Uncle Woo

Uncle Woo is here! (That's how it sounds when the kids say Uncle Will)
He got here on Friday night at the same time that Rhodri arrived back from his week in Turkey. In fact, they saw each other in the baggage claim area of Oslo airport and took the train and taxi together back to the house Friday night. Hurray!
I think the troops are happy to have someone new to climb on.
This afternoon, Will and I went for a quick x-c ski outing to one of my usual spots. It started snowing as soon as we set off but only lasted for about 30 minutes before the skies cleared.
Hills:4, Will:2 ... its a little bit difficult to not fall going downhill if you haven't been practicing x-c skiing a lot. But Will made it down 2 good size hills standing up, which is pretty good considering the tracks were a little icy and there were plenty of high-speed Norwegians flying past us.

Supposedly sick

On Thursday afternoon I was told that Tryfan had a fever and was sick so I should pick him up early. I picked him (and Rhiannon) up and and went home. This was the scene that ensued....

I don't think he is too sick. He wanted to change into his "Nisse jammies" (elf pyjamas) and so Rhiannon did too and they spent the rest of the afternoon running and dancing and laughing. Good times.

Moving on....

Well, if you haven't booked your travel to come see us already, you are too late.
We are moving on.
Both Rhodri and I have been offered positions at the company's London-Gatwick office and so we are actively making plans now to move. We plan to move mid-late April and start our new lives in the south of England at the beginning of May.
At first I was really sad, but now I accept it and am even starting to get excited!
At least we might get some more people coming to visit us if we are based in the London area... (hint hint)

Back on the tracks

On Sunday we went skiing and there was a competition (for kids) that was getting ready to start just as we were leaving, so we got to ski through the course.
We had a little picnic above the beach where we spent time in the summer. I love how so very different places look in each season! Kristoffer (our friend across the street) and his family joined us as well and the three kids had a great time climbing around on this big pile of plowed snow.

The end of our trip

Our last day in Wales was sunny and gorgeous. In the afternoon, Taid and I took the kids across the road to the fields of sheep and we found some puddles to stomp in. One of the puddles was so deep and thick with mud that Tryfan's boot got stuck in there and just his bare sock came out. Fortunately Nain is a wizard with washing and drying clothes in a hurry, so we were still able to pack them later that night.
We traveled home on Friday Mar 5. It was an easy and pleasant trip from Llandudno to Manchester airport, checking in, eating lunch in a cafe, flying to Oslo, train to Asker, then finally car ride home. I picked up Bentley as soon as I could and then we spent the weekend in "repair and maintenence mode". Sunday we went skiing back at the fields near our house and it felt so great to be back in the snow!

Welsh Mountain Zoo

The other day Nain and Taid took the kids to the zoo for most of the day so that Rhodri and I could do our own thing for a little bit. Yay! From all reports they had a marvelous time! Rhiannon and Tryfan haven't quite figured out how to stick their heads through the sign the way you are meant to yet.
There were monkeys, penguins, flamingos, seals, camels and much more!
I don't know WHY these two have such crazy expressions on their faces, but I am pretty sure they were fully enjoying the bags of crisps (chips) that Nain and Taid bought for them!
Thanks Nain and Taid for treating them to such a great day out!

Meeting cousin Leusa

We got to meet Rhiannon and Tryfan's 15-month-old cousin Leusa (pronounced "LAY-sah") for the first time yesterday. She is really cute! Tryfan looked so big standing next to her though. Here he is showing her a photo of himself from when he was a baby... she wasn't too impressed.
Leusa likes talking on the phone - this one wasn't plugged in, but that didn't stop her!
Auntie Llinos was talked into reading a magazine to Rhiannon but she didn't seem to mind.
It's so great to have our kids be around their cousins and start getting to know each other. I hope we get to see more of them in coming years!

Dinner at Jane's

Tuesday night we all went over to Jane's house for a delicious lasagna dinner, followed by several other courses of dessert, cheese and after dinner liquor. Here she is with the troops.
Nain was well prepared and had brought along some books for the kids to read while the rest of us enjoyed the other courses of the meal. Here is Taid reading to the troops.
Nain reading to Tryfan while Rhodri and I got to catch up with Jane.
Rhiannon wanted to have a photo taken with "all the girls"
And then Rhiannon took this one of "all the boys"
It was a lovely evening which we all thoroughly enjoyed. Thank you, Jane!

Driving back up north

Today was such a gorgeous day, and we were fortunate to be driving from one end of the country to the other! Very fitting, since today was also St. David's Day (the National Day for Wales). There was so much to see - farms and baby lambs everywhere, snow capped mountains, grassy winter fields and brown bracken hillsides, stone walls and bare hedgerows... I love Wales. And the kids were so good in the car -- as long as they can listen to the Mamma Mia soundtrack and have their own backpacks full of magazines and other treats, everyone is happy!
We drove a different way heading back north and detoured so that we could call in with Auntie Mary near Aberystwyth, who kindly provided lunch to all of us.
Cousin Rachel came over to say hi to us too, which was a great surprise!
We didn't get to see Rhiannon and Tryfan's other cousins who are about the same age, but the troops sure appreciated playing with all their toys that are at Auntie Mary's house.
We got back to Llandudno around 4pm, just in time to play a bit before having dinner, bathtime and then bed. It was a great trip all around, but it's nice to be back at Nain and Taid's house.

