December 31, 2014

Less than two hours left

I will start new year in flu.
It has been coming a while,
and turned bad in afternoon,
so I left earlier from work

- just to get some sleep.
and get headache down.

December 27, 2014

Saturday, Flea Market shopping

I was shopping in Flea Markets today.
And boy, it turned expensive trip.
First I found six more tea cups for set my Hubby brought to me from Soviet Union in 80's.
I had six cups earlier,
but now I am able to set table for whole family!

December 26, 2014

Sunny Christmas

Christmas Day dawned with sun.
It was cold. 
We ended up to drive to Hietaniemi
- to light up candles on my father's grave.

December 25, 2014

Christmas Eve

It is Christmas Night.
Eve is spent and we all can rest next to our bellies.
We started preparations for dinner during forenoon
moving sofas and taking kitchen table into living room.

December 22, 2014

Winter Solstice


Today is Winter Solstice.
North enough - no sunrise.
But here: a promise that the Sun will come back.
Eventually.

December 15, 2014

Our Christmas time traditions


This post is part of Blogger Christmas series and BlogHop.
Find the other participated bloggers posts on the links in the end!






Next Christmas will be 35th in our life together, 
with my Hubby and I.
After engagement we spent Christmas at my home,
with my family and relatives,
in the way, my family spent it.
When my Hubby and I got married,
and our first Christmas together was waiting for around the corner,
my Hubby asked:
"Are we going to spend Christmas?"

December 13, 2014

December 10, 2014

Stargate and mixed cuttings

I was pondering tablescape of Christmas Eve.
I need to set table with mixed things,
because I don't have enough f.e. plates alike.
It seems there will be 8 adults and 5 children.
And I do have few new plates I bought from flea market
- which I of course want to use.
I don't have service plates either.
So I needed something.

December 8, 2014

Christmas home tour 2014



This post is part of Blogger Christmas series and BlogHop.
Find the other participated bloggers posts on the links in the end!


This year I wanted my Christmas be a little brown, a little white and a little gold.
This is how it seems to be....

December 3, 2014

Christmas wreath and outdoor decor

This post is part of Blogger Christmas series and BlogHop.
Find the other participated bloggers posts on the links in the end!





We bought new mailbox last year. 
It turned out a mistake.
Mail was wet and broke and the lock broke during first frost.
So I sudden found out,
I am having an extra mail box lolling around.

December 1, 2014

Cottage porch

I am not sure,
how I spend my evenings.
After coming from work,
and when dishes and dinner are done,
I sudden find out,
it is time for bed.
So I try to do something quick and simple.
Like cottage porch decor.

November 24, 2014

Christmas home 2013

This post is part of Blogger Christmas series and BlogHop.
Find the other participated bloggers posts on the links in the end!


On 2013 our home was blue and silver and white during Holiday season.
I started decoration for Kekri from living room and dining area.
Snowballs on the lamp over the table:

and icicles and stars, too:


November 22, 2014

We have snow


It was snowing yesterday.
Nice, light snow.
Enough to get ground white,
but not too much to get annoyed.
It is so much lighter out there!
During Hubby was finishing kennel,
I wandered around the yard.

November 19, 2014

Just a little something...

When we stopped in hardware store during weekend
- gathering things for kennels-
I also bought a packet of core mix.
I had no idea,
what I would do with them,
but, well, it was half price!

November 16, 2014

Small progress, whole day work

We have been in back yard,
my Hubby and I,
whole day.
The Dog was there as a helper, too.
His nose was everywhere.
All the time.
But we managed to get net on.

November 15, 2014

Yep. A dog. The DOG !


What can I say? 
There will be new citizen in Halkis.
He will take a part of my garden.
And a great part of terrace.

November 10, 2014

Gold paint

As I want gold at home now,
I have to find things that are gold
- naturally.
I don't have many,
and there is no way I could
- or would, either - 
buy all.
My cabinets are full enough, thank you.
So I used what I have
- paint.

November 5, 2014

Light brown sofas -and desperate dog

We use to recycle things between our homes, 
my children and I.
There is no limit: furnitures, textile, dishes, little decorative items...
When we need something,
we start first asking from each other.
So I was able to change the color of our sofas
with covers,
that had been at my eldest son earlier.

November 1, 2014

A bit un-ordinary Kekri-day

At the moment,
I am writing this,
I have a view in my kitchen:
Motorist and his girlfriend are standing by the sink 
opening feta package.
They are making chicken salad.

