A Lovely Year In Review

And then it was the last day of 2012. The world didn't go under, and tonight we party and drink champagne (cider for me, as always). Yes, 2012 is almost over, and what a year it has been. Where does the time go, I wonder? Well, let's have a look then!

The start of the new year started great. Back in January I had my 60's craze, and there were quite a lot of outfits at the blog. Also in January, I won tickets to a private hearing of Spleen Uniteds new album at the Planetary in Copenhagen. I went with my oldest friend, Sofie. The two of us have always been crazy about Spleen United.  

When February arrived, I was still crazy about the 60's. I also got my Klean Kanteen, which was a very great buy, as I use it every day. I also got my passport renewed for a trip to Berlin with my History class - unfortunately, the trip never happened.

March held a lot of great things for me. My style turned a bit more Hippie at times, Spring was slowly beginning to show it's pretty face, I wrote my 350'th post and I celebrated 1 year sober.

In April I remembered my love for Rocakbilly like clothes and started to wear my leather jacket and red lipstick again. I also got a haircut (my hair sure was short back then) in Sweden, and I slowly started getting ready for exams. 

May bid me sun, exam studying and then, by "mistake" I ordered a backback from Lazy Oaf, which I never again used. 50 pounds lighter, but still a pretty good month. I also spent some time studying for my exams in Sweden.

In June I went to my exams - which I luckily passed - and I had fun with the gang, drinking coffee and chilled tea in the summer sun. I did a few Tutorials and I also did my first YumYum post.

A lot of things happened in July. I enjoyed the Summer with friends and girlfriends. I had a summer party for the gang, where we enjoyed ourselves outside in the summer sun. I went to Sweden with my parents. And also, around that time the blog started changing a bit from almost only outfit posts, to more and more posts about my home.

August started out with a big Burlesque party in Copenhagen, which I attended with Marie and a couple of other girls. I also bleached my teeth, and the school also started in August, which meant 5 months of battling with Chemistry. 

In September I celebrated my birthday with Marie and Maria. I made myself a lot of home made apple iced tea. I also attended a meeting about the buses in Roskilde and lastly, I watched the weather change from Summer to Fall.

In October I did a lot of posts about my home and purchases for my home. I also spent some vacation time in Sweden with my parents, and continued on struggling with Chem at school. 

At the start of November I had a Halloween party for the gang. I also watched Twilight with Maria at the movies. And then the weather really started getting cold, so it was the start of a season of warm clothes.

And finally December. I went all out with celebrating the Christmas season. I was also at my Chemistry exam, and unfortunately failed, which I still quite haven't gotten over. Finally I celebrated Christmas with my parents in Sweden.

Who knows what 2013 has in store for all of us? 

I just hope next year will be as great as this one was.

Happy New Year everybody :)

Sunday Summary

Suddenly it was there, and then almost as - if not even more suddenly - it was gone. Yes, I'm talking about Christmas. I'm a sucker for Christmas, I just can't help it - I love it! I love it all; from Christmas trees to red candles and a nice cup of cinnamon tea. Christmas just isn't long enough for me, and for all of us, it ended at some point this week. But life goes on, and here we stand - another week has come and gone :)
Yes, Monday was Christmas day - and eve, for many of us. I had such a lovely Christmas with my parents in the Swedish country house. The day started with a nice breakfast, and the rest of the day was spent decorating our Christmas tree, listening to Christmas music, watching Christmas TV and movies - and Disney's Christmas Special of course. The Christmas dinner was so delicious and lovely; I could eat that kind of food all day all the time, haha. Then it was time for presents. Even though my family and I had decided on no presents this year, there were still loads of presents under the tree. I got a lot of nice presents - my iPhone of course, and then some money and gift certificates, a little makeup and a lovely bottle of perfume. All wonderful gifts, and I think my mum and dad liked their presents as well.
Then it was time for the traditional Risalamande dessert, and then we laughed our asses off to a wonderful old Danish movie. All in all it was the perfect Christmas!