Day in the park

Today we all went to the St. Fagans Museum of Welsh Life (or something like that). It was free to get in (always a bonus!), so we brought a picnic lunch and spent the day here. Auntie Sioned met us here too, so we were a large happy family this day. Here are: Rhodri, Sioned, Cris, Nia holding Valentin, Gabriel, Rhiannon and Tryfan in the foreground.
Rhiannon and Gabs were more interested in chasing each other around and laughing together, while Tryfan was just engrossed with this Fireman Sam magazine that Auntie Nia gave him.
Around dinnertime, back at Cris and Nia's house, baby Valentin was awake!
One of Tryfan's other older cousins (Dewi) handed down this Fireman Sam shirt which Tryfan has insisted on wearing everyday since he got it! Here he is showing it off to Auntie Sioned.
3 of the 4 siblings: Rhodri, Sioned and Nia... Trystan would make it a complete picture but he wasn't with us down south in Cardiff.

Road trip through Wales

On Saturday we drove down to see the southern contingent of Rhodri's family who live near Cardiff. We left Saturday morning and were on the road for ~6 hrs including our stops. We stopped at the Halt Cafe which had a wooden train in the garden.
Very fun to drive the train in the rain! We had a little picnic in one of the gazebos and got to run around a little bit before driving the last hour or so to Nia and Cris' house.
We were heartily greeted by a bouncing cousin Gabriel ("Gabs" as our troops call him) and after some initial playing inside the house, Nia and I figured we would be better letting them play and wiggle outside at the playground at the top of their road. This little spinny thing was very popular for all three to ride on, although Tryfan soon figured out that he can go a lot faster if it is just him alone on it.
Before dinnertime, Rhiannon got to hold her newest baby cousin, Gabs' little brother Valentin.
Rhiannon so loves babies and she kept giving Valentin kisses on his forehead, nose, cheeks, hair, and cuddling him close to her chest. So very sweet.
Then we had a delicious dinner that Auntie Nia had prepared, and the 3 cousins got to sit at their own table.
But by the end of the evening when it was actually after their normal bedtime, all three of the bouncy cousins were ready to call it a day!

Traveling to Wales

Today we traveled by car, train, plane and then car again to get to North Wales. For the first time ever, it was actually enjoyable to travel with the troops! Here they are at the Asker train station.
We got to Nain and Taid's house ~4pm and there was still time to play outside or at least do some digging for worms in the back garden with Taid.
Tryfan was proud of the worm in his shovel but he didn't want to touch it. Eventually he did, though.
We were thinking of Aunt Heidi in California all day today though, since it is her birthday! Happy Birthday, Sis :-)

Our friends' birthday

On Sunday, our friend Fiona and Karl-John and their twin boys Finn and Magnus came over for the afternoon. Although it was *really* cold, we went sledding around the corner down the road. Here are the boys and Rhiannon pulling their sleds to the start of the hill.
It's all fine going down but it's hard work walking back UP the hill. Fiona got roped into pulling all three of them!
We didn't last more than 45 minutes or so outside - it was about -12 C so everyone's noses were getting cold. We played inside for a while and then had a traditional Sunday dinner along with a birthday cake that Rhiannon and I had made earlier in the day. Finn and Magnus turned 4 on Feb 19th.
At the table - it was a grand afternoon!

Wind, snow and boller (and a joke)

We don't have any intention of going skiing or anything this weekend - we just planned to lay low, and its a good thing too! Today we are having actually really nasty weather: -14C, windy and snowing. The kids and I made some boller this morning (baked rolls that are slightly sweet).
Here is the view from the kitchen out to the back deck -- it is actually two steps down from the kitchen floor level to the deck! Crazy snow that has fallen naturally, slid off the roof, and been blown from the side. Pretty soon we won't be able to see out the living room windows
Here is the view out one of the other windows in the kitchen. I love the dune ridge that has been created by the swirling wind. There are lots of crazy snow piles around the neighborhood right now but it's not so fun to walk around and see it all. Anyway, we have to take the dogs out a few times a day so we have to make the most of it.
And now, since I have been on the lower end of the humor spectrum, I will insert a story that was emailed around. I will bleep out the bad words! Here it is for your reading pleasure:
The Diary of a Snow Shoveler

December 8: 6:00 PM. It started to snow. The first snow of
the season and the wife and I took our cocktails and sat for hours by the window watching the huge soft flakes drift down from heaven. It looked like a Grandma Moses Print. So romantic we felt like newlyweds again. I love snow!

December 9: We woke to a beautiful blanket of crystal white snow covering every inch of the landscape. What a fantastic sight! Can there be a more lovely place in the Whole World? Moving here was the best idea I've ever had. Shoveled for the first time in years, felt like a boy again. I did both our driveway and the sidewalks. This afternoon the snowplow came along and covered up the sidewalks and closed in the driveway, so I got to shovel again. What a perfect life.

