Painepesuri laulaa / Jetwashing away

Meilla on pesty mattoja enemman ja vahemman. Nyt kun vihdoinkin mattoteline on pystyssa paatettiin etta pestaan kaikki matot ennen kuin ilmat viilenee niin etteivat enaa kuivu. Telineella oli eilen kaksi mattoa. Tanaan kolme. Viela olisi nelja, jotka pitaisi pesta. Olen siis pessyt mattoja painepesurilla. Naapurit taasen ihmettelee etta mita tuo akka tuolla touhuaa.

We've been washing rugs. Now that we've finally got that rug stand up we decided to wash all the rugs before temperatures will get so cool that they won't dry outside. Yesterday I did two. Today three. I still have four that needs washing. So I've been washing them with a jet/powerwash. And the neighbours are wondering AGAIN what is that crazy lady doing now.

Kasityorintamalla on ollut hiljaista. En ole tehnyt mitaan. Saumuri on huollossa. Pitaisi soittaa ja kysya mika siina kestaa. Puikot ja koukutkin ovat olleet edelleen lomalla. Ei +30 asteessa tee mieli puikkoja kilkuttaa ja kasitella lankakeria.
Mun oma tila odottaa edelleen etta teksin sille jotain. Suuret on suunnitelmat mutta kun ei saa aikaiseksi aloitettua.

It's been quiet on the craft front. I have not done anything. My serger is being services. I should call and ask what's taking so long. All my knitting needles and crochet hooks are still on holiday. I don't have any inclination to start a yarn project when it's +30C outside.
My own space is still waiting for me to do something to it. I have big plans but I just can't get myself to start on it.

Vaikka arki onkin alkanut on jotenkin viela vahan outo olo. Kaikki palikat eivat ole viela loksahtaneet paikoilleen. Harrastukset alkaa ensi viikolla. Pitaisi lahtea ostamaan balettitossuja ja steppikenkia, saarisuojukset ja jalkapallo.

Even though we are back to school routines I feel a bit off. All pieces have not found their places yet. Hobbies will start next week. I need to go and buy ballet and tap shoes, shin guards and a foot ball (soccer ball).

Hiljaista onnellisuutta / Quiet happiness

Nyt kun koulu alkoi, tuntuu etta talo on hyvinkin hiljainen. Pikkuneiti tykkaa leikkia itsekseen omia juttuja ilman etta minun pitaa olla siina. Olenkin tanaan aamusta saanut pestya painepesurilla pari mattoa lisaa, varattua ajan hammaslaakariin, mamografiaan (40 vuotta tayttaneen naisen riemuja) ja ilmottauduttua kahden illan saippuantekokurssille.

Now that school has started the house seem awfully quiet. Little Miss likes to play on her own without me having to be there. So this morning I managed to jet wash two more rugs, schedule dentist appointment, schedule a mammogram (the joys of 40-year-old and older women) and register to a two night crash course how to make soap.

Ihanaa on myos etta kun yksi menee paivaunille, toinen kapertyy sohvalla tiukkakin tiukemmalle kiepille, josta sitten pikkuhiljaa levittaytyy valtaamaan puolet sohvasta ja kolmas saa nauttia hiljaisuudesta teekupposen ja tietokoneen kera.
Tai ei nyt ihan hiljaista sentaan. Tiskikone suhisee taustalla (on kylla niin hiljainen ettei pahemmin kuule), ulkoota kuuluu valilla lentokoneen aani, linnut konsertoi. Muutama paiva sitten (lue ennen koulun alkua) ei tallaisesta hiljaisesta hetkesta voinut kuvitellakaan.

It's also lovely that when one goes down for her nap, other one curls up on the sofa as tightly as possible from which he will unravel bit by bit to take over half the sofa and the third one gets a quiet moment with her lap top and a cup of tea.
Not completely quiet though. I can her the dish washer (which is super quiet), occasional passing airplane, and birds singing. Few days ago (read before school started) there was not a chance for this kind of moment .