And then came Tuesday. We stayed in and enjoyed ourselves with lovely food and the pleasure of each others company. To be honest, I actually don't think I did much that day. It was just a total relaxing day after a lovely Christmas.

Wednesday we were supposed to go to Växjö to do a little post-Christmas shopping, but unfortunately we had to cancel the trip. I had such a painful toothache that I couldn't do much than just sleep and sleep and sleep. I woke up at around 3 o'clock and were rather "drugged up" haha - well, not really. I'd taken a couple of painkillers, but they really did the trick. After 16 hours of sleep I woke up refreshed (how could I be anything else, haha?) and fairly okay. I spent the day relaxing even more, and just watched a lot of The Simpsons, drank gallons of tea and coffee and in general, just had a lovely evening.

And then it was time for that Växjö trip. Thursday I felt okay, and so after a quick breakfast it was "on with the boots, back out in the snow" for a drive to the town. Our first stop (among many) was actually the Linné University in Växjö, which we drove by per my request. Now it's still only thoughts, but I'm seriously considering going to university in Sweden, and the Linné University in Växjö really has a nice campus and great courses. I still have about a year to figure it out, but I figured it couldn't hurt to have a quick drive-by and have a look.
After that, we went to what felt like every retail store in Växjö, but at least my parents found lots of things they needed - and didn't need, haha - and after a couple of hours we drove to the mall, where I got some nice sets of underwear. Lovely!

Friday, all the fun and games were over - well, not really. But I had a lot of German homework which needed to be done. As you know, I prefer to do my German homework while I'm up here, so that it's done and over. This time, however, I left it on the desk for a little too long, so it was really annoying to get started. Luckily it wasn't as bad as I'd thought, and I only spent a couple of hours on it. I didn't get it all done Friday, so I saved the last for Saturday and then just - yes, you guessed it - relaxed and enjoyed myself. I know I sound like the biggest slacker, which I guess I am, haha. But I mean, come on, if you can't relax between Christmas and New Years, when you actually do have vacation, when can you? ;)

But ah well, Saturday was spent with my head in the books and texts, where I didn't manage to get the homework done. I worked and worked and worked for hours, but for some strange reason, German just seemed a lot harder than usual. So no, I didn't get it done, so that's what I'm going to do today. Today it MUST be done, haha.

So yes, Christmas was here, and now it's gone.

Tomorrow's New Years, which I'm celebrating very low key with my mum and dad.

We're driving home the day after tomorrow, so I don't think we're going to stay up all night.

None the less it's gonna be a nice day - and the last day of 2012!

Kinda crazy, but that's how it goes I guess :)

Sunday Summary

♥ Hey Christmas elves, and a very merry Christmas to you all!
First of all, as you might notice, the Sunday Summary is very late today. Normally I write my Sunday Summaries on Saturday nights, but last night I just had such a lovely and cozy time here in the Swedish house. But I'll get to that ;) So let's get started, shall we?

♥ The start of this week was very uneventful. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I didn't do much but watch Christmas movies and calenders, clean a bit and otherwise get ready for Christmas. I coloured my hair, by the way, as you can see in the new Sunday Summary picture below :)

♥ It wasn't until Thursday that something happened. I had a movie date with Maria and Kasper - we were gonna see The Hobbit. Kasper came to my place at around 5, but it turned out that Maria was running late, so in stead of us driving in her car to Ro's Kino, Kasper and I put on our winter boots and walked to Ro's Torv. We picked up our tickets, and then found a restaurant where we ate "All you can eat Deep Pan Pizza" - and boy did we eat, haha. Maria came at around 7, and we had the time for a quick smoke before the movie started. I've really looked forward to seeing The Hobbit - I was never all that crazy about The Lord Of The Ring movies, but I did like them none the less. However, 10 minutes in, The Hobbit sure wasn't my favorite movie. I found myself being quite bored, and therefore it was probably 3 of the longest hours of my life, haha. Anyway, it was the first 3D movie I've ever seen, and I was quite impressed. It wasn't that the movie was bad, it was just very long. None the less, the 3 hours of hobbit adventure came and went, and when the movie was over it was 11 o'clock. Maria, Kasper and I drove back to my place for a cup of tea and movie talk, and after about an hour they left again.

