Tag Archives: holidays

Yes, we are still here!

Our two months in America flew by, and this past Saturday we returned home to Norway. I’d hoped to blog more while in the states, but we were extremely busy and it just simply did not happen.We do, however, have several things we’ll share in the coming weeks.

The Coffee Tour will kick off again this Monday, with a visit to a coffee roasting company in Duluth, Georgia.

And we’ll share a bit about what we did and what it was like being back after a few years away.

Hope you all had a great Christmas, and here’s to a fantastic 2016!

 

Independence Day

So I’m almost a month late in posting this, but better late than never, I guess!

We had a fun time celebrating American Independence Day here in Sandefjord, Norway.

 

In America, I wanted the fourth of July to land on a weekday, because that meant a work holiday. But as expats, it is really nice when it falls on the weekend. It makes it much easier to invite friends and celebrate together!

We had about 35 gathered on our landlord’s balcony.

 

We enjoyed hamburgers, hot dogs, lots of good side dishes and desserts, and even s’mores!

 

It was even better because one of my best friends from America was here celebrating with us!

 

 

We are thankful for good friends and good food. And we look forward to getting together again soon!

 

A 36 hour Stockholm tour

Anna and I had a little more time in Stockholm than we did in Oslo (see One Day in Oslo). I have been to Sweden’s capital twice before, but each visit was with a local. Navigating the trip myself proved a challenge, but we managed to see a lot.We had about 48 hours in Sweden’s capital. We opted for the 72 hour transit pass. They offer a 24 hour pass as well. The 72 hour pass is double the price of the 24, and covers the majority of Stockholm’s public transport. It does not include the Arlanda express train. But if you aren’t in a significant hurry, you can use your pass to get to the city center. Simply buy the passes at the visitor center just before exiting there airport, take the red 583 bus from Arlanda to the Märsta station (a commuter train station). Then take a commuter train to Stockholm Central.

Once we dropped out bags off, our first stop was Gamla Stan, the old town. The winding streets and colorful architecture are quite charming.

A couple of streets are especially geared towards tourists, so it’s easy to find a souvenir or a bite to eat. We enjoyed a meal at Burrito Bar.

 

 

We also walked down the river and over to the city hall. There are beautiful views to be seen from there!

 

After travel and a lot of walking, we were tired. So we headed in for the evening.

We didn’t have perfect weather on our full day in Stockholm, but it was definitely bearable.

Our first stop was, of course, for coffee! We started out at Drop Coffee, my favorite in Stockholm.

 

 

Then we made our way to the Wasa museum. If you have time and money for only one museum, this should be the one. (read more here)

We spent a good bit of time exploring the Wasa. Then we headed back into the main part of the city for lunch at Kungshallen. I love this place because it’s kind of like a food court, so everyone can pick what they want to eat. And I love that they have great Indian food (yeah, I might have a bit of an addiction to all things curry…)

After lunch, it was back to Gamla Stan. We found the narrowest street (photo op!),

went in the German Church,

and walked to the palace.

 

Then we headed for my other favorite coffee spot, Johan och Nyström.

 

At that point, the rain arrived. We had seen most of things we wanted to see, so it wasn’t the worst timing. But one thing we had not done was explore the underground stations.

Stockholm is known for having interesting stations, very random and artistic. So we made several stops before heading home for the night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Graduate: a European Tour

Two weeks came and went, and before I knew it, I was driving my niece back to the airport.

 

Anna made her way back to the states on Wednesday. Based on my own experience and the occasional iMessages we exchanged, it was one of those days that seemed it would never end.

But now that she is back home, I want to take a little time to show a bit of what we were up to.

 

Her grandparents were gracious enough to help out with plane tickets and passport to get her here, and we really appreciate it.

 

And once here, we found some low-cost airfare so we could show her a few of our favorite places.

 

For the first week, we spent time in our city, as well as Tønsberg and Oslo. After that, she and I had another day in Oslo, before flying to Stockholm for a couple of days, and then to London for the weekend.

It was a great trip, and I look forward to sharing a bit more about it in the coming days.

 

Memorable Eats: Dutch Herring

Anytime we travel, we want to try at least one or two local foods. When we were in Amsterdam this year, we had a taste of several new things.The most memorable was probably the herring.

And not only was the fish memorable, but the photos we took are some I will likely never forget!

Here is the herring stand. They are very easy to find all over the city.

Here is the fish.

And while three of us really enjoyed it, I think you can see from this photo that it was not something Daniel cares to try again.

But he was a champ. Even though I thought he was possibly going to throw up, he managed to chew it up and swallow it!

