And before you know it, it's August

School ends, summer gets going, and before you know it, it's August and summer is already half over!

I really feel the crunch thanks to splitting time with Lucas between me and his Dad. I look ahead on my calendar and we only have two weekends left together before he is back in school! It doesn't feel like enough some times...most times.

But when I look back through my photos from the past month, I can see how much we have done!

How do you combat the summer "FOMO" blues?
xo

Tell A Story - Beach Bums

Summer this year has felt really....out of sorts. So I was very grateful to go to Jasper for FIVE WHOLE DAYS with my Favourite Dude.

It is very smoky in Jasper right now thanks to the wildfires in BC and Banff, and it was most noticeable up at Maligne Lake and around that area. I mean, these photos should be filled with a beautiful mountainous backdrop. I am so surprised that they turned out so beige.

These photos were taken at Lake Annette. It was a chilly afternoon, and this is in fact a mountain lake. It was cold people, damn cold. But one thing you should know about Dude & I: you can't keep us out of a lake.

We had an amazing, giggly afternoon.

xo

Summer Adventure - Parks Day at Elk Island

The following photos were taken on July 16, 2016 in Elk Island National Park just outside of Edmonton & Sherwood Park, AB.

Astotin Lake, the beach. View from our picnic lunch.

Mom & Dude, the Adventurers

Canada's National Parks have installed these bright red double Adirondak chairs at points within their parks that have "great views". Well, we found one! And the view was great.

The View From The Red Chairs

There were SO MANY BOATS on the lake this afternoon! It was a spectacular site to see.

My main goal on this mini road trip was to get the NEW BIKES out of the city. The Parks gal recommended a good trail, mostly paved, and we were off. I got to teach Lucas about shifting gears to make it up those tough hills. It's his longest ride to date, and he did so great! I definitely recommend the Shoreline Trail, even though you don't actually really ever see the lake. Hmmm.

Before the ride vs. after the ride. As a reward for our most excellent bike ride, we treated ourselves to an order of Drift Truck fries! Mmmm I miss these fries.

Notes about Elk Island Park...
- It's about a 45 minute drive outside of Edmonton on HWY 16. If you want to avoid some of the Henday construction, I recommend cutting through Sherwood Park.
- Astotin Lake is the big lake we were hanging out at. There are boat (canoe & kayak) rentals, a small beach, and lots of picnic spots with fire pits and/or shelters close by.
- There are many great hiking trails in the park, so make sure you get a map! Most are easily accessible from the main road, and have their own parking lots. These are usually much quieter than the area around Astotin.
- You can buy a visitor pass from the Visitor Centre or from the drive up kiosk. For Lucas & I it was around $11 for the day.
- Please keep in mind that while this park is so close to the city, it is still a National Park filled with WILD ANIMALS! Apparently, it's mating season for the bison right now, and one of the Park's recent tweets was something along the lines of: "you wouldn't want to be interrupted would you?..."

xo

Tell A Story - My Dude Gets A New Bike

One of the things I struggle with as a parent is Lucas' inability to show emotion and excitement for some things. I mean, other than when the new amebos came out, or a funny Minecraft video on YouTube.

For example, I bought him a new bike last month.

A NEW FRICKEN BIKE!

And I was so excited for him! I took him to United Cycle to test drive some bikes, and he rode one and said okay this one is fine. Huh?! That’s it? Well, being The Mom, I made him ride two more, and then tried to present his options to him in the most exciting way I could. But he didn’t really care. It didn’t matter to him what colour, or what style his new bike was. He was barely even interested in the whole “new bike” part of the night! But I was. And I have learned that this has to be enough for me.

When they were done with the tune up, and after we had explored a big chunk of the store (consequently, if you need any type of ball, they sell it here!) we headed to the exit only to find it is POURING RAIN outside. We’re talking major buckets from heaven here. I left Lucas in the store and RAN out to the car. Pulled around front and someone was parked in the loading zone…argh! So I double park my car in the middle of the damn parking lot, put the blinkers on, start moving stuff around in the trunk to make room, and wave frantically at Lucas to bring the bike out. Well, I can see him inside, and he isn’t moving toward the outside. I don’t want to leave the car, but it looks like he is upset so I run inside. Turns out he can’t get the kickstand up! Oops! Well, I get the bike all strapped into the car, am soaking wet and laughing so hard! What a story to tell! What a fun night!

