So many great men in our families – we are thankful for each of you. Hope you all have a great day!
Tag Archives: holidays
To Zack, on Father’s Day
American Father’s Day is today. Kind of hard for us to celebrate really big because 1) we have to attend Daniel’s end of the year class party this afternoon, 2) It’s not Father’s Day in Norway, and 3) Zack doesn’t like us to make a big deal of things for him.
But I will say this: he is a fantastic dad and I love the way he encourages, equips, leads and provides for our family, and particularly for our boys.Zack, we are thankful for you, we love you, and we hope you have a great day!
Weekend fun & preteen celebrations
As I shared on Saturday (HERE), our William turned 12 years old. It really is hard to believe!We had a fun weekend celebrating him, and enjoying some fantastic weather. It was around 23 – 25 C (73 – 77 Fahrenheit) most of the weekend, with lots of sunshine. So most of the weekend, you could find us outdoors!
Friday afternoon we picked up a friend at the airport who was visiting us for the weekend from England. We then met up with friends to grill at the beach. It had rained in the afternoon, so the evening was a little cooler. But the boys and one of their local friends decided to go for a swim. Everyone is estimating that the water was around 10-12 C. The only word I can come up with is crazy.
Saturday we went for a hike, then came back to the house for lunch and William opened gifts.
(He received his gift from us several weeks ago: a much-needed new bike)
After that, we headed to William’s football club for the grand opening of their new artificial turf fields, and to celebrate the club’s 40th birthday. Daniel was excited to meet some of Sandefjord’s players!
Saturday night, William chose to eat at his favorite place: Star Grill. It is a small kiosk in our town that serves excellent burgers.
Then the boys were off to the small tivoli downtown (carnival). They enjoyed three of the four ‘big’ rides. They both looked a little green afterwards!
We finished up with William’s requested dessert: yellow cake with chocolate frosting, and of course, 12 candles.
Sunday was spent with more friends. We started off with brunch at our house. We introduced some of our friends to a true southern breakfast: biscuits and gravy, bacon, grits, breakfast potatoes, and grits. Then after a nice long walk, we finished it off with dinner at a friends house, and even got to meet a new family that has two boys almost the exact same ages as our boys!
I think it turned out to be a great weekend for our entire family.
Gratulerer med dagen: how we celebrated 17.mai
Last year I shared a little about the seventeenth of May (syttende mai), Norway’s constitution day. (You can read about May 17 HERE and the rest of the weekend HERE).This year is the 200 year anniversary of Norway’s constitution*. This was our second year to celebrate syttende mai in Norway.
Syttende mai is a fun day, and especially when the weather is as great as it was this past Saturday! We enjoyed a nice walk to the boys schools to start the day. Their classes then proceeded into the city to join all the other area schools for a program and parade.
After some music and speeches, the ‘barnetog’ began. The barnetog is the children’s parade. Much of syttende mai is focused on children, remembering that they are the future. Zack and I enjoyed watching the parade with three families from our neighborhood. Lots of language practice!
After the parade, we had lunch in the city. A big theme of the day is food, especially pølser (hot dogs) and is (ice cream).
We took a short break at home, so everyone could rest a little. Next up, we were back to the city for the ‘borgertog’. Borgertoget is the citizens parade. It includes teams, clubs, corps (marching bands) singing groups, etc. William participated with his football team. Zack, Daniel and I met up with several friends to watch the borgertog.
After the second parade, and an obligatory ice cream, we drove to Larvik/Faris Bad for a cookout and evening with friends: really good food, lots more Norwegian practice, and plenty of time to relax, Plus, the boys got to drive a boat and relax (yeah, right!) in the hot tub!
It was a really fun day, and we all slept great afterwards! Thanks to so many wonderful friends for including us and making us feel at home on your country’s special day.
*A quick bit of history, if you’re interested in it: Norway boasts the second oldest constitution in the world that is still in use. The constitution was signed on May 17, 1814 in Eidsvoll, just north of Oslo. It was the first major step the nation took towards becoming a democracy. (Norway and Sweden ultimately dissolved their union on June 7, 1905, as the first Norwegian king took the throne on November 18th of that year.)
