Birthday party adventures

Alright, so some of you may recall the time I decided it was a reasonable idea to plan my wedding and a surprise birthday party for Chris on the same day.  There's a reason I plan things for a living ;).  But this weekend, I might be surpassing that one.

To follow this you need a little bit of background.   C participates in the SCA, where this year has taken on a leadership role.  As a result, he will be busy most weekends.  This weekend in particular was an event that was very important to him, but...  out in Bellville (approx 3h from home).   So, he is couch surfing at a friend's place this wknd.  All good.

More details - C's 40th birthday is next week, as is our anniversary.   The weekend after is one of the few C has free and we have anniversary plans (also, it's Valentines, which we usually avoid w a passion, but this time we have to suck it up, so reservations were made ridiculously early).

So effectively we decided we wouldn't be doing anything for C's bday.  We're doing an expensive trip later this year that all our discretionary income is going toward, and a good part of that is specifically his bday present so, fair enough.

However, unlike me, C is an extrovert, and I knew he would like a party - esp for the milestone bday.  However, it's February and we live far away from everything, and...  basically every weekend for the next few months is already booked.  

So new plan - I'd plan a surprise party out near the event for after it was over.   A significant number of his friends would be at the event, so not a huge extrapolation to carry that over for a bday esp nearby.   But since I would not be attending the event, I need an accomplice on the inside.  

Tagged someone I knew would be there and also trusted might be able to help accomplish inside details, however - turns out there's a twist.  Another person in the friend group has a birthday that day, which they had been planning to celebrate afterwards at the friend's house where C was going to crash.  Suggested that instead of finding a restaurant or something (my plan) that we do it at her house and combine.  

Ummm cool - except, I don't know her?   lol so he put us in touch and she was super willing to go along with it - to the point of allowing me to show up and set stuff up at her house with nobody home?!?!   Amazing people still exist.  And her place is about an hour closer to me.  Win.

So awesome.  Okay next step - tag some of C's friends who I knew wouldn't be at the event either because they no longer play that game or they never did.  Those that had a history with it, I told about what was going on cause they'd get the significance so in case they wanted to go, and also about the bday party after.  The ones who don't play that game I just told about the party.   A few had other immovable plans (remember how close to Valentine's) but several were in.  Sweet.   Also - had to be a little sneaky about this because if C saw any of those names pop up on my phone or laptop he'd know something was up 😂 

So at this point I'm planning for a double bday party - half of which is a surprise and half of it for a human I've met many times but don't really know.  

So found somebody who told me what the 2nd birthday person likes and make plans to bake two cakes - except that I can't buy any ingredients till C is gone, much less actually make it early.   And for reasons...  decided I'd be making two cakes I've never made before.  Great time to experiment.  Definitely not stressful at all ;-P

Spent one of my lunch breaks hitting up a party store nearby for balloons and decorations - but of course I couldn't bring them home until C was gone (no way to hide helium balloons in our house!) so arranged to pick them up on Sat am.

Also, randomly, had committed that I was going to make freezer meals this weekend...  Which now got brought forward to Friday night - in with the cakes.   Cause, you know, why not.  Good thing I'm a night person since I worked all day Friday.

So groceries acquired, flowers for woman letting me invade her home, extra purchased desserts - partially just in case and partially cause I had no idea at this point how many people would be there.  Range is 20-40?!?  

Okay so planning to go out, set things up, and bring a book to wait while people show up.   Being me, I'll leave extra early and have time to kill.   So instead, I think better plan is to go *extra* early and then meet up with a friend who's birthday is ALSO that day during the day.   So now I 'm up to three bdays in one day.  No cake required for that one though ;)   Just timing.

Ready to go....

So now it's Friday night, and the rest of the updates will be real-time-ish ;).  There's a storm threatening for tomorrow -- C got out before it, but I may well be driving through it.  This may also impact the number of people able to attend, esp those who weren't originally going to make the event.  I'm mentally shifting my Saturday planning and going to leave ridiculously early and take my time.

Just starting cake baking when I got a message asking if I could make a stop on my way on Sat to pick up an ice cream cake for the other birthday celebrant - the shop had closed early on Fri because of said storm.  Yikes!   But yes, of course, it's basically on the way.  So we'll add that into tomorrow's list, but plus side, cuts down the number of experimental cakes on tonight's list ;) 

Also - my amazon package supposed to contain the compostable cutlery that feels like plastic instead of wood has been delayed :(.   Big booo!   Here's hoping it arrives tomorrow am, but not holding my breath.

Late Friday or very early Saturday:  cake roll experiment complete.   It is really tasty, but the structural integrity is questionable ;-P.    "Bridge is out" degree of questionable.  I'm deeming this mostly a non-issue. 

