Christmas holiday part one

We needed raingear when she arrived, certainly not sunglasses

It started perfectly. Even though I finished late on Friday, I was still in time to pick up my sister from the airport. What neither of us knew however, was that two flights were arriving almost simultaneously. Both were of course choc-a-bloc full with people traveling to spend Christmas with their loved ones. But finally we spotted each other and after her luggage had been located we made our way home. 

We only spent a few minutes at home before heading off again. This time to see our parents and friends (the ff-team from now on) who had arrived earlier that afternoon and were staying in a holiday home about 20 minutes away. It was lovely to see them all again, but I was slowly starting to lag. Even though there had been no traveling for me that day, my alarm had been the earliest (4.15am) and I was done in. 

On Saturday we were going to hit the shops and the ff-team was coming over for lunch. I woke up bright and early and realised I had a migraine attack! Oh no!! So, I took a pill and when we headed to the shops, I was in the passenger seat beside my sister who was driving. Fortunately the head did respond to the meds, but I wasn't feeling the best. After we got in all the shopping, we went home again where I took a second pill. Normally I would sit on the couch and do hardly anything, this time I had been shopping and the day was still not over!

The ff-team arrived, exclaimed over the place and was pleasantly surprised by the (at least on the surface) tidiness. We had coffee, then lunch and it was a nice few hours. After they left, it was time to set up the tree. My sister Gera had taken it down earlier that morning and it needed decorating. Which proved quite difficult. I was tired beyond belief, I was dizzy and I realised why there is a big red triangle on the box with the meds in! But, after an hour on the couch, I did manage to get the rest of the lights in and Gera then helped me decorate. 

The evening was spent doing not much and we went to bed early(ish) again, since we would have to start preparing the first dishes on Christmas day.

Photo on Sunday 2017-44

The tree is up, the presents are placed and preparations for Christmas dinner are in full swing. Hope you will have a great Christmas wherever you are. 

God jul fra Mara, Brom (og Mouse) og Frøken Oswin

🌲🐪✨🌟

Today!

I should not be writing this blogpost. Nor should I be reading others' blogposts. I should be vacuuming and cleaning windows. I should finally sort the last mess that still is in the living room. I have about 4 hours left to do all I need (at least) before I have to head back to work. 

And then, after work... I go pick up my sister!! We will drive home so I can get changed into people clothes and my sister can drop off her luggage and then we will head out again. To see my parents who will be arriving together with friends this afternoon. They have rented a holiday home for their stay. The only other possibility was kicking my landlord out of his own home and even though he is a very nice and kind landlord, I think that might be pushing it a bit...

Anyhoo, first laundry of the day is in, hoover is standing at attention, Christmas music is playing and my four hours start... NOW!

*PANIC* Less than a week to go!!

They are ready to go!

Well no, I am not panicking. Yet! Although my stomach has started fluttering a bit and it has nothing to do with some beau or other. It does have everything to do with Christmas dinner though. I have never done anything like it before in my life and I am a bit nervous. Well, not nervous exactly, but... well, you know. 

Mind you, just in case I burn Rudolf (oh yes) and the sprouts are cooked to a mush, I do have some chicken nuggets in the freezer and some ready made apple-sauce in the book case. And I do have plenty of booze, so maybe the guests won't even notice anything wrong. Still. A bit apprehensive.

Is it too much??

Other than: I got all the Christmas decorations down. The only thing still missing is the tree. Which I will hopefully take down tomorrow. Or the day after. The television area is looking festive when you first walk in. Then you turn around and there is crate upon crate upon crate with wool and yarn. Whoever said you can never have enough, didn't mean 'in any small place'. So, no more yarn for me for a while to come. Which is good for the purse strings as well.

Miss Oswin is not impressed

The other living area is slowly taking shape as well. The sort of sideboard is filled with decorations. There is still a way to go and I still have to figure out how and what we are going to do exactly with the dinner table. But I know my sister is a clever girl and probably has some great ideas of her own.

Right now though, I will continue clearing, cleaning, decorating and wondering why I have so much stuff. Not necessarily in that order...

No Photo on Sunday 2017-43

Sorry! Even though it is snowing outside, the Christmas decorations are slowly going up and Miss Oswin is always a lovely subject for a photo, I have not found the urge to grab my camera and take an actual picture. 

