Lumi: 5 Years, 6 Months

Summary

Lots of fun this month, with a grandma visit and a trip to Finland. 

Social

She and grandma have a special bond, but she is really missing her barnehage friends. She and Otso have fun together, but in many ways he is still a baby and doesn't understand games.

We saw some terrible behavior on her part during our visit to Finland. But we also saw some great behavior. 

The kids and Kimmo were in Finland for a week without äiti. This is the longest yet without äiti. It went well, especially in Nakkila.

She was so happy to be back with her friends at barnehage, and in the big kids group. And she helped Otso get settled in Mango. (I was very proud of her for this kindness, as it meant so much to Otso).

Leisure

She is enjoying games more and more. She played some toddler board games in France and now is playing Go Fish and Memory with grandma. We got "Ensimmäinen Alias" in Finland, plus a Muumi game from Hesburger.

In Saimaa, she had fun collecting chanterelle mushrooms and berries. She loves swimming in the lake and then warming up in the sauna. 

Learning

She practiced paddling the canoe in Saimaa.

She is learning to write letters a little bit better and a little bit more.

Language

She is really trying to speak finnish with her grandparents and it's definitely coming back. 

However, the cousins are mainly speaking English with her, which is a step back.

31.7 while on the train in Oslo, she spoke to the train conductor about her ticket in 3 languages: first Finnish (she said she forgot she wasn't still in Finland), then English, then Norwegian. 

It looks like the break from using Norwegian language didn't affect things and she slid right back into it.

Food

Favorite foods : berries, melon 

At Heureka science museum, she really dug in her heels about not eating a meatball and refused to eat anything on the plate that contained the meatball. This lasted over 30 minutes, and eventually she agreed to eat on the condition that I feed her. I did, and she cheered up a lot. 

Health

Her scalp seems quite dry, but it's more noticeable since we didn't pack her hairbrush in Finland. It seems we need to travel with the hairbrush from now on.

Stats

size: 110 (5T) or bigger in most clothes. 28 shoe, maybe 29.

height: 112 cm on 12. 7

weight: 17.7 kg on 31.7

favorite color: blue

favorite food: watermelon

Events

4.7 last day of barnehage before summer, Grandma arrived

9.7 long hike from frognerseteren to sognsvann

15.7 grandma headed home; we flew to finland

16.7 play with August and Hilla, then playground with Asher, Emery, and Gaia 

17-21.7 mökki in Saimaa

23.7 trip to Heureka science museum

24.7 äiti left, travel to nakkila

29.7 MuuMaa

30.7 drive back to Helsinki

31.7 fly home

1.8 back to barnehage!