A little something

No, no news.  Just need to write a little just because.
Today is our 16th Wedding Anniversary, Congrats to us :)
We woke up to the smell of coffee and clinking sounds from the kitchen.
Our two teens had gotten up at 6am (*on summer break*) to prep a lovely breakfast for two, complete with thoughtfully written notes as well as a nice gift for us.
(Thanks girls, you are amazing :)

We sure have had another eventful year behind us and I can only imagine what this next one will hold!
One thing I know, our love will grow even stronger and no matter what, we'll be there for each other.
I know I am truly blessed and feel so very fortunate for the life I have.
There are some things in my life that I am not content with at the moment, but when I think of what really matters, I have it all.

So what else??
This week we are getting our yard done. Finally!!!
We've lived on the beach for the last 3 summers, without the water...
In other words, our whole house is surrounded by SAND!!
And large parts of our floors are covered in it...
So yeah, getting some gravel in the driveway and dirt/topsoil elsewhere (that we'll seed asap) will be wonderful.  And it will obviously make the yard LOOK nicer too.

Our only vehichle is acting up (only runs in 2nd gear, so at least we won't be getting any speeding tickets), so that's been an added stress.  The part is on its way though so Hubby should have it taken care of soon.

We had some really beautiful weather here in May and early June, and the nature here is truly breathtaking. TONS of wildflowers, birds and green, green nature.  I love taking walks in the woods, it does wonders for my nerves.  I am honestly pretty worn out mentally and some days are hard.  It does make it easier to be humble and leave it all in God's hands though, that's for sure.
Selling a house when you feel pressed for time is stressful.
But, when the time is right things will work out the way they are meant to go.
Sounds so cliche, but what else can I say??

Well, nothing else to add at this time, I hope you are all enjoying this wonderful time of the year.

Photo Bomb!!

Since I don't have any earth shaking news to share, I'll share some pictures instead!

Here's a glimps from our day to day life lately... Hope you enjoy!

On April 19th Mr had a Birthday.  We went out to eat (just the 2 of us) and came back to a lovely surprise.
The kids had cleaned the house real nice and even dressed up in nice clothes and set the table beautifully.
They all helped decorate cupcakes and added little signs to them that my oldest and 2 youngest made earlier during the day. On each sign there was a picture of something that my Hubby likes, such a fun and sweet idea! Thanks kids! You guys are pretty awesome :)

Here are the cupcakes up close...

Our September babies!  (almost 14 and 6)

And we had birthdays in February!

Beautiful sunset over the pond close to our house

This was at the end of April and the ice was just breaking up

May 1st is a day off.  It's Scandinavias Labour day.
We hung out in the beautiful spring sun and I burnt a TON of scrap wood in our backyard!

Hubby spent the day up high!

Our 3rd daughter LOVES woodwork and here she's building a bench!

Time for a break!

Not the greatest picture of me, but I just LOVE that blue blue sky!

"Tussilago" a true sign of spring!  Little yellow flowers everywhere!  So pretty!
(not to be confused with dandylions!)

Little Guy is helping out with dad's work while eating his lunch! :)

A great plan!

I have a plan.
Actually not just me, my husband and kids are with me as well.
Our plan is to sell our house.  And our cars.  And anything you plug in to an outlet.
And lots of other stuff.
Soon.  Actually, not soon enough if you ask us in our impatient state of mind.
Then when those little tasks are out of the way, we'll move to the next step of our plan.
Packing up whatever belongings we still need and like enough to make it with us to the next stop in our lives.
Then we need to organize a way of shipping those earthly possesions across the pond, aka The Atlantic Ocean.  There'll be few other random bits and pieces of activity going on at the sidelines, you know "life in general", as well as buying plane tickets for 9 people and other stuff that'll keep us out of trouble.

Oh yeah, and then when we get there we need to find a suitable pad to call home (rent or buy??), buy some new wheels to transport us all in, sign all those kids up for schools and well, you know, keep living on the other side of above mentioned pond.

