When the sun is setting, between dusk and darkness, there is a moment when the light turns blue. And the world stops for a heartbeat.
The girls travel well. They’ve had their fair share of long trips – partly because we genuinely love travelling, but also because they are half Finnish and half South African. Whichever half you live close to, the other one is a long way away.
Travelling is great – even if flying itself is mostly just a lot of waiting in uncomfortable seats
Books are big in our family. Stuart and I read a lot. Luckily we both love Kindles, or the biggest room in our house would have to be dedicated to books.
We’ve also been reading aloud to the girls every day since they were just a few months old. We still read a bedtime story together every night, even though Alanna and Kiara are starting to read on their own.
At the moment, Kiara enjoys stories in chapter books, while Alanna loves comics. Both also enjoy good non-fiction. That part they get from their daddy.
Pikkunen is my teddy. I got it from my grandma when I turned 14. But as it’s the most huggable teddy in the world, the girls have claimed it as their own – even though they certainly don’t lack soft toys themselves
No one in our household is big on drinking water. We all drink at mealtimes, but between meals we just… don’t. I keep making vows to improve and often carry a water bottle around for a week or two. But nothing sticks. The girls are a little better, but not by much.
At night, however, they wake up to drink – and to alert me the moment their bedside bottle runs dry.
There is a wonderful Finnish word, mökkihöperö, loosely translated as “going a bit loopy from too much time indoors.” After a weekend mostly stuck inside because of the –20°C temperatures, the girls were definitely going mökkihöperö. And, with all that excess energy, so were Stuart and I.
The easiest solution is a half-day at an indoor playground. Alanna and Kiara are big enough to run around on their own, so I can (albeit with a lot of interruptions) sit and edit photos. Unfortunately, we were not the only ones who had the same thought. Do you have any idea how hard it is to recognize your child among 50+ others, all yelling “Mum!” at regular intervals? Luckily, it’s a big place.
Merlin is a very sociable little dog. Except when we meet big and excited dogs. They are scary… Merlin has a habit of inviting these big dogs to play – while standing between my legs (it is safer that way…). He is small enough to fit comfortably – but the other dogs are always not.
Today in the park we met a small and very bossy dog – Merlin again made a hasty retreat. Some friends are just not meant to be.
I used to have a bad habit of being late. Luckily Stuart is (possibly) the world’s most patient person. When we started dating, he once waited for me for over an hour in a restaurant where we were supposed to meet. The waiter already gave him a sympathetic ‘I don’t think she is coming, mate’… But already then, Stuart knew me well. I did come.
In recent years, I have found myself to become more and more punctual (although Stuart might disagree). What makes this weird is that South Africa as a culture is highly un-punctual (depending, naturally, on the subculture) – I remember once arriving to a house party 45 min later than the invite indicated, just to surprise the host who had just gotten out of shower. Whereas in Finland, if you arrive 5 minutes late for a dinner, you are late. And should apologise.
I guess I just always have to be different.
The South African side of our family is passionate about Highland Dancing. Stuart’s sister, Hayley, has her own dance studio in Cape Town – and the niece, Robyn, has won the SA Championship (under 15) several times – this year being no exeption. Therefore, the SA Championships in August is a major event, with the entire family descending on us.
The day is always a lot of fun, but due to travel, work and life in general, I was unable to join them for the event itself. However, it did get me going back to my photos from year before. And because these were better than any pictures I snapped on this date itself (by a long mile), I decided to make an exception and post pictures from exactly a year ago.
If everyone knows about it, it ain’t cheating.
Having a puppy means you spend a lot of time in parks. A lot of time. But when the sun is shining and the sky is blue, there are not many nicer places to be.
Blue Moment 