Day 71: Jumping up, up, up…

Last year Santa brought the girls a trampoline. I was a bit worried it wouldn’t be used much, but I didn’t need to worry. Last summer, there was barely a day that girls didn’t go jumping, at least for a bit. Most days, there would be several friends bouncing with them.

We set the trampoline up again today (you have to take it into storage for winter). Thirty minutes later, you could already hear the laughter of four little girls.

Day 50: Catkins

Appearance of willow catkins (pajunkissa) is a sure sign of spring – although the whole reason the catkins have “fur” is to protect the flowers from the cold.

In Finland, there is a tradition of collecting willow branches before Palm Sunday, decorating them and having kids go around the neighborhood to exchange the branches for candiy. It’s a Finnish version of  “trick-or-treating”.

Or, actually, you should say that trick-or-treat is American-style virpominen. After all, the Finnish tradition has been around for hundreds of years.