With the sound of whispering trees

I feel blessed having a garden when it’s time for harvest. I spend a lot of time in the garden, in the forest and in the kitchen these days. There is so much to take care of. The green summer apples gives the best mashed apple jam, light in color and fresh in taste. The other red autumn apple tree gives the best apples for juice, amber, sweet and aromatic. The third apple tree isn’t quite finished it will ripe after first frost, which is I guess within a week.

I save seeds from almost all my vegetables, it is easier that you could think, and gives you free veggies. I grow some species that are very difficult to find, like the blue peas and the grey peas. The grey peas were grown by the Vikings and the people before them. A turnip from the village nearby that is impossible to find in commercial stores, the white mild tasting one.  I also have seeds from other side of the planet; a kidney bean bought at a market in Rajma, India, it grows well here. My newest gift are two sorts of bell pepper from Serbia, that a coworker got for me. My favorite tomatoes are the Russian ones, that gives a good harvest without a green house.

We took the car to a place where we can find lots of berries in the forest this Sunday. We only picked a few liters of each blueberries and lingonberries, the picnic was more important because we already have a lot of berries left from last year. A few of the family members, the oldest kids and I, stopped by a creek to explore a waterfall and a beautiful place in the forest. Unfortunately the creek was almost dry but I found water mint to pick and dry for tea. I have to return when the water is high to take photos of the waterfall. Even if it was little water we could spot some shy fishes  hiding away as we walked around.

Just a simple thing as picking apples lifts my mood to a higher level. I still suffer from depressive thoughts but doing my job in the garden make me feel real and useful.

Festival weekend

We visited our local festival this weekend; Sabaton Open Air or Rockstad Falun (as it was called before). There were no particular bands I wanted to see or no band that left a special moment feeling in me except Sabaton itself. 

But anyway it's a nice festival to visit. Happy people, no fights and well organised.  There were many families with children and I'm thinking of bringing my boys for one of the days next year.  Alfons would love to see Sabaton. I bought him a band tshirt to comfort him instead this year.

Crystal Viper, a polish band were playing with so much energy that I ended up just smiling, even if they didn't play my kind of music.

I found a bottle of purple semi-permanent dye that I tried. It was far more close the colour that I wanted but not enough :P

I bought Illamasquas dark metallic green lipgloss. Even if It was wery rich in pigment it ended up very transparent on the lips just looking weird. Black lipstick didn't work either. Black eyeliner worked better but it wasn't enough. If I had to apply a covering layer it would been dripping from my mouth.

I don't bother you with the bad noncovering lipstick so this photo above is just from instagram with filters and bla bla.

I made this flower brooch a year ago ca. With a hairpin it worked nice as a decoration to a simple ponytail. A little of the glitter has fallen off, so I'll have to mend it.

I did a big mistake the first night and used heels. They weren't looking very nice after that night. It was one of the flea market shoes so they werent expensive.

I used fake converse the rest of the weekend with extra in soles and changed laces to silk ribbons. 

Stuffed handbag from Restyle (I carried my jacket in it + everything else one need)

Underskirt worn as a skirt from Insomnias Attic (I used leggings under fyi)

Lovely fireworks in the end of Saturday night.

Bat fit update.  I tried to run a few times during the vacation, it felt wonderful and it did wonders to my heavy body. BUT. My knees sounded like cornflakes and have started to hurt :(. Just because you have been able to run before, theres no guarantee that your body can later. Damn! I have to find another way to stay in shape. Every other morning I set the alarm a lot earlier than I'm used to and take a morning walk together with Johan. These mornings are beautiful with soft mist by the river.

I arrive at work fresh as a peach. But when it's time to go home I soo tired!

Not quite the right colour

I was supposed to take better care of my hair after I cut it, but nope, can't call myself a patiant person. I so would like to have purple hair, even if I really dont dare. But scanning the shelfes of hairdye and asking Alfons wich haircolour he would suggest for me, he pointed at this one.

