100 Days of Summer: Days 8-14

Our 100 days of summer story started last week – be sure to read about Days 1-7 in that post!

After the uncertainty of the first few days, we’ve settled into the groove of this new routine. This week, we checked off quite a few summer regulars.

Day 8 – Go on an adventure
Day 9 – Make popsicles
Day 10 – Play in the rain
Day 11 – Blakeburn school carnival
Day 12 – Make and deliver treats for neighbours
Day 13 – Berry-picking at the u-pick
Day 14 – Have a screamer

Day 8: Go on an adventure

Well, it was my birthday. I put “Go on an adventure” on our planning sheet, but I had no idea what my hubby had planned. Boy, did he deliver on the “adventure” part! I’ve always wanted to go white water rafting, but somehow we have never gotten around to it. Thanks to an awesome husband, and the amazing folks at Chilliwack River Rafting, we had the best day ever! We even got to walk through a waterfall!

Day 9: Make popsicles

We turned to our favourite popsicle recipe, the kids chose a flavour combo of their liking (orange strawberry), and we had some summer treats in a flash (after some preliminary taste testing of course!).

Day 10: Play in the rain

Now if you’re a Pacific North West family, you know that if you’re going to sit inside when it rains, you’re in for a whole lot of cabin fever! We’ve learned to embrace the rain (and the sun, and the snow!). One of our favourite things to do in the early summer is to simply go outside and play in the rain – the puddles are big, the temperature is pretty warm, and noone cares too much if they get splashed by a sibling.

I know the second photo, with the splash, is the money shot. But from a photographic point of view, I absolutely love the first shot – the anticipation of the moment. It makes me hold my breath, anticipate what’s going to happen next. Wondering just how big the splash is going to be, or how loud the giggle.

I also love the details that appear when it is raining – the raindrops on the leaves, the slugs that come out … it’s a whole new world when it rains.

And then of course, I can’t help but be a little addicted to seeing the happy (and wet) smiles on my kids’ faces … even when there’s a whole cup of water in each rain boot!

Day 11: Blakeburn School Carnival

We’ve gone to our school carnival for 8 years now. It doesn’t change much … pony rides and face painting has made way for obstacle courses and laser tag, but just like 8 years ago, we spend a stupid amount of money on tickets for the kids to play carnival games. Because every year there is an absolute “must-have” prize to get stamps for. For Jamie this year, it was the poop emoji pillow. She has been coveting that thing for 2 weeks now, and even though she could’ve bought it at the dollar store for half the price of what she spent in tickets … there is something special about handing in your stamp card, and getting your prize handed to you “for free”. As you can see from these cell phone snaps!

Day 12: Make and deliver treats for neighbours

We love our neighbours. They are seriously such a blessing to have around, and we’ve got a sense of community here that I know is extremely hard to find in these busy and disconnected times. So one of our 100 days of summer challenges was to make sure we acknowledge them. Jared is the baker in the family, and the neighbourhood kids love when he makes brownies!

Jamie agreed that if Jared bakes, she will make the cards. I love that both the kids were loving what they did!

Day 13: Berry picking at the U-pick

Nothing says “Summer’s here!” like fresh strawberries, blueberries and raspberries appearing at fruit stands at all our local farms. We took a trip to Krause Berry Farms and enjoyed a fantastic day there picking strawberries, tasting wine and sampling the local fare.

There is always some fun happening in the rows …

And in the end, our bounty is huge! Almost 20lb huge! The strawberry season is so short, but we make sure we’re totally capitalizing on it. I can’t face another strawberry for a couple of months after, but it’s totally worth it in the moment.

And then, to round off a perfect day … strawberry waffles and cream. It seriously doesn’t get any better than this.

Day 14: Have a screamer

In case you don’t know, a screamer is a slurpee with a layer of soft serve ice cream sandwiched between layers of slush. It’s for sale at a little corner cafe in the area, which is too far to walk to so we always cycle there and then play at the school park next door afterwards. There are many rules of making a screamer (like not being allowed to put too much ice cream in it) … and so the screamer making process is watched with eagle eyes by the little Chinese lady behind the counter. It’s totally all part of the charm of the place, and we love this summer tradition.

I hope you enjoyed the second installment of our 100 days of summer project! The next week is already well underway!

Rochelle Hepworth is a Vancouver lifestyle family photographer who specializes in capturing the moments of everyday life that seem ordinary today but is cherished and missed in days to come. Allow me to tell the story of your family in a candid, relaxed session in your home or at your favourite outdoor location. Contact me, and we can chat about what makes your family unique!

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