Christmas in July! Well, June…
Living in La Belle Province presents us with two long weekends back to back to kick off the summer; one for La Fete Nationale du Quebec (Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day) and one for Canada Day. I like being around home for the latter, but prefer to be away for the former. Maybe because it is a “French” holiday, or maybe just because I feel the need to get away and can’t wait any longer! More than once we have been up north for this holiday, where the population is much more francophone, and it has been surprisingly quiet! I think they all leave their smaller towns and head out to Montreal and Quebec City to celebrate, or off to their cottages to party with friends. Either way, it makes the experience quite pleasant for us!
Not that I have anything against French people, as I am half French myself, but I prefer serenity when I try to get away from it all.
This year we visited Santa’s Village – his home away from the North Pole. There was a petting zoo, small activities like an electric train and a mirror maze, a standard park, bouncy houses, a splash pad, pedal boats and – Santa! As usual, meeting him did not go that well as the LO is still quite young and not into him just yet. She screamed and hollered and wouldn’t go anywhere near him, but she got her sticker just the same. Her aversion to him is actually fine with me because I still haven’t grasped how/when/why I will tackle the whole Santa falsehood yet.
We knew rain was predicted later on so we stayed around for the magic show, which the LO enjoyed far more than I expected her to, and then we drove back into town to shop for a bit and eat at one of my favorite restaurants, specializing in Crepe Bretonne. Speaking of which, I really need to learn how to make them properly because I could live on them!
Anyhow, this whole excursion got me thinking about when I was younger.
My parents would often plan day trips or mini getaways with other families, two in particular. I assume that they did this to compensate for my being an only child and they felt I had some need for the company of rent-a-siblings. To a degree, I see myself wrestling with this idea myself now, but when I look back and think about it… did I really need siblings? No. I did not. And, quite frankly, neither does my daughter. Not to mention that fact that planning with multiple groups of people is nothing less than a nightmare for me. Call it being a control freak, blame it on my anxiety or plain and simply think I’m a bitch – but while I try and please everyone involved, the only person who isn’t happy is ME. And, I am tired of missing out on things because I am trying to make everyone else have a good time!
I am actually working on four separate events right now; half of which involve other families and half do not. Guess which ones are already booked and ready? Guess which ones I AM looking forward to? Now… guess which ones I am not. Bingo!
In the case of one event, I already have invited guests telling me how I should organize my own event down to what food I should serve. Yup, you read that right. And, for the other, I am fully aware that I will piss some people off and cause some conflicts… I just honestly don’t care! I did, in the beginning, but not anymore! Because this event involves children, many who clearly are not my own, and that in itself is already keeping my hands plenty full. A friend once told me that while she has a number of children of her own, she doesn’t particularly like other people’s children. It didn’t make sense to me then, but I totally get it now! In fact, the event hasn’t even started yet and I can’t wait to send them all home!
So, one long weekend over and done with and another just around the corner! The weather seems to be getting warmer and warmer so I am hoping for some family time in the pool in between local Canada Day festivities. Oh, and the LO is finally getting her Nexus card this weekend so we can quickly cross the border now – easy peasy! Hoping to make another day trip once that comes in the mail!
To commemorate all this summer vacation talk, here is your July wallpaper! Made with a good friend in mind who is currently traveling all around Portugal, posting pictures and allowing me to live vicariously!
Not that I have anything against French people, as I am half French myself, but I prefer serenity when I try to get away from it all.
This year we visited Santa’s Village – his home away from the North Pole. There was a petting zoo, small activities like an electric train and a mirror maze, a standard park, bouncy houses, a splash pad, pedal boats and – Santa! As usual, meeting him did not go that well as the LO is still quite young and not into him just yet. She screamed and hollered and wouldn’t go anywhere near him, but she got her sticker just the same. Her aversion to him is actually fine with me because I still haven’t grasped how/when/why I will tackle the whole Santa falsehood yet.
We knew rain was predicted later on so we stayed around for the magic show, which the LO enjoyed far more than I expected her to, and then we drove back into town to shop for a bit and eat at one of my favorite restaurants, specializing in Crepe Bretonne. Speaking of which, I really need to learn how to make them properly because I could live on them!
Anyhow, this whole excursion got me thinking about when I was younger.
My parents would often plan day trips or mini getaways with other families, two in particular. I assume that they did this to compensate for my being an only child and they felt I had some need for the company of rent-a-siblings. To a degree, I see myself wrestling with this idea myself now, but when I look back and think about it… did I really need siblings? No. I did not. And, quite frankly, neither does my daughter. Not to mention that fact that planning with multiple groups of people is nothing less than a nightmare for me. Call it being a control freak, blame it on my anxiety or plain and simply think I’m a bitch – but while I try and please everyone involved, the only person who isn’t happy is ME. And, I am tired of missing out on things because I am trying to make everyone else have a good time!
I am actually working on four separate events right now; half of which involve other families and half do not. Guess which ones are already booked and ready? Guess which ones I AM looking forward to? Now… guess which ones I am not. Bingo!
In the case of one event, I already have invited guests telling me how I should organize my own event down to what food I should serve. Yup, you read that right. And, for the other, I am fully aware that I will piss some people off and cause some conflicts… I just honestly don’t care! I did, in the beginning, but not anymore! Because this event involves children, many who clearly are not my own, and that in itself is already keeping my hands plenty full. A friend once told me that while she has a number of children of her own, she doesn’t particularly like other people’s children. It didn’t make sense to me then, but I totally get it now! In fact, the event hasn’t even started yet and I can’t wait to send them all home!
So, one long weekend over and done with and another just around the corner! The weather seems to be getting warmer and warmer so I am hoping for some family time in the pool in between local Canada Day festivities. Oh, and the LO is finally getting her Nexus card this weekend so we can quickly cross the border now – easy peasy! Hoping to make another day trip once that comes in the mail!
To commemorate all this summer vacation talk, here is your July wallpaper! Made with a good friend in mind who is currently traveling all around Portugal, posting pictures and allowing me to live vicariously!
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| July 2018 |
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