Hi Mom and Dad!
Parties are over now! Christmas has been celebrated and New Year has begun! : ) I have been really busy before and after Christmas, so many things to do!
In Finland friends and different groups (schools, sport teams etc.) usually organize before Christmas party. In Finland it's called "pikkujoulut" (little Christmas). So me and my host mom visited in local postcrosser's Christmas party. There was really fun! Lots of happy people, good food and of course presents! My host mom get little extra gift from her postcrossing friend and active ToyVoyager host, mmm105. She has made two little dolls, they are brothers called Voo and Doo. Really good guys, we have good jokes together ;D
Then later I assisted my host mom to make little gifts for her friends. She made the gifts, I ate the gingerbreads.
Me and my host family spent Christmas in their cottage. It's in middle of forest, near the lake. The weather was really cold, -20 celsius degrees, so the nature seemed really beautiful.
In Finland, the most important Christmas traditions are to be with them you love the most and eat a lot. Eat really much, ham and chocolate. And other good foods. A lot.
When my host family was in Christmas sauna, the Santa Claus visited! He left lots of gifts under the Christmas tree, sadly others didn't see him. I hope he brought my greetings for you
New Year Eve was nice too, we spent it on that milk farm which I have told you earlier. There we shot some fireworks and drove with snowscooter. It was quite scary, in fact. Now we are home again, and the weather is just right to do a snowman! And so we did. And little snow lantern too. The snowman doesn't look like normal snowman, it looks like those little ghost creatures in Moomin. Tomorrow we are going to Jyväskylä, there is this year's first postcrossing meeting!
I hope you had really nice Christmas!
All the best, Sheldor : )