17th of May - Norway's National Day

I'm almost not sure where to begin when writing about what the Norwegians refer to as "Syttende Mai" (17th of May).  Norway's National Day is a big BIG day!.  We had been hearing all about this holiday since we moved to Sandefjord last fall, and we were excited to experience it.

Let's start with the dress code for the day.  EVERYONE dresses up (okay...perhaps not everyone...but those who missed the "no jeans" memo stick out like a sore thumb!).   This is a far cry from the typical 4th of July "picnic couture" collection seen in the states  (aka shorts and T-shirts).  Adults and children are often wear traditional Norwegian clothing...called a bunad (pronounced something like "boo' nahd").   If you do not have (or choose to wear) a bunad, then a dress or suit is strongly suggested (I have never seen so many teenage boys wearing suits!).  The bunads have elaborate embroidery and may also be adorned with handmade silver or gold.   Young women may given a bunad as a confirmation present...quite a special gift as they typically cost several thousand dollars (yes, thousands of American dollars!).

Some of our friends in their traditional clothing

We were lucky to have Norwegian friends who loaned us a bunad for each of the girls

"The hills are alive...

...with the Sound of Music"

Bunad? Check.  Norwegian flag?  Check.

Parade #1 was the Barnetog (which means Children's parade or "train" when directly translated).  After a short presentation (with a few speeches, songs and dances), the children marched through the city together with their classmates.   Marching bands were also included in the first parade.  Full disclosure....the following two photos were taken beforehand...the girls moved too quickly during the parade to get good pictures!

All the kids buddy up...safety first!

And they all wave a Norwegian flag

Many MANY Norwegian flags throughout the parade

After Parade #1, it was time for some ice cream.   Several Norwegian friends informed us that on the 17th of May children are allowed to have as much ice cream, sausages (i.e. hot dogs) and soda as they want.   To me, that sounds like a recipe for disaster!

I LOVE Norwegian traditions!

Yes...I see that you have eaten the WHOLE THING!

After a brief rest back at home, we headed back to town for Parade #2 which was for the sport clubs and other organizations in town...called the Borgertog.  

Looking very official!

Post parade...

We headed home right after the second parade (before the children thought to ask for more ice cream).  Some friends were kind enough to invite us to dinner which was our final event of the day.  It was wonderful to sit and enjoy a "proper" meal after all of the junk food we had consumed.  Of course, we managed to save room for dessert afterward....my friend made an amazing chocolate mousse cake and I baked an angel food cake (angel food cake is quite unique around these parts- perhaps a new Syttende Mai tradition??)

Of course I had to sample a slice of each!

After a very eventful day and evening, the whole family pretty much collapsed.  It was a great day in Norway with friends, family, and beautiful weather!  I don't know if I could suggest anything that could have made the day more exciting....well maybe I have one small suggestion...

Easter Break 2014

Yes, I realize that I am a bit slow in sharing our activities from Easter break.  Since we are only a week away from a HUGE Norwegian Holiday, it's pretty much now or never with this post! Easter Break, known as Påske Ferie here in Norway, was the full week before Easter plus the Monday after.   Since we had not planned a "real" vacation for the week (and my husband was traveling for business), I decided to take a road trip back to Sweden with my girls  (For those of you new to this blog- we lived in Sweden for about 18 months before moving to Norway).  Last year we were invited to a very traditional Easter in Sweden- follow the link if you would like to check it out. http://ourfamilyinsweden.blogspot.no/2013/04/our-easter-in-sweden.html 

For this trip, we were fortunate to find three different friends to take us in for a night or two.  You never want to wear out your welcome in any one place, right?  As Benjamin Franklin once said, "Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days".  So true!

Our journey started with a 2.5 hour ferry ride from Sandefjord (where we live) to Strømstad, Sweden.  The ferry was pretty crowded, but we managed to find seats and settle in.

iPad and the fuzzy blanket...life is good

This was the first time I had made the trip to Sweden, or any trip which included a ferry, without my husband.   The driving is no problem for me, but I had one big (possibly unrealistic) fear about driving onto the ferry... that I would forget where I parked!  I have seen those people...wandering around looking for their cars.  Luckily I paid close attention and we found the car upon arrival.

Our five days in Sweden were VERY relaxing.  Note to self: my children are much more relaxed when their mom is not stressed out, worrying about a schedule and/or multitasking.  Coincidence?  Perhaps not.  These days away also helped me to realize how lucky we were to have met such wonderful people in a relatively short time.

First stop....such sweet girls!

Chilling out....we LOVE vacation!

Visit with our first neighbors!

Awwwwwww!  

The younger sister....showing her strength

I'm regretting that I didn't take more pictures of the kids and me with our friends.  I realize in these moments that I wish I were more like my mom who tries to bring out her camera at every opportunity.  At the time, this is often met with groans and eye rolls, but later you're so happy to have the photos!

After the whirlwind trip to Sweden, we still had three whole days left before we returned to our normal schedule, school, etc.   We celebrated Easter with some traditional American traditions...

We colored some Easter eggs...

and were paid a visit by the Easter Bunny!

I really hadn't planned on creating a traditional Easter Sunday dinner...it was just the four of us and no one was really interested in the work involved....so we started a new tradition of "Easter Tacos".  The girls had a Norwegian friend over for dinner who was quite amused by our dinner menu.  Okay...maybe Easter tacos will be a short lived tradition,  but at least there were no complaints and no leftovers!

An extra bonus was that the weather in Sandefjord was fantastic during the break!  We spent an afternoon with friends riding bikes and hiking in the woods.  This was followed by a picnic lunch at an old Viking gathering place (there is probably an official name for this place, but I'm not sure what it is).

The rocks are arranged in the shape of a Viking Ship

Happy girls enjoying nature

All in all, it was a fun yet relaxing week, enjoying time in Sweden and in Norway (while including a couple of American traditions).