Pants ......

Where will I buy my pants when living in Norway? No, seriously. It's is a major dilemma.

When I was in the 6th form choosing universities to apply to, my best friend went to Aberystwyth, where I was considering applying to. I got a postcard from him telling me that I couldn't go to uni the as there wasn't a Marks and Spencer's and where would I buy my pants.

I didn't go to Aberystwyth in the end, but not because I wouldn't be able to buy pants.

And now several years later, I am faced with a similar dilemma. When we move (or have moved) where will I buy my pants?

What is the Norwegian equivalent of M&S? How far will I have to go to buy my pants, or will I have to get pant parcels sent to me by my mother?!

I'm sure there should be lots of other issues occupying my thoughts, but the whole pants issue is starting to bother me.

Now, don't let me get started on cheese.

.........gone with 2012 hello 2013

Jim here..............and it's the end if of 2012, it's 9 o'clock, both kids are tucked up in bed, dinner has been eaten, Alan Carr is on and it's a long wait till 2013! 2012 has been a really odd year and because we will be retrospectively publishing this it will come as a bit of surprise to some of our friends that it was back in February we committed to doing this, followed by a quick house hunting trip in march. In November we finally finished all the diy and decided to put the house up for sale assuming we wouldn't have much interest........which we didn't, except for the first weekend in December when we had 3 different viewings and one couple who came 3 times.....however no offers!
So our Norwegian map now looks like an invasion proposition from WWII with stickers for farms or houses we quite fancy, ski resorts, major airports, major tourist routes, prime attractions, surf spots........so I'm going to lay my cards on the table and list our search criteria;

1. Needs to be within 2 hours drive or travel of a major airport
2. Within at least 1 hour drive of a ski resort, better if less
3. Near an existing tourist conurbation or potential one
4. Within 20 mins of a school
5. Within 30 mins of a shop!
6. The house needs to have electricity and water
7. Needs some land ideally around 10 acres min
8. Needs to be reasonably habitable even if not to Norwegian standards
9. Ideally south of Trondheim ie not too far north!
10. Be affordable which is less than 80k!

Now I've listed these on the last day to of 2012 because both Kath and I are feeling positive and that 2013 will be the year we get things moving, the business plan is coming on and we've just put an offer in on a investment property to start the ball rolling so whilst we made the first steps in 2012 we hope in 2013 the journey will actually commence. Wish us luck and please feel free to mock us when our new property meets non of the criteria above............happy New year

Urgh!

Kids are ill. We are all miserable. They are both on antibiotics, plus the baby has been diagnosed with a possible intolerance to dairy.
Makes meal times fun, especially as his favourite food in yogurt!

Anyway, we are trying to plan a trip to Norway again, but until the baby's sleeping habits are better we've decided not to book anything.

We're trying to decide between Tromso to see the Northern lights, Lofoten & maybe go dog sledding or Oslo and go skiing. Decisions decisions.

Stage One . . . Complete

So the house is finally up for sale. It's taken a while, but it's all finished. Not had any viewings but that's probably a good thing as its a bit of a tip too!

We're now waiting for the rush of viewings! I think the house will take a while before it sells. But we'll keep our fingers crossed.

I've also got a job now. I'm working at the local community hospital in admin, and have just survived my first week!

House

The house is going up for sale. It's a big step for us as hopefully it earmarks the start of the actual move.

It's been tiring as trying to do DIY in the evenings and around the kids hasn't been easy, but Jim's done a cracking job!

It's been a while...

It's been a bit hectic in our house. We had a lovely holiday in Brittany. Mostly. The baby didn't sleep very well, so we didn't sleep very well. But it was lovely to get away.
Oh and he started crawling too!

And then the girl started school! She's done a couple of full weeks now, and seems to really enjoy it. She is extremely tired and getting a bit, well stroppy. She's started to call me dude. Dude? I ask you!

The boy has started using the peg leg crawling technique - it's hilarious! Think he's realised it's quicker!
Fun!

Post Olympics

Wow! I think lots of people around the world were expecting Britain to fail as hosts for the 2012 Olympics. Think we did alright.

The girl and me watched it most days, me for the cycling and rowing. She loved the cycling, rowing, diving, gymnastics, synchronised swimming, and equestrian, but was a bit confused about the judo.

Suffice to say we loved it and were very sad when it ended, but it does mean one thing. Our holiday is nearly here!!