birthday in korea

In the days leading up to my birthday, literally the only thing that I was looking forward to was opening the mysterious packages that have been hanging out in my room all week. My mom had sent three big, brown envelopes and I didn't have any idea what would be in them other than a few cards from my immediate family.

Then, I opened them:

When I posted a photo on Facebook (of the envelopes plus two other cards) about it being from a "few" family and friends, I honestly had NO idea how big a "few" could be. I had no idea what was inside of them at all!

It's not my first birthday spent away from home, but for some reason this year I really felt the distance. Inside the packages were about 15 letters and each one made my smile grow a little bigger. The sweet, tangible words made my birthday so much better than I'd anticipated. 

After a morning of skyping with home, I got dressed up and I went to Turtle Park where I sat by the pond to write in my journal and read a few more; when you work through the afternoon all week long, its nice to get the chance to relax and appreciate a nice day. 

Luckily it was a really sunny day and many people were out for a nice Sunday walk. I even had a few sweet Korean ladies invite me over to briefly talk with them at their picnic table. It was strangely comforting. 

Later that night I met up with a few friends for a supper at a Korean BBQ place (so good!) and then we enjoyed some dessert called patbingsu (aka the biggest bowl of shaved frozen yogurt you will ever eat) with a delicious strawberry topping. 

I want to say a BIG thanks to my momma for organizing this all the way back in April and to everyone who took the time to write me a message in a letter for her big surprise, or simply on-line. 

Together, everyone made me feel connected to home and have given me a most precious birthday gift! 

st. john's weekend - part 2 (saturday)

We arrived downtown around 11:30 but could not find a parking spot to save our lives. After about 25 minutes of driving around the heavens opened up and finally bestowed one upon us. And in the process of discovering said spot, we noticed a mass of people making their way towards the waterfront. We, being our curious selves, decided to ignore our breakfast/brunch seeking bodies to find out what the fuss was all about.

 We quickly realized that it was the rally to save and keep the Search and Rescue program here in Newfoundland. It kind of has a place in our hearts not only since our father is a retired fisherman, but also because a Michael Petten, from our home community and older brother to one of Catherine's best friends, is only still here with us today because of this program's existence in our province.

If he had to wait for them to arrive from Nova Scotia, where Harper's government wants to relocate it, he surely would have perished in that frigid Atlantic; he was waiting over 2 hours for assistance as it was from our shores! That place does over 500 rescues a year, and in the matter of lives, that's no small number. We heard his mom give her few words on the matter in front of the huge crowd and we were so proud of her.

From there we walked to the Duke to get some brunch, once again, the place was packed and we got the only table left in the house. Our "weekend brunch" hit the spot. We even saw good ole "Tinny" again. Catherine decided to tweet "Newf celeb sighting: Tinny from Republic of Doyle at the Duke! Where's Des?" just for fun. We abandoned the idea to go to the pottery craft place only for the fact that it was all the way at the opposite end of Duckworth and we ultimately wanted to head in the opposite direction. 

So we went back to the Newman Wine Vaults to take a sensible look around the place, without the chairs. We continued on and browsed a couple of little stores we'd never noticed before along the way. Lots of people were out walking and it shaped up to be a beautiful day, considering the dreariness we've been living in for the last three weeks. Not only did it not rain like the forcast foretold, but the sun actually showed up!

This is the face of an ecstatic girl. It was about this point when she discovered that Allan Hawco of Republic of Doyle retweeted what she'd said earlier. We had a good laugh at that!

We walked by the ole train too. We decided to end our train adventure when some cute newlyweds showed up to take pictures; we figured we'd share. We went back to Water Street, stopped to rest our feet and drink something hot from Coffee and Company (the wind still made it a little chilly), and picked out bridal shower presents for our cousin.

Since it was such a nice day we went up to Signal Hill to check out the view, learn about Marconi and radiowaves, and people watch a little (as always). Lovely.

(the two photos above are from Evannah)

From there we got some things to bring to the birthday bonfire in Middle Cove Beach. It was Janessa's birthday and it was a perfect way to spend a Saturday evening. We chilled from 8 til 11ish eating the mandatory hotdogs and marshmallows, doritos, and cupcakes that Evannah made; playing with light up toys, catch phrase and enjoying the fireworks show that a nearby group were shooting off. The beach was really lit up that night, fireworks and at least a dozen other fires.

