7th Wedding Anniversary

Tomorrow is our 7th wedding anniversary. I'm thankful for all the years that we've had together and I hope to God we still have many more years and memories to come. Marrying Arttu is one of the BEST decisions that I've ever done in my entire life. Moving here and starting life all over again has been worth it. :-)

Because all the stores are closed today due to it being All Saints' Day, I went to the supermarket yesterday already to buy our anniversary cake. We went to MIL's place today and BIL and SIL came, as well, so we shared our cake with them ha ha...there's one song that's been echoing in my mind ever since I started thinking of our wedding anniversary. This is the song: 



OK, so Arttu doesn't take a shower that long (nor do I), but I do love the way he loves me he he he he he he he...One of the things that makes him different from many other guys is that he never gives me unsolicited advice and my life has been made easier because of that. Plus the fact that he's so easy to live with makes me adore him even more. And he's funny! :-D And he makes me feel that I'm funny. I love being able to be my wild, crazy, fun self in front of him and still feel that I'm loved. 

In honour of our anniversary, I tinkered with one of our wedding pictures. Here goes:

Today we also went to visit FIL's grave to light a few candles...here's the picture...Some of the candles had been put there by MIL.

FIL's Funeral

Today was the day my FIL got buried. I was a bit confused on when I should start taking pictures, but anyway I just used my instinct, I suppose. There were six of us who carried the casket to church and then afterwards the same men lowered the casket to the ground.

When we arrived at church at around 10.45 am and we went inside to wait for the casket and the guests to come, MIL started sobbing when she saw the four flower wreaths that we had ordered. Here they are:

I think we started right on time (11 am). There were about 30 people present. The priest gave a lovely sermon and speech, we sang some songs that MIL had chosen - accompanied by the organ. Then the priest started saying "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust..." while making a symbol of a cross with dirt on top of the casket.

 
After that as per what MIL had requested, our family stood around the casket together: MIL, R2's brothers and wives, R2 and I, our two nephews and the elder nephew's fiancee. Then starting from the eldest (MIL), one by one each family's representative recited a text that we had chosen to say goodbye and then we laid down the flower wreaths that we had ordered. MIL actually wrote a special poem for FIL by herself, whereas the rest of us mostly just chose from one of the usual goodbye quotes available in the funeral homes.

After that the guests took turns to come forward to say a few words of goodbye and then lower their flower bouquets/wreaths around the casket. Then the six men carried the casket to the cemetery and we followed behind...It was around 15'C at that time and the sun was shining. It started raining at around 3 pm and the temperature dropped a few degrees.

 
The casket was then lowered to the ground like this...

Then again one by one we lowered the flower wreaths/bouquets around the casket and then we left to have the memorial service. The ground would be covered properly by hired workers and I found out that ordering the gravestone could take weeks.

 
We had set aside all the cards that MIL had received on one table along with a photo of FIL.

 
After lunch, one nephew started reading the cards along with the names of the senders. Then the priest called on anyone who wanted to say a few words about FIL and that was the most touching moments ever. I think everybody had wet eyes and I heard sniffles here and there and people blowing their noses. I was too touched to take any pics during those moments, but I suppose it wasn't really appropriate to be taking pics unless I had been an outsider. It was more respectful to just listen to what each person had to say.

After that we were served some cake and coffee and we stayed to chit-chat for a while. All in all it must've taken around 3 hours. All in all it was a memorable day for everybody.

Rest in peace, FIL...you'll stay in our memories...

P.S. There were lots of hugs offered, even among the men, though it seemed to depend on how close they felt with one another. :-)

Preparation Before The Funeral

In Indonesia, usually Christians in my city Bandung tend to have the cremation or burial of their loved ones a few days after. The family would usually rent a room (or two if they think there'll be so many guests) in a funeral home and the casket and the body will be laid there for three days. On day three in the evening there'll usually be the "closing of the casket" ceremony after a sermon and then the next morning the casket will be brought to a cremation place or burial place.

During the three days of "open house for guests", the family members will be ready to accept the guests from morning till night (because soon after the death is found out, they'll immediately contact a newspaper to put an ad about the details of the funeral and where you can visit the family and pay respect to the deceased). The family members usually provide drinks (water) as well as snacks (sweets, peanuts) and fruit (usually oranges). Guests will come along with a gift of money, pay their respect, talk to the family members present there, and then go back home. The whole thing is a tiring event for the closest family members especially.

If the deceased is buried, on the fourth morning usually only the closest family members and their relatives will go and escort the body to the burial place. And afterwards usually the closest family members (the wife/husband of the deceased) would treat them lunch. 

