Merry Christmas!

Looking back over this year, so much has happened. We have been truly blessed and are amazed that life is as settled as it is. Some of the things we are most thankful for are: our wonderful family, Håkon's job, the friendships we have made, our church, the opportunity to spend time with my family, my parents, and this beautiful house we get to live in!  

It still amazes me that Håkon got a job so quickly, and one that he enjoys so much and learns so much from. It also amazes me that we have so many good friends just one year after being here. Friendships take time, so we were prepared for a hard year, but God has really blessed us. We have met these friends through our church. There are so many churches in Abbotsford that it was a bit overwhelming when we first came here, but the first church we tried, a Vineyard church, felt like home!  So our Sunday mornings are spent there and our Sunday afternoons are spent with my extended family. My parents, my sister and two sets of aunts and uncles get together with my gramma and have a visit and a light dinner. It's nice to be able to get together with everyone, and for it to be a regular thing as it just becomes a part of our schedule. I feel really lucky to be so close to my parents as well. It is so nice to see the relationship built between them and our boys. Elias and Aksel get so excited to see them, even if it's only been a day since we last saw them! Aksel doesn't say many words, but Gramma and Grandpa are definitely two of them! It has also been lovely for us to have such ready babysitters! And without them, we would not have this house to live in either. We took over part ownership of my parents house in the summer and have been busy renovating since. Slowly, but surely we are getting there. The house is great for us with lots of space and a nice big yard for the kids to play in.

It is truly a joy to watch Elias and Aksel grow and to see their relationship with each other develop. Elias is such a caring boy, always looking out for people, making sure they have what they need. He takes care of Aksel, tries to distract him when he's grumpy (much to mamma's delight) and is very into his imagination, constantly providing us with hot chocolate, cookies and icecream! Easy to see what his favorite foods are! Aksel is a charming little boy who gets away with a bit too much because of his smile! He still isn't the best sleeper at night, but "this too shall pass".  Playing outside is his favorite thing to do, besides giving Elias a hard time.

So what have we done this year? Looking back we really have had the opportunity to do a lot of things and experience new things. Here is a short and random collection of things that happened this last year:

• Trip to California for a wedding in Pasadena, our extended family, and at the same time visiting friends from Trondheim in Mission Viejo. Håkon tried to ride the waves, only partly successful
• Mexico holiday while Grandma and Grandpa were babysitting kids with hand, foot and mouth disease. 
• Cabin trip to the interior of BC enjoying swimming, ATV driving, and relaxing.
• Ice Hockey: Being introduced to the NHL and AHL has sparked a new sports interest for Håkon in addition to following the Norwegian soccer league through early mornings on the computer or TV.
• Knitting: Kari is impressing Abbotsford with Norwegian knitting and teaching knitting lessons.
• Skype: through Skype we have been able to keep in touch with family on a weekly basis. Very nice!
  
• Visiting with kids: yes it is possible. When in Norway we always left to go home for the kids bed time. Here we have learnt just to put the kids to bed wherever we are visiting and then just bringing them home when its time to go. It actually works and increases your social life after having kids.
• Unexpected Norway trip. Håkons grandpa died after a short period of being sick. It was good to be able to go home to spend time with family and celebrate his Grandpas great life. Truly an example and inspiration for us. 
• Visits from Norway. Eirik and Lina (Håkon's brother and sister-in-law) visited us this summer and right now Håkon's mother and father are here. Such a treat to spend time with them and the kids are loving it.
• Donuts and coffee: We are now pretty good at ordering coffees, bagels and donuts at the drive through. ;)
• Swine flu - no we didn't get it, yet anyway.
• Gardening: yes we have a garden, but don´t quite know what to do to keep it nice. Thankfully grandma and grandpa is giving useful tips and help. 
• Raging MAD: Yes sometimes, at least a couple of times a week, the kids drive us nuts, and wondering why on earth we wanted this, but it passes and then we remember why we love these kids so much.
• Provision: We realize how once again God has provided for us in abundance, we are truly grateful.

We wish you all the best for this next year. We hope we get to see some of you (live or on Skype) and hope you get a wonderful Christmas season.  

   

gingerbread house decorating