Merry Christmas

Now my house are ready for the ariving of Santa Clause. It are cleaned and decorated as well as I can do it. I made this picture some years ago and I don't ever think I will be doing all this cross-stitch ever again.
Here are some of my realy old Santas (Nisser). The one with the bell are the oldes. My hoseband got it on his first Christmas in 1955.How old the one with the basket and the one with the fiddle are I don't know, but they have been celebrating some Christmas with us.
Our tree are decorated and the gifts are beginning to fill up under it. You can see the gift I got from my Secred Santa partner , not opened yet..... ;-)
The birds outside has got there Christmas fedding, a Christmas sheaf. (jule-nek)
At last Jacob and the old Nisse-couple, Santa and his wife ,want to wish you all A Merry Christmas !
And a big hug to you all from me. Have a great time and enjoy.

LAILA

Almost Christmas

To day are the darkest day of the year. But now it is only going to be lighter untill summer-time ,when the sun shine almost all through the night.I took this photo about nine o'clock this morning. It was 20 degrees below zero. You can see my neighbours are having a fire.
To day I have been cleaning my house and to morow I will be decorating the hole house for Christmas. I use not to do that untill the 23. but this year I'll do it "early" because Nemo ,her boyfriend and her older sister are comming home for Christmas on Sunday,and I want every thing to be ready so we can just relax and enjoy ourselves.

To day I have made the last Christmas present. It is a kitchen-towel for my mother-in-law. She has got one , but whish one more.Now I have only a few more gifts to wrap up. And to morrow I will put all the gifts under the Christmas tree after I have decorate it. The gift I got from my Secred Santa Christmas partner will be laying there too....I'm looking forward to open it. ;-) But before I can do so I have to decorate my house with all my Christmas items. I got a lot of Santas, angels , tablerunners, Norwegian Santas (Nisser) and you name it..... My house are going to shine... After all the cleaning to day it only happen to sparkle a little now and then...

The bird-house out side are full of sunflower-seed and the balls are other birds food. I love to watch the birds comming and going to get food.They are so elegant . My favorite are the Bullfinch, the male are so red and beautifull. It is the Christmas-bird of them all I think.
Jacob are keeping an eye on my cleaning. May-be he are looking after the "dust-rabbits" I have catched a lot of them. Once I was thinking of setting them up for adoption...but I don't belive I'm the only one who has a lot of them...;-) But now they are spending the Christmas gathering in my vacuum-cleaner.

Unill next time take care and remember the child in you . I hope to chare some photos of my house when I have decorated it for Christmas..... ;-)

Christmas traditions

I have been asked about the Christmas traditions in Norway. Donna wondred why we opened our Christmas gifts on the 24. Well, I have asked some peoples and done a lot of thinking my self. And I belive it has to do with the Vikings and the Christnening of Norway. The Vikings had a big celebrating ( blot) on the 24. It was the darkes night of the year and the scaries one. So they gather to celebrate that the darkes time was over and it only was getting lighter.The candel - light was shining all through the night because of ,what they belive, all the dead people who was outside trying to get inside to hurt someone. So when Norway was Christned they allready got a great night to celebright and tok it as Christi birthday.I realy did not realize how mutch of the old traditions we realy have her in Norway. The hollyday peace began at 5 pm when all the church-bell starts to ring all over the country. And in our family we put on our best clothes and sit down to eat dinner at six'o clock.We will eat rib,meat-cakes and sosisses with vegetables and some tradisjonell bread called lefse. (It is made of potatos and flour for the most.) After the dinner all the dishes must be clened and the kitchen steady. As vell as the hole house must be clean and shining. THen we can sit down and open our gift, one by one. and every one have to see what we got. So this can take some time. We use to have coffe and cakes while opening the gifts. It "must" be at least seven different kind of cakes. Some are traditional and some are new one found in magasines or I got the recepi from someone...
I will try to show some of my traditions before Christmas. I have cleaned almost all over my house and baked most of the cakes. No I have to do the last gifts and wrap it in...
Yesterday some quilting girls did another tradition....we went on a trip to Oslo to look at the Christmas decorations and visit some stores. Her are a new tradition for me: A Christmas marked . I'm not use to that in Norway. It was fun to visit but, hard to get the Christmas spirit. Pure daylight and no snow... It was a lot of angels this year. You could see them all over the town. I think they are beautiful.
Here you can see what Oslo looks like....almost spring. No snow and a sunny weather...

Here are the ladies of our big destinations....Katrines Quilte Stue. We spent a great time looking and buying there.
Here you can see my buyings. A pattern from Chinderberry Stitches , a Japanese book and one fabricks. I have a meaning with the fabrics ,the other was somthing "must have" items.
We also went to Panduro. I wanted to buy some felt so I could make slippers from the new Tilda book. I made them to day,and learned that the felt didn't look the same on both sides..... I allways get some surprises in different light Good it is for me self. ;-)
We didn't meet the Nobel peace price winners Al Gore and Rajendra Pachauri. But we saw a lot of verry clean cars and this bus. They are in Oslo this weekend to get the price.
As you cuold see there was almost no winter in Oslo, but I can tell you we got it in Trysil. Just now it is 19 degrees below zero. Cold but beautiful day.