Balloons needed to come rest in the house for a bit

Sat am - balloons acquired!   Win!   Except...   They barely fit in my car, and as I'm picking them up they tell me they can't be in the cold or the transit bag more than an hour...  Ummm - it's more than a 2h drive.  And not time to go yet.  So when I got home I pulled them into the house and let them breathe.   Mori's terrified of them, Nola thinks they might be worth hunting lol.   A couple of them I love, a couple of them I'm disappointed in -- one is *tiny* compared to all the others, which I didn't realize when I bought them.  Oh, and we have a dinosaur.  It seemed important, although I'm not bringing Winston to the party (those who know...)

The not-plastic cutlery has yet to arrive.  I have acquired atrocious wooden variation.   Boooo.  

Snow has started but not yet covering the driveway.   Going to feed cats, pack up vehicle (things that need to stay cold - trunk, things that can't be cold - battle it out w the balloons for space in the car!)

Sat 12:30 pm - Car is packed, balloons are all fit in the backseat, and I am off to the first stop which is to pick up the extra cake which is approximately two hours away.   Mission has started...   

Ready to go :)

Voice to text driving update -- It's been a very long time since I've driven with my rear-view mirror blocked!  lol.  Possibly since I was hauling a horse trailer?

2:50:  Shockingly Marble Slab (ice cream store) was not busy given -12 with -28 windchill.  The woman seemed very confused but showing her the order confirmation on my phone cleared it up and I was good to go.   There has been no drive-impacting weather.

4:00 Made my way to the house, where I def rang the doorbell in case I was in the wrong place!  Seemed all good and when I got in there were clear signs that it was, in fact, the right place.  Or would be an insane coincidence if I weren't ;)

My favourite balloons

So I set up balloons, figured out how and where it might be safe to string a banner (not sure that’ll hold) and fortunately there was enough space in the fridge for the variety of need-to-be-refrigerated cakes.   Not enough in the freezer though so the ice cream one is in my trunk for now ;).  Canadian winter win.   Later I’ll put it on the back porch.

6:30 Okay back now from visit w Em (and Rosie!) which was lovely and has been way too long.  Banner mostly held - just needed minor repairs.  Cake is now on back porch - classic ;).  And my car is hidden around a cul de sac.  Was a cold walk back for sure!

7:30 I've had updates that they're on their way.   Looks like unfortunately the “extras” (non event people) I was hoping would be here unfortunately couldn’t make it in the end, so instead of hosting I’m really just crashing.   So that's a bit of a fail and disappointing for sure, but at least there’s cake ;)

Very late - so of all people, Chris was the first one through the door, and with the lighting and him wearing a jacket I hadn't seen, I couldn't even tell it was him at first - until he spoke lol.  And was definitely surprised to see me there :).  So deeming that a win.   Both people had their birthday celebration, lots of food was consumed by all, and a good night was had.

#FridayFlash - The Rise of the Phoenix

My drawing gave me this story (and thanks to my Dad for the title!).  I never would've imagined attempts at new creativity might reawaken old.  Am expecting a second part, but we'll see how that goes ;)

---

Legend says there can be only one, and it is born of fire. 

And so it began. We searched libraries and talked to everybody we could think of who might be a source. And over months and years we wove together the tiny fragments of truth about where a legend might actually be found, and wondered whether we might be deemed worthy of finding it.

We found hers first. The fire phoenix of legend – master of life and change, death and rebirth. He tested her; oh how he tested her. And, I suppose, she tested him. But something clicked and there grew an acceptance and then a bond between them. That of a salty teacher and the only student he cared to tolerate. Majestic, intelligent, and done. Almost 500 years old, some of his spark had dimmed, and one day he made it clear to Feena his time was coming to an end.

From his ashes would rise his successor, with all his memories – although they may be fuzzy at first. Feena helped prepare the fire, unshed tears blurring her vision. The bed of cinnamon, cassia, spikenard, and amomum made for an amazingly scented kindling nest. He had told her it would ease the transition.

They stood together when the fire burned brightly, and all was ready – a rare moment of quiet between two fiery creatures. Feena could feel heat radiating from him. Suddenly he let out an ear-piercing screech that reverberated through her soul. He launched straight up, as though reaching for the noon sun, then slowly rode the wind back down, gliding in large, slow circles, as though he were a bird of prey looking for his next meal. And when he was ready he dove, wings in, extreme speed, straight towards the heart of the fire. He didn’t burn, as Feena had feared, but rather became the flame himself.  Feena felt a brief spark in the palm of her hand – the feather he had given her had also converted into flame, leaving behind a small handful of golden ash, which she gently closed her fist around.

