Milestone Birthday for my Mom

Last week we celebrated my mother's 70th birthday. If you were to meet her in person I think you would be very surprised to hear this because she looks nowhere near her age. Don't believe me? The photo below was taken a few weeks ago.

See, I told you she doesn't look her age! Yes, she is a beautiful woman but more importantly, she is the kindest person you could ever hope to meet. She was (and still is) a gentle mother who always put her children's needs first. And now she is a doting, loving grand-mother to five grand-kids ranging in age from 20 months to 20 years. Our kids love many, many thing about their grand-mother but the one thing that they seem to mention all the time is her cooking. She is a gifted cook, one that could give many highly paid chefs a run for their money! 

The photo above was taken in the Bahamas a week before Mom's birthday. Although my parents are avid travellers they had never before travelled South to escape winter. This year was different as they decided to accompany us on our week-long vacation with the kids. We had a wonderful time and the weather was glorious but, as usual, it was hard to adjust back to winter temperatures when we came back to Ottawa. This is why I thought that the perfect theme for Mom's March 1st birthday party would be "The Beach".  If she could not  be at the beach for her birthday why not bring a little bit of the beach to her.

The table and mantel were decorated with starfish and shells from various trips.

We prepared Vietnamese roll-ups in rice paper as appetizers. 

My sister and her husband cooked a scrumptious Thai curry for the main course. The red peppers were stuffed with quinoa.

With our daughter Amélie being away at university we have temporarily lost the baker of the house so we bought a chocolate mousse birthday cake from the local bakery. 

Proud grand-mother with four of her grand-kids

Even the present we found her was perfect for the beach theme party. Through serendipity I 

found her a necklace with pale blue crystal beads and a gold starfish. I had not been looking for a necklace but when I walked into the jewelry store near my workplace at lunchtime it was the very first thing I saw. Meant to be for sure.

Cassandre helping her grand-mother with her new necklace.

Spreading their wings

This past weekend was an emotional one. Saturday morning, bright and early, our son Tristan left for the Yukon. He will be gone for three months to work at the Canada Games Centre in Whitehorse. Three months is a long time to be separated from your child, even when he happens to be a 6'1 nineteen year-old. 

This is the second summer that he leaves home to go North. I knew that he had had a wonderful experience last summer but it still surprised me a little when he announced that he had intentions of leaving again this year. Not only does he enjoy working with the kids as a summer camp counsellor but he also gets to spend time with his family members who live in Whitehorse. It really is a fantastic experience for a young man and I'm happy for him, but still, I do miss him (and not only because he's our resident techie and mower of lawns).

Before he left he helped his dad finish building the pergola. I've included a few pictures of the work in progress. The structure itself is done and I must say that I'm very proud of my men, it looks fantastic! Now we wait for the canvas cover to come back from the shop. 

Tristan, helping out his dad.

Here is the pergola without its canvas cover. (Daisy really wanted to be in the picture, she kept staring at me, waiting for me to take it.)

The same day that Tristan left was also my daughter Amélie's last dance recital with the dance studio she had been attending since the age of six. That's 11 years of memories and it was a very difficult thing for her to say goodbye to that part of her life. She has chosen to attend university away from home in September and so it is natural that she is mourning the things she has to leave behind. Still, she is a very tough cookie, so when she walked towards us sobbing after leaving the stage for the last time it was heartbreaking for her family to watch. Why oh why do children have to grow up so fast?

Watching Amélie dance so beautifully and confidently I kept hearing the lyrics to a song she introduced me to the other day, by Little Mix. The lyrics go something like this: 
"Mama told me not to waste my life, she said spread your wings my little butterfly". 

And that's exactly what my butterflies are doing.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Today was one of those perfect winter days: cold, but sunny with bright blue skies. It was a great day for a family walk in the ravine behind our house. My parents and our 13-year-old niece joined the four of us and Daisy. 

The last few years we've had very little snow but so far this winter we've had TONNES of snow. It made for a challenging but lovely trek in the forest.

It was also a great opportunity for my 19-year-old son to test out the camera he got for his birthday. He took a gazillion photos during our walk and I'm looking forward to seeing them. In the meantime, here are a few of my favourite pictures from today.

The photographer. 

That first hill is a bit of a challenge.

The girls. I love how it looks like my niece is dancing in this shot.

You can't really tell from this photo, but we made Daisy wear a sweater. She spent the first ten minutes rolling around in the snow, trying to remove it. 

I know I've said this before, but I am so thankful for the beautiful ravine forest in our neighbourhood! 

70 Bottles of Beer on the Wall

"One hundred bottles of beer on the wall, one hundred bottles of beer, you take one down, you pass it around, ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall..." Did you sing this silly song when you went on school trips or was that just the kids at my school who inevitably burst into this little ditty whenever we hopped on a bus? For some reason, I thought of this as we celebrated my father's 70th birthday this weekend. My dad received the perfect gift for a beer aficionado such as he: 70 different beers from around the world.

As soon as we had all arrived at my parents' place for his birthday dinner, we sent him down to the wine cellar to get the beer. Everyone waited with cameras in hand to see his reaction. And this is what he saw when he opened the door. A whole heck of a lot of beer!