Now I have tryed to tell a little about how I celebrate Christmas. I hope you all have a wonderful Advent. Remember to let the child in you have some fun.

Ps. I have got my SSCS present. I got it from Tracey and I have not open it.....;-)

Advent......

On the first sunday in Advent I put my Advent table-cloth and the Advent-candel on the table. And start to count down untill Christmas.
I alsow has some quilts I must hang on the walls. The first are from Art to Heart .I made it some years ago.
And the second are Yule tide Joy from Quakertown Quilts. I just love these quilts and they are so CHRISTMAS to me. So now I can start to make everything ready for Christmas. I'm going to make gifts and make some Christmas cakes this week.....
To day I made two smal purses from the new Tilda book. (Tildas julehus) Fun and easy to make. I have more gift plans from this book. ;-)
Yester day and to day I got mail. More to make. The Julius pattern and the tied up fabrics are a Designer abonnement from Nothern Quilts . The Stocking patten with the other fabrics I got from Katrines Quiltestue. The pattern are from Bird Brain Design. I love to start making them...

This evening I went to meet some of my quilting friends . We had a lovely evening just talking and "organize the world". ;-) I was clever and sew bindings on one and a half little table-cloth. Vigdis had to take a photo just so I could show how clever I was. She had done som bindings herself ,but I did not get a photo of hers. She has to blog them herself.
Here you can see all three of the table-cloths. I make all three at the same time. Three 30 cm of fabrics make three stars. so quick and easy....Just cut and put together...Almost....
One lady in the quiltgrup has made this of felted wool. The goat has not got his horn yet but I think it is great. And the guy with the red hat.... WOW. In Norway we call him a "nisse" It is not the same as the Santa . He brings no presents, but stays about looking after the house and the animals. I don't know if you "out in the world" has somthing like him? He must be a kind of a lovely elf, if you treat him well.
I must show you how different my life has been the last weeks....Here outside Nice it was so lovely, warm wether , about 20 degrees , sunny and so golden...
And back home.....Blue and cold weather . Abouth 15 degrees below zero. And I love every part of the difference.... It is soon Christmas and it means winter to me.... And I must have snow.

Have some great Advent-days...

Have fun and remember to relax.... ;-)

Weekend in France

When I came to Nice it was raining. For the first time in a long while. But when friday arrived the sun was shining and it was lovely. Here are one of the village not far from where my brother lives. It is so different from what I'm used to. Smal houses made of stone and verry smal streets. You can hardly drive a car in some villages.
Here we are in Nice looking for a quilt-shop. And we found it.....but it was closed untill the evening ,so I didn't get to shop this time. Instead we went for a walk in the rain.I love to be in a big town looking at the peoples and all the shops.In this part of Nice there are a lot of tourist in the summer, but now in fall it is quiet. Specially when it is raining.We almost got the streets by ouerselfes. Here are the farmous hotell Negresso.Big and lovely I think. I don't mind to stay there for a night or two.... The hotell lies on the farmos street Promenad des Angles. Also a well know part of the tourist Nice.It was made by the Englies who lived in Nice early in 1900, so they had a place to walk in the afternoons. I can imagine me the ladies and the gentlemens taking a promenade....
I didn't get in the Quilt-shop, but I found a shop with a lot of candy and boxes. Wow ,I just had to buy some boxes to put some quilting-items in. And I don't mind that they were full of candy. ;-) You have no idea what candy you could buy in this little shop....Chocolade and France sweets what ever you can want..... When we could not get to the Quilt-shop in Nice, we went to the Quilt-shop in Antibe.It was smal but I found somthing (a lot) I just needed. The shop had open house for costumers who needed help or to borrow a sewing maskine. It was so fun to finaly meet a French quilter.I didn't buy fabrics..... but I got kits and patterns. ;-)

Here are some new boxes I bought on my trip. I love nice boxes and can always find something to put in them. The big box ,witn Nice on it, are going to the quilt meeting with me to morrow.I can put the little quilt I'm working on in it.
I got lots of new Quilt-magasines with me back home. I don't read or speak france, but I understand most of the patterns.And I love to look in books and magasines, may-be there are somthing I need to make.Or hope to find time to make.....
Here are what I bought in the Quilt-shop. Some pattern and three kits. All in France so I have to study the pattern realy well.I dont know why I didn't took a photo of the modells in the store...but I didn't. It will be a challenge....
My nephes has grown since the last time I saw them. It is so fun to spend some time with them. Cyrian the oldest are clewer to speak Norwegian . Swan talks Norwegian too, if he wants.. But he speaks France most of the time. Once when we were sitting around the table talking Cyrian got a little angry at Swan and sayd : Swan you have to speak Norwegian! And Swan reply: Why??? You are for certain not Norwegian! They are so cute. I hope they are comming to visit me in February.
It was a lovely day when I left on monday. Here are a photo of Mount Blanc, taken out of the planes window.I had a great time in France and I will show you more photos from my trip later.

