I'm a bit late with all the Christmas stuff, as it's Tapaninpäivä for Finns (St. Stephen's Day), Annandag Jul (= "the other day of Christmas") for Swedes, and Boxing Day for the English speaking people (the name I'll be using since this is a blog in English) around the globe. But here I am, ready to share how my Christmas - and the holidays of the kitties! - went!
Like last year and all the years before that, we've had my mother's parents come over and celebrate Christmas with us on Christmas Eve, the day Finns get Santa's presents and such. We drank coffee and ate chocolate sweets before getting the presents ("which Santa had left in our basement"), and after that ate some more: starters, the actual Christmas dinner, and some dessert. I was so full afterwards that the Christmas chocolate I had gotten as a gift didn't really tempt me no more, haha!
My youngest brother's got a heather (or a ling, or a calluna, whatever you like to call it) and wanted it to have some Christmas decorations too! Emi got super curious and watched how he spun some strings of tinsel around it:
I quickly did my nails that morning, using red and red glitter nail polish. Here's what they looked like!
Emi found that our Christmas tree was the perfect place to hide in from Ella, and that it came with a bonus: there were balls to play with, and a soft rug to sleep on! I already posted a picture of her on Instagram, but here are some yet unseen pics:
Portrait!
Here are the presents I got on Christmas Eve, along with some descriptions:
This: a new set of sheets, with text, birds and cherubs on it - a lovely, lovely present, I can now go to bed and feel classy and comfy!
These: some wooden jewellery and a picture of me when I was... two? All of these are adorable, imo. ☺
This:Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, an author I've heard so many great things of!
These: a pair of comfy shoes, where one's feet feel like walking on clouds! Mum had similar ones before, and I fell in love with them back then, so I wished for these this Christmas - and luckily, here they are, probably being used every single night!
These: a pair of earrings, silver angel wings and gold heart. So beautiful!
This: my very first Rammstein CD! Made in Germany has all my favourite R+ songs on it!
This: A calendar for 2016, which will do nice along with my WT calendar that is still being delivered!
As always, the new sheets I got were first tried by Queen Elsa, before her human buddy was allowed to use them:
On Christmas Day my family went over to my father's parents' house. There were all my cousins, even those younger ones from England! All were gathered, except for my grandpa. My grandpa was in the hospital, so we, all of his grandchildren, Skype'd him and wished a merry Christmas for him too!
We ate well and laughed hard, enjoying each other's company after such a long time. I told my relatives about Ella and everybody who hadn't seen her were eager to meet the little cutie doggy! We had lots of fun, and got presents again, this time from my father's relatives' side. Aukku chose her gift for me with great thought: it's a home spa set made out of ecological material! My camera's battery went out just before I was going to photograph the presents I got there, so I can only tell you all what I got:
a wine-red scarf made of foreign fabric
the home spa set I told you about (hehe...)
a box of Fazer's Geisha chocolate
I also got two gifts before Christmas, from my family, which I enjoy in two different ways, obviously. Both of which I'm very happy to now own!
Some fake roses, in two shades of red and one purple...
And 60 days of game time on my ultimate favourite game!!
I caught Emi watching Ella, in what looked like a very uncomfortable position...
And Elsa, of course, was the real photography model of these "photoshoots".
It started snowing today! The whole scenery was magnificent, the sky was gold and the wind was cold. I got a bit late and couldn't photograph the yellow sky, but here are some pictures anyway!
Love this picture!
And this one too!
Emi and Bimbo watched the snow fall, through the window in the warmth of home:
"Can you see the snow, Emi?"
"Yeeees..." *fascinated*
And lastly, let's have some Bimbo in the Christmas decoration basket! Tee hee!
This was a very quickly written entry, which had the uploading delayed because of poor Internet connection combined with uploading of tons of pictures. I'll write again soon, on New Year's Eve or Day at the latest. I hope you have a great, great great holiday until then!
I'm now back from London! Well, been home for quite a while now, hehe... And this post is a whole lot over a week late, I apologise for that! Now that school's over for this year, and my Christmas holidays have officially begun a few days ago, I have time to sit down with a nice cup of evening tea and tell you everything! ☺
For my luck, Thursday was a day of no school at all. All classes ended 13:15, and my only class would begin at 13:30. WIN! I had the whole morning and early afternoon to finish packing, getting ready and such. Mum came to pick me up at around 2 o'clock, and we went to eat sandwiches and drink some delicious lattes at Starbucks. I was a bit nervous, not really for the flight itself, but because I wasn't sure if they allowed two bags into the airplane. It sounds silly, but well, a little worrying mini-Mum of three kittens, a dog and three younger siblings, I do worry about everything, even if I wouldn't have to. Silly me.