Dad reading one of his cards. 

The traditional spaghetti and meatball birthday dinner. Just as I always have boeuf bourguignon on my birthday, my dad has spaghetti on his. 

No, Dad, I'm pretty sure there aren't 70 candles on the cake! In the forefront is a lemon meringue pie, which is also a birthday tradition.

My dad is a very cool guy. You'd never know by looking at him that he's 70, I'd say he looks at least ten years younger. It probably has a lot to do with the fact that he's always been into sports and has never stopped working out. On even the coldest day in February you'll find him heading for Gatineau Park to do some cross-country skiing (there's no way I could ever hope to keep up with him). 

As a dedicated high-school teacher he coached football and, later on, my son's soccer team. In his youth, my dad was even scouted by an NHL farm team. But my dad isn't just a great athlete, he's also quite brilliant. Dad had a long career as a high-school math teacher and he definitely has a remarkable math brain, but that doesn't mean that he's only interested in all things math. He also has a very creative and artistic side which shows up in his many interests. Just take a look at the incredibly beautiful gardens he designs. He can put together a bouquet of flowers like nobody's business! Also, he taught himself to read and speak German and to play the saxophone. He is interested in the world around him and always learning new things. I'm sure that's a big part of what keeps him young.

I inherited a few things from Dad: my blue eyes and fair skin, for instance. My love of travel and of nature, my competitiveness and perfectionism. (I'm working on that last one.) However, much to his dismay, I most definitely did not inherit his math brain. And I'm pretty sure my talent for dance didn't come from him!


But at his very core, the thing that defines my father the most is his enduring love for his family. He would do anything for his wife, daughters and grand-children, of that I am absolutely certain.

So, who wants a beer? I think my dad has one or two to spare.

Lest We Forget

Today is Remembrance Day and I am thinking of some special people in our family. My husband's father, Frank J. Rapp, was an officer during the Second World War. Unfortunately, I never really got to know my father-in-law as he was already quite ill when I started dating my husband. Frank died before our first child was born and that has always been a source of sadness and deep regret for my husband. He would have loved for his father to meet our children. 

From all the stories I have heard over the years, Frank was a wonderful father and doting grand-father to the older kids in the family. Apparently, he is also the person from whom my husband inherited his legendary sense of humour. 

This is my father-in law arriving in Utrecht, Netherlands, as Commanding Officer, Signals,
1st Canadian Armoured Brigade. He landed in Sicily, continued in the campaign in Italy, then Holland and Europe, after serving in the Far North  before the war. While he is no longer with us, we think of him often, and while our kids never met him, they have been hearing stories about Grandpop and his sense of humour since they were little. 
  



But the story doesn't end there. My mother-in-law, Helen Rapp, also served during the war. At 15, she left her hometown of Shumacher, Ontario to work in a munitions factory in Hamilton. At only 16, she pretended to be 18 so she could join the Canadian Women's Army Corp. In other words, she was one of the original bomb girls! Pretty brave don't you think?

I

Helen Rapp, in 1944, as a Sergeant Major in the Canadian Women's Army Corp. This is where she met Frank as she was in charge of the office at Army Signals when he returned from the war to take command.

And the story continues. A few years after Frank passed away, Helen met Jerry Bowen, a veteran of the Navy during World War Two, and of the Korean War with the Vandoos. He is a fellow volunteer at the Canadian War Museum. You can certainly see how they feel about each other and we are so happy to have him

 in our family as stepdad. Thanks to our kids, he has always been known as Grand-Jerry. 

And there you have it, in a few words I have tried to capture a small part of the story of the people I am thinking of today: Frank, Helen and Jerry. A sincere thank you to them and their fellow veterans for their bravery and sacrifice. 

Happy Birthday to Me!

This past weekend we celebrated my birthday at my parents' house. Have I mentioned that my mother is a brilliant cook? In fact, I think she missed her calling because nothing makes her happier than cooking a delicious meal for a big bunch of people. And a big bunch of people is what we were for my birthday feast. There were 17 of us at the table for dinner. Yes, 17, and my mom didn't bat an eye. As usual, she prepared a restaurant-worthy meal which left all of us stuffed but oh so happy!

At least my mom didn't have to wonder what to make for dinner, as for the last 35 years or so, she has been making the same meal for my birthday. A boeuf bourguignon worthy of Julia Child is what I decided was my favourite meal when I was a little girl and so every year it makes an appearance.  

The massive amounts of boeuf bourguignon, simmering on the stove top. Many a bottle of red wine was sacrificed for this dish.

The beautifully-set table.

This was a simple, but delicious dessert prepared by my aunt and uncle who were visiting from out-of-town. Heavy cream, yogurt and lemon were served inside the hollowed-out lemons. Very refreshing after a big meal. But the dessert extravaganza was only beginning...

The tiramisu birthday cake was heavenly. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the apple cake and the pumpkin pie, the latter having been baked by my little nieces. Yup, we like dessert quite a bit in my family. 

A glimpse of the tiramisu.

It was a feast to remember, made even more memorable by the people sharing it with me. Now, anyone out there need a cook? Give my mom a call, she's the best!