Drew's 26! Hurray! To celebrate this momentous occasion we did a few fun things. On the day of his birthday, we had cake for breakfast and Drew opened his presents. We did this early because in the evening we had a few friends over for a pot-luck, which was delicious. Drew made amazing tacos that had vegan and non-vegan options, and we had quinoa salad, pasta, wine, and amazing vegan key-lime avocado pie with nut crust and whipped coconut cream for desert made by our friend Matt (the pro-star pie maker extraordinaire).
 |
our view of the racetrack from the
dinner table |
 |
| Drew's racing outfit - dapper |
The weekend before Drew's birthday we celebrated by hitting the racetrack, and it was so much fun. My mum and her partner got the tickets for us, and we all went together to Kawartha Downs - a racetrack and slots casino just outside of Peterborough, Ontario. They hold harness races there (in which the horses have to trot, not gallop, with a cart and rider behind them), and we spent the evening drinking wine, watching races and betting on horses. It was so much fun. If you've never done this, I recommend it for a fun and light-hearted evening. The betting is low-stakes; it's $2 per bet, and you can bet on horses to win, place (first or second), or show (first, second, or third). We bet on at least three horses each time, and won enough to keep us going through the ten races. In the end, we spent (or lost, I suppose) $20, but played a lot more than that because we would re-bet all of our winnings each time. The winnings are also low-stakes, since sometimes we'd only win $3.50 on our original $2 bet.
 |
| me in a fascinator for the occasion |
 |
| one of our winning bets |
The horses were beautiful and great to watch. They were divided into age classes, and some of the younger ones were so spirited and energetic that the riders had a hard time keeping them to a trot. One of my favourites was named Anvil Annie. As she trotted by before the race she gave a little kicking leap - I liked her immediately. There were a couple of times that one of the horses we'd bet on to win was in the lead, but then started to gallop (this happened to Annie, but also others), so the rider had to reign them in and slow them down, and inevitably they lost the lead. There were some very exciting upsets, and all around it was a really fun time.
 |
| One of our horses running to claim the win!! |
Just to top off his birthday, Drew won $60 at the slot machines on free vouchers that he got from the casino for being a new member, having a buffet dinner, and because it was his birth month. Not bad!
 |
| Drew collecting his winnings at the slots! |
Happy birthday handsome! Hope this year holds all good things for you!
The family of my very first boyfriend used to go to the Fort Erie racetrack every Sunday after church. (I love the potential irony in that statement... his dad was a minster).
ReplyDeleteI've forever said that the $2 bet / 10 races paradigm is a perfect afternoon of entertainment! That's movie and popcorn for crying out loud, and what if... what IF... you actually win? It's a great outing.