Advent calendar 2025

Every day this December, the LANGUAGES project members share our Christmas traditions and memories, and recommend novels, songs and films for everyone to enjoy as we count down to Christmas. Make yourself a nice cup of tea or coffee and enjoy!

1st December – from Debra to all of us "Watching Ray Briggs The Snowman has been part of our family Christmas since our sons were small, and I think I will watch regardless of whether there are children around or not! I love the fact that it has no words so it is ‘alingual’ and all the storytelling is left to the child. In fact, when my eldest son was small, he used to cry at the ending until we ‘re-narrated’ it. We said the snowman had gone back to the frozen North, but had left his scarf and hat as a present."
2nd December – from Åsta to all of us “If you want a good read before Christmas, I recommend Brightly Shining by the Norwegian author Ingvild Rishøi. This beautiful story centres on two sisters and their alcoholic father in the days before Christmas. It is both sad and beautiful, portraying children who take on too much responsibility far too early, and a few adults around them (at school, a retired neighbour) who see them and support them through small but deeply meaningful acts. A modern classic – and it was made into a film recently!!”
3rd December – from Cathy to all of us “Listening to Christmas hits from when I was a teenager in the 70's, classic songs still played over and over again in shops and on the radio around Christmas. Here's a little selection for you to sing along to: Happy Christmas (War is Over) by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Merry Christmas everybody by Slade, I wish it could be Christmas everyday by Wizzard or Lonely this Christmas by Mud. Oldies but goodies, right? And here's a classic from undergraduate days in the 80's, Do they know it's Christmas? from Band Aid.”
4th December – from Anna to all of us “It is quite difficult for me to choose a moment, a thing, a memory, a book,... but then the other night my daughter shared something with us that I found very moving in many ways and I am moved as I write this little paragraph. She said: "Mom, do you remember this music? It brings back so many memories of when we used to catch the plane to go visit granpa and grandma in South Africa." We used to go visit my parents during our winter holidays. They had been living in South Africa since my kids were born. As she played the "emirates boarding music", so many memories came back to me: the endless flight, the euphoria associated with meeting up with one of my sisters and her family in our Dubai airport stopover, the summer heat in the newly found sunlit lazy afternoon hours that grace the Southern hemisphere's December summer, telling funny stories during dinnertime, our (hum, mainly mine, my sister and mom's!) Jane Austen series binge (we know all the lines, and, for the record it is this BBC series!). So here it is, I am very grateful that my daughter cherishes these memories as much as I do, especially because my parents are quite elderly and it is important for me that my children have managed to develop a relationship with them and associate happy moments with them, despite the many years we have lived in two separate continents.”
5th December – from Stephanie to all of us “I have always found that December is a good time for reading, when it is dark outside and you can sit comfortably inside with a cup of hot chocolate – or julegløgg (mulled wine). A book I want to recommend is Wait, Blink: A Perfect Picture of Inner Life by the Norwegian author Gunnhild Øyehaug. This novel follows three women whose lives are subtly interconnected. They all have creative professions – a literature student, a film director and a performance artist – and complicated relationships. The book has been praised for its “witty and cerebral style”, but I also chose it for a more personal reason: I studied French with the author at the University of Bergen!”
6th December – from Joséphine to all of us “Do you remember when advent calendars were a sheet of cardboard with little windows to open? The joy of discovering that hidden picture of a deer or a fairy! No one better than the British poet Brian Bilston expresses that feeling in his poem The Good Old Days:”
7th December – from Laura to all of us “I recommend Babel by R. F. Kuang as a great fantasy novel for those long Christmas evenings! It’s set in a fictional Oxford in 1836 and casts the Radcliffe Camera as a prestigious centre of translation. The power and magic of words are the key to all the power of the British Empire!”
8th December – from Adéla to all of us “The holiday season is a happy time that lifts my spirits even in the midst of the dark winter days. At the same time, it can be stressful with the final push to the year’s end, and that’s when you really need good music to stay motivated. As an avid Eurovision fan, I highly recommend Norway’s 2024 entry, Ulveham by Gåte. It’s a fantastic blend of Norwegian folk and rock, with striking vocals and a rhythm that creates a powerful, mystical atmosphere, giving you exactly the energy you need.”
