our holiday hide-out

Writings from the end of August:
We're on holiday. And we're alright! 
We live in my parent's little cabin by the lake. 
Outside I rest my eyes on fields of gold.
Like the singer. I rest my eyes on fields of barley.
We light fires in the evenings. 
We wake when the sun is up, but it's still cold.
My soul is resting.

 

vacation

Travelling the traditional road from Turku to Kronoby. Sadly it would be the last road trip with our beloved Volvo, it has now been sold. But it was a happy ending to our relationship!

My mother's vintage sewing thread spool. 

Beautiful Finland. 

I am constantly carrying a notebook with me and this time I even matched my manicure with it!

I am happy spending time with family and friends. 

Have a good June!

Sofie 

see you in stockholm?

 (me and my sister in Stockholm 4 years ago)

We are off to Stockholm next week (17-19 october).

What do I need to now? Best food, best views, best playground (for the kids), most inspiring shops, best non-expensive entertainment, best coffee?

Do you want to meet me (and two kids) for a coffe?

  An ordinary Swedish super market plastic bag.

look what my husband bought me from sweden

And I like it very much!

close to the ocean

Last week we had friends from Germany visiting. We had a great week with family H and drove and biked around Jakobstad and Vasa with surroundings. Above are pictures from Kalle's Inn on Söderudden in Replot. A beautiful place! One of the owners, Paul from Scotland, had time to give us a quick tour while he was waiting for a group of people going fishing and bathing in the smoke sauna.

I've been at this place twice before. First time singing at a wedding. Second time being interviewed and filmed for Himlaliv. The episode with me will air this fall at FST5.

travelling

We are travelling, both with and without the kids.

Several nights in Kronoby, Eric Bibb and Jeff Beck at Pori Jazz, back to Kronoby to get the kids, quick stops in Vasa to change clothes in our suitcases and next we are off to Iniö in the archipelago of Turku to visit and spend time with friends S and O and their children.

O'hoj! All the best.

Pancakes are a favourite in this family.

We took the idea of filling the pancakes with nutella and banana home with us from Germany. Delicious!

taste memory

I have had a strong memory of a taste. I knew it was some kind of sugar, but not one of the kinds I can get here in Finland. I couldn't remember where I had tasted it and how to get a hold of the right kind of sugar.

When we were in Germany we went grocery shopping in Luxembourg one afternoon. Suddenly I see this package on the shelf and I emmediately knew that this was the sugar I had remembered. It is very fine and has toffee-like bits in it. It is fabulously tasty on panncakes!

I must have eaten panncakes with this sugar on when I was in Belgium over 10 years ago. Funny to have that strong memory of a taste. The memory had occured more frequently right before we went on our vacation and I found the sugar. Like divine intervention:)

Have you ever had a memory of this kind?

useful little bag

I like fabric bags. I especially liked them when we travelled, I had much use of them. This one I finished a few minutes before we headed to the airport (I always make something the last minute...). But it was no hard work, cause the actual bag I made years ago, I just hammered the push buttons to it. See my lovely dots marking where to put the buttons, of course in the wrong place?! My head is not always working properly when under time pressure.

I received the fabric, if I remember correctly, from my mother-in-law many years ago.

souvenirs from Germany

Cheap souvenir shop wooden dolls, but I really like them!

family vacation in germany

Friday: Trier, the oldest town in Germany. Here is Porta Nigra.

We rented a car, a huge new Ford Mondeo Wagon. Parking was a bit scary.

Spring had arrived in the south east of Germany, where we spent our vacation.

We spent Saturday in Frankfurt and one of our stops was a big outdoor flea market.

We visited Loreley.

The famous German half-timbered houses. And a very content married couple on vacation.

An old fort was another stop. I really love these kind of old ruins. Wee E loved running in the courtyard.

And we ate croissants and sandwiches with Nutella for breakfast. We stayed at a lovely guesthouse and spent quality time with friends, family Hortian.

I really enjoyed travelling with the kids. And I like Germany.