a few pictures of the new house

This picture was not supposed to be first! Oh, well! Here's the fun wood cookstove/baking oven. I can't wait to learn to use the oven! (I've cooked on the stove, just for fun!) This was taken before we moved in, and the regular stove had to be replaced right away - it was worthless. So now there's a ... um, what are they called?? Anyway, the metal kind - the silver look.

 Front of the house.

 The back of the house - the basement is already constructed (sauna will be down there, as well as shower, etc. and some play area, and A says someday we will put a Jacuzzi there, too. :-D ... let's see!) So on top of this basement, we'll add on to match the current house. So should get bigger living room and 4 bedrooms in this space!

 A little greenhouse! Kids already have many things growing on the ledges under the windows in the entry! Let's see if we have green-thumbs or not!

 Not a great picture, and these are all from before we moved in, so different furnishings- but here's the fireplace in the livingroom. I love these things! Burn wood in them for a few hours, then when the coals have all burned out, close the damper on the chimney and the walls stay warm for almost a whole day after.

Time4Learning ...

... has been great! Our kids love the lessons on there. Our first-grader 'shares' with the kindergartener (and pre-schooler has also had turns!) The 4th grader has especially liked some of the science lessons.

On other things .... I should try remember to post a few pictures. Would get better pics if I would remember to more often get them on here from the camera! We had American company over the weekend, and so enjoyed that! And since they were here, we had several American/Finn couples visiting, too. Lucky us!!

We feel pretty settled in here! Can't wait till we have more bedrooms (and the sauna!!) but for now, we're absolutely loving the peace and privacy we have now. The kids who are in 'regular' school have had a very good experience so far; for the two who are homeschooling, I've stirred a new pot in this school. The principal told me today that for most of the couple hundred children who are homeschooled in Finland, they are taught at home because the school has run out of patience or options for teaching them in school! So this is a new ball-game for these folks. The principal would be fine with just riding things out for the spring, I think. But his superior is a real stickler for detail, so they've spent some time now reviewing the laws on homeschooling, and are now trying to decide exactly what to do with us. :) But I think in the end it'll all work out okay. They are nice, and seem quite reasonable and understanding. I did remind the principal today to keep in mind that by the time they give us our agenda (and books for T), we will have lost about 7 weeks of technicality (in other words, what they technically want me to teach the boys at home this spring.) He agreed that we must keep that in mind.

I talked with a lady who lives near here - they have 3 children, who happen to be ages of three of our kids (and gender matches ... a boy N's age, girl K's age, boy C's age.) We're all excited to meet, and hopefully our kiddos will become friends. Interesting - their last name is the same as our mother's maiden name. And this guy's roots are also from the same area as our mother's. So - quite likely they are some shirt-talk relatives of ours! Kinda fun to know!

Ramble, ramble ... :) Gotta run. Spuds are boiling and the water's making a mess all over the stove. Heh!

Oh- (have to make this a Mn good-bye! :-D) I recently heard about '5-minute artesian bread' - I will certainly be trying this recipe!! Next week .... This weekend we will likely see Mummo and Ukki (A's parents) as well as his big sister, 'Kaija-täti'! We all look forward to visiting with them!

Toodle-doo!

Time4Learning ...

Okay, the kids tried the Time4Learning today, and we liked what we saw! I did a little monkeying around before  they tried it, so I had a feel for how it works. It's easy to maneuver around it - the child can choose from the grade they are signed up for, or a grade lower or grade higher. This is nice, because for example in math, if they need to go back a grade and review something, it's right there!

So when the younger one was trying math, 1st grade - it is easy to find the first lesson, and proceed from there. It looks like you can choose any lesson though, from anywhere in the 'school year'. I'm as excited as the kids to have this opportunity to use Time4Learning. Let's see- will the kids learn anything using the program? I'll keep updating ... :)

Time4Learning

I have been invited to try Time4Learning for one month in exchange for a candid review. My opinion will be entirely my own, so be sure to come back and read about my experience! Time4Learning can be used as a homeschool curriculum, after school enrichment, and for summer skill-sharpening. Find out how you can write your own curriculum review for Time4Learning - contact reviews@time4learning.com for information!

