we came, we saw, we ate chocolate cake

i wanted to start this entry by telling you about the birthday parties my mom used to throw for me outside on our sun deck every year. i knew that words probably wouldn't be able to do it justice, and so i was going to start with a picture of me somewhere around ten with sun drenched skin and a pale blue halter dress sitting on rattan furniture, surrounded by friends and beautiful pots of flowers, eating hot dogs and drinking chocolate milk, but i couldn't find the picture, and so it turns out my words will have to be enough. what i wanted was for the photo to show you just how wonderful it was, how large a part of my childhood those parties played. my birthday is in august and i don't remember a year that it wasn't sunny for the party, maybe my mom remembers it different, but as a child my memories are nothing but fond. it was almost always the same group of friends that would come, as the years carried on our interests would change from my little pony to lego and then to music or boys, but one thing always stayed the same, us sitting outside eating hot dogs and laughing. this is what i always imagined it would be like when i had kids one day, sundecks filled with flowers and sun drenched skin, hotdogs and laughing. i was lucky enough to have a baby in the summer, my baby who isn't much of a baby anymore, but would i ever have the sun deck, the flowers? you may be tired of me talking about how much this place means to me by now, but it does. it is everything i wanted for us, kids playing hockey in the alley and neighbours that say hi every time they pass. i didn't know life could be like this in the city, we should have done this so much longer ago.

so this year we had a party, and it was outside and it was filled with sun drenched skin, potted flowers (although mine will never be as nice as my moms were, how could they be?) family, and friends that feel like family. we ate cake and splashed in a little pool made out in the shape of a dragon, and we laughed. it was perfect. i wished we owned this house, i wish that i knew that this was the first of many birthdays that will happen right here on this deck, but no matter where we go i hope we always have this, a plot of grass to call our own.

so happy birthday to the pooper! he is sleeping now, all partied out, no doubt dreaming of chocolate cake and water tables. i will leave you with some pictures and of course you know where you can see the rest.