I named my bike "Kevin", after the nice gentleman at United Cycle who helped me order her. Lucas doesn't want to name his new bike. Being Lucas' mom has taught me a lot about life and a lot about myself. He is the best lesson and my most favourite human person.

xo

SIMPLIFY : The Summer of The Disappearing Weekend

There is no time of year quite like an Edmonton summer, where the "Disappearing Weekend" is most readily and frantically felt. Russel and I sat down the other day to go over our schedules for the next few months, and it didn't take very long for us to see that the three of us are going to be stretched very tight, and very thin. There are lots of complicated juggling maneuvers that will be taking place in order for everyone to get all their good times in.

And being that we parents work a standard 8-5, Monday through Friday, there just aren't "enough" weekends to squeeze all that good stuff into, taking advantage of the no school-hot weather combo that is over in September.

But I have devised two steps to combat the Disappearing Weekend Syndrome. It's all about SIMPLIFYING things around here these days. And stress and complications create a nasty circle that's tough to shirk. And so...

1. Do NOT count the weekends until school starts and then post it on Facebook/Instagram/Twitter/Blog of anywhere else someone can see it. This includes a calendar at home. No matter the number - it usually seems unbelievable small - this is depressing. This will make it feel like you have a deadline, and you will start to feel the "Disappearing Weekend" press down upon you, smothering your incentive to try to do anything because "why bother? there are so few days left..."

2. Do NOT pre-book yourself for all of those weekends, the official number of which we are blissfully unaware. Trust me in that you require at least one of those weekends to be filled with such activities as: "sit on deck and drink beer." Please note: "Deck" and "beer" can be substituted for your location and drink of choice. Sometimes, those lazy summer weekends are the best ever! Ultimately, I live in a very amazing city and we definitely know how to take advantage of our summer weekends, and sometimes we take too much advantage, and we get carried away, and we put undue pressure on ourselves to SEE EVERY SHOW, and ATTEND EVERY FESTIVAL, and VISIT EVERY SPLASH PARK and that's just unsustainable.

Take a breath, take a breather, put your feet in a kiddie pool for a couple of hours and turn your face to the sun, or the next book on your nightstand. It's okay. Summer won't mind. Summer loves you just the way you are.

3. That being said, try to take advantage of those special summer-only events in your home town! Edmonton is kind of known as the "Festival City" around these parts. You can find a festival to attend pretty much every day from June through August. So pick one or two. An old favourite, something new. Grab a friend, and make a day of it. No pressure. Just go and enjoy yourself. But don't forget your cash, sunscreen, water bottle, and appropriate footwear. (Love Mom)

And that's it! Those are the rules!

I have a lovely, easy, simple Summer Adventures List I am going to pick from. And otherwise I think I'll just wing it.

Sorry about the long post...I got excited.
xo

Lake Life

Editor's Note: This weekend was MONTH'S AGO! How did I not finish this post?! Argh, to say the least. Today there was frost on my car windows, so what better time to post a bunch of photos from a hot summer day?

Sometimes it can be hard to spend extended periods of time with your extended family. Personalities clash, schedules get confused, toes get stepped on, frayed nerves get shredded...

But you can either choose to get sucked into the drama and be miserable, and have a crappy time OR you can choose to do what it takes for YOU to have an amazing time.

For me that means beach, sandcastles, and pretending I'm one of the kids.

Our EPIC sand castle and moat! There were so many awesome sand castle cities taking shape on the beach, we just had to join in the fun. Immediately after we took this picture we destroyed the whole thing!

P.S. Who's the babe in the bikini? (wink...it's me!)

The heat was too much for poor Dude so Grandma set out a blanket in the shade, got him a wet cloth to put on his head, we found him a book and he got to snuggle with Mom for a little bit.

Isn't my cousin's little girl adorable eating her giant marshmallow?!

This doesn't even scratch the surface of the good times I had last that weekend. Not even close. And maybe I wasn't as sociable with the adults as I could have been, but...who cares?!

xo Lisa

Double Dose of Ben

I have been suffering from writer's block lately. Here, in my journals. And it's not just writer's block. I can't even remember how to string together a proper sentence for Pete's sake! So I am resorting to photos and captions, photos and captions.

My summer brain is turned on and can only handle basic meal & drink preparation, and sitting on my deck in the sun. I am completely useless and it's lovely. Except when I have to decide what to eat at a restaurant, or go shopping for any item that comes in more than one variety. Sigh.

Anyhoo...wait, where was I going with this? Oh right! Photos and captions!

