Summer has gotten off to a good start. The Sip Advisor survived a couple single-parent stints, with the reward being a magical 12 days kid-free. Let’s see what the family got up to over the previous month:

As the calendar turned to July, we took the Siplings out for a night of trivia at Frankie G’s Pub. I was craving a sandwich and the pub delivered with their Turkey Clubhouse, which I paired with two Parallel 49 Trash Panda Hazy IPAs. As for the trivia, hosted by IQ2000, we did okay, but struggled with the music round, confirming once again that pub trivia should not include music rounds. I should also note that the manager of Frankie G’s was very attentive to all the guests.

One of Mrs. Sip’s work trips took her to the Kootenay region of B.C. While there, she visited Fernie Distillers, rounding up a trio of bottles to bring back home. Those libations included the Cinder Liqueur, Fernie Fog and Indigo Inversion Gin. Sometimes it pays to have Mrs. Sip on the road.

To celebrate a friend’s birthday in the middle of the month, we had dinner at The Keg. Given they were offering their Lobster Summer menu, I had to try the Lobster Roll, which was pretty good. My drinks over the course of the evening included an Old Fashioned, Gin Basil Lemonade and a pair of Yellow Dog High 5 Hazy IPA.

The following week, we celebrated the end of Boy Sip’s preschool days with dinner and a movie. Our meal took place at Boston Pizza, where Mrs. Sip and I both took advantage of the Everyday Favourites menu, each selecting a Rickards Red Boston Pint, which are $2 off. To eat, I enjoyed the Maple Bacon Burger, which is highlighted by a tasty maple barbecue sauce.

The next day, the kids were on the road with Ma and Pa Sip. A couple days prior, I had won tickets to the Punchbowl Festival on the PNE Fairgrounds, so the timing seemed perfect. Given our entry was free, saving us anywhere from $30-$50 each, you felt a little better about the money you now had to spend on tokens. We bought $50 worth of tokens to split, with ready-to-drink beverage samples costing two tokens each, while cocktail and liquor samples cost three to four tokens on average. We had a good variety of vodka sodas, tequila-based drinks, soju offerings, hard iced teas, and other options. I was also able to finally try the Redhead Macadamia Nut Rum that had been on my “to drink” list for some time, although tracking down a full bottle remains a challenge. We also tried the wares from two different taco trucks while at the event, with our favourite being the Golden Taco (Quesabirria) menu item from Taqueria Jalisco. All in all, we had a good time at Punchbowl, but without free tickets, I’m not sure I’d go again.

That evening, some friends joined us for pizza and board games at Pizzeria Ludica. Mrs. Sip and I split the Pineapple Pulled Pork Pizza and Two-Cheese Garlic Breadsticks, both of which were yummy. Our table split a pair of pitchers in the Fuggles & Warlock Last Mango and Steel & Oak Shiny Things Hazy IPA.

A few nights later, Mrs. Sip and I attended Kelly O’Bryan’s for Vancouver Trivia Party’s quiz night. We didn’t fare as well at this trivia as our Frankie G’s outing. For whatever reason, both of us were a little off for this challenge. To eat during the contest, I had the Tuna Poke Bowl and a couple Steel & Oak Red Pilsners.

We put a bow on the month by enjoying a night at The Outdoor Experience for one of their Sip ‘n Dip nights. Entry was $25 with two drink tickets each. We ended up adding two more drink tickets each, for an average of one drink per half hour over the two-hour event. As for what I drank, I had three Dead Frog Canada Proud Lagers, along with a Peach Lemonade Sour from the company. I went with beers over the various vodka and gin sodas, as the beers were larger servings at 473ml versus your standard 355ml cans for the ready-to-drink cocktails. We had a very fun time at the pool, with my only complaint being how most folks hoarded the floats, carrying them around to other parts of the park, instead of letting others use them.

Not content to end our night after the swimming, we travelled to the Fox & Hounds Pub and Restaurant. There, I took advantage of the half price Chicken Wings deal, opting for the Hotiyaki flavour, which they call Fire & Ice. We also split a pitcher for the table and even added a Lemon Drop shot for good measure.

August is already quite packed with various events, including excursions to Peachland and Qualicum Beach, as well as our summer voyage to the Disneyland Resort, where we got a sweet deal of eight nights for less than it would have cost to do six!