January 11, 2017. It has long been a dream of mine to enjoy a European Christmas with my family. In fact, I often find it hard to fully revel in the privilege of living overseas when my friends and family can’t share the experience with me. Since this may be our last winter in Norway, and because the past several months have been quite rough personally, Matthew and I decided to splurge and spend all of our frequent flyer miles to bring my mom, sister, and niece to Oslo. Nothing like a family Christmas to hold the blues at bay.
Tag Archives: Norwegian Christmas
A Christmas Postcard
January 10, 2018. Happy Belated Holidays to All! And yes, I’m quite behind schedule, not only in wishing everyone Season’s Greetings, but in keeping up with my blog. I won’t go into all the details right now, but the last several months have been filled with a great deal of stress and sorrow, as we’ve had quite a lot on our plates. In the midst of it all, little signs of Christmas around Oslo gave us hope, and occasionally a chuckle, so I thought I share them with you. (Click on the photos for bigger views and captions.) Continue reading A Christmas Postcard
The Christmas Crunch
December 25, 2016. I dunno what happened this year. Between our heavy work schedules, and our little trip to Switzerland, we had a hit-and-run holiday. Slam, bam, and it was over, a distant wreckage of wrappings in the rear-view mirror of my memory. I guess lots of folks feel this way, but I’m a bit peeved with myself for letting it happen. I so wanted to squeeze out every … single … last … drop … of the Norwegian Christmas experience while we’re here. Which led me to start the season by wildly careening from one event to the next, with hardly a breath to spare for “living in the moment.”
A Quiet Christmas
December 27, 2015. The holiday promised to be a rather quiet affair this year, with both of us being sickies on the mend. Not to mention that all the Norwegians have been wearing long faces because the lack of snow this winter has meant no skiing, no sledding, and very little Julestemning (Christmas atmosphere). “Global warming is ruining Norway,” is the constant refrain. And I have to say, Matthew and I felt inclined to join the locals in their depression, as we moped towards a Christmas Eve that measured a balmy 50º F. Felt more like Florida than Scandinavia. Continue reading A Quiet Christmas
Christmas Traditions
December 23, 2015. From Thanksgiving until Christmas, various nasty “epizootics” (my southern grandfather’s catch-all term for colds, flus, pneumonia, bronchitis, and other winter illnesses), had gripped our household, making it impossible to tackle normal holiday chores. Six days before Christmas, we hadn’t even put up a tree, much less sent out a card or wrapped a present. Panic set in, as I saw my last chance at a Scandinavian celebration slipping away. Continue reading Christmas Traditions
A Newbie in Norway 