Because my dad was cremated, they had arranged a specific date and time afterwards to bring the ashes and spread it to the sea, so my Mom and bro rented a car and a driver to take them there (Bandung is in the middle of Java island so it's rather far from the sea).


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Here in Sodankylä apparently it's a whole different thing, even though I suppose things can also be done by request, but still...The funeral will be held on in a few weeks. Can't be done any sooner because the church is fully booked. Before the funeral, the church will ring the church bell on June 5th eighty times (the age of the deceased), so I'll be listening to that later on.

So we'll have a funeral service at the church, then the funeral will commence, then we'll all go to a certain place to eat. The option to eat depends on the family members: either to serve only coffee and sweet bread/cake or to serve those after serving a main course. MIL will have to talk to the catering service about what she wants.

On Wednesday first of all we went to buy the casket, then we went to church to book the funeral service. Because MIL hadn't booked any burial spot, we went there to look at the empty spots so that MIL could find a good place for FIL and herself (so she booked two plots because she wants to be laid to rest next to FIL).


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After that the funeral home director had prepared FIL and laid him down in the casket, so we went there to say our last goodbye. MIL then proceeded to put on FIL's socks, covered FIL's face with a kind of face cover that was already provided, then the three of us (me, MIL, funeral home director) put the casket lid on top and then put some screws on them. Then along with BIL we lifted the casket on to the back of the funeral home director's car. MIL sat next to him in the car, whereas BIL and I followed it with his car (R2 had work whereas BIL and I were still on summer holiday). Once the casket was put in a cooler, we went back home using BIL's car.

MIL still has so many things to think about...writing down the list of people who may come (if no more than 28 people, then we'll be able to use the small chapel in the cemetery area - but if there are more than that, we must use the church), the menu for the guests after the funeral, then what kind of hymns to sing during the funeral service, ordering the tombstone, sorting out FIL's stuff etc.

Anyway, MIL seems to be doing better today. Calmer. Yesterday she was still understandably shaky, esp. in the morning. Anyway, preparing for things like this makes me think of my own mortality. What kind of ending do I want for myself? I'd rather have the cheapest and the most practical kind available - cremation if possible, though I'm not sure one can do it here in this village. Oh well, when the time comes, it all depends on whoever is available to take care of it. :-)

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P.S. I've been browsing for flower wreaths/bouquets for hours 'coz apparently over here family members and guests would bring flower bouquets or wreaths to church. I've visited two flower shops here to find out about the models and prices, but basically speaking they can do pretty much anything per request (provided that they can get the flowers I want, because up here in the north the choices aren't as many as the south), so I really need to think of at least the colour combination of the flowers so that they can help me with the type of flowers. I also have to think of what to write on the card that'd go along with the flowers. It ain't an easy task, I tell ya (because I've never been to a funeral here and I don't really know the customs)!

Goodbye FIL!

Last night I found out that my father-in-law had passed away. I don't know the details yet, but the last time I visited him with MIL on Sunday, he was in a sad state. He had a hard time breathing and he couldn't even swallow yoghurt anymore. Couldn't sip a drink with a straw anymore. And he'd lost more weight. He's no more in pain and I'm glad for that, but I pray that MIL will get comfort and peace without any regrets. Mind you, MIL and FIL would have been married for 50 years soon.

Goodbye, father-in-law! You will be missed... 


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Time To Say Goodbye?

My alzheimer-stricken FIL has been suffering from pneumonia for weeks and the docs have tried different types of antibiotics, but they didn't really help much. They tried the strongest type of antibiotics, but to no avail. His condition has been stable so far, but it seems that they've prepped MIL to say goodbye to him. He was supposed to be brought back to the main old people's home yesterday, but the doc has said that it would be unnecessary and that he'd take care of him in the hospital until his last breath. In the beginning of treatment he was still eating well, but gradually reacting less and less. Today I asked MIL about his condition and it seems that he hasn't been eating well anymore. So it seems that it's only a matter of time...

At least I'm glad that MIL has had time to let go, but I pray that she's given peace of mind and no regrets. After all, she's done all she can to be with him and to take care of him with so much love...


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3BT: Random Days

1. Hubby's down with a cold and he's been home. It's nice to have him home on my days off. :-D

2. Heard from MIL that FIL's gonna be transferred back to the original old people's home (which is closer to where she currently lives), so YAAAAAAAAAY for that!!! We're all unhappy with the temporary place where he's been taken to.