December 12: The sun has melted all our lovely snow. Such a disappointment. My neighbor tells me not to worry, we'll definitely have a white Christmas. No snow on Christmas would be awful! Bob says we'll have so much snow by the end of winter, that I'll never want to see snow again. I don't think that's possible. Bob is such a nice man, I'm glad he's our neighbor.

December 14: Snow, lovely snow! 8" last night. The temperature dropped to -20. The cold makes everything sparkle so. The wind took my breath away, but I warmed up by shoveling the driveway and sidewalks. This is the life! The snowplow came back this afternoon and buried everything again. I didn't realize I would have to do quite this much shoveling, but I'll certainly get back in shape this way. I wish I wouldn't huff and puff so.

December 15: 20 inches forecast. Sold my van and bought a 4x4 Blazer. Bought snow tires for the wife's car and two extra shovels. Stocked the freezer. The wife wants a wood stove in case the electricity goes out. I think that's silly. We aren't in Alaska, after all.

December 16: Ice storm this morning. Fell on my [bum] on the ice in the driveway putting down salt. Hurt like hell. The wife laughed for an hour, which I think was very cruel.

December 17: Still way below freezing. Roads are too icy to go anywhere. Electricity was off for five hours. I had to pile the blankets on to stay warm. Nothing to do but stare at the wife and try not to irritate her. Guess I should've bought a wood stove, but won't admit it to her. God I hate it when she's right. I can't believe I'm freezing to death in my own living room.

December 20: Electricity's back on, but had another 14" of the damn stuff last night. More shoveling. Took all day. Goddamn snowplow came by twice. Tried to find a neighbor kid to shovel, but they said they're too busy playing hockey. I think they're lying. Called the only hardware store around to see about buying a snow blower, and they're out. Might have another shipment in March. I think they're lying. Bob says I have to shovel or the city will have it done and bill me. I think he's lying.

December 22: Bob was right about a white Christmas, because 13 more inches of the white [stuff] fell today, and it's so cold it probably won't melt 'til August. Took me 45 minutes to get all dressed up to go out to shovel, and then I had to piss. By the time I got undressed, pissed and dressed again, I was too tired to shovel! Tried to hire Bob, who has a plow on his truck, for the rest of the winter; but he says he's too busy. I think the [guy] is lying.

December 23: Only 2" of snow today, and it warmed up to "0". The wife wanted me to decorate the front of the house this morning. What, is she, nuts!!! Why didn't she tell me to do that a month ago? She says she did, but I think she's lying.

December 24: 6". Snow packed so hard by snowplow, I broke the shovel. Thought I was having a heart attack. If I ever catch the son-of-a-bitch who drives that snowplow, I'll drag him through the snow by his balls and beat him to death with my broken shovel. I know he hides around the corner and waits for me to finish shoveling and then he comes down the street at a 100 miles an hour and throws snow all over everywhere I've just been! Tonight the wife wanted me to sing Christmas carols with her and open our presents, but I was too busy watching for the Goddamn snowplow.

December 25: Merry F!=3D@x@!x!x1 Christmas. 20 more inches of the !=3D@x@!x!x1 slop tonight. Snowed in. The idea of shoveling makes my blood boil. God, I hate the snow! Then the snowplow driver came by asking for a donation and I hit him over the head with my shovel. The wife says I have a bad attitude. I think she's a fricking idiot. If I have to watch "It's a Wonderful Life" one more time, I'm going to stuff her into the microwave.

December 26: Still snowed in. Why the hell did I ever move here? It was all HER idea. She's really getting on my nerves.

December 27: Temperature dropped to -30, and the pipes froze. Plumber came after 14 hours of waiting for him; he only charged me $1,400 to replace all my pipes.

December 28: Warmed up to above -50. Still snowed in. The [woman] is driving me crazy!!!!!

December 29: 10 more inches. Bob says I have to shovel the roof or it could cave in. That's the silliest thing I ever heard. How dumb does he think I am?

December 30: Roof caved in. I beat up the snow plow driver. He is now suing me for a million dollars; not for only the beating I gave him, but also for trying to shove the broken snow shovel up his [backside].

The wife went home to her mother. 9" predicted.

December 31: I set fire to what's left of the house. No more shoveling.

January 8: Feel so good. I just love those little white pills they keep giving me.

Snow and more snow

Ever since Sioned and Lorenzo left on Wednesday night, it has been snowing non-stop. This photo is the view of the backyard from the living room window. It's hard to appreciate just how much snow is piled up in the backyard without knowing that the seats of the swings are a couple of feet off the ground and they are well buried now.
We had a great time with S & L though! In fact, it almost feels like Auntie Sions is a regular part of the family because she has visited us 7 times since we have been living in Norway! I guess the novelty has worn off a little bit because I am ashamed to say that I hardly took any photos. Sorry, Sions! But also, this past week or two I have been feeling rather unsocial and moody. Our time left here in Norway is looking increasingly uncertain and I've been in a bit of a funk. And being in this state of mind doesn't really blend well with taking photographs, if you know what I mean...