Britt-Arnhild's House in the Woods

St.Nicolaus has arrived.

 

Not long ago I got an email from my glassblower. "Will you please send me your address, I have a little something for you!" Fast as the lightning I emailed him my address. A little something for me? You can imagine I was excited.

 

A couple of weeks passed, and then one day there was an envelope in the mail with Italian stamps. The envelope was damaged like somebody had done it on purpose, and so was the beautiful card inside. The card had a photo of a joyful Santa Claus sitting under a Christmas tree, surrounded by colourful gifts. The envelope was inside a plastic bag from the Norwegian post office with a short note - recieved damaged from Italy!

I almost cried with rage and frustration, where was my "little something"? Remembering alot of stories of mail disappearing in the Italian mail system, I sent an email to Mauro, my very own glassblower of Venezia, my very favorite glassblower. "Thank you Mauro for your beautiful card and your loving thoughts. I am sorry to tell you..........." and so on.

The next day there was an email waiting for me. Don't be sad Britt. Christmas will come. St.Nicolaus is still on its way.

 

Yes! Christmas has come to The House in the Woods. St.Nicolaus arrived on Saturday, carefully wrapped in soft bubbles of love. Not a single little thing was broken. Look at this amazing miniature (I put the matches there to show you the size, and these are SMALL matches). I cried out in joy when I opened the box, I ran around in the house to show it to everybody, and then I phoned my mother: "Guess what I got it the mail today!"

Thank you very much Mauro. This will be a piece of heritage in our family!.............and keep on reading, look what you inspired Marta, my own little artist, to make out of marzipan........

 

 

Follow the links and you will get to know more of my dear glassblower.

_____________________________________________

One day I'll take Marta to Venezia where we both can learn more about glassblowing and glass art.

This and that from yesterday

 

Winter wonderland met us, with stars and nisser (Christmas elves) in every window.

 

My eyes seek out patters. Here it is Terje's warm knitted sweather in front of a traditional woven wallhanging.

 

Can you see the dentist sign behind the Christmas tree? May be it was bad luck to take the picture. Chewing a toffe later in the day made me lose a piece of one of my teeth.....

 

We had coffee with Sami friends, Anna is doing the last stiches on the gift Terje will give me for Christmas (more of this later)

 

Marta met her "best friend on earth", the little dog Winnie Wolfgang.

 

Farfar, grandpa Sverre is here! Christmas has come!

An unexpected travel

 

A few weeks ago my brother in law phoned. "We are going up to Røros to celebrate Christmas. Pappa goes with us and wants to continue to Trondheim to celebrate the holidays with you." Once more we will be blessed with a Christmas with all our parents, three of them, as farmor, grandma Ingrid, died a few years ago.

 

Røros is a mining town up in the mountains 2-3 hours south of Trondheim, well, actually I don't need to tell you that. If you are a regular reader here you have been to Røros alot of times and you know about my love for the town.

Our car has room for five, and as farfar will be in it when we drive back home and as Marta, Ingrid and Marius all wanted to go, and Terje would be the driver, there would be no room for me. But plans change, and late last night it was decided that Ingrid and Marius wouldn't go anyway. Yes!

 

We are leaving early and will have time enough for Christmas shopping in the charming town, time enough for coffee somewhere and may be even time for a very special visit (if we do I'll tell you about it later) before driving out to Lisbeth and Arne's logcabin for dinner and exchanging of hugs and gifts. 

 

Photos: It was Marta's last day of school yesterday. She came home early, fell down on the coach and slept for two hours, then woke fresh and opened her backpack to reveal her "pieces of art" which she has been making during this semester. Some was wrapped in Christmas paper, but a collection of paintings and prints were not. The first thing I will do over Christmas is to buy a special art folder for her art. This must be saved.

A Day Off

 

Almost three weeks of Advent has passed and Christmas is just around the corner. Marta came home from the grocery store yesterday afternoon with stars in her eyes: "Pappa, they have started to sell Christmas trees outside the store now. We must go over to buy one soon". Terje smiles, he and Marta share so many pleasures during advent with all their preparations. Sometimes Ingrid takes part, just as the boys have also has taken parts for years and years during their childhood, and now as grownups are looking forward to come home for Christmas.

I have taken today off work. I started early, the bedsheets are already in the washing machine, I have dusted, tidied, washed, wrapped a few gifts, written a couple of lists..........but now I sit down to smell the season.

A pot of coffee, a Spode Christmas tree mug, a couple of Christmas cookies, seasonal music on the cd player, angels dancing in the diningroom window, a book in my lap. I am not reading. I will, soon, but here and now time is too precious. Time for reflections, time for thoughts, time for memories. There will be alot of these moments the coming days. A year is coming to an end, Christmas is ahead, a Christmas with most of my loved ones close by. Ingrid will fly up to Lofoten together with Marius tomorrow to celebrate the holidays with his family. We will miss her but she will still be close in our hearts.

Soon I will go out grocery shopping, and I will go to the postoffice to pick up a few Christmas gifts. I will bake "krumkaker" , I will make dinner and I will make a salad for Ingrid which she will bring with her to a girl's only party tonight, I will continue with the cleaning and make the livingrom ready for the Christmas tree. But untill then.....I have stopped time for an hour of "me-time", an hour of prayers, thanks, thoughts.

Christmas will come (a repost from last year)

 Two men sat behind me on the bus home from work today. One of them had just finished his last day at work before Christmas.

"Lucky you" said the other one. "You will have some nice, quiet time before the holidays".

