I love visiting the Devonian Botanical Gardens, and the location (conveniently close to home) makes it perfect for a half-day family trip. I’m partial to the Japanese garden, but I love the riots of flowers happening everywhere this time of year. The kids were much taken with the butterfly house. OK, mostly Luka, but he was enthusiastic enough for two. (Teodora was taken … mostly with her shoes. And some dirt she mistook for playground sand, once she escaped the confines of her prison stroller.)
The Japanese garden at Devonian
The gardens were packed with moms and tots, which I guess is to be expected on a random Tuesday in August. (Actually, not so random. First Tuesday of every month is half price admission. Thrifty adventures, it’s how we roll.) All parent minds think alike, I guess.
Tranquility (when pictured without the sound of a hundred kids running around in the background)
All the pretty flowers:
(yes, I have favourites)
The weather was gorgeous, but hot. Hotter than Satan’s sweaty armpit. If I look slightly disheveled and mildly sun-stroked, it’s because I was. Tent-y cotton tops, for the win.
Shorts, J. Crew Factory; top, Anthropologie (via eBay); sandals & necklace, Old Navy; bag, MbMJ (via eBay)
Our family summer vacation this year was a staycation. Edmonton is a pretty cool place to hang in the summer, so this wasn’t as depressing as it would have been if we were talking about our mid-winter vacation. The kids like need to stay busy, so we cooked up a week’s worth of local adventures to keep them entertained.
One of our stops was the Edmonton Zoo. My last visit was about 7 years ago, and it wasn’t much to write home about, so my expectations were low. And they got blown out of the water! The city has done a tremendous job of expanding and modernizing the zoo, and making it very kid-friendly.
Urban Farm @ Edmonton Zoo
The boy loved the urban farm, although he spent most of his time there running away from any animals that got too close … only to start following them around as soon as they walked away. If this is in any way a window into his future dating strategies, his teenage years should be interesting.
We even had a little celebrity sighting when we spotted Lucy the elephant take her morning stroll. Lucy became famous a few years ago, after being at the centre of a court battle between PETA and the city.
Miss Lucy the elephant
The zoo is full of cute animals but, really, it’s all about these gingers for this lady:
Dat face thoo hai, is it time to get up?nope!
Call me biased, but they are the cutest, ever, period. Well, this little guy’s pretty cute too:
Arctic exhibit … now with extra local flavour
All in all, a really fun morning adventure. If you’re looking for ways to keep the kidlets entertained this summer, definitely give the Edmonton Zoo a try.
Non-photo bombed
Stay tuned for more staycation adventures. And a few more shorts outfits, because holy heatwave, Batman!
One of my favourite things about this blog is the cool people I’ve met because of it. One of those people is my friend Cat, who volunteered way back in the day to be one of my closet makeoverguinea pigs. She lives on the West Coast now, so we don’t get to see each other nearly enough, but I’m always game for any style challenge she throws my way. This time: packing for a 2-week trip to 3 cities, each with its own travel agenda. First up, 3 days of sightseeing (and cute boys-spotting) in Boston. Next, a week-long work conference in Ottawa. Last, but not least, a girls’ weekend in Quebec City. Ok, I’m officially jealous.
But, as Cat pointed out, packing for this latter day grand tour is not all that straightforward. My girl wants to look stylish, cute, and occasion-appropriate in each city … while carrying as little luggage as possible. Alright, challenge accepted.
Since Cat and I don’t live close enough for us to pick her travel capsule pieces from her own closet (over the requisite few – or not – glasses of wine), and since I don’t Polyvore, we decided that the easiest alternative would be for me to create a sample travel capsule using pieces from my own closet, which she can use as inspiration. She promised to take photos of the actual outfits she ends up wearing on her trip, so you’ll be getting a two-for-one dealio.
But first.
Here’s my take on a multi-tasking travel capsule.
Plane Outfits
Cat is flying to Ottawa first, for an overnight stay, before hearing out to Boston. On the first leg of her flight, she wants to look stylish and professional, just in case her seat-mate is a cute junior exec type. Girl plans ahead. On the other hand, her (long) flight home is more about comfort – she’ll likely be all cute-boy-ed out by that point.
Plane outfits
I included a trench in the travel capsule, which I’d suggest Cat take with her on her flights, just in the event if inclement weather. Carrying it on the plane means it won’t take up extra space in her baggage allowance. I also included a lightweight, cotton scarf both for practical reasons (extra warmth for cold nights/mornings or plane travel, can be used as a light cover-up in place of other toppers) and style (colour pop!).
Boston
Cat’s sightseeing itinerary means comfortable footwear is a must. Late summer weather similarly mandates breathable natural fabrics, like cotton. Since Cat doesn’t want to check any luggage on her flight to Boston, I went with a 9-piece capsule-within-capsule, which she can easily pack in a carry-on bag. (The rest of her luggage will be waiting for her in Ottawa at a friend’s house.)
Boston, Days 1-2
A couple of evening options (the blue cardigan works with both, if the temperatures demand it):
Boston, nights 1-2
Ottawa
Conference style is generally business-casual, so that’s I aimed for. The blazer is optional; a black cardigan can substitute in a pinch. I added the toppers because, while Ottawa summers tend to be extra hot, conference venues are frequently AC-ed within an inch of Antarctica. I would suggest silk or cotton tops for layering to help with the temperature swings. Ponte pants and skirts pack well, and look polished. Ditto for cotton or silk jersey dresses. Bonus: no ironing needed.
Conference, days 1-3
I would pick 3 main colours as a capsule palette, with 2-3 accent colours, which makes it easier to mix and match things. I ended up creating 21 outfits from 17 clothing pieces, but there are probably another 10 or more outfit options in there.
Conference, days 4-6 (oops, numbering fail)
Conference after-hours means lots of socializing, so I put together some dressier options (including at least one cocktail party outfit should the opportunity present itself).
Conference nights 1-3Conference Nights 4-5
Quebec City
Similar outfit criteria apply here as in Boston, so these outfits are more or less interchangeable. I did aim for more European chic (less all-American prep) vibe, but … I’ll let Cat decide if I succeeded.
Quebec City weekend
I didn’t include bags in the outfit pics (quelle horreur), but I’d take two: a versatile, mid-size black one (mostly for the conference), and a neutral cross-body (for everything else). Like so:
1) trench
2) jeans
3) shorts
4) “fancy” dress (can be dressed up or down; ponte or other non-wrinkling fabric)
5) casual skirt (cotton)
6) work skirt (ponte; solid colour other than black)
7) work dress (ponte or cotton jersey; solid colour other than black, or print)
8) work pants (ponte; black or other core neutral)
9) blazer (black or other core neutral)
10) solid colour cardigan
11) solid colour cardigan
12) casual stripe top (cotton)
13) casual basic top (cotton; solid colour)
14) casual statement top (cotton; fun print)
15) dressy basic top (silk or cotton; solid colour)
16) dressy statement top (silk or cotton; solid colour or print)
17) evening top (go crazy)
18) walking flats (black or other core neutral)
19) conference day shoe (dressy flats or comfortable heel; black or other core neutral)
20) evening shoe (comfortable heel; black/core neutral or metallic)
21) day sandal (flats or low wedge)
22) conference bag
23) cross-body bag
And voila: 3 cities, 1 suitcase, one multi-tasking travel capsule. Think it’s gonna work? If you’ve got other tips for Cat, let them fly in the comments. And stay tuned for Cat’s real-world take on this travel capsule.