♥ There were, however, not time to sleep in the morning after. Friday morning my mum came by, and we ate a nice breakfast before visiting my grandmum. We spent some nice hours together, and when it was time to get our things and take the bus to town, my mum decided to spring for coffee and a piece of pie at my favourite café. My aunt stopped by, so me, my mum, my grandmum and my aunt spent about an hour or so having a nice chat and eating delicious pie.
Then it was time for me and my mum to take the train to Copenhagen, where we met up with my dad. Together we began the journey from Denmark to the country house in Sweden. It's a long drive, but me and my dad managed to split the drive between us, so both of us could get some sleep along the way.
We arrived at the house at around 9.30, and after all the things that need to be done, were done, I made a pot of coffee and watched some Christmas television before heading to bed at around 1 in the morning.

♥ Saturday was lovely. I woke up to an absolutely wonderful and Christmasy snowy weather outside. We have loads of snow up here, so I'm planning on going skiing tomorrow. Anyway, Saturday were spent both outside and inside. After a quick breakfast, I went outside to shovel snow for an hour or so. Then I went inside and watched some Christmas television, and in the evening me, my mum and my dad played games on our iPhones and iPads. I introduced my parents to a Danish knowledge game called Quiz Battle, and now they're quite obsessed with it, haha. It's a bit funny actually.
After my parents went to bed, I stayed up for a couple more hours and Skyped with Kasper. I ended up going to bed at around 4 in the morning, and that's why...

♥ ... this Sunday Summary is so late today. You see, I slept in this morning - way in! I woke up at 2 o'clock, and then after a quick "breakfast" I took a shower. But taking a shower up here ain't as easy as it sounds. We don't have running water in the old home stead, so everything takes that much longer. However I don't mind; it's part of it's charm. So taking a shower, washing my hair and then putting on makeup took a fair few hours - two, to be exact.
We've just eaten æbleskiver - a Danish Christmas tradition - and had lovely cups of Christmas tea. And now I'm here. An old Christmas calender is on the telly, and I'm having a nice cup o' joe by the fireplace. Tomorrow it's Christmas, and I can't wait for all of the delicious food and pressies haha.

Now I'll have a sip if my coffee, then I'll put on my winter boots and jacket,

and then I will go for a nice walk in the freezing cold.

Have a lovely and happy Sunday everybody ♥

Winter Windows Of Opportunity

My mum is like me when it comes to decorating the home, and even more so when it comes to decorating the home for the Christmas season.
That's why I really liked to show you our windows up here in the Swedish house by the countryside.
We came yesterday, but when we started driving it had already turned dark.
So I squealed like a little girl this morning, when I looked out the window and saw all the Christmas snow.
Christmas sure is on it's way ❥

Five Favorite Finds This Year - Both Horizontal and Vertical

The first favourite find this year is my - still new, in my eyes - couch, 

which I'm sososo happy I saved up for... well, and also got from mum and dad, haha. 

Anyway, the couch has made my before very "college room" to an actual apartment. 

I lovelovelove it, and I think it was probably the best buy of the year!

Favourite find number two is this keepsake board, which I was in love with from the moment I saw it at ModCloth. 

Unfortunately it ended up costing me a pretty penny, since my parcel was taken through customs. 

Still, I look at it every day and can't help of feel that it was worth it.

 Third favourite find of the year is this IKEA bookcase, which was really cheap, a bitch to assemble 

and now displays some of my favourite books oh-so-lovely and nice.

Worth every penny!

I can't help it; I'm a sucker for retro themed things I can display in my apartment. 

That's why these cans (and actually many more around my place) are my fourth favourite finds from this year. 

Last but not least; my new best friend. Well, not really, but it's pretty close :)

I can't take credit for the iPhone; my mum and dad got it for me as my Christmas present. 

I'm new to Apple, but I'm already addicted to Instagram, Draw omething, Song Pop and what have you. 