 

A Super Cool Mom’s Day Gift

I just realized that I never shared the creative and totally cool gift that I received for [American] Mother’s Day from my boys.On the Saturday of Mother’s Day weekend, they encouraged me to go out into the city for a few hours for shopping and coffee. I figured that was my gift: a bit of time to just walk leisurely through town.

But when I woke up that Sunday morning, they were excited for me to sit down in front of the television and watch what they had made for me. It is a gift that I will treasure for years to come!

 

I mess up at this motherhood thing. Often. But I have two boys that I love unconditionally, and I am grateful that I am the one they call mommy. They keep me on my toes, teach me so many life lessons, and love me despite my flaws. What an overwhelmingly terrifying, humbling, beautiful and amazing role I have been given. 

Mothers Day… isn’t always so happy

Several years ago, I served as a writer for Examiner. One article I shared in 2010 expressed my thoughts on Mother’s Day. At the time I was mom to one little cutie.
Since American Mother’s Day is this Sunday, I thought I would share the [slightly modified] text of the article below. You can read the original post HERE.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For a number of years, I avoided Mother’s Day like a plague. I was perfectly content to remain holed up in my house, blinds closed, eating chocolate and waiting for the day to be over.
I so wanted to be a mother. But for me, Mother’s Day served as a harsh reality check.

You see, my dream wasn’t to be pregnant. My vision had nothing to do with maternity clothes. I battle my weight enough as it is, thank you very much.

I wasn’t one to “ooh” and “aah” over newborn garments. I never longed to go through the birth process.

No, my dream was to wear the hat of cheerleader, chef, housekeeper, chauffer, referee, nurse, and general multi-tasker. I longed to put our child to bed, read him a story, sing him a song, say prayers together, and tuck him in.

On a day like this, extra attention in the form of hugs or conversation might be the opposite of what she desires. But you could take the time to buy a card, write a thoughtful note, send some flowers, or give her a give certificate for a spa service. Find a way to let her know you care!

 

I found myself skipping church almost every Mother’s Day. I couldn’t bear another year where I remained in my seat while the pastor asked all of the mothers in the congregation to stand and be recognized.

 

I looked forward to nights of being frazzled and exhausted, realizing that I didn’t get half the things done that I intended to… but happy knowing that I spent time with him instead.
I dreamt of teaching him new things, watching him learn, and taking him new places. I longed to fix his boo-boos, calm his fears, and wipe away tears. I couldn’t wait to tickle him and hug him, and remind him over and over that I love him.
Our firsts weren’t about teeth or steps. Instead, we beamed the first time he called us Mommy & Daddy, the first time he saw the ocean, the first time he told us what he learned in Sunday School, the first time he sincerely said ‘I love you’.
My dream wasn’t tied around the idea of a baby. My dream was to be a mom. And in late 2007, that dream came true. Mother’s Day 2010 will be the third I celebrate as my son’s mother.
I look back to just a few years ago, and remember how hard Mother’s Day was. I look at it now with delight and excitement. God allowed me to become a mother in HIS timing. We arrived in our son’s birth country at the exact time we needed to in order to add him to our family.
As we approach Mother’s Day, consider those ladies close to you that might be struggling. Perhaps infertility haunts her. Or it could be she’s lost a child. Maybe she is stuck in the seemingly endless paperwork of adoption. Or maybe she gave a child up for adoption. Whatever their struggle, it’s likely not an easy day for her. 

 

On a day like this, extra attention in the form of hugs or conversation might be the opposite of what she desires. But you could take the time to buy a card, write a thoughtful note, send some flowers, or give her a give certificate for a spa service. Find a way to let her know you care!

Budapest: Dove family Top Ten

We had a great time in Budapest. As we normally do, we looked for ways to make the most of our time without spending a lot of money. So we didn’t pay to go in a lot of places (only the cave church, and it was a nominal fee). But you can see and do a lot for free!I thought I would share some of our favorites from our time there (in no particular order).

  1. Castle Hill – we explored the area twice, once in the daylight, and another time as the sun was setting. Our walk down the winding paths at sunset was especially enjoyable, with so many spots to stop for a great view of the city and the Danube.

     

     

     

     

  2. Matthias Church – we only saw it from the outside but it was beautiful.
  3. Bridges (the bridges across the Danube between Buda and Pest) – we walked across Margaret Bridge, Chain Bridge and Liberty bridge. The best was walking Chain Bridge at night.

     

     

     

     

  4. St. Stephens Basilica – only saw it from the outside but it was pretty and there was a nice Christmas market just outside.

     

  5. Mexican restaurants – our favorite kind of food, and we have no Mexican restaurants in Norway. We enjoyed the food at Iguana. But we kept finding ourselves going back to Arriba Taqueria (similar to Moe’s or Chipotle).
  6. Central Market Hall busy, crowded, and lots of interesting smells! But a great place to purchase souvenirs, including paprika and goose liver pate. And be sure to stop at Fakanal for goulash (we tried the stew and the soup).