Isompi neiti on onnellinen koulun alkamisesta. On saanut uusia kavereita. Opettaja tuntuu olevan mieleinen. Ja koulubussilla on edelleenkin kiva menna. Mami on onnellinen ettei tartvitse kaiket paivat kuunnella tyttojen kinaamista. Ja pikkuneiti on onnellinen kun saa viettaa paivansa mamin kanssa.

Big Miss is happy that school started. She's made new friends. Her new teacher seems to be to her liking. And she still loves riding the school bus. Mummy is happy that she doesn't have to listen to endless bickering between the girls. And Little Miss is happy to spend her days with mummy.

Koulu alkoi / School started

Tanaan oli kouluvuoden ensimmainen paiva. Meidan kakkosluokkalainen oli intoa taynna niin koulusta kuin omien arkirutiinien kaynnistymisesta. (Hanella on omat vastuualueet ja tehtavat jokaiselle paivalle ja tuntuu tykkaavan hoitaa niita.)

Today was the first day of school. Our second grader was so enthusiastic about it as well as the start of her own daily routines. (She has chores that her's only and she seems to take pride in doing them.)

Mina olen ottanut amerikkalaisen tavan mukaan koulun kaynnistyessa kuvan koululaisesta. Niista jaa mielestani oikein kiva muisto. No, lahdettiin bussipysakille ajoissa etta saisin rauhassa ottaa kuvia koululaisesta. Olin jopa saanut ihan luvan rapsia niin paljon kuin sielu sietaa. :D Olimme pysakilla 10min ennen bussin aikataulun mukaista saapumisaikaa. Ja ihan samalla hetkella se bussi oli siina! Mami paniikissa yrittaa rapsia kuvia. Asetuksista ei ole mitaan tietoakaan. :O Tytto kavelee bussille, joka odottaa ja kuvat on ihan sekundaa. Onneksi pysahtyy viela kerran katsomaan. Tama olikin ainoa, jonka sain pelastettua. Kylla harmitti kun olin niin suunnitellut kuvia. 

Along the years I've been taking pictures of Big Miss on first day of the school, like the American way seems to be. I think they will be a lovely memory of the school years. So, we left for the bus stop in plenty of time so that I could take pictures without rush. I even had a permission from Big Miss to shoot as much as I wanted. :D We were at the bus stop 10min before the bus was scheduled to arrive. And at the exact same moment the bus was there! Mummy is in panic. Tries to shoot pictures. No clue of any of the settings at that moment. :O My girl is walking to the waiting bus and all my pictures are rubbish. Luckily she stops one more time to look. This is the only one I was able to save. But I was very disappointed that I didn't have the chance for the photo shoot like I had planned.

Edistysta pihamaalla / Progress in the yard

Mainitsin etta meilla on tehty pihatoita. Aikamoinen maara. Kaikki ei ole viela valmista. Talla viikolla toivottavasti. Olisi ne varmasti kaikki tehnynakin jos homman ottanut firma pystyisi tekemaan taysipaivaisesti ja koko porukalla.

I did tell about all the yard work that is being done. Quite a lot of it. Not everything is ready. Hopefully this week. I think all would be finished if the landscaper was able to work only on this project full time.

Talon ymparille on laitettu kivireunus. Ilme muuttui heti ja on tosi siistin nakoinen.

A 3/4" stone border has been put around the house. It looks so much nicer and tidier now.

Etupihalla on kukkapenkkeja suurennettu. Uudet kasvit laitetaan vasta sitten kun kaikki muu homma on tehty.

The flower beds in the front have been made bigger. New plants will be put in the last. 

Muutama iso puska on siirretty toisaalle talon edesta muualle (ottivat tosin nokkiinsa ja vaikka ihan varmasti ovatkin elossa niin pudottavat nyt lehtensa).

Few big bushes have been moved (they are protesting the move and loosing all their leaves but I'm sure they will survive).

