Norway 2014

3 planes and 1 train to visit Geir, Mette, Martin and Petter in Mo I Rana

2 trains to visit Bestefar and Bestemor in Lillehammer

An hour drive to visit Hege, Svein Magne, Bjørnar and Trine at their cabin

1 train and 2 planes to get home. 

 

There were no flight delays and no one got sick.  And surprisingly, the kids were really good during the travels!  They slept or watched movies on the planes and were no trouble at all.  Until Erik's total meltdown on the last flight home.  The nice older man next to Erik apologized and then upgraded to a business class seat.  Yeah, it was that bad.  He didn't sleep well for the majority of the trip, probably because we kept moving to a different house every few days. Oh well, it was worth it.  The girls are at a good age to remember this time with their cousins.   

 

Erik was not a fan of snow blowing in his face. 
Here he is admitting defeat and walking back to get the goggles I wanted him to wear. 






Moose droppings at the neighborhood playground. 

Erik fell asleep at random times and places. 





This was a cool playground for a daycare nearby.  The kids called it the obstacle course.  

Can you see the pine cone he threw in the center of the tire?  Perfectly timed picture.

Taking a break from sledding.  Bestemor always packed perfect snacks for every outing.

Arve offered to shovel out the dog cage at Hege's cabin and we all got to try shoveling snow. 
It took a looong time.  Arve kept going long after I quit. 

Sarah is sitting where the top point of one of the dog houses is buried under the snow. 

Building a snow cave!  Arve and Svein Magne dug a tunnel from different sides and they met in the middle.  Anna was so excited to help.  She kept checking to see if the other side could hear her while Arve was digging. 

The finished digging project.  Sarah loved checking on the dogs. 

Arve shoveled a path the next day in the back of the house. It's quite a workout!

Sarah helping Tante Hege make dinner.  She is dressed for outside because we actually ate the hot dogs and mashed potatoes outside.   

Apparently, an outdoor picnic is what you do on a sunny, snowy day :) 
Arve grilled inside the garage and served it through the window. 
It was a fun, new experience!

Anna really loved the cave.

Trine put candles in the cave and the kids loved it! 

Anna was holding a dog treat. 
I'm not sure what trick Jack was supposed to do, but she got a kick out of feeding him.

video: Digging the snow cave looked like quite a workout,

and this was the same day he shoveled snow out of the dog cage. 

video: Anna sledding. 

She figured out how to brake before sliding into the cross country ski path. 

video: Sarah and Erik sledding. 

Sarah liked going on the moguls and Erik loved sledding but not the bumps. 

video: The girls had just gotten on their cross country skis and

were trying to make it over to the ski path.