Oh my goodness… Amidst a week of rain, rain, and more rain, I was so hoping for just one last summer’s day to spend adventuring with my two littles before Miss G goes off to Grade One this coming week. Thankfully we totally lucked out yesterday, and when we woke up to a dry day, I knew exactly where we’d go. After Sam’s morning nap we packed up our things and headed out to what I consider one of Vancouver’s hidden gems… Wesbrook Village out at UBC.
Though I actually went to UBC for both of my degrees, I hadn’t been back out to campus until recently and oh my word, has a lot ever changed! Wesbrook Village, the newest campus neighbourhood, has quickly become one of our favourite places to visit. Besides being incredibly green and absolutely beautifully landscaped, it’s home 4 separate playgrounds, a brand new splash pad, endless walking paths, and all kinds of shops and restaurants – which pretty much makes it the perfect place for us to spend an afternoon.
Grae absolutely loves that it’s filled with brand new pathways and sidewalks that she can rip around on on her scooter and she adores exploring through the nature-y areas and water features – she does have jungle explorer goals after all. ;)
Of course the other main highlight is the four new {and gorgeous!} playgrounds. They’re all unique and have different things to offer, so for us, visiting all of them each time we visit is pretty crucial.
Grae hasn’t officially decided which one is her favourite just yet {a couple more Wesbrook days and we should have a winner}, but I will say that we both absolutely love this mud kitchen at Smith Park. Today Grae and a little friend had the very best time collecting water and mixing up all sorts of concoctions while Sam and I sat nearby and watched them play.
Another favourite after visiting it for the first time yesterday is the spacious new splash pad right next to the community centre. After some muddy play, we headed over just to check things out. Well, ‘just checking things out’ quickly became ‘just carefully riding my scooter through but not getting wet’, which turned into riding the scooter right through the water features, which turned into ditching the scooter, removing the footwear, and getting absolutely soaking wet, and ended with a topless munchkin with leggings so soaked through that I considered having her take them off to head back to the vehicle pantless. Hah!
Luckily I had packed some extra clothes, so after a quick back of the SUV change and a zen moment, we stopped by BierCraft for yummy lunch {where an extremely kind woman held an extremely fussy Sam while I scarfed down my veggie burger} and Blenz for coffee before making it to our final destination – Khorana Park, the last one on our list.
Needless to say, we had a wonderful time. I’m so thankful that I got one last day of summer to soak up some sunshine with my babies before Miss G goes back to school full time {ugh}. That being said, it’s a short week and we already have plans to head out to Wesbrook Village again next weekend for their upcoming Westbrook Village Festival, so let’s hope the week passes quickly and the sun graces us with its presence once again! Miss G’s already got big plans to fully enjoy the face painting, balloon twisting, bouncy castles, and crafts, and on top of all that, there’s a free BBQ, live entertainment, and a rock climbing wall, so we’ll definitely be making another day of it.
The Wesbook Village Festival takes place on Saturday, Setember 10th {2016} from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and is free of charge for everyone. Wesbrook Village is located at 3378 Wesbrook Mall, UBC here in Vancouver. For more information about Wesbrook Village and their upcoming festival, visit their website here.
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Hello from Ca! Luv your awesome blog & photos!
Hi Shannon! Thanks so much! And thanks for reading. :D
You take amazing photos and have such photogenic children! THanks so much for sharing.
You are blessed with an amazing family. The pictures are wonderful.