Have a great day. I feel so good.....I have helpt Santa and Elf Donna to day....I have posted my Secred Santa gift. So now I just have to wait and se what Santa brings to me. ;-) And I hope my Secred Santa Christmas Swap partner like what she gets....

Almost ready for take of....

Some times I live in a blue world. A Christmas-story tells about "Blå-nissene" ( some little elfs all dressed in blue) and I feel like they are all around me now when it is almost Christmas. The blue elfs only leave the mountain in the blue-hour .This is how the mountain look when the sun rise and the blue-hour are over for now. ( Can you see a blue-elf? )
I'm going to visit my brother and his family in France this weekend. And of course I need a bear to look after my Euro. (The stitchery are a pattern from Hatched and Patched. )I hope he allowes me to spend some Euro.I hope to get to some Patchwork stores, I know where they are, but will it be time? That's the question.... I only stays untill monday morning.
When I saw the Great tag Abyquilt got from Elain I know I have to make me a tag to.My luggage deserve to look great, and my be a angel to watch it. I tok the angel from a old DebbieMumm pattern.
Here are one of the reasons I'm going to France. This photo are from my trip last year. His name are Swan and he are three years old , almost four. He are standing on the beatch in Antibe, looking out on the sea.
And here are his older brother, Cyrian. He are six years old. They are great boys and luckey for me they speak Norwegian as well as French. I know they are waiting for me.....I bring Christmas presents with me.( I'm helping Santa a little).....but they are not allowed to open the gifts before Christmas.
Now I have to start packing my luggage. Have a great week and I promice to take a lots of photos to show you later.
Donna askes the member of Secret Santa Christmas Swap to tell how they are celebrating Christmas and I will tell you about our tradisjons when I return.

Have great times and keep all your secrets....... ;-)

Dear Santa

Please Secret Santa don't show my present on the blog. I want to keep it as a secret untill Christmas. It is so fun not to know.And luckey as I'm living in Norway, I'm allowed to open the gift on the evening the 24.
Here are a photo from last year.Lara has got a gift and Jacob just has to know what she got.Sadly Lara died some weeks ago ,so Jacob have to celebrate only with Nemo's rats this year.My oldest daugther are Cantas helper so Lara can get her pressent.
So Canta keep the secret untill Christmas evening. Love to meet you then.

Busy Weekend

This weekend Nemo has been home, and we had a lot of ideas and things we wanted to do. No problem to make the time run....but we did manage to make many things. First we are both a member of "Stitching Klubben" from Jordbærstedet. This month we got a pre-printed house and great Japanece fabrics. This is how they turned out, almost finish.
To day I got mail. A great fat quarter and a little pillow filled with lavender from Karol-Ann. Thank you they are just so nice , and the smell of lavender reminds me of France. And I'm going to visit my brother and his family soon.They lives close to Nice.
Now we got winter and snow here in Trysil. It is about 10 degress below zero in the nights, but when the sun shine in the days ,it is beautiful. The snow are so white and the sky so blue.You can se what weather I got on the web-camera. Lucky for you all I live in a tourist district... LOL The squirrel love when I fill the bird-house with sunflower seed. I wonder if he thinks it is for him? And so what I like the little squirrels.This photo are take through a window with the sun shining - So it are a bit foggy.

On friday Lapphøna brought her Stitchery with her so we could compare the progress. You can see how her turned out on her blog. :-) Here you realy can see how clever Nemo and I have been .Ours are almost finish......
So mutch have we, Nemo and I ,worked on in the week end. The christmas stitcherys are "The Night Before" from Cinderberry Stitches.It was ouer relaxing item .
I manage to talk Nemo into make "Wool Etui" from the lates magasine of Quiltmaker. We did it in felt.Nemo didn't know she needed it, but it was fun and easy to make. There are flowers on the outside and ribbons to tie it together....
Inside it looks like this.A little pocket to the scissors and a pocket for the thimble and some space to put nedles. Nemo has got the scissor from her great- grand mother in her etui. (The brown and violet one.)
At last we had to make smal purses like the one Abyquilt has done. I got the click -lock when I was in Findland last year. Nemo wanted the smalest, and of course she got that.

She has gone back to Oslo to day. I hope we can have another working weekend soon, but with work and all to do I don't think it will be werry soon. ;-(

Now I'm going to do some hand sewing on my Christmas Swap . I need to finish it soon, I'm going to France on the 22. and have to finish it before I leave.May be I find somthing to add in France......

As you can see Nemo has add some news on my blog... I have signed on to the Four season Quilt Swap. I wonder who I'm going to make a quilt for.....

Have a warm and lovely evening..... ;-)