Nordic walking

We've started doing nordic walking with my husband. Nordic walking is basically walking with poles. It's very popular here in Finland and it has spread from here very widely in the world. I like it very much while it's more effective than just walking, it's easy and a very simple way to improve your physics. And of course it's a good way to spend time with a hubby! Our walks last at least an hour and in that time we can talk together many things.

Nordic walking was developed into a fitness exercise with specific training equipment in co-operation with the Finnish sports equipment manufacturer Exel Oyj. Actually nordic walking poles has made it possible for the exel oyj to keep their factories open here in Finland. So if you decide to go for nordic walking choose poles from exel - the original walking pole maker from Finland! Exel has an office in 28 countries and well equiped sport stores should sell exel poles.

Knitting

On thing I love in holidays is the time you have to do stuff you don't normally have time to. I like knitting a lot. Now I found a new yarn from Novita called huopanen. The idea of the yarn is that you first knit what you want four times bigger that you want it to be and then you felt it in a washing mashing to the actual size. The outcome is anything but normal. It's thicker, stronger and warmer.

So during the christmas brake I knitted Viivi mittens out of huopanen. This is how the mittens looked before felting them. On background you can see our pet - cat I've knitted myself. Our other pet is around Viivi's neck. The snake is made of old socks. You know how the bottom wears out but the rest stays good. I decided to make those socks useful! Soon I'm going to do another one while we have a pile of old socks once again... I like recycling and making new of old materials! Actually i feel a little bit quilty if I throw something that might be useful to garbage can.

Now you see the mittens felted. Don't they look warm? I would like them to be little softer but Viivi thinks they are just perfect. Well, it was fun to make them and try jumbo knitting needles!

Epiphany

On Epiphany it's time to say goodbye to all the decorations and to the christmastree. We also light all the candles we have and vote for the best christmas card of the year. I've learned to love Epiphany day a lot. I enjoy the candles and when there are tens of them burning at the same time it's wonderful! Here are some pics of the candles

On Epiphany we also eat the gingerbreadhouse. Here's what's left off it:


Then we spread out all the christmas cards we got to the floor. We admire them for moment. Then we start choosing the best of the year. It's hard because christmas cards are so beautiful. There hasn't been a year we could have chosen only one. Last year we had to choose 4 best cards. This year there were three cards that wom our election. Here you can see them. Thank you for those who sent them to us! They brought us a special joy like all the christmas cards.

I keep all the christmas cards we get. I have a folder for them. it's nice to look at them every christmas time. Specially the hand made ones are so pretty and bring joy to me.

Now I want to wish all blessed year 2006! Hope that you enjoyed this christmas time and may the child of the christmas get a bigger part of your life this year!

Narnia

We went to see the movie of Narnia the other day. I really liked it. Even as a child I liked the book a lot. I think I read only the first one. The story is so good and the movie was very well made. My favourite was the sweet little Lucy and the mister Tumnus.

Five years ago Jonna got the book which has all the Narnia books in it as a christmas present. Juha started reading that to Jonna. Sometimes there was even a months gap in reading but it went on. It was very strict that I wasn't allowed to read it because Juha actually wanted to read it himself. It took them almost five years to get it read. In that time Jonna learned to read herself and she reads a lot. she has read all the Harry Potters and tons of other children's books. But she wasn't allowed to read Narnia herself because once again Juha wanted to read it too. Anyway they got it finished just before the movie came out. Talk about perfect timing!

Now Jonna started to read the book by herself and te speed is very different from the earlier. I think she'll get the first book read tomorrow. Narnia is worth seeing as a movie and also read as a book so go for it! Maybe I'll start reading it to Viivi so that I would get to read the other books too.

Triominos

Absolutely the best christmas present we got this year was the game called Triominos. It's like dominos but all the pawns or buttons are triangel shaped. It makes it much more interesting and challenging than dominos. We've been playing that a lot after christmas. We play it all together but many times after children's bed time we but on the radio and play it just the two of us. One thing we do differently than we are supposed to do. We don't count the points we play it just like domino.

