The First Snow

Pico and Rinda were so excited. It was their Autumn holiday and Aunty Merja had taken them to Finland.

It was the day of The First Snow Fall in Oulu. Aunty Merja's Mum had  made some preparation for it.  She had taken all her winter clothes out from the storage boxes and asked her son to change the winter tyres.

When the snow covers the roads it can be very icy and slippery. Therefore cars need to have special winter tyres fitted during winter time. Pico and Rinda found summer tyres  from Aunty Merja's Mum's car neatly leaning against the wall. They were going to be stored in the shed.  

Pico and Rinda learned quickly that the special metal studs in winter tyres make a humming noise when the car is on the road. That sound made Pico and Rinda feel very sleepy when they were in the car.

 

Many birds leave Finland during the cold winter months but there are many that stay. 

Bull finches came every day to eat rowan berries near Aunty Merja's mum's house.  

Pico and Rinda found it really great to look at these beautiful birds. They were like colorful clowns on a trapeze doing somersaults and making quick jumps. That made Pico and Rinda laugh.

 Most of all Pico and Rinda liked to make a snowman with Aunty Merja. Because it was the first day of snow there wasn't a lot of it on the ground; - just enough to have some fun.

Together they rolled three snow balls and put them on top of each other.  To make the snowman's arms was a bit tricky but eventually they managed to make them.

Aunty Merja's Mum was very kind and gave not only mittens that Pico and Rinda put on themselves to keep warm, and everything that they needed to make a Grand Snow Man.

Pico and Rinda needed 

- one hat

- one carrot

- and five pieces of coal. And the Snow Man looked handsome.

Soon it looked even better, after putting a long colorful scarf around his neck.....

 - and a floor brush in his hand.

Pico and Rinda jumped into the snowman's arms and  toldhim everything about sunny Spain and how much they like to play with Tana and Leria.

Aunty Merja taught Pico and Rinda how to make a snow lantern.  They needed about twenty little snowballs and then place them carefully on the top of each others.In the middle they lit a small candle.

"It feels very warm!" - giggled Pico and Rinda.

 Pico and Rinda sat for along time on Mr Snow Man's shoulder looking at how the day turned to the dusk. 

The little candle inside the lantern spread its gentle light all through the night. And Pico and Rinda dreamt  about their first snow play.

Scarecrows of Newhouse Eaves

It is a sunny day at Woodhouse Eaves.
You wouldn't believe;
What  you can see

All the people have disappeared
from Woodhouse Eaves.
You wouldn't believe,
what  will you see!

It's all different now at Woodhouse Eaves
- without the people who used to live
at Woodhouse Eaves.

Hi  and  Ho
IT'S THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!






Robbery Robin took out his bag and
climbed up  the wall of the house.

He managed  to open  a window
-  landing on the pillow,
that was left beside the bed.

Robbery Robin was very quick,
- he  didn't stay in the house for a long.
Robin just did his robbery,
getting  a treasure  box from the property,
leaving everything else as it has always been.

Hi  and Ho
IT'S THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!

 Big Teddy and  Big Toddy are twins  who normally live  nearby the Queen.
Today however they share together  the house in the middle of Woodhouse Eaves.

Hi  and Ho
IT'S THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!

The house is big and so is its garden
- there is a lots of work to do. (They do not have enough time for their tea.)

Big Teddy and Toddy are not very happy when  nodding  to everyone passing by.

Hi  and Ho
IT'S THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!

Farrier Frank has lost his pony
in the middle of this sunny day.
The pony wanted to have a ramble
and it will be a  gamble
-  will Frank see it back today.

 Frank  doesn't want to be evil (he is kind of his kind)
when preparing  his  hammer and anvil
ready for his pony's comeback.

Hi  and Ho
IT'S THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!

 Can you believe,
what you can see at the top of the village pylon;
  Peter the Pirate has lost his boat and is a very angry man.

It is because of  that tropical cyclone, typhoon or hurricane
- call it what you may.
I LOST MY BOAT - he screams furiously - AND I WANT IT BACK!

Hi  and Ho
IT'S THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!

Anton the Astronaut  was rocketing into space,
 when  his spacecraft lost  its pace.
There he is now
(safely in this case)
thinking ambitiously of a different way
- to begin a race.


Hi  and Ho
IT'S THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!

 It's all gone a bit wonky
think Lily and Lolly
looking worriedly around the village ways.

Lilly and Lolly wanted everyone be jolly
FOR THE WHOLE  OF THE SCARECROW DAY!

