Sometimes Auntie Becky can get wrapped up in work, blogging, and social media events that no matter how fun they are, they still run her down and make her forget really important things. She’s feeling really, really bad today that she missed your birthday yesterday Ethan because you’re such a great little guy and she loves you very much.

You’re smart, caring, considerate, and won’t hesitate to tell the ladies how beautiful they are. With a spirit that’s emotional, philosophical, and poetic you have such an energy about you that makes folks question if you’re really just six years old.

Happy Birthday Ethan! Be prepared for BIG HUGS on Sunday, followed by some fun Photobooth time.

Luckily for this busy Auntie, Sunday is reserved family time. It was also Booth’s birthday yesterday (he’s my equally adorable step-nephew, who turned 4) and it’s my mother’s birthday on Saturday so we’ll be celebrating them all at once (I’m just hoping there’s three cakes and not just one with 66 candles on it).

What’s going on tonight? A lot actually but my husband and I will be taking a night off and having some time to ourselves. The dishes have piled up, and there are projects that need some attention but we haven’t been able to have any actual down time together in a while. However, if it weren’t Bollwitt Night, there are some other things going on around town worth noting:

First, Happy Birthday to Alexa who is a Guitar Hero master personified and design guru over at Strutta. She’s celebrating with some of the usual suspects so I fully expect documentation of the fun times and debauchery to show up on Jaiku or Flickr tomorrow morning.

Second, tomorrow is Dingo’s birthday. She’s such a kind person with so much wisdom and spirit. I’m really glad to have been able to get to know her at unconferences and through the blogosphere in the last few years.

Last but not least, John Goldsmith (aka waxypoetic on Flickr) is celebrating opening night of a photography exhibit in Chinatown.

Photo credit: WAXY on Flickr © Waxy Photography

STRANGER: A photography exhibit of strangers and unfamiliar landscapes. The work is a diverse mix of the abstract, the dreamlike, and the street.

Photographers: John Goldsmith, Marc L’Esperance and Lung Liu

Dates: Opening Night: Friday April 11, 2008, 6:30-8:30pm
Exhibit: April 10 – April 26, 2008
Restaurant Hours: Thursday – Saturday, 6-10pm

Location: Radha Gallery | 728 Main Street Vancouver

Opening night features a live acoustic jazz duet by Shannon Thue and Joel Kerr. Food & drinks are available for purchase. [Facebook event] [Website]

John’s works are pretty amazing and capture a candid side of Vancouver few others can pull off. You can preview the show here, swing by tonight, or anytime before April 26th.

An ode to Duane.

Over the last year he’s been an outstanding friend to John and I, from geeky nights in on the couch coding sites, to taking us up to the woods and feeding us too much wine for our own good.

Even though the last few years weren’t the smoothest for him, he’s always willing to share a laugh, help out, have a good time, and support his friends - and for that I think he’s a pretty stand up individual.

I wish all the best in the coming year to a person who is more than just a developer, software engineer, WordPress guru, photographer, blogger, and the king of nachos.

Duane and Rebecca at Fogg n Suds © Duane Storey on Flickr

Happy birthday to a guy that we’re pretty darn lucky to call a good friend. Cheers buddy!

Since my niece walked up to me a few months ago and said, “Miss604 dot com!” I figure she may be watching today (and that I need to remember to keep things pretty clean around here).

She is the oldest sister of 4 brothers, and was my Oma’s first great-grandchild, my mother and father’s first grandchild, and the reason they started calling me Auntie Becky in the first place.

She’s one of the most clever little people you’ll ever meet and by the age of two was able to tell you in which country she lived, the capital, and who was the Prime Minister. She’s not an overly girlie girl, like her mother and I, she’ll tell you what’s on her mind and her intelligence is never to be underestimated.

Throughout her 8 years she’s been speaking two languages, and has been able to crack a knock knock joke that can simply turn any frown upside down. I have saved every card she ever made for me and mailed over when I lived in Boston - from my birthday, to Valentine’s and Easter. She’ll always have a special place in my heart, even moreso that in every way she reminds me of one of the most important people in my life.

We’ve come a long way from the year 2000, when it took my sister and I twenty minutes to prep a stroller to take her baby girl for a walk to the store, and I can’t wait to be here to watch my niece grow. Happy Birthday Lexi!!

What’s better than your husband, with all his media connections, getting you up to the Jim Robson Brodacast Gondola at GM Place?

The “Voice of the Vancouver Canucks” and me - Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Having him take your photo with John Shorthouse and Tommy Larscheid - that’s what.

But back to the real theme of this entry… Last year I initiated a “Free Cause it’s Your Birthday” post in Vancouver, to which anyone could add any establishment they knew of that gave you free stuff for your birthday. Well this year, I’m putting it all to the test. Throughout the day today I’m going to travel to various restaurants to collect my free loot. Watch for updates as they’ll be time-stamped starting with my free breakfast at Denny’s.

