from Helsinki to Fresh Routine

Signs of spring in Helsinki.

May day or "Vappu" is a huge celebration and national holiday in Finland. Thousands of people gather around for picnics and various festivities.  Fun!

We returned from our trip to Helsinki to find our kids perfectly happy in the arms of their grandparents. They apparently had a super fun weekend and didn't really miss us that much! Huh! I guess we missed them more, isn't that typical? Our weekend was fun as well but most of all just so very lovely as the city of Helsinki truly is. Quite calm and beautiful, not really one of those super busy, crowded big cities but rather low-key and just very interesting in that way. We walked around a lot, shopped a bit, tried some great restaurants and also slept in (heavenly, I tell you). My favorite part was when we borrowed bikes from the hotel for three hours and just randomly biked around the city. It is in my opinion the best way to really get an overview of a new city, you get to see more than you could ever see in a car or by foot. Plus biking is just plain fun. We also attended the annual ball of the law firm where Oddur works, which was the whole point of the trip, and it was great fun. Lots of dancing!

And now that we are back we are entering a new family routine. That handsome guy in the bottom photo handed in his masters thesis yesterday - hurray! So now he is almost a real lawyer, or he will be in a month after his graduation ceremony. I am incredibly proud of him. He also has top grades, can you believe it? With two kids, teaching and a part time job at a law firm, I'd say he's pretty amazing. I am pretty lucky to get to be his partner in all of this. Til hamingju, ástin mín! He has already begun working full hours at the firm and so, our mutual days of university life have passed. I still have some finals to finish but in a few weeks my first year of master studies will be over and my summer job awaits. Úlfur will be going to soccer practices and summer "school", which is more like picnics and outdoor playing, and Ósk just started a new daycare, a playschool for children age 2-5. Her new daycare is a Waldorf program and we are just so happy to be a part of such a beautiful and thoughtful community. I might share more about that later. I really like the Waldorf way and have incorporated many elements into our daily life. So this is a milestone of sorts. 

And a post tonight as well - with a sneak peak of my finished mkal shawl being blocked!

when the going gets slow...

After completing three clues quickly and with a smile, I had a huge setback in this week's clue in the mkal. I made one.single.error. in row 10 and didn't discover it until row 20. And oh, the undoing that awaited me! With my busy time in school it literally took days just to set things right. I stuck it out though in the hope of still having a chance of finishing this clue before next Friday. I have an early morning flight to Helsinki tomorrow so I have some spare time, I'd say. 

It's only me and Oddur going so we'll be having a lot of just-us time. Love it. And even though it will be hard to be separated from these sweet little artists of ours they will be in the very safe hands of my mother who's moving into our apartment for the weekend. And she'll have help from Oddur's parents and our sisters and brothers... so, plenty of family my children can count on! We are so very blessed with all this great people around us.

Leftover yarn alien mittens (First day of summer 2015)

Pattern: Pacman-púkar by G. Dagbjört Guðmundsdóttir

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino and Shibui Baby Alpaca

Needles: 2.5 mm and 3.5 mm

Leftover yarn hippie skirt (First day of summer 2015)

Pattern: Dorritarpilsið by Sigríður Margrét Jónsdóttir

Yarn: Tern, Geilsk Uld/Bomuld, Yaku and Gepard Cotton Wool

Hook: 3.5 mm 

MILO

Pattern: Milo by Georgie Hallam

Yarn: Phildar Pur Angora and Shibui Baby Alpaca

Needles: 4.0 mm 

Well. When I have a tough time with my knitting, such as I am having this week due to my stubbornness with the mystery knit-along, it really does brighten my mood to stare long and hard at my already accomplished things, be it actually modeled on my beautiful babies, placed on shelves or in baskets around our home or made eternal by photographs. I did manage to finish the kids' First Day of Summer gifts last week and was rather proud of myself. The skirt is a bit on the larger side for Ósk even though I went down half a hook size but that's fine since I suspect she'll grow into it eventually. The mittens were a hit and as you can see in the photo they have already, in only a couple of days, taken on a worn kind of look. 

To try and further lighten up I also finally got around to photographing the little vest I made for Ósk a few weeks back. It fits so perfectly and is so soft and we just love it. I modified the pattern a bit, inspired by the way Nicole did earlier but instead of the garter stitch going all the way down I switched to stockinette after the yoke was done and then did a little garter trim before casting off. It's a nice little pattern with the cable though and I might just try that when this one starts to look too small. 

I'll be back here on Friday with my second "Moments" photo and then again on Sunday or Monday with photos from the trip (eeek!). Until then - it's Finland, baby!

ps. I'm linking up with Frontier Dreams and can't wait to browse through all the inspiring crafting links being shared!

we went to Greece...

Let me begin this post by apologizing for this horrid amount of photos. Our surroundings were just so beautiful - not to mention my fellow travelers photogenic - that I could not help myself with the camera! I don't feel like blogging about this for days to come so I'm sticking with posting it all at the same time.

First morning in Greece: The morning sun shining on the harbor of Rafina. We took the ferry to Andros from there. 

Our private pool - the view wasn't too bad!

I believe this is a photo of my baby sleeping in a suitcase (!!). We had been promised there would be a baby bed but alas, there wasn't. Luckily my parents had a huge suitcase which served as her bed. (Ósk has trouble with co-sleeping so that wasn't an option). As you can see, she slept just fine in the suitcase. 

I took this photo lying in bed. Ah, the luxury!

Andros Island has natural, fresh water springs. This ancient water shed was just 5 minutes from our house. 

Olives, everywhere. 

A view over Ormos Korthiou, where we stayed for 10 days. 

The Agios Petros Tower is since the 4th or 3rd century BC. 

My mother gathering her flock for a photo.

Napping in the car... 

We visited the Cyclades Olive Museum. Interesting and good fun. 

I have been dreaming of seeing the temples at Agropolis since I was a teenager. That smile was pretty much stuck on my face from dusk til dawn the day that dream came true. It was not a letdown, let me tell you!

Athens seen from Agropolis.

... and we've been back for almost a week now. Unpacking, getting everyone into daily routine and trying to catch up on the mountains of schoolwork waiting for us has taken a lot of time and blogging has been left in the cold. Until now, of course. I uploaded the photos from the trip last night and wanted to share them right away. 

This trip was lovely in so many ways, we were invited along by my family and their company was very precious. Andros Island is beautiful, very unspoiled and not at all crowded. I can truly recommend it for all who are looking for a quiet, sunny vacation with a touch of history. Athens is also amazing with it's current, controversial atmosphere mixed with ancient ruins, tourism and beautiful street art. We were treated very well everywhere we came and the food was always good. Not too expensive, either. We never felt like we were in a "tourist trap". 

The children loved the beach and the ocean, I hope we'll get to go to a warm place like this one again sometime. Now I must get back to reading Shirley by Charlotte Bronte since I have to finish it by Monday. I decided to go for a MA in cultural theory (or I think that's the best translation) and one of my classes is in "How women are represented in Literature". Love it! It's hard doing all the reading and studying and essay-writing and researching with two children, though. I'm taking one day at a time and doing my best... so off I go. Shirley is waiting!