"Oh, you know," said the first one, "women! My wife has a looooong list of things which HAVE to be done before Christmas. Yesterday I tried to persuade her to slow down, telling her that Christmas will come anyway. Believe me, those were the complete wrong words!"

---------------------------------------------------------------

I love to follow bits and pieces of conversation. I never turned around to look at the men, but have a funny inner picture today of a man with bucket and broom scrubbing the bathroom tiles with his wife supervising.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Photo: from downtown Christmas market which was closed when I came there to buy Christmas presents today. But no problem, I will be back tomorrow.

 Two men sat behind me on the bus home from work today. One of them had just finished his last day at work before Christmas.

"Lucky you" said the other one. "You will have some nice, quiet time before the holidays".

"Oh, you know," said the first one, "women! My wife has a looooong list of things which HAVE to be done before Christmas. Yesterday I tried to persuade her to slow down, telling her that Christmas will come anyway. Believe me, those were the complete wrong words!"

---------------------------------------------------------------

I love to follow bits and pieces of conversation. I never turned around to look at the men, but have a funny inner picture today of a man with bucket and broom scrubbing the bathroom tiles with his wife supervising.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Photo: from downtown Christmas market which was closed when I came there to buy Christmas presents today. But no problem, I will be back tomorrow.

12 Jolasveinar visit Embla and Ágúst in Reykjavik

The Netherlands has Sinterklaas, USA has Santa Claus, in Norway the gifts somehow find their own way under the Christmas Tree, often by the help of Julenissen. In Iceland they have as many as 12 Jolasveinar (Christmas Boys). They come during the night, 12 nights in a row while we are waiting for Christmas, and if the children leave their shoes in the window, there might be a gift waiting in the shoe the next morning.

Embla and Ágúst are the kids of my brother Børge and my sister in law Margrét Kristin. Today they are guests in Marta's Advent blog, where they teach us an Icelandic prayer and they tell about one of the 12 Jolasveinar.

  

I love visiting Mo'a's blog these days, to learn more about theJolasveinar, and the enjoy her fantastic felted guys.

 

You have met Embla and Ágúst before. Ágúst is my favorite magician, Embla is part of the Four Fantastic Cousin's Group. Enjoy the links.

Christmas Gifts, lunch with friends

 

Sunday and the new bishop, the King, the lunch.......my time has been filled with preparations and I have not had much possibilities to think ahead. Like counting of time in many ways stops at Christmas Eve, kind of before and after, for me the blessing of our new bishop has been a focus point. My couting of time ended on Sunday. When the service and the lunch was over, we went home and I did nothing! Wrong - I did alot, I went through the day again and again in my mind, in my heart, and was filled with thankfulness. Thank you God for the church, thank you for the bishops, thank you for the people.

I watchen the Norwegian women handball team win the European Championship, and when Terje and the girls started to make gingerbread cookies, I layed down on the coach, slept, dozed and enjoyed the Christmas smell filling the house.

 

Life did not stop on Sunday though. Of course it did not. I woke up Monday morning fresh and ready for new challenges. A few hours of work and then meeting three best friends in town for lunch and exchanging of gifts.

Exchanging of gifts! And no preparations done by me! On my way from the office I passed the cathedral shop, and there is no better place for buying Christmas gifts. While listening to a cd with music by the Nidaros Cathedral Boy's Choir I could sit down and write Christmas cards to my three best friends while the lady behind the counter beautifully wrapped three precious gifts. First in beautiful paper, then the three gifts were put down in three angel totebags.

 

I met my three friends and a couple of hours were spent, chatting, eating......air filled with love and laughter. I had even found time to buy a birthday present to one of them, the birthday girl, a cd with music by the Norwegian composer Geirr Tveitt. Some days life is easy.

 

Photos: Handknitted socks. Many among my friends and family will find my handknitted socks under the Christmas Tree this year.

A Flag Chain for the Christmas Tree

 

 

 

 

350 guests, and a King.

 

Have you ever been in charge of a party with 350 guests. Plates, glasses, silverware.....

 

.....white table cloths and napkins......

 

.....candeliers wrapped in flowers and ivory.....

 

One room is not enough, we need one more......

 

The king is coming. Is everything on line?

 

Woops! We forgot the sun! The king will sit down at 13.25 tomorrow. At 12.55 today the low winter sun is shining directly into where the kings' eyes will be.

 

This must be checked and doubble checked. And at 13.24 we can breath again. The last sunray waves good bye to the king's chair and the "stand in king".......

______________________________________________________

Today Tor Singsaas will become the new bishop of Nidaros. Congratulations dear Tor.

In my next life I think I'd love to be a party planner.

_____________________________________________________

By the way, there will be no flower girl today.......

Santa Lucia breakfast

 

Once a year our breakfast consists of sweet, yellow safron pastries, "lussekatter".

We ate them in 2005

We ate them in 2006

And we ate them in 2007

This year is different. Both girls are away visiting friends, and Terje and I will had breakfast alone. No girl dressed up in white and red with a light wreath, singing the lucia carol. I sat the table with our Spode Christmas china and we ate lussekatter and drank hot chocolate just the two of us. Life is changing. Are we getting old?

____________________________________________________

The King is coming to town tomorrow, so my time for blogging is limited right now. I will have alot to tell after the week-end though.

 

A place you MUST visit these days is Mo'a's Leikur and List. There you will learn about the Icalandic tradtion with the Jolasveinar who come visiting these days before Christmas. A Marta has two small Icelandic cousins, we will write more about this in our advant blog in a few days.

________________________________________________

You can read more about Lucia and her traditions here.