Yay, purple you said? Eh, no, actually mum, I was pointing at this one (pointing on the one beside, more red colour). But it was too late for him to change and me too. But to get that vibrant colour I needed some bleach as well. A package that tells that gives blond hair even to dark brown. Pha! This is the result after bleaching the roots once and the tops twice. The carrot colour faded after a long sunny weekend.

So then time for that purple colour.....
You are wrong L'oréal!My hair didn't get that "pure purple" haircolour as the parcel tells! 

Well at least I can go to work without too many turning heads. I'm having my last vacation days now, I have truly grasp the opportunity to rest, really rest. 

Maybe in the right colder light you could say purple....

Having luck sometimes

Today I'm just showing a few things I have won in other bloggs giveaways. Last winter, almost about my birthday I was lucky to win a make up case in Sandys giveaway. She got it from the etsy store Book of shadows. And that's what it is a book case for eyeshadows.

Lots of people are scared or disgusted by spiders. I don't have any such problems, thinking they are interesting creatures.

You must go and read her blog it is beautiful, and so interesting to read. I got Glastonbury at my "Places to visit-list" now. Arsenic and old lace

Another giveaway I won was at Jema Rose. The winner was even able to pick the kind of gifts she wanted. Jewellery with a theme. Of course I chosed owls :). And I got these earrings, soo cute! I wear them lots! The  earcuff is a cool one a back with ribs, it sits nice and sturdy but I'm afraid to loose it so I will attach a chain and ear stud to it, but first I have to get another piercing in my ear. Jema is anything but boring, her home is always changing, always something creative and new. Jema Rose

It's never too early to plan for Halloween. Little gothic Horrors beautiful giveaway was lots of spooky labels and witch postcards. Oh I cant wait to use theese labels! The postcards will be saved as they are. I will hang them in my postcard display when autumn comes.

Little Gothic Horrors blog is fun and amusing. Her role model is Morticia (how I wish I was a patient mother and wife like her) and write lots of interesting facts about the actors in the Addams family.

Ive been thinking and talking about a giveaway loong ago now. I have something extraordinary I've been working on and off. It's not finished yet. The meaning was to have a giveaway at my 6 year blogaversary and for reaching 100 followers, but I ran out of time, spring came and called me outdoors. 

The garden and then vacation interrupted my work. I have gotten burned in the back of the knees (stupid me) while lying on the beach....

(low tide at Van)

 and I checking the apple trees almost every day to check how the apples are doing. I have never had so many apples in our trees before. Every crop wants their weather and this summer had the weather for beans and apples

Summer apples, transparante blance.

winter apples

autumn apples.

A family trip to Gothenburg

Travelling with a large family is very expensive. We can't take the best hotel or travelling methods if we are going away all of us 6. I've promised Oskar a trip to Gothenburg and Liseberg fun park long enough. 

We took the bus to the trainstation, then the train. In Gothenburgh we took the tram to our hostel, were we rented a 6 beds room in a very simple standard. But it was ok and went ok to live like this for a few days.

I also realized that this way to travel is far more friendly to the environment.

My goal for the trip were the rollercoasters of Liseberg :). Balder; the one built of wood was extremely fun to ride, with a 70 grade slope, negative G forces and the shaking woodenframe.

Here's a view of Balder and the too short Canon (with loops).

View to the other side of the old Ferris wheel (the new Ferris wheel and a piece of the large rollercoaster). 

Gustav; you can see the top of his head, had no problem with riding the rollercoasters at all but the Ferris wheel where frightening, it was too high up for him. 

It is interesting to look at people on a fun park. Every one has extremely bad taste (ok I was dressing casual for the day as well). I mean, what to they think of these people; a 9 year old boy with a cap with the words; I love haters, a ca 20 year old girl with a shirt saying; I just came and a troll face, at the hostel a young girl with a neck tatto saying; for you I will (it could be follow underneath but that was all I saw). For me, this is bad taste, what do you think?

We visited Universeum the next day. It's a museum with aquariums of swedish fishes and nature, a tropical hall with huge aquariums with sharks and pirayas, birds and butterflies. A crime lab, space and natural forces exhibition and more. 

