We love picking strawberries!

The eternal search for things to do with the kids brought us to Proulx Berry Farm deep in Orleans on a beautiful late June day. We got on the wagon being pulled by a BIG GREEN TRACTOR!! A TRACTOR, DADDY!! A TRACTOR! DO YOU SEE THE TRACTOR DADDY?? MOMMY, IT'S A BIG TRACTOR PULLING US!! DO YOU SEE IT MOMMY?? DADDY??

And so we [grudgingly] got off the tractor and stepped into the blazing hot field of strawberries to enjoy the privilege of picking them. It was hot, hard work, [are you listening, Amelia?] but Isaac didn't mind a bit. In fact, he didn't pick a single damn strawberry - but he must have eaten more than a dozen that I hand-picked for him and that he deemed good enough for him to sample.

Gabrielle was right in the trenches with Mark and I, filling up the giant baskets we had committed to. That girl chooses good strawberries only accidentally, but I don't mind - at least she's willing to pick them.

And she was willing to ride on this REALLY scary slide. Absolutely terrified at the top, squealing with delight by mid-ride. And at the bottom? AGAIN!

We spent Sunday making jam.

We love dragon boats!

And so yes, we decided to head to Mooney's Bay for the annual Dragon Boat Festival, which none of us had ever attended before. Dragon Boating has always occupied a mythical place in my psyche. I'd never even heard of it before moving to Toronto, and then I got the sense that it was for lesbians. I have no idea why. Or maybe I do, but I'm not naming names. So anyways, we decided to go check it out, because it's one of those big deal things in Ottawa. I ended up really enjoying it. Lots of races, lots of people, lots of teams, lots of food. Plus there were some hotshot bike trick guys and a beach full of sand. Sorry I didn't get any actual pictures of Dragon Boats but I'm interested in paddling next year if I can find a team of lesbians who would want me.

Just kidding.