3. My yearly work evaluation went well. I'm pleased with the results. :-D

4. I've also caught some of R2's viruses. It's better to be sick now then during our winter holiday later. :-D

5. Taking care of hubby's fever by putting a cold compress on his head made me remember our honeymoon when he got sick two days prior to his departure to Finland. And now I have him all for myself here in our mutual home. What a journey it's been! :-D

6. I LOVE listening to Game of Thrones theme song and its variations (I can listen to them over and over again)...First one: the original one. Second one: a mash-up violin and rock version of the theme song. Third one: a rock version of the song. Each version gives off a slightly different feeling/nuance.
 

3BT: Random Days

1. To see FIL's smile during our visit to the old people's home on Father's Day. 

2. To see FIL's eyes flickering, trying to recognize the faces on the card that I printed for him (a pic of us and him). It was nice to see him interested like that.

3. The other day the temperature went up to above zero (most of the snow melted due to that), but thankfully it went colder again and it's been snowing afterwards. Winter Wonderland is BACK!!!! :-D

4. Seeing the neighbour kid rolling around on the thick snow today. :-D


5. I accidentally spilled something on my clean fleece vest, but thankfully I have another one to wear (and it's newly washed and fragrant mmmmhhh...). :-D

6. The moment I wake up from a tiring dream/nightmare and realizing, "Phew! I'm glad it's just a dream and now it's over!!!"

7. Being able to give better advice to customers on where to look for things in my workplace because now I remember more about the products and their locations.

8. Talking on the phone for the first time with one blogger friend. FUN!!! :-D


9. The first time I cooked kaalilaatikko (cabbage casserole) and it was a success (R2 said I could cook it again later). I ate some with gusto after shoveling the very heavy snow outside. :-D

10. I've healed very well after the molar tooth extraction and I've been eating normally again since last weekend (though in the beginning I didn't dare to chew on tough food on that side). :-D 

11. Having a job that I enjoy doing. :-D 

12. Seeing hubby try to hold back his laughter but his quivering nostrils betrayed him. It was such a funny sight that I couldn't help laughing like a mad woman! :-D

13. Laughing uncontrollably for no reason - that caused hubby to do #11. And the crazy laughing cycle continued! :-D 

What A Luxury!

Spent the night at MIL's house 'coz R2 had to go to Rovaniemi for 2 days, so after work on Saturday I went straight there. We played cards, had sauna, and we had some serious talk as well about different topics.

All of a sudden she started talking about the past and FIL then started crying. And she made my eyes wet as well. After spending so much time taking care of the kids, farm, cows, her own mother and then her own in-laws, she had wanted to enjoy the rest of her life with her hubby.

Now that my FIL has been taken to an old people's house, she can't even enjoy that luxury anymore. Not that she doesn't want to. She said that she was still thinking if she could still take him back home, but she can't do it on her own and she can't afford having someone to live with them to help her take care of him. You see, the other week she visited FIL and then FIL said that he felt like he was nothing, a nobody. I almost wished that he would lose more consciousness so that he wouldn't think about anything like this anymore, you know? But then I wonder if that's such a great wish...sigh...

Anyway, the other week MIL sprained her arm and then last week she sprained her leg and she realized that she had to accept reality. Due to the arm and leg sprains, she hadn't been out for a few days and when we visited FIL yesterday (together with R2), the nurse said that he had eaten very little that day. Both the nurse and MIL were wondering if he didn't want to eat properly 'coz of longing. MIL brought some bread and homemade salted salmon filet, bananas, and also yoghurt and so we waited for FIL to eat them all (he could still hold bread and bananas himself, but MIL fed him the yoghurt). And he did eat them all with gusto, I must say.

Then MIL told FIL that she had to go for almost a week to Rovaniemi 'coz they have this program for the elderly that offers exercise program and it's good for her to be able to join this kind of activity. And after FIL heard that, his eyes became wet and I almost wanted to cry...I left the room to give MIL and FIL some time for themselves and R2 also left the room, as well. It was just heartbreaking...Wish I could do more for MIL and FIL, but there's only so much one person can do...

Sniff, sniff...anyway, last night when we went back home, it hit me with a different force than before how luxurious it is for me and R2 to be able to live together under the same roof, to be able to give and take, to be able to enjoy life together. How much we take for granted the life that we have together, every single day...each breath we take, each step we take...day in, day out...how precious those moments are...how much more I should cherish these moments while they last...

This is the promise I hold dear...


