July 1st is the birthday of this fine country in which I live. I just love Canada! I don't think I've stopped to think much about what I love about this fair country, since I was assigned to do so in elementary school. So here it goes. My two favourite things about Canada:
- Beautiful scenery. Canada has it all from the mountains to the plains; from the wide open oceans to the tiny little rivers; from the big city skylines to the tiny little villages. Canada is a really beautiful place to visit and to live, from coast to coast.
- Freedom. I take for granted, too often, the fact that I'm in school, that I'm working, and that I am able to practice my religious beliefs. I don't want to do a ton of big things with my life, but the chance to be able to peacfully do the little things is something I often forget other people in the world don't have.
July 1st is also the birthday of my youngest brother. I just love Luke! I have two brothers and four sisters, and although I don't know how good it is of me to say this, Luke is my favourite. Shhh! He and I have always just had a connection, since he was born, and I love his birthday. I always like to make a big deal about his birthday, because so many people are celebrating Canada, that sometimes he gets lost in the shuffle. I always give him as much attention as possible. So these are my two favourite things about my 10 year old brother Luke:
- His laugh. Luke has this outrageous giggle that can make anyone around him smile. When you get him going he just goes and goes, and it is the cutest thing to listen to. His eyes squint up, and his smile gets as big as anything.
- The soft side of him. Luke is very rough around the edges, and it takes people a long time to warm up to him and to get used to him. He can be, at times, very harsh. But then there are these other times, that you only see every once in a while, where he is just the sweetest kid you'd ever want to know. Those times are great, because everyone just wants to be with him and near him so they can get their little dose of his giggle and his smiles. 
SO, needless to say, there were lots of festivities yesterday and lots of exciting things to do.
(1) Wake up and put Lukes birthday cake in. I asked my mom if I could do the cake this year because I just recently bough a pan that I have been dying to use. Two birthdays in one day seemed appropriate for this masterpiece. I love this thing. It is so cute. Introducing:
(2) Go to the beach with the Ladies. Michelle, Vanessa and I ventured over to Halifax to a little lake called Kearney Lake, to visit our new found friend Aliesja. We enjoyed a lovely swim, a little bit of tanning, and a random break out of song and dance as Party in the USA by Miley Cirus played on my cell phone. It was fantastic. I just love these girls; I say that a lot, but they are so fantastic, and aways great for a memory or two
(3) Then home for a BBQ and Luke festivities. I came home all ready to decorate the cake and to get his present started, and the cake was a mess. It baked so awkwardly, it was aeful. But luckily my dad is very crafty and handy and him and I cut it down and shaped it up a bit and were able to some how form a decent shape out of the whole mess. This was my first time making and icing a real cake, that actually mattered, and so the end result was not beautiful but he's 10. He didn't really care! 
Then I had this crazy idea that I wanted to give Luke $10, but that I couldn't just give it to him in any normal way. So my dad and I spent about half an hour squeezing twoonies into water baloons. (Which, by the way, is just as hard as it sounds) We went through about 20 of them just to put five twoonies in them. But Luke thought it was cool, and now he has amo for the next hot sunny day and money for the next gross cloudy mall day.
(4) Play with Hannah. My youngest sister Hannah broke her leg at the beginning of the summer and poor girl was left inside in her wheel chair most of the day while everyone was outsie playing and stuff. Don't feel too bad for her, she had the computer, and it kept her more than happy. But I decided it was time to get out before she went crazy so we headed outside to play. We brought a board game outside and played it in the sun, on the driveway. Then we spent some time making chalk drawings. When I went into the house to grab batteries, she took over the whole driveway and all that was left for me to use was the road. So my little Canada Day message ended up on the street. 
(5) Traditional fireworks at Alderney. In the evening Michelle and I made our way downtown Dartmouth to watch the big fireworks show. You can see them almost anywhere in Dartmouth, but it's tradition for us to go down there to watch them. It was a decent show, but a bit too many people and way too much traffic for my liking. It was fun though, and at the end of it, as everyone tried to move their cars through the massive road bloacks, Michelle and I sat in the grass at the park and waited it out. We enjoyed a lovely half h our or so of grass sitting, star gazing, and reminising about this and past summer days.
What another bright, sunny happy day (with a photobook of memories) in the east of Canada. It was long, and tiring, but at the end of it, I can't wait to do it all again next year.
Oh Canada, I love you. Oh Luke, I love you more!
I'm confused. Where were you guys for fireworks last Canada Day? I remember leaving my house with all of you, and then being at Joel Plaskett with Vanessa and Nicole. Oh wait, I think you were on the bridge. It was weird to not celebrate Canada Day with my girls.
ReplyDeleteSome other thoughts:
I love that cupcake pan. It's cheaper at Bed, Bath & Beyond though ..good thing you had a coupon.
Hannah's cast is kind of sad. I'm glad your a good big sister to keep her company.
Luke is adorable. I don't know him but what a cute little guy!!
Do you really think toonies has a w you in it? I'm puzzled.