Visiting in 1963

My mom, Anne-Berit, with me and my little brother Jay visiting with Bestemor and Bestefar

Where were you in 1963?  I'm betting a bunch of you weren't born yet!

In 1963, my mom took my brother and me to visit her family in Norway.  We stayed with my grandmother (Bestemor) and grandfather (Bestefar).

My grandmother was a wonderful cook. She would hold court in her kitchen, as you see her in this photo, making meals and entertaining guests. My grandfather was (in my humble and truly biased opinion ) the nicest man on the planet.

It was a lovely summer.

Jay and I with a kitten who came to visit

Jay was three years old that summer, and I was 11.  Jay loved my grandmother's waffles and spent a lot of time enjoying them.

Eating Grandmother's heart-shaped waffles!

Jay had gotten his "Flight Wings" pin from the Pan Am stewardess.  That was really cool for a three year-old!  He wore that cowboy hat (below) everywhere.  It was a little too big for him and often sat sideways.

He was adorable.

In the kitchen with Bestemor

Norwegians can't pronounce the English "J" sound.  It comes out as a "Sh" or Yah" sound instead.
My grandfather lamented that he had one grandson and that grandson had a name he couldn't pronounce.  My brother Jay was therefore given an easily pronounceable Norwegian nickname:  Knotten.

Translation?  Well, the Peanuts comic strip, when translated into Norwegian, is called "Knottene".

Knotten and I had a great summer together.

Hiking in the Forest

Lillemor, Anne-Berit, Willy and Annemor

The Strand family were all nature enthusiasts, as are all Norwegians to this day.  Here are Aunt Lillemor (Inger-Mari) Strand, my mom Anne-Berit Strand, my 'Uncle' Willy (actually their cousin, Uncle Erling's son) and his daughter Annemor on a backpacking trip.

I'm guessing this was taken just after World War II.

Willy served as one of the guys in white, on skis, who fought the Germans - sometimes in hand-to-hand combat - during that terrible war.  He didn't like to talk of his experiences during that time.
I remember him as a truly good guy, and a terrific soccer player!

I love this photo!