A Midsummer's Day Eve

Picture 1 Adult table for Midsummer feast
Picture 2 Grilled bananas wrapped in bacon
Picture 3 Kids table for Midsummer feast
Picture 4 Cousin Ida with Midsummer wreath and boyfriend, Miakel
Friday, June 19, was Midsummer Eve, the night before the longest day of the year. We had a wonderful day at the Holti-Andersson villa in Korsnas. The kids played along the shore, made boats with sails, sharpened sticks to make arrows/spears for bows, and watched Ida make a Midsummer headpiece. She also made a birch arbor over the steps-entrance to the villa which is traditional as well. The weather was partly cloudy and breezy which made it a little cool but pleasant.

Another tradition that the young girls practice on Midsummer Eve is placing 9 different kinds of flowers under their pillows and then they will dream of the man they are to marry. If Jessica did, she is not telling!

The food was wonderful--grilled bbq chicken, pork tenderloin, and salmon, several salads, herring and caviar, boiled new potatoes and new to us, bananas wrapped in bacon and cooked on the grill. (You should try it!) Wonderful desserts, too.

We were a big group--the 5 of us, Lena and Bo's family and Ida's boyfriend (5), Mats and Britt's family from Jakobstad(5), Lena and Mats's mother, Aunt Viktoria, and Lena's friend, Caroline and her husband Mats. I knew Caroline from my visits before and it has been good to see her again.

We ate, played, and visited to welcome in Midsummer Day, the longest day of the year, and the first day of summer!