Here are some freshly wrapped gifts:

Luckily Ebba isn't at all like me and my brother when we were little. When we were home alone my brother and I would search the house, the attic and the basementto find our gifts. And usually we did. We'd open the wrappings just enough to see what's inside. No big surprises on Christmas Eve! In Finland we get our gifts on the 24th, and Santa Claus comes through the door like the civilized old fellow that he is,not through the chimney. The Americans have got Christmas all wrong. The elves aren't midgets or children and do not wear polka-striped clothes but a very similar garment to Father Christmas. They are very small and very old. Also, Santa Claus does not live in the North Pole like they say in some Hollywood movies, but in Lappland in Northern Finland. There are no reindeer in the North Pole, for goodness sake! Well that's for the Santa...

Now, I couldn't believe what I found in the library on Tuesday! We have this closet in the library, where you can bring your old books when you don't need them anymore. And people can take those books for free. Somebody had left a school music book from 1948 there! Absolutely wonderful for cards etc.! It's very fragile though, but the paper has an amazing colour... di-di-diddyh-dee I'm loving it!

I had my first Christmas supper of the year yesterday when our boss offered us a dinner in an old brewery. Yum! I strongly suggest though that all Finnish people leave the ham in the stores this year seeing the pictures on the news of how badly they treat the pigs here!!!