Day 258.

DD had a friend stay overnight, they ate goodies, went to the playground, had dinner and giggled in the sauna, in the shower, in the toilet, in the bedroom....but they had tons of fun and were sad to say bye for now at 2 pm.

Aksu the Cat went for a little walk and saw birdies. Can you spot them in the photo? Afterwards he was sooo tired....hard work all this birdwatching.

Day 257.

DD had morning practise and her new lovely skates hurt her ankles like hell. It takes time before they will be one, the girl and the skates.

Cleaning and hanging pictures and doing  a bit of this and that around the house. DD has a friend staying overnight, so a lot of giggles, too.

And thank you S-market in the center of town -- they now sell Bionade, our favourite drink! That and my stash of library books will guarantee a lovely weekend.

Day 256.

So I made 36 miniature pizzas yesterday. Wow. And this morning I packed DD a snack box that should bring me the mother of the year award. They had a competition (unofficial among the girls) of who would bring the best snack and this is what DD wanted and got. For the past two years she has been eating rye bread, cheese and bellpeppers for snack so this made a bit of a change to that routine. Needless to say, she won. Love the fact that she was overly happy about getting 8 chips in her snack box!

Day 255.

A busy day running about: coffee in town at 8 am, then off to the bus station to pick up DD's skate blades (finally the right ones), then off to the other side of town to drop the skates and the blades off to a guy who puts them together, shopping at Lidl and back home to bake miniature pizzas. In the evening,  volunteer duty at the Martta center telling about the new Fair Trade campaign. The ladies had some made some lovely breakfast suggestions using all sorts of Fair Trade products.

Day 254.

DD's phone died. Of course most of the contacts were saved in the phone and not on the sim card. Oh well. She took first my old E70 and then later on switched on to her own old one. We have a substantial collection of old crappy Nokia phones.

We painted one of the living room walls partly yellow. DH did the actual painting. I offered support and encouragement from a distance (from the sofa).

Days 252-253.

I have no idea where all the time goes around here, probably sneezing and applying eye drops, because allergy season is here!

Yesterday I started hoovering the books and organising the shelves, as they are partly emptied because of the painting that has also been going on. In the evening, we had a Martta thing, with a friend and I giving a presentation and tasting of different kinds of waters. Good fun.

Today the day has not cleared, rain and mist and misery. I had a hair dresser's appoint resulting in very red hair and some red scalp, too. I hope the colour does come off the skin like she promised it would.

DD had her school and swim jumps and then went back to the school for a disco. We are now expecting her to return tired but hopefully happy.

Days 250-251.

Oh, dear. On Sat. we worked on the living room wall, or DH did. I was on standby, with a horribly runny nose. DD and I went to the movies, saw Dr Seuss' Lorax. All about saving the trees. On Sunday we took DD's old bed apart and put in the new one. And she sorted out stuff into trash, donations and keeps. Donations were more than I would have expected so well done!

Day 249.

Spent most of the day sorting out stuff in DD's room and the walk-in closet we share. My god. Have now 6 bags of stuff to be donated and a huge bag of trash. Will this never end?!

Day 248 - or why I wear safety shoes around the house.

Ah, things are getting wild in here! This week, we (read DH with me standing next to him in case he needs help) have plastered walls, sandpapered walls and painted walls. More to come. We have also bought two beds (getting rid of the old ones which DH built and which have only one prob -- they weight around 200 kilos and cannot be moved about), and sorted out endless amounts of stuff, including DD's little pets and barbies.  At the moment, nothing is finalised and everything is pretty much all over the floors. So I wear safety shoes. Just to be safe.

SPRING SALE -- craft supplies.

Check them out now.

Days 245-247.

Ooh, busy week! Meetings, stripping walls, running errands, organising an event for Martat, a science communication seminar....but all good. Except for the snow that keeps coming back. And back. The house is a nightmare with furniture and machinery all over the place, but I have faith. All good.

Day 244.

An easygoing Sunday; lots of laundry being done as we are working (still) through our winter gear and also I started sorting out other gear which needs to laundered before taking to the charity shops. DH and DD went to the local botanical gardens. And DH has a toothache, which is not fun at all.

Day 243.

Today has been all about winter gear being collected and washed and sorted out for donations, keepers and trashing. No pictures, because they would be too upsetting :) But there seems to be an end to the stuff, maybe tomorrow I will be done with DD's and mine. DH does his own.

