Good Times Around the Neighborhood

Somehow it feels more fall-like - the air is chilly in the morning, but by mid-day the sun is shining and today it was nearly 80. It is harder to predict which way the day will turn out, so we are enter the days of layering. The only way, really, to dress in SD.

Meanwhile, one sister in DC had snow and I heard a rumbling from my cousin in Riverside that she would like some real fall weather. People do tend to say quite often here, "there are no seasons." (Especially transplants who apparently don't pay any attention to the plants.) I like fall here - there are some deciduous trees (like my neighbor's sweet gum, which rains leaves onto our driveway - perfect for the compost bin, and our apple, plum and cherry trees), and some days it is blustery by the coast. It is a good time to plant native plants and to get a cool crop of vegetables going. For some folks, it simply isn't fall, however, when you can wear a sundress one day and a sweater the next. (We went from one week of Santa Anas to a cool boots and sweater week and now we are in between, but I didn't actually check the forecast for tomorrow.) 

The boys and their friend getting down to the Farmer's Market musicians (whom I neglected to photograph). I think they were dancing to "Johnny Be Good."  JT loves dancing and music. He asked me to play some rock and roll for him, so I tried some Queen and some Joan Jett, but that wasn't quite what he wanted. I have no idea, really, what he meant. Then he asked to see/hear (on you-t*be) Justin Bi*ber. His reaction, "He is just a youngth!" By which he meant "youth" + "young" - he has been having some trouble with the word youth. Some of the middle-schoolers have been visiting the first graders for "youth trainers" and apparently he heard that they were called "yougth" trainers and it took quite some effort to convince him that he misheard. In any case, the Bieber is young. And when questioned why he wanted to see/hear him: "All the girls in my class want to marry him." Got it. Then JT asked me who JB married? I replied, "What do you mean? He is just a kid. He isn't married." "But I mean in the future - who did he marry?" "No, he is just a kid. He isn't married yet." (Apparently I have only taught him about singers who once were young and now are either old or dead...) We then turned to looking at New Kids on the Block and discovered that the Jerse*y Shore hairdo (a reality show, I've never seen it, but it was immensely popular and spawned a boy's haircut that is brushed upwards) is about the same as the NKOB 'Hanging Tough' hairdo!
Just for your edification: NKOB circa 1998

Pauly D from that show - circa ? last year or the year before? In doing research for this post, I discovered that the show is still being made. I guess I learned something today.
Now on to your regularly scheduled boring family-friendly mommy-blog type stuff.

The nieghborhood "Boo" parade. JT and I love the marching bands.And who doesn't love a marching band in costume? One band even did a 'Thriller-esque' type dance move as they marched down the street.

This fellow is pretty awesome, too. I'll give him second place. He rides his bike around the area with his superman outfit on, too. And no, I don't mean just at Halloween.

Our neighbors and JT. It is great to have kids in the neighborhood to play with!

Random food picture... I decied to use up the green tomatoes and make green tomato chutney. Yum. It only made 2 canning jars and enough for a few tastes. (I read a couple recipes and attempted to decipher some weights instead of volume measurements and came up with: green tomatoes, onions, vinegar, brown sugar, water, chopped raisins and salt and pepper. Cooked a long time in to a jam-like consistency. It is tangy and sweet and perfect on a cracker.)

"I'm a chicken!" (Not for parents who believe in clean children.)

And now time for another food photo: beef and pepper stew. Brown the beef chunks, add all the veggies (except mushrooms) with some wine, broth and some chipotle chili powder (what - you don't put chipotle in everything?)...

Cook for a long while, adding the mushrooms toward the end.

Serve over gnocchi or some other potatoes. Since I made it slightly spicy, I felt it called for chiptole-chili-yogurt, but you could go for some cheese or just enjoy as is.

Oh, and in other exciting news: Tiny has decided he likes to eat trees. Small trees, that is. Especially if dipped in a little grated parmesan. I nearly had to facebook this - the first vegetable he has eaten willingly and asked for more. It was pretty amazing. I still am amazed. Two kids who like broccoli? Unheard of!