid’s house. I had my laptop with me, but many other important things were in that case – including the battery chargers for our cameras. And a road trip which doesn’t include me taking thousands of pictures along the way is no road trip at all. I was sick to my stomach. It couldn’t have been a rougher start for my meticulously planned journey. It cost us an hour, but that was a big hour so early in the day. I stayed on board the ferry for its return while Kory, Kaleb and the car got off on the other side of the fjord. Turid was gracious enough to meet me back at the ferry dock and hand over the precious cargo. I was so disappointed in myself, but somewhat thankful it wasn’t Kory or Kaleb who left something behind. Kaleb was already upset with me that I forgot to pack his favorite stuffed dog he’s had since he was two years old (given to him by my brother’s family). That dog has gone on all our trips with us and as Kaleb says, “He’s a good traveling companion.” (We know he has no broken bones because of the number of times he’s been x-rayed by airport security.) Kaleb cried a few tears until I told him there might be another dog in his future – stuffed of course.

The day was unusually hot but the kind of beautiful one comes to expect in Norway, and is rare in all other places on this planet. We went on Route 39 to Bergen – a road we’ve been on a few times now. Each season brings a different appearance to the all familiar terrain. In winter, the way the ice is formed and the minimal lighting makes it a unique sight. In the summer, the wild flowers and the bright blue skies make the exact same scene appear completely different. Even with the loss of an hour today, we made it to Bergen on schedule. Kory drove like a maniac and fortunately, didn’t get caught. I nearly died a few times from close calls, but surely angels were watching over us. I think he was dreaming of driving a race car very fast around tight corners, and I only let out a screech once or twice along the way all the while praying for traveling mercies. I think Kory misses his Studebaker Avanti back home. Kaleb entertained himself in the back seat reading books and watching movies. We spent so much time in tunnels he had to keep a flashlight handy.

We stopped in Bergen for dinner by the harbor and a little walk around town to stretch our legs. Kaleb didn’t find any stuffed dogs as a suitable replacement for “Brownie,” so the search will continue. It was a five ferry day, which makes for a decent road trip since we are in the car an hour, on the ferry for 20 minutes and in the car for another hour until the next ferry and on it goes. The ferries are also the best public restroom system Norway has going because otherwise, it’s just a bush or a rock providing the same service with no toilet paper or flush. We timed all the ferries well except the last one where we had to wait over an hour, but it was just as well since the last 50 cars didn’t get on board and had to wait two hours for the next one. The harbor where we waited was gorgeous with little boat shacks nestled in between the cracks in the rock walls near the shore. It’s beyond describing. Ice cream helped pass the time.

When we finally arrived at Austevoll - the island of our destination (we are attending Bent-Jarle’s wedding here tomorrow – Kory’s cousin’s grandson whom we love very much), Kory insisted on programming his GPS system to help find the way. I nearly lost it. There is only one road on this island and it goes right past the guesthouse where we are staying, but there’s something about men and their gadgets. It’s not like I didn’t have a map. It wouldn’t have been so bad to have him playing with that thing if he wouldn’t have also been driving at the same time. I keep telling him he needs to lead by example and that sure wasn’t something I wanted Kaleb to see. I decided it was best that I drive and before he could even punch all the buttons on his little “toy,” we magically arrived at our destination without the assistance of GPS or a map. Imagine that.

For the next two nights we’re staying next to a very quaint harbor at a Guesthouse (see photo). We have a suite complete with kitchenette overlooking the sea. The family is all here now and after a few hours with them tonight out on the deck drinking wine and talking about all our hair-raising experiences we had getting here, I had to cut out early (at midnight) to feed my blog addition. They all thought I should just skip today, but they don’t understand either.

Our Last Day...

I hardly slept a wink last night. I tossed and turned with thoughts of all I’m leaving behind and all I must think about for the weeks ahead. I couldn’t have been more tired today, or sad, or worn out. Good thing I got so many hugs.

We slept at Odd and Turid’s last night so I was up before eight and over cleaning the last few things out of our house. It took me all day to clean it, even with Turid’s help. I can’t believe how grungy things can get in places we never see. But now the house is clean, we’re out and the next chapter begins. I wonder what God has in store for us. I was a little peeved with Kory as he spent some time last night “relaxing” with Odd and a glass of wine while I was slaving away at the house. And then this morning he was “relaxing” for two hours over coffee while I was at the house slaving away. It wouldn’t have been such a big problem except we were on a time crunch today and the clock kept ticking away – along with my patience with Kory. Kory’s bosses had invited us to a farewell party at five, but My Pal Vestina wanted to have coffee with me and say good-bye at three. It’s so hard to get work done when there are so many people to see. So Kory’s “relaxing” ended up cutting into my Vestina time and I wasn’t too happy about that. But once the day was done, all was clean, everything tucked safely away in storage, and the car loaded down for our road trip, I forgave him (sometimes it takes a while).

My Pal Vestina looked stunning today with her tanned body inside a white cotton spaghetti strapped sun dress. We went to a park and sat in the shade and talked. We watched the kids playing in the water and rowing their boats across the lake on this unusually hot summer day. I was so glad to have a cool break from all the hustle and bustle and especially glad to have time with Vestina before we left. As usual, she had “news” for me. She told me she’s been seeing a guy, very casually, but she’s sure she has feelings for him. When she told me who it was, I grinned from ear to ear. She’s “almost in love” with Kim. He was a substitute teacher in our Norwegian class. He’s from Korea but was adopted as a baby by a Norwegian couple. He is the most mild mannered, intelligent, kind and funny guy. He’s very respectful and upright. I couldn’t have hand picked a better guy for her so not only did I give her my seal of approval, I gave her my blessing. I hope something develops, but she said they haven’t even kissed yet – they just sit and drink tea and talk about all kinds of things. I love that. She so deserves a guy like Kim and he couldn’t go wrong with her. So that was a happy note for my exit. I’m so thankful Vestina respects my opinion, so she was VERY happy today when I gave her the thumbs up. She’s something else. I will miss her terribly as she’s been so good for me. Norwegians are pretty serious folks and I don’t think I would have laughed even a fraction of what I did this year, if it weren’t for Vestina.

So I only had about 45 minutes to say my good-byes before I had to run pick up Kory and Kaleb to go to the BBQ at his boss, Jonathan’s house. It was so sweet for Jonathan to have a party for us – they invited other co-workers and their kids, so Kaleb loved running around playing with the others. The food was fantastic and the summer weather we had today made for another wonderful outdoor summer evening. Kory was so lucky to work for those guys (Espen is on the left, Jonathan on the right in the photo). He got to decide when and how much he worked, and even the kind of work he did, so it was one of the biggest blessings we had in living here. (It was especially nice that Kory could earn some Norwegian money to help supplement our income, too). Kory found the way Norwegians build things very interesting, so even though he came home tired, he liked the work. He has the greatest respect for Jonathan and Espen’s work and ethics, so that was additional icing on the cake. Now he’s looking forward to retirement again, but they offered him his job back anytime we might be living in Norway in the future. He’ll be like those professional boxers that keep coming out of retirement for the next big gig – except it would ONLY be Jonathan and Espen that could ever get him to come out of retirement again, I’m sure.

