Vitensenteret

On Monday afternoon, the kids and I went to Vitensenteret, the children's science center in Trondheim.  It was phenomenal.  It was completely accessible to all the kids, and the displays were so inviting to them.  It was an afternoon well spent.

Sam at the controls of a robot

Isaac (on the left) manipulating a Rube Goldberg machine.

This was the kids' favorite activity.  They dropped balls into the bowl and tried to predict which hole it would go down.  Since the drop is so steep near the holes, it is almost impossible to predict where the balls will end up going in.

Katie was most taken with this vortex machine, though you can't see the tornado in the photo and she doesn't look that excited.  

This is an intact 1936 Oldsmobile.  Isaac would have spent the night at the museum driving this thing.

This was my favorite.  A big ol' block of wood, an unending supply of nails, and a hammer.  Such a simple activity, but our kids don't get many opportunities for unfettered access to hand tools.  

Grace and Isaac were disassembling a skeleton. 

Sam lifting himself up with the help of a pulley.

Spinning Grace

Different kind of spinning 

There are some Norsk words that will never cease to make me chuckle.  The word for "and" is "og."  It makes me picture characters from the B.C. comic strip.  Of course, "og" is all over the place in the language, so I have lots of chances to smile.

This hallway was jam packed with fun stuff - about five different ways to build bridges, an infrared camera, and a Bernoulli blower to name a few.

Crossing the bridge they built

Making rainbow shadows 

Sam hasn't learned much Norwegian, but he has perfected his English with a Norwegian accent.  Here, he was saying "world peace, man" just like his Norwegian friends. 

We took a break in the matpakke rom (the lunch room) to have some ice cream.  The science center is in a historic bank building, and the lunch room is in the vault.

Competing with Sam in Mindball.  The goal is to move the ball to your competitor's side by using the brain waves that predominate when you relax your mind.  Sam seems to have the upper hand here, but shortly after, Isaac ripped off his headband, and I won by default. 

Back to the ball drop for some more good laughs

Monday Morning

Isaac has become quite a pro on the scooter.  Our neighbors let the kids have access to their scooters, so they ride them every chance they get.

Sam and Grace playing football.

Grace Queen of the Sandbox

Off-roading 

One half of the teeter-totter 

The other half

Dave calls me his Norwegian girl these days.  After two months of dragging the bottoms of my pantlegs in the puddles, I have converted to the slim cut pants worn by every woman I see here.  And the wool sweater is my great find from Fretex.  That's the thrift store run by the Norwegian version of the Salvation Army.   

Katie proudly shows off her new trick - crossing her eyes.  It makes Dave and me cringe, and we spout off that old classic, "Don't do that - your eyes will get stuck that way!"

For lunch, I tried my hand at making risengrøt (rice porridge - the same stuff Dave and I have been feasting on at the university cafeteria on Fridays.)  It was a hit with all. 

Katie topping up her cinnamon sugar.

The boys digging in 

The proud cook

Nighttime football

Sam and Katie have discovered the fun of playing soccer in the street.

It's getting dark right after supper, so they wear their reflective vests.

No soccer for these two - it's football at the way.

First day of fall break

The next week is fall break for school children across Norway, ours included.  We started it off with a laid-back day at home.

Isaac, who is usually quite territorial, was so proud of sharing raisins with Grace that he wanted me to take his picture.

We have burned through all the wood that was stacked in the house from our arrival, so tonight we made the first haul from the woodpile by the garage.  It really feels like fall here.  The high temperatures are in the forties (F) and the lows are near freezing.

The whole family got in on the wood hauling process.

The crew in front of their job well done.

Katie has been drawing the faces of the family all week.  Here, every member of the family is featured.  Katie distinguishes her self portrait by offsetting it with purple hearts.

Sam's artistic efforts of late all revolve around creating paper guns.  They are actually pretty incredible, if a bit morbid.

Isaac talked Sam into letting him sleep in his bed last night - our two beautiful boys.

To and from the barnehage

Our view from the Bakke Bru (bridge) each morning.  Isaac always points out the neon yellow boat moored on the far side of the river.  It doesn't blend in with the other quaint buildings and boats.

The statue of Olav Tryggvason (St. Olaf) in the city center.  He has the cut-off head of a deceitful slave at his feet.  Not a super low-key guy.  

The line-up of strollers at the preschool.  If you could see the other side of them, you would see they are all decked out with layers of fluffy sheepskins and blankets.  I can see why the kids love to sleep outside in their strollers.  It is positively luxurious.

Gorgeous reflections on the river in the afternoon

Isaac running down the hill toward the footbridge.  This hill was gravel for our first month here, but it was recently blacktopped.  As Isaac runs down the hill, he yells, "Smooth!"

Sunday picnic

Enjoyed a picnic along the river with the kids in the evening on Sunday.  

Walking along the river, we could see our house up the hill.  It is the grey house between the yellow house (on the right) and the white house (in the middle).

When we were out to eat at the tower earlier in the day, Sam was pulling for some pop.  They got water, but I promised they could have some pop in the evening, so here they are drinking cream soda.  Isaac wasn't a fan, but the other kiddos lapped it up. 

In the foreground is our old bread from the previous week.  The seagulls enjoyed a feast.

Watching the sun go down