BOOOOO!

Halloween is an absolutely fabulous holiday. Since I didn't start celebrating Halloween until I was 27, you could say that I have the mentality of a 9 year old when it comes to Halloween. I love the decorations, the pumpkins, the costumes, the candy and just the whole atmosphere. I'm glad to see Halloween forcing its way through a stubborn and somewhat narrow minded Norwegian barrier.

The day after Halloween we went to a Halloween party arranged by our 7 year old ballerina's dancing school. The party was at Hoppeloppeland, which is an indoor playground with all kinds of fun stuff. This is when I realized that I'm not the only one with the mentality of a 9 year old. Check this out:

That's my wonderful hubby feeling right at home among all the other kids.

We had a fun Halloween with plenty of sugar and a high energy level, as well as plenty of fun and games with some great friends.

I figured I'd better post some Halloween pictures before Christmas comes around. Which technically is very tricky since I basically would have to post them before Halloween (Christmas comes around early even in Norway.)

A man of many talents.....

Clearly ambitious.

Last night my husband came home from work with post-it notes stuck to his shirt. This may seem odd to you, but just so you know, it is actually perfectly normal. At least on the day before the US election. My husband had made his own election stash (i.e election buttons) from post-it notes to let everyone know who he voted for. I just really don't have a comment for this. I'm utterly speechless.

When my 7 year old asked him why he had notes stuck to his shirt, he jumped on the teaching opportunity and explained the election to her. When we told her that she can vote when she's 18, even in both the US AND Norway, she was deep in thought. She then proceeded to inform us that when she is 18, she will be the president, and we can vote for her. I always knew she had lofty goals, and I will support her all the way!

I asked her what she will do for her country when she's president. She thought for a minute before she campaigned for freedom to choose and a zero-tolerance policy for animal cruelty. There you have it. No doubt a presidential candidate to my liking.

Energizer Bunny.

The Energizer Bunny in the form of a 2 year old. Just picture it. It's not a nightmare, it's reality in our household. Here I am in my office getting exhausted just thinking about it.

I never knew such a tiny body could be filled with so much energy. She never walks. She runs. Or jumps. She climbs. She rolls. From morning until evening. Non stop. This Energizer Bunny comes with batteries that NEVER run out.

Yesterday she woke up at 5 am. This morning she had quite a sleep-in and she didn't wake up until 5:30 am. She let EVERYONE know she was awake and ready to get going. "MOMMY! I'M AWAKE. I GET DRESSED NOW! WANT TO PLAY!" How can anyone keep up with that!?

At least on the weekdays I'm up early myself, but on my days off I really don't appreciate this let's-get-the-most-out-of-the-day attitude. I feel rather sluggish and grumpy at 5 am on my days off. Don't quite feel like getting up to do puzzles, and I definately don't feel like going outside to conquer the play ground climbing wall. So I bring her in bed with us and let her watch cartoons. And I don't feel bad about it. Sometimes it works, but more times than not I keep hearing "MOMMY! AWAKE?" "NO, MOMMY IS SLEEPING!" works just because she is 2 and I am able to drift off for a little while longer. Thank Heaven!!!!

Calories or not?

My husband is getting old and gray. 2 days ago he turned 35. What makes matters worse is that I am 13 months older than him. At least I can say I'm not getting gray.....

So, because it was his birthday, I wanted to celebrate. I get really excited about birthdays. In Norway it's custom to put the Norwegian flag out. That way everyone in the neighborhood will know it's your birthday and hopefully stop by with a cake or some gifts. At least I think that's why we put the flag out. Either way I like the tradition and will keep doing it.

Each year for my husband's birthday I will ask him the same question: "What kind of cake do you want for your birthday? You can have whatever cake you want because it's YOUR special day!" And each year the answer is the same: "I'd really like some vegetables and dip, please." VEGETABLES AND DIP FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY!!?? What planet are you from? You're supposed to choose the most calorie filled cake there is and enjoy it without feeling guilty simply because it is your birthday. Period.

But, because my loving man really is a loving man, I give in and give him his vegetables and dip. And I wait for Richard Simmons to walk through the door and shout: "SURPRISE!!! Let's cruise to lose, people!" Now, that would be a party.