The "find" in this picture, however, is all me. Much like the keepsake board from above, I found this ultra cool cover at ModCloth. 

It's super pretty, feels good to hold and protects my iPhone.

A big shout-out to Samantha Fae for telling me about a new photo editing website,

when I was in total distress over PicMonkey now wanting money for editing photos at their site.

Thanks Samantha! If any of you know of another great (and free) photo editing site,

please let me know and I'll send you a webbie-hug and flash you a bright and big smile :)

Sunday Summary

♥ There's been up's and down's this week - luckily most of the days have been one big happy up, if you don't count Monday.
You see, for about 6 months now I've been taking chemistry as a subject at school, and Monday it was finally the time for the final exam. It's no secret I've been struggling with chem from day one, but this last month I've really begun to understand the subject. And so I went to school for the exam in good spirits. Well, long story short, it really did not go as I expected - at all. I never counted on an A, but I did, however, think I was going to pass the exam. Unfortunately I didn't, which was a bit of a shocker. I was a bit down when I called Maria and my parents with the news, but luckily the day ended on a happy note. Kasper and I took the bus home to my place where we drank big cups of Christmas tea, listened to Christmas music and went out to play in the snow. So even though it sucked with that stupid exam, I ended up having a lovely day.

♥ Tuesday I'd planned on sleeping in and just relax and enjoy the first day of my Christmas vacation. In stead my mum called and asked me if I could escort her to hospital. Nothing serious, but she figured she might need a hand to get home. I met up with her at the train station, and so we took the train to Ringkøbing and went to the hospital so my mum could have her knee looked at. Everything went fine, so we went to the local mall and looked around for a bit, before my dad came and picked us up. They asked me if I'd like to come home for a couple of days and of course I said yes right away.

♥ So I spent the next couple of days in Nykøbing Falster at my mum and dad's house. Wednesday my mum and I stayed in and enjoyed ourselves, and Tuesday we took a stroll through "my old hood" (aka hick town, haha) and had a cup o' joe at a small café I used to visit all the time when I lived at home.
Further more, when I was back home for a few days, my mum and dad gave me my Christmas present early this year. Can you believe this; they'd bought me a brand new iPhone! I actually used to be a major Apple hater, but this past year I've really come to see how great iPhones and iPads are. And so my dear, sweet parents thought I should be able to play "Draw Something" and "Song Pop", share photos via Instagram and enjoy the rest that comes with an iPhone.
Mum, dad - I love you, haha :)

♥ Friday my parents went to work, but dropped me off in Roskilde first. My parents live in the southern Denmark, but work in Copenhagen, so every day they spend two hours driving both to and from work. That meant I had to get up at 5, which usually would not be something I'm good at. But it was no problem this Friday. After a long drive, we were in Roskilde at 7 in the morning, and in stead of sleeping for a bit, I chose to stay up and get a lot of things done. It was nice to have a day all to myself and just relax a bit, but I actually ended up being a bit bored by the end of the day. Luckily Kasper cured my boredom, and we Skyped for 7 hours that night. I ended up going to bed at 4 in the morning, and boy was I tired the next day.

♥ So I slept in Saturday. Like, really slept in. I woke up at half past 1, and just relaxed a bit, before going to my grandma's to see her, my aunt, my sister and my niece. It's been so long since I've seen my sister and niece, so it was absolutely delightful to just sit on the floor and play with puzzles and teddy bears with Selma, while "the grownups" had their coffee and tea :)

Today I think I'll do a bit of cleaning and watch some Christmas movies.

It's going to be a nice and quiet day, and I hope yours will be too.

Have a lovely Sunday gang!

Here's a photo from Instagram. 

If you wanna follow me, you can find me under the name NATMADELEINE

Hjemmelavet Chili Snaps

If you're wondering what the title of this post means, it says "Home Made Chili Schnapps".
Last week I found a nice recipe for making home made schnapps with chili and brown sugar.
I don't drink, but I thought it would be fun to make and also would be a great extra Chrostmas gift for my parents.
Here's what you do:
(You can also do this with Vodka)

❖ Pour the schnapps (or vodka) in a big, clean jar or glass bottle.
Make sure there's enough room so you can add the ingredients and the alcohol won't pour over the edge.

