Sunday, July 19, 2009

hello!
I just finished a lovely lunch here at the Haanpää´s, grilled meat, dark bread and butter, new potatos, salad, mushrooms filled with cheese and wrapped in bacon ( oooh) and strawberry muffins for desert! The strawberries were wild ones that grow in the back yard and theya re insanly sweet and good. I had forgotten until now, but I have a recipe that Mom had given me for chocolate chip bananna muffins, I plan to make them on Wednesday, when some friends are coming over. I am a bit worried that there will not be any chocolate chips in the Finnish store, but I am hoping. Äiti also made a rubarb pie, it was sitting out on the table next to the strawberry muffins. I had to walk away, they were so tempting! Äiti made the muffins in a different way: instead of putting the batter into the muffin tins, she put it directly into the papers and put those on a tray in the oven! I was amused. We will eat the pie tomorrow I think. The Finns make such good food, both in taste and in healthiness! Every lunch and dinner the table is loaded with yummies, I look forward to every meal. There are some things that I miss ( like bagles) but most of the food is similar. In the summer Finns grill ALOT, almost every night here. They cook minced meat on sticks ( the name escapes me), sausage, chicken, pork, you name it. I may have mentioned this before, but they also grill other things, like fruit, vegatables in tin foil and toast bread... yum! While we were traveling we went twice to ´Hesburger´, a fast food restraunt alot like McDonald´s. I was GREATLY amused by one thing there: how the cashiers brought you your food to the table when it was ready, like a normal restraunt. Of course the wait was much shorter, it still being a fast food place, but I was impressed none the less. No annoying lines ( like at McDonald´s ) while you stand there and wait for your food... ;)
Everythings is going really nicely now, all problems are cleared up and understood... at least we know now that there was a problem and know how to fix any future ones. I sort of expected to not do much this summer, aside from the Lapland trip, but it is not the case! We have SO many plans, like this new one: Sometime at the end of July we might pack up the RV ( again!) and drive to Turku, where there is a playland that Heli wants to go to. It is based on a Finnish cartoon character family called ´Muumins`. Then we would drive to Helsinki, stay at a really nice camping place there and maybe see Petra there! (If she is reading this, it might be sometime between the 27th and 31st of July... email me!) I am hoping it all works out! I am also going to an adventure park sometime soon, and well as a concert ( next Sunday), and the new Harry Potter movie ( Tuesday). I admitt it is nice to not just sit around the whole time. I am so sorry that I don´t have pictures up yet, I have about 170 or so, and they take so much time to upload... also Ilona doesn´t really want all of them on her computer because she is afraid they might slow it down. So those are my excuses, please be patient ;)
I have been making a habit of taking a daily bike ride, which is lovely. The Finnish roads have nice wide sidewalks, so it is easy to take a quick ride. And it´s exercise! Whoo hoo! I am always afraid that will get lost, but it never happens. I have gotten used to seeing people biking\walking everywhere.
The other day the girls taught me a Finnish dance called the ´letka jenkka`... you hop and jump and hop some more.. it´s really funny! Now I remember that they taught me another game too.... there is a big loop of elastic, which two people put around their ankles. A third person then jumps in and around the two elastics in a pattern, and if they mess up they have to start agian! I tried and did pretty well. Even Simo did it!
So that is life at the moment.. right now Ilona and Ella are playing the piano randomly, pretty strange sounding. Äiti says she really likes my playing, which is good because I like to play too! Heli is very good, for being 8 years old... I am impressed.
So that´s it for now, I´ll write again soon. =D

3 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:48

    What a vivid picture-image you paint with your words. I can almost smell the grilled meat and see the pie! Do you think that the Finns make the most of their summer days because the fall and winter are so dark and cold? Does your Aiti know the saying, 'Make hay while the sun shines?' And I think I know that elastic jumping rope game as Chinese Jump Rope...from my own grade school days. love, Mom

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  2. Hello Megan! I have really enjoyed the postings of all your adventures. I am so glad you got to see reindeer. You are doing a wonderful job of making the folks at home feel like they are right with you. It is so nice that you are experiencing their everyday lives. Your grandma and Dan came to visit with us on Saturday. She is so proud of you and excited for you to have this opportunity. Keep having fun. Janice

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  3. Hi Megan,

    Bike riding in Finland sounds delightful. I will pray that you and Petra get to connect. How amazing it would be to see her in her homeland.

    Keep journaling

    Love, Mrs. Triba

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