 Grandad is having his brunch
and smiling silently to himself.
It is only him who knows that
- before dusk the people will be  back
 and they won't even know they have been away.

Only you and me  have to believe
that everything we have seen is true.

Hi  and  Ho
IT'S HAS BEEN THE DAY OF THE SCARECROW!






(I need to tell you that before the dawn: 
- Robbery Robin  returned the treasure and is now living in the middle of the corn fields
- Big Teddy and Toddy were back in  their house  near  to the Queen enjoying their cream tea
- Farrier Frank  found his pony and nailed on new shoes
- Peter the Pirate was back in the Pacific Ocean on his black boat
- Anton the Astronaut landed on a new asteroid
- Lily and Lolly were jollier than ever because  they saw all the people back to Woodhouse Eaves
It was the end of Scarecrow Day.)

Letter from Knighton Park

Dear Tana and Leria,

Do you remember when I asked you about the places where I should take Pico and Rinda on their holiday in England? You both chorused in unison  TO  KNIGHTON PARK. Knighton Park is the park you have visited many times with YaYo and Nana when you have been on your holidays.

It is a lovely park. You can hear children giggling and laughing when they are climbing  on the equipment. You can hear mums  calling loudly to their children to remember to be careful, to hold on tight and not to fall down. You can hear dogs barking whilst their owners are whistling and  shouting their names. It's always busy at Knighton Park and everybody is having a good time.

I took Pico and Rinda to Knighton Park yesterday. Little Bear wanted to come as well.

Pico, Rinda and Little Bear played hide and seek on the climbing frame for a long time.

They slid down hundreds of times landing on top of each other and having great fun.

In a blink of a eye Pico scaled the rope and was waving to  us from up above.

They needed a little help to get the seesaw to rock up and down.
Can you guess why?

 Pico and Rinda were like spinning spiders on the climbing net and showed Little Bear how to hang upside down.  Little Bear didn't want to try that but he was very happy to sit at the top of the net with his friends.

 Pico, Rinda and Little Bear wanted to swing on all different kinds of swings in the park.

They went round and around on a roundabout for so long that afterwards they felt dizzy and for a while couldn't walk straight! I was a bit worried because they had such wobbly legs. Luckily they didn't feel sick.

 The little train in the park reminded Pico and Rinda of their journey to Madrid airport.  They told Little Bear that the pendolino shot through the tunnels faster than any car could travel on the road. 

Pico, Rinda and Little Bear sat on the engine and imagined that they were on the roof of a pendolino that was speeding through the countryside. Hold on tight they cried.

 Little Bear's favourite equipment was a crane.   He loved to ride up and down in the bucket. Little Bear is just the right size for crane rides. Pico and Rinda sat in the sand and looked on rather sadly. They would have liked to have a ride in the bucket as well!

Can you find Pico, Rinda and Little Bear?

 Pico, Rinda and Little Bear really really enjoyed their visit to Knighton Park. But they were SO tired. All the rides and slides and climbing  up and down wore them out.  They had no energy left to play at the adventure park on the other side of the path.

Therefore I promised to take them there  another day.

 On our way back to the car we stopped to watch people using the Outdoor Gym. Pico and Rinda told Little Bear that there is an Outdoor Gym in their village as well. 

Girls, I'm sure that next time you come to visit YaYo and Nana you will come to play in Knighton Park. I wonder if you have been playing outside today?

Next weekend Pico and Rinda are going on a trip to London. They are already excited because they will meet Patti The Blog Dog. I hope they will became good friends.

With love,

Auntie Merja, Pico, Rinda and Little Bear

New Friends

Pico and Rinda have got  three new friends who live temporarily in Aunty Merja's car. They are Little Bear, Middle Bear and Big Bear.

Once upon a time (that is a long time a go) the bears used to live in the middle of Misty Forest in their little wooden house. Oh dear, all those adventures in the Misty Forest House!  

When Aunty Merja is driving her little red car Little Bear, Middle Bear and Big Bear like to tell Pico and Rinda all about Misty Forest:

Little Bear began, - "One day when we came home I found a small girl sleeping in my bed. She had broken my chair and eaten all my porridge. The girl was called Goldilocks and she did naughty things.  When Goldilocks woke up and  saw me she became scared and ran away, - just like that. "

Little Bear tells Pico and Rinda that he would have liked to play with her.  Middle Bear says sadly,  that she would have liked to cook special honey porridge for her. And Big Bears says, that  he would have been happy to make a little princess' chair for her. Sadly Goldilocks never knew any of this, because she fled.