Puut on kaadettu (kolmea lukuunottamatta, joita eivat uskaltaneet lahtea kaatamaan talon/tai sahkojohdon laheisyyden takia).  Kaikki pikkurisut ja lehdet ja neulaset on siistitty tontin molemmilta reunoilta pois.

The trees are down (expect three that they were not comfortable taking down due to proximity to the house and/or power lines).  All the little twigs, leaves and needles have been taken away from both sides of the property.

Tahan saan kivan kivipuutarhan. Se taitaa kuitenkin jaada ensi kevaalle.

Here I'll get a nice rock garden. But I think I'll leave that for next spring.

Kaikki vanhojen rhodojen juuretkin kaivettiin ylos.

Even the roots from the old rhododendrons were dug out. 

Takapiha avartui hirmuisesti kun puolikuolleet pikkupuut ja risukot otettiin pois.

The back yard looks much more open now that all the small half dead trees and brushes are gone.

Suurin osa kaadetuista puista saatiin kaytettya puusilpuksi, joka sitten on paksuna kerroksena pistetty osan myrkkymuratin paalle.  Osa myrkkymuratista on viela kaivamatta ylos. 

Most of the felled trees we were able to use for wood chips and be put on top of some of the poison ivy.  Part of the poison ivy is still on the ground waiting for digging up.

Naista tehdaan kukkapurkeille alustat (kolme erimittaista polkkya yhdessa).

These will become flowerpot stands (three different length grouped together).

 Dry well on tehty myos. Eli se sellainen kivikaivo, jonka nyt pitaisi suodattaa vedet paremmin pois meidan ongelmakohdalta. Sen kivikaivon paalle rakennetaan viela tytoille leikkialue. Sita ei ole siis viela tehty. 

 Dry well has been finished as well. On top of that is supposed to go the area where a swing set for the girls will go. That has not been done yet. 

Aita tulee talla viikolla ja sita varten on kaivettu jo alue valmiiksi.

 The fence is coming this week and they have prepared the area already. 

Kaiken taman tyo lomassa nama miehet tormasivat pupun pesaan. Siella on 5 poikasta. Niita on varjeltu nyt sitten. Merkittiin pesa kunnolla ettei vahingossakaan kukaan siihen astu. Olen paivittain tarkistanut etta ovat viela elossa, koska en ollut nahnyt emoa lahellakaan pesaa. Eilen illalla se sitten nahtiin loikkivan pesan suuntaan. :) Ihanaa! Se ei ole hyljannyt poikasia. Ei niilla varmaan enaa kauaa kesta kun loikkivat pihalla.

In amongst all the work the men found a bunny nest. There's five little bunnies. We've been protecting them now. We marked the nest so that no one will accidentally step on it. I've checked them daily making sure they are still alive as I had not seen the mother anywhere near the nest. Yesterday evening we did see her going towards the nest. :) How wonderful to know that she has not abandoned her little ones. I'm sure it won't take long until they are jumping about in the yard.

Pieni pala Suomea / Small piece of Finland

Meilla kaikilla ulkosuomalaisilla on omat jutut, joita karrataan laukuissamme Suomesta tanne. Kahvia, ruisleipaa, tiskiharjoja, teeta, karkkeja, lehtia, Muumi-vaatteita lapsille, suomalaista designia ja niin edelleen. Yksi asia on, joka kuitenkin on hankalampi raahata mukana ja olenkin onnellinen nyt etta se pakattiin talon muiden tavaroiden mukana konttiin.
Mehan siis jouduimme myymaan talomme Suomessa. Eli koko talon irtaimisto pakattiin konttiin tanne kun lahdettiin. Kaiken muun mukana oli matontamppausteline. Valitettavasti aikaisemmissa paikoissa sille ei ole ollut paikkaa ja nyt vihdoinkin meilla on takapihalla niin paljon tilaa etta se pistettiin pystyyn. :D Vain suomalainen voi olla onnellinen tallaisesta asiasta.
Ja tamppausteline joutui heti hommiin. Meilla on pari paksua IKEAn mattoa, jotka kaipasivat kovasti pesua (painepesurilla hoitui kovin katevasti). Nyt kun ilmat ovat viela lampimia (talle paivalle luvattu +27C) niin kuivuvatkin mukavasti. Yksi matto on pesty ja on kuivunut yon yli ulkona.  Toivottavasti saadaan toinen matoista pesuun tanaan illemmalla.
Ja itse asiassa en malta millaan odottaa etta saan talvella tuulettaa petivaatteet pakkasessa oikein kunnolla. :D Polypunkeille kyytia.