The house is, btw, lovely and quiet at the moment, DH went out with friends and DD is at her friend's house until 7 pm. Just enough time for me to have a cup of tea and watch the latest ep of GA.

Day 242.

Got DD's new blades from the bus station and stopped by at the office on the way back. Always good to see the ladies there! Got back home and ended up doing pretty much nothing sensible. Finished a book, baked a veggie quiche and chatted with DD and her friend before they closed the door and proceeded with their own business of giggles and internet. 

Days 239-241.

Missed a couple of days of blogging. Having Monday off with everyone threw me right off my game, cannot understand what day it is anymore. Have had coffees with friends, little discussions with DD, some shouting with DD, cleaned a couple of piles of stuff and now am working up courage to go and clean my walk-in closet, which should hold linen and my clothes, but has also become the home of endless boxes of stuff. Maybe a cup of coffee first and a quick round of blogs where life is perfectly organised?!

Day 238.

DD returned from her friend's house around noon, happy and a little tired, maybe. They had stayed up until midnight :)  Feeling a little remorse from all the goodies they had consumed, she asked her dad to join her for a run, so off they went and returned half an hour later.

The rest of the day just went by, like days sometimed do. There was tofu and ricenoodles for lunch, which was not very warmly welcomed. But there was also pancakes for dinner, which made everyone happy.

Day 237.

Slept late, or late in relative terms. DD went to play outside to kill time, she was headed for a overnight stay at a friend's house later on. She packed three soft toys, pjs, a toothbrush, candy, crisps and her mobile. She did call at 10 pm to say everything was brilliant.

Had coffee at Jokiasema. And got a pressie from a friend who visited Africa sometime ago. 

DH and I watched a movie, Snow Cake.  Highly recommendable. I made caramel popcorn from a microwave thingie. Not recommendable at all. Smelled lovely, but had no taste whatsoever.

Day 236.

In the morning, we enjoyed a good breakfast at the hotel and then set our for the Lahti Ice Hall where the skate shop is located. We got there well in time and found a door which the skaters and hockey players use and took a look inside. Ice halls are fascinating places :)

The lovely lady at Golden Skate opened her shop early and as we were the first customers and only customers at the time, we got really good service. DD is now the happy owner of a new pair of boots (blades to be delivered next week), pants, furry blade buddies and some smaller stuff. As we left, three little girls with parents headed for the shop. Perfect timing for us!

Having completed our shopping, we left with all our gear and walked back to the center to have coffee etc. Also shopped for snacks and chocolate eggs. We were at the station well in time and had time to play Angry Birds (DD) and watch people (me). As a rule, I don't take pictures of people I don't know, unless they happen to be in the background, but the man I watched at the station was so interesting, I could not resist the temptation.

The shabby, yet clean, man had a thing going on with his lunch. He dug out bread, butter and a beer from his bag, set them out nicely on a newspaper and started to eat. He kindly offered to share his food and talked to himself. Every now and then he got up, reorganised his foods and continued eating. He got so many dirty looks and comments from people passing by. He did not bother anyone, he did not make a mess and he wasn't shouting or misbehaving.

Our train ride back home was ok, we were both a little tired and at times, bored with sitting down. At home, we had a lovely cheese fondue for dinner. Fell asleep happily at 10 pm.

Day 235.

Jokiasema -- our beloved summer hangout -- opened today. We had morning coffee there, for free, before heading out to the railway station. DD and I ventured out all the way to Lahti to buy her a new pair of skates. Stayed overnight in a hotel right in the center of town, had dinner and took a little walk before crashing on the bed and watching telly and making a shadow show.

Day 234.

Cleaning the fridge: two potatoes, one carrot, half an onion, some broccoli, half a cup of crushed tomatoes, some soy cream and a bit of salmon I found in the freezer make a lovely soup. ♥ Coffee and pulla in town with a friend. Shopping for candy for tomorrow's train ride. DD went to get a can of Angry Birds soda and stood in line at the cashier's for 15 mins. Easter holidays drive people nuts, it seems, with their shopping.

Day 233.

A lovely sunny day. Met a friend at the library for coffee and laughs, got some good books as well. Love the library! Took Aksu the Cat for a walk. Did some grocery shopping. Listened to DD and her friend being silly. DD also went to the ice hall to run and jump rope, she's so missing ice time. Later, DH and DD went for a bike ride and got some lovely cheeses from Lidl. Cheddar for me.