Big Bear wants to tell an other story, -" One day in Misty Forest we had  terrible trouble with an Ogre who was hiding under the bridge. The horrible Ogre wanted to eat a bear for his lunch. But luckily I was wiser than him and frightened him away.  "

Middle Bear goes on,- "In the middle of last winter we had  a very scary and  sad day. That was when the Big Bad Wolf blew our Misty Forest House down. OOPS! He had made a terrible mistake. He didn't know that the house belonged to us A BEAR FAMILY and not the house of the Three Little Pigs." 

It takes a long time for builders to build a new house. This is why the bears are driving around England and living in Aunty Merja's red car. 

"Misty Forest seems to be a very dangerous place to live",  - say Pico and Rinda.  "Oh No!" - shouts Little Bear - "It's the most beautiful place in the world. We love to live there and can't wait to get back to live in our new house and have more adventure." 

At YaYo's and Nana's House

  Pico and Rinda are very excited. They are going to visit a very special house and meet very special people. The house is number 129 and it's YaYo's and Nana's house.  The number plate is hidden behind a passion flower that is full of flowers and buds. 

 "They are like tiny fairy houses or cup cakes or stars or fireworks!" - said Pico.

  "Pico look! There's an empty bottle left beside the front door. Why is that?" - asked Rinda. 

"I don't know. I think it is something to do with milk. Tana told me but I can't remember." - answered Pico.

  Pico and Rinda knock on the door, but nobody comes to open it. They press the door bell, but nobody comes.   

Suddenly Pico and Rinda notice that the front door is a tiny bit open and give it a biiiig push. Now the door is wide open. The house looks very big and it's very quiet.

"They knew we were coming. NANAAA!  YaYoOOO!" - shout Pico and Rinda - but nobody comes to the door.  "Where are they?" - Pico and Rinda wonder.  "We need to find them!"

 "Lets see if YaYo and Nana are upstairs. Come on Rinda." - says Pico.  

"I'm not sure. Should we wait here?" - Rinda hesitates. "What about if this is not the right house?" - she continues a tiny bit scared.

"Don't be silly. Come on now!" - shouts Pico who is already almost at the top of the staircase.

Pico and Rinda don't find YaYo and Nana in the bathroom. 

But they find lots of  toys.

Pico and Rinda don't find YaYo and Nana in the children's bedroom. 

But they find lots of toys.

Can you find Pico and Rinda?

  
YaYo and Nana are not in the jug.

YaYo and Nana are not behind the curtain.

 At the top of the stairs lives  a wise old Bear who knows everything about everything.  Pico sits on her lap and says - "We can't find Nana and YaYo. We have been seeking them everywhere."

The wise old Bear smiles gently and says, -"Hmm. Do you really think you have been everywhere? I'll give you a little riddle to solve. Listen to it carefully and you will find YaYo and Nana. Forks and pots for flowers, flour for pots and forks. " 

Pico and Rinda  look at each other and repeat  slowly -"Forks and pots for flowers, flour for pots and forks." They say it a bit quicker starting to smile and jump in the air - "Forks and pots for flowers, flour for pots and forks."  Of course! Flowers in the garden and flour in the kitchen. Both YaYo and Nana are using pots and forks but one is in the kitchen and the other in the garden.

Pico and Rinda run downstairs and now it doesn't take long for them to find Nana in the kitchen.  She has been so busy in her kitchen that she hasn't heard them at the door.

Nana gives Pico and Rinda a kiss  saying - "You must be Pico and Rinda.  Tana and Leria have told me that you would be coming to see us. It's fantastic to see you!" 

She continues -"Look. I've made an apple cake for us. Go and tell YaYo that it is time for a cup of tea and a piece of cake. He is in ..." . "THE GARDEN!" - shout Rico and Rinda happily. "How did you know?" - asks Nana. But Pico and Rinda don't hear as they are already on their way. 

They find YaYo under a big lilac tree weeding and planting hyacinths. "Hola. Buenos Tardes. You must be Pico and Rinda." - says YaYo who can speak  a little Spanish. 

"Would you like to help me with these pots and forks?" - he asks.  It doesn't take long before all the hyacinth bulbs have found a new home in the ground under the lilac tree.

And it doesn't take long before there are only crumbs left on the  cake plate. It was the most delicious apple cake Pico and Rinda had ever tasted.  "Would you like to see all Tana's and Leria's toys?" - asks Nana.  Pico and Rinda look at each others and answer " Yes please!"