Tunnelmia keijusynttareilta / Snapshots from fairy birthday party

Kuten aikaisemmin mainitsinkin meidat oli kutsuttu lauantaina keijusynttareille. Upeat juhlat taasen kerran. Sankarin aiti siis satsaa synttareihin todella paljon. Rahaakin on varmaan palanut ihan mukavasti. Tassa hieman kuvia, joita siella napsin. Oli hiukka hankalaa keskittya valokuvaamiseen kun piti juosta pienemman neidin perassa. :D

As I earlier mentioned we were invited to a fairy birthday party on Saturday. Gorgeous party once again. Mother of the birthday girl really makes an effort every year. And I'm sure quite a bit of money has been used. Here's some pictures I took there. It was a bit hard to concentrate on photography while I was running after Little Miss. :D

Valmiina juhlimaan!  Ready to party!

Pelkastaan ruokien loppuunajatellut esillepanot ja toteukset saivat haukkomaan henkea. Oli niin kaunista. Ruoasta pelkastaan olisi saanut otettua kokonaisen albumillisen kuvia. 

Just the food was so well thought of in terms of how they were put out and how they fit the theme took your breath away. It was all so beautiful. I could have easily taken an album full of food pictures.

Koristeita oli joka puolella. Pienia telttoja, joissa oli kutsuvasti pehmeita tyynyja ja viltteja joiden paalla istua. Puista roikkui kangassuikaleita, jotka heiluivat tuulesaa. Ilmapalloja tietysti loytyi paljon. Sienia oli poydilla ja maassa. Isoja ja pienia. Olisi voinut hyvin kuvitella olevassa keijumaassa.

Decorations were everywhere. Small tents with soft cushions and blankets to sit on. Fabric strings tied on branches, swinging in the breeze. Of course balloons. There were mushrooms on the tables and on the ground. Big ones and small ones. One could have easily imagined oneself in fairyland.

Kaikenlaisia aktiviteetteja oli myos jarjestetty lapsille. Oli poniratsastusta, kasvomaalausta, keijutalon tekoa, siipien ja keijusauvan koristelua, valokuvausta, keksien koristelua ja lasten piti yrittaa pyydystaa keiju. Kaikilla naytti olevan niin hirmuisen kivaa.

All kinds of activities were arranged for the children. There were pony rides, face painting, building a fairy house, decorating wings and fairy wands, photo booth, cookie decorating and the children also had to try to catch a fairy. Everyone seemed to have so much fun.

Kakku oli hieno ja todella hyvaa.    Cake was lovely and really good.

Pikkuneiti sai keijun kiinni!    Little Miss caught a fairy!

Minun keijukaiseni!      My Fairies! 

Suomalainen synttarilaulu / Finnish birthday song

Synttarit taalla on iso juttu. Olemme tulevana viikonloppuna menossa isoille synttareille. Teemana on keijut. Tyton aiti tekee/teettaa aina uskomattoman upeat juhlat kotonaan. Teemoina on aikaisemmin ollut Liisa ihmemaassa, Funky forest ja nyt sitten keijujuhlat. Naiden mainittujen teemojen edeltajista meilla ei ole tietoa eika kokemusta. Syntymapaivajuhliin todellakin panostetaan.

Paasaantoisesti taalla kuitenkin synttarit ulkoistetaan. Kaiken maailman paikkoja on: kipsipatsaiden maalausta, pehmolelun tekoa, jumppajuttuja, prinsessajuttuja, touhupaikkoja, elokuvia jne. Varaat paikan tietylle maaralle lapsia. Erilaisia paketteja saa eri hintaan. Yleensa tuot itse paikalle kakun/muffinssit. Pizza tilataan paikan kautta. Pikkulahjat tehdaan joko itse tai saadaan paikan kautta. Lisahintaan tottakai. 

Birthdays are a big thing here in US. We're going to a big one this coming weekend. Theme is fairies. The mother of this little girls makes these unbelievably gorgeous parties at their house. Previous themes have been Alice in Wonderland, Funky Forest and now fairies. I don't know what the themes of the previous parties have been but every time there's a theme. So birthdays are something people do think of. Some more some less. 