9th December – from Lisbeth to all of us “This day in December is always very special to me because it is our wedding anniversary – and today is our 30th ❤ the pearl wedding anniversary ❤ 30 years ago, I remember hoping for snow and woke up to a thin white layer on the ground. It was not too cold and the snow offered a beautiful setting. On our wedding day, we also baptised our son, which made the day even more special. Today, we will celebrate with many good friends and closer to Christmas, when our daughter Frida comes home from studies in London, we will celebrate with our extended family. Love is all around ❤”
10th December – from Sarah to all of us “Christmas to me is a time for tradition, warmth, family and joy. But it is also a time where differences are so strikingly apparent. When walking though the beautifully lit centre of Oslo, crowded with happy people shopping for their loved ones, I cannot help but notice beggars sitting silently, cold, hopefully waiting for somebody to donate a coin or two. I share one of the most beautiful (and tragic) Christmas stories that I know of, by the Danish writer H.C. Andersen: The little match girl.”
11th December – from Debra to all of us "My Chestnut Stuffing Recipe. This is a favourite for Christmas in our family, always served on Christmas Day with our Christmas turkey! In the autumn, we collect the chestnuts from a forest a few miles away – it was something our own children and now our grandchildren did. Peeling the chestnuts is less of a pleasure, but we do then freeze them ready for use in December. I usually make my chestnut stuffing in the first week of advent, and feel very happy that one bit of Christmas preparation is complete!"
12th December – from Josephine to all of us
13th December – from Estelle to all of us “The Legend of Saint Nicholas has been a favourite in my family and among my students. It tells the story of a butcher who kills three lost children. But seven years later, Saint Nicholas knocks on his door, and it transpires that the saint knows what happened seven years ago. The butcher flees and Saint Nicholas resuscitates the children. Cue to my students trying to remember whether they've been nice or naughty seven years ago.”
14th December – from Cathy to all of us “I tasted my first papillote during my first Christmas in Lyon in the 1980’s. Legend has it that this Christmas treat was born at the end of the 18th century in a chocolate shop near the Place des Terreaux in the centre of Lyon. A young assistant working in the shop supposedly stole chocolates and wrapped them in paper with romantic messages for his sweetheart. His boss loved this idea so much that he launched a new product which has been here ever since! Today, papillotes are sold from early December and throughout the Christmas holidays. Each one, wrapped in shiny paper, has a message hidden inside with literary quotes, short proverbs, jokes or little puzzles. The papillotes tradition is now a Christmas favourite all over France.”
15th December – from Stephanie to all of us “December can be a very busy month, with the somewhat unhappy cooccurrence of Christmas preparations and a pile of exam papers. What better then, than some light reading where you can commiserate with the characters in the book? You have the opportunity to do so with The marvelous misadventures of Ingrid Winter, by the Norwegian author Janne Stigen Drangsholt, which should hit close to home for many of us: The protagonist (heavily based on the author herself) is an associate professor of English literature at the University of Stavanger and mother of three young girls, who struggles to juggle professional and domestic challenges. The style is light and witty, and although we may not encounter quite as many hilarious dilemmas and misunderstandings in our own lives, I am sure many of us can recognise some of the trials and tribulations of both academe and parenthood. This is another personal connection, as I got to know the author when she did her PhD at the University of Bergen.”
16th December – from Lisbeth to all of us “In the LANGUAGES spirit, I have chosen a classic Christmas carol that was originally written in French as 'Minuit, chrétiens' and later translated into English as 'O Holy Night'. From there it has been rendered into Norwegian bokmål as 'O, hellige natt' and also as a modern Norwegian nynorsk interpretation by Edvard Hoem, one of Norway’s leading literary writers and performed by his daughter, Ine Hoem. Their version is titled 'Å, signa natt' – a beautiful version.”
17th December – from Nicole to all of us “When I’m home for Xmas my sister and I visit the Sydney Fish Markets which is open for a 36-hour Seafood Marathon. The crowds and traffic are intense. To avoid it all we go at 3am on Christmas Eve and buy fresh cooked prawns, fish and squid, and yes the fish and squid go on the BBQ. Merry Christmas from Sydney.”
