Christmas In Norway (Jul i Norge) - Norwegian Christmas Traditions, Food...

Time to make everything "KOSELIG"

 This has been a tough, grievous year for me. And now comes winter?

The view from my Suburban Chicago patio door. Ugh, our first snow. Winter can be harsh in the Midwest. Take a hint from the Norwegians. It's time to make everything... 

"KOSELIG"

The Norwegians define Koselig as "creating a warmth inside their home that does not exist anymore in the outdoors". Koselig is a warm comfortable home, a home filled with warm quilts and candles. Koselig is a state of mind as well as an action. A warm embrace and a positive attitude. Norwegians embrace the unavoidable necessity of the weather and craft it into a opportunity to enjoy the company of others and a connection with nature.

Sounds like just what I need as winter sets in across Chicagoland. 

For me? I will light my favorite scented candle, wrap in my favorite scrappy quilt, lay on the sofa and sip my coffee. I think I will enjoy a Downton Abby marathon with my dog Gus snuggled at my feet!

My Gus, waiting for me to join him

Tomorrow, I will invite a few close friends for an afternoon of cheese, crackers, wine, talk and laughter. Maybe a game of cards. Lord, how I love those ladies who love me.

"KOSELIG"

A state of mind that appreciates the moment and finds joy, even in challenging situations.

 

 Joy, that's my choice this winter,

1893 Columbian Exposition Viking Ship finds a permanent home after 132 years!

Replica Viking Ship now in Geneva, Illinois

The GOKSTAD, the Viking ship that the Geneva's ship is a replica of, was unearthed in 1880 in a Norwegian burial ground. Norwegian researchers determined it was dated to about 900 A.D. . It is now in the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo Norway. 

Captain Magnus Andersen, a Norwegian mariner and journalist, forwarded the idea to build a replica with the same materials, tools, and design as the GOKSTAD had been 900 years earlier. 15 brave Norwegian men sailed her from the North Sea to Chicago to exhibit her in the Columbia Exposition. To say Leif Erickson came here 500 years earlier in a similiar vessel?

After the fair she was sailed down the Illinois and Mississippi rivers to New Orleans. The captain went to Washington D.C. to propose she go to the Smithsonian but that did not happen. Instead she returned to Chicago where she was anchored in the Jackson Park Lagoon as a permanent exhibit.

In 1920 she was moved to Lincoln Park. In 1983, to expand the Lincoln Park Zoo, the Chicago Park District planned to give her over to the Museum of Science and Industry. The museum intended to display her as a focal point of a new section devoted to maritime and navigation. She was temporarily stored in West Chicago, Illinois untill 1993. The American Scandinavian Council assumed responsibility for her restoration when she went to be displayed at the Good Templar Park in Geneva, Illinois

 Finally, now in 2025 she will get a permanent indoor home. Property has been bought in downtown Geneva by the "Friends of the Viking Ship", a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to preserve her for public display in a permanent museum with climate control.

Geneva, Illinois is just 30 miles west of Chicago. I have seen her in the Good Templar Park and I have also seen the original GOKSTAD in the Oslo Museum. A little far to head to Oslo Norway? Geneva Illinois is a trip worth taking.

*right click to enlarge for easier viewing*

200th Anniversary of Norwegian Immigration to America

 The journey began on July 4, 1825, when 52 passengers set sail from Stavanger aboard the sloop Restauration, seeking religious freedom, economic opportunity, and a new life in North America

One hundred years ago my Norwegian grandparents came to America.  Two hundred years ago came the first Norwegians. Read about it in a favorite blog of mine

                                      NORWEGIAN GENEALOGY AND THEN SOME

Check out also other interesting posts the author, Martin Roe, has blogged. A great help especially to beginning Norwegian genealogists.

Thank you Martin!

Mommy in Norway - 1947

 

My Mom, Grace Sevald, 19 years old, posing for the camera on a joyous trip to Norway to visit family. This trip was particularly joyous as our American family had not heard from their Norwegian family in years.  Norway had been occupied by Germany in WWII. Luckily they discovered all of their family had survived the Nazi occupation unharmed.

Norway's National Day - All About 17 May Syttende Mai

An important celebration in Norway perhaps not very well understood by Americans of Norwegian backround. Happy Syttende Mai!