A Week without Writing!

Lise left 11 days ago, and yes, I have recovered. I’ve heard of mothers my age crying when their children leave, but I don’t do that. I grieve quietly a few days before Lise leaves. When the departure is imminent, I tell myself that she has airline tickets and has to go back to her normal life. It is also time for me to resume my single life. The photo shows her eating the last meal before leaving.

She was here for a full month, which is longer than usual. I got used to her being here. The day after she left, I kept expecting to see her appear or to hear her voice from another room. I reminded myself that she was home safely, and I wouldn’t selfishly pull her back.

Grandson David kept himself in the background while all the company was here. That was true of texting from daughter Kate and son John $, too. I appreciated being free to concentrate on people in the house. David and I went to Watami Noodle later in the week.

As a gift for me, one of Lise’s friends prepared dinner for us. She is noted for rice paper wraps in Denmark, and that is what we had here. She diced a number of vegetables, stirred together a peanut sauce, and provided fried chicken bites and cheese for the wraps. We each put them together for ourselves. What a treat that was! Days after, I discovered almost a whole head of cabbage neatly stored in the refrigerator, left from the wraps. I’m such a miser that I wouldn’t throw it away, even though I have very little use for cabbage. Whenever I hear that name, I think of school lunches when I was in grade school. For a few years, the cooks slapped a slab of raw cabbage on our plates at least once a week, and the teacher made sure we ate it. Lise and I did have another round of rice paper wraps. After she left, I cooked about half of the cabbage with apple and onion. It was edible, and David helped me eat it. While writing this, I decided I’ll make coleslaw with the remaining cabbage. I do like slaw!

A few days ago I took the innards of the family jigsaw puzzle apart, leaving the outer edge complete. I cheated, though. I put the left section of pieces on the left side of the puzzle, and the right pieces to the right. The middle was jumbled, but still in the middle of the puzzle. I have been delighted to work on it, putting in a few pieces a day. It’s so easy when I can see the pieces near where they belong, otherwise I’d be endlessly walking around the table. I may take it apart that way, putting the pieces in three separate plastic bags. I will definitely thank myself if I do that.

Running Deer

One of the last days daughter Lise was here, we were standing at the kitchen window together. Simultaneously, we spotted deer running in the pasture. I had never seen a deer there, much less six of them. I think you can understand why they are called white tailed deer. Those white tails were very visible as they ran. Lise whipped out her telephone and took a video. I tried texting neighbor Joyce at the same time she was calling me. I’m thrilled that all three of us got to see that display.

Lise’s Last Day Here

Daughter Lise and I were still talking a lot on her last day. Mostly, we prepared for her departure. As usual, she stripped her bed, washed the sheets, and remade the bed before leaving. I could do it myself, but what a gift to have it done for me!

Neighbor Holly had a favorite relative with her to take us to the airport. Lise and I adore Denise and never get to see enough of her. What a delightful time it was! We ate at Culver’s, our usual place for a casual meal and frozen custard. After running one errand in Asheville, we got home just before Lise boarded her delayed flight. She will let me know if she makes her connection in Atlanta.

I’m going to have an easy week, while Lise will be on the go. She should get back to Denmark on Monday evening. On Wednesday she’s going to Norway for a business meeting and will spend one night there. I can keep up with her on paper!!

Life Moves On

I asked daughter Lise to pose at her father’s desk. This is where she worked at all hours of the day and night to complete a huge project with her team at work. The project is complete, and she had a few hours of sleep before this photo was taken.

We celebrated birthdays with Shawn, since she and Lise were born on the same date. It was already December, so I lumped my birthday in with theirs. Between us is a beautiful hand-crafted angel that Shawn found at the Apple Festival in town.

We went out to eat at Twisted Spoke, halfway up the mountain above Maggie Valley. The special for the day was Chicken Lasagna, which all three of us chose. I’m pleased to say that we all took a box of left-overs home.

Project Finished!

Daughter Lise worked on a huge project the whole time her friends were here. She managed to do all the fun activities they had planned, and then she’d stay up all night working. I don’t see how she managed it all, but she and her team met the deadlines. I asked where the people were that she was working with, and the main ones were in Denmark, Norway, and France. Others from the UK, the Netherlands, and Germany were also involved in a more technical role. Frankly, I was impressed. Whenever I’d ask her what she did, she’d tell me one aspect of her job. It seemed like froth to me, but she became known as the English editor. She could whip a document into shape because she was a native speaker who knew both American and British English. The documents were put together by scientists and businessmen. She knew when to question the experts on technical details and when to suggest words for clarity. There were software glitches that made the job much worse than it should have been. Many different people made changes, and because they had keyboards with defaults for their own languages, things would change automatically that should have remained the same. That was a major problem involving this 350-page document. Lise worked at her dad’s desk and shut both doors when she was conferring with her teammates. What a relief it was when they finished the job!

Goodbye Magda

Daughter Lise and friend Magda shopped on Black Friday, although not early in the day. They took advantage of good sales, modeling the coats they bought.

