Celebrating an American holiday in Norway with a Swedish turkey!

We have a lot to be thankful for this year - our wonderful families, experiences of a lifetime, and awesome friends!

I am especially thankful for my friend, Liz! She and I became friends during our senior year of high school and continued our friendship through college. But, life happens and we simply drifted apart since. Now we’re both coincidently living in Oslo. Small world, huh?

Liz moved here in February, also through work (oil & gas, of course). She had a several month head start in getting accustomed to the Norwegian way of life and has been such a huge help to us. She has been so generous and hospitable by inviting us over for a home cooked meal and to watch live streaming feeds of A&M Football. Yes, I’m out numbered by Aggies.

And to top it all off, she hosted a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner for almost 30 people!

Sorry if this is a bit too gruesome, but it was definitely the highlight of our full day of cooking! Should you ever buy a turkey from Sweden, know that the neck comes fully attached!

The turkey was from Sweden because groceries are significantly more affordable across the border. That’s how we’ll be stocking up our fridge and pantry in the new apartment. I can’t wait!

Liz gave a quick synopsis of the background of Thanksgiving. Pilgrims & Indians!

Can you pick out the sides that the guests brought?

Matt had the honor of carving the turkey!

The mac & cheese is his grandmother’s recipe and was one of my contributions to the meal. It was a hit as the guests were thrilled to have ‘real American mac & cheese’!

Wishing all of you a very happy Thanksgiving! gobble! gobble!

Stockholm, Sweden

Our first spontaneous weekend trip was a success. We bought tickets on a Thursday and flew out Saturday morning. We didn’t even book a hotel until we arrived!

I’m a major planner in all aspects of life. (I’m working on being more flexible!) Matt on the other hand, can do things on a whim...except when it comes to traveling. He likes to get his historical research in before arrival. Well, not this time!

We usually opt for a self guided walking tour, but went for the bus tour this time. Not a bad idea when it’s freezing outside!

Matt couldn’t help himself! He squeezed in some research Sunday morning and made our schedule for the day. I love it!

Overall, it was a great weekend. We were a few days too early for Christmas decorations, but from what we could tell Stockholm is a great place to spend the holidays. Traveling from country to country is SO easy with an airport express in each city and even wifi on the train! And we enjoyed the Swedes!

A beautiful city of 14 islands connected by 57 bridges. And let’s not forget - the birthplace of Ikea!

the traveling pear