Joulutontut

We received a package with handmade Christmas elves from Finland. We love them!

A cozy spot by the fire

 This is my favorite place to sit and read.

We see the Wienermobile once again

This time at a most convenient location close to our house.

New to us this time were the hot dog cutouts.

A fun little outing.

Typical

This is what it looks like around here in the mornings.

Everyone busy playing Legos in their pajamas. Even Millie.

Sisters

are the best.

Grilled pizza

Iso got a pizza stone for his grill and we helped him try it out. Delicious.

And we made some lettuja!

Sleeping baby

Wearing the onsie that Aunt Maryann bought for Nora that every kid has used.

Art on the walls

I took down all the pictures at the old house once it was sold and we didn't have to stage it anymore so I've been living with blank walls for a while now. Anja was here for the weekend and helped me hang up a lot of pictures. We have so much fun doing things like this together. The only thing missing was Liisa. We started by carrying all of these across the street.

The first day we hung 55 things and the second we put up 32 more.

 It's starting to look a little more like home.

Sweet baby

Millie will sometimes lean her head to one side and smile.

We call it "being charming."

Lost in a good book

She is a girl after my own heart.

She's reading Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild here, a book I have read many times.

Pre-Thanksgiving festivities

Anja brought facial hair for everyone.

It was a hit. By the end of the evening Henry had a mustache, beard with sideburns, and thick eyebrows. 

The baby did not think this game was funny.

Playgroup friends

 We brought some cupcakes the next day to our playgroup to continue Penny's birthday celebrations.

We have been so blessed by our playgroup. In the fall of 2003 a lovely lady in our church invited some first-time and about-to-be first time mothers to her house to chat and get to know one another.
At that time there were two babies and six moms. We had pleasant conversations in the quiet.

These days there are eight mothers and thirty-one kids.

Over the years people have moved away and others have moved here and joined our weekly meeting. Two years ago we had to split into two groups to meet in the winter. We meet at parks as long as the weather allows so that we can be together but we are currently too many people to meet at a single house. It's been such a gift to have these people around us all these years to share our lives.

Mimmu's garden

The kids like vegetables but they are usually sliced or cut up somehow. One of the joys of summer is being able to pick cucumbers and tomatoes and eat them whole.

"Time flies"

People always say that. And it's true.
These two have been friends forever. And I'm pretty sure this was yesterday.

Nora made a sign this morning

This sort of thing warms the cockles of my heart. Me too, sweetie.