Family time

One of the key reasons I decided to move back to Montreal after spending six years in Vancouver was to be able to spend more time with my family. It's just not the same when you are a five-hour plane ride / three timezones away. I missed being able to be part of the little, no-reason-just-because get togethers and meals. Now that I am living in NDG, a 15-minute walk away from my parents (and with my sister living upstairs), family time has been a somewhat regular occurrence.

On Saturday morning, family time had a purpose. We met at 9:15 at my parents' to canvass one block of their street for the 2009 NDG food depot Christmas food drive. Everyone was there, boyfriends included. All seven of us managed to fill my brother's new car to capacity (and he drives a wagon which has quite a bit of trunk and passenger space). Folks on the street were really receptive and generous. I'm not surprised, the NDG food depot is a great organization with many programs to help people who are facing difficult times. The numbers have been growing with the slowing economy and donations are sometimes hard to get. Hopefully the annual Christmas drive helped fill the warehouse (located near my place, at the corner of Oxford and Maisonneuve) and will contribute to many filled bellies.

After the drive, we met at my place for a lovely brunch prepared by Brendan. Our bellies were definitely full after this meal! What a great way to spend family time!


FYI: We might be part of a story in L'Actualité on food banks sometime in the next few months. A reporter from the magazine followed us around during the drive and she might even get a few pictures of that morning in the article. I'll keep you posted...