Troy and Laila

Christmas Eve

Yesterday was fantastic. We went to my mom's as did my brother and sister with their families. We watched the traditional shows on TV, we had dinner and the kids were well behaved waiting for Santa.
After dinner the kids were getting more and more excited waiting for Santa. Troy was a bit worried that Santa's beard might catch fire since Mormor had candles burning all over the place, and how would Santa get in with a fire burning in the fireplace. We finally heard heavy footsteps outside and the kids saw Santa outside the window. They opened the door for him, and for Troy's sake Santa actually said Ho ho ho. Celina and Troy told Santa all about how good they have been. Celina told him that she had been nice all day long :)
They got their gifts from Santa, and then gift unwraping mayhem ensued. There were so many gifts for the kids that Troy did not want to open all of his.
Since I am going for mother of the year award, having forgotten to get him a Christmas Callendar, I had also forgotten to bring his gifts from me to Mormor's house. The blonde dye must be seeping into my brain, at least I hope I am not just naturally this awful.
We all had a really great evening, and I did get Troy his gifts this morning.

I don't want any gifts

That is what T told me today.

Inger-Lise, Laila and Richard

Early start

Troy was so excited this morning, that is if it qualifies as morning. He woke up at 5am wanting to get up and check if Santa had filled his stocking. I managed to get him to wait until 7, but every 10 minutes he kept asking if it was time yet. I am pretty sure we will both need a nap today.

Treats for Santa

Troy bringing poridge and cookies for santa.

Kisses from Troy

My Morfar

My grandfather died 1,5 year ago. He died of Mesothelioma, a form of lung cancer. He lived with the cancer for a long time, and I am so glad that he got to see Troy before he died.

If he had still been alive we would have celebrated his birthday a few days ago.

What's up Africa?

I love that little map on my blog that tells me where people who happens upon my blog is from. There seems to be people from all around the world, but for some reason there is not one single person from all of Africa that have happened upon it. What's up with that? I know they have internet down there as well. At least I am pretty darn sure they do in Nigeria, cause they send me emails about hidden fortunes all the time.

Gift giving after divorce

There really should be a book or at least some guidelines out there on how this work. I am having the hardest time figuring out who I should and should not buy gifts for.
I guess I will just follow what feels right to me, and I am sorry if I am messing up on this one.

Mom is goofy

I have been really happy lately, and it seems like the happier I get, the goofier I get too. This morning Troy and I woke up to a winter wonderland. Instead of rushing off to work and daycare we took some time to go sledding. We had to try out the new snow racer he got for his birthday. I am not sure how smart it was, since he really enjoyed it and insisted that we stay home and play today.
After work we had to go grocery shopping, but we discovered that it is really fun to run around a snow covered parking lot with a shopping cart, so shopping took us a long time today.
One more day of work, and I can stay home and be goofy with Troy all day long for 4 whole days.

Decorating the x-mas tree

Troy helped me decorate the tree. He loved his Buddy and T-Rex ornaments

X-mas

I am done shopping for Christmas gifts. I went to the mall today and it was crazy, it was so crowded, so next year I will do the shopping a lot earlier. I got Troy a CD player, he likes to listen to books on CD, so I figured he should get his own CD player that can handle a 3 year old playing with it.
I had a date again this weekend (not a new guy this time;) ). It was absolutely fantastic, but since I think I am running the risk of him reading this blogg, that is all I am going to say about it at this time.

