Good things

Last night I made a delicious reindeer stew. Before I ever came to Norway I hated the idea of eating reindeer but it's one of the many new things I have embraced (along with yummy brunost!) and really like.
I do,however draw the line at whale meat- I shall not be trying that!
Been busy getting ready to leave for England. (at 4am tommorow-ugh) Filling Easter eggs,wrapping presents and packing summery clothes. I just managed to cram my feet into the shoes I plan to wear to this weekend's wedding and after 4 months in wellies it's safe to say that my feet are not happy to be squashed into a pair of gold,stiletto peep toe shoes!

p.s It's a beautiful day and I'm wearing my new yellow dress (which totally contradicts yesterdays post when I said I never buy clothes in Norway, although I have a loop-hole- the dress is Swedish! Ah-ha!)

This morning

We are going to England on Friday for a wedding, catch up with some friends in London and a big cuddle with my lovely god-daughter and her family. We have much to cram into a few days.
So, so excited! Looking forward to some shopping also. I have a date with Selfridges on Monday morning. I need uniqlo, Gap and Marks and Spencer undies to help restock my wardrobe (I don't buy many clothes here in Norway cause I'm not a big fan of overpriced acrylic and polyester!)

p.s Note how we have no snow outside our window. Woo hoo!

My little shop

I have opened up my little shop again. Hoping to fill it with lots of flea market goodies as we get further into the Loppemarked season!

p.s I will work out shipping rates for outside Europe tomorrow....

Today

Another beautiful day in Olso. I have made it through my first winter. I am now on the other side.
Check out the snow free landscapes (ignore the ice still floating in the fjord) It was 17c this afternoon. Norway is looking a lot more promising these days!
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MY LITTLE SHOP IS UP AND RUNNING AGAIN!

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Sunday

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I left henrik to sleep in this morning and went off to a few more fleamarkets on my own. I'm glad I did because I found 6 little iittala Kastehelmi glasses for a mere 2 kr each (thats about 23p!) There are always lots of children working behind the stalls at the fleamarkets (they mainly take place in schools) so I always ask a child cause they give you a great price!
I also found 2 lovely Stavanger Flint plates for my wall collection. Worth getting out of bed early!
The weather is beautiful and we have spent the afternoon sitting in the garden getting a bit of much needed vitamin D on our wintery faces!

Lovely loppemarkedet

We managed 5 out of 7 fleamarkets today and what amazing fleamarkets they were!
I bagged plenty of goods. My favourite was the little Arabia cup and saucer for 40kr. Love it.
The sun was shining and people were really friendly today. Norway in the spring is a whole new experience!

The sun is shining, it is 11c and there are 7 (yes, 7!) fleamarkets to visit today. I have been waiting for this weekend for ages!
God helg!

The transplanted baker

In Sweden I bought a (very cheap) Höganäs Keramik Pick Up tray for myself. I also bought one for the lovely Siri (a fellow blogger also married to a norwegian) Siri always leaves lovely,supportive comments on my blog and she understands my frustrations with moving to a new country. She is a fantastic baker too ( I am also very envious of her as her family reunification came through within one month. ONE MONTH!!!! I'm now entering month 8!!) so hop on over to her blog and bake yourself something delicious!

Good things

Sometimes it's good to say out loud that you like something. Last week on Skype I told my friend, "Ooooh I could really eat a Cadbury's Flake right now" and yesterday a big package arrived from her with all my favourite British chocolate, including 4 flakes!
Last weekend I mentioned to Henrik how much I liked some of the new Moomin designs and yesterday as we celebrated our "meeting anniversary" he gave me some Moomin goodies.
It's been a lucky week!

This day

4 years ago today I met Henrik. That man is the best thing that ever happened to me. Henrik is a saint. He puts up with all my crap (including much moaning about his country!) and always remains jolly and positive. I am very lucky.
After school today we went for a walk to check on the progress of the melting ice/snow, and I am
pleased to report that I believe spring has arrived. Finally! We went out without coats and it was 14c, the sun was shining and the birds were singing .We were almost buried by an avalanche of snow sliding from our neighbours roof but we lived to tell the tale and are now about to enjoy a nice juicy steak. Yum.

Ginger biscuits

I really fancied a "ginger nut" biscuit this evening but of course I can't go and buy any here so I had to make do and make my own. Not like the real thing but not a bad substitute!

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/4 dark brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
  
• 2 tablespoons dark syrup
  
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Heat oven to 350° F. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, ground ginger, and salt; set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and the sugar on medium speed until smooth. Add the eggs,syrup,and mix until well combined. Blend in the flour mixture, cover, and refrigerate until slightly stiff (the dough will be easier to handle).
3. Form the dough into 1/2-inch balls . Place 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheets,press down with a wet fork and bake 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

Very nice dipped in tea!

The slow melt

Spring is here. You can feel it (even if you cannot see it!) Last Thursday it snowed all day and I feared all the previous melting had gone to waste but the fresh snow soon melted away,leaving the old frozen snow underneath, melting slowly. We are getting there....at a snails pace.

Harry tur

Today we took what the norwegians call a "harry tur" to Sweden. Many people here find this to be bad taste(cheating the norwegian government out of tax) but if liking a bargain(on average 37% cheaper) makes me tacky, then tacky I am!
We drive about 90 mins to Sweden and shop at a (pretty vile) mall a few miles over the border. The Swedish Kroner is pretty weak right now so you get a very good deal if you pay with norwegian kroner.
We now have fridge/freezer/cupboards full of (superior to norwegian) Swedish goods and Henrik (aka The candy man) now has enough sweets to last him til Christmas. I don't even mind when we get stopped at customs on the way home(every,single time!) only for them to discover we are not smuggling cigarettes or alchohol but infact have a car loaded up with haribo! Long live the Harry tur!

Yesterday

Yesterday was spent shrouded in fog. In some areas it was so thick you could barely see your hand in front of you. We visited a fleamarket- the first of the season, but we had enjoyed a leisurely breakfast at home first therefore all the good stuff had gone. Oh well, there are many
fleamarkets next weekend so I'm sure I'll have more luck then. Today we are off to Sweden to shop. Hurrah!