In preparation for the baby’s arrival, we’ve purchased a few of the necessary items, such as a stroller, dresser, baby-bathtub, some cute clothes etc. We’ve also read a lot of books and internet articles about parenting and baby-related subjects, and generally feel well prepared – or at least as well prepared as any first-time parents can be.

Once we’ve brought the little one home, and she/he is in bed sleeping or in the stroller screaming, I’m sure we’ll be wondering what we’ve gotten ourselves into. Of course there will be moments of fear, doubt, and perhaps even desperation. The bottom line is that you can never prepare yourself for all eventualities.

As long as you’re prepared to do anything in your power for the baby to have a happy childhood, you’re gonna be fine. At least that’s how I see things. Just do your best, don’t over-protect the baby from all the dangers of the world, let them experience all aspects of life for themselves, and support and love them no matter what.

We spent christmas this year at my mom’s, and really enjoyed it. There was an abundance of presents for everyone, the highlight in my pile being a Playstation 3 from Marianne! I’ve already bought two games – Prince of Persia and Assassin’s Creed (awesome game!) – and some Blu-ray movies I’m looking foward to watch. There was a message attached to the PS3, roughly translated to “Here’s something to play with until life becomes more serious in April ”. I like the message, though I’ve already started planning how to get our baby hooked on videogames and movies too…

I don’t really believe in new year’s resolutions, so I’m not gonna announce any, but I’m gonna try and make next year the most exciting and productive year of my life. With a baby on the way and with everything going on at bitbucket, I feel confident I’ll be able to accomplish that goal.

Looking back at 2008, I see a year of mixed emotions. I haven’t always been my old self, and have had times where I’ve been pretty miserable, and then there have been times of total bliss. All in all, I guess I can’t complain, and there’s no point in doing anything but try and remember the good times and be sure to make the most of all opportunities in the days ahead.

A happy new year to everyone, may it be a wonderful year for all of us!

In two weeks we’re having the ultrasound scan/sonogram, which will probably make everything even more real than it is now, and hopefully we’ll see a baby with ten fingers and toes and perhaps be able to tell if it’s a boy or a girl. Exciting times!

I have spent a lot of time in the past few years thinking about how I’m spending my allotted time on this planet. Am I living my life for myself, or for someone – or everyone – else?

I have reached a few conclusions about how I want to live my life, but never really shared them with anyone but Marianne. Earlier today, a good friend shared some thoughts with me that really hit home, and just like him, I believe that It’s about how you make people feel – just don’t forget “you” in the process.

Hereby nominated for a Webby Award in the category “Best self-reflecting article”.

We’re going to spend the first week up north, going to our family cabin in Senja, visiting family in Bardu, and then going to Marianne’s mum who will be dogsitting while we’re going to Mallorca for two weeks. Whohoo!

¹Â seen a few of movies, only two worth mentioning:
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: brilliant movie, great adaptation of the book, lots of magic and well-made special effects. I think Chris Columbus did the best job in capturing the magical atmosphere from the books, so I find the first two movies to be the best, but this one still gets a 9/10.

- I also went to see Transformers, which was a mediocre movie IMHO. Special effects 10/10, but the story, dialog, acting etc: 2/10.

Oh, almost forgot (how could I), I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in just a couple of days, I couldn’t put the book down. Quite sad that this seven year journey has now ended, but at least we have two more movies to look forward to. The book left a bit too many loose ends, so it was great to read JK Rowling’s online interview where she gave a bit more information about the lives of the main characters after then end of the last book. Fantastic book that will stand as the culmination of a unique and magical coming-of-age story that will undoubtedly live on for years and years.

I know that the summer is coming to an end here in the northern parts of the northern hemisphere, but since this is the beginning of my summer vacation I would like to wish everyone a happy summer!

Yesterday we went bowling, and I’m proud to announce that my new personal best is 163. To be honest I have absolutely no idea how I got 163, but I’m guessing that luck was the biggest factor in the equation.

In other news (the short version):
- The movie “300″ was crap.
- The movie “Pan’s Labyrinth” was definitely not crap, though not as good as I hoped it would be.
- Went to Levi, Finland, on a ski-trip with work. Skiing is fun!
- Summer holiday is booked, Mallorca here we come! Been there once before, really looking forward to going back to see more of the island.
- I’m really happy with life, apart from being fed up with work.. More on that in a different post, about dealing with stuff you can’t do anything about.

I don’t believe in New Year’s resolutions, so I don’t have any, but I have had the following goals since I moved back north:
1. Start working out again.
2. Work less hours, and work more efficiently instead.
3. Have more fun.

The last item on that list is something that I’ve recently given more and more thought. After all, we only get one chance at this thing they call life, so why bother spending it being stressed and feeling bad all the time.

A Happy New Year to friends, aquaintances, and strangers – may 2007 be a great year for us all.

The whole point of this post is that me and Marianne just scored bigtime – we’ve bought our first apartment! We’ve been looking for an apartment to buy ever since we moved to Tromsø in April, but haven’t found something that we both liked and could afford – until now. It’s a 58 m²Â apartment situated close to the city, the airport, shopping centers, SATS (training center), and also has some nice outdoor areas where we can walk Max.

It’s all very exciting, and we can’t wait to move in and make it our home!