Happy Birthday Troy Alexander

I can't believe my little boy is turning 3, and yet it seems like he has been in my life for forever. I did not know that it was possible to love someone as much as I love him. I think I've been extremely lucky, he is so easy to be around. He does not sleep in in the morning, but he usually asks at night if he can go to bed. This summer he wanted to quit diapers, and he has only had about 3 accidents since the day we tossed out the diapers. He is in such a good mood when he wakes up, that getting up at 6am is not that bad. He usually wakes me up by saying: Good morning sunshine, or I love you mamma. If I get upset at him about something he tells me to stop being mad, he thinks we should just be friends and happy.
Since his birthday is tomorrow I wanted him to have a great weekend. This morning we went shopping for party supplies, and then we went to the pool. We had so much fun, and it's been a perfect day. He wanted me to sing Happy Birthday to him several times, and just mentioning that we are having a party for him tomorrow made him laugh out loud. He is so excited about turning 3. He told me that I could have his present, but I am sure as soon as he sees them tomorrow, he will be happy to keep them for himself.
Happy Birthday Troy, Mammas lille lussegutt.

Update

We talked to Troy's teacher at daycare, and I think we came up with a solution that will work. Since we had the talk Troy seems a lot happier, and he talks about playing with some of the other kids now. He even talks about the mean boy not hitting him (dc said there had been a couple of incidents with the boy).

Trouble at Daycare

Troy changed from the young kids 1-3, to the older kids 3-6 at daycare last month. Troy really enjoys daycare and was looking forward to becoming a big kid. It seems like the transition has not been as smooth as I hoped for. He does not want to go to dc anymore, he tells me that one boy in particular, one of the oldest keeps being mean to him excluding him, and some have also called him names. He also tells me that he has no one to play with. I feel so bad for him, and I am not quite sure how this happened. He is so outgoing and happy all the time, that I was sure he would make friends right away, even though he is the youngest by far. I have talked to his teachers about this, and they keep telling me that he seems to be doing OK. OK is not good enough! I have decided that I am going to schedule an appointment with them to see what we can do about this. I am not going to sit back and accept that my boy is unhappy at dc, he spends way too much time there for him to not have a good time while he is there.

Double booking

I was supposed to use this weekend to clean the house and decorate for Christmas, and at the same time get a little christmas shopping done. I did manage to buy a few gifts last night. Troy is getting Captain Sabertooth's (Sabeltanns) boat. I still need either a birtday or x-mas gift for him.
I also got myself in an unsual predicament. I am going on two dates tonight, back to back. Why did I do this to myself? I don't have time or nerves to do this kind of stuff right now.

Busy Weekend

This weekend Troy and I went with my parents, siblings and their families to a hotel in town. We were going to relax and just hang out together. We started by going to the movies with the kids to see a Christmas movie. Troy thought it was a little scary, but he enjoyed it. After the movie we all went to the hotel, and I was going to sneak out on a date. The sneaking part did not happen, and I would not recomend to anyone else goint on a blind date to have your fammily nearby. They threatned to follow me, and there was no end to the teasing something that did not help my nerves. The date itself was great, and time just flew by.
After the date I went back to the family, and we all went out to eat. Sucks to be on a diet when you go to a restaurant.
The next day we took the kids to a museum that had an interactive Christmas set up. I did not know that the museum spanned several blocks filled with small houses, and that most of it was outdoors. By the time we were done, I was so cold I could no longer feel my toes. The kids had a great time after seeing plays and making their own ornaments.
We then decided to take the kids to a Christmas fair in another town. Troy got to make art, attempt to build his own bird house, and see a play about Karius and Bactius (great fun play about the importance of brushing your teeth). The play ended with the kids getting candy from the characters. Huh.
By the time we made it back home, Troy and I were both exhausted. Troy ended up falling asleep before 7pm, and slept until 7 the next morning.
All in all we both had a great weekend, and I am absolutely ready to go on more dates ;)

God Jul

Celina and Troy

And the answer is yes

I joined this net dating site, and I was asked on a date (or several), and I accepted one of them. It is a bit weird agreeing to see someone I've only met online. I was a little apprehensive when I joined, not sure what to expect, and so far it seems like there are a lot of normal people and a few weirdos. I do not understand why some people put pictures of themselves nearly naked on a page like that, but they are probably looking for someone very different from me. I was asked to come to NY by this one guy in his 60s. He would pay for the ticket, he wanted to meet someone younger to marry. WTH, do I look Russian. No mail order bride here!!!
I guess I will know later today if my date is as good as he seemed on paper.