When we lived in Colorado we had triominos there too. We loved playing it already then and I decided that we should have one in Finland too. It took almost ten years before I was able to find one from here (or actually before Santa had his helpers to make one for us :)).

I'm so glad that we now have triominos. I encourage every one of you to have one for yourselves too. It's so much more instructive, reasonable and enjoyable to spend time playing a good game than just staring the tv which I tend to do far to much on holidays.

By the way my brother has his own blog too. It's in Finnish but if you are an english speaker you might enjoy the pictures.

At the zoo

We have a year ticket to korkeasaari zoo. We go there every once in a while. Now we decided to pay the zoo a visit on christmas day. That's a good place to walk off all the extra you ate on christmas eve.

When we got there we found out that there was a special route for children in Korkeasaari for christmas time called the stable gnome's route. How I enjoyed it! As a daughter of an artist I can really appreciate things that demand imagination. I'm not sure if the kids enjoyed it as much as I did.

There were signs like this showing the route all the way around the island. Each one was different even though there were many of them. On the route there were also signs where the stable gnome or the girl gnome of the island told about some of the animals and how they have helped them. There were also few tasks for children to fill on a paper (like weighing animal horns, figuring out which hair goes to which animal). What I liked the most was the little scenes that had been built on the route showing the gnomes home, secret garden, kitchen, sauna etc. Look the pictures:

The girl gnome's kitchen

her secret garden
Indoors picture of the boat in which the stable gnome can go around the island

the stable gnome's forge shop

His sauna

The stable home
His skis.

At the end of the tour the girl gnome and the stable gnome had a fancy dinner at the zoo restaurant. The setting was beautiful but my camera's battery was already dead by that time.

I really like Korkeasaari. Most of it is outdoors but there are few houses too. I like walking there. In the summertime the garden looks beautiful and even in wintertime one can enjoy the good work of the gardenists. here is just one example.

Even though we visit Korkeasaari quite regurlarly there is always something new to see or experience. This time the male lion decided to play with our children fortunately through the glass. Exhibitions are quite big and well taken care of except for birds. I think they should have bigger exhibitions. Anyway I like it. And the stable gnome's route was such a special treat for me! Especially when the weather was just perfect. it snowing without wind big snowflakes. This picture is taken from the island towards the downtown Helsinki. Background you can see two ice-brakers waiting for their work season to come. girls enjoying the animal figures on the way to the zoo island.
Me and girls looking how teddy bears are in winter sleep in an very old bear cage. I'm wearing my favourite hat from Peru.

Merry Christmas

Christmas is here again! You can tell it when you smell the fir-tree when walking into your home, you see candles at people's windows, presents coming out of their bags and when you hear christmas carrols all over the places. It never dissapoints you but it comes every year bringing the hope to the world!

This year I've been thinking how tired Mary must have been on the first christmas after the long trip to Betlehem and even after got there in looking for a place to stay overnight all while being pregnant ready to give birth. Along the day she must have cried occasionally her tiredness and despair. I'm not sure if she remebered that she was carrying the Son of God in her. She might have been too tired to care for that. But she gave birth to Christ our Savior and those moments of despair changed into the night of the miracles after miracles, into the night that generations after generations would remember! All along God had been with Mary and Joseph making the divine plan come true. Mary just didn't feel it or even believe it.

I've felt it this December. I don't remember being this tired ever in my life. I haven't been able to concentrate to the real meaning of christmas. I've been too busy with my work and all the concerts, events, reports etc. which come along with my work in December. I've just been walking this road step by step towards the christmas doing all the things I've had to do. On the road I lost my belief for the fact that God cares for me and carries me in my moments of despair. But just like for Mary the real christmas came to me too. I can see it in the eyes of our children, in the flame of the candle, in all the decorations and most of all I can feel it in my soul. CHRIST WAS BORN! It's time to celebrate it.

I can't even imagine what my life would be without the first christmas. I'm so happy that God changed Mary's wearyness into the joy to the world. And He did it to me, too. I hope you all can experience the secret of christmas in your life!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU!

