Join our family in the beautiful countryside of Akkerhaugen in Telemark, Norway

Details

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  Description

  About us
  
  Hi! We are Henriette (33) and Henning (34), and we recently bought our little piece of paradise in Akkerhaugen, Telemark, together with our three-year-old son Elian.
  
  Our two older boys, Nathaniel and Leon (15), also stay with us every other weekend, so our home can be anything from peaceful and quiet to full of boys, laughter and life. 😊
  
  We are a little outside the box as a family. We don't follow the conventional path just because it is the conventional path, and we enjoy exploring different ways of living, eating, learning and looking at the world.
  
  Henriette
  
  I am mostly at home at the moment and have been through a period of illness that has made me rethink many things about life, health and what is truly important to me.
  
  I have a strong interest in the human body, health and natural ways of supporting wellbeing, and I have spent many years learning about nutrition, herbs, the body and holistic health.
  
  I am also very spiritual and fascinated by consciousness, nature, energy and the connection between everything. More recently, I have started working with frequency-based technology and exploring the possibility of eventually working with people using frequency devices and other holistic approaches.
  
  I love learning, experimenting and following my curiosity.
  
  I am also a creative soul and have lots of projects I want to explore — DIY, art, sewing, making things for our home, and eventually learning to sew and knit our own clothes.
  
  Nature is probably where I feel most at home. I love picking mushrooms, finding wild herbs and plants, being outside, gardening, walking, swimming and simply noticing what is happening around me.
  
  And I absolutely love food. 😄 I make most of our food from scratch and eat a lot of fruit, vegetables, herbs and other plant foods. We are not strictly vegan, though, and we also eat eggs and some meat. When we eat meat, we prefer to know where it comes from and choose animals that have lived good lives whenever possible.
  
  We try to grow our food according to ecological and natural principles. In our garden, we want to work with nature rather than against it — no unnecessary chemicals or artificial treatments. Our long-term dream is to turn the garden into something a little wild, abundant and magical, with food, flowers, herbs, fruit, berries and life everywhere.
  
  Henning
  
  Henning works a regular 7–15 job during the week, so he is usually around in the afternoons and evenings and has more time available at weekends.
  
  He enjoys music, working around the house and garden, practical projects and spending time with the family. He has also recently decided that he wants to learn how to play the guitar. 🎸
  
  He especially loves playing with Elian, who is three years old and is happiest when he can be outside exploring, playing and getting involved in whatever is happening.
  
  Elian
  
  Elian is our three-year-old little ray of sunshine. He is happy, curious and loves to play — especially outdoors.
  
  He will probably be very interested in anyone who arrives here, and if you are willing to build a stick house, dig in the dirt, kick a ball around or go on an adventure in the garden, you may have made a new best friend.
  
  He attends preschool during the week, although our routines are not always completely fixed.
  
  We recently bought this property, and we are only just beginning to discover what we can create here.
  
  The garden is currently quite overgrown, so one of our biggest projects this autumn is to clear, restore and bring some life back into the garden and outdoor areas.
  
  But we don't just want to make it tidy.
  
  We want to make it magical.
  
  We dream of a garden full of food, herbs, flowers, fruit, berries, mushrooms, insects, birds and little hidden places. A place where you can walk around and constantly discover something new.
  
  There will be plenty of practical help involved in getting there, but we also want to have fun along the way.
  
  We enjoy working on things together, but we also love the simple parts of life: sitting around the fire outside, relaxing in the wood-fired hot tub, watching a movie, going for walks, swimming in the lake, listening to music, talking late into the evening or simply enjoying being together without having to do anything.
  
  We don't need every day to be productive.
  
  Sometimes the best day is just a beautiful day outside.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Help with Eco Projects

  Light gardening

  Creative DIY projects

  Babysitting and creative play

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house
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  Interests

  

  Movies & TV

  

  Sustainability

  

  Culture

  

  Events & social

  

  Self development

  

  Farming

  

  Music

  

  Plant care

  

  Writing

  

  Gardening

  

  Books

  

  DIY & crafts

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Art & design

  

  Yoga / Wellness

  

  Nature

  

  Outdoor activities

  

  Hiking

  

  Mountain

  

  Dancing

  

  Beach

  

  Camping
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  We love cultural exchange and see it as one of the most valuable parts of hosting.
  