To date or not to date

Well that is the question I am pondering today. Am I ready? I think so, though I am not too sure I am any good at it. I haven't dated in years, actually I've never really dated anyone. It is intimidating as all h...

School picture

Troy's Wish List

Troy's Birthday is coming up, and Christmas is not too far away either, so I've asked him what he wants. I may add to this list if he comes up with more.
Sabeltannfigurer
Den Sorte Dame (will get)
Baaten til Greven av Gral
Borgen til Greven av Gral (will get)
Pirate

What I think he would like
Eventyr CD
CD Player
Brettspill for 3 aaringer.

What he needs
Backpack for daycare
Ullundertoy
Votter

Trolls

I hate Trolls. A lot of Norwegian fairy tales are about Trolls, and so far I've avoided reading them to Troy since he gets easily scared. My instincts were right on. At day care they've read one about Trolls, and now he talks about Trolls all the time, and how he does not like them. Today he even told me that he didn't think it was safe enough at our house when dad wasn't here. Heh, as if I can't protect him from stupid Trolls.

She was only 15

Yesterday was my cousin's funeral. She was only 15 years old, killed by her neighbor, an 18 year old boy. We live in a small town, and the church was filled with people that knew her. It was so hard to see a father and a brother having to carry a casket. It really reminded me that we have to appreciate each and every day we have with each other.
A facebook site to remember her:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=171263603420&ref=mf

The news story from the funeral (translation is not all that great)
http://www.avisa-st.no/arkiv/skaun/article1248621.ece

When tragedy strikes

I am not even sure where to begin this post. I feel like the world that I knew is gone, this super safe small town that I live in has changed. It used to be a place where you really did not have to worry about much. One week ago today all that changed, and Tuesday I am attending a funeral.

Really?

Maybe Purina's ad people should have stuck to Norwegian?

Tyfus

Inspired by Emil Troy painted his face blue. Unfortunateley it does not wash off.

Kristian

1 month old

Roller blades

Not bad for his first time

Playstation

Dad teaching Troy to play tetris

Winter is here

Needless to say I am not happy

Snow

This is the view from my office. The mountain tops are already covered in snow.

What a great day

I had decided to take Troy to the movies for the first time today. When he woke up at 7 he was ready to go. The movie did not start untill 1 pm, and by 11 we had to leave, the poor guy was getting desperate. We spent some time wandering around Trondheim before the movie, and then we spent a lot of time picking out candy. He was so excited that he was bouncing up and down in his seat before the movie started. He did great, and paid attention to the movie, but halfway through he got up in his seat to tell everyone that he just farted! Oh well. what can you do?
After the movie we went to the childrens science museum. We had a great time exploring everything. It was fun just watching him enjoy it. He had on the new outfit I got him yesterday, and he walked up to the big boys (about 7), to tell them all about his new outfit. At the little store they had, we picked up some jello-bath (powder with a jello consistency in the water). When we came home, he had a jello bath, and he had a great time. We ended the day on the couch with pizza and some leftover popcorn. He is now sound asleep, and we both had a great day.

Jello bath

We went to the science museum today and brought back jello-bath

At the movies

Troy's first time at the movies.

Future dentist?

Practicing to be a dentist like farfar

Troy and Laila

life is good

The first...

Yesterday we had the first now of the season, it is still September and we get snow!! It is too early, I am not prepared to be cold for the next 6-7 months. Is there any wonder I miss the heat of Texas. I’ll take heat and humidity any day over this crap.

On a positive note. Troy really likes this little girl at his daycare. He and Tiril has been the best of friends for a year now. Yesterday he asked her if she wanted to be his girlfriend, and she said yes. When he was telling me about it, he was all excited: Mamma, she said yes and that made me sooo happy.