October 30, 2014

Ready for Kekri

I haven't been sure at all,
if I get anything ready for Kekri.
But I did. 
Table is ready for setting.

October 28, 2014

Golden bedroom

For some reason I want gold around me.
It is bit of mystery,
because I haven't been any fan of it.
Is it age?
Anyway,
here we go.
Gold in our bedroom:

October 26, 2014

Just ordinary days

There hasn't been anything special during last days.
Just ordinary, daily life.
Work.
Cooking.
Laundry.
Making apple jam.

October 18, 2014

Games with girls

It has been quite a while ,
when we last time had board game night with girls last time.
Last night we had.

My younger daughter had few new games for testing.
We started with this:

October 11, 2014

Mess

I got this flaptop from my daughter about two years ago.
I decided then,
I will keep my files in order.
Did I?
Sort of...

October 7, 2014

Dried and extracted marigolds


I love marigolds.
They are easy to grow.
They will bloom,
when others have already stopped.
They are colorful.
They are bright.
And I can use them in skin care.

October 5, 2014

A bit of halloween at terrace


It wasn't raining today,
so I decided to put terrace ready for winter.
Just cover the grill
- that we used twice last summer-
and put aside table and chairs.
That was a plan...

October 4, 2014

A lot of branches...


We needed to cut some branches from spruces by the driveway.
They were too wide and started to scratch sides of cars.
I don't like cutting trees,
but sometimes I just have to accept it.

So I had got a lot of coniferous branch.

September 28, 2014

Apple,apples...

I have an apple elbow.
I think it is official called epicondylitis lateralis humeri. 
But because I know it is caused by apples,
I call it apple elbow.

It is nice to have apples of our own,
but I have a huge problem with them.
It is simple. 
There is way too much of them.


September 23, 2014

Autumnal equinox

Today has been really cold.
Wind. Rain.Wind. 
I had planned to do some apples in oven,
but it was so cold,
that I couldn't spent time out looking for beautiful apples.
I just took first ones,
that were closest to house 
and run back in.
And so kids had something different on their plates.

September 21, 2014

Fall market in Hyrylä


We seem to visit different markets and fairs quite often.
Even though they are all near by,
they all are a little different to each other.
Hyrylä is one of centers of Tuusula,
and we have lived there few years.
Our elder son was born on day,
when Tuusula was spending 340 years party.
The actual moment he came to this world,
there were orchestra performing at the market place.
So maybe it is because of that,
there seems to be different atmosphere than elsewhere...

September 20, 2014

Center piece for autumnal equinox


Autumnal equinox will be next Tuesday.
It is time to say good bye for summer.
This year we are not having special dinner
- I know I won't have enough time for it,
so I guess I just will make some apples in oven.
But I made center piece for table ahead.

September 16, 2014

Pinny-dress from old table cloth

I was so happy, 
that I managed to sew the first pinny-dress for little princess,
I made an other.
I have saved an old table cloth that has a bad stain,
and now I used part of it.
So I took pattern 
and dry to fit them as nice as possible.

September 12, 2014

My turquoise bathroom

Today I supposed to -and should- 
do ironing, laundry, dishes...
prepare jars for apple jam, pick apples...
but I didn't.
Instead all of that I turned my bathroom in turquoise.

September 10, 2014

One more time - Iisalmi

No words, 
just a few random photo memories from weekend in Iisalmi 
at Finnish Supermoto Championchip finals...

September 9, 2014

Deluxe life and pit kitchen in Iisalmi

During the weekend was finals of 
Supermoto Finnish Championship.
There is enough kilometers (or miles) 
to drive up to Iisalmi,
so we left on Saturday.
Hubby and I spent some deluxe time in Hotel Artos.

Morning started with great, silent breakfast in huge parlour:

September 6, 2014

Long, long way from home

We are in Iisalmi.
Supermoto race season will be closed tomorrow.
Compared the truth,
that I am a very bad traveller,
when I need to sit in car,
this drive went quite well.

September 2, 2014

Weekend in Tabasalu

We spent weekend in Tabasalu, Estonia.
Left early on Saturday morning.
Maybe it was too early for us,
as we had spent a minute and an other in port
- just to find out we really are in wrong check in -line...

August 28, 2014

Cable protection

My hubby came home last week with this:


Even though I am not great fan of this particular model of cable protection 
tubing, I was pleased.
Yes, we have a lot of mess with cables.

