Edmonton is a beautiful city in the summer. Festival City comes alive with food, music, culture and fun for the whole family. There is no better way to connect with your family and your city then to immerse yourself into middle of it all. So that is what we did.
Haley and I took in one of our favorite Edmonton Summer Events, Taste of Edmonton featuring live folk and jazz music on Sir Winston Churchill Square, along with favorite culinary delights from local restaurants. Our tastes vary slightly as Haley has a major sweet tooth and I tend to gravitate towards the main dishes. Haley enjoyed the sweet sensations of deep fried mars bars, chocolate lava cake with raspberry sorbet, chocolate covered strawberries and ice cream, just to name a few. I savored the flavors of bacon wrapped scallops, green onion cakes, Alberta beef with Yorkshire pudding and my fave jerk chicken. It was a beautiful YEG evening with the sun tickling the noses of those anxiously waiting in lines to try their favorite treats. The Art Gallery gleamed proudly in the background, as a big brother would, proudly overlooking the Square and the diversity of people gathered to celebrate and enjoy the tastes of their fair city. This years slogan “Putting Picnics to shame for 29 years” speaks of the longtime community involvement, the loyal downtown food enthusiasts and the vibrant framework and heart of our city.
2013 KDAYS
For the second year in a row we kicked off KDAYS with the parade. Our group Greater Edmonton Junior Roller Derby, along with local adult leagues E-Ville Roller Derby and Oil City Derby Girls won a trophy for best crowd engagement. My youngest skater Haley was participating for her first year on wheels but unfortunately missed out due to a fever brought on by illness that led us on a golf cart adventure in the heart of downtown. Never a dull moment! If you know a youth between the ages of 7-17 who may want to join the fastest growing sport on 8 wheels visit http://www.juniorderby.ca
Kirk and I also took the girls to KDays for food and fun. Neither of us like the rides anymore but we both appreciate the smiles it brings to them. I love the food, the lights, the smells, the laughter. The exhibition was a summer staple in my childhood and I am happy to share that with our girls. I never cease to be amazed by how many things can be deep fried or put on a stick.
Taste of Edmonton followed by the food of KDAYS. Wow. So much food, so litttle time.
We also took in a concert at KDAYS. Colin James who I saw 18 years ago in Ontario is every bit as captivating as he was in his youth. An amazing guitarist and vocalist, even the kids were blown away. Colin James we ♥ you.
Friday we caught up with some friends which turned into an all night affair while Haley led the adults in dances and charades and Morgan tried her best to make us all think we were uncool when we all are very aware of just how cool we are.
Saturday we traveled to Holden, the home of Hwy 14 Roller Derby where Morgan Mayhem was participating in a scrimmage. It is always great to see how the Roller Derby Community pulls together to put on such events. The Junior scrimmage was followed by Coed scrimmage but sadly we had plans back in the big bad city. Below is Morgan Mayhem (jammer in middle) trying to make her way through the pack while being blocked by Minnie Meanie and hit by P.OD Pippy. Notice her feet are not touching the ground. Thanks to Anthony Canada for the fantastic shot.
The girls had a sleepover and we rushed to meet friends at Pampas downtown. Pampas is an authentic Brazilian Steakhouse that offers a unique dining concept called “Rodizio” offering continuous table side service with every tempting cut of meat available. Yes please to bacon wrapped chicken, orange marinated chicken, rib eye steak, top sirloin steak, beef tenderloin kabob, spiced lamb, lemon pepper pork. Yes more wine please!! Food service and company was fantastic. If you want to know more about Pampas click Here
We left Pampas and headed to Edmontons Whyte Ave to take in some live music at Blues on Whyte. I always have a great time at Blues on Whyte. I meet the craziest characters, see the best live bands and always leave talking about coming back. I think it is the diversity of the people that keeping me coming back. One minute you are chatting with a biker, the next you are sharing a table with a lawyer and his wife or doing a shot with some college kids that are celebrating the fact that it is Saturday. Blues is one of those places where there are no strangers, just friends you haven’t met yet. To me Blues on Whyte is the best of nitty gritty Edmonton. Check it out for yourself Here
A couple of days were needed to regroup and Kirk headed back up North to work. I handled some teenage drama and decided my girls needed some one on one time with their Mom.
Devonian Botanical Gardens
The University of Alberta Devonian Botanic Garden is a magnificent 190-acre property located in Parkland county about 15 minutes southwest of Edmonton, with cultivated gardens and plant collections, indoor showhouses, and an intricate nature trail system.
Must sees include the beautiful Kurimoto Japanese Garden; a Tropical Showhouse with exotic butterflies; Temperate and Arid Showhouses; alpine, herb, rose, peony, lilac and lily collections; a Heritage Garden; Native Peoples Garden; trial beds and more. The kids were gracious to let me take a thousand rose pictures with the promise of homemade lemonade to follow.
The Garden is a University of Alberta research site and visitor attraction offering children’s programs, certificate programs, Thursday date nights and more. Love nature? Check it out Here
The girls and I zipped back to the city for dinner at Red Robin.The girls like the friendly upbeat atmosphere and service and the meals are yummy. You can see Here
After dinner we ran over to Movies 12. I love the cheap theatre. Three movies for under $10 means you can go more often. We saw The Internship with Vince Vaugh and Owen Wilson. I laughed lots and even clapped at the end. My girls told me that was inappropriate but when I clapped others followed. There was clapping in the movie, and in the theatre, it was a feel good moment.
Silly comedy, quick whit and innuendo mixed with real life lessons. The story, by funny guy Vince Vaughn used the storyline of the 80s movie Flashdance to teach life lessons in perseverance, being yourself and trying your best. The characters were as diverse as they were lovable and I needed the laughs so if you are needing some too I recommend. Check it out Here
Today my garden is calling for some attention and the girls want to go swimming. This weekend a fave multicultural event Heritage Fest begins as well as Movies on the Square. As I said, never a dull moment! I hope summer is heating up in your city. Cheers
Dancing in the rain! 