Have I mentioned that I am really out of practice having company?  I used to have 10-12 people for dinner without a blink of an eye.  Anyway, I am trying to get back in practice and had these friends for Sunday dinner a while back.  Check out the big little guy on my lap!  I think he’s kind cute!

The owner of the former Cafe Lovish and current Mangostinos (604 East Lincoln Way, just east of Duff on the south side of Lincoln Way)   (at least I assume he is the owner!) told us he was born in Spain, but has lived many different places in his lifetime, and has brought foods and flavors from all over the world into his cooking.  On the day we ate there, I had nachos adorned with fresh chunks of avocado, cilantro and an unexpectedly sweet sauce that reminded me of the Caribbean, as well as the traditional meat, cheese and beans!   Steven had Pasta al Pesto (be sure to check out the menu online) and we split some cheesecake for dessert.  I was hoping for the sweet potato pecan pie, but they were out that day.  And speaking of  “being out”, there were some things on the menu, such as dishes with plantains, that were not available when we were there.  But somehow, that just seemed “right”.  We were told that the plantains weren’t ripe.   I do believe that good food made from excellent ingredients shouldn’t be forced.  It will be worth waiting for another day when the plantains are just perfect!

So now here is the visual on our food trip around the world, right here in Ames, Iowa!  I loved every bite!

Mangostinos

Steven and I uncovered a secret (well I didn’t know about it, at least) while we were wandering Ames a while back.  We decided to try out a restaurant over on the east end of Lincoln Way and when we got inside this is what we saw.  Steven looked over at the owner and said, “I know him from somewhere..that restaurant in Campus Town”, and sure enough, it was the gentleman from Cafe Lovish!  I went to Lovish a few times just for the tabouli!  Restaurants in Ames are coming and going at a rather alarming rate these days…so it was a comfort to find out that Lovish has not disappeared, but found a new life!  Tomorrow I’ll post some yummy pics of our lunch!

60 degree temps on the horizon!

I actually carved pumpkins this year!!!!!  I am so excited.  If you know me well, you’d know that I am usually at least two weeks behind on holiday things. (Like, I still haven’t mailed Ian his birthday present….I’m a BAD mom!)  And I do have Halloween cards for Ian and my sister..I bought them TWO weeks ago, but are they in the mail?  (no) So anyway, it was a big deal to get the pumpkins carved before Thanksgiving!  It brought back lots of good memories of carving a pumpkin with dad (Lani, where did we learn that one pumpkin was not enough?!!)  I stole the kitty cat face directly from Lani’s blog and got some inspiration from some other surfing of Google images.  No trick 0r treat-ers here in my apartment complex, but I am hoping some of my neighbors enjoy the jack-o-lanterns.  I’ve enjoyed the Halloween lights on the balcony across the parking lot and their cute witch blowing around in the wind!

I’ve had a pleasantly busy couple of weeks…busy coming and going…and banging up my foot…and having company.  Well, the banging of the foot wasn’t so pleasant, but all of Steven’s good care and help was wonderful!  Anyway, here is a picture of the boot, for those that have been asking.  This was taken at an amazing “junk” sale last Saturday…more about that later!

Although the month isn’t quite gone, it feels like I’ve lost some of it, at least on the blog here.  We have a hymn that says, “life passes like a dream”.  This month has been a very beautiful dream, at any rate.  New workers, new gospel meetings, new babes, beautiful days, peace and rest, swimming at the ARF center, very satisfying work, sweet companions, tasty apples and sewing!

Did some fall camping before it turned so chilly!

The hike-in campsites at Ledges State Park are awesome!  The “hike” was only about a 3 minute walk, but you really got the feeling of being “back to nature”!

Seems like I am never quite ready for fall when it arrives and every year I am surprised again by the little quirky things that have to be dealt with, like:

figuring out whether or not you need a coat or a sweater and if so, whether you should have long sleeves or short sleeves underneath the outer garment, having to pour hot water into the coffee mug in the morning because the cupboards get chilly over night, fumbling back and forth between hot/cool and defrost/vent/heater/airconditioning in the car, having to allow extra time in the mornings to defrost or defog the car windows, wearing a scarf and gloves and then trying to remember not to leave them behind at meeting, needing to use my inhaler when I walk outside in the chilly air, trying to remember that it could still be late when I wake up even though it’s still dark outside, AND the perennial kicker – getting a slow start on the day and then not having as much light at the end of the day as you’d like.

Ahhhhwellll, I’ll adjust pretty soon hopefully!  How is your fall going? (or spring, depending on what hemisphere you inhabit!)