We all Finnish expats have our own things that we carry back home when we visit Finland. Coffee, rye bread, dish brushes, tea, sweets, magazines, Muumin- clothes for children, Finnish design and so forth. There's one thing that would be quite difficult to bring now so I'm extremely happy that it was packed along all the other things when we moved.
We had to sell our house back in Finland so pretty much all of the stuff was packed and put in the container. Among all the other things was a rug stand. Unfortunately until now I have not been able to unpack it. Now we finally have so much room in the back yard that we've been able to put it up. :D Only a Finn can be happy about such a contraption.
And the stand is already been put to work. We have two big and thick IKEA rugs both in need of a good wash (we jet washed it). Now that the weather is still good and warm they will dry pretty fast (+27C is the forecast for today). One rug done and it's been drying over night outside. Hopefully we'll get the next one washed later today.
And one thing that I cannot wait is to air all the bedclothes properly outside. Cold enough temperatures will kill the dust mites.

Valokuvauskurssilla / On a photography course

Minapa tytto sitten paatin menna mukaan valokuvauskurssille. Mina kun tykkaan rapsia kuvia paljon ja jotkut niista on ihan onnistuneitakin. :) Mutta itse valokuvauksen teoriasta ja tekniikasta en sitten oikein tiedakaan mitaan. Lahinna kokeillut eri juttuja ja opetellut etta mika toimii ja mika ei.
Kaksi viikkoa ollaan kohta oltu kurssilla. Nelisen viikkoa viela edessa. Olen tykannyt kovasti. Oppinutkin olen paljon. Nyt kun saisi viela kaiken sen teorian viela paassa toimimaan niin etta kuvat onnistuu. :) Tassa pari "laksyna" otettua kuvaa.

I decided to take part in a photography course. I do love taking pictures and lots of them. Some of them even quite ok ones. :) But I do not know about the theory of photography at all. Until now I've been trying out different things and learnt from that what works and what doesn't.
The course has been going now for nearly two weeks. I've loved it. I've also learned a lot. Now I just need to get all the pieces to go together in my head so that I will get good pictures. :) Here's few of my "home work" pictures.

Teen ystaville / For tea lovers

Instagramin puolella minut haastettiin #5shotchallengiin tuossa parisen viikkoa sitten. Aiheekseni sain teen. Mikas sen mukavampaa. Minultahan tuo luonnistuu. :) Hasteessa oli siis tarkoitus julkaista yksi kuva per paiva viiden paivan ajan annetusta aiheesta. Tassa minun kuviani. Tiedan etta, jotkut lukijoistani ovat myos teen ystavia.

In Instagram I got a #5shotchallenge few weeks back. I got the theme #tea. What's nicer than that. :) The purpose of the challenge was to post one picture per day about the given theme. Here's my pictures. I know that some of you are also tea lovers.

