torsdag 25. desember 2008

Happy Christmas!!!

Here in Norway we celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve - that's the day when we eat, eat, and open presents. We are usually only the five of us, in the nearest family for dinner: my brother and sister, me and my parents
In my family, my mother also decorates the three on the 24th, and, as has become tradition, I am helping her. Here is how it looks like:




Quite a golden three, as you can see!
This is what we normally eat on Christmas eve:

- Around 13:00 we eat a sweet rice-porridge, with an almond in it - whoever get's the almond, get's a price, which is a pig-shaped marcipanfigure
- At 6 or 7 we eat the traditional meal in the east of Norway(the very same every year!): A big piece of ribs of a pig ('ribbe'), where the skin on top is baked really crisp, and the meat is teeeender!!! Yammi :) (Accompanied by potatoes, a sauce, some sausages and 'surkål'; a sort of cooked cabbage with spices and vinegear which is quite sweet)
- Then we have dessert; leftovers of the rice-porridge(served cold) whit whipped cream, raisins and a berry-sauce to go with it
- If we can manage, we have cakes and coffee a bit later (this year, it was impossible!)
After we've eaten, we open presents (before the potential coffee and cakes...)

By the way, my mother aslo decorates the entire house for Christmas for the first sunday of 'advent'. She has a million of 'nisser' (small santa's) and angels and ... stuff, basically, everywhere! It's really cosy (Gezellig, as they would say in dutch. Koselig in norwegian.).

Take a look:




Merry Christmas, everyone! Tidings and joy, and peace and hope. That's what I'll pray the new year will bring us. Take care.

mandag 15. desember 2008

December

When December enters stage, girls all over Norway go crazy for 'Juleverksted' - a kind of Christmas Workshop. This is a scene for making Christmas Cards, decorations, presents, baking, listening to Christmas songs and drinking 'gløgg', which is a warm, spicy drink.
The girls in my circle of friends also gathered for this traditional activity.

Presenting:
Hilde, making cards
Åshild, baking 'kakemenn' (cake-men)


Marte, also baking


Mari was eating the very traditional Norwegian dish 'Mr.Lee'-nudles

After this wonderful meal, she joined in on making beautiful candleholders with decopagé
I was decorating candles, by using a hot kitchen tool to melt pieces of a napkin into the wax:

Result: