~ Denmark Tour Pt. 1... "Faces, Places & Food" ~

 With the Christmas tour complete, I returned home with Danish, Swiss & German goodies, which included lots of chocolate of course!! The tour was successful & it was exciting to be able to experience the charming Danish culture; with that being said, it feels good to be home surrounded by my husband & our 5 little fuzzy faces!
I'm so fascinated by the beautiful architecture in Europe! From the moment we drove into the quaint little town of Soro it was as if we had stepped back in time!

 All pictures of Soro taken the day we arrived. (Before all the snow!)

Our first few days we spent in Soro where we stayed with Peter Vesth, (the star of the show) in his cute little danish cottage. About halfway through the tour the cute little cottage jokingly became known as the "P.V. Compound," for a few reasons, here are the top 2...1.) Come to find out, Peter doesn't drive, (can you say, "Driving Miss Daisy?!") Mode of transportation: someone who has a driver's license & a car & is willing to chauffeur or the train, (train station is down the street.) 2.) Of course, transportation or even taking a leisurely stroll around the neighborhood is a moot point because Peter locks his gate (apparently to keep the fans from showing up at his door,) & only Peter has access to the key.

It was interesting to learn that many of the Danish don't have a driver's license or own a car because it's so expensive to get a license & to buy a car. Those who don't drive, ride bikes & take the train.

Picture of Peter's yard during the first snow.

I love the color of his cottage & the front door!

Band on the run-haha! On the way to the Vesth House for our first show.
Below is the view of the neighbor's house from the skylight upstairs.

Very cozy inside the cottage & the floors are heated!

 Spiral staircase :) My room was upstairs 

The Danes have the most beautifully decorated windows for Christmas! They hang ornaments & light candles. They also hang ornaments all over the house! :)

This is the view from the living room window. That's an apple tree in the yard, still with bright red apples!

View from my room

 View #2

The yard

The tour was a mixed bag of surprises, (some good, some not so good) with a lot of funny ("This Is Spinal Tap") moments, ultimately great shows, great fun, lots of laughs & some road drama thrown in!

~ Christmas With Peter Vesth & Friends ~

Meet the players:

Peter Busborg: Music producer/writer/singer/guitar/mandolin/ukulele/sound guy/chauffeur (super talented in every way!!)

Vera Panitch: 19 year old Russian beauty fiddle player extraordinaire/bgvs

Amazing!!

The other American girl... so talented & a friend/sister for life!

Jess Leary: Singer/writer/guitar/mandolin (credits include:guitar player & bgvs for Reba Mcentire, Faith Hill & Deana Carter/writer of 2 number 1's "Mi Vida Loca"-Pam Tillis & "Where The Green Grass Grows"-Tim McGraw)

And the reason we were all gathered together... (affectionately nicknamed, Mr. Christmas...

Peter Vesth:Singer/writer/guitar/keeper of the gate-haha! Always holly jolly for every single show! His fans adore him!:)

Unplugged rehearsal...

And now for a little "taste" of Denmark...

"Flaeskesteg" - Pork Roast with Crackling (Roasted with the rind on,) glazed potatoes (potatoes are boiled & then browned in caramelized sugar,) "Glaseret skinke" - Christmas ham, (also has a sweet glaze,) the ham is served with a mustard sauce, kielbasa biala, creamed spinach, "Syltede rodbeder" - pickled red beets, pickled herring with onions & sour cream sauce "Rugbrod" - dark rye bread 

This was our dinner right before our first show at the Vesth House for the fan club. I was told this is very traditional Danish holiday food...I don't think the pictures look all that appetizing but I tried a little taste of everything & it was all very delicious!

The rye bread is especially good & much more nutritious than our bread. I don't eat a lot of meat & rarely eat pork so this was a huge change in my diet! I also REALLY missed my salads! The only raw green thing on the table is the piece of parsley in the sour cream sauce!

Peter is drinking a Tuborg (which is the popular Danish beer.) Can't tell you how it taste since I am not a beer drinker but Peter sure does like it! :-) One of the things I love about Denmark is the tap water! It's not chlorinated & tastes so pure & wonderful just like water should taste! No need to ever buy bottled water in DK!

"Aebleskiver"- meaning apple slices, is a popular Danish Christmas dessert. They are like little pancake/donuts made with a special pan. Traditionally they had slices of apple in them but they're now made without the apple slice; served with powdered sugar & jam or marmalade. They are so yummy I cannot even begin to tell you!!

I have to say I did not care for the danish chocolate; Sweden & Germany & even England with Cadbury has Denmark beat in the chocolate department! Much of the Danish chocolate is filled with marzipan. If you like the taste of marzipan, you'll probaby love the chocolate!