PS. This year I didn't send any christmas cards. With that money I planted a real christmas tree in Peru hoping that it will bring joy to the family in need with its fruit.

Christmas is coming

Angels and elves have found their way to our home once again! I love Christmas time! In decoration I like using self made little things, nothing fancy. Smaller elves on teh picture have been made by my grandmother and the others are made by some craftsman from Imatra. The christmas angel is a gif from my pupil.

Christmas time means also delicatessen and in order to have those one should either make them or bake them. I prefer baking myself. It's a good way of spending time with children and of course you get the scent of the christmas. In Finland the most common things you bake for christmas are gingersnaps and Finnish Christmas pies. I love the pies. We eat them only in christmas time. There is a picture of me making them and a picture of them already baked here.













Mother's enthusiastic helpers.


One thing is a tradition at our family. We don't make gingerbead house but we make a gingerbread creche. I want to remember and remind others that christmas is a christian event. Here is our creche.

It would be nice to hear what kind of delicacies are been made all over the world. Please, let me know! I will appreciate the recipies too.

Christmas means presents too. I love giving presents. I would love to give everyone selfmade present but I don't have enough time for making them. This year I've knitted few stocks. A Finnish company Novita has created a yarn that has stripes in it. It helps a lot when you don't have to change the yarn in order to get the stripes. So you get good looking stocks easily. Take a look!

There are still 6 more nights till christmas eve which is the biggest of the christmas days here in Finland. So plenty to do still. Blessings to your preparations!

Our Independence Day

The 6th of December is the independence day of Finland. We got our independence 88 years ago in 1917. It is very dear to us while we still have about 100 000 war veterans living among us and reminding us what it has taken in order to keep our independence during the second world war. There were three different wars is Finland that time The Winter War (30.11.1939 - 13.3.1940), The Continuation War (26th June 1941 - 5th September 1944) and the Lapland War (15.9.1944- 27.4.1945). As I have told earlier that my grandparents met in war and I wouldn't exist without the war. My father was only three months old when he and his family had to flee the lapland war. So the war still is affecting our lives.

At school we always have a special celebration around the independence Day (the actual day we don't have school, stores are closed etc.). In the morning we gathered around the flag pole. Two pupils lifted the flag and then we sang Siniristilippumme, our flag song, accompanied by three trumpets. In the afternoon we had independence ceremony indoors. It started with the entrance of the flag. Everyone standing and a string band played Sibelius. Then it was the turn of my brass band and we played a song called Blue and White, Sininen ja valkoinen as the colours of our flag. One eigth grader gave a speech the ninth graders performed Nocturne which is one of the most loved poems by Eino Leino. At the end we sang our national hymn, Maamme-laulu. The ceremony was beautiful and solemn, the gymnastic hall was decorated very elecantly and the athmosphere was dignified.

We Finns celebrate our independence burning these blue and white candles, enjoying the day off work, attending some ceremons by war veterans and mostly we watch the big gala from our president's castle from tv (unless you are invited which is a big dream of every little girl - and maybe older one too - in Finland). Among the guest there are of course our parlament, administration, highest government officials, diplomats working in Finland, bunch of famous Finns etc. Of course they are all dressed up very fancy and we normal people get to critisize the costumes or enjoy them. Most of the magazines publish pictures of the guests afterwards. There is even a fashion commentetor present in the castle and he or she explains the dresses and the designers behind the dresses. Now I have to brag that few of the dresses designed by my childhood friend has been in the castle. If she keeps it going maybe she will be invited in herself some day! Marita Huurinainen is one of the top young designers in Finland.

Well when guests in castle wear the modern costumes people in other celebrations wear national costumes if they happen to own one. Here are our vice principal and music teacher in their costumes. Every region has their own kind of costume. I wish some day I can afford to have one too.

Now I'm going to enjoy the blue and white candles, our very own culture in many forms and the very needed day off.

Eventually we got snow

This weekend has been very special to me. The biggest reason is that I don't remember when I've had a weekend without any plans or events. That's the biggest reason I haven't been blogging for a while. I haven't had the time. It's been very interesting fall but just a little bit too busy.