We really enjoyed ourselves!

majah's bday

It was Mom's birthday on Wednesday.

We all went out for chinese and had cake at home. Catherine called Mom into the kitchen a little prematurely and Elizabeth nearly burned her fingers off tryin to light the candles in time.

Last night we invited our aunt and uncle over to watch The King's Speech and had quite the laugh munching on chocolate covered almonds and taking turns nudging each other awake 'cause Dad put the heat on cremate again.

I like family times.

twenty-four

I turned 24 this week. At this point, every year older feels odd. As in, I don't feel as though I've achieved what I once thought that age should feel like. I've punched another year out of life, and while I've given up a few dreams and learned a lot of unbelievably rough lessons this past year, its as though I'm standing in the same old place wondering what to do next. I feel as though I'm in an epic battle against the backwards pull of desiring the simple, forgivable immaturity of being an adolescent, to face the complicated adult decisions that lay before me to be made. It's good verses evil, and both spectrums are the enemy! 24 sounds grown up, but I don't believe that I fill those shoes yet. But maybe what I'm looking to feel doesn't actually exist for anyone. We keep moving and narrowing down what we want out of life, hoping to get it right. I try to remind myself that I'm not the only one who doesn't have it figured out.

I do know a few things that I want more than anything: To recognize what brings me fulfillment and go for it; I want to be strong and brave; I want to be free to trust again; I want to forgive; I want to be a person of integrity; I want to embrace the passions I laid aside this year. I pray that this will be a year of complete healing. I need it to be a year of growth.

So tell me, is that too much to anticipate within 365 days?

miracle

This has been one hell of a week, to say the least. I've learned just how quickly the life that we've been living and striving for can change in an instant and just how grateful we should be for the little things, for the people in our lives; to not take anything for granted because it could be gone just like that.

This leads me to discuss the miracle that happened last Monday. Just five days before her nineteenth birthday, my baby sister flipped our car on the icy roads as she was driving home from class.

And she walked away with barely a scratch--just a broken fingernail and an aching arm. And I fully believe there was more protection going on than the mere seatbelt holding her in place; God deserves all the thanks for that. There is definitely joy found among the sorrows. What's a car, anyway?

I was at work at the time. I looked at my phone on my break to find a dozen missed calls. Dread filled me from head to toe. I knew something bad must have happened! But when I called back my mother I was a little confused by the calmness of her voice. She assured me that everything was okay, but my eyes stung with tears as she told me about the accident just a few hours earlier. How close I had come to losing someone so precious to me!! I love the sense of humour Catherine had about it, "I was going around the turn, and then... it kept turning and wouldn't stop!" and "Ever since it happened, I see Impalas everywhere!" She feels so guilty about wrecking the car. All I wanted was to rush home to give her the biggest hug of my life.

I finally got to do that on Friday, on her birthday. It's been a rough week for too many reasons and having this weekend off came at a very opportune time. I was so anxious to go home and be with my family for a couple of days and to share some birthday cake... 

I love you so much, Catherine. And I know this wasn't the most exciting of birthdays, but I'm glad I got to spend it with you. xo.

robz mcdawgunit

Today is this pretty girl's birthday. Throughout the past two years of our friendship she has continued to be an incredible blessing in my life. She shows me every day what it is to be a good and supportive friend and I thank her so much for her kindness. Give her a big hug whenever you see her because she is wonderful.

23

It's my birthday today. I'm 23.

23 going on 18. I say that because I feel like I'm in the exact same place as I was when I finished high school. I graduated university (had my convocation last week!) and I'm still not much closer to knowing what I want to do with my life. Go figure. Maybe this will be the year where I finally figure things out.

It's gonna be a year of a lot of big decisions. As I get older it seems every year is full of them, just newer and bigger.

As scary as that can be sometimes, I like birthdays. They are great reminders of how awesome your friends are. They remind me of how blessed I am. And today I'm enjoying life with this boy. :)

These were taken earlier, before we braved the thundershowers and got brunch at IHOP. Now we're watching the final lacross game between Duke and Notre Dame. 'Bout time I learned a little bit about my country's national sport.

Oh and I played with a cute puppy yesterday, meet Oakley! She likes to chew on your toes sometimes and pee on the floor but is so soft and adorable so you can easily put up with it. She's got the puppy dog eyes down.