Day 232.

Ahh, a good day. First, a crafty session with a friend, making Easter cards. Forgot to take pictures, of course. In the evening, a meeting with the housing thingie. And a huge fight with dd. which sort of spoiled the day, but ended up in peace.

Day 231.

Made preps for a Tuesday morning crafts session. Also made pizza and pushed the hoover about. And watched Mr Bourdain in San Francisco in the Layover. Good fun. Must go to a tiki bar.

Days 229-230

A bit of drama on Saturday morning because everyone was so exhausted from Friday, for various reasons. Ended up ok, had a lovely lunch at Nana, which is one of the Chinese restaurants in town. We also joined in on Earth Hour.

Today, last practise of the season for DD, and all sorts of little things for me to do, including painting some cardstock with water colours. Come Monday, I am ready!

Day 228.

Silver Skate in Kuopio. DD came in 5th (/17) and was very pleased. We also got to visit her godparents and got home with a skating buddy, so what a perfect day.

Day 227.

Early morning at the ice hall. Busy afternoon and evening, which all went much better than I expected. Being a pessimist pays off. DD surprised me by washing her hair and brushing it at the swimming pool, since all the girls needed to do it for the school concert, they did it together. The concert was great and the class made lots of money. Tomorrow off to Kuopio.

Day 226.

A bit of a busy and crafty day. In the morning, baked a cake for DD's school concert tomorrow, with crushed peppermint and chocolate candy. In the evening, spent time with the Martta-ladies making Easter decorations. Still got glue under my fingernails. While I was gone, DD had served DH supper and billed him for it. Clever girl. Also, they revised for her history test tomorrow on the rise and fall of the Roman empire.

Day 225.

Anyone who knows me and has been to our house knows that I don't clean too much and I definately do not decorate. Every now and then I clear the kitchen table and discover a lot of breadcrumbs among other things. Every now and then DH gets into a decorative mood and wants to hang posters on the walls. Got some good ones in Berlin.

DD has been studying for her physics test and history exam. Also, she is getting a little nervous about Friday, when we to Kuopio for the last comp of the season. Still not decided how. But we will go.

The cats are silly, fighting and playing and running about. Maybe it's spring?!

Day 224.

The start of a crazy week. Returned library books, bought groceries, made a supereasy veggie pie and did some small things during the day. The skating season is about to end so there was a big spring thing at the ice hall with all the groups performing. Made also some arrangements for Friday, when we are off to Kuopio for the last competition of the season. How -- at this point no-one knows, but probably we will jump into a bus. This is one of the rare times when I do wish I had a car. And a driver's license :)

Days 222-223.

Spent the weekend in training for Fair Trade. Very interesting indeed. And what fun people, from all over the country and such a spectrum of ages, occupations and life choices!

Day 221.

Coffee with a dear friend, shopping for cleaning supplies (in anticipation of spring cleaning), easy going day. DD went a little crazy with make up. Planning next week, which is going to be crazy!

Day 220.

Baked bread, made DD happy. Watched too many eps of Wire in the Blood. Love Robson Green.

Day 219.

Fun evening with the Martat -- veggie cooking. Chili sin carne and carrots-lentil soup. And other stuff, too. Always fun to cook together and more fun to eat together.

Day 218.

Back to normal, almost. Laundry, dishes, dinner, a bit of hoovering and watching the latest episode of GA online. DD practised her speech some more.

Day 217.

Ah Monday. I was hoping to catch up with my regular routines and life, but I was soooo tired and my cold got worse at the ice hall, so I ended up taking things very easy. I did get a hair cut, so not a completely useless day. DD practised her speech (for Finnish, learning to state an opinion) on me and finally all those courses on public speaking and grammar paid off  as she agreed to some of my feedback (like "s/he" rather than "it"  :)

The weather... it has been sunny and springy. Today it got grey and snowy and ugly and slippery as hell. I hate this time of the year.

Days 215-216.

