Advanced maths

Fifteen 12-year-old boys finish 8 pizzas in approx 6 mins 34 secs. Each pizza is divided in 12 slices.

a) how many slices per boy per second?

b) how much football cake can they possibly eat after that?

one of those mornings...

I woke up this morning... Which in itself is good, considering the alternative! But I crave my few minutes alone in the shower to wake up. So, three kids up while I'm grabbing the shampoo is not ideal. Same three kids demanding me to find them clean clothes, that apparently being impossible for 8-year-olds to manage themselves, I had to muster up enough motherly spirit to do just that. Then dry off...

One of the 8-year-olds actually managed to find clothes alone. Go figure.

Now, there was to be another blow to the general well-being of the world, as it were. Jakob woke up. And before I knew it, and had said hello, he was back in bed, furious! Yesterday, he'd lost his first molar. Quite unexpected

ly, but he was very pleased about it. So, as tradition has it, we put the tooth in a glass of water, and waited for the tooth fairy to visit...*

*) Jakob is 11, he doesn't believe in the tooth fairy. But he likes it that way still...

And we the tooth fairy had forgotten to visit! He refused to get out of bed. I said 'maybe we can coax the tooth fairy to visit the kitchen...' and took the glass upstairs. Then realised I had no cash... So, instead of making breakfast, as I'd usually do around then, I had to sneak around and see if any of the kids had any money I could borrow. Found it! And if you're wondering - the current rate for first molar, plus extra for late payment i

s NOK 50 (a little over €/£ 5, or $ 7.5)...

So, time for breakfast, right? Nooo... It turned out, as I was making the beds - one of the kids had had an 'accident' that night. Tried covering it up with the duvet, resulting in everything being wet. Even the pillow... So I had to drag it all to the washing machine, undress the child in question, as clothes ha

d mysteriously appeared on said person's body (no names mentioned!) without my help earlier, and give said child a proper washdown. So much for independence...

Finally, breakfast. Which on Fridays include yoghurt. Hurray! Note to self: yoghurt on trousers and socks and floor comes off more easily if not hurled by the gallon. *sigh*

And it has started snowing again.

How was your morning?

Help!!!

A short film made at school by my oldest son Jakob and one of his mates. Not bad at all for two 11-year olds, methinks!

Another "dear blank"

Dear Mathias

I'm sorry I couldn't hold your hand going to school this morning, but with five children and only two hands it just wasn't your turn.

I'm also sorry I yelled at you, even though you stayed behind and made me run back to get you. There was enough time and all you really wanted was to hold my hand.

So sorry!

mum

with feet bigger than me, but...

Jakob is almost 11. He's a big boy, tallest in his class. I inherit his shoes now... He's also big brother of four, and - when he puts his mind to it - helpful to both them and us.

So sometimes I almost forget -

- that he says 'Aaaah' when he pauses his tooth-brushing to spit - it's from we used to brush them and he had to signal us somehow.

- that he thinks about bad things at night and can't sleep. Like the dead bird we found outside (we buried it in a box, with lots of flowers, and the print "thank you for being so sweet, little birdie, fly safely to heaven!"), or a polar bear that didn't catch a seal (we watched it on TV), or anything bad that could happen to either of us...

- that he needs to sit on my lap and cuddle too, even if he's big and strong and the others beat him to it...

Still he reminds me of these things, still he tells me what he feels and what he needs. I hope he will always do that!

Life wouldn't be half as much fun without!

It's half time. Liverpool's 2-0 down. Hubby's away, but Jakob (10) and I have been 'watching' the game**). We're really grumpy... Jakob half blames one of his brothers for the defeat that seems to be unavoidable - after all, didn't the brother just laugh? Unrelatedly, possibly, but still - laugh, at this hour?!! 

"Why did I become a Liverpool fan?!!!" Jakob exclaims - in real agony!

As if it wasn't enough, Ronnie just played the final of Shanghai Masters and lost. Just. It's that kind of day.

I yell at the kids for making too much noise (they're not, not really) and decide to start changing the linen. Only I can't, can I, I have to hit the refresh button every two minutes (or more) to see if there could be hope, if a text won't just ...