The flight went well, I had time to buy a book for my cousin, whose name is Aurora (have I told you it before? No?), and was the main point in the whole trip. We hadn't seen for so long a time, it was driving us both nuts, and she welcomed me to visit her in England anytime. And because she didn't have any school on Friday last week, it was perfect for me to come and visit! I bought A Street Cat Named Bob for her, which I yet have to read myself...
It was dark but cozy outside, and it was nice to immediately get ready for sleep. I actually fell asleep on the pillows and blankets, all on an unmade bed! Guess I was quite worn out by the trip, with nervousity about the bags and finding the right terminal and going through an awkward passport check... and such.
Next day was an adventure. We rode the bus and tram to Westminster, where ol' Ben and the Houses of Parliament were, posing quietly for the many tourists that wanted some pictures taken. We were heading for the London Dungeon, something we were super excited for, but didn't know what to eat in the half hour we had in our hands before it. So we decided Aukku, her nickname, would buy some sushi from a small Asian shop, while for me, hungry as heck, we chose to buy some street food from some food market nearby. My hamburger and fries were exceedingly delicious, maybe because I was so hungry, so I wasn't disappointed at all!
Meal of the day!
The Dungeon was a real gem in my trip! It started out as a museum, explaining medieval London in pictures and actors dressed as people from that age. After a while, we were shut behind a massive iron gate, and the museum changed in that moment to a live-action experience! The actors were very convincing in my opinion, the things we did were super exciting, and Aukku and I didn't know if to be scared or to laugh at how exciting and terrifying it was, so it was quite a journey of feelings!
The museum ended in a bar where we got tokens from a man, so that we could grab a drink after the dusty, mighty dungeon. I took a glass of apple juice, and Aukku had an extremely sugary Coca Cola. The atmosphere there was wonderful, maybe it was because of the relaxing after such an exciting experience, or the dim lights, or maybe all the lovely things there were on that day!
Oh Christmas tree, you in the dark small background...
It was getting a bit darker, therefore more magnificent outside the Dungeon. Ben and the Eye were all lit up, and the Thames was quite a pretty sight. Someone played on a bagpipe, which really lifted the mood to the skies! Gosh, how beautiful London, especially Westminster, was in the evening and through the night!
We decided to take the tram to Oxford Street, to see how Christmas had invaded England among all the cities it was celebrated in. Bright lights against the dark blue sky was wonderful, no wonder I took so many pictures - of that, and the store windows with all their glorious decorations! There were even the astrological signs, all the horoscopes through one wall, and I managed to take a few pictures of them, if not all (can't really remember), before my camera's battery died. And now afterwards I can't tell which sign is which... but oh well. Wish you all could've been there, it was so very beautiful!
The day ended with a trip to the local Tesco, where we bought delicious snacks such as Oreos, apple and orange juice and a bag of sea salted potato chips. We returned home ready to watch our favourite movie, Rock of Ages. It's a great movie in my opinion, about 80s rock times where pure rock'n'roll had still a large impact on the world. You would enjoy it! We didn't finish watching it because we were so tired (obviously), so we left the other half of the film for the next day.
So on the next day we wanted to take the tram to... Baker Street! We are such big fans of Sherlock Holmes, mainly because of the BBC adaption, that it was a must-do during my trip there. I had only been outside the museum, when I was in London with my mother a couple of years ago, so it was very exciting to finally see how the inside looked like! I took a whole lot of pictures - with the "guard" outside the museum and the store, of the exterior and interior side of the museum, and even a silly mirror selfie with my cousin! I had great fun, we fooling around, and I even bought a nice mug!
The guard, who looked at me right when I snapped a pic.
Sherly Trollhair Goblinface, with a smiling guard on her left.
We had super much fun!
Sherly with a fedora, at your service!
Wax dolls... who escaped from Madame Tussaud's, I think...
I look like I killed that guy...
Looks like the murder investigator got here, and all I did was smile like silly...
The guard changed... looking as happy as the previous. ☺
And of course, some pointless, blurry mirror selfies taken in Sherlock's bedroom...
And to continue the nice things, we found a small bookstore outside the museum, where I found something I had been hunting to find for a long while. I had been looking for it in Suomalainen Kirjakauppa, all Academic Bookstores I knew, even the book fairs in Helsinki, with no result. I am now finally content, finally at peace, with the gem found - The Shepherd's Crown by Terry Pratchett! I am a huge fan of Pratchett's funny masterpieces, and I am sure this one's going to be a great read! I'm so sad that Pratchett died back in March, I have honestly never been so sad over an author dying! It was like a part of me died with him, and my favourite book by him I've got, Hogfather, is the only comfort I've got - after finishing all my other books I have planned to read, I'll definitely be going back to some Pratchett again!