Mother’s Day 2014 #thankfulthree
Happy [American] Mother’s Day from Norway!
- I am thankful I have two lovable, rambunctious boys who call me mommy.
- I’m so glad they have a dad who doesn’t just tell them that a man should love, honor and respect his wife, but demonstrates it for them every single day.
- I’m grateful for sweet gifts (including coffee, of course), a nice morning walk (we didn’t let the drizzle stop us!), and lunch in the city.
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| I love these boys! |
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| During our walk this morning |
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| Gifts from my boys |
Honor a mom, help those who don’t have one #NoMom4MothersDay
Today is Mother’s Day in America. In a couple of hours, moms all over the country will start waking up to hugs, coffee, breakfast and gifts from children who love them and want to celebrate them.At the same time, there are children all over the world who have no one in their life that holds the role of mother. The Agapao Movement is addressing this issue for a group of children in India. They are currently working with these children, and raising funds to build a home for them: a safe place where they can grow and learn.
As many of you celebrate your moms or grandmothers, honor your wives, remember moms who are no longer with you… think also of these children in India. Today, you can do something to honor these ladies in your life AND help these children at the same time.
From now until midnight on Mother’s Day 2014, Agapao is asking for your support with a $10.00 donation to help complete the home they are building in India.
The process is simple and tax-deductible, and 100% of your donation goes to the construction project.
To make a $10.00 donation in honor of or in memory of a mom in your life, visit THIS SITE.
Zack and I have made donations in honor of both of our moms. We love you both, and are so thankful for the way you raised each of us to love others and to share what we believe through both words and actions. Thank you each for making sacrifices so that we always had a mom to come home to every day.
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| Zack having dinner with his parents, and my mom & step-dad earlier this year |
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| Mom and me, during her visit to Norway last year |
Mother’s Day: not always a joyous occasion
Several years ago, I was a writer for Examiner. I wrote as the Atlanta Adoptive Families Examiner. I shared stories of Atlanta families who had adopted, local and national adoption news, and tips and recommendations for adoptive families or those who know an adoptive family.One article I shared in 2010 expressed my thoughts on Mother’s Day. At the time I was mom to one little cutie (hard to believe he’ll be 12 in two weeks!).
With American Mother’s Day coming up this Sunday, I thought I would share the text of the article here.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 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 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 clothes. 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.
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. Maybe she is stuck in the seemingly endless paperwork of 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!
What’s it like: Syttende Mai (Norwegian Constitution Day)
In 12 days, Norway will celebrate the 200 year anniversary of the signing of its constitution.
Before we arrived in Norway, I thought Syttende Mai (the seventeenth of May) would be a celebration something like the Fourth of July in America. And in many ways, it is. Only bigger. WAY bigger.
Over the next couple of weeks we will share some posts about Norway’s constitution day.
For now, here are a couple of cool syttende mai window displays we saw in Oslo last week.
What’s it like: Easter break
Easter holidays play out differently here than what we experienced in the states. As far as I can tell, all schools have the same spring break, the week adjacent to Easter. And the break is called påskeferie – Easter vacation.Almost all businesses are closed the Thursday and Friday before Easter, and the Monday after Easter. Thursday is skjærtorsdag, Friday is langfredag, and Monday is 2.påskedag. All the shops in the city are closed. You might be able find one of the small Sunday grocery stores open, but that is about it. Most shops are open on Saturday (påskeaften – the day before Easter), but only for a few hours.
Here are some photos from our Easter break – it was a great week with beautiful, summer-like weather, lots of outdoor time, hanging out with friends, and getting to know our neighbors better.
The Easter Bunny? Påskeharen?
Daniel made an Easter Bunny at school on Thursday.Really cute – and maybe a little scary 😉
They traced their own feet to make the ears and legs. I have a feeling his bunny had the longest ears in all of second grade. He may not be tall, but the boy has some big feet!