August 27, 2014

New shower cabin -finally!

We have been searching new shower cabin almost a year.
We needed a squared one -
and with a reasonable price.
We didn't want any specialties,
but even without any luxury,
prices were close to 2500 €.
No. Way.
Shower cabin for corner was 1/5 part of that,
so there wasn't any reason to spent so much.
But then we came across Netrauta.
And we found the one-
basic shower cabin 800*800.

August 24, 2014

Sewing pinny dress


Pinny dress for a child should be one of the easiest sewing project.
Professionals makes them ready in no time.
Well, I am not a professional
- not even a great sewer.
But I had decided to sew (few!) dresses to Little Princess,
and I though,
that during the flu would be great time for start.
Just because it isn't physically heavy...


August 22, 2014

A bowl full of apples

I am having a flu.
So I am using it as excuse not to do any hard work.
I have been able to walk 
- just a bit -
around the garden.
Even though it has to admit,
that fall is right to next corner,
there is still some life.
Like rose:

August 21, 2014

Apple puree and soup

We will have a lot of apples.
I guess I have note that earlier already.
But we will.
Although they seems to be small.
I can bet, I am sick of them before I have got rid of them all...
So, after today's great start with breaking perfume
on to bathroom floor,
I started first round with apple puree.

August 19, 2014

Apple pie

This wasn't best morning I have had.
It rained.

Roudari hasn't shown himself for two days.
I put Pepi out to terrace
and opened front door to take my rain boots.
Rokkari was coming in.

August 18, 2014

At Huhtimo Hill

Yesterday I managed to entice hubby to climb with me up to Huhtimo Hill.
Well, climbing is little overstatement,
as it need only walking to get up.

I rather have him with me,
terrain isn't easiest with lot of rocks and fallen trees.



August 17, 2014

New seats in toilets - yippee!

Our house isn't teenager anymore,
it is build in 1987,
and toilet seats are from last decade, too.
Not in best shape anymore,
and the one in bathroom caused great problems:
it was leaking.
It was leaking even though my hubby changed all the parts in water container.
And I was stressed.
Water isn't free,
and closing water every time after using toilet,was annoying. 
Not to mention, 
that it used to forgot a time a time
- which could be seen on our water bill.

August 15, 2014

Gooseberry jam

I have already eaten ALL yellow gooseberries
-and actually most of reds, too.
But there was few left,
and even though we are not great jam-eater,
I decided to do a tiny dose of gooseberry jam.


August 13, 2014

Re-arranging once done...

The fairy Godmother of skies was very whimsical today,
couldn't decide if it will shine or rain.
It shined and in the next minute someone turned faucets on.
And turned full vats down.
So I manage not to do anything.
Instead filling my day with some reasonable housework,
I re-arranged decor in living room.


August 11, 2014

Dried peppermint and foot bath salt

I left peppermint to dry almost two weeks ago,
and it is finally dry.

I put some leaves in jar as they were.
Peppermint steam is great for opening nose.
And easy to use, too:

Take a teacup,
put some leaves to the bottom
and add some hot water.
Then just breathe steam.


It is not nice to drink
and as it is very strong,
that could cause stomach problems.
And as other mints,
also peppermint can cause -
if drunk much -
extra heart beats.

The jar I used, was a little boring.
So I first add a ribbon.


Then I decided the cover would be nicer,
if it has something on.

So I put the lid on to piece of fabric


and draw the lines:

To cut big enough to cover edges,
I used the lid to make marks, too:


Made it whole lot easier to cut in right side,
when had these to follow:


Then I cut little triangles to make it fit better:


But sadly, because I had only paper glue,
it turned a disaster.


And had to use plan-B:


Piece of fabric under the lid,
and ribbon around.
Little piece of cardboard as a label,
and it was finally done:


For foot bath salt my ingredients are very simply.
Seasalt and peppermint.
And mortar:

And a lovely jar I have got from my daughter years ago:


I use to crush some peppermint and salt first:


Just because that way oils will spread in jar faster.

Then I put layers in jar.
Peppermint first:

Then some salt:


And crushed mint and salt between the layers.
They could mix right away,
but I like the look o layers.


Just ribbon and label on,
and refreshing foot bath salt is ready to use:


I have already peppermint-salt in hot water
and when it is cool enough,
I'll  embed my feet in it.