She kept the fire burning, but nothing remained of her friend. She held vigil, hoping, but not fully believing, this part of the legend would also be true. He hadn’t been able to tell her what would happen. The magic of death and rebirth was instinctual, but otherwise unknown even to him. As far as they could know, nobody had ever seen it happen.

And so she kept the fire burning and she waited. As day turned to dusk, and dusk turned to night, and the temperature dropped, she sat watching the flames dance. In the darkest part of the night, when the only thing to be seen were the flames, the fire suddenly grew of its own volition. Sparks started flying and flames followed them.

The higher flames dancing and flickering started to take shape. Feena’s eyes burned as she refused to even blink. The phoenix wasn’t born in fire, but rather of fire. As he took form, he let out a screech not quite as piercing as that of his predecessor, but still strong enough that the world knew he’d arrived. She shifted slightly, and in doing so sharply drew his attention. He seemed to realize that he wasn’t alone and looked at her – fire and death in his sharp eyes. She didn’t see any of her old friend in his gaze, but she knew the memories would be there somewhere. Taking a deep breath, she extended her arms, opening her cupped hands to reveal the golden ashes of the one who’d gone before.

He cocked his head slightly, as though studying her, or maybe trying to retrieve a memory, and then with no further acknowledgement, took flight – straight up, just as his predecessor had done, until he surpassed the light of the fire and she could see him no more.

Feena kept her vigil on the fire the rest of the night, unsure exactly what to do next. When the first light of dawn broke behind her, she felt more than heard a gentle chuffing sound behind her. Turning she found, in full splendour, this era’s phoenix.

First Meeting
Drawing by me :)
Prismacolour on Drafting film

Snow Desserts

Okay so last night on the news we saw a viral trend about making ice cream out of snow.  I'm Canadian.  I love ice cream.  I have never done this.  It has never even occurred to me to do this.   Chris turns to me and says "we should do that." Well twist my rubber arm.   I wasn't feeling it last night though but tonight, when it's minus-stupid out, after it's been snowing all day?   OBVIOUSLY it's the right time to try this.

We decided to make vanilla because, well, that's the flavour we had on hand ;-P.   Chris even shoveled his way to my car to rescue my tall boots so we could go out in the snow.  

Ready to go

We prepped the ingredients first.  Chris and Alexa weren't getting along all that well but it had me laughing so hard I was crying.   In the end, Alexa acknowledged it had been outsassed by a master and Chris took the win.

Does it get more Canadian than this?

"This is Documentable!" 
lol one of my favourite lines of the night

We got ourselves dressed for winter and opened the back door for the first time in months - with no dogs, there's no reason to be out there once the winter hits - and discovered the broom (usually for sweeping the stairs for said dogs) was frozen to the deck.  Oops.  😂 

Learning as we go ;-P

I handed Chris the ingredients from the kitchen than moved to the other side for better filmography.  Once he remembered that snow was an actual ingredient it whipped up fairly quickly, using far less snow that the internet had suggested we would need 😂 

Says the least patient person around...

Work in progress...

I'll tell you, I wasn't sure this would work.  It did - surprisingly quickly and leading to actually really tasty ice cream.   We topped with sprinkles - mine red, Chris' gold (and also topped with rum lol)

It made a lot more than we'd expected, and was surprisingly tasty!

Also - today I learned that C and I really could do the you-tube thing, as long as he was the one in front of the camera, I was the one organizing, and there was a little bit of alcohol involved ;).  Also, this little snow adventure, despite being made OUTDOORS, made more of a mess of our kitchen than any normal cooking or baking ever does.   

A happy event

I really didn't know what we'd be getting into...

So when I signed Mum and I up for a “dinner theatre escape room” I really had no idea what I was getting us into, but I’ve been to dinner theatre and I’ve been to escape rooms and both are generally entertaining.  So seemed like it might be a good Xmas idea.  

Spoiler alert: it WAS!

A really cool building in a gorgeous neighbourhood

I’m going to avoid actual spoilers in this but give a little more about the experience.  It was at the Old Mill in Toronto - which is a super cool building btw.   Check-in was as simple as giving the hostess our names.  We were escorted in by the “wedding planner’s assistant” (of which there were several who did not have a further obvious role in the game) who gave us the 101 on ground rules for interacting w staff (essentially don’t touch them unless they initiate a handshake or something), washroom location, coat hanging, and how to get to the game room, and then left us to sign the guestbook and greet the wedding party.