Update: 6:40am - Just going through last year’s list there are a lot of free desserts out there but I’m determined to find more cause well, it’s my duty as the kind of blogger I am AND I’m a cheapskate. I just got a “Happy Birthday” email from 99.3 The Fox’s Morning Show. They sent me 10,000 club points (whatever those are) and a coupon for a free appetizer or dessert at Players Chophouse. Since John and I have dinner plans, I may have to make this my lunchtime destination.

Update: 8:00am - Success at Denny’s. It’s fun getting ID’d for breakfast hehe. Here’s the meal I enjoyed and could not finish cause it was just TOO much food.

Update: 8:30am - Forgot that Old Spaghetti Factory will give you a free meal on your birthday as well. Check last year’s post as many places in Vancouver just offer desserts. Also, Mr. Sub apparently gives you a free birthday sub - not sure of the size or where you can get the coupons (tried looking online).

Update: 10:00am - Just tried Blenz in Yaletown, “Yes, Blenz does give out a free birthday beverage of your choice… just not this location.” Pffft!

Update: 1:30pm - Okay so I couldn’t find any place that would give me a free lunch BUT I do work with a great group of guys that covered my meal today at Honjin - thanks guys!

Update: 3:15pm - Was just on 95 Crave with Buzz. Gonna try another Blenz on the way home and maybe tonight, if I’m good, I can get my free scoop from Mondo Gelato.

Update: 6:00pm - I contacted Blenz via their corporate site to get more info. Just to clear things up, the company’s tradition is a free bevvie on your birthday however, many Blenz locations are franchised so it’s up to the franchisee if they choose to honor this. So FYI, the one in Yaletown is a no go, but a couple up and down Robson will be more than happy to celebrate your birthday with you - just inquire at store level. Thanks to Blenz regardless for replying to my inquiry.

Yeah, we’ve had our share of brawls. Last night over dinner we reminisced about Christmas tree shopping when we were little and recalled the time we got into a fight in the parking lot. We both got teary-eyed we were laughing so hard - last night - not at the time.

Being the little sister that I am I realize that to her over the years I’ve been an embarrassment, a pest, a twerp, a fellow fighter in a ring, a scapegoat, a patsy, and a clothing thief. But I hope she knows how much I look up to her, and that we will always be the victorious team were anyone to challenge us to a trivia game… if they dared, really.

Ever hear the term super mom? Well if you’ve ever met my sister you’d see this personified, times three. Aside from working part time and commuting across Metro Vancouver, she also schedules and organizes the lives of her three children (under eight years old) and has been doing so on her own for longer than you would think possible. My sister is an amazing mother who carries a family on her back, which literally is weak from all the pressure. Despite all this, her heart are spirit are steadfast and strong.

This is a big milestone of a birthday for her and I’m sure she probably imagined spending it some other way, maybe on the town or partying with a big group of friends. However, I heard word that her babies are making her dinner tonight, with some help from her man, and honestly I bet she wouldn’t have it any other way. Her kids are the loves of her life and we’re all lucky to come in fourth.

She’s got another action-packed year ahead of her with her new little family but I’m positive she’ll approach it with knowledge, determination, and patience as only a super woman like herself would be able to demonstrate.

Happy birthday to my beautiful big sister! …Although I know you get a kick out of the fact people can’t usually tell which one of us is older, as they usually guess me. D’oh.

In August of 2006 John and I walked into an apartment building for an event. We spotted a blond girl in the lobby that I suspected we were supposed to “check in” with but we just avoided entirely by bee-lining it to the elevators. A few months later that same blond girl walked into our lives once again but it was hard to ignore her.

Photo credit: Duane Storey on Flickr

This time she came bearing chocolate ganache torte surrounded by ladyfingers accompanied with a raspberry coolie that she made from scratch. I knew this must be someone special.

It wasn’t until almost a year after I first ran into Keira that we actually started to hang out. She likes long walks in the park, I like long walks in the park. She likes taking puppies to the beach and running around in a bikini, I like taking puppies to the beach and running around in a bikini. She likes taking a plethora of photos of herself and well, I just think that’s totally narcissistic, honestly.

Me, Keira

Amy, Me, Keira - Photo credit: Duane Storey on Flickr

Okay, I’m kidding, but you may be able to see a pattern here. I’m pretty glad that we’ve become friends and that we can be brutally honest with each other while also being supportive - especially after too much red wine.

I take great shots of this girl - thanks to Duane for the camera usage

Aside from being truly humble, Keira’s got a big heart, imaginative spirit, and such enthusiasm about even the simplest of delights. She cares about others unconditionally and will not hesitate to agree with you if you just want to “skip dinner and have ice cream instead.” She’s a beautiful and genuine friend, daughter, sister, and table dancer and I wish her the best of birthdays. So on this “rockstar” birthday, Keira I truly hope you realize that I think you are all kinds of amazing.

What a long weekend and yet I still don’t have much of a voice due to gitis of the larynx that has plagued me over the last week. Since we’re uber tired and I promise to have many quality posts up for the rest of the week, this entry just purely warrants a photo montage.
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