Britt-Arnhild's House in the Woods

The Light in the center of the darkness

It is so easy to get overwhelmed at this time of the year. That's when we have to focus on the Light in the center of the darkness. (by Karen, in a comment on yesterday's post)

I flew down to Oslo yesterday morning. Usually I fall asleep as soon as I sit down in a plane seat, and sleep the 40-50 minutes it takes down to Oslo. Somehow I was unable to sleep yesterday. Halfway the captain told us that Oslo airport was covered in mist and we would be 15 minutes delayed. "Hanging over" Lillehammer, i raised my eyes from my book and looked out the window......

Morning broke. Light in the center of darkness.

   
The sunrise became my "creche of the day".

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Heard on the airport taxi: Man 1 to man 2 - "I have finished buying the Christmas gifts" Man 2 to man 1 - "Already? How did you manage that?" Mane 1 to man 2 - "I drove my wife to IKEA, gave her two hours and my credit card!"

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Karen, you are the winner of today's knitted ornament. Address please.

The knitted ornament giveaway will continue every day during advent. Don't forget to leave a comment on this post, tomorrow another name will be drawn.

 

Where Women Create

To create. Creating. Creations!

I taste the words. Sweet. Filled with hope. Make my day dance. A palette filled with growth, with new beginnings, with hope.

So far my advent has been so different from how I planned it. No long afternons with candles, music, silent thoughts.......Too much is going on.

The smile in my heart, in my voice, on my face almost left me yesterday. I felt tired. Overwhelmed. Will I make it. Are the challenges too much for me, the days too long? Will there be a Christmas this year? "Of course Christmas will come!", he looked into my eyes, into my heart, reassuring, smiling.

Suddenly laughter was back in the air.

To create. To live. The life you are meant to live. Walking the paths made for you, created for you. By the Creator. Of life and death.

Creating is about living, creating your life, the way you live it.

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The blog link today, of course; Where Women Create

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The knitted ornament giveaway will continue every day during advent. Don't forget to leave a comment on this post, tomorrow another name will be drawn.

Today's winner is Ardi :-)

 

It is about doing something different.....

Advent for me is alot about doing something different, about slowing down, about living a new focus. Which is a huge challenge this year because of my new job. My days are long and busy, filled to the brim........I did bring a couple of purple candles with me to work yesterday for a small table I have in my office, and I also brought a felted sacred family, handmade by 15 years old Kristin, the daughter of a good friend.......and I hope to be able to squeeze in some candle time, slow time.

I did do something quite different last night though. I met Ingrid downtown, first we had dinner at Frati, an old, very charming Intalian restaurant, and then we went to the theatre to see Tyskertøs.

A lovely mother/daughter night.

Marta was on her way to bed when I came home. "Mamma, will you be home to eat dinner with pappa and me tomorrow" I felt bad, avoided her eyes and replied "I'm sorry Marta, I will be away, working, both tomorrow and Wednesday"

To my surprise a broad smile spread on Marta's face. "Great pappa, then we can work out our plan!" I looked completely like a question mark, and Marta continued "you see mamma, pappa and I will have Grandiosa for dinner tomorrow!"

Note: Grandiosa is the cheapest ready made pizza you can buy from the freezer at the grocery stores. I never buy it, all kids LOVE it.

So much for my homemade pizzas!!!!! LOL

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Today's link will take you to a Norwegian favorite blog of mine, Husfruas memoarer. Many of you will not understand the writing, but I am sure you will love it anyway.

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The knitted ornament giveaway will continue every day during advent. Don't forget to leave a comment on this post, tomorrow another name will be drawn.

Today's winner is Vicky, my relative from the US west coast. Thank you for your comment Vicky, please send my freetings to Arvid and Christopher.

 

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Happy New (church) Year

Do you know that a new year started in the church yesterday? With advent, the waiting of a saviour to be born.

I celebrated it by taking part in a mass in Nidaros Cathedral, where I helped serve during communion.

Last week I took part in a prayer in the cathedral, in the small chapel of Johannes. There are two shrines on the front wall in the chapel, with paintings by Håkon Gullvåg. As usual the shrines were closed, with only the front paintings showing. Yesterday, a feast day, the first day in a new year, a day of hope, the doors were open and we could look into the shrine.

Happy New Year!

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The first nativity scene is up, a creche from Provence, bought during two visits there.

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The knitted ornament giveaway will continue every day during advent. Don't forget to leave a comment o n this post, tomorrow another name will be drawn.

Today's winner is Vonnie. I am praying for your granddaughter Vonnie. How is she doing? Please send me your address and I'll mail you a Christmas letter with a knitted ornament.

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A new blog to visit today, not typical Christmas, at least not yet, but very colourful: Attic24

The day is here, the first candle is shining bright

The day, the first Sunday of Advent 2009, is still young. It is dark, it is quiet. The snow dusting from yesterday is still out there, making the day look clean. A promise of winter.