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Longing for Heaven

I haven't been blogging not due to the lack of inspiration. In fact, I've had so many different thoughts rumbling in my brain for the past few weeks, but I haven't really got any "Eureka" moments yet, so if I write them down, they're gonna sound like a rambling babble...but anyhow, let me just share one part of them anyhow.

Last Sunday was Father's Day in Finland, so all the stores were closed here in this small village (in some big cities some stores were open). Hubby and I went to MIL's place and together we brought cake for FIL at the old people's house. Unfortunately they had recently moved FIL to a different location 'coz they are renovating the building where he lived before and the renovation will take 2 years to complete. I said "unfortunately" because this new place wasn't build to be an old people's house, so it's lacking many essential things.

The day they moved some of the patients there (yeah, not all the patients were moved there, just some), my MIL went to the new place and she was shocked to see that there weren't even beds yet, so the patients were strapped into their wheelchairs (they were wheelchair-bound patients) and they were just sitting there for a long time. I have no idea what happened, but MIL said that the move seemed to be done in such a hurry that they didn't have time to do anything else in terms of preparation in the new facilities.

This new facility is a 2-bedroom house filled with 4 patients with a small kitchen and a dining area. In the previous facility, FIL had his own room - now he shares a room with another patient (during this renovation, they've reduced the fee to 50% of the monthly fee). Two of the patients had brought their TV there, but they didn't work. This new area requires a different kind of TV, so MIL is thinking of buying one for FIL, 'coz otherwise it's going to be boring there. In the old facility, there was a big common room area where patients could sit and talk and watch TV together, but now at least for someone like FIL, he only has the nurses and 3 other patients to talk to.

Anyhow, when we arrived, FIL was still asleep after lunch (we went there when it was time for coffee break) and the other 3 patients were sitting in the dining area. Turned out that they served Father's Day cake there in the new facility, so we didn't even cut the cake that MIL had bought. It took a few minutes to wake FIL up because he was so tired - the nurse said he had been really active in the morning, so it may be the reason why he was sleeping so soundly.

MIL then adjusted the bed to sitting position and fed him cake, helped him drink coffee, and then gave him a banana to make sure he was full enough before dinner. Then MIL got to chat a little with the 3 other patients and asked if anybody had come to visit them (they were all male). One of them answered no. I felt sad. How tough it must've been to know that your fellow housemates got visitors on Father's Day, but nobody came to visit you?

FIL looked fine, by the way - as fine as you can be when your Alzheimer's has robbed you of a good part of your memory bank. Before we visited FIL, my BIL who lived down south called and asked how FIL was doing. MIL said that she felt that the new place wasn't good at all for the patients' well-being and that she wouldn't be surprised if someone died of a broken heart. And she was also wondering if FIL was crying inside...She'd love to have him back in the apartment if she could afford paying for a daily nurse to help her take care of him, but she can't afford it. And she can't possibly take care of him on her own anymore.

It made me think that it's harder on the patients who are still "on earth" so much than those who don't really remember or realize anything anymore. I mean, their brains are still working pretty well even though their bodies have failed them. If I am ever in that kind of position, I don't know if I will be able to surrender peacefully to what I can no longer do. Yesterday it just hit me when I saw FIL there...what should I pray for him about? The only thing I could think of was "May God's grace, mercy, and peace be with him always." On the other hand, seeing him and the other patients makes me think of how unimportant so many things on earth that we deem "important" are. How trivial they are in stark contrast to what the patients need.

And this makes me long for heaven...There are other things that's made me long for heaven these days, but that'll require another long, winding post. I long for a place where we're stripped bare of our possessions, titles, labels, achievements...I long for a place where we're no longer caught up with this thing called "life".

A Turn for the Worse

Today I found out that my FIL's condition went worse than yesterday. He started having fever again and his mind wasn't clear at all. There's no clear sign of when he can go back home again. MIL starts to wonder if she can ever take care of him at home again. I can't imagine how devastated MIL must be, so for all of you the praying type, please pray for MIL so that she's given comfort and strength and peace of mind.

She's been so worried about FIL that she has had trouble sleeping at nights. One reason is that she feels that he's not being taken care of as best as he should be, but then there's no way she can stand by at his side day in and day out. She can only come by daily and try to feed him. Yesterday she helped him finish dinner, but today he couldn't finish it all. Probably 'coz he's got fever again.

Not sure what's going on with his body. The first thing that happened was that he had fever and they claimed it was some sort of inflammation, but after some tests they still don't know what's causing it. We all know that his condition is going to get worse (mentally as well as physically), but it's just surprising to see that lately it's been deteriorating this fast. Oh well...just wanna let you know.

