Still celebrating!

Well, my birthday last (last) Friday went really well and it made me feel rather silly that not knowing S had planned a surprise dinner out with friends for me, I had decided a week prior that I'd throw myself a party.  I don't usually do that - in fact, I never have!  But I'd impulsively invited moms from the playgroup I attend as well as some women from church over for Saturday, April 27th.  I haven't really hosted anyone since we've moved to Winnipeg - a few co-workers or friends over for dinner or play dates, but very infrequently.  I've been embarrassed that after living in this house for almost a year and a half, I still had nothing on the walls, a lamp sitting on the floor, two empty bookshelves sitting unused.  It's been unsettling.  So with S off on a trip to Montreal as of April 21, I figured I had almost a week to get the red wall painted and things settled, because . . . 

I made sure to have some fun with the kids and surprised myself that I made decent meals and didn't revert to DVDs throughout the week.  Here they are at the student-led classroom interviews, showing off their classrooms:

and then at the library.

But I worked hard all week and true to me, it wasn't on the red wall or anything connected to the living room (until the day before the party - too late to paint, of course).  I fixed the dryer vent, washed down the back deck, cleaned our part of the alley of garbage (even getting the city to remove the 2 mattresses from behind our yard), replaced hooks, tightened screws, dusted the basement rafters, responded to letters, etc.  In fact, for the first time in 22 years of income tax returns, this is the first year I've filed before April 30th!!  It felt great!  It also felt great to pick up a Kijiji area rug, have my friend, Chantal, come over on Thursday and start to arrange the living room furniture and hang art on the wall.  (Though pulling art from under the bed confirmed my thought last year that there had been a mouse in my room.  Finally found the evidence in poop, which I hadn't seen then and haven't seen anywhere else.  Hmm.)  Even had two pieces of beautiful West Coast First Nations art framed - gifts from Iz's grandparents almost a year ago, painted by her talented Uncle!  My photos - to come tomorrow - won't do them justice.

Twenty minutes before the guests started to arrive Saturday night, my friend Patti helped to hang them in the living room.  So  it was all very last minute.  I had thrown out there that being the 70s girl that I am, people could dress vintage for the evening but even I had a hard time finding an outfit and threw my back-up one on ten minutes before guests arrived (and quickly changed out of it as it just looked and felt bad!  It was the pseudo forty-year-old's 70s look, I guess?).

Julie won for best dressed of the evening.  It was fun night spent with 14 friends, the most unexpected one being Patti, herself.

We became friends year ago in S's Bible Study group and now along with a few select family members and friends, she has visited us at our various Lower Mainland homes  - even made it to Granisle.  Patti always seems to rescue me - decorating for our wedding, helping me madly pack before moving to Winnipeg, helping get things ready for a party!  She now lives in Yellowknife so I'd imagined that it'd be years before I'd see her again.  What a bonus that she had an unexpected work trip.  She spent the night with us Friday and Saturday, to the kids and my delight.  Patti is amazing with children, as was evidenced by Ai's tears after we dropped her off at the airport Sunday at 5:00.

We were blessed with beautiful weather on the weekend and on Sunday took advantage of it by spending the morning at the Forks and the afternoon at Assiniboine Park.

Far better than the first ice cream of the year and the seasonal weather at long last was the blessing of a special friend. Thanks for making time for us in your schedule and for all of your help, Patti!  Ai's not the only one who wishes you would move to Winnipeg!  (Though that might not be so appealing, as we had rain all day Monday, which turned to snow today).