     

     

     

  7. The Gellért Cave Church – heated by the thermal springs in Gellért Hill

     

  8. Memento Park – a ‘statue graveyard’ of Communist monuments

     

     

     

     

     

  9. Váci utca- a great pedestrian street with shopping, restaurants, and so much to see

     

     

  10. City Park and Heroes’ Square – a large park that is home to a circus, zoo, ice skating arena, thermal bath, and a Transylvanian castle. And Heroes Square reminded me a little bit of Independence Square in Kyiv (Ukraine).

     

     

     

Christmas Cheer (part 19): Sometimes it’s tough

Christmas 2012 was our first outside of Georgia. We were living in Vancouver at the time. Thankfully we had quite a few good friends around and it made things much easier.

Christmas 2013 was our first in Norway. Everything was new and it was cool to learn about the traditions. And to be honest, Zack’s horrible stomach flu made it hard to think too much about what we were missing.
But for whatever reason, our third Christmas away from the states seems to have hit us harder.
I hope this doesn’t come off as ungrateful. We are very happy here. We have good friends. We feel at home. We’ve been invited to a variety of activities and get-togethers during the holidays. We are attempting to make some of our own traditions. And we have really had a lot of fun the past few weeks. But some days are just harder than others. And the holidays can hit pretty hard.
Thankfully, we had a plan in place. We’ve learned that scheduling a trip just after Christmas works wonders. It provides a nice family gift without cluttering the house with things that are quickly forgotten. It gives us something to look forward to. And it minimizes the post-holidays blues (that seem to intensifying overseas). So we looked for the cheapest tickets and that is the main parties of our gift to each other as a family. Last year was Paris, and this year we ended up in Budapest. (Crazy as it sounds, it is almost always a good bit cheaper for us to fly to another country than to vacation somewhere in our country!)Weare currently enjoying a week of rest and relaxation, including time with some US friends we hadn’t seen in a long time. And lots of Mexican food, something we can’t get in Norway. In fact, we went out for Mexican food the last three nights!

Here are a few photos of our time here so far. I’ll share more in the coming days.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What next? / New year, new opportunities

Just a few hours ago, we found ourselves sitting at the airport in Budapest, with some time to spare before we departed for home. While Zack and Daniel explored shops and walked around, William and I talked about setting goals for 2015. Lots of things were discussed, including reading the Bible more, social goals (cross-cultural living can often make you a bit less social), family time, and improving areas of our lives.

What is it about the changing of the calendar that gives us the feeling of wanting to and even the motivation that we need to change, or refocus, to start something new, or to put something behind us? As we say goodbye to one year and hello to another, why is it that most people take time to evaluate and reflect?

Now don’t get me wrong. I do like the idea of looking at a new year as a blank page filled with opportunity and promise. There are definitely things I want to focus on and things I need to set aside.

But the reality is I want – and need – to do this every day. Each day is filled with opportunity. Each time I wake, I am given the chance to choose.

I lie down and sleep; I wake again because the Lord sustains me. (Psalms 3:5 HCSB)
Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. (Lamentations 3:23 NLT)
But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life. (Psalms 42:8 NLT)

So for 2015, I choose to approach each day in search of opportunities to show kindness, to put love into action, to be an encouragement, to learn from my mistakes, to use wisely what I’ve been given, and to be open about my struggles.

The last few months have especially revealed to me the importance of that last item. I have always been quick to share when things are going well. But when I open up about what I’m struggling with, it leaves me vulnerable. However, I’m learning that my vulnerability is minuscule in comparison to what else can happen.

My openness often allows others to know they are not alone. We joke that misery loves company, but I think it is so valuable to know you are not alone in your valley, and to have someone to walk along with. And almost without fail, people who have previously faced similar experiences will share and encourage me.
Opening up also shows that life isn’t always sunshine and roses. Sometimes it helps others understand the not-so-glamorous side of living outside of your passport country – and maybe gives them some insight into what other friends might be dealing with.
And this openness gives me the opportunity to share my faith, and God the opportunity to demonstrate His goodness to a broader audience, whether it be through the removal of the challenge, or through the way He sustains me in spite of the challenge. I want to be open to God using me to demonstrate who He is, regardless of how He chooses to do so.I also have a couple of concrete goals I want to focus on, but I believe they will contribute to these goals and this new frame of mind for the new year.

Do you like to set goals or make resolutions as you enter a new year? Are there things you will be trying in 2015? Habits you will try to leave behind in 2014? How will you approach this new year and these new opportunities?