Ben Sures and the Son of Trouble Orchestra at the Blue Chair Cafe. Tequila specials! For sipping, not shooting.

At the Street Performer's Festival the next day. I am not a stalker. I think the term is "groupie".

For those of you in Edmonton, I am hosting a HOUSE CONCERT with Mr. Ben Sures in celebration of my birthday! The event is over 2 months away and I am already in full panic mode. There will be people in my house. Many people. Thank goodness I hired an entertainer... If you would like to come, drop me a line and I'll send you the info.

My Summer Manifesto

Get Rad! Check!

One of the items on my Summer Manifesto was to "Get Rad!" meaning, run in the Colour Me Rad 5k! And I did this past weekend. And it was so very rad.

Nadine and I have been very loosely "training" for this run (HA!) and she was kind of worried that she wouldn't be prepared enough. Yeah...needless to say that as soon as we arrived we realized that this wasn't a "real 5k". No one was timing you, and while we all signed up for a specific wave time, we could pretty much just start with whatever wave we wanted. It was awesome!

Me at the finish line! (I actually got MORE covered in colour after this photo was taken!) - Nadine & I about 1.5 km in.

One of the "Colour Stations". These were placed throughout the course. Essentially there were a bunch of volunteers throwing colour at you from big boxes. Literally arm loads of coloured cornstarch! The ground beneath these stations was quite spectacular.

Lots of clever slogans. Nadine has a photo of herself beside one that reads One Rad Mama...or something to that effect. Also #itsmefeet

Anna and Cory came to cheer on Nadine, and Anna even made her mom a sign. It reads "My Mom is Rad". She even signed her name! It was beyond adorable. I think I got more colour on me via Anna than at all of the colour stations combined! (Wink).

It was really cool to see all the "Radders" walking around town later in the day. They were popping up everywhere. BFF & I picked up some donuts and veggies at the market, grabbed a brunch at Urban Diner and then headed to the west end of town to run some errands. And by then I was thoroughly exhausted and had a lovely nap.

I think this is definitely going on the Summer Manifesto next year as well! And we're bringing the whole family! Also, no training...more margaritas...

#getrad

-Lisa

Lately...Canada Day

This past week we celebrated Canada Day! It's kind of messed up to have the Tuesday off. Wednesday feels like the second Monday of the week, which is a sick sick thing. Not fair at all. But all in all, July is off to a damn good start!

Dude, BFF & I started the day with pancakes (Dude), pancakes & bacon (BFF), and "Lisa's Regular Order" at Humpty's. Then Dude & I headed out to Sherwood Park to meet up with the rest of the family.

This party has literally more stuff than you can possibly imagine doing. Little stuff, big stuff, fancy stuff, super basic stuff. And we love it all!

Dude gets overheated being outside in the sun too long, so the two of us headed back home early. We ate a simple McDonalds + veggies lunch on the deck, then wandered down the road to our little neighbourhood splash park! It's really tiny, but it's never busy and you get wet so it's just fine by me.

BFF biked over from his place and met us there. Dude raced him back home! We had burgers before I took Dude back to his Dad's. Dan & watched The Big Sleep (Great movie...I was equal parts confused and amused!). I was woken up by the booms of the fireworks and was lucky enough to be able to watch them from my bed! I'm so spoiled.

Happy Canada Day indeed!

#redanddudellovesummer

Summer Manifesto

Perhaps I have set my sights too high. Perhaps I am being too ambitious with my lists of goals. Don't get me wrong. I still like goals. But my track record for completion just isn't what it used to be. I am still playing catch up on my new schedule that came with my new life, and this is wreaking havoc on my regular to-do lists, forget my fun goals lists! Reality is a splash of cold water.

But that doesn't mean I can't dream...

Behold! The Summer Manifesto...

Celebrate Old Strathcona

Empress Ale House for live music, comedy nights and PBR on tap!

Brunch at the Hotel Selkirk in Fort Edmonton Park

See a movie at the Capitol Theatre in Fort Edmonton Park
MOVIES!

Street Performers Festival

Bollywood Crop
Project Life Crop

Jasper camping with BFF

Ride the street car

Ride the street car and see a show

Ride a tube down a river

Ride a horse

Get muddy

Get Rad!

ARCADE FIRE!
BEN SURES!

Zumba Drop-in at Bonnie Doon Community Hall

Take a class

Teach a class or two (or three...)
Pickle some beans

Beach Day with Candace!

Booze Day with Nadine!

