Introducing...Leevi and a Finnish spy!

Perhaps I’ll work backwards this week, as the latter end of my week was much more eventful than the beginning.

Jyri blessed their baby at church today.  Leevi made his entrance into the world 3 weeks ago.  He is the cutest thing in the world!  Super alert and a big kid for being just 3 weeks old.  Way to go Katie and Jyri…and Kai (Leevi’s older brother…my Finnish crush!)!!

 

Katie and Jyri were so thoughtful and invited me to join the entire Koivisto family for lunch after the blessing.  Here’s the whole family seated at one table (7 Koivisto kids, their spouses, and children; Tanja, the oldest daughter of the family, was here with her family who now live in Idaho) …

I love Sundays because that’s when our family was always together.  And what a sight it must have been for Jyri’s mom to be seated at the head of the table looking down the table and seeing the fruits of her labor (both literally and figuratively).  It was really a moving moment for me—and I’m not even a Koivisto.  Thank you Katie and Jyri for inviting me to be a part of such a special occasion!  I can’t wait to be with my entire family in 3 short weeks to celebrate my sister’s wedding!!

I spent one evening with Sonja and Pentti at their lovely home in Muurame.  Sonja invited me over for dinner with her family (which consists of just her and her husband now that their daughter is working in Iceland).  I offered to bring brownies as a dessert.  I’m still trying to get used to the oven here, and, well…this is how they turned out:

The sides were cooked almost just right.  So I took those to share (not what you see here).  Good thing we had the fresh strawberries to enjoy with the brownies.  :)

 

Funny story about Pentti.  Sonja has mentioned to me on several occasions that her husband does not speak English.  So, when I hitched a ride with him from the city center to their home (about 15 km from JKL), I was a bit worried about how our conversation would go.  On the drive to their place, I was amazed by two things: 1. How well he understood my broken Finnish and 2. How much Finnish I really don’t know.  On the trip back, however, I was struck by two things: 1. How I fell yet again for the story about someone not knowing English and 2. How I’m sure that Pentti is really a spy.  He asked me on the drive back (in English, of course), what I thought he did for work.  Me: “Hmm.  I bet you’re a spy.”  Pentti: “A spy?!”  Me: “Yes.  Do you know what a spy is?”  Pentti: “C. I. A.”  Yep.  Pentti: “No one’s ever guessed that being a spy is my second job.”  Well, I’m happy to be the first.  I’ve seen the way he wields an ax.  And I bought the “En puhu englantia” story…hook, line and sinker.

 

It looks like I’ll be moving…again!  :)  I feel like I’m back on my mission: move every few months to a new area.  I was offered a studio apartment on the 7^th floor in the student village.  It's the building behind the trees.  I’ll be neighbors with Katja who is in the building on the left.  She was so kind and offered to give me a tour of the building where I’ll live.  She even suggested we knock on the door of where I'll be living to see if someone was home and could show us what it looked like.  No one answered the door.  So we knocked all the doors of the studios above and below mine.  Someone answered the last one we knocked.  He wasn’t all too keen on letting us peek in his place, but I was so impressed that Katja was willing to go the extra mile to try and get a sneak preview of the place.  Love her!!

I checked out the kids' street art a friend suggested I see that's next to a playground that’s about ½ way between school and where I’ll be living in the fall.

 And how could a post not include the view from my current apartment?  I’m going to miss this place.  A lot.  Nothing like watching the storms roll in and out from this perch...

And watching these lucky souls who get to strap themselves to the roof while cleaning the gutters.  AAAHHH!!  I hope they’re not afraid of heights.

Hope you guys are loving life wherever you are!!

 ***Jennie, Kaylyn, and anyone else who reads this blog to kids (under the age of 8 or 10), please skip the last two pictures and accompanying text below.  I talk about doctors, needles, and the unpleasantries of being sick.***

.......

I spent an hour of my week at the doctor’s office.  I’ve been battling a cold for the last, well, good while.  I finally had enough with it.  I called up Terveystalo (the health clinic where university employees are treated) and within 45 minutes was sitting outside the doctor’s office.  This was how I ended up the last time I went to Terveystalo (I had been in Finland just 6 weeks when I got sick):

 Being sent to the hospital for more poking and prodding.  Notice something strange about the picture?  Right.  No hospital gown.  Why?  Perhaps they’re trying to save money?  I have yet to see a hospital gown in a doctors office or hospital.  I’m guessing they do have gowns for patients who are admitted.  At any rate, I usually wouldn’t complain about being exempted from wearing one.  They’re a bit unstylish after all.  But, I’ll take a hospital gown over the Finnish way of examining patients (both at the doctor's office and the hospital):

Doctor: Opens the door.  "Compton."

Me: I walk into his office.  No nurse.  No paperwork to fill out asking about medical history.  No getting on a scale.  No standard list of questions.  No vitals taken.

Doctor: "What can I help you with?"

Me: "My ankles started swelling three weeks ago."  I give a description of the symptoms.

Doctor: "Well, let me check you."
Me: "Ok." A very long pause as I wait for the doctor to get up and leave the room.

Doctor: Continues to remain seated for another long while.  Then,"I need you to take your shirt off."  

Me: "What?  Here?  Now?"

Doctor: With a very perplexed look on his face, "Yes."

Me (to myself in my head): "Good thing I've been to sauna.  And just tell yourself that this is not awkward for them.  It's not awkward for them.  Be a Finn.  Just be a Finn, Sarah."  

This time, though, I was prepared.  And, thankfully, I didn’t end up in the hospital.  It was just a sinus infection.  How did the doctor know?...

The ultrasound told him so.  Let’s just say that although I was prepared for the, “Take off your shirt so I can examine you” this go-round, I was unprepared for this puppy to find its way into the doctor’s hand.  “I’m going to check and see if you have a sinus infection” he said as he proceeded to cover the tip of the device with gel.  I was thinking to myself, “I wonder where that is headed.  PLEASE don’t let it be up my nose.”  So I asked, “What exactly does that device do?”  I think he must be good at reading body language because he said, “Oh—this won’t hurt.”  Right.  That’s what they tell kiddos right before they stick them with a needle.  Doctor: “It doesn’t go up your nose.”  Oh.  Yeah.  It won’t hurt then.  Good times at the doctor’s office here in Finland.