Neighborhood Pool Party
Aug. 2nd, 2009 11:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
liralenIt's been a couple of very busy days in prep for several more.
Yesterday was the first Saturday of the month. So Jet and John and one of Jet's friends went to Home Depot to build something. They rode there on their bikes and then rode around and around the neighborhood getting together decorations for their bikes for the neighborhood pool party. 100's of neighbors, a kids' bike parade, free Quedoba spread, face painting, airbrushed temp tattoos, candy stick making, cereal necklaces, firemen letting kids shoot a firehose, and two levels of bouncers. At night there was rock and roll and a DJ doing swimming competitions, dance competitions, popcorn, cotton candy, and so many chemical light sticks the whole place was lit with them.
Jet hung out in the pool for nearly 4 hours. Part of the time he hung on the side watching the dancers, but he got his courage up and started dancing with everyone and actually won one of the contests, thanks to Peter, one of our neighborhood Dads who knew Jet and talked a little with the DJ about Jet trying so hard. That was really cool of Peter, and Jet was so proud it was amazing.
Jet also swam a 50 yard race (two of the long lengths of the pool) when the DJ said just everyone could do it, but then the DJ changed his plan and said that the 10 and under should do another 25 yarder nearly immediately after. Jet swam *both* of them and was so tired, he started doing a perfect backstroke back after the last race. He couldn't do another lap face down... and just two weeks ago, he was failing miserably even keeping his face above water when he was trying to go backwards. Now he can peacefully swim the length of the pool on his back...
Today was church and I did coffee and the sermon was from a DVD of a minister elsewhere, and it was all on Hope.
Last week was Faith. I suspect next week should be Love...
But there was an ice cream social sort of thing afterward, and that was very good, too. For lunch, I made my own refried beans from the pintos I'd cooked last week, with onion, green chili, and the stuff from the beans themselves. Also cooked tortillas, and kind of redefined what a bean and cheese burrito is about. *laughs*
At 2, Jet went off to a birthday party at a bike place, with ramps, mountain biking trails, and all kinds of other things in an indoor bike arena. They rode the whole time until the boys called at 5:30pm to say that they were coming home, so I started dinner after half a day at home getting my machine back up to snuff and writing up the seed collecting trip. Teriyaki chicken with rice and a vegetable blend of onions, zucchini, and mushrooms. I really liked a local restaurant's version of calabacitas that were those cooked until they'd all caramelized together. I think I reduced the volume to about a third what it started as and it got all good and brown and tasted wonderful.
I also did the chicken teriyaki the America's Test Kitchen way, which was prep the thighs so that they still had their skin but no bones. The thighs themselves were the organic ones from Costco, frozen in 4-packs, and they were big, meaty, with whole skins and no extra fat. None of the bones were broken, either, from the processing, which some of the valu or really cheap processors sometimes do. So they were really easy to debone. A little salt and pepper and time under the broiler. Cuts in the skin make the skin ultra crispy and they still render most of the fat from them. So they're really good eating.
Jet's probably growing again as he ate an entire thigh himself, with extra rice and sauce.
A quiet evening, for once, but tomorrow the madness begins again. Jet and I should find some clothing for going to a wedding in, and the local JC Penny's has a sale going on. We have to pack for Wednesday.
Yesterday was the first Saturday of the month. So Jet and John and one of Jet's friends went to Home Depot to build something. They rode there on their bikes and then rode around and around the neighborhood getting together decorations for their bikes for the neighborhood pool party. 100's of neighbors, a kids' bike parade, free Quedoba spread, face painting, airbrushed temp tattoos, candy stick making, cereal necklaces, firemen letting kids shoot a firehose, and two levels of bouncers. At night there was rock and roll and a DJ doing swimming competitions, dance competitions, popcorn, cotton candy, and so many chemical light sticks the whole place was lit with them.
Jet hung out in the pool for nearly 4 hours. Part of the time he hung on the side watching the dancers, but he got his courage up and started dancing with everyone and actually won one of the contests, thanks to Peter, one of our neighborhood Dads who knew Jet and talked a little with the DJ about Jet trying so hard. That was really cool of Peter, and Jet was so proud it was amazing.
Jet also swam a 50 yard race (two of the long lengths of the pool) when the DJ said just everyone could do it, but then the DJ changed his plan and said that the 10 and under should do another 25 yarder nearly immediately after. Jet swam *both* of them and was so tired, he started doing a perfect backstroke back after the last race. He couldn't do another lap face down... and just two weeks ago, he was failing miserably even keeping his face above water when he was trying to go backwards. Now he can peacefully swim the length of the pool on his back...
Today was church and I did coffee and the sermon was from a DVD of a minister elsewhere, and it was all on Hope.
Last week was Faith. I suspect next week should be Love...
But there was an ice cream social sort of thing afterward, and that was very good, too. For lunch, I made my own refried beans from the pintos I'd cooked last week, with onion, green chili, and the stuff from the beans themselves. Also cooked tortillas, and kind of redefined what a bean and cheese burrito is about. *laughs*
At 2, Jet went off to a birthday party at a bike place, with ramps, mountain biking trails, and all kinds of other things in an indoor bike arena. They rode the whole time until the boys called at 5:30pm to say that they were coming home, so I started dinner after half a day at home getting my machine back up to snuff and writing up the seed collecting trip. Teriyaki chicken with rice and a vegetable blend of onions, zucchini, and mushrooms. I really liked a local restaurant's version of calabacitas that were those cooked until they'd all caramelized together. I think I reduced the volume to about a third what it started as and it got all good and brown and tasted wonderful.
I also did the chicken teriyaki the America's Test Kitchen way, which was prep the thighs so that they still had their skin but no bones. The thighs themselves were the organic ones from Costco, frozen in 4-packs, and they were big, meaty, with whole skins and no extra fat. None of the bones were broken, either, from the processing, which some of the valu or really cheap processors sometimes do. So they were really easy to debone. A little salt and pepper and time under the broiler. Cuts in the skin make the skin ultra crispy and they still render most of the fat from them. So they're really good eating.
Jet's probably growing again as he ate an entire thigh himself, with extra rice and sauce.
A quiet evening, for once, but tomorrow the madness begins again. Jet and I should find some clothing for going to a wedding in, and the local JC Penny's has a sale going on. We have to pack for Wednesday.
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