Mother’s Got A Dot Com

I’ve mentioned our anniversary in my last couple of posts - for your information, it’s been 8 years - 8 years of happiness. We have our ups and downs, but underneath it all is our love for each other, that we celebrated 8 years ago by getting married, and that we try to celebrate every day.

We both wear our wedding rings as a token of that love. Our rings are very simple, gold bands, and quite narrow. We felt we didn’t want anything flash, both of us being on the “second time around”.

When I look at the lovely rings at Wedding Band-Ring.com, I’m wondering whether it’s time to renew our vows soon… And perhaps seal them with a couple of those gorgeous bands.
They’re quite original compared to what you see in this country, and I love them all. My favourite, though, is this one, with the celtic inspired theme.

I’m quite partial to the mixing of different colors of gold - they have a beautiful tri-color one as well, with rose, yellow and white gold. I’m not going to describe them all here - if you’re in wedding mode, have a look for yourself!

In fact, they’re so beautiful that they can be worn whether you’re married or not - as a couple, they have that symbolic value, but as single rings, they’re just - rings - and lovely rings at that!

We’ll be keeping ours as they are, I think. They mean the world to us both. If I ever need that special gift for my love though, I’ll be getting back to these beauties…

It was the experience of a lifetime. This 74 year-old artist made us laugh, he made us cry - and what a charming, dignified man…
He did all his great hits from the 80es, opening the show with “Dance me to the end of Love”. He did quite a few older ones too - catering to elderly fans (of whom there were many!) and also some newer songs. When the intro to “I’m your man” sounded over the arena, I cried… I’ve loved that song from when I first heard it - wishing someone had written those lyrics for me…

I don’t know what a Cohen concert is like anywhere else, but he has such a large and diverse audience in this country, and his appreciation shows. His friendship with the late Norwegian writer Axel Jensen and his wife Marianne (to whom the song “So long, Marianne” is written) has also brought him to Norway on several occasions, and taught him to love this country.
Some 12000 spectators gave that love right back to him, and the concert was… riveting.

I thought the show would have been over in just under 2 hours - no way. He went on stage at 8pm, and was still doing encores when we had to leave at 11.10 to catch the last train home.

So - Thank you, Mr. Cohen - your “golden voice” made our anniversary a truly memorable one, and made cousin Lindas send-off back to the States a night to remember for her too. As for #4 Brat (14) who came along - you’ve got yourself a brand new fan!

We do enjoy a glass of wine from time to time - especially when we have company. Most days, though, one of us is driving, so it’s not a regular thing.We buy wine, though, and although our collection isn’t a large one, we’re in dire need of a larger Wine Rack. As it is, we’ve got one under the stairs, for the bottles that are maturing or just waiting for the right occasion, and one smaller one in the dining room, for the “current” wines.
What we’d really like is a wine cellar (!), but failing that, The Vine Store has all the wine paraphernalia we could ever desire.
Metal racks, wooden racks, specialty racks and commercial racks - all we have to do is decide on a price range and a style - as well as how many bottles we need storage space for. (Between now and when all the kids are out of here and we can start drinking again - how many bottles will we collect???). We can have a wine tasting table with a Wine Rack underneath as well, and should we decide we want to open a bottle, there are high-tech corkscrews and wine glasses. I don’t think a wine cellar is possible at our present location, but for optimal storage, there are wine coolers for up to 75 bottles, which would be a perfect alternative…All in all, whether you’re a serious collector or just enjoy wine, like we do - The Vine Store is worth checking out. I’m pleasantly surprised by the prices, but I can only compare with prices in my country, so you’ll have to decide that one for yourselves…

We’ve been invited out for a meal by sis and her hubby - she had her birthday 2 days ago, and since he had to work on the day, he decided we should make an evening of it on Saturday.

I believe we’re in for a treat, too… The restaurant is called Refsnes Gods (Gods means estate), and it’s famous in the area for its excellent service and gourmet kitchen.

The main building was built in 1767, and it’s also a renowned hotel.

I’ll be driving, so I’ll only be able to enjoy the food and not the wine (one of the brats will be sleeping rough in a cave tomorrow night, and we want to be available if something happens), but boy, will I enjoy the food… I’m not sure we’ll be up for the Grand menu (7 courses), but I’m confident we can get through 4 or 5…

I’m a food buff. In fact, the whole family are. I cook, we eat, and we all enjoy it. It becomes routine, of course. I tend to cook what they like, from what’s available in the house at any given moment, but I’m always up for trying something new…

At Food Connect, I’ve found a very inspiring social playground for foodies. I’ve been collecting new recipes for the spread I’ll be serving on #4 Brats confirmation in 2 weeks time, and this site really is the answer to my prayers.
In addition to shared recipes ranging from Appetizers to Vegetarian, via Poultry, Cakes, Desserts, Meats, Pasta and what have you, they offer some great features:
- you can plan your meal and print out your shopping list
- you can get a free nutritional analysis for your recipe
- you can share your recipes with your friends
- you can plan the perfect dinner party (that one’s for me…)

There are great articles on food and drink related topics, and if you want a quick and easy recipe, one for for diabetic food, for a crock pot or Christmas cookies, you can search for those directly.

Need a recipe for a drink or cocktail? Odds are, you’ll be spoilt for choice.

Food Connect is a social utility site targeted at foodies, and it’s all free. Registering is quick and easy, and once you’re in, you can start planning your menus, submitting your recipes and inviting your friends to share all the good stuff…

As for me, I’ve found a few yummy-looking things for my upcoming family do - check out these Greek-Style Stuffed Mushrooms and Teryaki Chicken Wings… They should make a nice change on my Norwegian-style smorgasbord… Maybe I should go look for a nice cake too!

I love coffee. So, when I got the chance to review this site that’s dedicated to various Coffee of the month clubs, I wasn’t going to be difficult…

The site is called Coffee Reviews, and gives an overview of the best Coffee of the month club offers and latest promotions from such household brands as Ashley & Cooper, Boca Java, Cafe Vivo, Gevalia Coffee and Seattle Coffee Direct.

I didn’t even know you could subscribe to coffee… and what great deals I’ve missed out on! Boca Java, for example, have 5 introductory offers: * Pick 3 flavors, get 1 bag of complimentary Kona Coffee * Pick 4 flavours, pay only for shipping and handling * Buy 3 bags of Boca Java, get a free designer espresso set from Bodum * For $19.95 + s/h, get 4 bags of gourmet Boca Java, 2 packs of wafer cookies and a one-cup coffee maker * For the same price, 4 bags of coffee and a Boca Java Time mug, available in 6 colors.

The others have great introductory offers too - how about a stainless steel 12 cup coffee maker, a large carafe and travel mug, plus 2 1/2 pound bags of Gevalia Coffee, all for $22.95?

When you’ve made your order, you’re a member of a Coffee of the month club, which means you recieve a certain amount of coffee of the brand of your choice every month. The prices vary, but these offers all have one thing in common: You can cancel at any time - i.e. you can cancel future orders as soon as you recieve your introductory package.

The reviewer on Coffee Reviews is a true coffee lover. He/She gives honest opinions on the brands, their coffee and their service, as well as on the offers he/she has tried. The comment sections on each brand also gives valuable information from others who’ve tried them. The site is updated regularly, so you’re sure to find the latest promotions there.
If you love coffee and coffee making paraphernalia, go and have a look. Some of these companies will ship outside the US too - I’m off to find out which ones in a minute.