18th December – from Sarah to all of us “Christmas eve to me is not really Christmas eve without lobster for starters, duck for main and homemade caramel pudding for dessert. And my Danish grandmother’s red cabbage as a side dish for the duck. This is a simple, tasteful dish that go well with any kind of meat or fish, and it only gets better when re-heated. I wanted to share this recipe with you. Enjoy!” Ingredients: 2 table spoons of butter 1 dl water 1.5 kg red cabbage (approximately), finely cut Raspberry or redcurrant juice (in Norway, husholdningsaft will also do) – fill so it almost covers the cabbage 1 stock cube/bouillon cube Balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper (optional) At the end, add 100 g butter to make it glossy (in Norway, fat from the Christmas meat (ribbefett) can replace the butter) Method: (1) Heat the butter in a large saucepan. When melted, add the water. Then add the cabbage. (2) Stir in the raspberry or cranberry juice and add the stock cube. Do not let the liquid cover the cabbage – the cabbage itself makes a lot of juice. Cover with a lid and cook gently for about one hour (until the cabbage is soft). (3) Add butter for glossiness. (4) Taste the cabbage and add salt, pepper and balsamic vinegar to your liking. (5) Serve warm (or freeze it for another occasion).
19th December – from Gunnar to all of us “One of the movies I look forward to seeing the most every Christmas is Flåklypa Grand Prix (English: Pinchcliffe Grand Prix). It is not a Christmas movie, but it is shown every year on TV on the 1st or 2nd day of Christmas. The movie is about a bicycle repairman and inventor named Reodor, who lives with his animal friends Solan (an optimistic magpie) and Ludvig (a pessimistic and melancholic hedgehog) on top of a mountain in a village called Flåklypa. After discovering that Reodor’s former assistant has stolen his idea for a race car engine, the trio decides to build a competing car to enter a race against him. Growing up, I always celebrated Christmas at my grandma’s house, which was in the same part of Norway where the writer of the books the movie is based on grew up. This probably makes me especially nostalgic about my childhood Christmases there, as both the characters and locations in the movie are so strongly inspired by that area of Norway.”
20th December – from Åsta to all of us “If you get tired of preparing for and dreaming about Christmas, you can travel to Western Norway in Agnes Ravatn's book The bird tribunal. Agnes Ravatn is one of my favourite authors! This is her first novel, and it takes you to an isolated fjord in Western Norway. Why has the female character moved there, and what unfolds between the two main characters? Agnes writes her books in Nynorsk, which is a big bonus for me in itself! When I have foreign guests, I very often give them this book as a thank-you gift. Enjoy!"
21st December – from Josephine to all of us “The most magical Christmas object for me: angel chimes. I can't put into words the pleasure I had when I ordered one for my own children, after having enjoyed it so much in my childhood.”
22nd December – from Nicole and Lisbeth to all of us “What it seems most people watch over and over again at Christmas is Love Actually – at least in England and Norway. Nicole watches it every year at Christmas with her family and Lisbeth does as well, but always on the 23rd of December – first we decorate the tree, and then we watch the film together. We all know the lines by heart and the emotional scenes and embarrassing scenes are still as emotional and embarrassing after all these years.”
23rd december – from Simen and Sarah to all of us Sarah: “At Christmas, some films are tradition on Norwegian television. For example, every 23rd December around 9pm for over 40 years, the National Broadcasting Corporation have been screening the same, old short film called Dinner for One. And every year we take a break in cooking, baking and wrapping gifts to watch this clip together. And every year, we belly laugh. Enjoy!” Simen: “One of my favourite Christmas traditions, like many Norwegians, is watching the TV sketch, Grevinnen og Hovmesteren, which airs on what Norwegians call "Little Christmas Eve" or the 23rd of December. In my family, it was not just about watching the sketch, but the collaborative effort of preparing for Christmas Eve. Coming from a large family, it was highly necessary to start preparing the day before if we wanted to have food ready on the table on the big day itself. Staying true to the saying "Same procedure as every year, James" from the sketch, my siblings and I always had to, and still do, take turns mashing the kohlrabi and potatoes through a fine-meshed sieve to get the kohlrabi mash consistency just right. My dad tried to cheat the procedure one year by using an immersion blender, and of course, it did not turn out right. It requires time and a lot of elbow grease to do so, and the procedure has remained the same for 30 years, with the exception of the one year my dad tried to take a shortcut. And our reward, a single piece of pinnekjøtt, or salt-cured lamb ribs, which is the traditional Christmas Eve dinner in Western Norway in particular, that we got to enjoy while watching Grevinnen og Hovmesteren.”
24th December – from Debra to all of us “Another tradition in our family was reading The Night before Christmas on Christmas Eve, just before going to bed. It is a brilliant poem for reading aloud, and the Arthur Rackham illustrations give young readers lots of scope for adding to the narrative.” The Night before Christmas – Clement Clarke-Moore