Farfar

My grandfather.

Baby K

And his name is Kristian

Baby K

Here is baby K. He has lots of black hair and is really tiny for someone so big

He is here!!!

My sister gave birth to a healthy baby boy last night. He was 4520 grams and 55 cm. I can't wait to meet him. Congratulations Inger-Lise, Knut and Celina :)

Laundry

It is a chore most of us do from time to time. There are some people out there that seems to turn on their washing machine, let it run through the cycle, and then seems to think that the clothes should be left in there to age for a couple of days, I guess maybe they think the clothes should be left in the washing machine to dry, but you guys out there that do this: You reek! Yesterday I walked almost a block behind a couple of young guys that left this trace of sour smelling clothes in their wake. Do they not smell this themselves? Is there anyone out there who actually thinks that the smell is OK, that it is not offencive to other peoples noses?

Preparing for winter

I am absolutely positively exhausted today. I went to the gym for a step aerobics class this morning, and afterwards I spent a couple of hours hauling firewood into my basement. I have to get prepared for winter, it is probably not too far away.

I need a better paying job, I found the most awsome shoes the other day. I really really want them, but they cost about $150 :( I have to buy Troy snow shoes and they run about $100 a pair, and he should have two pairs, so bye bye hot shoes for mamma. Winter gear is really expensive (probably because we have to have it). With a growing boy I had to get two sets of raingear, two snow suits, he needs winter coats as well as wool undershirts and long johns. I love being a single mom, but it sure is hard to manage on one income.

Knerten, it is about time

We are still waiting. How long can you have 1.5 minute contractions every 10 minutes before something happens.

Still waiting

My sister is at my mom's. Her contractions are about 10 minutes apart, but there seems to be little progress. She has now had contractions for about 24 hours.

Waiting

My sister is expecting a little boy, though I am not sure that little is the correct term here.
Her due date was on the 12th, and yesterday they were going to induce labor, since they think my nephew is 4.4 kilos at this point. They went to the hospital and we were all excited that we were finally going to meet him, but he doctors at the hospital changed their mind. Instead of inducing her they tried a few things that might work to irritate the cervix enough to start labor. It turns out that my sister’s cervix is not easily irritated and so far she is not in labor. How big do they want this boy to be before they do something a little more serious about it. I am thinking that tonight I am making labor inducing pizza, and then taking her for a long walk, maybe she should clean my house while we are at it, I’ve heard that is supposed to work.

Troy

He chose his own outfit

Language Problems

I have to admit that I struggled a little with my Norwegian moving back here from Texas. I guess I just did some direct translation from English, and sometimes that works, and at other times it just makes people giggle and look at you like you are a bit retarded. Shellfish is one of those words that you can not say, here it is called shell-animal. When I was explaining to my mom that my house was growing on me, I got a blank stare in return, houses do not gro won people in Norway. Then there are other words that I just keep saying the English word with my dialect, and it means something completely different. I often say that something is black (which in Norwegian means broke), or i talk about my car (which means man). Needless to say that my sentences do not always make a lot of sense. Mostly this is not a problem with the people that know me, but it is a little embarrassing when I meet new people. Since my Norwegian sounds perfect, they expect me talk like any other native. Oh well, I guess a there are a few people out there that may assume I am a little on the retarded side.

Congrats!!

Congratulations to Frode, Ida and Ada. Little Ellinor was born last night and she is absolutely adorable.

Exercising

Since I started my diet I've been walking a lot, however I realized I had to join a gym. I took my first aerobics class last week, and have attended several since then. It is not easy being a single mom and fitting it into my schedule, but I am going to get back in shape so I just have to. It is actually kind of fun, and it makes me feel really good afterwards.
Now I just need to stay away from Troy's candy, and I will do fine.

Winter 2008

How they grow in a year

Don't

Walk on the table...