On the way to the airport, we stopped at Culver’s. When Magda saw her cup announcing that it was her happy place, she posed for a photo to mark the moment. I’d say her face shows total euphoria.

Since we left Magda, I’ve had a full night’s sleep, eaten breakfast, gone to online church, done two loads of wash, and changed the tablecloths from Thanksgiving to Christmas. She is on the other side of the ocean now, waiting in Amsterdam to fly to Copenhagen. I’m truly grateful that Lise and her friends are willing to go to so much trouble to come here to visit me.

Thanksgiving 2025

Daughter Lise, friend Magda, and I celebrated Thanksgiving fairly quietly. Bursts of laughter were not quiet. They helped get the food on the table and cleared up after we ate. For the foodies, we had turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, mashed sweet potatoes, grape salad, lime Jello salad, and cranberry mince pie.

After dinner, the girls played a card game they often take on trips. Magda was having a streak of bad luck, so I suggested they deal the next round and switch hands before playing. Of course, there was only a 50/50 chance that it would help Magda. We all laughed when she won, playing the hand that should have been Lise’s.

Our outing for the day after Thanksgiving was going to Sunburst Falls. After Magda went close to the falls, we drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway until sunset. At an overlook, the girls got out to watch the sun go down. They were frozen when they returned to the car. I don’t know how cold it was then, but Magda and I had walked in the morning when it was 22 F (-5.55C).

Thanksgiving Eve

Daughter Lise was working on a big project for work, so Magda and I chatted away out of earshot. When I was doing other things, Magda quietly worked the jigsaw puzzle in the same room with Lise. She was amazingly fast.

Magda motioned for me to follow her, and she pointed to the last piece she had saved for me to put in. That was the ONLY piece I put in, which made it the easiest one of my life. We will work it again, but meanwhile we are enjoying looking at the faces now in their proper places.

Goodbye Charlotte and Sander

I intended to take photos of the group in the airport, showing Charlotte and Sander with Lise and Magda. The check-in was so quick that we simply had a round of goodbyes before the couple got in line for the security check. We three ladies went on to have frozen custard, which we named “Culver’s Consolation Custard.” Lise had us pose to show our deep sorrow that dear friends had flown to New York. She sent them this photo before they boarded.

Lise then caught Magda and me sharing a warm hug, making our sadness appear to be fleeting. For the record, we did truly miss the others and would loved for them to stay longer.

When we got home, Lise had to start working immediately. Magda and I chatted on the front porch for a long time. When we were getting chilly, we moved inside. Because she was quiet in the room with Lise, I didn’t realize Magda started the jigsaw puzzle. She’s a very quick worker, because she already had most of the edge pieces in place. I took this photo to send to Linda, the fairy godmother of jigsaw puzzles. For years Linda has chosen photos from my blog and had them made into a puzzle. Knowing how much Lise enjoys Magda, Linda included two shots of her with Lise. We were all thrilled with this. I predict that the puzzle will be done in jig time.

We wanted a quick meal in the evening, so we got out the fixings for rice paper wraps that Charlotte had prepared days earlier. In the photo, Lise is dipping the wrap in water, using the new holder she brought me from Denmark. I was amazed at how quickly the girls whipped that meal together. It’s because they are both organized and used to working together.

Magnificent Brunch

We spent much of the day eating! After a light breakfast, we drove to Asheville and went to the Grove Park Inn for Sunday brunch. Almost every breakfast food you could imagine was there, as well as lunch fare. Lise always starts with rare roast beef, and I get Eggs Benedict. This time I added Oysters Rockefeller after Shrimp and Grits. I knew about the oyster dish only from thumbing through cookbooks. It was heavenly. Magda discovered the crab bisque, which Lise and I shared later. Next time I’ll know to look at the soup first. Sander laughed at himself, saying he had planned to take a tiny bite of everything. He changed his mind after walking through the elaborate buffet. I think all of us skipped the salad bar. Charlotte commented on the bacon, which was thick and crisp.

Since Lise was born in the month of November, she qualified for a birthday gift. She was given some fancy coffee concoction, probably pumpkin spice, which she gave to Sander. She also received a glass mug to take home. It was etched with the National Gingerbread Contest name.

I wouldn’t have noticed Sander’s plate if Lise hadn’t comment on his having bacon on the cheesecake. Magda went for the cheesecake, too, it being a favorite. I had one or two non-chocolate things for dessert, but if I ever go again, I’ll restrict myself to dark brown things.

We went to two different floors to see the display of gingerbread creations which had been judged there at the inn. I tried to get a photo of our people looking at them, but only Magda’s face shows. Some of the entries looked like they had been made by children, but the winning one was elaborate. Lise had good photos of it, which I hope to get when she has time to share them.

We came back home as the sun was setting behind a nearby mountain. It wasn’t very late, but we didn’t have time to go on the Blue Ridge Parkway to see it set properly.