things I like lately

- this soup looks simple and yummy

- note to self: remember to put away your phone more often! (thanks for the reminder Caroline)

- who is a clever chef? (via Love and Lemons)

- this post by Natalie

- this post by Nadja

- listebloggen (via Nadja)

- her name is moon (via listebloggen)

- the smell of freshly baked bread

- passing by a guy (dad, I assume) on a scooter with a baby in a Baby Björn carrier - the baby's expression was priceless

- having a house guest most of the week

- watching mediocre romantic comedies on Netflix with said house guest

- a couple of efficient early mornings alone with Sara when I had to get to work/school early 

- the first bouquet of tulips of the season

- slowly getting back to my running routine

- walking to work/school - just like I used to before 

- Sara pretending to talk on the phone 

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Answers to this week's questions in the comment section:

There were a few food related questions regarding a vegetable soup and kale pesto, I'll share the recipes in separate posts soon.

Mirko asked:

Did you finish D2?

Yes, I did actually finish it. Still have a big backlog though.

thoughts on blogging about my baby

Mogen, Hardangervidda, August 2013 | Fuji Superia 200, Canon EOS 500N

There has recently been a debate (again) in Norwegian media about wether or not parents should post photos/videos of their children in social media. Psychologists warn parents, especially mom bloggers, to be careful of what they post, because children can be bullied because of things posted about them.

When I got pregnant with Sara, I knew I would be restrictive about sharing too much. This is what I wrote back then:

When I post photos of myself, Sølve or my family/friends we have agreed to it; we know what it implies to have our photo posted online and we are ok with it. When (or if) I post photos of our baby girl, she will not be able to agree to it. At some point she will be old enough to have an opinion on this (hopefully based on her parents’ thoughtful guiding) and she will have an online life of her own. I don’t want to put her in an awkward/embarrassing position because of everything I posted about her when she was a baby/toddler/kid. I will probably post a few photos of her, but I’m guessing they will mostly be “Flickr friendly” (photos that have a human touch, but you cannot see or recognize who the person is).

That said, I respect that other parents have a “less restricted” attitude to posting photos of their children. We all have different levels of how edited our lives are online.

I still have the same view on the topic. I limit the number of photos I post of Sara. There are a lot of really great photos of her/us that I would love to share, but I restrain myself. Sometimes I feel that I share too much. Since I blog with my full name, photos of Sara show up if I Google her. For some reason, I kind of don't like that. I guess, like probably all other parents, I have that fear in the back of my head what might happen to the photos. Yet it is not something I think a lot about. 

On the other hand, it feels natural to share photos of Sara because she is my darling daughter and she is such a huge part of my life. And as you know, I love sharing glimpses of my everyday life. I hope that Sara, when she is old enough to Google herself, will feel fine with what I have shared of her life on the Internet. On a different note, it will be really interesting to see what social media is like when she is old enough to Google herself. 

Thanks Ingvild for the inspiration to write this post. PS: thoughts on sharing my everyday life 

I'm interested to hear, what are your thoughts on this? 

randoms, on film

August 2013 | Kodak Ektar 100, Canon EOS 500N

Sometimes it is the memories of summer that get us through the cold winter, right? PS: I have a new label for posts with film photos (should have done this a long time ago!): I shoot film - click for archived film happiness!

what's for dinner, week 4

what we had for dinner, week 3

Monday: roasted beets, barley and homemade kale pesto + a salad of mixed lettuce, green bell pepper, red onion and ham 

Tuesday: Tuscan white bean soup - with chicken instead of beans 

Wednesday: date night: dinner at a restaurant 

Thursday: fish soup (we sure love this fish soup! it is so quick and simple for weekday dinners)

Friday: homemade meatballs (from the freezer), a mixed salad and tzatziki 

- - -

What we actually had for dinner last week (pictured above):

Monday: fish soup

Tuesday: pasta with homemade kale pesto + sausage

Wednesday: pumpkin soup with homemade mustard croutons (we had this for lunch Saturday) frozen pizza 

Thursday: roasted Brussel sprouts and beets with sausage, feta and salted/roasted pumpkin seeds pasta bolognese 

Friday: fresh shrimp sandwiches

Saturday: tortillas with guacamole, lettuce, tomato and homemade meatballs (from the freezer)

Sunday: roasted entrecôte, boiled potatoes, a mixed salad and homemade béarnaise sauce, dessert: baked rhubarb (the last of the rhubarb from the freezer) and vanilla ice cream 

- - -

about this project

- every Monday I post the week's menu

- I also post what we actually had for dinner the passed week (because it is fun to see if we actually followed the plan)

- there might be links to recipes, but the menu will mostly just be basic ideas for the dinners - often just based on what ever is in our fridge, freezer and cupboards

- Saturday and Sunday dinners will often not be planned ahead because we have a habit of buying whatever looks good in the store when we are out grocery shopping Saturday morning

PS: my pantry essentials | thoughts on dinner planning and grocery shopping

- - -

So, what are you planning to have for dinner this week?

life, week 3

feeling a bit under the weather | she cried when I left her in barnehagen/kindergarten - it makes my heart hurt

a rare treat: working in a café | also: two cortados in one day

got my bangs back and fell in love (again) with this photo wallpaper

homemade kale pesto - yum!

08:20 am silhouettes against a clear, cold winter sky, -5 C on the way to the office, fresh coffee in my hand - I like it!

serious sugar kick week

To make up for the lousy frozen pizza I served my family for dinner, there was freshly baked bread for supper.

Friday was my last day at this company - freelance life, studies and substitute teaching here I come!

I love light that makes me stop and stare

the sun really showed off Friday afternoon

weekend ritual

I hardly ever clean when she naps. I do what ever I want.

first time dealing with this kind of vegetable

…which resulted in soup for lunch. Even Sara liked it!

09:25 am and Sara is still sleeping - sleep record!

Sunday roast with friends - its the best!

- - -

Week 3: January 13-19

a few 2013 favorites: autumn

September: a weekend in Stockholm with good friends, Sara got into the habit of going to barnehagen/kindergarten every day and loved it, I got back to work after almost two years of maternity leave, I opened my little photo print shop, I started the darker mornings photo project, and my first semester of being a student again started.

October: we all celebrated our birthdays (Sølve on the 26th, me on the 28th and Sara on the 30th), I ate a lot of marzipan cake, I continued running and it felt great, nature dressed in autumn colors, I hiked up mount Ulriken several times, I made American pancakes for the first time, and we spent a weekend in our hometown Sandnes visiting family and friends. 

November: first snow, Sara had a lot of fun with her scooter, I had my substitute teaching debut, got hooked on roasted Brussel sprouts and bacon, I shared my pantry essentials, Sara and I visited family in Trøndelag, we had a house guest for a whole week, Sølve and I had date night (out of the house!), and we spent a weekend in Sandnes so Sølve could run his second half marathon. 

December: Bergen was a winter wonderland for a few days and we had a blast sledding with Sara, I finally started running again after a two months break, we decorated our Christmas tree with our friends, we lit a fire in the wood stove every morning and evening, I was busy with exam and work deadlines, Sølve made the best hot chocolate ever, I updated my portfolio, I shared my thoughts on dinner planning and grocery shopping, and we celebrated Christmas with our families in Sandnes.

2013 was a good year with big changes. I'm excited to see what 2014 brings.