55 minutes - it's a goal! Torres! That wonderful Spaniard... Jakob and I look at eachother and hold our breaths. More breath-holding as City (today's enemy!) has one player sent off at 67 minutes. 73 minutes - another goal! Torres again!! I have to go down and get towels for the kids in the bath, but my mood is better and I don't tell them off for yelling (they are!)...

Skrtel (our man) has to be carried off the pitch at 86 minutes and we're down to 10 man as well. 6 minutes added time - and then Kuyt!! WE WIN!

"That's why I'm a Liverpool fan!!!" Jakob cries with glee, as we embrace eachother. 

How dull must life be if you don't like football?

**)We haven't got the right TV channels for it, so 'watching' means following the live text on bbc or the Guardian or some such place!

Not quite dead...

Today I've been baking. A lot. And will do some more baking tomorrow. I haven't decided to become a baker, but tomorrow there will be 4 brand new 8-year-olds in the house (and in the world, at that!), so naturally - there will need to be a constant flow of cakes! And lots of family coming to celebrate with us.

Saturday we'll be "celebrating" by going to a music festival in Oslo and see Rufus Wainwright (and others) - first time for the kids! They're quite looking forward to it, actually - to see this strange character that has their mother going all gooey... And to celebrate Rufus (?) - or life, actually - Norway has just passed a new marriage law, finally establishing equal rights for everyone, no matter who you love!

That's all folks, I'm off to finish my baking session for the night...

sick, but not tired

I'll admit to it straight - I'm no big fan of vomit. Usually it's hubby does the dirty work, I clean the kid and find a new pyjamas (this kind of thing tends to happen at night).

Wednesday night it was Filip. And Thursday morning... Thanks to the wash-hands-every-second/stay-away-from-Filip/change-every-towel-Filip-has-touched-regime, the others seem to be unscathed. Yet... Thursday night he seemed fine, though, and Friday morning he was up with the others, breakfasting. Then...

For your tender hearts' sake I'll skip the details, let's just say it involved a great deal of detergent. And yes, another clean pyjamas. Moreover, hubby's away with his job and I had to do all the dirty work as well...

And tonight... This is what made me sad. The 2nd graders have THE night of the year - they're staying over at school! Without Filip, that is... I've baked a cake, the other 3 are safely there (and thrilled about it!) - and the boys in Filip's class had unpacked their sleeping bags under a huge table... I know Filip would have loved to join them. As it is, he said "we also get to stay over in 4th grade..."

Makes your heart bleed, doesn't it?

Rufus' English school - part I

Filip has been listening to Release the Stars a lot lately, and although his spelling leaves something to be wanted, you can't say he's not trying! :) Found this after he left the blackboard the other day.

Media meme

My week in media - tagged by Sam, who does it so eloquently you should really go over and read his instead. But in case you're still here...

What I read

Hmm. Off to a difficult start, I fear... Well, I did read a few chapters more in Wintersmith - a book I really enjoy, but still haven't got enough time to... And I browse the local paper every day to see if there's anyone I know there. (There usually is. It's that local.) Other? Yes, I've read about half of a book about hiking in Crete (it's in Norwegian - what did you expect of the link? ...) - preparing for the summer! I have serious plans of making the kids walk with me at least to the bay of paradise...

What I watched

TV. Oh, you mean more specifically? Well, I'm sure there were a few football games, but this last week I've actually been watching handball a lot. Really! And I've learnt that it's χάντμπολ in Greek, which is just the same word only with a Greek accent... (The Greeks I asked couldn't remember if there was an actual Greek word for it!)

What I listened to

No, no - I have listened to other music than Rufus too, honest! But yes, quite a lot of Rufus... And quite a lot of de Lillos too - as well as Verdi, Sting, Jamie Cullum -- and some others that just randomly appear when I shuffle - I love it!

What I surfed

The usual - which isn't that much lately, but I stop by the odd blog every now and then. That is - I stop by my friend Børge's blog every day. And Josh & Josh every week... The rest of you? Whenever I can... And I stop by Rufus' message board quite a lot, it's the most friendly place to be! (He's been nominated to the Brit Awards, best male singer, it's not just me...) And how could I forget - Slap Upside The Head - it's priceless! Love the cartoons...

What I’ve played

Playstation! The kids got PS2 for Christmas from granddad and we've been playing FIFA '08 ever since... Filip's the most eager one - the others still well into their nintendos - so I sometimes play with him. He beats me to a pulp every time, of course... And just to keep him on the right track we've decided that if he wants to be Arsenal (he was doing that too much...) he can play for 10 minutes, but if he's Liverpool he can play for a full 40 minutes. Kids need guidance, right?