We went to say good-bye to Tante Kari tonight before ending up at Odd and Turid’s again for an evening of wine and much discussion. Odd and Turid may meet up with us in Copenhagen in a few weeks, so that would be fun. Odd used to live there so he could show us around. I get a lot of razzing from those guys about my obsession with daily blogging, (Turid calls me a blog-a-holic) but they just don’t understand my need to express myself. I will continue to write every day, and now my hope is, as we travel around, that I can find an internet connection to post the blogs. Prayers are appreciated.

Our Next To Last Day

It’s now after eleven at night and we just delivered the bulk of our belongings to our storage space over at our condo. When I drove back to our house and stepped inside, it echoed. It’s no longer a home – it’s a shell. All our things are packed away and just the mess remains to be cleaned up tomorrow. I’ve been numb all day. I’m trying hard not to think about leaving, as it’s too sad. Axel and Kari and Odd were all here helping us move things out. It’s easy to tell who our friends are when it’s moving time. The fact they are also related makes it all the sweeter. We will so miss them.

Kaleb spent the day playing with friends while Kory and I worked on the house. Axel and Kari invited us all over for dinner tonight, which was very good and much appreciated, then afterwards they came with their trailer to help move out the furniture. It comes and goes.

Tonight, while we were loading things up, the new care taker came with more of his belongings and unloaded them in the house next door. He had a rough looking bunch of friends helping him and it just gave me the creeps being around them. I think a lot of our joy in living here in Norway hasn’t just been time spent with relatives, but it’s been extra enjoyable because we’ve had good weather all year and where we live has been so wonderful. (It also helped that we didn’t stress about money because we got free rent.) We’ve had no immediate neighbors to hear slamming car doors in the night or talking out in the driveway after we’ve gone to bed. It’s been the best possible scenario to be the only occupant of three duplexes all in a row. I’m not very good at living in close quarters with others so I’m extra appreciative that God’s timing has allowed these houses to be empty and quiet the entire time we’ve been here. Next week that all changes. I’m simply amazed at the details He’s taken care of for us. Even yesterday, when the woman from the Kommune came by – she told us to call the power company to register the meter reading and sign the form to stop our service. I told her we’ve never been signed on with the power company and she couldn’t believe we’ve never paid for electricity. We told her we couldn’t believe it either, but for some reason, the paperwork to transfer the account just kept slipping through people’s hands and next thing you know, a year has gone by and we haven’t paid a dime. She couldn’t understand how that could happen, but that’s how God works. Electricity is VERY expensive in Norway, so it’s saved us a bundle.

On the upside for today - I got my first photo book in the mail– the one I made of the Lofoten Islands vacation we took last fall. I was so apprehensive about how it would turn out because I wasn’t sure if the colors would be dull or if the pictures would be a bit blurry when I enlarged them so much on the page, but I can say I’m completely astonished by the outcome. The company I used here in Norway must have some photo enhancer software or something because I swear the photos look even better than they do on my computer screen. Everyone I showed the book to was blown away when I told them I took the photos and made the book, as they were sure it was something I had purchased as a souvenir. So, La-Tee-Da! I’m pretty proud and now can’t wait to see the other books. I hope the one I did on Rome comes tomorrow. But what I’m most excited about it getting them all to bring back home and show people really how gorgeous it is over here. Woo hoo – nice marketing.

Odd and Turid were rightly proud too as Hege, their daughter, got her “marks” from school. They have a different system here for grading things. They grade heavily on a curve, so the bulk of the students get threes and fours out of a possible six points for a class. Everyone expects to get a three and most do. Getting a four is considered good and above average. Getting a five is REALLY good and everyone is impressed if that ever happens, but getting a six is almost unheard of. Why they have a grade that is nearly impossible to achieve, I have no idea, but according to Hege, only those who specialize in a subject and are super passionate about it and work extra hard in it would ever get a six. They are extremely rare and no one ever expects to get them – except Hege. She’s gotten her share of sixes over the years but this year – she pulled off an astonishing six sixes and three fives! They will be doing a national newspaper article on her for sure, as that kind of report card is completely unheard of. That girl is one smart cookie and she works super hard in all her subjects. What I found amusing however is that she scored a six in English speaking, and a six in English writing, but only a five in Norwegian writing! That goes to show just how hard Norwegian is, when a smart native can’t even get a six with all those silly grammar rules. Now I don’t feel so bad.

The photo today is a creation made by Kory the other day when he was cleaning up the kitchen counter. All those bits of food were wiped up and when he found the potato in the pan, his imagination went wild. It looks like how I feel.

Sankthansaften

The Sun “turned” yesterday. That’s big news in Norway. It means that the days will no longer be getting longer, and tonight will be the longest night of the year. The march toward winter has begun again (even before summer fully arrives) as the days grow shorter and darker. This day is not red on the calendar, meaning no one gets the day off, but it comes with all kinds of traditions and activities just the same. The name itself – Sankthansaften- is pretty funny. It means Saint John’s Eve. No one I asked knew why it was called that so I had to investigate it myself. Summer solstice is one of the biggest pagan holidays of the year and since long ago when the good Christians didn’t want to miss out on all the fun, they decided to make the day have some kind of Christian meaning to it so they celebrated the birthday of John the Baptist. John was a cousin to Jesus and born six months before him so it was as good a “cause” as any to take the place of the pagan traditions. “John” in Norwegian is “Johan” which was then shortened to “Han” and it's the "eve" since it’s the day before the actual “birthday” (which is when all things are celebrated in Norway because they can’t wait for the real thing), today is called Sankt (Saint) Hans (Johns) Aften (Eve). It was also Kaleb’s last day of school (mine too, but I didn’t go). I sent a camera to school with Kaleb in hopes he would try to capture memories and friends and moments. I wasn’t disappointed. He can trump me with that shutter finger. He took hundreds of pictures and videos, so hopefully today won’t soon be forgotten.

I was hoping to spend some time with Kaleb after school and do all the traditional family things on Sankthansaften. Everyone heads down to the beach to watch the huge bonfires burning along the shore. The pagan traditions are long gone so now instead of making human sacrifices, they “sacrifice” hot dogs and marshmallows and then eat them. The little kids compete in a costume contest after they march through the streets, so it looks like Halloween as they are all dressed up in the same kinds of cute costumes we use in America. It’s also traditional to eat Rømmegrøt today (a porridge made of cream that tastes REALLY good). Many places with huge bonfires sell bowls of Rømmegrøt or hotdogs at little impromptu concession stands. Families hang out at the beach for hours while a few self appointed strong men keep heaving pallets on the fire. Most of the fires are quite the construction project. The one closest to the heart of the city is over a hundred feet tall – built entirely of pallets. Sometimes they set some effigy person up on top kind of like “Burning Man” in Nevada and they watch the person burn up in the flames. It’s a little gruesome but with all the little kids running around dressed up so cute, it’s hard to take it too serious.