It was getting dark while we travelled to our next destination - Westfield! For those who don't know, it's a shopping centre, and big as heck! There were many levels and a whole lot of stores of all kind you could imagine. We went to Urban Outfitters, where I bought souvenirs for my family, and after that, to this nice little clothing store called Bershka, where I bought things for myself - three different types of clothes, just because they were so nice!
It was very beautiful when we got there!
You touched me, and suddenly I was a lilac sky... *Halsey playing*
Better call the Iron Maiden when I get home, I mean, it's all wrinkled, gosh!
We tried to find an Italian restaurant on our way back home, since I had a great urge for pasta with pesto and cheese. I had tried it out at Aukku's when I first arrived, and I fell in love, I had never eaten anything so delicious. So that's why we spent almost fifteen minutes wandering in the neighbourhood to find an Italian restaurant, but we were unlucky, as on a Saturday evening, all the restaurants were full. No worries, though, because a small grocery store was nearby, and the evening was saved with some pizza!
At their place, after eating my pepperoni pizza, I took one of the best baths I've ever taken. For Aukku and her family had a whirlpool tub, which I was allowed to use, so, well, I did. With a cold glass of water with lime fruit and ice cubes, some relaxing music, Daughter of the Blood and candle light, I took the most relaxing bath, as said, the greatest what I have ever taken. And obviously, after the bath, we finished watching Rock of Ages, which happened to be the extended edition (not that it's a bad thing)...
So on Sunday it was time for me to leave, but before that, Aukku and took some pictures of me in their backyard while I was drinking tea. Here are the best shots, the ones I think I'm most happy with!
The cab arrived at around 13:30 (1:30 p.m.) to take me to Heathrow. It was all a great trip, but now it was time to go home, to tell all my family what a wonderful trip I had had. Thanks to Aukku and her family, of course! ☺
Oh, and the next day, a tranquil Monday, I went to the shopping centre, Jumbo, to use my gift card I had for K-Market. Guess what I was in the mood for? Makeup!
Here's what I bought: three eyeshadow palettes (the left one has a burgundy shade I've been hunting for a long time, the middle one is a purple colour, and the right one's a "nude" palette called Blushed Nudes), some great mascara I have yet to try out properly, and a highlighter which, sadly, is no highlighter for me, as I am so pale it matches my skin tone...
Everybody were happy when I came back home, especially the cats and Ella. Elsa had been sleeping in my bed all the days I was gone, clearly missing her human slav- I mean, buddy, to sleep in the same bed with her. A few days ago, however, I witnessed a bond being made between Emi and Elsa, as they both were sleeping in my room at the same time. Elsa has never before let Emi be even in the same room as where she is, let alone in my room, which is a sanctuary for Elsa when Bimbo, Emi and now Ella get too stressful to handle. That was an exhilarating sight! Luckily I quickly fetched my camera and ran up to my room to snap some pictures of this scene!
Emi is still quite afraid of Ella, but some progress has been made: Emi is now brave enough to come to the same floor as the happy, curious little dog! She is still wary, but with Bimbo on her side - Bimbo, who has made Ella a friend! - everything's going in the right direction. ☺
Best buds!
Little Bimbo wants attention, too! I was playing World of Warcraft yesterday, and he joined me on my lap, next to the laptop! I had to put my computer away, because it was on such rare occasion that Bimbo would come to one's lap and wanting to be petted, at least now that Ella is another cuddle-buddy for Mum. He started purring loudly, and fell asleep, while I tried to play the game with the laptop on my right side, and to pet Bimbo on the left at the same time. Little baby boy! ☺
Speaking of Bimbo and laptops, I got the chance to catch some pictures of Bimbo sleeping on Mum's laptop!
And when I had put away my clothes from a clothes basket, our gentleman forgot how to be sophisticated, and jumped into the basket at the instant! There he spied on everyone wandering about doing their Christmas chores, watched Emi watching him, and tried to play with Elsa, who, of course, skittered away, the Queen as she is!
It's Christmas Eve tomorrow, and even though I have lots of preparations to do, with family and also privately, I am looking super much forward to it! Can't believe time is flying so fast!? My grandparents from Mum's side are coming to celebrate Christmas with us, and we're getting most of the presents that day. On Christmas Day, we're going to Dad's side of the family, all gathered at my father's parents' house, to celebrate Christmas even more! It's going to be such great fun, and of course, I'll keep you guys up to date on what happens with me and the kitties!
I shall see you later! Merry early Christmas to all of you, I love you! ♥