1st December – from Debra to all of us

"Watching Ray Briggs The Snowman has been part of our family Christmas since our sons were small, and I think I will watch regardless of whether there are children around or not! I love the fact that it has no words so it is ‘alingual’ and all the storytelling is left to the child. In fact, when my eldest son was small, he used to cry at the ending until we ‘re-narrated’ it. We said the snowman had gone back to the frozen North, but had left his scarf and hat as a present."

2nd December – from Åsta to all of us

“If you want a good read before Christmas, I recommend Brightly Shining by the Norwegian author Ingvild Rishøi. This beautiful story centres on two sisters and their alcoholic father in the days before Christmas. It is both sad and beautiful, portraying children who take on too much responsibility far too early, and a few adults around them (at school, a retired neighbour) who see them and support them through small but deeply meaningful acts. A modern classic – and it was made into a film recently!!”

3rd December – from Cathy to all of us

“Listening to Christmas hits from when I was a teenager in the 70's, classic songs still played over and over again in shops and on the radio around Christmas. Here's a little selection for you to sing along to: Happy Christmas (War is Over) by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Merry Christmas everybody by Slade, I wish it could be Christmas everyday by Wizzard or Lonely this Christmas by Mud. Oldies but goodies, right? And here's a classic from undergraduate days in the 80's, Do they know it's Christmas? from Band Aid.”

4th December – from Anna to all of us

“It is quite difficult for me to choose a moment, a thing, a memory, a book,... but then the other night my daughter shared something with us that I found very moving in many ways and I am moved as I write this little paragraph. She said: "Mom, do you remember this music? It brings back so many memories of when we used to catch the plane to go visit granpa and grandma in South Africa." We used to go visit my parents during our winter holidays. They had been living in South Africa since my kids were born. As she played the "emirates boarding music", so many memories came back to me: the endless flight, the euphoria associated with meeting up with one of my sisters and her family in our Dubai airport stopover, the summer heat in the newly found sunlit lazy afternoon hours that grace the Southern hemisphere's December summer, telling funny stories during dinnertime, our (hum, mainly mine, my sister and mom's!) Jane Austen series binge (we know all the lines, and, for the record it is this BBC series!). So here it is, I am very grateful that my daughter cherishes these memories as much as I do, especially because my parents are quite elderly and it is important for me that my children have managed to develop a relationship with them and associate happy moments with them, despite the many years we have lived in two separate continents.”

5th December – from Stephanie to all of us

“I have always found that December is a good time for reading, when it is dark outside and you can sit comfortably inside with a cup of hot chocolate – or julegløgg (mulled wine). A book I want to recommend is Wait, Blink: A Perfect Picture of Inner Life by the Norwegian author Gunnhild Øyehaug. This novel follows three women whose lives are subtly interconnected. They all have creative professions – a literature student, a film director and a performance artist – and complicated relationships. The book has been praised for its “witty and cerebral style”, but I also chose it for a more personal reason: I studied French with the author at the University of Bergen!”

6th December – from Joséphine to all of us

“Do you remember when advent calendars were a sheet of cardboard with little windows to open? The joy of discovering that hidden picture of a deer or a fairy! No one better than the British poet Brian Bilston expresses that feeling in his poem The Good Old Days:”

7th December – from Laura to all of us

“I recommend Babel by R. F. Kuang as a great fantasy novel for those long Christmas evenings! It’s set in a fictional Oxford in 1836 and casts the Radcliffe Camera as a prestigious centre of translation. The power and magic of words are the key to all the power of the British Empire!”

8th December – from Adéla to all of us

“The holiday season is a happy time that lifts my spirits even in the midst of the dark winter days. At the same time, it can be stressful with the final push to the year’s end, and that’s when you really need good music to stay motivated. As an avid Eurovision fan, I highly recommend Norway’s 2024 entry, Ulveham by Gåte. It’s a fantastic blend of Norwegian folk and rock, with striking vocals and a rhythm that creates a powerful, mystical atmosphere, giving you exactly the energy you need.”

