My alarm is set for 6am, and I wake up at 5.55am. Ugh. It’s crunch time! The rest of the house get up as well, as we need to pack up most of the linens before the others leave at 7am. Some people shower, some people eat, some people strip beds and fold linens. (Me, I fold dirty linens, it fits back in the bags easier that way.) The little hour we have together today is over way too soon, and I have to wake Joe and Maylin up to say goodbye to everyone.
As soon as the others pull out of our driveway, this happens:
It’s a quick hour with lots of dishes and packing up the rest, before we leave at 8am. I stop by with the leftovers and a quick hug with my sister Kathrine, and then we too are on our way home. We wave goodbye to Tromøybrua, with its spectacular views, and don’t know when we’ll see it again.
Our trip home is a 3 hour + journey, and we take our time with a lunch stop (another McDonald’s?? I wish I knew where the more traditional Norwegian rest stops were, but this is what we found today. We get home by 12.30pm, and unpack.
It rained as we drove through the city, but it hasn’t rained up at my mom’s place. The girls barely say hi to their mormor before they run across to the playground. We let them play for a bit, but then my mom and I are heading to the grocery store, and Maylin wants to come with. Joe stays home to do laundry (so much laundry), and Téa is reading.
We drive down to the closest mall, and Maylin starts out energetic. Then she gets hungry, and I grab her a “lapp”. It’s essentially a large fluffy pancake in a paper bag, made in store for snacking while you shop. Just pay for the empty bag on your way through the till! But it doesn’t work for long. While my mom and I are picking from all the options in the store, I think Maylin would have fallen asleep if she was sitting in the shopping cart. This girl needs to get out of this store! We finish up quickly, and get her home, so she can continue running around on the playground…
Dinner is another childhood favourite: cauliflower with cheese sauce and bacon. Sounds like a side dish, but try it as a main! It’s delicious, and I’m so glad my daughters feel the same way. There are so many things I’d like them to try while we are here, but even with 14 days to go, I’m now actively panicking, feeling like I’m running out of time.
Joe and I go for a walk after dinner. It’s windy and chilly, and I don’t know how the girls and I are supposed to wear dresses come Sunday. The weather apps can’t agree if it’s going to rain or not, and the temperatures are in the low teens. Joe pulls his hood up from his hoodie, as it’s warmer than the one on his rain jacket, and he reminds me of Buzz Lightyear.
One of the things I have missed so much while travelling, is baking. I love baking. I love providing my family with all our bread on a weekly basis, and I have looked forward to borrowing my mom’s oven and baking supplies here in Oslo. The first thing we bake, with Maylin helping me measure the ingredients out, is brownies. We splurge on hazelnuts for the top, but save on the chocolate and go with the store brand.
I’ve been making these regularly since I discovered the recipe in my mom’s collection when I was a teenager. I don’t always put the hazelnuts on top, but they are absolutely magical with nuts.
Tomorrow is a big day in this house, so we try to get to bed early. It’s a strange feeling to unpack and know that I don’t have to pack back up for another two weeks. We haven’t really sat still since we got here from Hong Kong in April, it’s almost like I’m finally exhaling, but I can’t really, because we’re on a countdown for going back to Vancouver. I hope I’ll be able to sleep in a little, but I know that’s being too optimistic…
Weather is up and down here too. Yesterday, it was 31 and today, 11. Those brownies look delicious. I love hazelnuts but hadn’t thought of them on brownies.
It’s in the original recipe I discovered mid 90’s, but due to sometimes allergies when I was baking them for occasions, I got used to leaving them out. They are SO much better with nuts!