A box of very expensive Danish chocolates given as a gift from a fan! Peter was kind enough to share :-)

I have so much more to blog about the tour, so many wonderful pictures & stories to share...but since I also brought home what feels like the worst cold of my life, it's back to bed for me! ...Denmark Tour Pt. 2 soon! :-)

~ Celebrating Life's Seasons ~

 "To everything there is a season & a time to every purpose under heaven." Ecc 3:1

I love decorating for fall & I'm so looking forward to the change of seasons but this year saying goodbye to summer feels a little bittersweet...
Over the summer Bob & I became "host mom & dad" to a couple of Latvian orphans. For a season, Marija & Gvido became part of our family through a wonderful ministry called Project One Forty Three. It was by far the most challenging thing we have ever done but we were so blessed by having done it!
While we are praying about what God's next step is for us, we know our continued involvement with this ministry will most likely be a life long thing. We want to continue to be part of the "domino effect" & help advocate for older orphans who need forever homes. www.projectonefortythree.com

Over the summer we took a trip to Cape Hatteras, N.C. to visit Bob's parents. Anytime we visit it feels like being at a bed & breakfast! I love my mommy & daddy in- law, they are wonderful folks & they have a beautiful, comfy home!

Most of the time we fly but this time we drove with 2 kids & 2 dogs & yes, it was an adventure! Normally, Cape Hatteras is a peaceful haven that feels far, far away from the rest of the world & all it's chaos...only this time we brought the chaos with us! Ha! :)

 Relaxing activities like going to our favorite cafe for coffee in the morning, taking the ferry to Oracoke Island to shop & have lunch, taking quiet walks around the island & lounging on the beach were all replaced with making sure the kids didn't drown in the ocean & trying to cram as much into one day in hopes of wearing them out by bedtime, (which never worked, by the way!) The only two who were tired & ready for bed were Bob & I! Well...actually, the dogs looked pretty tuckered out too!

Gracie & Miss Pookerdoo

Boat harbor in Hatteras Village

Over looking the bay side in Hatteras

With fall officially beginning this week & the weather cooling down, Bob & I have started a list of fun things we want to do together before our schedules become really busy...at the top of the list is spending more evenings together on the patio grilling out & sitting by the fire...no TV, no computers, no

cell phones! We also plan to make better use of our botanical gardens & zoo memberships. 

I'm amazed at how easy it is to be distracted by all of the things that keep us busy in this life. It's so easy to get caught up in "working" for the future that we miss enjoying the here & now moments. I'm guilty of never saying no to work & trying to squeeze one more demo session or writing project into an already full schedule... Bob has been gently encouraging me to change this! Ha! He's so good about not bringing his work home with him! When he is home, he is ready to relax & spend time with me! I need  some improvement in the area of putting proper boundaries around my work! Maybe that comes from being able to make my own schedule & not ever really having to answer to a boss...or maybe I'm just that stereotypical "undisciplined & unorganized artist type!"

This past spring we spent much of our weekends working in our yard. I love gardening & working in the yard with Bob...feels so relaxing & very therapeutic. The children loved playing in the yard & picking all of the tomatoes, even the green ones! They were thrilled anytime they spotted a hummingbird or the cute little frog that moved into our pond over the summer! We're still reaping the benefits from the garden with an abundance of tomatoes & fresh herbs!

Come November, things will become busy for both of us. Bob will be leaving for a Mexico mission trip to help finish a house that has been standing vacant for 3 years. By the time the team leaves, a woman & her children will able to move in! Praise be to God!  www.casadelpastor.com



Working on one of the houses for Casa Del Pastor



Soon after Thanksgiving, I will be leaving for Denmark. I'm so excited about the upcoming Christmas tour as well as shooting a couple of Christmas videos. I'm especially excited that my husband & I will get to work together on the videos! Some of the footage will be shot in Nashville & some in Denmark.

Early Christmas decorations on a famous Danish landmark street in Copenhagen

 I read that the Christmas season in Denmark actually starts in October! As I look at pictures, I am fascinated by the Christmas decorations - lots of big red hearts! :)


Soro, Denmark

A few shows are scheduled in Soro. We'll also be shooting video footage around the lake in Soro.

I love this picture of Christmas time in Copenhagen! The Danish are supposedly the "happiest" people in the world! It's no wonder, look at all those bright & beautifully colored buildings, the lights, the hearts & the snow!

The Christmas Market in Copenhagen



Castle in Tivoli, Denmark

I'll be posting the Denmark tour itinerary soon & more pictures! Thanks for stopping by! :)