Kaleb asked to go home with his friend Toben after school. We said we’d pick him up and take him to the beach later on. He called Kory to ask if we could just meet up at the beach. Kory said it was no problem but he would miss out on the invitation to eat Rømmegrøt over at Odd and Turid’s. He could have cared less. After our bellies were full, Odd, Turid, Hege and Kory and I headed down to the beach – a few miles walk from their house. Just as we got to the beach Kaleb called and asked where we were. When we told him, it was then he realized, as did Kory, there was more than one huge fire at the beach tonight. He was across town at another beach watching another fire with Toben’s family and we didn’t have the car with us to go get him. So we ended up being separated the entire evening. I was a little sad about that. Turid said I had “separation angst” and I just need to get used to it because from now on, his desire will be to hang out with his friends more than us anyway. I was still sad. I called him and asked him to take more pictures, and he was happy to oblige (see photo). Then he asked if he could spend the night with Toben so I saw him a total of five minutes today as I dropped off some clean underwear and his toothbrush. Kory and I then hung out at Odd’s house all evening which was a nice break from the packing we did all day. They lit a fire in their yard and all the neighbors came over and sat around, drinking wine and eating a little food and swatting mosquitoes until the skies turned red around midnight from all the fires burning in the area. It’s quite the tradition. The sun will be up again by 2am and darkness never falls.

As sad as I am we are leaving, today I was thankful. A woman from the Aalesund Kommune came around with some people from Germany. They will be the new care takers of The Sinking Houses when we leave on Friday. They are going to live in our house just during the construction phase of the work that is planned. They will be tearing down the garages (we couldn’t have survived without them), and tearing up all the yard and gravel and setting more poles under the houses. It will be a dreadful place to live in a few weeks so I’m glad it’s them living here and not me. Once again I’m completely overwhelmed with God’s timing. Hallelujah we are leaving on Friday!

My Last Day of School

Tomorrow is officially the last day of school, but I’m not going, so today was my last day. I didn’t even want to go today, but The Good Teacher Inga had planned a hike out to a nature preserve on an outer island near here and I really wanted to see it as she said it’s her all-time favorite place to be. As I’ve learned from living here, I must experience how to get somewhere first hand, as the trails are not marked and not in my wildest dreams would I ever imagine I could go in a certain direction unless I’d been led there first. So I needed to set aside the packing and instead take a break and go see some of God’s handiwork along the coastline of Norway. I wasn’t disappointed. I’m sure I will be back to that place many times in the future as it was fantastic with sandy beaches, beautiful farm land and amazing rock formations all sandwiches between the ocean and some mountains. Oh, how I love Norway.

Our destination was a rocky wind break (see photo) built by some local guy. It’s shaped like a “t” so that there is a place to sit in each quarter, depending on which direction the wind is blowing. It’s nice to have a guaranteed wind-free spot no matter what. The wind always blows out there and even on a nice day like today, it was a bit chilly, but sitting inside the shelter, it was downright hot. It’s so clever not just from that standpoint, but also because it’s built entirely from things found along the beach. The rocks used to build the walls posed a problem for the builder, as it’s built inside a Nature Preserve and not even a single rock is to be moved from its original location. The government came down on the guy pretty hard with a big fine and impending jail time, but the entire island community came together and claimed they too helped build the shelter and if they were going to fine him and put him in jail, then they must put them all in jail as well. The government backed down and left him alone and the shelter stands today as a sign of community pride. Local artists also flock to it. (It’s not well known outside the island.) Many of the rocks are beautifully painted and all the wood that is somewhat flat has poems written on it. Beach treasures decorate the walls, including a whale bone and the skull of a dolphin. It’s a collection spot for everything odd that washes up on the beaches so it’s a fun place to explore.

We all brought a little food along today so about 15 of us crammed into the little spot circling the palate that’s used a table, and we all ate lunch together and talked about Norway and our Norwegian class. I’m so going to miss The Good Teacher and I tried not to cry when I had to say good-bye. It was a nice way to get a sense of completion. Kory came along also because I wanted him to see this place and help me remember how to get there so we can take others there in the future. I’m glad I went.

After we got back to town Kory and I ran some errands, dropping off things at Salvation Army, donating books to the library and changing our address with our car insurance company. We also bought some special travel insurance we need for driving down into Europe. It wasn’t cheap (nothing in Norway is), but it’s good for a year all over the world (even in America), so if we have some unexpected medical expenses, we have full, unlimited coverage. Now there’s a bargain. I just hope we don’t need to use it.

Kaleb didn’t do much at school today except watch a soccer game between the 7th graders and all the teachers. The teachers won. He also got back his end of the year test and was proud that he got 123 of out of 140 correct. It covered everything they had learned the whole year – even stuff he was taught last fall before he knew how to speak Norwegian, so he was impressed with himself. We were pretty proud, too. He said if the test were in English he would have gotten 100% but some things he just didn’t understand. Like one thing said to draw a star pattern, so he drew a star, but what they meant was a constellation – so the Big Dipper would have been the thing to draw. Not understanding the innuendos of just one word throws everything off, so he did extremely well considering his learning curve.

We were invited over to Solevaag for dinner tonight with Kory’s mom’s cousin, Oddrun. They are just the nicest folks over there and they make the best food, so I was thrilled I didn’t have to make dinner. It cut into our packing time, but we’ll be leaving Friday whether we are ready or not, so I couldn’t worry about that when dinner was calling… plus, Oddrun made some homemade ice cream and plum pudding. Man, was that ever tasty. She also made a cheese cake – they really like desserts around here. I’m not sure my waistline can stand too many more parties, but I’ve got all summer to walk it off. And I must or I won’t be able to fit into any of the clothes I have waiting for me back home. Uffa meg.

Happy Father's Day!

It’s not Father’s Day here in Norway, but I came prepared. Good thing I was packing up yesterday and going through some things, otherwise I would have never remembered where I put the card and the World Best Dad t-shirt I bought for Kaleb to give to Kory. Both of them had no clue it was Father’s Day so it took a lot of pressure off. Normally Kory would get breakfast in bed, but Kaleb was at camp, so that didn’t happen. Our life’s routines have been so messed up this year, but no one is complaining.

Kory and I walked to Agape Church for our last Sunday there. I brought my camera so I could take a picture of the awesome worship team they have there and the second I clicked the shutter, I broke out in tears. Oh, how I bawled. I wasn’t expecting that flood of emotion so I was completely caught off guard, but just thinking about not going back there for a while was too much to take. Maybe I didn’t get enough sleep or maybe I really am going to have worship withdrawls – I don’t know. The local newspaper described that church as a “happy clappy” church because they sure are. All the worship team bounces up and down on the stage and everyone is clapping their hands together singing very peppy songs – many of them from Hillsong in Australia. But I love the Norwegian songs the best. They sang my favorite song today, which made me cry all the more. I love the opening lines - “Uten deg er jeg uten håp, men med deg har jeg alt.” (Without You, I am without hope, but with You, I have everything.) Oh, it was tough to say good-bye. One woman from our home fellowship group couldn’t stop crying when she heard it was our last week here. Uffa meg. (Ugh.)