Troy

Ingrid

Pavlova Cake

I am on a diet (again), and I have completely cut sugars out of my diet. Lately however I've been craving this cake that my sister makes. It is the best cake I've ever tasted. It is called the Pavlova cake, and I want some NOW!! It is a meringue cake with a light, delicate, crisp crust and a soft sweet marshmallow center, topped with fresh fruits Read more: http://www.joyofbaking.com/Pavlova.html#ixzz0PDt6V9To
I really need to stay strong, but it is so hard.

Red hair

Tante lise gave troy a new hair color this summer. It was suposed to come out in the wash

Morfar's boat

Mormor, get it right will you

Mormor came by tonight and this was the conversation I overheard:
Mormor: How are you doing Troy? (koss e de me dae Troy)
Troy: I am doing just fine (de e baerre fint me mae)
Mormor: What's going on? (e det naa som skjer?)
Troy: Nothing (nehei)
Mormor: So nothing's cooking? (saa da e det ittj naa som staar paa)
Troy: Yes, the meatballs are cooking (jo, kjoettbollan staar paa jo)

Me

Logic

Last night Troy was sitting with Odin watching TV, they were watching sprinters run, and Troy looked at them and told his dad. They don't have a car! The logic of a two year old.

Where babies come from

This evening I had a bath with Troy, and he looks at me seriously and points to me belly button. If I pee in your belly button, then you will get a baby in your belly. I couldn't help but laugh, I guess someone must have have told him about the birds and the bees.

Message in a botle

This summer troy sent a message in a botle and today he got a reply. Lennart and philipp from germany sent him crayons and a coloring book. Talk about great surprise!

Troy

Troy's Photo Shoot

Karius and Baktus

I have to say as for childrens movies, this one is genious. It is about two little fellows living in a little boy’s teeth, and the boy keeps feeding them their favorite food (all sweet treats), untill one day he gets a really bad toothache. The little boy has to start brushing his teeth and has to go to the dentist to get the cavities (their houses) filled. The movie end by Karius and Baktus not getting anything good treats to eat, before the toothbrush comes and brushes them out to sea, where they are looking for another mouth to move into.
The movie worked wonders on Troy, he has never been as good as now at brushing his teeth. He does not want those little buggers building any houses in his teeth.
For a while now Troy has told me that he wants to be a dentist, just like his farfar. This movie made his farfar an even bigger hero in Troy’s eyes.

Taking Troy to see a play

This summer I took Troy to see a play about a man who was a thief and stole a package a woman was carrying. It was an interactive play where the children were supposed to help the police catch the thief. Troy being the cautious little boy that he is, was really scared of the thief, and the fact that we all got to catch the thief and put him in jail really made an impression on him. He has been talking about it non stop and the story keeps evolving. It is fun to listen to him retell the story to anyone willing to listen. He is making himself the hero, catching the thief putting him in jail and telling him that he should not steal!

Tv and a muffin

Enjoying a snack while watching jo jo's circus

Potty training - continued

With the exception of a couple of accidents, Troy has been dry all summer long. He has now started fighting me about wearing a diaper at night. I don't think he is ready for not wearing a diaper at night time yet, but we are getting close. He really hates wearing diapers now, so maybe I just have to give it a try.

Picture

Tomorrow I am taking Troy in to get his picture taken. A friend of the family is a photographer so she will take the pictures. I guess it remains to be seen if Troy will cooperate

English

Troy understands a lot of English, but he really does not speak any. I understand that it is hard for him to know what he should answer when all he ever hear is me talking to him, and he does not ever hear any responses.
This morning however he surprised me by saying. Do you see that, do you see the moon on the TV?

Grandma

I am on sick leave right now so I get to spend a lot of time with Troy which is great. This morning we were talking about me leaving him for a week going to Belgium. He told me that he was going to go with me to Belgium. I told him I was not going again, but when I left him I had to because it was a trip for grown ups only.
Troy: I am coming with you
Me: I am not going, and I couldn't bring you
Troy: I'll ask Mormor
Me: Ask her about what?
Troy: If i can go with you to Belgium
Obviously mormor over-rules me :)

New hat

Never mind summer, troy wants to wear his hat

Big brother

Troy became a big brother this morning, and to think that when Odin left me I was affraid that maybe Troy would be an only child. I guess a lot can change in a year...

