Family in Larsmo

On Saturday morning, we left my cousin's, Mats, house where we have been since coming to Finland to more cousins in a town called Larsmo only a few kilometers away. These cousins are on my grandfather's side--his mother was sister to the father of the cousin we visited who is in her 80's, Signe. (Signe is also my grandmother's childhood friend.) She has 6 chilren who then each have several married children of their own with their own children. They had a family picnic so we could see everyone on Sunday and there were between 40 and 50 people over 4 generations. We stayed with Eivor and Rainer, Signe's daughter and husband. Their daughter, Sophia, had been an au pair in Canada some years back and came to visit Mom then and again only a few years ago.

Larsmo is a large farming community with many typical new Finnish homes but also many of the old farmhouses like my grandmother grew up in. Davis, Jessica, and Austin were able to see cows being milked and were able to taste cold raw milk (very thick). One of the girls, Natalie, is raising rabbits and caring for two lambs over the summer. Most of the kids are interested in soccer so a lot of soccer balls were kicked around and on Tuesday, Davis was able to play a practice game of soccer with a group of boys who are playing in a church wide tournament this weekend and even scored a goal!

Sunday's picnic\cookout was delicious. Rainer grilled a large batch of sausages and everyone brought salads, bread, and desserts to go with them. It was delicious! We sat and visited for the afternoon with cousins I've never seen before and with two I remember from our 1976 trip, Johnny and Monica, Signe's youngest children, who are close to my age. It was good to talk with them and their spouses, Rita and Thomas. I hope that they and some of the others will come see us in Alabama in the next few years.

On Monday, we went to Eivor and Rainer's villa on an island about 20 minutes away by boat. The kids had another sauna and even swam in the very cool water (50 F) for a very few minutes. They crawled all over the rocks and boulders until their feet hurt and then tried walking on stilts Rainer has made. He has also made many different styles of wooden boats on strings with a stick for the kids to play in the rocks. We had delicious grilled pork chops and sausages and later more delicious desserts, Austin's favorite meal of the day! (I will do an entry on the villas and rocks soon.)

The weather has cooled considerably, high 40's-low 50's during the day and cooler evenings and even one frost on Saturday night. As long as the sun is shining, we are okay!

Pic #1 Signe's house Pic #2 Signe and Martin with 6 children
Pic #3 Trying new things (fresh milk) Pic #4 Natalie and cousin Fanny with lambs