Britt-Arnhild's House in the Woods

Beautiful day in Austria

The weather was beautiful when I woke up this morning. In Norway we are having our annual winter break this week, so if I had been at home, I would have been doing alot of cross country skiing. So I decided that though I have no skis here, I could still walk in this beautiful nature. I left the house soon after breakfast, and was out for about two hours. There is a ruin of an old castle up in the mountains behind Dagmar´s house, and that soon became my goal. The air was fresh and the day so beautiful. I saw three deers when I was wandering up there, of course they ran away long before I had taken my camera out of my pocket. A little further up in the mountain there is a cute old Gasthaus. It was open and I went in and ordered hot chocolate with cream which I enjoyed out in the sun, looking at two ravens flying over the castle. I almost felt I was in Ronja the Robber´s Daughter´s land.

On my way back to Dagmar´s house I passed the catholic church in the village, and decided to go in and see if they had hung the lent painting yet. The church has an amazing Fastentuch painted in 1555, and this painting is hung only during lent. I was lucky - the painting was already up. And it is amazing. I spent a very long time in there looking at the 39 different paintings in the "tapestry", 8 from the Old Testament, the rest from the New Testament. You will all be ableto share the Fastentuck with us, here it is: http://baldramsdorf.at/chronik/index.php?open=fastentuch

Greetings from Venice and Austria

Just a very short post, without photos, to let you all know that I am fine. I have spent a week in Venice with my Austrian friend, and I am now in Austria on her lovely farm, wiring on my book about Lent Traditions. I will have alot to post about when I come home. Untill then - ciao!

Capture the moment!

Every day is a special day when you are with people you love.

I was up before 5 this morning to catch the first plane down to Stavanger and a meeting. Came home just in time to read the daily Harry Potter chapter for me and Marta, and when she was in bed I decided to make it a special Monday night for me and Terje.

I made a cheese souffle, and we sat down with roses, candles and Italian opera favorite aries on the cd player.

The souffle was made out of love and air and has never looked and tasted better.

Mother's Cabin Day

It is Mother's Day in Norway today, and we celebrated at our cabin. Terje, Marta and her friend made breakfast for me, and I got roses, a charming candle light holder especially from Marta, and a new, red suitcase.

We have spent the week-end at the cabin, Terje, I, Marta and Marta's best friend. Lovely winter weather, so Saturday we were out cross country skiing. Unfortunately my digital camera is not working well, so most of the photos taken out in the snow became all white. It was perfect out there though, with the snow filled trees, sun, mountains and a fresh ski track for us. And after such a trip, is there anything better when you are 10 years old than sitting down in the floor in fron of the burning hearth with a bag of mashmallows. Sharing the floor with the wet clothes :-)

One photo where the colours are no good I want to share with you though, taken from the break we had during the ski trip.

Thanks Pam and Catherine

In December I wrote a blog where I mentioned Nutcracker, and I said that I have for a long time wanted to start a collection with nutckracer, though they are not to be found anywhere here in Norway.

And here I am, a few weeks later, the proud owner of two fantastic nutcrackers. Exactly my cup of tea. The one from Pam came during Christmas and found it's place in the windowsill during the holidays. Catherine sent hers slowmail, and it arrived yesterday. A huge packet. What a lovely, lovely surprise. The two nutcrackers didn't know each other, but they seem to go along perfectly. And they have alot to talk about. So far they have exchanged their travel stories over the Atlantic, but I know they will go on to tell each other about the lovely ladies who bought them (and also Catherine's husband who was of great help). The one to the left comes from Ilinois, the one to the right from Brooklyn NY. I have asked both to share their stories with me, but so far they seem quite sky. So I might depend on Pam and Catherine themselves to be told stories from their life and doings. And stories about the life of good friends are the best stories I can have.

Pam and Catherine, again a huge THANK YOU, or as I would say it in Norwegian - TUSEN TAKK.  What a wonderful generosity to do this gesture of love and friendship for little ol' me far, far away from you. People like you make our (from time to time unsafe) world a good place to live.

Sunday, Sunday

After breakfast I filled the huge table in our diningroom with "my stuff" - which means books, books and more books. Almost a whole day in front of me for reading, writing and listening to music. A perfect day :-) I have my own, big office upstairs, on the first floor, but Torgeir has lived there now the almost three months he has been at home, and I have been used to make the diningroom my study. Here I am in the heart of the house and in the heart of the family. And the table is big and perfect for all I like to fill it up with.