This year, however, I felt really strongly about standing my ground and informed my husband that even though he feels the need to be healthy even on his birthday (this is still completely unheard of in my social circles), the rest of us would actually like to eat cake. So, at least he should choose a birthday cake he would want the rest of us mortals to enjoy.

My loving man is also a very understanding man and informed me that his choice of cake was my sister's famous Oreo cake. Couldn't have done better myself! Great choice. I could feel the pounds piling on just thinking about that heavenly cake.

So I made the much desired Oreo cake (and an apple cake just because I had some apples that looked bored by themselves on the counter) and shared with family and friends. Now here's the funny thing. There was still Oreo cake and apple cake left after everyone had gone home, but the vegetable tray was completely empty....

Puppy love.

Last week, when picking up my 7 year old from school, I noticed that she was a little blue. (Just to clarify, her skin looked tan, but her mood was blue.) I asked her if something sad had happened at school. To my dismay, she said yes. I felt the beginning of a panic attack approaching. A mother will have a myriad of scary thoughts in a moment such as this. I asked her, as calmly as a mother about to freak out can, what had happened. She told me that she had drawn a picture for her elementary school crush, Nicholas.

Before explaining what happened next, I feel I need to explain something about my daughter. She is a true artist. She expresses herself through her art. She puts her heart and soul in to it, so anyone that is lucky enough to receive a drawing from her, should feel extremely honored and very loved.

So, upon receiving my daughter's heart felt drawing, you would think that Nicholas would feel quite priviledged. I guess, however, when you're 7, you don't appreciate things the way you do later in life. He had the nerve to tell her that he's NOT in love with her before crumbling up the drawing and throwing it in the trash.

Now, imagine me, the mother, hearing about this. I was miraculously able to refrain from sharing the typical comments about men and how insensitive they can be sometimes, and chose a different route. I gave her a pep talk and and some basic information about love, at a puppy love stage, of course.

I thought about this whole ordeal for a few days, and hoped that Nicholas hadn't left lasting scars on my daughter's fragile heart. Imagine my relief when she told me that she's in love with someone else now! She told me the best thing about this boy is that he actually LOVES girls, all the girls. UGH....

Life changing event.

My brain cells have gradually disappeared over the years, especially since having kids. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've read somewhere that it's a scientific fact that having kids decreases your memory. Or maybe I just use that excuse to compensate for the panic attacks I go through each birthday as I realize I am yet one year older.

Amidst my somewhat clouded and confused memory, however, certain events in my life stand out. Today I'm going to rewind 10 years exactly; hello October 1998!

I was single, living in Norway and getting ready to go on a trip to Hawaii with a friend of mine. I was a poor student, but he was able to get me some Delta buddy passes, so I jumped on the opportunity to go experience the beaches, the ocean, the sun, the pineapples, the alohas, the lu'uas and the hulas. I was ready to go to paradise!

I made arrangements to stop by Utah on the way to and from Hawaii to visit my sister. I think she was pretty excited to introduce me to Halloween because she had carved a pumpkin way too early and it was rotten by the time I got there. Good effort, though, sis!

I had also contacted a friend of mine (a guy I had actually dated in 1993), and we decided it would be fun to meet again and catch up on things. This turned out to be a life changing event. Mr. Friend actually changed status to Mr. Husband 8 months later. Nice upgrade!

This is where I wanted to post a picture of me and my husband from 1998, but all my pictures are in storage right now. So I'll post it on my blog at a later, unknown time. I know the excitement and anticipation is unbearable to you. But remember, patience is a virtue.

My message today is: Life changing events happen when you least expect it. So just enjoy your life the way it is now. And lesson learned: Don't be too eager in your pumpkin carving or you won't have any carved pumpkins left by October 31st.

The great outdoors.

Last weekend we spent some time in the forest. It was so wonderful not having to hurry anywhere, but just enjoy some relaxing, fun and quality time with the family. We didn't run into any trolls, nobody got lost and nobody fell in the lake, so I can safely say that it was a huge success. We will be going again soon!


Fall is so gorgeous!

2 good friends.

She's up to something. I've seen that look before.

Me and my 2 cute girls.

They're just too cool.

Just to prove that the angelic looks are deceitful. But I think she's cute even during a tantrum.

What's a trip to the forest without someone tripping on a rock and hurting their knee? Good thing Daddy is strong.

And good thing we brought the stroller.

I just love this picture. This is her in a nutshell; cute and mischievous.