tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7139527623604435846.post8200698344036481288..comments2013-09-20T03:03:45.288+03:00Comments on Travels with the Dude: Finnish Michelin MenKayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12733864901077298189noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7139527623604435846.post-56555016533866825302012-03-30T13:13:41.277+03:002012-03-30T13:13:41.277+03:00Just a few brief comments by Anna, my renter in SC...Just a few brief comments by Anna, my renter in SC who's from Helsinki:<br /><br />I wish I'd taken some reflectors here with us! I feel very unsafe walking outside after dark, because I just know that drivers are not able to see me. They are a cheap life insurance.. Mine are design ones, quite pretty.. :) ...<br /><br />Well, if we would wait for a nice weather, we would still be inside come May..<br />Riku and I were just talking about the things we are going to miss when we leave, and SC weather is certainly one of them! It has rained less than 20 times in 8 months!!...<br /><br />I am probably quite low-key compared to most mothers when it comes to dressing a child (I never could get those blankets and plastic covers), but I still agree with the grandmas about the hat. Kids get ear infections etc. easily, so for toddlers, it's just practical to wear a hat when it's below 15, especially in Helsinki, where it always winds so much. Bigger kids can wait until below 10. (Heck, I wear a hat myself when it's below 10!)<br /><br />You'll see that Finnish kids always wear a hat. After woolen caps, they transfer straight to sun hats in spring. Guess how hard it has been to make Iris to wear a sun hat here, as no other kid does that! I still make her to do it, as she burns easily and will get nauseous in the sun without a hat. (I know that she hides her hat in her book bag when she gets to the school grounds, though.)<br /><br />And the shoes! Every little girl wears Uggs in winter (Uggs! Here!) and flip-flops in summer. I spent considerable time trying to find Iris decent sandals that would not give her blisters or to fall off when running. I went to every store in Columbia where they sell kids' shoes, but everything they had for girls was plastic flip-flops! (For infants and toddlers, the flip-flops just had an extra strap to keep them on. I couldn't believe my eyes.) I finally ordered sandals on-line. Luckily many on-line stores have good, comfortable and pretty leather shoes. And yes, I bought her a pair flip-flops too, so she can wear them for school like the other girls. :) I constantly tell her that she will not be able to wear similar clothes for school in Finland, but she just says that she will wear whatever others do. (I am so going to have trouble with her when she's a teenager.)<br /><br />I had so much fun reading your blog as usual. I have been desperate with SC kids' clothing (skorts?! I had to have my mother-in-law to send Iris skirts because I couldn't find them here), not realizing that Finnish clothing can be a laugh too. Perhaps things have been getting out of hands for some moms. I've always dressed Iris like I would myself at that temperature. I remember a baby I saw in that winter overall when it was June; Iris (then 9 months) was wearing just a long-sleeved shirt and pants. And the mother asked condescendingly if I thought that it was warm enough. (Then again, it was only +20.)Kayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12733864901077298189noreply@blogger.com