Birthday Boys

Over the holidays, we celebrated Dustin's 33rd birthday on December 30th and Theo's 5th birthday on January 2nd.

I just love these guys!

For Dustin's birthday, we ditched the kids with our neighbours and went out for a relaxing date night. We had intended on going to see the Hobbit, but after finding out that it would take up almost 3 hours in transit just to get to and from the only movie theatre that was showing it subtitled and not dubbed and in 2-d, we decided just to go out for supper instead and save the movie for another time. What we didn't count on is that it would be almost impossible to get a table at any nice-ish restaurant without a reservation so close to New Year's. After being turned away from 4 full restaurants we were beginning to get a bit desperate, not going to KFC or Sukiya desperate, but close.

After almost an hour of biking around, we happened on a hidden little nabe restaurant that was just what we were looking for. It was in a turn of the century traditional Japanese house with gorgeous carved furniture all inlaid with mother of pearl. There was only one other couple their for a brief time and then we had the place to ourselves. We had a very relaxing and nice time and I hope that Dustin felt loved and appreciated.

I apologize for how grainy these photos are. We took them with Dustin's phone when we realized we forgot the camera.

Meanwhile, Theo has become more and more interested in Star Wars lately and requested a lightsaber cake for his birthday. I found some pairs of lightsaber chopsticks at a novelty shop and whipped up this cake for him.

We decided to plan a little shindig for his friends and him at the mall nearby our house. In the basement of the mall they have a children's activity area in which Theo has always wanted play. Either because of lack of time, money, or the play area being closed, we had never been able to grant his wish. It worked out for the best though because this meant that it was extra special for his birthday.

First, Theo and his friends played, ran, and shouted like lunatics for an hour.

After some of their energy was burned off, everyone gathered for cake and presents. Theo was so excited about his Star Wars cake and is showing his smarmiest smile to prove it. 

He was also overjoyed about the lightsaber that he was given.

Opening presents with his friends looking on.

This is the first time that I have celebrated one of the children's birthdays outside of my home and I must say it was wonderful. It was so much less stressful and at the end I didn't have the feeling of relief that it was finally over and I survived another kid's birthday party. I also didn't have a whole house to clean up and a million dishes to wash. I am certainly going to do something like this again in the future! 

Celebrations

Normally Dustin would not get Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off of work, but this year both fell on a weekend so we were able to really relax and enjoy ourselves. We were also lucky enough to be able to borrow our neighbours Christmas tree, since they would be visiting family in the U.S. during Christmas. We decided against setting it up in advance, since we knew that William is old enough now to be facinated with it and try to grab every he can get his grubby fingers on, but not old enough to understand the word "no".  Instead, we decided to ask Santa Claus to bring a decorated tree when he came to drop off presents.

On Christmas Eve, we decided to try out our new nabe pot. Nabe is a Japanese dish where you heat broth and cook vegetables, meat, and seafood in it at the table. It was a warming and delicious meal which both boys managed to sleep though which was a bonus for Dustin and me. After, Theo woke up and had some leftovers, we helped him write a long letter to Santa, thanking him for the presents and telling him where to put the tree, and put out a plate of milk and cookies. After the kids were in bed, the real fun began. The tree was set up, stockings stuffed, and presents pulled from our many hiding spots.

The next morning, Theo was wide eyed and impressed with Santa's magical skills and we had a fun filled time opening gifts and chatting with family on Skype. It is amazing how quiet and well behaved kids can be when they have a few new toys to occupy them. This was the most laid back and relaxed Christmas that I have had in many years. There weren't multiple, large family gatherings to run back and forth to and only enough presents to make our kids happy and grateful, not unappreciative, greedy monsters.

Yesterday, we also celebrated Dustin's 32nd birthday. He didn't have to work, since the New Year's holidays started on December 29th. Here's hoping that the next year brings him lots of laughs, growth, peace, and happiness.

As an ode to Dustin over the years, here are a few rarely seen photos of him, most showing his amazing and very varied facial hair styles. Thank goodness that he feels socially obligated to remain clean shaven now!

There are a few things in life that Dustin truly appreciates: Mac products,

history,

building and paddling kayaks,

eating good sushi and experimenting with ridiculous facial hair, 

brewing and drinking quality beer,

ensuring Canada's safety while wearing gloves called "The Friskmaster 2000", 

a challenging bike ride or hike,

and most of all, his family.

We love you Dustin!