November 2008

I have started the Christmas baking. I first made a batch of peppernøtter, using my mother's recipe. They are quite simple to make, but delicious, so go ahead and try the recipe on my baking page yourself.



Next came a batch of goro, using my grandmother's recipe. They are much harder, and I had never done it before. But I want to make sure that my kids get to experience the lovely cakes my grandmother made, and I hope they will eventually pass on the traditions, too. So with the help of my cousin Eva, I got a goro iron from Norway, found a recipe and went ahead. The hard part is to roll out the dough in a thin layer, which is not easy to do with a sticky dough in the tropics. I really wish I had baked it with my grandmother when she was still around, but I learned a lot, and hopefully it will be easier next year! The recipe is on my baking page.



We have also put up the Christmas tree.



Most weekends we go to the Zoo or the Bird Park. Here we are feeding the giraffes!



Watching the jaguars being fed.



Edvard and an emu.



Edvard doing his "happy dance" with a swan at the Bird Park.



Anna is a very clever and happy girl!

October 2008

They are both working on their modeling skills.







We are often stopped by strangers who want to take pictures with the kids!



Meeting the lions at the Zoo.



Edvard can eat noodles.



Anna eating waffles at the Norwegian church.



I take them to the playgroup at the Norwegian church every Monday. I'm the only pappa in the mamma-group.



At the pool.



We have a little playground at our condo.



We often go to a "playscape", where Edvard loves to crawl around, but Anna so far mostly sits in the ball pool.



Edvard likes Duplo!



At Underwater World.



Edvard is very happy in his childcare. However, they do not take kids older than three, so then we will move him to another kindergarten, and start sending Anna there, too.



There are six Singaporean students going to the University of Oslo this year. I had a dinner for them together with some of the students from Oslo who are at the NUS this year.

Olympic Games

The local cable provider has six Olympic Channels, so we have watched all the three Norwegian gold medals. Here Edvard is celebrating the women's handball gold with a piece of chocolate.



Anna's hero is Gro Hammerseng!



Edvard is a very nice big brother!



Edvard prefers basketball.



Celebrating Mamma's birthday!



Edvard on a filed trip with his child care. Can you spot him in the group picture? (Third from left.)

Anna's first birthday!

Anna turned 1 on July 3, and she celebrated by taking her first steps on that day!



Anna enjoying one of her presents.



They both love the kitchen set.



Visiting Pappa in the hospital when he had his appendix removed.



We had a big birthday party for Anna. I had planned to bake a lot of cakes, but ended up in the hospital. I got out just the day before, so I had to bake in a rush. Not everything worked out that well, but I learned a lot. Unfortunately the picture was taken with the flash off, but I hope you can see the kransekake, toscakake and kong Oscars kake (with an Elmo face!),







Opening Anna's presents the day after the party.



Enjoying the penguins at the Bird Park.



We bought a buggy board for Edvard, so now he can stand behind Anna on the stroller.





Anna is already very good with the ball. She trying to decide whether she wants to play football or handball. The Norwegian women's football team won the Olympics in 2000 and the World Cup in 1995 and the women's handball team won the World Cup in 1999 and lost the Olympic final to South Korea in both 1988 and 1992.

Norway June 2008

We had three wonderful weeks in Norway in June 2008.

Edvard and Mamma checking in.



Edvard likes to stay close to Mamma.



Anna is all over the place.



We were very fortunate in that Lars Kristiansen let us stay in his apartment at Torshov. We could go for lovely walks along Akerselven.



Visiting Iulie and Tom.



We had a great weekend with Guri, Erik and Ingunn at their cabin.



Enjoying a quiet moment in the the morning.



Watching the swans.



Edvard got his first boating lesson from Guri!



Visiting Helga and Svein.



Anna teaches Edvard how to turn off the TV.



At Holmenkollen.



Visiting Erling and Astri where we had stayed in 2006.



Edvard helps teaching Anna to walk.



Visiting Kristian and Inger.



Breakfast at Torshov.



Tante Eva had taken out lots of fun stuff to play with!



Tante Eva even had special plates and utensils for Anna and Edvard!



And she had a BIG ball!



After dinner we went to Ramme gård to look at cows.



We had lunch with Bobben and Reidar at Bygdøy.



Reidar has a big gong that Edvard loved!



Bergljot and Lasse joined us, too.



On June 7 we had a naming party for Anna at tante Ell's. Here Anna is playing in the garden of her great-grandmother Anna.



Edvard loved staying with tante Ell.



We had almost 30 guests.









Onkel Carsten giving a speech.



Playing with second-cousin Anders.



With Carsten and Terese outside great-grandma's old house.



Karen with Edvard, Ellen, Helmer and Anna.



Tante Ell with Anna.



Playing on the terrace on Sunday morning.



Visiting Beate and Per-Magnus.





Visiting Kirsten and Kjell.





Sindre and Bente who stayed in Singapore in 2007 let us have a baby party at their place.













Pappa and Edvard at the playground in Sofienbergparken.



This is where Pappa was born, the former "Kvinneklinkikken i Josefines gate", which is now an apartment hotel.



Staying on the third floor was great practice for Edvard!



We went to the Høyer family party in Horten. It was the same weekend as the Færderseilasen regatta. Guri and her brother Hans Petter invited us on board the boat they were on.







Dinner at the Høyer party.



With tante Lucy.



Visiting Merete.



Anna is a happy girl!



We all had a great time in Lars's apartment.





Edvard visited his first stave church at the Folk Museum. He loved running around the external gallery.