Ihan pihalla / Yard stuff

Tanaan klo 8.30 "armeijallinen" columbialaisia/meksikolaisia miehia (6kpl - ihan selkeasti siis armeijallinen) saapui meidan pihallemme ja aloittivat pihatyot. Meilla onkin aikamoinen lista asioista, joita talla pihalla pitaa tehda. Niin paljon ja monta etta paatettiin sitten antaa asiantuntijan kasiin koko rytakka. Tulee tehtya huomattavasti nopeammin kuin etta jos me oltaisiin ruvettu tata tekemaan.
Isoin asia on etta puita kaadetaan aikamoinen laja. Suurin osa niista on pienempia ja lahinna siistitaan yleisilmetta mutta joukkoon mahtuu noin 10 isoa mantya. Nama poistetaan turvallisuus ja roskaussyista. Takalaisten mantyjen neulaset on paljon pidempia kuin kotisuomessa ja niita tulee syksylla alas aikamoinen maara. Tukkivat raystaat ja tekevat haravoimisen hankalaksi. Taman lisaksi ihan turvallisuussyista niita poistetaan lahelta taloa. Ne ovat nimittain yleensa ne puut, jotka taalla kovissa tuulissa ja myrskyissa kaatuilee talojen paalle. Mannyllahan ei juuret ole kamalan syvalla niin kuin varmaan koulusta muistatte.
Sitten vihdoinkin aloitetaan myrkkymuratin poistohommat. Etupihalle tulee aitaa, yhdelle kohtaa takapihaa pitaa tehda kuiva kaivo (Mikakohan se on suomeksi? Englanniksi on drywell.) ja kukkapenkit uusitaan, lasten leikkipaikalle tehdaan pohjustukset ja reunat. Aikamoinen maara hommia.
Tanaan kaatuu puut.

Today at 8.30am an "army" of colombian/mexican men (six men - clearly an army, right) arrived to our yard and started some landscaping work. We have a quite a list of things that we want done here. So much that we decided to give the work to a professional. It's going to get done in much shorter time than we ever could have managed.
Biggest part of the work is to get quite a lot of trees cut down. Most of them are small and we're just aiming to clean up the property but there are also about 10 big pine trees that we want to get rid of.  These will be removed because of safety reasons and because they make a mess. Local pine trees have much longer needles that the ones back home in Finland and there's a quite a lot of them that come down in the autumn. The needles block drain pipes and makes raking nearly impossible. In addition to making a mess they are a safety hazard. As we all know from school pine trees have shallow roots and they are the ones that fall on top of houses in storms and strong winds. Too many really big ones are close to the house and we don't want to have the risk of any of them falling on top of our house.
And we are finally starting the work to get rid of the poison ivy. There's going to be a fence in the front yard, we need a dry well in one area of the back yard, we're renewing the flowerbeds, levelling and framing children's play area. Quite a list of jobs.
Today they are cutting trees.

Paatos / Decision

Palasin sitten vanhanmalliseen blogipohjaan. Olen lueskellut ja kysellyt ja tuo kommenttilaatikon haviaminen tuntuu olevan kaytossa olleen mallin ongelma. Valilla nakyy, valilla ei, eika siina tunnu olevan mitaa logiikkaa etta kelle nakyy ja kelle ei. Eli palaan siis tavallisempaan malliin, jossa naita ongelmia ei pitaisi olla. Saatan viela saataa ulkonakoa mutta toistaiseki mennaan nailla.

I returned back to a traditional blog template. I've been reading and asking around and it seems the missing comment box was a problem in the template I was using. Sometimes it shows up, sometimes not, and there doesn't seem to be any kind of logic to whom it appears and to whom not. So I'm taking it back a step to a more conventional template where these issues shouldn't exist. I might tweak the look of the blog but at the moment this is how it looks.

Ongelmia blogin kanssa..... taas / Problems with the blog.... again

Sain tanaan tietaa etta blogissa on taas jotain haikkaa. Se vanha ongelma eli kommenttilaatikkoa ei nay lukijalle. ARGH! Yritan selvittaa asiaa mutta silla valin jos joku on yrittanyt kommentoida eika voikkaan niin laitatko minulle sahkopostia asiasta osoitteeseen ina(@)xenway.com. Saisin selvyytta etta kuinka laajasta ongelmasta on kyse. Yritan korjata asian pikimmiten.

I found out that there's something funny going on with the blog again. The old problem has raised its head: comment box doesn't show up for the reader. ARGH! I'm trying to get to the bottom of this and fix it but in the mean while if someone has tried to comment and cannot do so could you please email me ina(@)xenway.com so that I could find out how wide this problem is. I'll try my best to have this fixed as soon as possible.