Living in Espoo: A year in Finland!!

Today marks one year that we have been living in Finland. Wow Time flies. I have been looking at past photos because I wanted to do a brief summary of the Binches first year here and can't believe how much my kids have grown.

My first impression of Finland was a rough one. We had been flying for 15 hours and neither Ezra or Serenity had slept(The last two hour flight was a nightmare for everyone aboard). When we arrived the airport was very quiet and looking for a place to get a cab was not that easy. We were lugging around 6 suitcases, 2 carseats, stroller, and a baby bed plus all of our carry ons. When we finally found a cab to fit us all we were able to take in the surroundings. It was a cloudy dark day. The leaves had all gone from the trees. Our taxi driver had not said a word and we hoped he would really take us to our address that we handed to him on a piece of paper. The ride seemed like an eternity because of the miles that we had already traveled with two very cranky children. We pulled up onto the sidewalk(thought the pedestrians were goners)of our new temporary residence and the cab driver began to unload our items. Steve found the tiny 2 person elevator that would take us to our new place and began making several trips hauling our luggage upstairs. As I was standing there guarding the luggage the cab driver was about to leave and the first words that I hear come from him was "I went swimming last night under the full moon".

I think I was overly tired because it was overly funny to me, but probably something I won't ever forget.

The next few weeks were extra cold and confusing and exciting all wrapped into one. With having to figure out what groceries to buy, which bus to get on, and how the school system worked here. Like any move though it takes adjustment, but we have settled into familiarity.

We have been through all the seasons here in Espoo now and there is something good to say about each. The fall is beautiful with all it's colors. They have a pretty word they use for autumn colors which is "ruska". It is one of those words I like to say because I can actually say it and be understood by someone who speaks Finnish. I have a short list now of those kind of words. It is a short list. haha.

Steve was chopping up some firewood at this campsite so that we could roast marshmellows. We had gone to a place in Nuuksio national park. The colors were simply amazing. The only thing in Finland is that it tends to rain in the fall or at least this fall it has and so after we had put together a nice fire,the rain began to pour. We did find shelter under a nearby tree and managed to save one bag of marshmellows.

Spring is beautiful, the flowers here are amazing. I really am not sure when they started to show up if they were more towards the beginning of summer or the end of spring. It didn't really warm up here until the middle of summer. I will have to say the plant life here is very strong though. It seems like it can survive the coldest of weather. Strong just like the Finns.

The summer here was amazing!! Many people complained that it never really warmed up, but after experiencing Georgia's hot humid summers Finland summers felt like heaven. Nuuksio national park beautiful!! They have some amazing trails. I am glad we didn't run into a lot of the wild life. Bears are not my favorite. The kids loved it.

We tried to explore as many islands as possible. (Finland has hundreds of mini islands off it's coast. Some you need to take a fairy to and others are just a bridge away.) My favorite island is called Suomenlinna. It is a sea fortress that has an amazing history behind it. Lots of places for the kids to explore. The Baltic wind can be pretty cold even during the summer.

Traveling by bike, boat and bus is what we did the whole summer. Exploring what we could of Helsinki and Espoo. We favored the outdoors more than the museums and indoor activities with kids it was just so much nicer to be where they could run and be as loud as they want.

Ezra was obsessed with bike riding!! He would say bike in his sleep and first thing in the morning he would grab is bike helmet. I have never seen him so content as when we went for bike rides.

There is a beautiful seaside close to us that I loved to run alongside during the summer and fall. It was my favorite get away and best place to go to do some meditation. I had read a couple of literary excerpts of authors that spoke about Helsinki and especially the sea air in Finland. I cannot quote exactly their writings because I don't have the books anymore,but I agree with the way they described how the sea air has healing powers and it is good for the soul. Something about breathing in the cool sea air just makes you feel alive and seems to bring a feeling of serenity.

Ice cream(jäätelö)

It is a favorite in Finland. All summer long there are stands that sale ice cream by the scoop. They also had wonderful fruit stands with strawberries, snap peas, blueberries and mushrooms. I cannot wait until next year when those return.

Winter(Talvi) in Finland

Out of all of the seasons in Finland I would have to say that I think Winter is the prettiest season in Finland.

The first time I saw the snow in Espoo I realized how beautiful Finland is.The Finns make it enjoyable. Weather is not an obstacle for the Finns no matter how cold it is or how much snow is on the ground. . I am very impressed by their resilience to the cold. The bus drivers don't even skip a beat. They drive the same way they would if snow wasn't on the ground.The kids are outside playing in -20 degrees weather.

At school my girls were able to bring ice skates for recess. We also have an ice skating rink by our house.

Serenity got up a couple times on her skates. I think this next year she will be a pro.

Cool zipline at a local park.

They have some cool kid parks. A lot of cool playground toys that you would not find in the States for fear of lawsuits. lol.

The one thing that was the hardest thing to get used to is living so far away from family. I am so grateful that we were able to have some visit us this year. Crystal and her family came and stayed with us and then Nana and Papa.

Alex was so excited to learn some baking skills with Nana that she wanted to make a fancy frittata. It was a really nice yummy frittata, but little did Alex know before she had ever tried frittatas that later she would find out she isn't really a fan of them. I think she just liked the fancy name.

It was so fun to be able to show them around. Just having them around was nice. :)

Crystal and Kyle came to visit. I loved seeing cousins playing!! So much fun.

Even though it can be rough sometimes not having family close, it is nice that we do have each other. I know I am going to go on a cheesy moment,but I love my kids and I love that they have so much fun together even though Alex and Josie won't admit that. I am so grateful that I have been able to share this experience with them and it is amazing how much they all have grown up so much in just one year.