Birthday Celebrations

I am FINALLY posting my b-day celebration story. It has been a crazy couple of weeks, thus my blogging has suffered. The story starts below all the pics. I couldn't get the text to stay by the pics:) You'll have to guess what pics belong to which adventure! My former student from GCC days, Tala and I in Toronto. We look sooo tired from the hot and humid day!
My mom's famous birthday chocolate torte
Moi with the torte !
San and Lisa on route to see Brad Pitt at TIFF...


San and I...

Lisa and I eagerly awaiting Brad's arrival at his premiere of "Burn After Reading" Brad's co-star, Tilda Swinton in backseat...
Brad is in this vehicle behind the driver...my George wasn't with him that night, how disappointing!
Brad's forehead and top of head...my shot without even knowing where he was... I did pretty good I must say..I followed his voice:)
Brad's signature...

San, Lisa and I in the Royal York bathroom...disappointing...we thought it would be "posh-er" The three of us at La Marche/Richtree restaurant...

Lisa and I... San and I and a little bit too much of my cleavage showing:)
Trip to the cottage...the old boat we took a ride in around the lake...

Moi ready to get fishing..
The faded "beached" whale, well actually a dolphin...


self portrait

Fall is calling... I LOVE fall in Ontario and love the colour of this leaf!
A common sight in cottage country...
C'est moi fishing...didn't catch anything.
Sun. Sept. 7, my actual birthday...ready for the tea party!

My friend Michelle brought me these flowers...my favourite:)

My college buddy, DL and I. We have known each other for 20 years!
My friend Michelle and I. We have known each other for 36 years! Yikes. We don't even look that old do we:) We met in kindergarten!
Some of the gang that popped in for tea and my mom's famous birthday cake! I am wearing the hat I bought at Marks and Spencers in N. Ireland!
Here it is...just like Royalty!
Breakfast Monday morning with my co-worker friends, Debbie and Linda at our favourite diner, Lily Lou's!

The Wed. Girl's Night Out gang at Montana's!

The famous moose head...
butting heads with the other birthday girl Terri...
Friends again:)

I love my vibrant life, even in the shades of grey. I love my 40's and all this stage in life has to offer. I love how life comes full circle. I love how the hard times I have experienced in my past have shaped me into the confident woman I am today. I love that I have chosen not to be bitter and have chosen to move forward. I love the colourful friendships I have formed over the years and how they have come alive enriching my life in ways I never thought possible. I continually thank God for allowing me the privilege of living and continually thank Him for molding me into the person I am today. I still have work to do, yet I somehow enjoy the process now. I love the moments in life where I feel alive.

My birthday weekend was full of those moments. It started with a visit with a former student of mine from my GCC ( A boarding high school I worked at) days. It was a hot, humid evening when I met Tala, now living and working in Abu Dhabi, UAE. She was in Toronto visiting family and friends for the week so I was able to catch up with her. We had a precious evening, picking up where we left off. I LOVE how that happens.

The next adventure was to TIFF (The Toronto International Film Festival). Two of my dear friends, San and Lisa, joined me in the quest to "stalk" celebrities. I was hoping to have a wee chat with my George at the opening Gala of his new movie, "Burn After Reading, " but was disappointed to find out he wouldn't be making an appearance this year at the film festival. Instead, we "stalked" Brad Pitt.

There is a bit of skill involved in this quest. When we arrived at Roy Thompson Hall, a huge crowd had already formed. We decided it would be best to move to the location where the celeb cars enter. Brad's car stopped in front of us for a few minutes. We weren't entirely sure which celeb car it was until a guy standing beside us confirmed our suspicions. He had a special camera that took pics through tinted glass:) So there I stood smiling and welcoming Brad to Canada! There are still some friendly Canadians left in this world! When Brad got out of the car in front of the venue, we moved with the entourage to see if we could catch a glimpse of him. The crowds swarmed us so I went with the flow and held up my camera and started shooting pics even though I could not see Brad at all. I knew he was directly in front of us though. I was pleased with the end result of my pic taking. (see photo below) Satisfied that we got to experience the Brad mayhem, we found our way out of the crowd and stumbled upon an excited fan who got his autograph. I love how there is a camaraderie amongst us crazy fans trying to catch a glimpse of someone we don't even know!

After bidding our goodbyes, we finally were on our way to Le Marche/Richtree restaurant. But not before we made a pit stop at "The Royal York Hotel." We heard some celebs were staying here so we hoped we might run into someone famous. This is a gorgeous hotel and is where the Queen stays when she is in Toronto! No celeb sightings but I couldn't resist taking a pic of us in the bathroom. We had high expectations for this powder room but were sorely disappointed with the uncleanliness of it. We finally arrived at my favourite, colourful restaurant - another great place for people watching! Had a lovely meal together and then headed home in the early hours of the morning!

Waking up early the same day, I joined my parents for a road trip to their friend's cottage. We had a lovely day boating, fishing and relaxing in this colourful community.

The next day, I invited a few friends over for birthday cake, not just any birthday cake. My mom's famous chocolate torte made every year for family birthdays! I enjoyed the afternoon immensely. Another adventure ensued at the close of the party as my friend JL couldn't get her car started. She called her hubby who came to the rescue along with her three adorable girls. While we waited for him to fix the car, we had a "dress up" party. JL's girls LOVED exploring my closet and accessories drawer-just like Mr. Dressup's tickle trunk! It was soooo fun having them play dress up in my wardrobe. We decided we will have to do it again! Once again I am thankful that God allows me, a childless singleton, to experience the joys of parenting!

The birthday celebration continued the following week with a birthday breakfast with my work colleagues at our favourite diner and then an adventure at Montana's with my Wednesday night girls gang. "A picture is worth a thousand words!"

I am blessed with this colourful life I am living! Now, I am exhausted and need to recoup from all the celebrating - the telltale signs of aging!!:)