Time to Art!

Jaclyn's hit a prime birthday!  Where does the time go?  

To celebrate, waffles and pancakes and art!  

Breakfast for dinner?!  Peanut butter and blueberries?!  

Yes, James, birthdays are magical!  

After the delicious meal, people were ready to clean up and do some art.  Well, except for me and James.  My allergies were acting up, and he was ready to run.    

  

 

Catherine took us outside.  James did laps and I tried not to be too uncomfortable.  Ugh, pregnancy and seasonal allergies are not fun together. 

 

Back inside -- the dining table had been transformed into a group crafting / art area.  People were drawing, painting, sculpting... I was so impressed with the level of talent.  

Catherine managed to get James to sit still and draw / colour for a bit.  

But not for long!  

Happy birthday, Jaclyn.  Thanks again for inviting us to celebrate with you.  

Wild Times at Taipan

"Are you Yeti to party?"  


There was a change in plans (the noodle place had an impromptu vacation day) and we ended up at Taipan.  It remains a greasy spoon despite all the upscale renos. 

Go wild!  

Kevin tells me he and his friends had ramen and karaoke on the weekend for his birthday. Sure!  Sounds like fun (if not wild). 

James stole the show, spitting out a decent "Happy Birday", and then play eat with Celina.

It was a pretty tame and early night for a party.  But it was a Tuesday. 

I was happy, though they, Kevin and Veronica, technically "ditched us" for dessert.  Now that sounds like the right thing for a birthday. 

Things / words James learned / worked on: 

- Bui Gaw, Yee Jerng, Jai-jai (for Veronica) 

- Foods: hor-fun (flat rice noodles), gnow lam (beef brisket), dow-fu (tofu), cauli-fler (cauliflower)

(Above: What a spread!  But oh so greasy.)

Paul's Thirty-FORE!

Paul seemed happy.

The Highlands Golf Club treated us well.  The view was stunning, the food was delicious (and they were able to accommodate our diets and allergies).  Amanda the server was great.   And so many friends... what else can you ask for?

Well, Scott wished for a crying photo (crazy man), but James seemed to like him (with some initial suspicion, see right).

Actually, I think James had a blast.  Erik ran him around the room!  So exciting!  Then tried to teach him to count -- so exciting!  Oh, and then punched him in the face -- which James was kind of blase about (because it was staged -- photos below).

So much attention and lots of activity.  I suspect we're normally too boring for him.

The other little one at the party, Aidan, also seemed to have a good time running around.  He had a mitten rattan (which Paul coveted).  By the end of the night he showed some sings of slowing down, and even gave James a kiss (so sweet!).


It was a very official birthday: Kathy helped us notorise - what ever it is - James's middle name affidavit.  (Note to others: Have all the names ready when you register the first time, else, so much paperwork!)

People said I looked great, but I didn't feel that way.  Oh, well.

Catalina: Oh, it must be hard work.

Some sad news: Serena -- Catherine's dog -- had to be put down Friday.

There was still light when we walked home, but Jasmine's mosquito netting was really handy.

One... two... three... four...


Pow!  Pow!

Matching bow ties!

It's all over?  

Ah, there's next year...

It's a date! (Part II)

Paul and I went on a date! 

We had sushi -- "The Love Boat". 

From our seats we could see the boat being prepared, and we watched it float to the table.





It was delicious.  Though, since I had to stay away from the soy sauce, I learned there is such thing as too much wasabi.  (A pain like brain freeze.)

We've tried Love Boats at different restaurants, but this was the first at Mikado.  There were definitely some interesting / unexpected pieces -- I don't think I've ever eaten raw shrimp... and was that squid? This one probably had a little too many pieces that neither of us were keen on. 
 
Anyway, eating was still fairly easy.  The hard part was what to talk about. 

I had lots of James things on my mind (too many probably), but anything else... um... But, luckily,  Paul seemed pretty happy to be just out of the house and eating at a restaurant.  


It did feel good to have some quiet time. But it was also awkward... (how do we do this again?)  (Mixed feelings too on eating out and changing out of my default uniform -- a stained t-shirt -- that was functional and comfortable, but hardly self esteem building.) And, it also felt pretty good to get back home.  Jackie and James were, of course, fine.

Chris and Claudia

"She doesn't need to eat now, she can eat the rest of the week."

After cooking for the entire day (no school, no work), Claudia was only interested in one thing: James! 

She smiled when he cried and held and rocked him until he fell asleep again, happy... and then kept holding him.  Which meant the rest of us could focus on all her great cooking. 

Paul, Chris, and I dug into the feast: tinga (served atop tostada), guacamole (done right - but without cilantro just in case), chicken and vegetable soup from homemade broth, Mexican rice (flavoured with onions and tomatoes).  It was simply delicious. Comforting and fresh, the flavours and the variety were mind-blowing considering our recent diet* And all dairy and soy free! 

There was also a huge bowl of something called "Christmas Chicken" (like a kung poa chicken), but that'll be for another day.

Chris entertained and tried to get me to stop doing things (i.e. I was fussing.  Good luck with that!).  I had so many questions about the food and Claudia's family (her sister's daughter is the "baby" she particularly misses)... but he and Paul somehow started talking about curry...  


Anyway, it was a total happy surprise and the leftovers will help to make our meals more interesting for days to come. 

I hope they'll visit again (even without all the food). 

* My parents seemed to have compensated for not being able to use soy sauce and other prepared sauces by making everything more salty and greasy.