  By staying with us, you get the opportunity to experience everyday life with a Norwegian family, rather than simply visiting Norway as a tourist. You can learn about Norwegian food, nature, traditions, family life and what it is like to live in the Norwegian countryside.
  
  At the same time, we genuinely want to learn from you. We love hearing about different cultures, ways of living, food, traditions, beliefs and perspectives on life. We can cook together, share stories, explore nature, have long conversations and teach each other things.
  
  We are open-minded and curious people, and we don't expect everyone to see the world the way we do. Differences are interesting to us.
  
  We especially enjoy the kind of cultural exchange where both people bring something to the table — your experiences, skills, traditions and perspective are just as valuable as what we can share with you.
  
  If you have a recipe, craft, skill, tradition, music, language or something completely different that you'd like to share, we'd love that.
  
  For us, the best Workaway experience isn't simply “you help us and we give you a place to stay.”
  
  It's people from different parts of the world sharing everyday life, learning from each other and hopefully leaving with a little more understanding of one another 🌍❤️

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  Projects involving children

  This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.

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  Help

  This autumn we mostly need help with things like:
  - Gardening and planting
  - Simple maintenance tasks around the property
  - Helping us with practical DIY projects
  - Sewing or other creative projects
  - Helping us turn some of our ideas into reality
  - Creating beautiful art arround the property
  
  You definitely don't need to know how to do everything. A willingness to learn, initiative and a good attitude are more important to us than experience.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Norwegian: Fluent

  This host offers a language exchange
  This host has indicated that they are interested in sharing their own language or learning a new language.
  You can contact them directly for more information.
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  Accommodation

  We can offer a private basement apartment as accommodation.
  
  The apartment has:
  
  * a bedroom with a bunk bed
  * a private bathroom
  * a fully equipped kitchen
  * a living room, which is mostly available to the Workawayer but is also used by us occasionally.
  
  The apartment gives you your own space and privacy, while still making it easy to join us upstairs whenever you feel like spending time together.
  
  There is one small family-life detail to be aware of: our two older children stay with us every other weekend. During those weekends, they use the bedroom in the basement.
  
  We are also preparing a separate room in an outdoor building on the property, which can be used as a bedroom and/or living space during these weekends. This means you can still have your own private space when the whole family is here. This will probably be too cold in the winter months.
  
  We will make sure your accommodation is clean, comfortable and ready for you when you arrive.
  
  We also have space for tents, a caravan / mobile home.
  
  You will have your own fully equipped kitchen where you can prepare your own meals and keep your own food.
  
  You are welcome to join us for meals when it happens naturally, but we do not expect shared meals on a daily basis. We eat everything.
  
  We value independence, and having your own kitchen means you can easily follow your own diet, cooking preferences and schedule.
  
  We think this works well for everyone: you have a comfortable place to stay and the freedom to make yourself at home, while we can focus our time together on the cultural exchange, outdoor projects and everyday life rather than on providing meals.

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  What else ...

  We live in the beautiful countryside of Akkerhaugen in Telemark.
  
  Although we live rurally, it is quite easy to get around. There are buses in the area, and the nearest train station is only about 10 minutes away by car. We can assist with some driving.
  
  Notodden is around 20 minutes by car, and Bø is also about 20 minutes away. From the train station, you can take a train to Skien, a larger city with plenty of shops, cafés, restaurants and things to explore. The journey takes around 40 minutes.
  
  There is also plenty to do closer to home. The area is surrounded by farms, forests, lakes and beautiful countryside, with lots of opportunities for hiking, exploring and enjoying nature.
  
  Telemark is a particularly beautiful part of Norway, with mountains, forests, water and traditional rural landscapes all around us. If you enjoy being outdoors, there is a lot to discover.

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Can host digital nomads

  This host has indicated that they love having digital nomads stay.

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  Space for parking camper vans

  This host can provide space for campervans.

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  Can possibly accept pets

  This host has said they are willing to accept those travelling with a pet.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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