Sorry again!

One week to go

I thought my parents and friends would arrive on December 22nd and my sister would arrive a day later. Turns out, my sister will also be arriving that day. Which got me a bit in a whirl: what time will you arrive???? Well, she will arrive after I (should have) finish(ed) work. So, we should be good. Fingers crossed...

Yesterday I did my first bit of shopping for the holidays. Over the past year I had saved up money and when I went to the Norwegian state-run off-licence yesterday, that was the money I used. I got some rosé, two different types of white wine and one red. Multiple bottles of each! I can tell you, the trek back to the car was very long! Talking about alcohol though: I found out I had several bottles of spirits and other drinks. Including brandy! I never drink brandy, so I don't know where that came from.

Hungarian Forints. Not much use in Norwegian shops

Fortunately there was still some money left and today I did my second shop. This time it was the foodstuffs that can be kept a while. I will get the perishables next week. Even though I did have to dig into my account a bit, it wasn't as bad as I originally feared. 

Next week will be a busy week. I have split shifts on four of the five days. During the breaks I will have to do some work (read cleaning), so the house will look fine and dandy and ready for Christmas and visitors. On Friday though, I will have to go to the police for a new driving note, so I will be allowed to drive also in the new year. For said driving note I need a medical test, so on Thursday evening I will go to my GP. 

Right. I will just empty another Christmas crate (only six more to get down I think) and then slowly prepare myself for a good night in front of the telly!

Christmas preparations

I don't think I have ever been so slow with preparing and decorating for Christmas as this year. I have a good excuse of course: I had a massive cold recently and I do work on occasion as well. Another hindrance to getting to it, is the fact that everything is stored in the loft. Which is 'easily' accessible, yet not so easy at the same time. The stairs to the loft are actually a sort of glorified ladder!

Anyway, after having gotten down my Christmas clothes last week, yesterday I got two more crates down. One filled with knit wear (ie my wreath and my nativity scene) and the other filled with hangings of some sort or other. The first one (and largest one) was emptied out and then filled up again as well. With lots of dvd's. What with family coming over (although not staying, apart from my sister), I need room. For Christmas decorations, dining table and a tree. 

Which meant that I would need to clear out some other things. Dvd's do take up quite some room, so now I only have the Christmas Dvd's out and some other films I wouldn't mind seeing again. All other films and series (apart from Doctor Who of course) have been crated up. Not sure where they will end up though. Since that staircase really is more of a ladder...

Ah well, so far so good and I have the first decorations up. Two weeks to go!

Photo on Sunday 2017-42

Oh wow!

You will probably know (I have been banging on about it often enough), that I knit and then sell mice. I always have a lot of fun making the small mice: picking the colours, trying (and often failing) to put everything on straight and eventually taking a photograph for them to be shown on my other blog Mice for Mama.

I am not too fond of making the large mice. They are exactly the same as the small ones, same amount of stitches, same everything. Just thicker thread and they turn out bigger. I just don't like making them. The thing is though: not many people like buying them either! So, I decided to only make them to order from now on. I still have two left for sale, but other than those: order only. 

The third type of mice I knit are the special mice. The seasonal ones. I made two for Halloween and I made two for Christmas. I love making them. Picking out a theme, thinking of what special attribute or look they should have and then finding everything I need to make that special mouse. So far, I have made a clown with big feet and pompoms, a Mouse of Frankenstein with spiders all over. A Santa Mouse with sack and teddy and an angel mouse with wings and halo. These however, I will NOT make to order.

As of today, all I have left for sale are two large mice and the two Halloween mice. Everything else was sold. The one colleague today who wanted a mouse couldn't choose between the five small ones I had left and took the lot! Which means that I basically have to get away from this computer and start knitting the first of next year's batch! 

Brom has a birthday!!

Coocoo!!!

Guess what! It's my birthday today. Unfortunately Mara was at work all day long, but while she was away, I celebrated with Oswin and Mouse! We had a ball. 

But then Mara came home again and she gave me my gift. A very good gift, since I wanted something that showed I was Dutch for a long time. 

She got me clogs! Now I can clog dance!!

Happy birthday to me.