Wishing for peace of mind, wishing for the best kind of health care providers possible for FIL so that MIL can feel somewhat comforted...may God help them!!!

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3BT: Random Days

1. Hubby made me laugh so much last night till I cried and it was hard to stop laughing ha ha...

2. The grandpa that had given me flowers three times gave me a bar of chocolate the other day.

3. The same day that grandpa gave me chocolate, a grandma insisted on having me take some candies from the bag of candies that she bought. :-D

4. I've been meeting the little girl whom I adore a lot these days and yesterday the girl's little sister started interacting with me, too. She held up her arm towards me and followed me with her gaze wherever I went ha ha ha...(FYI, I was shopping at that time)

5. A regular customer (who had never asked me anything before) went back after paying and asked me where I came from and where I learnt to speak Finnish. When he found out I had a Finnish hubby, he asked me if I had kids already and when I said no, he asked, "Have you even reached the age of 20 yet?"

ROFL ROFL ROFL...So I look at least 12 years younger? That's quite a number!!! *HUGE GRIN*

6. My FIL has been staying at the hospital due to inflammation and fever but he's doing better though they're still having some tests done.

7. New comfy socks that I bought.

8. Living in a village where I can leave groceries inside my bike's bags without losing them.

9. Reading things that enlighten me towards other people's life experiences that never crossed my mind before.

A Sprinkle of This and That

Been sneezing and my nose is runny. Not fun!!! Good thing is that I only have two work days next week so I have plenty of time to rest.

Yesterday went to my in-laws and turned out they had a little accident during the night the day before. FIL woke up to pee, but he fell down in the living room when he tried to take off his pants). MIL woke up, tried to help him up, but for some reason his legs wouldn't move for a while and due to MIL's and FIL's weight difference (he's about 30 cm taller), MIL accidentally sprained her back while trying to help him up. After all, dead weight must weigh MUCH more than the actual weight. She was thinking of calling an ambulance 'coz it was already 1.30 am, but after some time, he managed to help her help himself up.

When we arrived yesterday, MIL had just taken some painkiller, so I asked her if she had some kind of balm/salve to use for back pain. She forgot that she had that kind of spray, so I helped her spray it twice yesterday. Hope it helps a little. Tomorrow I'm gonna visit my friend and drop by her house first to check if she needs more help with the spray. Poor MIL!!! Hope she gets better fully later on, though it's kinda hard to know 'coz FIL's body has been rather stiff (esp. when he wakes up from long sleep) so it's gonna strain her body too. May God give her strengthhhhh...

On a brighter note, though, when I had a short work shift the other day, the little girl who likes me (whom I adore) came with her parents and younger sibling. I said hi to her happily and the Dad told me that she was so happy to see my bike in front of my workplace (yeah, there's no other adult except me who uses a kiddy's bike that has red bags at the back side). After telling me that, the little girl said, "Amelia's bike!" HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...She's just SO CUTE!!!

Anyhow, another piece of good news came from Mom. She said that my bro had booked the tickets to Bali. Now Mom's trying to remind Dad to eat properly so that his health stays stable 'coz otherwise it's not going to be easy to go on the trip to Bali later on.

Anyway, here's an old pic of me. I must've been around 3 or 4 years old at that time and that's my cousin next to me (he said in Facebook that it looked like he was scared of being scolded 'coz either he had tasted the cake with his finger or he was about to do so) hi hi hi...

Life Slipping Away...

What do you say to a patient of an incurable disease, whose condition you know will only get worse as time goes by?

Last night MIL sent an SMS, saying that FIL could be taken home from the local clinic. He was taken to Rovaniemi hospital on Monday and yesterday he was taken back to the local clinic after some tests. He had a long sleep apparently and couldn't be woken up for some reason. Yesterday MIL was dropped by our place by a neighbour who had to run some errands in town and the three of us went to the clinic. A few minutes after we arrived, R2's elder brother and girlfriend arrived - they were the ones who took MIL and FIL back to their house in the countryside (about 25 min. drive away from here).

I wanted to cry when I saw FIL. He seemed to be in and out of the conscious world, as though life is slipping in and out of him. Sometimes it looked as if he understood most things, sometimes it looked like he was confused and he didn't know where he was or what kind of clothes he had on. He couldn't even put on his clothes on his own anymore. I don't know how fast the disease will worsen his condition, but it seems to me that it's going rather fast these days compared to, say, a year ago.