What a great, lovely and exhausting weekend! The party on Sat went perfect, everyone was happy and helpful and enjoyed themselves and the bday lady was radiant to say the least! (In case you are reading this, damn that hair of yours :) )

On Sunday, DD and I volunteered at the ice hall for the competitions that the club organised. DD worked at the rink gate and handed out hot juice to the skaters as they came out after their bit. She said six girls came out of the rink in full tears, one because she did so great, four because they did not so great and one because it was her last competition. Apparently you hear a lot of things by the ice :)

DD finished her work at 5 pm, got home and ate and went to practise which was moved from noon to 6 pm. We met half way as I was walking home. Good thing that we got a delivery of leftovers from the Sat party as no-one had thought about dinner!

Day 214.

Preps for a friend's bday party tomorrow. In the morning, made a salmon and creamcheese cake ready to decorated, in the evening spent time at the venue doing dishes and making sure everything is set for tomorrow.  65 people, full meal and coffee. Lovely lovely lovely.

Days 212-213.

Caught DD's cold, which turned into a sinus infection. Been in bed for 1.5 days. Bored. DD has been great, she managed her hairdresser's appointment yesterday and this morning she walked alone to her 6:45 am practise. She did talk with me on the phone all the way, but nevertheless, what a kid! But I am glad DH will be home tonight.

Day 211.

stuff that will go the the kindergarten where DD spent many happy years. we donate them toys and craft supplies at least once a year.

DH is on his way to Germany on business. He was supposed to fly to Stuttgart via Copenhagen but just called that the last flight is cancelled so they will fly to Berlin instead. Not a happy camper.

DD went to her swim jump class and I finally started one of the projects I decided to do while on sabbatical -- going through my craft supplies. Which is a huge task! I'm donating some of the stuff to the closest kindergarten and giving some away in my crafty blog. Some I'm trying to sell and some I will just keep.

Oh, and I baked bread!

Day 210.

DD went to school and DH to work so I had the house all to myself. Well, the cats were around but they pretty much sleep all day long so.... DD may have been better off staying at home, she was supertired in the afternoon and warmer than usual. So I'm hoping the fever will not come back.

Went for a walk and the shops. The sun was out. Very bright. And almost springy with the birds singing and snow falling off the roofs.

Day 209.

A slow Sunday. DD is still having a fever, the highest reading we got was at 38.9 C. She has been tired and unhappy, and at one point settled for me reading her a book (of my choice) -- Little House on the Prairie. Me thinks she will miss school tomorrow.

Day 208.

DD woke up in the middle of the night with a burning fever. I would not let her go to practise so she, for a short moment, decided to hate me. She has spent the day pretty much on the sofa, watching a couple of documentaries with DH and WALL-E with me.

I tried out a new dish, a savory cake with cream cheese and salmon. It also involved gelatin so I slipped from our vegetarian life. But it was supergood, see details in Finnish here. I made only half of the filling as I didn't want to make a cake for 15 people :)

Day 207.

DD and her friend did not sleep very late but managed giggle until noon and then rushed off to the swimming pool. After that DD got home, ate and took a long nap. Sleep-overs are exhausting it seems.


No major accomplishments today. No major goals either, so in that sense all is good. Now off to watch the Voice of Finland and drink some tea.

Day 206.

DD is celebrating international women's day by having a friend for a sleep-over. They are planning to go out for a sledging thing, eat treats, play something weird on PS and stay up late. I also expect a lot of giggles. And tortillas for dinner.

I've updated my calendars, and realised I have one helluva busy month ahead. Oh well, at least most of it should be fun!

Now off to make coffee. No cake, but maybe I can look into my secret stash for some Milka.

Day 205.

Love being back home! We looked at the Berlin photos in the morning and had some good laughs remembering some small adventures. Like when DD and I went to the restrooms during the football match and ended up in the wrong section of the stadium. Oh well....4.1 or 41.

DD is at practise, DH is fixing one of his bikes, the cats are asleep and so will I in a few minutes time. 

Days 199-204.

I may have lost count of days...but I hope I am excused as I have been out of town with superlimited and silly internet access. And google decided that my accounts were being hijacked and and and...I had other business in mind! We just returned from Berlin. Love love love. Sunshine, walks, coffees, a little bit of sights for DD to learn about life and happy shopping at the local cheap shops. DD and I get such a rush for getting a bottle of our fav shampoo for 99 cents and cute toothbrushes for 1.50 €.

One of the best things in Berlin was breakfast. On Thursday DD had two breakfasts just because she could, the second one at around 3 pm. Photos will come, but not today. Now I'm off to unpack!

Edit: added photos. thanks to DH who took most of them.