Bretagne - summer 2020

Wonderful day of trekking and discovering the area. We headed to a close-by Port Crouesty. The names here in Bretagne are impossible to recall even for a Finn - too many exotic letters combined to consonants! As we approached the port, the girls were ecxtatique seeing the shops lined next to little crêperies and sea food restaurants. Side effects of the confinement. Their pocket money was clearly burning in their hands. We agreed to head first for our tour of the tip of the half-island, have lunch and then would be time for a well-deserved shopping tour. The trek turned out to be amazing. And popular. It climbed up on the falaises and offered breath-taking vistas to the sea, the busy port, the km long sand beaches. Others had discovered the same trail, but not to have crowds. Kids had snack and we decided to have them a swim at the beach before heading back to the village. The water line was full of sea life! My son came first thrilled holding a living crab in his hand, screaming of enthousiasm. My daughter caught also bare hand the sea worm. Incredible! It makes me so happy to see my kids so full of joy discovering new experiences. Our lunch consisted of THE local speciality: galette Bretonne. My kids have already a favorite one with cheese and ham. I found mine, the salad with salmon toast. My eldest discovered local hand-made scented soaps in beautiful floral shapes, perfect souvenir from Bretagne. After the siesta, we enjoyed still bathing int the evening sun, our home beach was still packed with people. The water seemed cooler, but the water donut was still a hit and I had to open stop-watch to share turns. The evening was special. We have enjoyed the French tv, a novelty to the kids and a documentary on the exotic corner of the world: a Saharian village drowning to the sand storms and the coldest town of the world in Siberia where temparatures descend to -60 Celsius! The kids found both places fascinating and the questions were endless. What a day discovering and expanding horizon for my little love bundles. I am ever grateful for the blessings we have, and being able to enjoy this beautiful house islandand spend time together as family.

Biscarosse - summer 2020

I wish time would pause. 5th week into our French sea holiday at the Atlantic coast, there is amazingly little sight of travel fatigue, only gentle, dreamy, wavy holiday routine. Weeks are structured by Saturdays, our marathon travel and change of place days, where we pack and clean, prepare our sandwiches and drive, visit the new city close by while waiting for our new home to be ready. Excitement of discovering new house, rooms, share of beds. Ensuring the essentials are there. Emptying the car, getting kids back to car to do groceries. Preparing dinner and beds, sometimes even venturing out for an evening swim. Ending the day with a glass of cool rosé feeling heroes with my husband. The days go by fast. Mornings are often of activities, visiting like today the Dune du Pilate, Europeans’ largest sand dune. It was amazing! As in a desert. It was so hot and I carried Eva all the way up. My Louise Parker fitness regime thanks, the cardio part checked. Kids were thrilled to slide down the sand hills, we run down too with my hubby, side effects of feeling relaxed! We found a superb sand beach called the Little Nice just 5 min. away. The water was crystal clear, it steepened quite quickly and there was a strong current with the sea flowing through to and from the Arcachon bay. I just read yesterday they regularly witness Orcas and dolphins at the Arcachon, which seems incredible. We are indeed next to the Atlantic Ocean! I am thinking of Liisa and understanding a little how powerful the rencontre with such huge sea creatures could be. Makes one speechless. I feel like re-born. After the difficult spring and year of preparing for the competition I suddenly feel connected more with myself. I am not meditating at the moment, neither am I practicing regular yoga, but I am taking care of myself by following a daily fitness and cardio regime (6th week ongoing!) to loose my Competition preparation, Corona, burnout or Vegetarian regime kg I put on last year. Amazingly I woke-up at the gyne check to make an effort before it got too difficult. I don’t have a scale, but I think I am 2 kg close to my normal weight. I feel so much better and lighter. Not to dwell on self-centrism, but I am determined to keep my beach look. My four beautiful children have been carried, delivered and fed with this body, it is my time now to thank, praise and take care of it just for myself sake. The kids are enjoying so much this time together. Of course they bigger, but it is nothing. I love to listen in the morning Elias come to me half-sleeping explaining in an endless row of words about his dream, often filled with sharks, pirates, speed boats. Lately also fears of loosing me, the age of five fears we all have had❤️ He is so full of energy, joy and love for life this little boy my heart swells thinking about him. Estelle is showing to be so clever, tactful, manoeuvring between Elise and Elias, always first one to compromise. It is so lovely to spend time just the Tao of us, which was so difficult to arrange at home conditions. Yesterday she taught me Tammi, and we got both hooked! No tv at this house makes wonders in getting the kids enthusiastic to play board games! Yey! Elise is probably missing home and her friends most. It is not easy being the big sister. Eva considers her the second mom, always ensuring Elise has her share of drinks\fruits/sweets. She calls her Leia, as her carer at the Creche! Elise is growing up fast. It is quite wonderful how traveling triggers discussions of different topics we would probably not discuss, about the environment, geography, sea life, lifestyles..I feel she is observing and absorbing I can feel it! With Eva it is tough. She has her 2 year tantrums and we are tired with my husband. She is not a morning person, does not want to eat breakfast, screams easily in falset, potty training meaning she no longer wants to do her needs to the pampers. So we stop to do the neessary endless times per day: just when our meals have been served, motorways, from our bikes, at the beach, you name it. It took her 5 weeks to learn to like built castles in the sand, but one of us has to be sitting with her. She hates to get to the water, probably feels the 20 degrees of Ocean water is too chill. With all this, she is so lovable my heart explodes. Her little cheeky smile and curly hear, the way she wants to cuddle and she shows love by caressing my face and sighting “ mom” with this sound of love, I would not change one second of this time. I feel this is the best time of our life. Sincerely, without wanting to be dramatic, the kids are small and adorable, we are together, we are healthy, all is well.I miss my family in Finland and Mexico, but I am so grateful for everything I have blessed with, at this moment. Thank you universe, immensely🙏🏻💋

Halloween

Despite the grey sky, the new wave of the pandemic with contamination rates we've never seen before and the looming lockdown, our family is not feeling particularly gloomy. Perhaps, just because of these special circumstances, we have tuned into small pleasures, taking example from our children and sharing their irresistable excitement over..Halloween! The school is indeed organizing a Halloween party, within the class. We have prepared the costumes weeks ago (witch and Alice in wonderland), sweets and cookies are stacked in packpacks. My hands were trembling when I today heard my daughter's teacher has fallen ill, waiting for covid test results. The school has been struggling to find an alternate teacher in our language section, because apparently so many teacher was absent..I cross my fingers and send a little prayer that my childrens highlight of the fall will not be cancelled. All the other excursions have been cancelled for this year, the skiing trip to the Alps is especially hard to swallow for my eldest. They talk about this 5th grade trip since 1st grade! For the rest, I don't see symptoms of great stress in my kids. Life happens in our daily activities. We are excited about my son's first tooth moving, my baby girls successful potty training, my second ones evening gymnastics or the reading diploma completed. With my husband we have grown to love working from home and don't miss one bit our previous rat-race busy mornings. We are humans with the greatest of gifts, the capacity to adapt, to this, and whatever is to come next.