It's going to be really tough on MIL as time goes by. They live in a countryside with such a huge lawn and they use firewood in the living room fireplace, so every day or every other day the firewood has to be carried from the barn to the living room and as you know, wood is rather heavy (just a few pieces of firewood isn't enough for one day, mind you). I don't even know what to pray anymore, except for MIL to be given the strength, energy, patience, joy, and peace of mind.


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Additional note: FIL can still walk on his own, so it's a good thing.

Health News + Moving in Progress

Yesterday nite we heard shocking news about FIL. He was taken to Rovaniemi hospital due to some health problem (there's no full-blown hospital in Sodankylä, so women who want to give birth have to go to Rovaniemi hospital), but they said that they'd take him back to Sodankylä health centre perhaps today. Just now I received a reply from MIL that FIL has been taken back to Sodankylä and she's glad that the condition isn't any worse. Remember that FIL has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease since 2006 if I remember correctly (or at least around that time).



I'll let you know about his condition later on when we've heard more news about it. When it comes to moving, we still have to move some stuff to the new house 'coz the final moving date is next Sunday. We've gotten rid of most of the things we have here. There are still some boxes that need to be moved and we haven't taken down our bed and my computer table plus my computer (today R2 took down his computer plus the computer table).

If we happen to move to the new house faster than Sunday, we'll only be able to get online on Monday (the internet connection is moved there only on Monday), so I'll catch up with all of you later, OK?


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P.S. Do you ever wonder how much stuff you've been piling up over the years? Every time we move to a new place, we're amazed at the amount of things (plus junk) that have piled up, even when we lived in a small apartment (the first apartment we lived together was only 49 square metres).

Weekend Photos: Autumn Is Here

Yep. Autumn has started showing its colours over here. Last Saturday hubby, hubby's brother and girlfriend and I helped my in-laws imbed the new flagpole to the ground. Well, mostly it was hubby and his brother who did the work, but when it was time to erect the LONG flagpole, we needed ALL of us to do so he he he...

They say a picture speaks a thousand words, so here they are...


It was a sunny day and depended on whether or not the sun was covered by clouds, the temperature ranged from 10-15'C.


My MIL put this flower below indoors.


Here you can see hubby, FIL, and hubby's brother "planting" the base of the flagpole. They had to do lots of sawing and digging and nail hitting he he he...


Making sure that the base is straight. :-))))


Here you can see how long the flagpole that had to be erected on top of the base. Three of us held it steady from one end, whereas Arttu and his brother pushed it up from the other end. We couldn't move before the big screw was on the bottom part of the base. Phew!!!


My MIL joked and said that maybe in the next few decades the grandchildren had to redo the whole thing, since the base would rot again and the flagpole would fall down again he he he he he...

Then I took a walk around the yard and took some pics he he he...The distance from the sauna room to the lake was about 110 steps (yes, I counted!!!). But bear in mind that my legs are short hi hi hi hi...so maybe for others it would be only 60 steps??? I counted it so that you would get an idea how big it was. ;-D





MIL also grew blackcurrant (or mustaherukka) and redcurrant (or punaherukka). She said that she'd make them soup later on. We picked a few of these lovely berries and they were TASTY, of course he he he he...Yum, yum...



For dessert that day, we got a bowl full of FRESH strawberries. Mmmmm...lucky me! I didn't have to buy strawberries he he he he he...

The Good and The Bad

Well, I guess I'd better spill the bad news first, right? Found out last Friday that our flight from Rovaniemi to Helsinki in October wasn't confirmed. In fact, that particular airline no longer had flights on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (I guess because there aren't too many people having holidays to Lapland by then). We contacted the travel agent and today we got info that we could either cancel everything and get the full refund or we could be get the refund for the flight from Rovaniemi to Helsinki and they'd find us an alternative. The alternative flight means that we have to add €300.

I was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO angry when I heard that. Imagine what we can use with €300!!! I wanted to kill somebody...or sue somebody. Yeah, all the devils in Amel have reared their ugly heads and all I wanted to do was S-C-R-E-A-M-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR...I was amazed that hubby was so calm, though...As usual, his calmness was like a firefighter that doused my "flames of anger". I feel sad 'coz hubby has to pay extra for our trip, but then again it's better to do it than to cancel the whole trip.

We did try to find a cheaper alternative to go to Helsinki, but there's no other option. We can go to Helsinki by train, but it's not too much cheaper. Plus it takes a long time to go there, so it's still not a better option in many ways.