I'm excited to give Time4Learning a try, especially since I have two boys homeschooling this spring!

Living in the new house!

We made the big move almost 2 weeks ago. Whew! It's lots of work to move. Yes, a person learns a few things after having made many moves, but it's always lots of work. But - it has been a very positive move. We don't know people from the local congregation (yet), but we're loving having our own house again. The kids are having fun in the yard every day. The new school is (in our opinion) much better for us than the last one. The three who are in the local school all like it much better than the last. N and T are homeschooling for the remainder of this school year, so that certainly adds to the confusion and commotion at home, but on the other hand it's nice to see that this is obviously what is best for them for now. L is also home (didn't go to the kindergarten here - he'll start in first grade in 'regular' school in August.)

One big difference, after fighting tooth-and-nail with the principal at the old school (with homeschooling) - it was soooo nice when this principal gave his opinions as to why going to school might be better for the boys, but said as their parents, we are the ones who can best make the decision as to what is best for them, and that was that. When I realized N was not given books from the old school, I called and asked if I can get the math workbook, and he right away said yes, he'll send one home with Miss M that day. And he did. :)

Stomach-bug is working its way thru the household. It's not too terrible, because it doesn't last long. But- thinking of stomach issues, D has had a stomach ache every evening for over a month. Always comes out of bed to say his stomach hurts. I first assumed it's anxiety, but it doesn't get better, and is actually worse lately. So we'll go see the doctor today and see what they think.

Let's see when I get chance to post pictures of the new home. I should keep updates here on the progress of remodeling and addition, over the course of time. So ... right away had to get new dishwasher and stove (the chief of the house decided he wants the metal look, so that's what we have ... !!) And he's working on the main floor bathroom (it was already started -all pipes installed, wiring done, etc.) So - so far the toilet is installed. Yay! We're now a two-toilet home! :)


Parting note ... Mr. C informed me yesterday that 'Everyone and everything has a tailbone. Even the kidnappers do. They don't know they have them, but they really do'!! So there, you have it! :)


Now I'm leaving to pick up the sweet niece who lives 30 km or so from here - she'll come spend the day with us!

The New-en-days :)

As I was reading a book to young Mr's C and L, they were discussing the pictures as we turned each page. L informed that on one page, it was pictures of the Olden Days. So a couple pages later, C says, 'This picture is from the New-en Days.' !!

He also informed me yesterday, as we were in the little local grocery store (getting some boxes - packing some things for the move!), and I said I'm not buying much food, because it's D's turn to go do a 'big' grocery shopping with me in the evening. C said he wants to come too, and I told him it's not his turn. He then said, 'Well, you should let me go with you if I want. I'm the youngest, and the youngest always gets their way.' !! Haha!! I guess he's been told that before (can't you just about hear it - 'You baby! Just because you're the youngest doesn't mean you always have to get your way!') Well- I'm not worried about his intelligence level, anyway!

I'm finding some things that can 'already' be packed away (books, especially.) And the kids have all been starting to pack up some of their things, too. It's fun to see how they're also preparing for this move!

They Accepted ... !

We're not just bouncing off the walls with uncontained excitement, but I think we're all glowing with contentment. We will soon be living in a home we will own, once again. You don't realize how much stress there can be in renting - especially with kids. And just the feeling that is always there, that this is not 'permanent'. So after this, it will be our own home in Finland, or our own home in America. We were joking today, that we should move back and forth every year! :-)

Now I'm ready to get some boxes and start packing. Get lots of books and toys packed up before the girls and I take our (much anticipated!!!!) trip to Minnesota! Because when we come back here, we'll only have a couple weeks left until we move! It really is quite exciting!

It's funny to do things in a different country. We have gone through the process of buying a home in Mn; it surprised us then to realize that here you close on the house and then typically give the seller two to three months to move out. Huh? Well, these sellers will have about a month. I wish we could move in when we close, which will be just before we leave on our trip. Oh well. It's probably actually better this way.