Yepp.  That's our plan.
(now it's appropriate to chuckle a bit and roll your eyes at the computer/phone)

Now, here's the little part that makes these plans a bit tricky.
I can't MAKE these things happen.
This might come as a shock (I feel rather surprised too!), but that's the truth.
Even if I think our plan is flawless and I know how to line all the ducks up just so, it is NOT me who's in charge (unless it comes down to getting kids to bed or food on the table and a load of laundry out of the way)
I need to humbly remember that even when my plan is not going MY way, God's plan is still going HIS way.
It's rather comforting actually to know that I don't NEED to be in charge.
I don't have to regret anything, because whatever happens is what is supposed to happen and God does not make mistakes.
The hard part is to remember that I need to stay in line and do my thing and let God lead the way at HIS pace in HIS time.

Times like this is when there's only one set of footprints in the sand.
It's times like this that you know that God is indeed carrying us.
When I feel frustrated, confused, sad, annoyed, mad... He's there holding me.
Lifting me up and leading me to where I should be at this moment.
I lament to my friends and family, and thankfully they listen and are there to encourage and support me.
I feel the prayers and love.
Thank you, you know who you are.
And thank you God for keeping me humble, it sure makes it easier to trust in Your plan rather than mine...
And that is a great plan indeed.

The waiting game...

A few more weeks galloped by.
Time spent working on our house, celebrating Easter, holding our first open house and watching the snow s-l-o-w-l-y melt.  Yesterday we got the first rain of the year!
It's wierd to see, feel and hear rain again after 5 months of NO rain!
I hope it helps the snow leave in order to make room for spring and, maybe at some point, summer!!
The evenings are light late now and the younger kids never learn that YES it is still light but YES it IS your bedtime!!  They think I'm tricking them trying to get them to bed too early :)
I wish.

Easter was nice and relaxing.  A few days off from everything is always appreaciated.
We ate good food and the kids enjoyed some candy and chocolates.
Ok... the grown-ups did too.

Our first open house went ok.  Here they only last 30 min (versus the normal 2 hrs in Canada/USA), so only 3 different groups showed up.
No offers as of now.  This weekend we'll hold our 2nd open house, so I can't help but hoping for something to happen.
Lately my feelings and emotions have been all over the place.
The thought of our house selling and us moving back to Canada gives me butterflies in my belly.
The thought of us staying here (if the house doesn't sell) is hard to accept.
There are a lot of things I could explain around these feelings, but basically it comes down to me and the family wanting to move back home.
It doesn't make things here bad in any way, it just means that we feel done with our adventure here.
Since all the kids and hubby and I are all on the same page, wishing for the same outcome, it's hard to be patient.  I DO trust that God will lead us down the right path and the way things go are the way they are meant to be.
It's just hard to accept the thought that God's plan might be different than ours!!
Hence, feelings all over the place...

Also, I way rather have my hands full and lots of action than this "waiting game".
God sure knows how to test and try me to keep me humble here on earth.
If things went too smoothly I might start thinking that I actually figured something out by myself!!
This way I know that he will lead the way and I don't have to feel foolish about my own attempts at knowing what's best for me and my family.
The hard part is to remember this throughout the days...
I get impatient and frustrated fast.

So... I guess here I am.  Waiting for something to happen... so that I hopefully soon will have news to share with you!
While we wait I'll share some pictures!

Hubby with his Mini Me.
Both with a screw between their lips, building the sauna

Our 5th daughter turned 7 in February.
Oldest sister made a cute cake :)

SPA-night in the shower room.

Stairs before...

Stairs after!! (covered with birch)

I love the nature right in our backyard!

Stairs

Better be comfortable when you have a snack!

Hallway

Changing room for sauna

Laundry room

Day by Day...

My writing cap hasn't been sitting right on my head lately.
There's so much I could write about, but it feels like I'd be sharing my "to do list" if I shared what my life consists of lately, and since that sounds rather drab, I figured I had to wait for inspiration.