Sit on my deck...and just sit

Have a BBQ
Celebrate my brother-in-law's wedding in Penticton (come hell or high water)
Take a fun day off from work...no plans...just me and Dude and the City

Pretty much anything from this list.

Have an amazing summer...

#redanddudelovesummer

My Summer Manifesto

Looking back...

go to the mountains

Jasper National Park, June
White Fish Montana, July 12-17
Jasper National Park, August 16-18

complete a large painting

make a summer mini album

take Jacob out for an Auntie-Nephew date

finish bathroom renovation

have a sleepover/make a blanket fort in the living room and sleep in it

Nicole slept over on July 27th!

go camping

Ross Lake, Aug 3-5
Hinton/Jasper KOA, August 16-18

Farmer's Market, lots and lots

July 20 with Dude, Downtown
July 27 with Nicole, Strathcona
August 24, Strathcona
Thursdays nights at Mill Woods

eat deep fried pickles on a patio

Canadian Brew House, August 15

have friends over for BBQ and games

wienie roast in a city park

go for walks in some of our old Orienteering stomping grounds

Dawson Park - July 24
Whitemud Equine Centre, Dude & Dad - August 5
Gold Bar Park - August 14
Terwillegar - August 21
Whitemud Park - September 4

studio clean up! for reals!!

August 31 - September 2...I made a big dent!

ride the High Level Streetcar...again

June, Ben Sures concert
July 27 with Nicole, in the rain

go to the Garneau/Metro for movie night

September 4 - The Good, The Bad & The Ugly (a movie afternoon...)

take the training wheels off Dude's bike

August 27! He did so awesome!!

visit as many city festivals as possible!

Street Performers - July 6
Taste of Edmonton > July 23
Heritage Days - August 5

The Fringe - August 24

Folk Fest - August 10

Shakespeare in the Park (missed)

K-Days (missed)

etc.

waterslides!

Jasper Aquatic Centre, August 17

swim in a lake

Ross Lake, Aug 3-5

one new beer "cocktail" recipe (beergaritas are already in full rotation!)

Shandy, August 12 > twas delicious!

run a 5k

Heart Beat Run - September 22

girls night out!

September 21, Pirate Crop at TM (shaddup, it counts...)

take a Friday off and go to an outdoor pool with Dude

or take Candace up on her Summerside Beach offer!

watch for shooting stars & the Northern Lights

June 28...

drink beer on a deck, listen to the birds, watch the sunset.....

July 26, thanks BFF

etc.

later loves

Re-living Our Montana Road Trip

And this is me trying to be clever...hiding my journaling behind my photo. I sure have a lot to say, and it's got to go somewhere.

More of me being clever. And a dork, a giant dork. Yes this is a photo I took. It is awesome. Shut up. And can I just say what a fucking awesome journaling card?!

K. I think that's enough for now...

later loves

Eat This!

So the first recommendation I have for you in terms of these recipes, is not to try two new recipes on the same night. What the DEUCE was I thinking?! And on a Monday to boot!

Oh gosh, this was ages ago now. Like two to three whole weeks! But I've had lots to post, lots of fun things to choose from. So "trying out some new recipes" kind of gets pushed down the list.

Also, I am not a food blogger or photographer by any means, and I prefer to rotate through my five standard meals on a weekly basis: tacos, sandwiches, pizza, smoked salmon & bagels, BBQ meat, breakfast.

Oh, hello Guinea Pig!

He looks so impressed...

And I tested out a new beer cocktail recipe with this meal. One that I found through something other than Pinterest, because Pinterest was absolutely NO HELP on this. I did find one through Huffington Post that I really wanted to try - beer sangria! - but what the hell is Piso Reservado?! I hate to buy a bunch of new ingredients to try something I might not even like. You know?!

Anyhoo, I quite enjoyed the Rickards Shandy I bought the other day, so I thought I would try my hand at making my own...

And it was awesome! Yay me!

Any new recipes you've tried out this summer?

How do you feel about "beer cocktails"?

later loves

Serendipitous What To Wear

This prompt - what to wear to a music festival - was serendipitous because I just happened to go to the Edmonton Folk Music Festival two weeks ago! I didn't get a lot of pictures of my outfit, but I would still love to share some of my good times with you today.

Must haves:

- Comfy & sturdy sandals, good for walking from stage to stage and keeping cool & cute!

- Hat & sunglasses to keep the sun off

- Backpack covered in pieces of flair for carrying water, sweater & pants for when it cools off in the evening, and the rest of the goods!