For sale

Radio

Today I went online to listen to some of the online stations from Houston. I should never have done that. Even hearing about traffic problems on I-10 made me want to move back. I am trying to figure out if it is nostalgia that makes me want to move back, or if I truly miss Houston. I think I truly miss the city. The only reason I am here is because this is where my family is, but then I keep thinking that I could always visit, and they could visit me. Is it fair to Troy to take him away from his dad and his grandparents? I do not know what to do. I said I would give myself 2 years to get used to life here. I guess I have a few more months left.

Scary animals

I got the kittens to help Troy out, so that he should not be so affraid of animals. It has taken him a while but he is really good with them. He feeds them himself, and he often gives them little treats. When he comes home, he has to kiss the kittens before he even looks at me.
This weekend we had a set-back as far as animals are concerned.
Troy and I were sitting in a recliner in the living room watching a movie. The front door was open so that the kittens could come and go as they pleased. Emil came running by, and we heard Ida right behind him. Suddenly Ida jumped into the recliner, except it wasn't Ida, but a big black poodle that jumped into our laps. I was startled and let out a scream (that did not help). Poor Troy was petrified. We got the dog back to the owner and she promised that the dog would not bother us again. Later that day when I was moving the lawn, and Troy was playing outside, the dog came back, and started running after Troy. My poor boy was so scared. He wanted to sit on my shoulders and refused to get back down. This time the owner promised to keep the dog inside, and I told her how important it was for the dog not to come back. Troy of course is more affraid of animals than ever. He still loves his kittens, but he does not like to be surprised by them either.

Emil and ida

Troy's kittens

My dad

Today we celebrated my dad's birthday. Troy was super exited about giving him his gift

Egersund

At the beach

Bestefar

Visiting bestefar

Loosing Troy

Before my sister and I left for Antwerp we went to the mall to pick up a few things for the trip. We both brought the kids, and we all had a great time.
After a while we needed a break, so we went to a cafe at the mall that have a playroom for the kids. Troy and Celina had some food and took off for the playroom as soon as they were done. My sister and I were sitting at a table with a view of the playroom. After a while Celina comes over to our table and asks us where Troy is. I was still fairly relaxed as I walked over to the playroom, since I was sure he was there, which he was not. At that time I completely panicked (having lived in Texas for so long, all the worst case scenarios popped into my head). I ran around the restaurant and he was not there, so I headed to the bathrooms, and pretty much dragged everyone out of there, checking to make sure no sicko had dragged my little boy in there with him (I am sure I startled a few people). I was pretty much ready to ask for a mall shut-down, when my sister finally found him. A nice lady had found him at another store crying, and she was taking care of him. I don't think I've ever been as scared or as happy as I was that day.

Look who's not sleeping

This is what happens when it is as light outside at 11pm as it is in the middle of the day

Birds market

Antwerp

Antwerp

The burger is great but we r becoming dehydrated. They really serve miniature coke bottles here

Amsterdam

Waiting for the train to belgium

Hoodlum

Today I realized that Troy sure knows how to please his audience, and today his audience were boys a few years older than him. We visited a friend of mine, and he was talking back to me, he tried to hit me, he poured his juice on the floor and laughed at it, tossed shoes down the stairs and so on. All this because it made the older boys laugh, and you could just tell how proud that made him feel. He may be two and completely adorable, but this is not the kind of behaviour I can let him get away with.

Ada and troy

Troy with his cousin ada at zitrus today

Summer in Børsa Norway

50f and raining.

Proud

Guess who is getting really good at using the potty...

Baby shower

Inger-lise