However, mainly the birthday parties are arranged out of home and there's lots of places that arrange birthday parties. You can choose from painting plaster figures, making stuffies, gymnastics, princess things, bouncy houses and castles, movies etc. You reserve the place for certain amount of children. There are different packages in terms of what you want included. Usually you bring the cake yourself. Pizza is ordered through the place. Goodie bags for the guest are either made by you or they can be bought from these venues. For extra bucks of course.

(Tama kuva on toukoukuulta pikkuneidin synttareilta./ This photo is from May from Little Miss' birthday party.)

Ja se laulu. "Happy birthday to you" raikuu joka juhlassa juuri ennen kynttiloiden puhaltamista. Mina olen pitanyt huolen etta meidan juhlissa lauletaan myos suomeksi "paljon onnea vaan". Onneksi vieraissa on aina ollut edes pari suomalaista vahvistamassa kotijoukkoja. Olemme saaneet hassuja katseita  ennen kuin vieraat muistavat etta olemme ulkomaalaisia. Ei englanninkielisia.

Mutta olittekos tietoisia etta meilla suomalaisilla on ihan oma synttarilaulu? Ruotsalaisilla on omansa "Ja ma han/hon leva". (Anteeksi oikeiden kirjainten puuttuminen nappaimistosta ja taten tekstista.) Venalaisilla on harmonikkalaulu. Miksei siis meillakin olisi omaa synttarilaulua eika vain lainattua anglosaksista versiota?

And then song. "Happy birthday to you" is always sung before blowing the candles. I have made sure that we also sing in Finnish "Paljon onnea vaan". Luckily we always have one or two Finnish guests to strengthen our little choir. We do get funny looks sometimes before the other guests remember we're foreigners. Non English speakers! 

But were you aware that we Finns have our very own birthday song? The Swedes have their "Ja ma han/hon leva". (Sorry the missing correct alphabets due to wrong kind of keyboard.) The Russians have their harmonica song. Why shouldn't we Finns have our very own and not the borrowed Anglo-Saxon one?

Sinun syntymäpäiväs on koittanut,

siis elä-elä-eläköön!

Sinun intosi älköön laimetko,

se kestä-kestä-kestäköön.

Sula sumfatirallallei,

elä terveenä, terveenä hei hei hei!

Pidä kurssisi aina kunnossa,

onni potkikoon sinua.

Tama on peraisin Suomesta ja tullut tanne USAhan  maahanmuutajien mukana. Tutkin vahan asiaa kun tormasin tahan lauluun. Taalla sita kuulemma kuulee viela Minnesotassa ja Wisconsinin osavaltioissa sellaisissa perheissa, jossa ollaan ainakin viisi polvea oltu taalla. Perheissa, joissa suomenkieli on jo perheissa katoamassa mutta joistain tietyista perinteista pidetaan kiinni kuten tasta.  Pitaakin hankkia tama elokuva katsottavaksi ihan mielenkiinnosta.

This is definitely from Finland. I've done research. And has arrived in US with the immigrants. Apparently this song is still sung in Minnesota and Wisconsin in families that have been here at least five generations. In families where the Finnish language is disappearing under the English influence but in which some traditions are tightly held on to like this one. I think I need to get hold of this movie and watch it.

Westbury White Horse, Wiltshire, UK

Kesaisella Englannin reissullamme teimme pienen retken Daddyn kotikaupunkiin Westbury:yn Wiltshiren ns kreivikunnassa. Kavimme tietysti tutkailemassa missa oli hanen kotinsa, missa oli kaynyt koulun ja missa molemmat mummot (meidan lasten great grannyt) asuivat jne.

On our summer trip to England we visited Daddy's home town Westbury in Wiltshire county. Of course we had to see where he had lived as a boy, where his school had been, and where both of his grannies (great grannies to our girls) lived etc.

Westburysta loytyy myos kuuluisa valkoinen hevonen. Westbury sijaitsee Salisburyn kalkkitasangon reunalla ja yhteen kohtaan sinne on kaiverrettu hevosen kuva, joka on sitten kalkittu. Tama kyseinen hevonen on Wiltshiren vanhin. Ihan tarkkaa ajankohtaa hevosen tekemiselle ei ole. Varmasti se on ollut olemassa 1742 mutta se voi olla myos paljon vanhempi. On legenda sen olevan jopa 800-luvun lopulta kuningas Alfredin Eodunin taistelun voiton merkiksi kaiverrettu mutta tasta ei ole varmaa tietoa.
Aina ajoittain hevonen kalkitaan uudestaan niin etta se nakyy kauemmas, se on ollut maamerkkina matkaajille. 1950-luvulla hevonen vandalisoitiin pahoi ja se korjattiin osittain. 2007 Westburyn valkoinen hevonen restoroitiin kokonaan ja 2012 se maalattiin uudestaan.