9th December – from Lisbeth to all of us

“This day in December is always very special to me because it is our wedding anniversary – and today is our 30th ❤ the pearl wedding anniversary ❤ 30 years ago, I remember hoping for snow and woke up to a thin white layer on the ground. It was not too cold and the snow offered a beautiful setting. On our wedding day, we also baptised our son, which made the day even more special. Today, we will celebrate with many good friends and closer to Christmas, when our daughter Frida comes home from studies in London, we will celebrate with our extended family. Love is all around ❤”

10th December – from Sarah to all of us

“Christmas to me is a time for tradition, warmth, family and joy. But it is also a time where differences are so strikingly apparent. When walking though the beautifully lit centre of Oslo, crowded with happy people shopping for their loved ones, I cannot help but notice beggars sitting silently, cold, hopefully waiting for somebody to donate a coin or two. I share one of the most beautiful (and tragic) Christmas stories that I know of, by the Danish writer H.C. Andersen: The little match girl.”

11th December – from Debra to all of us

"My Chestnut Stuffing Recipe. This is a favourite for Christmas in our family, always served on Christmas Day with our Christmas turkey! In the autumn, we collect the chestnuts from a forest a few miles away – it was something our own children and now our grandchildren did. Peeling the chestnuts is less of a pleasure, but we do then freeze them ready for use in December. I usually make my chestnut stuffing in the first week of advent, and feel very happy that one bit of Christmas preparation is complete!"

12th December – from Josephine to all of us

13th December – from Estelle to all of us

“The Legend of Saint Nicholas has been a favourite in my family and among my students. It tells the story of a butcher who kills three lost children. But seven years later, Saint Nicholas knocks on his door, and it transpires that the saint knows what happened seven years ago. The butcher flees and Saint Nicholas resuscitates the children. Cue to my students trying to remember whether they've been nice or naughty seven years ago.”

14th December – from Cathy to all of us

“I tasted my first papillote during my first Christmas in Lyon in the 1980’s. Legend has it that this Christmas treat was born at the end of the 18th century in a chocolate shop near the Place des Terreaux in the centre of Lyon. A young assistant working in the shop supposedly stole chocolates and wrapped them in paper with romantic messages for his sweetheart. His boss loved this idea so much that he launched a new product which has been here ever since! Today, papillotes are sold from early December and throughout the Christmas holidays. Each one, wrapped in shiny paper, has a message hidden inside with literary quotes, short proverbs, jokes or little puzzles. The papillotes tradition is now a Christmas favourite all over France.”

15th December – from Stephanie to all of us

“December can be a very busy month, with the somewhat unhappy cooccurrence of Christmas preparations and a pile of exam papers. What better then, than some light reading where you can commiserate with the characters in the book? You have the opportunity to do so with The marvelous misadventures of Ingrid Winter, by the Norwegian author Janne Stigen Drangsholt, which should hit close to home for many of us: The protagonist (heavily based on the author herself) is an associate professor of English literature at the University of Stavanger and mother of three young girls, who struggles to juggle professional and domestic challenges. The style is light and witty, and although we may not encounter quite as many hilarious dilemmas and misunderstandings in our own lives, I am sure many of us can recognise some of the trials and tribulations of both academe and parenthood. This is another personal connection, as I got to know the author when she did her PhD at the University of Bergen.”

16th December – from Lisbeth to all of us

“In the LANGUAGES spirit, I have chosen a classic Christmas carol that was originally written in French as 'Minuit, chrétiens' and later translated into English as 'O Holy Night'. From there it has been rendered into Norwegian bokmål as 'O, hellige natt' and also as a modern Norwegian nynorsk interpretation by Edvard Hoem, one of Norway’s leading literary writers and performed by his daughter, Ine Hoem. Their version is titled 'Å, signa natt' – a beautiful version.”

17th December – from Nicole to all of us

“When I’m home for Xmas my sister and I visit the Sydney Fish Markets which is open for a 36-hour Seafood Marathon. The crowds and traffic are intense. To avoid it all we go at 3am on Christmas Eve and buy fresh cooked prawns, fish and squid, and yes the fish and squid go on the BBQ. Merry Christmas from Sydney.”

18th December – from Sarah to all of us

“Christmas eve to me is not really Christmas eve without lobster for starters, duck for main and homemade caramel pudding for dessert. And my Danish grandmother’s red cabbage as a side dish for the duck. This is a simple, tasteful dish that go well with any kind of meat or fish, and it only gets better when re-heated. I wanted to share this recipe with you. Enjoy!”