I've been cleaning out cupboards and closets and boxes and you name it.
I've sold a bunch of toys at a consignment store as well as donated a lot of STUFF to the Red Cross store.
I LOVE getting rid of things.
It's very liberating.
When we moved here I know I brought way too many things from Canada, but then we had a huge container with both our vehichles in it, so it didn't really matter if some junk came along.
However, whenever we go back now we'll only bring our bare essentials, so a lot of stuff need to go.
Coming here our youngest three were toddlers/babies, so many things we brought for them we don't need anymore. 
Wierd.  I'm selling all of our baby stuff (besides my favourite keepsakes that I just can't part with).
No more highchairs, walkers, pack and plays, baby toys, bouncers, swings etc.
I notice when we go places now how easy it is.
No bottles, pacifires, diapers, baby food, wipes, clothes and so on.
Just get the kids out the door after making sure they use the bathroom, of course.
Even our little guy dresses himself.  I am not as needed any more.
Not in the same way at least.

On Wednesday this week it will be my due-date with Moon (the baby I miscarried at 10 weeks last fall).
I noticed that the moon will be full on the same day... Neat eh??
Thinking of what could have been is a good reminder for me right now.
My life is in high gear and we are working hard to get another overseas move under our belts.
But when I take a moment and let myself dig a bit deeper inside myself, I realize that my heart sometimes is bleeding still.  There are two aching spots for two babies that we never got to meet here on earth.
2 years in a row I was due this week.
It wasn't meant to be, and I am thankful to God for lending me those angels for even such a short time.
Sometimes I miss what could have been.
Especially when I am now in the process of departing with many of the items that were once full of sticky baby faces, laughs, tears and poopy diapers.
It's bittersweet.

My sister-in-law just had a baby a month ago.  We've had all our other babies together.
It's soooo wierd that I'm not there with here.
Sharing in the fun of a new little person.
I can't wait to see her!!

Well... Life goes on and I'm often reminded of how lucky I am in so many ways.
A month ago 2 of my sisters came for a visit!!
That was sooo nice and we had some really special days together.
First came my younger sister with her little baby, he's sooo sweet!!
Then my older sister (who I was the closest to growing up) came.
The two of us hadn't seen each other for almost 8 years!!!
She had never seen 5 of our kids at all!
One of them is her godchild, who is born on the same day as her and carries her name as well.
I am so very thankful that they both made it here
(Thanks again!!)
They spoiled me with good long talks, memories and laughter as well as with food and some things for our house.  Sisters are truly awesome :)  Especially mine!!

What else???  Well. 
In a few weeks we are having an open house, so I pray that God might have someone lined up that likes our house!  We've got a lot of work done around here lately as well, and I've even been able to help Hubby some!  So much fun and also so great to see this place getting its final touches.
Next time I'll post some pictures.
Until then, Happy Easter everyone :)

A step forward...

Here we go again.  A step towards moving overseas is taken.

3 years ago I was busy drawing, designing and planning our new home in Finland.

3 years ago we were also busy getting our home ready to put up for sale.

Our bellies were full of butterflies and excitement about our future.

What was it gonna be like?  Would the move take place?  How would the house that was just lines on a paper, turn out in real life?

Well.  Those questions are now answered.

We sold that house and we moved to Finland.

We have now lived here for almost 3 years (crazy!) and our life has been so fully packed with "life", that our boxes that we soon might be packing, will be full of memories.

I feel such gratitiude that we've had this experience.

5 of our kids will go back with another language. (our 2 youngest understand and speak some as well)

I have learned so much about myself, I would not want to be without those life lessons.

Hubby feels the same way.  We have grown from experiences and trials and maybe we have become a bit more humble and understanding along the way.

With mixed feelings we are now preparing to move back.

Home.

When I met my Hubby I knew very little about Canada.

But marrying him and moving there felt like the most natural thing I've ever done.

I lived in Canada for 13 years and had 7 children there.

Canada became home to me, because this great country is our childrens country of birth.

Most of our memories are stored there and most of our milestones and holidays are celebrated there.

Our kids are ready to go back home.

They can't wait to see their friends!!  Our lives will all of a sudden fast forward 3 years when we return!

There's sadness too though.

As I write this my eyes fill with tears.  Even if nothing is set in stone yet, we already know that moving away from here will be sad and hard.