We also had our last guests come for a meal today. Atle was married to Kory’s cousin Kari-Anne, but Kari-Anne (Odd’s sister) died in 1994 so he was left to raise their three little children himself. He now has a wonderful woman he lives with so they both came today for lunch. Atle loaned us his moving truck last summer when we moved into our house and I’ve been wanting to have him over as a thank-you, but he’s a pretty busy guy and works odd hours as a fireman so it’s not been easy. Today was the last chance, so I’m thankful we got to spend some time with them before we take off. Kory was bragging about his dinner last night, how it was the first time he’d ever invited someone over for a meal and then cooked it himself. He said he felt a little strange about the whole thing even though it was just with his cousin. He said they had a nice dinner out on the deck, they drank wine, talked the night away then went for a walk together. It wasn’t the usual male bonding moments he’s used to. Building something up or tearing something down, followed by chips and a beer afterwards is more like the quality time he spends with other men. Last night was a new experience for him and he wasn’t totally comfortable with discovering that much of his feminine side. Too funny.

Kaleb came home from camp today (see photo of him with his buddies Daniel, Andre and Henrik) and couldn’t have been more exhausted and tired. He didn’t sleep much two nights in a row so he cried about every little thing. It took the longest time to find out he even had a good time because he was too busy crying about not being able to go over to Andre’s house this afternoon. We heard bits and pieces of this weekend’s events and it sounded pretty fun but it was hard to tell through all the tears. They did some kind of contest where they had to eat pickled herring, followed by two Fishermen’s Friends (a strong throat lozenge) and a Coke. Kaleb said kids were throwing up over that one as no one but him and one other kid would eat the pickled herring. He loves that stuff, so he scored a lot of points for his team, but he didn’t like the Coke too much. Funny. He was also pleased with a special certificate they presented to him, signed by all the Children’s Church workers from Agape Church, thanking him for being such a good kid, for helping them out so much this year and to say they will miss him. They also gave him a t-shirt signed by all the kids at camp – no one else got one so he was feeling pretty proud, but still so tired he was tough to be around. He was asleep by six. Thank you, Jesus!

Sabina came around tonight with a shopping bag full of wrapped items. She asked if I wanted to buy a gift. For ten kroner (about a buck fifty), I could pick anything I wanted out of the bag. I couldn’t resist. It was a bargain as I managed to score a small back massager. She said once a year she cleans out stuff she doesn’t use any more, wraps them up and goes around the neighborhood selling them. Very clever idea, I thought. Since they don’t have garage sales here it’s one way to get rid of stuff and make a little money on the side. I saw in the news last week the dump here in Aalesund is going to start selling things because they are tired of people throwing away perfectly good items they are sure someone else could use. Perhaps Sabina should take a summer job working the cash register there as she made a nice chunk of change today. I learn something new every day I’m here. I’m so not ready to go home.

Five Days and Counting...

Kory and I spent nearly the whole day going through stuff and packing it, throwing it or giving it away. At least now the garage, the attic and my desk are empty. Those places tend to collect the most junk, so now we just have to deal with surface things. We’ll wait until after lunch tomorrow to do all that since we have guests coming for lunch. It never ends.

A new friend, Tina, stopped by for coffee today. I was so excited to show someone my new bedcover. Kory just doesn’t “get it” as to why I’m so pleased with it, so it was good to have a woman here who understands. We talked about all kinds of things and both of us flipped back and forth from English to Norwegian – sometimes in the same sentence. It’s so funny now when I throw in a Norwegian word into an English sentence and don’t even realize it. I just pick the word that’s easiest to say and often has less syllables. And I feel like I’m right on the cusp of beginning to understand the proper use of pronouns and the variety of endings to adjectives, so I’m a little sad I may forget some of it at home. It does get easier to speak the language the longer we are here.

It’s now two in the morning as I write this. I was invited to a 50th birthday party tonight for Kristen, one of The Praying Women (see photo). I feel like I’ve entered the inner circle and now I see how these Norwegians really live. I feel so lucky to have been included and so accepted by this group of women. So many at my school feel completely isolated and shunned here and they find it very difficult to make friends. I’m sure if I weren’t married to someone from here, I might have the same problem, but as it is, I have been warmly embraced. It feels so special for me as I’ve lived in the Skagit Valley for ten years and still feel somewhat like an outsider, so it’s nice to feel like I’m one of the gang here, even if I don’t speak Norwegian properly.

I was a bit surprised by the formality of the party. I should expect that by now, but I was still unprepared. All the women had on very nice dresses and they wore makeup, jewelry, perfume and high heels (I barely got my hair brushed). It’s the first time I’ve seen shoes worn inside a house, but they assured me they were “innesko” (inside shoes), and they ARE allowed on special occasions. I wore my sandals, knowing I’d have to take them off when I got there, so I was walking around all night barefoot like some hillbilly, while all the other 14 women were clunking away on the hardwood floors with their pretty high heeled shoes. Who knew there were exceptions to that rule.

When we walked in the door we were handed a small glass with a tiny spoon. The glass was full of some mixture of something bubbly with tiny bits of fresh fruit floating around it in. The liquid tasted good but I avoided the strawberries as they aren’t my favorite. We chatted a bit waiting for all the guests to arrive then we were invited to the table. We stood behind our chairs while Kristen read a poem she’d written for the occasion, thanking us for sharing this day with her. After she was done, she invited us to sit at the table. They all sang a prayer (I didn’t know the words) and then we ate some very good food while we visited. After dinner we drank coffee and ate cakes. There were six cakes for 15 people. I guess they are crazy for their cakes in this part of Norway and it’s not uncommon to be at a party where there is a cake for every two people in attendance. Oh man, I’m going to miss those cakes. They aren’t ANYTHING like America cakes – in fact, flour is probably not even an ingredient in most of them. One of my favorites is when they bake two whole sheets of just whipped egg whites, so it’s nice and crunchy, then set a vanilla custard in the middle of the baked egg whites. That one is to die for. Oi. After dessert we played a game of “Mad Libs” where someone wrote a story and left all the adjectives blank and before the story was read, we had to give random adjectives to fill in the blanks. It turned out pretty funny and had everyone laughing for a good long time. Kristen opened all her birthday cards and read out loud what people wrote on them (that’s very common here) and the party went on until midnight. What a treat. I told them I’m taking some of that good Norwegian food back home with me to America, as I patted my behind. Surely I will.