- Notebook and coloured pens....cause that's how I roll!

- Music Festival Program so you can best choose which stage to hit up next

Speaking of hats...

We spent some time tying knots in weeds to add some hippy-decor to my fedora. Dan's pith helmet needs no extra decor, cause it's damn awesome as-is!

And here is BFF's What to Wear to a Music Festival. His also applies to "What to Wear While Napping at a Music Festival"...love those long hot summer days!

I'm linking up at Nicole's blog today with the What to Wear group. We're dwindling away! Won't you join us?

It was a long day, and we left about three songs in to Bruce Cockburn's set cause we were both yawning so darn much! But we had a lovely time. Highlights include:
- Seeing Martin Sexton perform twice!
- Meeting up with my friend Marilyn for a catch-up
- Discovering some new favourites: Shakey Graves, Rayland Baxter, Ron Hines, Rachelle van Zanten, The Milk Carton Kids...ummm...etc!
- Veggie burger from The Act food truck for dinner (so delicious)
- Our contraband beer...shhh, don't tell!
- Watching the sunset over downtown, and the beautiful moon come out, and the International Space Station zoom by overhead!

How have you been spending your long summer days?

later loves

p.s. I just changed some of the width settings

on my blog, so you'll notice some wonky

photos for the next little bit!

"You Should Never Travel Alone"

A couple of years ago Russel got his first taste of Orienteering at a Corporate Challenge event. We went out once as a family to see what it was like, and we promptly bought a membership and joined the club for events almost every Wednesday that summer. Lucas might have been a tad too young then, but it's perfect for him now! Even though he says he hates it, and complains every time we mention it...sigh...

We have made it out three times so far this year. Well, the boys have and I had to miss one. It's a great way to explore some of Edmonton's amazing parks and enjoy the beautiful summer weather we've been having lately!

Dawson Park, July 24

There are always snacks & water provided by the Orienteering Club and volunteers at the end of the night. I think that's Dude's favourite part. Especially when there are Oreos. Also yes, sometimes the flags are ridiculously easy to find!

Whitemud, August 5, Dude & Dad

There's a story behind this strange shiny sculpture on the side of a busy freeway. But I have to admit that up close it's pretty impressive.

Gold Bar, August 15

We are lucky to live in a city that prides itself on making sure its River Valley is accessible to everyone. Most if not all of the parks we explore while Orienteering are on the river, and I will definitely give the City Parks Department props on keeping the trails well-maintained. Every time I walk down here I am so energized, and happy to live in such a beautiful place!

Any of you ever been Orienteering?

What sets your city apart from the rest?

later loves

Heritage Days 2013

We got home from Ross Lake, emptied the car - Dude is such a good helper! - put some stuff away and headed straight back out to Heritage Days! Dude was mad because he wanted to play instead, but we managed to get him in the car and off we went.

Essentially, the Heritage Festival runs over the August Long Weekend, and is a celebration of many of the different cultures/ethnicities/populations that call Edmonton & Canada home. There are 60 pavilions representing 85 different cultures. Each group sets up a booth with some informational-type displays and cooks up their finest traditional menu items. Food tickets are cheap, and the entire event is a fundraiser for the Edmonton Food Bank as well. I always raid the pantry before we go so I have a food donation to give. This year they got a bunch of canned tomatoes, and beans...I needed groceries!

The weather was absolutely gorgeous! While we were waiting for the Park N Ride bus to take us down to the park it rained a bit, but that only served to freshen things up. The sky was so blue - as you can see - and aside from a little welcoming breeze it was sunny and warm and beautiful!

The perfect weather for some food and entertainment. We sampled some elephant ears - aka Croatian donut - and olives and kabob and green onion cake, and more I'm sure but I can't even remember any more! And we made sure to catch as much entertainment as we could. First up, Japanese drumming and a Kendo demonstration. Those guys - and gals - get smacked pretty hard on the head with those long sticks! Wow!

We managed to catch the end of the Chinese performance right before the dragon and lion dances, so we ended up with front row seats! The two gentlemen in that lion costume were amazing! So strong, and fun to watch! The different features on the lion's head can move independently, so his eyebrows would wiggle and his head would nod. Very theatrical!

All in all, it was a successful year. I enjoyed taking my time and watching the performances, while still getting to try some of my favourite munchies.

Notes for next year: you missed the curried goat.

Any fun festivals in your neck of the woods?

Any yeggers out there who also attend Heritage Festival?

later loves