Okay, now I've let out some steam. Time for the good things in life he he he he...Our cabin trip turned out to be a HONEYMOOOONNN HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...In every way! *wink wink*

First of all, though, we had to work hard, or Arttu had to work hard he he he...My in-laws have decided to change the two single beds in the cabin with a sofa-bed in their living-room. That means they'll buy a new sofa-bed for their living room. R2 went there by tractor with his Dad while my MIL and I walked there. Then we started taking out the two single beds plus the mattresses. Then Arttu took the sofa-bed inside and after that my MIL and FIL went back to their house.

Arttu still had to rearrange the furniture and he had to chop some firewood and heat up the sauna. We had this joke while he was chopping up some wood that had some blue paint on.

Amel : Do you think it'll be burnt well, since there's still a coat of paint there?
Arttu: It can be poisonous, so I'd better burn it now so that we can leave the place and wait until it's heated up before we go in.
Amel : Poisonous? Really?
Arttu: I don't know.
Amel : Hmmm...well, if it IS poisonous, at least we're going to die together. How romantic!
Arttu: Indeeeeedddddddd!

HUE HE HE HE HE HE HE HE...After that we got back to my in-laws' for a while, then we finally got back to the cabin once the sauna was warm enough. Arttu went skinny dipping (literally he was just dipping himself for about 10 seconds since the water was COOOOLLLDDD). I didn't go since I couldn't handle it he he he he he...

Then Arttu lit up the fireplace inside the cabin and we had to wait before we could grill the sausages and hamburgers there. Since we were SO hungry already, we were munching on the chips we brought there hi hi hi hi...Munch, munch, munch...uuuuhhh so hungry!!! And finally we could eat the hamburgers and sausages. VERY delicious!!!

I won't tell the details about the rest of the night, though HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...Let's just say that it was beyond my expectation since I didn't expected anything like honeymoon HA HA HA HA HA HA...Here are some pics of the cabin:




Okay, time to blog-hop a little bit later. I'll blog-hop more tomorrow, OK? Mondays are always busy since I have to buy grocery, exercise, and cook when I finish work he he...

A Not So Ordinary Sunday

Yesterday I was busy since right after I woke up, hubby urged me to eat as we were going to visit my father-in-law in the health centre. He's OK. It's just that my mother-in-law needed enough sleep so that she could heal her ankle well, but when he was home, he walked around the house during the night, so she couldn't sleep well. My mother-in-law spent some nights in her elder sister's house so that she wouldn't be alone in hers. She asked us to bring my father-in-law's mobile phone to the hospital so that they could contact each other.

It was the first time to go to that section in the health centre. Visitors are allowed to come starting from 1 pm to 7 pm. The place didn't smell like medicine like the most hospitals in Indonesia. I can't really describe the smell of the hospitals in Indo, but they have this distinct smell he he he he...Anyway, after asking where our father-in-law was to one of the nurses, we found him.

He was sitting in the common room, watching TV with the other patients. They were mostly elderly. His eyes lit up in recognition when he saw us he he he he...then we went to his room to talk as there were not enough seats for us in the common room. After all, it was a small health centre, not a full-fledged hospital. Even so, the place is so clean and everything looks new (unlike some hospitals in Indo where everything looks old).

We talked for a while...or should I say, Arttu talked to his Dad as I was trying to practice my listening skill HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...After about half an hour, we said goodbye to him and while walking out of his room, I was SO happy to see my mother-in-law coming towards us with her elder sister and husband. Thank GOODNESS her elder sister's husband is healthy and he can drive her around! ;-D My mother-in-law walked using one walking stick and then she and her elder sister hugged me.

I think my father-in-law's coming home either today or tomorrow. He said it was boring in the hospital and the food was lousy. Porridge, porridge, and porridge. I can imagine how bad it was. After all, at home he always enjoys his wife's delicious food he he he he...

Then as usual, my bladder was full, so I went to the toilet first as we were going to the supermarket afterwards. I was trying to find the light switch inside the HUGE toilet, but then it turned out the light was on automatically when I stepped into the room. COOL!!!! I've never seen that before he he he he...

Then before going to the supermarket (we were running out of milk), I asked Arttu to escort me to an ATM. Believe it or not, I've NEVER used an ATM before in this country. After all, I can almost always pay everything with my debit card (I have no credit card here as I have no income), except when I go to the flea markets or open markets. Funny thing is that the post office's card reader wouldn't read my card, so that was why I needed to get some cash. I'm going to send a package to my friend in Germany as she's coming to Indonesia in March. The package is for my family he he he he he...