Kory had his cousin Axel over for barbequed whale tonight so they ate together and had a nice visit (Axel’s wife Kari was with me at the party). We got a text message inviting us over to Odds, just after midnight, so we went there after the party. We were all outside on the deck until 1:30, drinking wine and talking about how sad it is we have to move back home. Odd is quite adamant we should move back here in October. Cousin Kari is sure the bedcover I found is a sign from God we should stay here. I thought she was joking, but I’m not quite sure. It’s good to know we’ll be missed.

My Last Day of School

Had I known our only assignment today in class was to rank all the swear words by how bad they are, I’m sure I would have stayed home. I couldn’t believe we were given that assignment. And it was out of a book, no less, complete with exercises to define what each word really means. Our teacher was even overwhelmed to hear us pronouncing the words (apparently it’s important we learn how to say them.) Good grief. Then the last hour of class we “got” to go to a presentation by some other students that was kind of like a senior project. It was one of the most boring and horrible things I’ve has to sit through since I’ve been here, so I used the time to get to know my cell phone. I learned all kinds of trick features I wish I would have known before, and I also figured out how to delete old text messages. Everyone and their uncle here use text messages as the number one way to communicate with each other. I had hundreds of them on my phone so I was glad to be rid of them. People send text messages for every possible thing – party and dinner invitations included.

And to really put the icing on the cake today, when I went outside during the lunch break, I saw a girl about ten years old from the private school that shares out building, haul off and kick a boy very hard in his side. She did it right in front of me so I yelled at her that she must NOT do that. She turned to me and with the snottiest voice she could muster, said (literally translated) “You can’t decide that,” which was her way of saying, “You’re not the boss of me.” I told her it wasn’t allowed to hit and kick other students and she must stop it right now. So she hauled off and kicked him again. I was so ticked off at her I marched into the principal’s office and tattled on her. I yelled at the principle and said they MUST teach more respect around here – not just to other students but to adults as well as I didn’t appreciate the way she spoke to me, and why in the world isn’t there an adult out on the playground anyway? The principal did what I expected and said that she would talk to the girl’s teacher, to which I replied that talking isn’t enough. I told her how Kaleb takes his daily blows (today was no exception), and it’s insane there are no consequences to these children beating up on each other. She just gave me a look like I was from another planet and then thanked me for letting her know about the situation and walked me to her door. I could have had a better exit from school, as the rest of the year has been quite pleasant.

Vestina also gave me the what-for today when she told me she’s worried, after reading my blog, that people might think she’s “like this” as she stuck her nose up in the air. She said she might come across as too picky and that no one is good enough for her. I assured her that wasn’t the case. (This is the reason I’ve hesitated in giving out my blog address to anyone in Norway.) And actually, I went to school today to help Vestina. I was going to introduce her to a woman I know from Filadelfia Church that knows a lot about makeup and styling. Vestina wants nothing more than to be around that kind of stuff and see what she can learn. The woman couldn’t meet with us until 2:45 so I had to kill a few hours in town. It wasn’t a bad thing as I was able to change my address info at the bank, post office and library, and I also did a little thrift store shopping and found the coolest hand croqueted bed cover for fifty bucks. A big thrill for me as it’s just like one my grandma made that I always wanted, but my aunt inherited it, rightly so. God provides. I also used the time to take a lot of photos of downtown Aalesund since I won’t be going there so much anymore. Today was my last day to take the bus, too. So after waiting for two hours, it turns out the woman we were to meet was running late so I had to catch the bus at three and I was never able to introduce them. Talk about frustrating. Vestina will meet with her next week on her own, I guess. I had to get home to pack up Kaleb’s things for the weekend as he is now at his first church retreat with forty other kids around his age. He has two friends from school with him, a new friend from church and our neighbor girl, Sabina. They were all sitting in the back of the bus after we dropped them off. I always thought the bus rides were one of the best things about going to camp. They are just going across the fjord but it might take an hour to get there with the ferry wait and all. I’m so praying he stays safe and has a great time. We thought it would be a good way to end out his school year (his last day isn’t until Tuesday however) and have some good memories with his friends before we leave. He was thrilled to go. So I’m thankful something good happened today.

After cleaning up the house a little, Kory took the van in to his friend’s car shop and got two (slightly used) tires mounted and balanced and installed on our car for FREE, just in time for our road trip. Once again, God provides! Tonight we walked over and visited with cousin Odd for a while as Kory forced me to take a break from my computer (I’m still working on picture books of our time in Norway.) The day was not a total loss, but I’m glad it’s now over.

Seven Days and a Wake Up...

I debated about whether to go to class today or not because My Pal Vestina wasn’t going to be there, but The Good Teacher Inga was. Since I had a prayer meeting to attend at ten o’clock, I thought I might as well go for the first two hours just because Inga was there. Turns out, I was the only student in the whole class for the first half an hour! The students are dropping like flies. When another student came (one from the class we combined with), I decided to leave as she needed some one-on-one help with writing a cover letter for a job. I expected to be late for the prayer meeting with The Praying Ladies but I was able to take an earlier bus so I was right on time, so that was good.

Oh, we had quite the time in prayer today. It was amazing – which I am especially thankful for since it’s the last meeting I can attend. I love the power of combined prayer. We all had a half hour of “soaking” time first, and after I had a few poignant visions and a “message” from God, I fell asleep! I have been so tired lately it’s only been coffee that keeps me awake. I needed the sleep and apparently I didn’t snore and disturb the rest of the group, so that was good, too. But I got the distinct message from God today that life is all about separations – we must separate from our parents, from our children when they are grown, from our friends when they move away and eventually our spouse if they die first. I’ve been grieving over the move from Norway and separating from all that I love here. I saw many images today of the process of separating. Then I thought about my nightly routine with Kaleb, how when I kiss him goodnight he wraps his arms tight around my neck and won’t let go. He clings to me with a passion and it’s only when I tickle him can I get him to release his grip. I saw that same vision, only it was me clinging to the cross. Then I saw a sword attach itself to the cross and since the Bible says God’s word is a sword, it is that which I must cling to during this transition back home. I can hang on as tight as I want to that and it will never leave me, nor will God, so I don’t have to fear the separation anymore because Norway is just Norway, but God is God and that’s a much better thing to be attached to. I know all that on some level, but it was good to be reminded of it today - so I feel much better now.

Kory was over at Odd’s again today doing some repairs to a wall Odd tore out and Kaleb had an all day bike ride with his class from school. After school Kaleb brought home a few friends to see what they could build with all the toilet paper and paper towel tubes I’ve been saving all year. Kaleb likes to create things with everyday objects and as fast as we go through toilet paper (they don’t put so many sheets on a roll as they do in America), I thought it would be fun to see if he could make a castle or something creative with a year’s worth of toilet paper tubes. All they made was a mess. They had great ideas but no way to properly execute it so I talked Kory into taking them to the local indoor playland for a few hours (it was raining) while I cleaned up and got dinner ready. I even had time to fold the napkins in a fancy way. These Norwegians know 101 ways to fold a paper napkin to make the table look nice. I’ve learned a few methods from friends, but I rarely have time to put it into practice. Colorful, patterned napkins are a MUST when having guests for dinner.