❖ Take two chili peppers and cut them all the way through. Then remove the seeds.
Now drop the chili into the alcohol. (If you want it extra hot then add more chili peppers.)

❖ Now take two small cups of brown sugar and add that to the mix.

❖ Now close the jar or bottle very tight and put it somewhere dark - for example the fridge or somewhere chilled.  

❖ Let the mix of alcohol, chili and sugar do it's own thing for 4-7 days.

❖ After about a week, you should shake the jar or bottle for about a minute so the last sugar mixes with the rest.
Then filter out the chilis and pour the mix in a new, nice and clean bottle.

❖ For the last finishing touch, add one last whole and uncut chili to the mix.
Put a nice label on it and maybe a bow, and wupti-la-di-da; you have a nice and cheap home made present for someone you love.

Life Lately.

Okay, so here's what's been happening today:
I got up at 7 o'clock and got ready for my Chem exam. As I got to school, I was actually okay. But ah, how things change fast, don't they?
The first couple of people did pretty good at their exams, but then we got some unsettling news, which made me sososo nervous.
When it was finally my time to draw a question, I actually felt okay about it. But after preparing for 20 minutes my exam started, and I bombed !
Long story short, I actually failed the exam. Oh how I hate Chem!
BUT the day has actually been pretty amazing since then. Kasper and I went home to my place where we drank Christmas tea, ate baked goods and went outside by the frozen lake, where we had a snowball fight. Ah how I've missed throwing snowballs and (trying to) build snowmen.
Yes I failed Chem, which still annoys me tremendously. But the day has been awesome and funny since that stupid exam.
Now I will look forward to Christmas and just forget everything and all about Chem, haha.

I hope you've all had a lovely day. Treat yourself to a snowball fight or building a snowman - it really brightens up your day :) 

Me and Kasper had so much fun today :)

Oh, The Weather Outside Is Frightful

We have a snowstorm in Roskilde today. 

This is how it looks outside of my window...

Sunday Summary

♥ What a fantastic start of December it has been. Last weekend I woke up to a white Christmas, and since last Saturday, the snow has just kept coming. I'm in a very Christmasy mood, but alas, it's not all fun and games. Tomorrow I have my Chem exam, which I'm super nervous about.
That's why I stayed home on Monday. I was supposed to go to Psychology Monday and Friday, but both times I stayed home and worked on the Chem exam questions.

♥ Tuesday, however, was the very last morning coffee date with Maria - ever! Well, not exactly ever, but it was the last time we had a coffee date before going to class together. Since Chem is officially over (if I pass of course) on Monday, Maria, Kasper and I won't have any classes together anymore. It's going to be very weird going to school and not see them. However, the coffee dates with Maria will carry on - at least for another 6 months anyway.
After some reminiscing and coffee, Maria and I went to school, where we went through the exam questions in Chem. I started freaking out a bit, and so after a quick stroll round town with a friend from Chem, I went home and wokedworkedworked on my exam questions till I was blue in the face.

♥ Thursday I got up early and, for the first time this winter, I had to take the bus. It was freezing cold outside and snow everywhere, and of course the bus was 25 minutes late. I ended up getting very cold and was late to class. Fortunately many people came in late because of the snow, and time in class was spent with assignments, questions and fun in the breaks.
After class, Maria, Kasper and I had a Chem-date. So we drove home to my place where I made coffee, tea and served Christmas cookies. We went over Chem fairly quickly, and ended up just chatting and having a blast.

♥ Friday and Saturday were spent in a nervous state of mind. I've been switching between being totally nervous and shaking because of tomorrows exam, and then at rare moments being very calm. I don't quite know how I feel about the exam tomorrow. I'm very well prepared and know I'm not going to fail, but I also know that I certainly won't get an A. Now it just has to be tomorrow at 12 o'clock - then it's all over, and I can go on Christmas vacation with a clean concious.