Bits and pieces

Now in their 2nd year the kids are supposed to get "individualised" homework. Mathias' reading homework goes something like this:

[drawing of pig] How old can a pig be? A pig can be .. years. (no, it does state the number of years, I just can't remember..) Next page. [drawing of goose] How old can a goose be? A goose can be .. years. Next page. And so on and so forth.

Then, homework done, he continues to read The Hobbit...
*sigh*

Two days ago (16th) my blog was 2 years old! Poor thing, and already neglected...

And two days from now I'll be off to Edinburgh, which hopefully will lead to new updates - at least a few photo posts...

New photographer in town

Jakob got a mobile phone the other week. Long overdue, if you ask him! And in fact, I think he was the last in his class to get one. Sigh. He's still only 9 1/2... But here's what he can do with it - in addition to texting his friend and downloading songs, which took him all of 2 minutes to learn - taking photographs! For fear of being slightly biased, I think this one's rather good...

Says it all, really

We stress that our quads are individuals. And they're very different - by appearances and personalities! But somehow, they're glued together differently than other siblings... Last week Mathias and Thomas were going away to some birthday party, and Filip - unusually reflective - stated:

But I belong with them! And they are part of me!

... Before he went back to playing his brand new Nintendo DS Lite and relishing in a little alone time...

One down - 47 to go

Wednesday night, brushing his teeth, Mathias suddenly went "my tooth!" - and it was indeed missing. The first of the quads to lose a tooth! He was so proud... And luckily hubby managed to retrieve it from the pipe, so the tooth fairy didn't have to leave emptyhanded...

(Of course, Mathias hasn't got that many teeth... I just figured they all need to lose 12!)

7 years ago today

7 years ago today, at about this hour (9 AM), I was wheeled into the operating theatre. And a theatre it was - there were 6 people in with me (not counting hubby, who had to leave when I had that general anaesthesia), and in the adjoining room, with glass walls to hours, there were 25 people eagerly watching!

Yes, delivering quads is still pretty big over here... Those who were supposed to go home after their shift just wouldn't leave... And the rest? 4 paediatricians, 4 special this-nurses, 4 special-that nurses. And 4 other doctors I can't for the life of me remember what was supposed to be doing. Keeping the incubators warm, possibly?

Anyways...

I was wheeled in. The anaesthetist told me to curve my back. You try that with four kids in your stomach... Well, I tried. And he tried the needle in my spine. 7 times. And it hurt like anything, but there wasn't a lot I could do. Finally, he was satisfied, and the doctor started his knifing... And it may have been just that I'd been awake for two days, or that I'm a big sissy, but when I started feeling what he was doing, I screamed. Or shouted, at least. And the gynaecologist immediately lifted his hands, bless him, and said "I can't work like this. Put her out". And I was blessed with sleep...

At 11:09, Thomas was out. 11:10 - Mathias, 11:11 - Anna and (you guessed it...) 11:12 Filip was out. All rushed into the adjoining room, checked, put in incubators on wheels, and then rushed through the corridor. Past my waiting hubby who just caught glimpses of his new 4 kids! I was still sound asleep until 2 PM or so...

And today? Anna is away with all the girls in her class, they stayed over in the cabin of one of them. The boys were reading & playing nintendo before they left for school. They're all so big now! Happy 4 x 7, my darling ones :o)

The 'film shooting'

This Monday the film team showed up as we arrived from school / work etc. The interviewer / director, the camera man, the sound man and the producer. The director had stopped by a few days earlier so the kids knew her a little. I still won't pretend the dinner conversation was free and easy as there was bright lighting, microphone and camera in between the pots and pans... After the dinner we all left, and the film crew first came with Anna and me to her ballet class.

From the filming of the ballet class


Afterwards, they went off to film Thomas, Mathias and Filip's football practice, while I went back to get Jakob and his best friend (who's with us most days after school). And they continued to film Jakob's training while I brought the other one's home.

Later, when everyone'd returned, and the kids were in their pyjamases, they were interviewed about "life, the universe and everything" - and more specifically, what life was like in a big family like ours.
The kids being interviewed downstairs - the sound man (by the wall) had an excellent sense of humour, and the kids loved him :) After spending the last few hours with them, the kids weren't really nervous about the interview either. And when everyone was in bed, they interviewed us about the same things.