We invited our neighbors to come over tonight- Erling lives just across the street and Marit and her husband are two doors down from him (we see both their houses from our window). I ride the bus everyday with Marit and she’s very good for me because she doesn’t know a word of English so every morning I get to practice my listening and speaking skills on her. They are all old folks who have lived on this street for nearly forty years so they had a good time telling us the history of the piece of land where we now live (but not for long.) Marit’s husband (I can’t remember his name!) told us about the problem he had with moles at their cabin up in the mountains (they call them “earth rats” here -jordråter). He tried everything anyone told him to try to get rid of them, and finally he found the thing that worked – which got Kory’s attention since it’s his daily battle in Mount Vernon. So the secret is, equal parts of sugar, oatmeal and dry cement mix! He puts a handful in some wax paper and twists it shut, then shoves it down in the hole when the ground is good and dry. Apparently the moles chomp away at the mixture and die soon afterwards when the cement turns their gut to stone. It sounds like an awful way to die, but apparently it’s quite effective. He cautioned us to only make as much of the mixture as we will use at the time because all animals will eat that stuff – dogs and cats included – and it will kill them all. So now Kory is anxious to get home and give it a try. If it works, it will certainly free up a lot of his time every morning as he’s up at the crack of dawn each day assessing the damage and walking around the yard looking for a fight. Better the moles than me.

Eight Days and Counting...

My Pal Vestina sent me a message this morning saying she needed to sleep so she wasn’t going to school today. The Good Teacher Inga is in Northern Norway for something to do with her job, so she wasn’t there today either. I couldn’t find any reason to go, so I didn’t. I stayed home and in the same course of time I’d use to go to school and come home again, I was able to put together another one of them fancy digital picture books. I sure hope it turns out okay. I can’t read all the technical Norwegian words, but it looked fine to me on my computer. Soon I’ll have a show-n-tell photo book from our Easter vacation road trip along the southern coast of Norway. And I was so excited it took less than five hours to produce it, I ignored my dead butt and completed another one by dinnertime for the vacation we took in February to Italy. I’m on a roll. Of course, the only reason all that uninterrupted computer time was possible today was because Kaleb went home with Andre after school and Kory was over at Odd’s again completing the installation of his new bedroom ceiling. We were all so productive today! I wish I would have known about this digital photo album program months ago but I just learned about it last Friday, so the rush is on to get something done with all these photos I have taken before we leave Norway. I also wish I would have gone out and enjoyed the sunshine that came our way today because tonight the clouds have moved back in and it looks like rain. Oh well. The sun was shining in many of the photos I used today, does that count?

School isn’t out in Norway until the 23rd of June – way too long if you ask me. These last two weeks could have easily been knocked off in both my school and Kalebs. There is only eight weeks of summer break in Norway – not long enough. Kaleb had to turn in all his books today so he was whistling Dixie that his backpack was so light.

I would be packing up a few more things now except that we have more people coming over before we leave and I need the house to still look somewhat presentable. The closets and Kaleb’s room are pretty well packed away, but I can’t pack stuff we’ll need for the next week, or the decorative stuff. I hate living in a house that looks empty so I need to keep the things on the walls until the last minute. I hope I’m not sorry I’m waiting so long to do everything.

Kory and I were talking today about the incredible experiences we’ve had since we’ve been here and how lucky we feel to have been given this opportunity. It boggles our mind that we’ve been able to live here for free for so long. The entire year we’ve only paid a total of a thousand dollars for these last three month’s rent, and we’ve never paid a dime for utilities or electricity, just telephone and internet. I can hardly believe it – living in the most expensive country in the world for a year for a thousand bucks. Only God could orchestrate something like that. Most couples in Norway both have to work and one of their incomes just goes to pay the mortgage. Many homes also have apartments in their basements because any income made off renting out any part of a person’s residence is tax free money here and many families need the extra income it provides. It’s even expensive for Norwegians to live in Norway– not just Americans, but we’ve had it pretty good! The money we are going to be using for our European road trip was money I thought we’d be using to pay rent, so it’s a real treat that we get to use it on such a luxury instead. God is good!

I’m so thankful we’ve made new friends here, and hopefully not worn out our relatives. God’s used us to encourage others in their faith and to help connect a few people back up with God. We hope our lives here have made a difference. Kaleb has been able to enjoy an independence he’ll never know living in America. He’s free to ride his bike miles from home, be gone all day to a friend’s house and come home at supper time – just like Kory and I did as kids. He’s had to learn about schedules and getting up and out the door to get to school on time and he’s had to forgive time and time again when kids at school do things he doesn’t like. He’s grown up so much this year! Other than social skills and learning Norwegian, I’m sure he hasn’t learned a whole lot academically, but that’s not why we came. I can tell his brain is ready for a new challenge now though, so it’s probably good we are going home. One more year in school here would do him in. Now that he’s fluent in reading, writing and speaking Norwegian, he is bored out of his mind with the busy work he must do. He says he’s glad we are going back home, but I wonder for how long, once we are there. But in our little world now, we will have two places we can call “home.”

(Today’s photo was taken last Sunday – some of the tropical green algae color is still visible near this park in Aalesund.)

Nine Days To Go

Guilt was a big factor in me going to school today. I tuned out a long time ago and haven’t learned many new things lately, but I have this problem of needing to complete things I commit to, even when it makes no sense. Also, My Pal Vestina sent me a text message saying she missed me yesterday and she really needed to talk to me. I have become her “second mother” she says and she has no one else to help solve her problems. She doesn’t really need any help, as she’s quite capable herself, she just likes confirmation she’s doing the right thing. The Good Teacher Inga wasn’t there today so I needed extra motivation to get out the door. Vestina had “news” to tell me, so I just had to go find out what it was.

Her “old” boyfriend was in town over the weekend. She didn’t come to our class party last Friday because she wanted to be with him. She thought she was done with him, but he poured out his heart and love for her and asked her to be with him again. He got a new job awhile ago about 15 hours drive from here and the separation has not been good for him. Vestina is still wanting a little more time apart before she decides if she should follow him and his new job. But that wasn’t the news. It seems for the third time in a two week span, yet another man has fallen for her. This time, it is her neighbor – a guy from Holland. Apparently, he couldn’t wait any longer and seeing that her “boyfriend” was once again out of the picture, he declared his undying love for her. He asked her to move in with him and promised her the moon – said he’d cook and clean and treat her like a queen. As he was going on and on about how he’d quit smoking if she wanted him to, or start working out if she wanted him to have a better body, or quit drinking if she didn’t like it, Vestina just looked at him and said rather rudely, “Blah, blah, blah.” I thought I’d bust a gut laughing when she told me that. Vestina said the guy said, “No, it’s not blah, blah, blah – I really mean those things!” Here is yet another guy whose heart has been broken by My Pal Vestina. She now wants me to meet the guy so I can tell her what I think of him. I told her I didn’t need to meet him – I’m certain she made the right choice. What’s with all these guys that haven’t even been on a date with this woman – and yet they want her to move in with them? It’s certain they are not Norwegians because Norwegians hold out the longest time before ever even saying they love someone, and then, maybe just saying it once in a lifetime. These other guys just slobber all over her, totally humiliating themselves. I just love how she sets them straight. I laughed for a good five minutes over that whole situation. What a hoot. It was worth the trip into town.