Westbury is famous for its white horse. The town of Westbury is located at the edge of Salisbury Plain and at the edge of town there's an engraved picture of a horse on the hill. This particular white horse is the oldest in Wiltshire. Exactly how old the white horse in Westbury is is unknown. For sure it has been there 1742 but it can be much older. There's a legend that it would commemorate King Arthur's win on Battle Eodunin at the end of 800s. But this cannot be confirmed.
Every now and then the horse is chalked again so that it can be seen properly further away and it has been a land mark for travelers. In 1950s the horse was vandalised badly and it was was mainly fixed. In 2007 the white horse was completely restored and 2012 it was painted latest.

Maki johon hevonen on kaiverrettu kuuluu viela Salisburyn kalkkitasankoihin eli kalkkikivea on joka puolella. Niita ihmeteltiin ja kokeiltiinkin.

The hill where the white horse has been carved is at the edge of the Salisbury plain which is rich in chalk stone. We saw them everywhere and of course had to study them closely and even try them. 

Oli aikaisen utuista vaikka aurinko oli laskemassa. Kirkkaana paivana maen paalta nakee vaikka kuinka kauas.

It was quite hazy even though the sun was going down. On a clear day you can see far away from on top of the hill.

Tassa kuvassa nakyy kuinka jotku teinipojat olivat laskeneet hevosta pitkin, pyllymakea kaiketi, kavioihin ja he myos kiipesivat sielta ylos kun oltiin lahdossa. Moni on satuttanut itsensa ja muutama kuolemantapauskin tassa kyseisessa hommassa on ollut vuosien mittaan. 

In the picture above you can see how some teenage boys had slid down the horse to its hooves. They did climb also up when we were leaving. Many has hurt themselves badly and there have been deaths as well while doing this.

Ison neidin mielesta oli erityisen jannaa kun paasi koskemaan hevosen korvaa. Tassa he katselevat mita ne aikaisemmin mainitut teinipojat siella alhaalla tekivat.

Big Miss thought it was extremely exciting to touch the ear. Here they are looking down to see what those boys were doing.

Lampaat laiduntaa maen paalla. Muistan ensimmaisen kerran kun taalla kavin lampaat olivat puoliksi lumen peitossa kun oli hetken pyryttanyt.

The sheep were grazing on top of the hill. I remember how I came here for the very first time and the sheep were half covered with snow as there had been a brief snow squall.

Mieheni on kolunnut valkoisen hevosen makea ystaviensa kanssa, kasvanut naissa maisemissa. Oli hienoa vieda tytot sinne ja nayttaa heille paikkoja. Isompi neideista on jo sen verran iso etta muistaakin asioita.  Kuvat auttaa pikkuneitia. 

Valitettavasti minulla ei ole kuvaa hevosesta kauempaa. Mutta Google on siita mukava etta kun sinne kirjoittaa Westbury white horse and etsii kuvia niin niitahan tulee vaikka kuinka. :)

My husband has been roaming on this hill with his friends. He's grown up in these scenes. I was lovely to be able to take the girls there and show them around. Big Miss is old enough to remember things. Pictures will help Little Miss.

Unfortunately I don't have a picture of the horse further away. Howeer, Google is here to help and if you search Westbury white horse and images you'll get loads of them. :)

Ei ole vauvoja enaa talossa / No more babies in this house

Mun vauva aloitti tanaan takalaisen preschoolin. Han on koulussa kahtena aamuna viikossa kolme tuntia. Neiti on ollut niin tapinoissaan tasta paivasta jo vaikka kuinka kauan. On siina kuulkaa ollut paivissa ja oissa laskemista ja selittamista. 

