Eero & Ilmi

After the border, we headed over to Eero and Ilmi's summer cottage for lunch. 

Everyone (we know) in Finland has a summer home- lucky ducks. 

Ilmi spoiled us with a delicious meal.

They're yard is beautiful. They are getting older though and are thinking of selling it, since they live three hours away. Adam told them we'd buy it. :)

Mummi of the year- Marketta with Samuel.

Eero and Seppo

These were just growing in the grass! I'm not sure if they're wild or what. Pretty.

The guest quarters.

Elliott discovers all the bugs. Yikes!

The boys and my brother. 

I remember this same swing from 18 years ago.

We carried Ollie from the car to his grass bed. Still jet lagged. 

More Finnish rocks.

My cousin took us to the bird watch tower down the road. 

It gave a beautiful view of the forest.

I'm sure the lone guy up there didn't mind a circus coming up to scare the birds away...

Ari

Finally waking up...

I loved hanging out in the country. We stayed so busy!

Back at Seppo's, we took a little walk to some barracks built into rocks in the forest.

My uncle showed us and I wondered how he knew since they were so hidden.

But of course he knows where they are- he's lived there all his life. 

I can just imagine him discovering them all as a kid.

Marketta

Leena

Looking in the barracks. They were filled with water and the mosquitoes 

were swarming us- but the boys thought it was super cool.

Adam, Linc, Ari, Seppo, Elliott, Marketta, Jackie, Linds, Will and Leena

Elliott almost captured a weird snake on this walk, and we learned 

that it was poisonous!  So glad he didn't get close enough.

There are lookouts throughout the forest for hunters to use. 

We liked climbing up them too.

These guys LOVED picking the wild flowers.

Every time we came back from a walk I had to put a little bouquet in a cup. 

I don't know why but this pic reminds me that the air smelled AMAZING.

muscle man

Some old machinery we walked by.

The wildflowers on the side of the road sure beat the sage brush in our wild areas.

A car lift.

Ollie, Elliott and Linc coming to meet us since they drove home with Seppo.

Mr. Oliver dancing his way home.

Linc and Linds

In this photo, you can see the trucks that lined up on the main road going in to Russia. 

We counted them once as we were driving to the next town and there were over 200 diesels!

Customs at the border are iffy and sometimes the Russian workers just don't work, so the trucks stack up.

They turn the trucks off in the summer, but in the winter they have to keep them on so they stay warm and then the air is gross and they are loud. So sad.

Jackie and Ari's rendition of the dandelion pic. Jokester Ari.

What a busy day! Oh wait- it's not quite done yet. 

Fishing on the ocean is up next.