Alfons is dressing up as a builder in the childrens job exhibition.

Last day was travel day. Half the day was shopping at the big mall, everyone were extremely tired and sour. When we got on the train it had no food serving and it got 1 hour late. Half way home we had to change to a bus, yet nothing to drink. We came home about midnight with a whole day of nothing to eat or drink. I think the kids were amazingly patient during the whole trip (in contrary to me).

 Imagine travelling with this huge shark balloon. 

Book reviews

I have finally time to read books at night. At the booksale this spring, I bought the three books in a serie written by Libba Bray. A great and terrible beauty, Rebel Angels, The sweet far thing are the titles in original language. The books tells the adventures of Gemma Doyle and her friends at a girls private school outside London during the 1890's. It starts with a personal tradgedy that gets her involved in a deep mystery and treasure hunt through both the real world and an unreal.

The story isn't predictable witch is very good. You don't really know who's the bad ones or the good ones, or if they are something in between. How everything will end is dependent on the heroine herself and the choises she makes. The unrealistic happenings can be a bit confusing somethimes but if you would like to read something that has an air of steampunk (no airships or googles though), I will highly recommend the books.

I don't think this book is available in other language than Swedish. Frida Arwen Rosesund is running an independent book publisher with a few writers. The novels are in genres of the supernatural, queer, fantasy and horror. They are available in pdf-format for downloading as well as paper. 

I recieved this copy because I was chosen to preread the book before publishing. I read it and send her my thoughts about the plotline and language.

The title can be translated to "That they in time may be woken". Something lurks in the forests around the small villages, something that slays those who dares to walk alone at night. Hilda is a girl that is mysteriously pregnant, she runs from home and is taken care by strange twinsisters. A preacherman moves in the neighbourhood with his wife and holding sermons using the peoples fear for the monster in the woods.

The book is very exciting and horryfying. What is lovely with this book is that it is describing the forests in my neighbour community, not far from where I grew up. 

I got news about a following book will be written now :)

I will post another review when I finished American gods and Miss Peregrines School for Peculiar children :)

Vacation activities

I finally got some time to just sit and rest. It's not easy with children around and lots of things that need to be done. Thank godness for headphones and Cathedral 13, the only way for me to get peace to write a post.
Otherwise..I heard a rumour that the cloudberries are ripe, well they are out for now but a few days ago, I took a short walk up in the forest with a bucket to a nearby bog were I know there is cloudberries to find.
As these berries are treasurous, I will not tell were to find them. This is how the place looks like. The moss is soft and wet and you have to be a bit careful were you walk.

See the tiny red plant in the middle of the picture. It's a fly eating plant.

This is how a ripe cloudberry look like. You can pick for hours and only get a few litres, but it's worth it. The taste is like a combination of honey, dried apricots and a tint of moss.

I was supposed to go to a farm to pick strawberries but it was closed (even if it was said it wasn't :( . By a coincident we took the wrong way and drove by a nature reserve. We stop by to have a look. Frostbrunnsdalen as it is called is a huge natural spring were ice cold water running up from the ground. This spring is keeping a whole city with fresh water (not this part of it though). As many natural springs, this is also an ancient sacred place from the time of the vikings (and propably further back) to christian time, there's a large medeival church nearby. 

We drank the water and bathed our feets in the freezing cold water. 

Alfons is testing one of the holes in the sand, trying to se how deep it is.

These three had a contest how long they could bare to stand in the cold water. Red feets!

 Annoyed about the closed farm I went by the market and bought 20 litres of strawberries. We have been eating ripe strawberries a couple of days now and I've made jam and syrup.

Last picture. Alfons dancing rainddance in a water puddle, it ended with him washing his shoes and the raincoat and himself lying in it splashing. It isn't obvious in this picture but there were two very distinct rainbows, on the inside of the first, the rain is pouring and on the other side it's clear.

End of blog post and time for doing all that is waiting to be done. Picking currants, taking a run, building a garden wall, weeding....