My studies had to take some of my time of course. But there was also time for other things. Reading Monet with my armchairtravelling yahoo group, studying the map of Venice while reading John Berendt's The City of Falling Angels and while writing a little in my own Venice book, writing in my diary, checking e-mails on my laptop, reading about Botticelli, the Italian artist I try to focus on this month, writing a few letters.......

I don't have any books about Botticelli, will look for one when I go to Rome at Eastertime. But I found a book for children the last time I was at the public library with Marta. And I have a calendar with his paintings which I bought in Rome last summer. I also have a set of six espresso cups decorated with Botticelli's Primevera. Terje bought them for me in Rome a few years ago when we were there during my birthday - in spring. Botticelli was unknown to me then. But on this stay in Rome we followed the footsteps of the late Norwegian writer and winner of the Nobel Prize in litterature, Sigrid Undset. I learned from the book about her that Botticelli was one of her favorite Italian painters, and this made me curious. The small coffee cups have become a very special treasure.

My Sunday is almost over. But there is still time for a cup of coffee, some Brahms music and some reading about old English gardens.

I dream of being an artist.....

Sometimes I dream of being an artist, well, not artist like in Artist, but just one who can paint, draw, write, performe music.......:-) I guess you all have this dream from time to time. I have never had spesific drawing skills, but Marta's creativity the last days have made me do a little sketch in my small sketch book. Nothing for coming generations, but for myself it means alot. And that's what art is about I think. The meaning of the prosess, having fun while making, streching one's skill, finding meaning in life - and through all this honoring the Master of Creation, the one God who has given us life.

We are discussing Monet in my Armchairtravelling yahoo group for the moment. I have always loved his inpressionistic paintings. And as Venice/Venezia is always in my mind these days, I have especially studied Monet's Venezia paintings; his Canale Grande, Palazzo da Mulda and San Giorgio Maggiore. When I stumbled and fell totally in love with Venice last September it was the colours of the city that enchanted me most. Claude Monet saw exactly the same colours in his paintings.

In only two weeks I will be back in Venezia :-)

Australia, here our son comes.

Our oldest son Torgeir is studying in Australia for three years. He has finished one year, and come home in late November for his summer holiday in winterly Norway. Time has been flying, and today we said goodbye to him and will not see him in another 10 months. Dh is driving him to the airport now. he will fly down to the south of Norway to spend the week-end with his old grandparents. And Monday he will start the long flight back to Australia and Gold Coast.

Meanwhile we are already missing him terrible - especially Marta is very sad right now. 10 months for her is a long, long time. And her heart is always filled with deep love for her close family. Luckily she still has both a sister and a brother at home.

We had my parents and Torgeir's best friend here for a taco dinner this afternoon.....and of| course Torgeir helped making the dinner. I will misws his help in the house now when he is on the other side of the world - down under.

Take care Torgeir, and never ever forget that we are alot of people up here loving you.

Enjoy the smell.

With all the rain and mild weather these last days, almost all the snow in the garden has melted. Spring is still a long time away though, we'll probably still get ALOT of snow. So the only "spring" we are enjoying for the moment is my hyasints in the window.

Only two weeks till I fly south to Salzburg and then further south to Venice by train. Will I meet spring there?

Marta, the artist

I have already written about the dark, windy and rainy days and nights we are having here in Trondheim for the moment. Nights perfect for crafting.

I bought yarn and started a project for a new born baby today (will write more about it in a couple of weeks). Marta loves drawing and painting. I love this flower she has painted. The first spring flower. In Norwegain we call it Leirfivel or Hestehov, the Latin name is Tussilago Farfara (every Norwegian child, and adult love this name as farfar means grandpa in Norwegian, tussilago sounds to me like a small troll, like the small trolls we have out in our garden)

The 27th of February is Marta's 10th birthday. Her main wish for the impofrtant day is her own cell phone ("all" the others in her class have one already). She will get one, but I am also planning to give her some real, professional art supplies. I want to give her something extra this year since I will be sitting at a farm in Austria writing on my book on her birthday.