25, alive, and in Norway

It was my birthday a couple weeks ago and I could have only ever dreamed I'd be celebrating it in Norway. When I step back and think about it, I'm constantly amazed that I'm actually here. But there was an extra dose of surrealness in the birthday experience. And while I've never been a big birthday person because I don't like a lot of attention, this was a great birthday for a lot of reasons.


Since I've been here I haven't been homesick too often, but at one point I found myself missing the familiar for my birthday. It was a little weird to be here when I'm used to celebrating at home with close family and friends. I don't like a fuss to be made about me, so I had specifically asked my parents not to send anything for my birthday (because it's so goshdarn expensive and I didn't need anything from home at the moment). But leave it to them to not listen to a word I say and send an awesome birthday package anyways. Besides a gratuitous amount of chocolate, it contained really special things from a lot of my family and friends. The most special things being the original artwork by Cadence and Jackson (now proudly hung on my wall). Thanks to everyone who contributed and to my mom for putting all this stuff together. It means a lot to be remembered back home and I could honestly feel the love and thoughtfulness that went into it.


Some of my birthday loot:

OK, enough sap for now. How does every mildly homesick American in Norway want to celebrate her birthday? With a pile of meat, of course! And thanks to my sweet, perceptive, and incredibly generous friends, that's exactly what I got:

 Equally excited about the food

as I am to be in a restaurant.

We feasted on two platters of various meats including spareribs, steak, chicken, and lamb (this is Norway, after all)... and it was delicious!

 They do free birthday milkshakes in Norway, too!

Later in the week I threw together a last minute party to hang out with as many people as could come. What a great time of just hanging out and enjoying each other's company. Though I wish I could have done the same with my friends at home, it made me realize what great friends I making here, and I am thankful for them!

Surprise rice krispie treat cake

Got all the candles in one breath,

even the sinisterly placed ones sticking out on the side.

Thrilled party-goers

All in all, I realized that I am blessed to have both good friends in Norway and amazing people back home who love me. Thanks to everyone who celebrated with me and made my first Norwegian birthday one to remember.