The programme will be sent sometime this autumn. We'll be on for something like 6 minutes - so a few hours of shooting, 2 visits to us and calling the parent of every child on ballet and football (about 60) - quite a lot of work for so little! The whole programme is about half an hour, and is about children and stress. Apart from us, there'll be a sociologist talking about this, and a feature from the States (where else...) about personal coaches for kids, to make sure they'll end up super stars. Or something...

Anyway, it was a fun experience! Everything was so professional and well-planned and all, I'm impressed with the production team :) And we'll be able to see the programme when it's put together - to see if we approve. When it's finally aired, we'll let you know!

Dilemma

We've been asked by the Norwegian broadcasting corporation if they could come and make a programme about quads. They've got this series about 'cozy family chaos' and will no doubt be expecting quads to cause chaos.

It's the Norwegian equivalent of the BBC, which vouches for quality, and it's an ok show concept (not that I've seen it. But...). I'm sure they'd let us see the show before aired, and they'd probably make us look good. That's not really the issue... But do we want to be on national television? Do the kids want to? (Of course, yes, if you asked them, they would, but later, will they appreciate having been...? Or regret it miserably?)

The quad family that has been on television here a few times is really chaotic - they seem to have no control over their kids whatsoever, the kids wear the same clothes day and night - "there's no time for pyjamas!" - in school and home and in bed... So I guess it wouldn't hurt showing "people" that it doesn't have to be like that.

And I wouldn't mind bringing across the fact that our set of "rules and regulations" is both necessary and actually working. You can't leave everything to anyone in a family of 7. I would secretly like to smirk, and say "I told you so!" when people say that "my, they're actually well-functioning and cool kids"...

But on national television? Would you?

'nother fun exercise!

Yes, we're back... And here's proof of our wintery disposition - me on the toboggan with Filip. And yes, that's yours truly creating the soundtrack ;) Filip will no doubt grow up to be a rally driver. Phew, I'm just glad we managed to stop before actually hitting those people. Truly, we were inches away from the heads of happy picnickers...

(Incidentally, the people standing in the middle of the photo to begin with has nothing to do with us...)

Conversation of the day (2)

I was towelling a couple of the kids after their bath.


Anna: My friend "I" said, to make babies, mummies and daddies have to put their [insert appropriate childish word here - in Norwegian, a unisex word] together!
Thomas: hihihi
Hubby (leaving, chuckling!): It's all yours!
Me: erh... *

* Now, I've explained to them earlier, about daddy "seeds" and mummy "eggs". Only not gone into the details around the actual bringing them from point A to point B...

Anna: Did you and daddy do that?
Me (sounding dreadfully normal, well, trying to): Why, yes
Thomas (still giggling): Did it take long?
Me: Erh, well, it doesn't have to take long in order to ...
Anna & Thomas: Were you naked???!?
Me: Yes.
A & T: Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaa (leaving...)

... and cut!

Football in our hearts

First, there was the football tournament. With Filip in one team, Mathias and Thomas in one (they're in different classes) and Jakob in one. Meaning 12 games altogether, the ones who weren't playing managed to see most of the games -- and Anna, luckily, had a birthday party to go to in the middle of it all. There were wins, losses, Mathias scored, Thomas saved, and a good time was genereally had by all! The cups they all received at the end also helped, of course!

Then there was football on television in the night. Norway was playing Bosnia home. A few of their "fans" spent the first 40 minutes of what should have been the start of the game throwing bengal lights on the pitch, their own goalkeeper, setting fire to the billboards... Well, eventually the game started, we still lost (1-2). Not as bad as Greece though, who were slaughtered 1-4 by Turkey. A sad night indeed.On the bright side, Filip has made a little football story: Here's Liverpool FC vs. France (well, it could happen...). Reina shoots from the goal, Kuyt heads it on... ... to Gerrard, who kicks it to Riise, heading it on to ...
... Pennant, kicking it on to Gonzales, who does an amazing trick shot on to ...

... Crouch, who kicks it fiercely into - the crossbar...

No worries, though, they (= LFC!) still won 1-0, according to Filip. And yes, the names and the story were entirely his, as are the drawings.