Wish me luck tomorrow! ♥

Christmas Candles

Sunday Summary

♥ Finally I got back to blogging again - it's not like I've been blogging every day, but it has come to a post or two (3 to be exact) this week.
Anyway, let's start at the beginning. Monday felt a bit ill and I accidentally overslept and missed Psychology. In stead I worked on some exam questions for Chem, and then just relaxed a bit. And then suddenly, the day was over.

♥ Tuesday, however, a bit more happened. Maria came by in the morning for coffee, ciggys and a chat, and then we were off to school. Chem was actually pretty all right; we talked about the exam and went through some experiments which we need to include in the exam. After school was over, Maria drove me and Kasper home - Maria couldn't stay, but Kasper and I enjoyed cups of tea and shared a lot of laughs. We also went down to the basement so Kasper could see my gym. It's lovely to have a work-out-friend who I can compare (and compete) with.

♥ Thursday I woke early, got ready and then drove to school. Once again, Chem was pretty all right. Like Tuesday, we went through the exam and did some more experiments. After school ended, Kasper and I took a stroll round town and enjoyed ourselves. We ended up freezing a lot because we had to see a flash mob some guys from our school did. It wasn't all that great, not at all like the fantastic ones you see on Youtube. But then again, it's always better to try then not to try at all.
When I got home I worked some more on my Chem exam questions, and then enjoyed the rest of the night with endless cups of tea.

♥ Friday I went to Psychology, which was okay. Not so much to say about that. But it did start snowing, and that just put me in such a Christmasy mood. After running a few errands in town, I went home and decorated my apartment with a lot of holiday joy, and then...

♥ ... Suddenly it was the 1st of December. I woke pretty early for a Saturday, but it was so lovely to look out the window and see a thin layer of snow on the ground. It was almost like the weather knew Christmas had come to town :) I spend yesterday drinking coffee and tea, listening to Christmas music and watching Christmas movies. I also rode my bike to town and bought a few Christmas gifts - and a lovely big pink teacup for myself. In the evening I watched the Christmas television calendars on TV, which is always a great tradition for me. I've been watching Danish Christmas calendars ever since I was a little girl, however the last couple of years, the new, non re-runned shows just seem to get worse and worse. I remember as a child, the songs were comfy and all about Christmas, there was always snow, and it all just seemed more... well, child appropriate. I guess I'm getting old, cause it sure ain't like the good old days any more. But still, now it's Christmas and I'm filled with joy and happiness, so none of that really bother me any more :)

So that was my life this week. Lovely week, and now December has arrived.

However, I'll bet that next Sunday I won't be as cheery and cheeky, since my Chem exam is next Monday. But all in good time. Now I'll have a cup of Cnady Cane Lane tea

and enjoy the rest of this lovely Sunday.

Here's a picture Kasper took of me Thursday. 

I loved wearing a hoodie - I need to start doing that more ;)

It's That Time Of Year Again, And It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

This is what it looked like last night, when I looked out the window...

... and this is what it looked like this morning. 

Such a lovely Christmas treat ❤

Why I'm Exited For The Holidays!

Seeing as it's December tomorrow - and by the way, how crazy is that? - I thought I would dedicate this late night Friday post to things I'm looking forward this very merry season.

1. I'm sososo looking forward to and hoping for a white Christmas. I hope for snow every day all day 

(except for when I'm out!)

2. It's a family tradition that my mum makes me an advent calendar every year. 

I can't wait to wake up to a new gift every day for the next 24 days.

3. I love buying and wrapping presents. 

Already bought my parents gifts today :)

4. These winter times are cold, so I can't wait to curl up on my couch with 

a cup of tea and a bunch of candles lit.

5. I love baking, but unfortunately I don't have a big oven.

If I had, I would bake cookies all day long. 

These Christmas sugar cookies look delicious. 

6. And finally: What's Christmas without a classic Christmas movie after a long day? 

These are my favourites, and I watch them at least once every Christmas. 

The one in the top right corner is this years Christmas calendar on Danish TV. 

I've seen it a couple of years back, but it'll sure be nice to watch it again :)