The wedding party are actors who brought the game to life.  We have the bride and groom.  Both of whom have a sibling and a best friend.  There is also the wedding planner who was not in the reception line but would introduce herself later as MC.  The distinct personalities of each was evident from the first moment.  Ironically the bride was the only “neutral” character there (and by that I mean not over the top outgoing or hiding - lol bride’s sister was very quiet and very anxious and from the first moment obviously didn’t want to be the centre of anything).  All 3 men and the maid of honour were…. We’ll go w gregarious.

We found our assigned seats.   All tables of 6, as we were only 2, we were joined by a family of 4 who we really enjoyed.  Parents and two daughters who at best guess were early 20s.  They were a lot of fun to problem solve with.

Lucky Table 13

The wedding started and there were the standard (fairly short) wedding speeches so we could understand a bit about most of the characters and then tables were called to go help themselves to the *amazing* buffet.   I think we were the last table but we still had time for more than one serving before the game began.  I’m a picky eater and I easily found multiple options that would suit - but also lots of food my foodie friends would’ve appreciated.  So many delicious options.  Even w the tiniest portions of most things I was interested in, I was overly stuffed at the end.

As we were finishing eating, the puzzles began - I actually missed the setup as to why we were doing them 😂 as I was on my way back from food at the time (last table remember, and there was desert so I definitely indulged!). But regardless, we dove in.  We quickly discovered that we would get one puzzle from each member of the wedding party (this is not a spoiler - it was explicitly written down 😂) and those were of pretty standard easy level escape room type questions.  Once you pass that you get to the next level of challenges, and….  I won’t say any more about that.

In the end the game takes a more sinister turn as you realize you’re playing for the lives of everybody in the room.  Majority rules whether you live or die - depending on how many tables successfully completed the final puzzle.   Alas, in our game only one table finished and sadly it was not ours.   The entire room was executed and the villain escaped to do whatever villains do after they win.   

While a tragic ending, it was exceptionally well done, and after they talked us through every puzzle so no matter at what point your table got stuck, you knew what you missed, what the solution was, and how much of the puzzle you didn’t see 😂.   I’m not sure I want to admit how much we didn’t see - we certainly weren’t the best, and weren’t as close as I’d hoped, but we also were not last, so I’m deeming that a win.   I like that one table did it cause it shows it can be done.  I like that not more than one did (despite my resulting untimely death) because it showed we weren’t the only ones that failed.   I suspected that maybe they always use those numbers if it’s a fail?   But decided was probably legit since the identified which table got it right, so I think we'd've heard if anyone else had gotten it.

It was fun.  It was highly interactive but in a way that could be enjoyed by introverts as well as extroverts, the actors held character throughout and were around to help if puzzles were proving challenging, and the food was excellent.   5/5 stars.  Highly recommend.

A great night all around :)

Starting the year out right

First hike of the year - cold, but perfectly sunny

So Jan first was cold, but the sun came out and that's all it takes to get me outside!   That first hike of the year I was testing my abilities to dress for winter sport successfully, and my brand new microspikes that Chris got me for xmas.  Lessons learned:

• Microspikes are amazing
• Yes I remember how to dress appropriately for winter sports
• My hiking boots are not sufficiently waterproof even for snow
• Bring an extra pair of shoes/boots if planning to use the spikes - trying to detach them from my boots in minus-stupid weather was not a fun task.  But driving with them wasn't going to be a reasonable option either.

For the curious, these are microspikes. 
They hook over the normal hiking boots.
Less intense than full on ice clamps, but still effective.

I spent a very long time at this waterfall.
So peaceful, no people, no sound but rushing water and birds
I missed having my good camera here - I could've gotten some really fabulous shots.

The second hike came earlier than expected - after days of miserable weather (think freezing rain), it was suddenly 10 degrees and sunny?!?!  AND - I was still on vacation.   Today I didn't *think* I was testing anything, but the lessons learned were:

• Microspikes are spectacular at dealing with ice that has a sheen of water on top (those who know...)
• Microspikes fail horribly with mud; like actively made the situation worse.   This could make for some interesting life choices on spring hikes which generally include both.
• It is super fast and easy to pull of micro-spikes when it's not minus-stupid out and you can reasonably use bare hands because if they get wet for a few seconds won't freeze.  Therefore, the above rule for extra boots only applies when it's actually *cold*
• I apparently do NOT know how to dress for spring sports.  😂  Layers saved it but I ended up carrying a lot more than I should've.

With two 4-day hikes to cover the peninsula portion of the BT already planned for this year, I have to be in shape early AND ready for any weather.   I feel like this is a good start :)

The "Hemlock" trail I came across by accident and followed to the top of the hill;
I will go back another day to follow it for real; today did not quite have enough time.

lol overall not a bad start to the year :)