Well, you know what? Turned out that when I inserted my debit card, the instruction came out in ENGLISH!!!! HURRAHHHHHH!!! I was SO HAPPY hi hi hi hi hi hi...I think when I first opened my account in the bank, I was grouped as an "international customer". VERY VERY COOL!!! Now if I ever need cash, I wouldn't feel afraid going to an ATM alone HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...

Anyway, on Saturday I also had a short conversation with my mother-in-law as Arttu was shovelling snow out in the yard. First of all she asked me if my brother had sent his wedding pics, and I said not yet. It was hard for me to explain to her that my brother used a professional photographer service, so the CD wasn't done yet. So I didn't even try to explain since I didn't know how to do it. Then I told her that he had sent me the honeymoon pics he he he he he...

Then she asked me if I had to go back to Indonesia. I misunderstood her at first. There is this one word in Finnish that can either mean "like" or "have to" and I thought she asked me if I would like to go back to Indonesia. So I replied that I would love to, but it would be expensive. Then she tried asking me the question again using a different word, and right then it dawned on me completely what she wanted to know HA HA HA HA HA HA...

Ahem...so I told her that I'd soon have to go to the police station to renew my residence permit (well, actually I said visa, but that didn't matter as she understood it). I guess she was worried that I would have to go back to Indonesia to do my paperwork he he he he...I could tell that she was glad that I could do it here in Sodankylä.

Oh yeah, almost forgot...after buying milk at the supermarket yesterday, Arttu said that he was craving for kebab...so we went to a nearby kebab resto to buy some. I was craving for pizza instead, so I ordered one. YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY!!! My pizza had kebab meat, pineapple, cheese, and reindeer toppings. Plus I added jalapeno chili at home. VERY VERY delicious HE HE HE HE HE HE...

Okie dokie, now I'm going to eat my pizza first before blog-hopping he he he...I'm STARVING after exercising he he he he...

My First White Christmas Story Part 2

Tuesday: Dec 25th, 2007

We slept on my in-laws' day bed in the living room. Hubby couldn't sleep well since I kept on going back and forth to the toilet to rub some olive oil he he he...Poor dear! Since we had such a rough time to sleep, we only finally woke up at around 11 am. My in-laws woke up already much earlier, but we were simply too tired to bother to wake up then. It was such a tiring night for me!

Then my mother-in-law offered us some porridge and we ate it. She asked if Indonesians had porridge, and I told her that normally in Indonesia, porridge is eaten with meat and chili sauce, not with sugar and cinnamon he he he he...Then we spent the afternoon reading. Arttu and I brought some novels (he started reading the new novel I bought him for his X-mas gift), whereas our in-laws read the newspaper. In the early evening, Arttu's second brother and girlfriend came over again since they had promised to do so.

Since December 26th was my in-laws' 46th wedding anniversary (correction for me since the last time I told you guys that it would be their 45th this year), my mother-in-law served us coffee and took out a celebration cake. YAAAAAAAAAAYY!!! I LOVE cakes ha ha ha ha ha...

Then she said that she wanted me to take pics of them, so I did. She asked his hubby to put on a nice sweater first and then she brushed her hair HE HE HE HE HE HE...There you go. Unfortunately my mother-in-law was either looking at the other side or closing her eyes ha ha ha ha...And yes, it's her LEFT ankle that's on cast.



Then we took two family pics. Let me just show you one of them then. Here it is. Yes, Arttu's second brother's girlfriend is as TALL as I am HUE HE HE HE HE HE HE...



I gave them an anniversary card while we were drinking coffee and eating cakes and my mother-in-law said thank you. I think I should start taking more family pictures from now on, 'coz you'll never know how many more years they still have together. After all, my father-in-law's already 75 years old. Even though his Dad lived to the ripe age of 90 (or was it 91?), it's better to just cherish every moment we have as best as we can, don't you think so? I think I should give her a similar type of photo album every year so that she can remember every event. What do you think? ;-D

Anyway, funny thing is that my mother-in-law has started a new habit now: putting on an apron with a big pocket in the middle. That way when she needs to walk using both walking sticks, she can put something in the pocket. While we were going to play cards on Monday afternoon, my mother-in-law went inside her bedroom and then came out again with two boxes of chocolate in the pocket. When I saw her like that, she immediately said, "Kenguru" and smiled ha ha ha ha ha...I laughed when I heard that! And I bet you all understand what the word means HI HI HI HI HI HI...;-D

OK, I'm outta here now...gotta start studying Finnish again after a long holiday from it!!!