When I got home today I began another project I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help myself. Once I got all the best photos together from our trip last Fall up to the Lofoten Islands, I decided to order up one of those fancy self-published coffee table picture books. I checked all the places I knew I could order them over the internet, and found a place here in Norway that had the coolest software available, even if I couldn’t fully utilize it because I can’t read all those technical Norwegian terms. The book, hopefully, will look fabulous. I was able to spend every remaining minute of my day on that project and send it off for printing before midnight. Kaleb went home from school with his friends so he wasn’t around all afternoon and Kory was over at Odd’s putting new wood on the ceiling in his bedroom. I had the house to myself and it was raining and I needed no more excuse than that. Of course, I did have to take a four hour break to eat, as we were graciously invited over to Andre’s house for dinner. Andre is one of Kaleb’s good buddies and his parents attend Filadelfia Church so we’ve gotten to know them a little better these last few months. Andre’s mom, Janne, was at our house last night for the Bible study group so it was very cool to be invited over to their house for dinner tonight. And we had my favorite food – which is always any food I don’t have to cook. But actually, it was an incredibly yummy meal and we had a wonderful evening visiting with the adults while the kids ran around the house playing hide-n-seek (a favorite game in these parts). Kaleb will surely miss Andre. He even missed him today because Andre stayed home from school to recover from an injury. Yesterday, on his way home from school, Andre tripped and landed on a rock about the size of a football but shaped more like a wedge. He put one heck of a gash in his shin so deep it didn’t even bleed. He passed out from the pain however and needed eight stitches. When he thinks about it, he limps and needs sympathy, but when running around the house with Kaleb tonight, it would be hard to tell anything was wrong with him. Too funny. Janne and I talked about how much we do to protect our kids from harm, and then something like this happens. What’s a mother to do?

The Countdown Is On

Another sleepless night last night made for a good excuse not to go to school today. I tried to sleep in, but couldn’t. I had to get up and make Kaleb’s lunch so I just stayed up and enjoyed a good cup of Starbuck’s coffee. It helped only a little. I’ve been in a daze all day. I don’t know why I’m not sleeping, but it’s definitely a trend I hope stops soon.

Kory’s employer didn’t have work suitable for him today (meaning, all the work they had would kill his back), so he got to stay home today too, except Odd’s bedroom remodel was calling. Kory didn’t think he’d have time to drop the ceiling before we left, but since he had today free from his other job, he was able to put a smile on Odd’s face. He was gone all day.

Once Kaleb was off to school I used the quiet time at home to get a few projects done. I updated all our “exit instructions” I call them – what to do if we both die at the same time. With all the unrest in the world, venturing out into Europe might not be the safest thing we can do, so I want to be prepared just in case. The last thing I want to think about if I’m on my way out – is that I didn’t tell anyone what to do with my grandmother’s china. Ha ha, but kinda true. Once Kaleb was born both Kory and I updated our wills and wrote as much information as we thought would be helpful to someone that might have to clean up after us, as it were. So at least that task is off my plate and I have a few more years before I have to worry about updating that file again. I also used the time to sort through some pictures. I’m sure I’ve taken over ten thousand photos since being here and I’m trying to pick out some of the better ones in case anyone is interested in seeing them. What a job. They always say computers make our lives easier, but I think it’s way more labor intensive to sit and sift through photos I wouldn’t have taken in the first place if I knew I had to pay to get the roll of film developed. It’s just too easy to point and click with a digital camera, when it’s “free.” But the time it takes to sort through them afterwards is way more costly than photo processing. We can always get more money, but we can’t always get more time. Time is a finite thing and we never know when ours is up. Ugh.

I wanted to pack up Kaleb’s room today but realized I needed his input to do it since I don’t know what he wants to take home, what can stay here, what he needs for the road trip and what he wants to get rid of, so that project had to wait until he was home from school and done with his homework. But now his room is nearly empty so I feel good about that. He came home pretty excited today as his homework plan showed no homework after Tuesday, so he sat at the table and did all of today’s and tomorrow’s work and then let out a whoop and a holler that he will NEVER have homework again because it’s back to homeschooling! I’m glad he’s looking forward to that.

I had to use a little time today to clean the house because tonight I hosted the Bible study group I started attending just recently. They are a fine group of women from the Filadelfia Church (see photo – taken at 10:30pm tonight – notice how light it is outside) and we had a nice time together tonight, “soaking,” praying for each other and reading the Bible. They all wanted to pray for me to thank God for having me in their group – then they prayed God would bring me back to Norway soon. I wonder how God handles those prayers when I know there are some in America praying we come back there and don’t leave again. It must be a tough job to be God.

Kaleb and Kory went over to visit the Tantes tonight while I had a house full of women. Kory offered to take Kaleb bowling or swimming or to the movies or fishing, bike riding, for a drive… he kept on and on with the suggestions and Kaleb didn’t want to do a single one. Finally Kory said if he wouldn’t pick something then he would decide himself, so he decided they would go visit the aunts. Kaleb flipped out. He screamed and slammed doors and carried on like it was the end of the world. He absolutely, positively did NOT want to go visit the aunts, but he had to anyway. Ya snooze, ya lose. He brought along a couple of books for entertainment while Kory was busy chatting away. Kaleb was not a happy camper.

We have just ten more days here in Aalesund before we drive out of town. I’m wondering what the next chapter of our lives will be like and just how much we’ve been changed by this experience, without even realizing it. Hopefully it’s all for the good.

Party, Party, Party...

Filadelfia Church had a big party day today for all the children. The sermon was a childish drama to emphasis we are all disciples of Christ. Children lead the worship songs and the whole service took half the normal time – talk about kid-friendly. Afterwards there was a big carnival set up in the parking lot complete with bouncy house slide, cotton candy machines, game booths and food stand. Kory said, “Hey, it looks like one of Kaleb’s birthday parties here,” and it sure did. Kaleb was pretty pleased with the whole event since one of his buddies from school was there also and they could run around together. And then tragedy struck. Kaleb was a little hyped up by the whole thing and as usual, wasn’t being as cautious as he should have been. On the last slide down the big inflatable slide, all the kids decided to go down together. Someone stepped on Kaleb’s sock so he wasn’t able to go freely, rather he fell forward and was then pinned under all the kids that ended up piling on top of him on the way down. He was face first and got the skin rubbed raw off his forehead and according to him, he nearly suffocated as he couldn’t breathe all the way down. Oh was he ever devastated, and hurt, by the whole thing. He got what was the equivalent of a rug burn above his eyebrow but he acted like his whole face got ripped off. He’s such a drama king sometimes. So we had to leave church as all the fun was ruined for him. But luckily for us, Tone, Sabina’s mom, sent us a text message that Agape Church was also having a party in a park this afternoon so we decided to go to that because I had so much food left over from yesterday’s Confirmation, I was looking for a way to share it before it went bad.