Now I feel relaxed after just staying at home the whole weekend. Well, yesterday we went bowling with the youngster to whom we are a supporting family but that doesn't count. It definately was relaxing too even though Viivi had some tears while she got frustrated of not being able to get the ball to the end of the line. With a little help from mum she was able to get 16 points and a better mood.

Last weekend is a good example of far too busy one. Friday night we had a christmas party with our working place. This year our theme was future and I dressed like an alien. on Saturday night we sang at one other christmas party with our singing group from our work. There are 5 of us and we sing a cappella and everyone has their own tune. That's challenging but also very refreshing and definately the most important hobby for me. On Sunday we had a performance with our King's Kids team on church's event for children. I enjoyed all of the things that happened during the weekend but wasn't able to relax at all.

This weekend turned out to be almost perfect when we got the snow. We made a long walk with my husband and took some pictures od our neighbourhood dressed in white.

This is the pisture of the little stream that flows right on our back yard. I love watching it no matter what time of the year it is but today I really enjoyed it. When I bycicle to school I ride along this stream at the beginning.

This is how the field where we picked sun flowers in August looks now. On the other side of the field you can see people walking. We use that road when we bycicle to my sister's home. We haven't been bycicling for two months already but we do that a lot during spring, fall and summer.

I'm glad I now had the time to create a new post to my blog after while. I hope I will find more time for it in the future. One other thing I did this weekend after many months was knitting. I knitted wollen socks for Jonna. I love knitting. Today I'm going to start knitting socks for Viivi too. Maybe some of god children will get wollen socks too. By the way we got a new sponsor child through Plan from on the slums in Lima, Peru. She is a five-year-old little girl named Araceli. I also started Spanish lessons while after visiting in Peru I wanted to learn to speak the language.

Plan got 3000 new sponsors for the children in need all over the world after the Plan Ilta Lapselle -gala night. It was a wierd experience to sea myself in the tv. It brought back lot of memories! I've decided to do more for the poor children in the world. This christmas we are going to buy christmas presents that profit some organisation which helps espacially children in development countries. We started it by adopting 5 dolls through Unicef. We will give those dolls as christmas presents.

Anyway relaxing christmas time to all of you who still find it to my blogg after such a big break!

In the middle of nowhere - still just 30 minutes away from Helsinki downtown

Last weekend we spent a night in small cottage with my sister's family. My sister's husband gets to hire the cabin through his work and we've been there several times. It's situated close to a conservation area so the place is peaceful and the landscape is wonderful as you can see.

Children like the place a lot too. Even though they can't swim there (the only down side of the place) because of the shallow and muddy bed of the sea they enjoy the water in many ways. They throw stones into it, feed the fish etc. Sometimes we go rowing on a boat. We didn't do that this time.
Almost everything happens outside. The food is made there too on an open fire. That's a special treat for us who can't normally do that in town. I love the fire and would love to get a fire place at home some day. I could stare at the fire for ages...

On summertime we even eat outdoors but at this time of the year we decided to eat indoors.














After dinner we went t sauna. It was already dark. It was so nice to go outside to cool off a little and see all the stars. There was no worrying that someone might see us there all naked. We had sauna turns for women and men. The sauna is heated with wood which is the only real way of doing it. The heat is smoother and moisture that way.
The next day we got company. Juha's cousin Jaana and her son Jonni came for a visit. They stayed there for the next night. Jonni is 3 years old and Juha's sponsor child. He is cutie
So on lunch we had a full house. I love that! I would love to have many children and I always enjoy the small ones around me. Well, it was a noisy lunch because the cousins had so much to tell everyone.


Jonna is peeking out of the door. She is still wearing a pyjamas at noon because she loves to read and that's what she did all morning.

Viivi in her sleeping back. She really loved to play with the sleeping back. She would hop around with it, roll in it etc.





Miska is a happy fellow. He will turn 4 in November.

Joonas is five. It was almost impossible to get a picture of him. He was busy doing his own stuff all the time and his so quick in his movements.






Here is my beloved husband - the modern Viking!

And his wife...