Wow, where did that week go? We’re having a really good summer but it is just rocketing by. I have so many blog posts to write and yet, sitting outside with a lemonade while the kids spray each other with water guns seems much more pressing, you know what I mean?

(Also urgent: dealing with foot injuries that arise from running on our wheat-white drought-grass, which is like walking on 1000 daggers. A little rain please, Mother Nature?)

Anyway, we’re already around to this week’s Year of Epic post – these events are for the weekend of July 28/29. For stuff happening this weekend, see here.

First, I apologize for the short notice on this one, but the Cirque du Soleil is in town next week, July 24 and 25 at Scotiabank Place. It’s a Michael Jackson themed show and sure to dazzle and amaze your whole family. A few tickets are still available, so act quickly – tickets start at $50 and range up to (eek) $175.

Also starting mid-week next week is Chamberfest. Now the audiences at Chamberfest are highly intolerant of squirmy, question-asking, snack-eating children, and unfortunately, they are not offering their children’s concert series this year. However, there are two specific “bring your kids” concerts advertised as being suitable for ages 8 and up; they are The Heart and Soul of the String Quartet on July 31 and Adventures of the Smoid on August 2. So if you have a little musician in your house, pick up some tickets to either of those shows. Tickets are $22 per person and their website is a nightmare to navigate so I suggest ordering by phone, 613-234-6306.

Friday, July 27 is the first night of the Carleton Outdoor Movie Festival. Films start each night at 9 p.m. in Dundonald Park. There’s some great titles, including Emmanuel’s Gift on the 27th, E.T. on the 28th, The Muppet Movie on August 11, and Iron Man on August 18. See the full schedule here.

Actually on the weekend proper: Saturday, July 28 brings us Pirates: Band of Misfits at Place D’Orleans free Movies Under The Stars series; Sky High Magic puts on a show at the Aviation Museum (free with museum admission); and Watson’s Mill hosts a late night Paranormal Investigation suitable for tough teens aged 14+.

Also on the 28th, Scotiabank Place hosts Steering Towards Hope, a poker run in support of the Kidney Foundation of Canada. I had to wiki “poker run” – it’s a road rally for cars, motorcycles, or trucks, where you have to solve a series of clues, pick up a playing card at each station, and hope you get the best poker hand at the end. In terms of family involvement, you can take the kids out to see the finish of the poker run, and there will also be a show-and-shine (vote for the classic car or truck you think is the most epic), a kids’ zone with bouncy castles and the like, and fire trucks and other large trucks for climbing on. The cost is $35 to take part in the poker run, $10 to enter the show-and-shine, but I think just coming out to watch and cheer is free.

On Sunday, July 28, Club S.O.C.C.A. hosts Kites for Cancer at Petrie Island in the east end. Buy a kite for $10, then hang around for games, bands, and a Carribean food picnic. Also on Sunday, the Ottawa Fury women’s team hosts the finals for the Canada-wide W-League Championship. There will be four teams playing, one from each division – including the Ottawa Fury themselves, as they finished first in the Central Division. The third place team playoff is at 1 p.m. and the final-final is at 4 p.m.; I’m not sure how you get tickets to this event, so if you figure it out, let me know.

Looking into the following week, starting Wednesday, August 1, Odyssey Theatre along with Rag and Bone Puppet Theatre present A Promise is a Promise, a dramatic retelling of the renowned Robert Munsch book. The shows are outside, in Strathcona Park, at 1 p.m. every Wednesday in August. You can pick up tickets on their website, or at the box office an hour before the show; tickets are $10 adults, $5 kids.

August 1 is also the first Wednesday for two regular Wednesdays-in-August series: Super Sleuthing at the Cumberland Village Heritage Museum ($10 per child on top of museum admission; ages 6-14) and Archeology Digs at Billings Estate ($6 per child on top of museum admission).

Can you believe we’re talking about August already? I already feel sad about it. In any case, have a good weekend!

Upcoming requiring tickets:
Aug 8-11: Peter Pan at Centrepointe
Sept 7: Big Time Rush at Scotiabank Place