It's Always An Adventure

A fall sunset...

It is five o’clock on Columbus Day of a lovely long holiday weekend and I am reminded of the saying “time sure does fly by when you are having fun!”. This weekend in New York City the weather has been incredible, almost summer like with temperatures climbing into the high 80’s. Even though it didn’t feel much like fall we decided to dive right in and participate in some very traditional fall-like activities. And being the proud ex pat Canadian’s that we are, we also had to have some fun celebrating Canadian Thanksgiving in Manhattan =)

On Saturday the girls and I took a drive Upstate to a good friend’s annual Hallowe’en/Harvest party. The amazingly talented Ron stayed back in the City to shop, prep and clean with the equally talented (and patient) Barbara for our Canadian Thanksgiving party the next day. Now, instead of taking a train, I actually drove to the party. This might not seem like a big deal, except I felt like it was, since I had not driven in about three months AND I had not driven in NYC in over a year! Well, you will be happy to know that it is a lot like riding a bike, you don’t really forget the skills 😉 On our way to our host’s house we stopped at a fabulous country market to pick out our pumpkins, sample the pumpkin donuts and of course take home a selection of delicious apples. The girls and I loved breathing in the fresh air, checking out the spectacular fall views and basically just liked the thrill of being on a different adventure together.

In Costume!

The party was a blast! There was an abundance of delicious food and drink. I am still craving Meilan’s Caramel Monkey Bread… worth every single million calorie!! The kids had an incredible time dressing up in costume, carving pumpkins, bobbing for apples, beating up a Piñata and generally running around in the wide open spaces. It was a relaxing and rejuvenating trek especially since the many deer I saw on the side of the road, decided to stay there =)

Bobbing success =)

Show me your teeth!

Jack-O-Lanterns

Yesterday we held our second annual Canadian Thanksgiving in Manhattan. I hope it is a tradition that we will continue in the years to come. It doesn’t quite hold up to the insanity of our “Late But Great” parties back in good old Ottawa but, yesterday we did manage to pack 23 people into our NYC apartment and celebrate in style. As usual, the chefs truly out did themselves and the feast was beyond amazing. And of course the wine was also pouring in abundance 😉 It was a truly magical evening with incredible friends and family. We even had a last minute guest from Montreal and he was FANTASTIQUE!!! I did take a moment to pause and reflect and be thankful for the cherished friends and family in my life.

Happy Turkey!

The Spread!!

Yes, you can cook a turkey for twenty in a NYC apt... with a little borrowed kitchen space from the Neighbors- thanks N & S!!

And today, Columbus Day, with Ron and most of the city back at work, the girls and I felt a bit like explorers as we braved Fairway, foraged for food between grumpy old ladies and then branched out and hit the park 😉 And best of all- tonight for dinner we have LEFTOVERS!!! Happy Canadian Thanksgiving, right, ahem, I mean eh??!!!