We have gained some preacious friends.  I have gotten to know many of my hubby's relatives.

We have had beautiful times here as well, and I know our future is permanetly marked by us living here for these years.  Mostly in good ways.

What an amazing opportunity it has been for us, and like a dear friend said when we moved from Canada

"They are going on an adventure!"

Yes.  We went on an adventure.

What a gift this is to our kids.  Despite all the work and stress and inconveniences, what a wonderful gift this will be for our kids to cheirsh when they grow up!

Maybe we'll feel split at times, missing people, places and things from here.

But we will also feel blessed and enriched from the many things we learned along the way.

So... .A big step forward is taken.  Yesterday a real estate agent came over, and we listed our house.

This "project" is now for sale.

It's a bit sentimental actually.  I don't easily get attached to things, but this house started in my hubby's and my brain.  Together we spent hours and hours planning and dreaming.

Together we built it.  It's been such a great experience, and at times crazy and overwhelming.

Now it's up for grabs for someone else.

Maybe someone who will live here for many years to come.

Someone who will create memories inside these walls that we built.

I want to leave it all in God's hands.  I want to pray that I accept His plan and that I get strength to understand if His will is not the same as mine.  And I pray that in about 5 months time we'll be back home.

Here are some pictures of our home - for now!

Front of house

Kitchen

Livingroom

Upstairs hallway

Sauna

Sauna

Mr. Bedroom

Foyer

Back of house

Post Whole30

Wow, I can't believe a whole month just went by!!
A busy month it was.
I completed my Whole30 challenge and I can proudly say I did not cheat!
(It's been over a week since 30 days was over)

So, what did I learn from this experiment?
I definitely feel a lot better, more energized and more "even" in my mood and temper.
I feel like I accomplished something fun that was also educational as well as beneficial for my health.
I have never been known as the person that is good at sticking to something, and I feel like my self esteem got a boost from this as well.  I prooved to myself that I am indeed able to follow through with something when I put my mind to it!!

I feel a bit "smaller", but I take that as an added benefit since losing weight was not my main focus (although a welcomed side effect!)
I did not weigh myself before or after, and I did not take any measurments either.
I figured I'd notice on my clothes if things slimmed down!
I wanted to focus on how eating according to Whole30 benefitted my health instead!

So, here are some of the things I noticed (starting from my head and going down)
-Way less head fog, I feel clearer and more focused
- My sence of smell and taste improved
- My nose stopped being "runny" (I take that as a benefit from not eating dairy)
- I feel "warmer" over all.  I'm usually cold and wear more clothes than the rest of the family, I feel my circulation improved.
- My stomach has been bothering me way less (the first few weeks I was very bloated and tired, but that's part of most detox programs)
- I don't get hungry as often and my bloodsugar swings are pretty much gone.  I used to have major afternoon slumps and relied on constant boosts of coffee and snacks, not now!!
(I drink maybe one cup of black coffee in total per day now, I usually just want a sip or two.  Since coffee is very alkaline it will increase cravings and help sugar grow, so I try to stay off it as much as possible)
- My skin feels cleaner and smoother over all

I feel like I've learned a fair amount about GOOD foods as well.
I am a lot more aware of fuelling myself with foods that acctually nourish me, rather than just fill up my stomach! 
A lot of people find eating healthy to be expensive, but it's way cheaper than eating junky!
Since all high carb foods are full of empty calories that make us crave more of them (and they sure aren't cheap either), we end up eating a lot more!
While when you eat whole and healthy foods, we eat less but still end up staying full longer!
Win-win in other words.

Looking ahead I feel like continue eating like this since I can feel so many benefits from it.
I have had some wheat and dairy and a few bites of sweets after I was done with my 30 days, but I notice how SWEET and fake many things are, that a bite is enough.
Plus my stomach revolts when I treat it poorly, so I rather not eat those things unless there are no other options (like when you eat at somebody elses house).

I am glad that I tried this and I'm happy with the results!
My goal in life is not to live as long as possible, but while I am alive my goal is to feel as healthy as I can!
I will post soon again about my sisters visit here, I've been very busy in the "fun" department :)
Ciao for now