Kaikki meni kuitenkin enemman kuin hienosti. Ei ollut ikava mamia ollenkaan. Lahti kuitenkin pois hyvilla mielin vaikka vahan epailinkin ettei halua lahtea kotiin ollenkaan. :)

My baby started preschool today. She's going to "school" two mornings a week for three hours each time. Little Miss has been so excited about this day for weeks. You have no idea how many times we have counted days and nights. 

Everything went more than well. Mummy was not missed at all. And she did come away with a smile even though I predicted she would not want to leave. :)

Ekan koulupaivan valokuvaukset alkoi nain. (Mami ala ota kuvia.)

This is how the first day of school picture session started. (Mummy I don't want pictures taken.)

Nama otettiin kotosalla ja myrtsi oli jo havinnyt.

These were taken at home and the gloomy face had disappeared.

Kuvat koulun pihalla! TAYSOSUMA!

School yard photos! SUCCESS! 

Opetteja kavi kotona esittaytymassa viime viikolla ja oli siis tuttu. Ja ei kun saman tien toihin.

Her teacher came to introduce herself last week at our house and was a familiar face. So no worries there and straight to work.

Kotiin kun paastiin paivan jalkeen alkoi leikkitouhut heti. Aina kun neiti keskittyy hanella on kieli ulkona. 

Play time at home after the school day. She always has her tongue out when she's concentrating. 

Taistelu alkakoon / Let the battle begin

Mina en ole koskaa ollut mitenkaan innostunut meikkaamisesta saatika voiteista yms ihonhoitotuotteista. Talla hetkella aamuisin ei todellakaan ole aikaa itsensa laittamiseen. Vaatteet paalle, harja juuri ja juuri kerkeaa hiusten lapi ja sitten alkaa touhu. Nyt kun tuli tuo maagiset pyoreat niin ajattelin etta ehka on aika aloittaa taistelu syventyvia harakanvarpaita ja otsauurteita vastaan.

Reissu CVSaan (paikallinen apteekki) oli siis ohjelmassa. Siinahan sita sitten ihmeteltiin hyllyn edessa, jossa oli jos jonkinmoista seerumia ja voidetta. Tutkailin niita ja hintoja ja sitten silmakulmaan osui jotain, ja katse kiinnittyi alahyllyyn.

I have never been very enthusiastic about make up or facial creams etc skin care products. At the moment in the mornings I really do not have time to think about myself. I get dressed, barely have time to brush my hair and then the daily hustle and bustle starts. However, now that the magical number of 40 hit last month I decided that it was time to start the battle against the deepening crows feet (that's how we call the wrinkles in the corner of the eye in Finland - don't have a clue what they are called in English) and lines on my forehead. Trip to CVS (a local pharmacy) was in order. There I was standing in front of the shelving looking at the numerous different serums and creams. I was studying them and prices when something caught my eye at the bottom shelf.

Siella luki LUMENE. Piti noukkia laatikko kateen ja katsoa ihan oikeasti. Juu-u, LUMENE ja alapuolella ylpeasti Finland. Kahta erilaista ryppyrasvaa. 

It did say LUMENE. I had to pick up the box and look closer. Yes, LUMENE and under neath proudly Finland. Two different types of wrinkle creams. 

Toinen todiste suomalaisuudesta on avainlippu, joka komeili molemmissa laatikoissa. Molemmissa luki myos Made in Finland.

Another proof of being from Finland was the Finnish symbol of products made in Finland a key with a Finnish flag. And both did state that they were Made in Finland.

Toisessa voidelaatikossa on suomenkielinen tuoteseloste kun taas toisessa ei ole.

One of the boxes has Finnish description of the cream while the other one doesn't. 

Mina siis suosin suomalaista. Suomivoimalla nyt siis kaydaan tahan taistoon. :D Vahan naurattaa! Toisaalta kauhistuttaa etta ollaan tultu tahan vaiheeseen elamassa. (Luin jonkun artikkelin joskus etta ihon ikaantymista vastaan pitaisi ruveta tekemaan toita jo 35vuoden iassa viimeistaan. Viisi vuotta ainakin siis menetty tassa hommassa. heh)

I prefer Finnish. So I've chosen my weapon for this battle. :D Makes me laugh a bit! On the other hand this terrifies me. I've actually come to the point in my life where I have to think about this. (I read an article somewhere some time ago that one should start working against ageing skin at the age of 35 at the latest. So I've lost 5 years already. ;D)