A Betlehem star is shining in the window, the first dark purple candle in the old brass wreath is lit. The advent basket is here on the diningroom table with me, and I have slowly started to unwrap it - a white angel made by my artist friend Solveig, a snow globe, a red glass ball (why is it that I never, never remember the English name of these ornament balls?) Dicken's Christmas Carol, Country Living's December Magazine from 1991, a Christmas creche from Provence.......and alot more. Day by day the house will start to look like Christmas, the fulfillment will come on lille julaften Little Christmas Eve, when the tree will be put up, decorated and the lights on the tree will shine, one day early since we have invited friends for our annual lutefisk party.

Terje and I will be attending the mass in the cathedral today. There I will help during communion, serving the blood of Christ. Tonight we are invited to friends for their annual advent party. Traditions are important. Old and new.

It is a few days early for the advent calendar yet, the first window is not to be opened untill December 1st, but I have my very own blog calendar which will be opened already today. I will ramdomly pick one name from yesterday's comment and then send a Christmas letter with a knitted ornament to the name chosen.

I have a small glass bowl here with numbers written on small sheets of paper. Yesterday's post has 15 comments (when I write this) and the winner will be..........#3 Penelope. Please email me your address Penelope and your letter will be on its way.

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The period of advent is for me alot about writing letters and cards to family and friends all over the world. The blog I will invite you to visit today is Letters & Journals. A great place to get inspiration. I am sure you will enjoy it as much as I do.

It is still too dark to take good indoor photos. Come back later and there might be a few photos of the creche then.........Now Terje is up making breakfast, I'll close here and help him by setting the table with our Christmas Spode.

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May God bless your day and your advent. 

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The knitted ornament giveaway will continue every day during advent. Don't forget to leave a comment o n this post, tomorrow another name will be drawn.

 

While waiting.......knitted ornament giveaway starts today

Tomorrow is first Sunday of advent, the first candle in our advent wreath will be lit, a shining star will be hung in the livingroom window, purple will be the colour of the four weeks ahead, and slowly, slowly the purple will get some red and green companions....untill the red and green totally takes over some time around Christmas Eve.

I'll start writing the Christmas letters this week-end, and yesterday I came up with the idea of what to make to stuff the Christmas envelopes. Felted or knitted ornaments have been small gifts in my Christmas envelopes for years. a new design every year. I love the part when I must twist my brain to come up with yet another design.

 Yesterday the idea came floating all by itself while I was sorting though my yarn collection. Still a secret, as many of you will get one in your mailbox before Christmas.

My advent posts will start tomorrow. I have some new ideas up in my sleeve this year, and as always I'll need your help.

• every day I'll pick out one comment, the "winner" will get a Christmas card from The House in the Woods, with a knitted ornament
• every day I'll link to a new blog, chosen because of its advent or Christmas theme, its colours, words, photos or focus. please share with me your favorites.

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The winner from yesterday: Carol. Please email me your address.

Terje and I spent last night with good friends. When we drove home deep into the night the first snowflakes started to fall silently from the sky.

The world looks beautiful today.

A new garden post will soon be up in The Blue Garden. 

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The ornament giveaway sarts today, so don't forget to leave your comment.

The first blog link will take you to Nancy Lindemeyer's Journal,  She is the founding editor of Victoria Magazine. Enjoy!

Making space for advent, realizing I'm easily tricked.......

I have a day off, finally, and have spent the morning sorting though alot of old stuff, making space for advent bric and brac.

We have alot of extra room now with only Marta at home. Finally I can find places to display some more of my plentiful collections. Terje despairs, well actually he smiles and shrugs, Marta agrees with her big sister who once proclaimed: "Mamma, you (read - the way you decorate) is so old fashioned, I wonder if you were born before God"

I keep on playing, creating.......and my heart beams when long time, faraway friends come here for the first time, walking around in the house, enjoying my creations, my collections.....even open closed doors to see more

This is my home, this is the House in the Woods, and I want it to be a chest of creativity, a Pandora's Box filled with love and hope.

The House in the Woods is open to everybody, and it should be a place where you can come for playing, creating, eating, talking....or just being.

The bed in the guestroom is just made fresh again after the last guest left yesterday.

I was working my way though pile after pile from a basement cabinet when I came over a few handmade postcards from Venezia, bought in 2005. I remember talking to the artist listening to stories from is life. The postcards had been stucked away for fours years, but somehow they looked quite familiar. Suddenly I remembered why. Up in my House in the Woods office, on my desk, I have some Venezia postcards bought in June this summer. I took the old cards up and discovered that they are perfect copies of each other. The ones bought in 2005 are matching exactly the ones bought in 2009. They are not drawn by hand at all, but printed out as copies.....

....so much for the handmade cards!

Well, they ARE beautiful though :-)

And when it comes to the handmade parts....., some colours are probably applied by hand, at least I like to believe so :-)

  May be you want one in your mailbox? Leave a comment and I'll randomly pick one of you.

Venezia, Caffe Avec.......and soon back

 

• thank you to Mauro and all of you who played with us the other day

• the next Caffe Avec post is up here

• I'll soon be fully  back here.........promise