Tone and Sabina rode with us to the park as it was at a place we had never been to – and it was quite a beautiful beach very close to the city. I love finding out about all the nooks and crannies around here. The sun even peeked out every so often so that made it nice. But most of the time there we were saying our good-byes to people and answering the ever present question of why we can’t stay longer and what will Kaleb do when we get back home. Kaleb was busy trying to learn how to ride a unicycle, climbing on the rocks by the beach and/or playing keep away with the pastor and assistant pastor of the church. At one point Kaleb tried to wrestle the ball away from the pastor and the pastor fell on him, which brought back all the trauma of his earlier experience today so he just lost it and ran off into the woods to cry and console himself. He was gone a long time but I’m glad he worked through whatever he was feeling without being in my face while doing it. There is no consoling that kid when he gets worked up, so he has begun the journey into the “cave” to sort out his problems. He’s soon on his way to becoming a man.

Our neighbor girl, Sabina, really wanted to come over to our house after the beach party to play Golf (a card game) and eat Kettle Corn (popcorn with sugar). Her mom, Tone (pronounced Tone-ah), and Tone’s friend, Tor-Arild, also came over so we spent the entire evening playing cards and snacking. It was, in my estimation, the best way to spend an evening. If I had one night of that per week, I’d feel complete. I love having friends over for just a casual get-together without a lot of preparation or expectation. We all love that card game as it’s easy to learn and it provides enough time to chat as we play, so it makes for a fun evening. Kaleb and Sabina had to take wrestle breaks every now and then because they were all sugared up on the candy Tone brought with her. A few years from now it won’t be quite so entertaining to watch them wrestling on the couch together, but tonight, it was pretty funny. They are a matched set with the same energy and strength level and Sabina is one tough little cookie. And it was fun to have Tone and Tor-Arild here together because I’m sure something is brewing between the two of them (see photo). If something does develop, we can take the credit for it since we arranged their meeting, in a way. We invited Tone to church with us, and then to our Connect Group, and it was there she met Tor-Arild. It’s an interesting match because she’s a Fashion Queen and he’s a Harley Biker dude (you can’t see his long ponytail in the photo) and never in a million years would I have thought they would hit it off, but they sure have. Go figure. Both Tone and Sabina have been a big part of the memories we have made here so we will miss them.

Today we got our “shipment” from the U.S.A. Kory’s second cousin Bjørn was in America last week with our shopping list in hand. We now have good ‘ol American coffee to enjoy again our last few weeks in Norway! Bjørn also brought us some L-Carnitine that Kory takes as part of his heart healthy concoction of vitamins and herbs. For some reason it’s not allowed in Norway, even by prescription, so we had to have it smuggled in. So much for obeying the law of the land. But then, Starburst candies are illegal in Norway too because the #2 yellow die used in them is considered a carcinogenic. Go figure.

Hege's Confirmation Day!

Before I even had my sacred morning cup of coffee, I was up making food for the Confirmation party today. I was at it for three hours straight and we were nearly late for the Confirmation itself because I was rushing around trying to get Kaleb and I dressed for the event. It’s as formal of a day as it gets around here so I knew I had to at least iron our clothes.

The church was completed packed out. We arrived five minutes before the ceremony began and we got the last three seats. They had three separate Confirmations today in the same church, each one processing 30 kids at a time. The church can only hold so many family and friends so they can’t do them all at once. Tomorrow they will have additional Confirmation ceremonies. They were scheduled two hours apart and they ran like clockwork. The church was full of men, women, children and even babies in their traditional Norwegian bunads. I just love seeing entire families decked out in their Norsk costumes.

The Confirmation ceremony itself was full of pomp and circumstance, somewhat like a graduation ceremony. All the Confirmants wore white robes and came in a procession down the aisle after the candle bearers. There were songs, prayers, reciting the Lord’s Prayer, the 23rd Psalm, the Apostle’s Creed. Someone sang Amazing Grace in both English and Norwegian and the Priest gave a little sermon. I didn’t understand all he said but I could tell he was talking about money. So many kids only go through with Confirmation to get the cash gifts that come with this tradition, but it seemed to me like the priest was advising them that God offers something greater than money can buy. At one point I let a loud “Amen” slip out, but Kory smacked me because it’s not proper to speak up in the State Church here. They are very serious and somber folks and I’m quite certain no one has ever shouted HALLELUJAH in that place.

The grand finale of the ceremony was when the Confirmants came up two by two, stopping first to light a candle in the candelabra then going forward and kneeling before the two priests. As one priest said the name of the first kid, all the family in attendance stood up while the priests each laid a hand on their head and gave a prayer of blessing. Then they said the name of the next one, and on it went, two by two until all the kids had been prayed for. Afterwards they marched outside for group photos and quickly disbursed to all the locations around the city for the big parties that followed.

It’s not common to have friends attend the parties, which I think is a little sad. Of the 70 people at Hege’s party today, only three weren’t related to her. Since it was all family, it was kind of funny that it was so formal but it followed all the Norwegian “code” for special events. The tables were set nice and fancy and everyone had a reserved spot. The guests all stood behind their chairs, waiting to be welcomed to the party and invited to sit down. There was an opening speech by Hege’s father, Odd. Hege gave a speech of welcome then we sang a song. (It’s common to take a well known tune and rewrite the words to fit the event or the person, so we sang a few of those songs throughout the party.) Everyone was invited to the buffet table to eat all they could manage. After dinner there were more speeches and then a video presentation displaying Hege’s love for dancing. We took a break and had time for visiting one another before the cakes and coffee were served, after which we all played a “How well do you know Hege” game. (Our group came in dead last – mostly because it took us so long to translate all the questions!) Hege took whatever free time she had and methodically opened all 60 envelops she received as gifts for the occasion. Each one contained cash – anywhere from 100 kroner ($14) to 1,500 (over $200). Hege wrote down each person’s name in a book and how much they gave so she could write thank you notes later. She set all the cards up on a table and displayed them for all to see (some were works of art as people often hand make the cards). Kaleb couldn’t wait to total up the amount she received and when he realized she got over $3,000 he very seriously asked if he could go through Confirmation in Norway. Money is a powerful force.

The ceremony was at high noon but we didn’t get back home again until after 8pm. Kaleb wasn’t too happy that he missed out on having a sleepover with his friends however, so I had one crabby boy to deal with on an otherwise lovely day. This has been a big year for Turid as she has worked so hard to complete art school plus prepare for today. She did all the embroidery on Hege’s bunad (dress) among other preparations. I almost feel her relief as she’s been burning the candle at both ends ever since we got here. Now that she finally has time to play, we are leaving. That is just one more thing that makes me sad we are moving, but if Kaleb has his way, we’ll be back in a few years.