Ingredients:
2 table spoons of butter
1 dl water
1.5 kg red cabbage (approximately), finely cut
Raspberry or redcurrant juice (in Norway, husholdningsaft will also do) – fill so it almost covers the cabbage
1 stock cube/bouillon cube
Balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper (optional)
At the end, add 100 g butter to make it glossy (in Norway, fat from the Christmas meat (ribbefett) can replace the butter)

Method:
(1) Heat the butter in a large saucepan. When melted, add the water. Then add the cabbage. (2) Stir in the raspberry or cranberry juice and add the stock cube. Do not let the liquid cover the cabbage – the cabbage itself makes a lot of juice. Cover with a lid and cook gently for about one hour (until the cabbage is soft). (3) Add butter for glossiness. (4) Taste the cabbage and add salt, pepper and balsamic vinegar to your liking. (5) Serve warm (or freeze it for another occasion).

19th December – from Gunnar to all of us

“One of the movies I look forward to seeing the most every Christmas is Flåklypa Grand Prix (English: Pinchcliffe Grand Prix). It is not a Christmas movie, but it is shown every year on TV on the 1st or 2nd day of Christmas. The movie is about a bicycle repairman and inventor named Reodor, who lives with his animal friends Solan (an optimistic magpie) and Ludvig (a pessimistic and melancholic hedgehog) on top of a mountain in a village called Flåklypa. After discovering that Reodor’s former assistant has stolen his idea for a race car engine, the trio decides to build a competing car to enter a race against him. Growing up, I always celebrated Christmas at my grandma’s house, which was in the same part of Norway where the writer of the books the movie is based on grew up. This probably makes me especially nostalgic about my childhood Christmases there, as both the characters and locations in the movie are so strongly inspired by that area of Norway.”

20th December – from Åsta to all of us

“If you get tired of preparing for and dreaming about Christmas, you can travel to Western Norway in Agnes Ravatn's book The bird tribunal. Agnes Ravatn is one of my favourite authors! This is her first novel, and it takes you to an isolated fjord in Western Norway. Why has the female character moved there, and what unfolds between the two main characters? Agnes writes her books in Nynorsk, which is a big bonus for me in itself! When I have foreign guests, I very often give them this book as a thank-you gift. Enjoy!"

21st December – from Josephine to all of us

“The most magical Christmas object for me: angel chimes. I can't put into words the pleasure I had when I ordered one for my own children, after having enjoyed it so much in my childhood.”

22nd December – from Nicole and Lisbeth to all of us

“What it seems most people watch over and over again at Christmas is Love Actually – at least in England and Norway. Nicole watches it every year at Christmas with her family and Lisbeth does as well, but always on the 23rd of December – first we decorate the tree, and then we watch the film together. We all know the lines by heart and the emotional scenes and embarrassing scenes are still as emotional and embarrassing after all these years.”

23rd december – from Simen and Sarah to all of us

Sarah: “At Christmas, some films are tradition on Norwegian television. For example, every 23rd December around 9pm for over 40 years, the National Broadcasting Corporation have been screening the same, old short film called Dinner for One. And every year we take a break in cooking, baking and wrapping gifts to watch this clip together. And every year, we belly laugh. Enjoy!”

Simen: “One of my favourite Christmas traditions, like many Norwegians, is watching the TV sketch, Grevinnen og Hovmesteren, which airs on what Norwegians call "Little Christmas Eve" or the 23rd of December. In my family, it was not just about watching the sketch, but the collaborative effort of preparing for Christmas Eve. Coming from a large family, it was highly necessary to start preparing the day before if we wanted to have food ready on the table on the big day itself. Staying true to the saying "Same procedure as every year, James" from the sketch, my siblings and I always had to, and still do, take turns mashing the kohlrabi and potatoes through a fine-meshed sieve to get the kohlrabi mash consistency just right. My dad tried to cheat the procedure one year by using an immersion blender, and of course, it did not turn out right. It requires time and a lot of elbow grease to do so, and the procedure has remained the same for 30 years, with the exception of the one year my dad tried to take a shortcut. And our reward, a single piece of pinnekjøtt, or salt-cured lamb ribs, which is the traditional Christmas Eve dinner in Western Norway in particular, that we got to enjoy while watching Grevinnen og Hovmesteren.”

24th December – from Debra to all of us

“Another tradition in our family was reading The Night before Christmas on Christmas Eve, just before going to bed. It is a brilliant poem for reading aloud, and the Arthur Rackham illustrations give young readers lots of scope for adding to the narrative.”

The Night before Christmas – Clement Clarke-Moore

Published Dec. 1, 2023 8:08 PM - Last modified Dec. 24, 2025 9:41 AM