Both Fritz and I were so excited when we stumbled on the local farmer's market in Temecula. And even more excited when we found out the market takes place EVERY Saturday! Every chance we get, we bring friends and family with us to explore this little treasure. It's become a Saturday morning tradition, and best breakfast in town.
The fruits and vegetables are so fresh, so cheap, and so good, but every weekend we seem to discover something new - artisan breads, eggs, fresh flowers, and (my personal favorite, best prepared on the grill) 10 lobster tails for $20! We've purchased oil paintings, and can't wait to get back in our house so we can buy the winecask plant holders.
If you go, don't bother to eat breakfast - most tables have samples and by the time I make the full circuit, I'm full! The hummus table is my favorite with a dozen or more different flavors of hummus that the vendor is more than happy to let you sample in multitude on squares of pita bread. The 3 layer dip is the best - spinich, sundried tomatoes, and feta. If you don't tell the vendor to stop, he'll just keep loading up the samples on pita bread and shoving them into your hands. (It works - I've never left his booth without buying something!)
Minnesota has a great farmer's markets also, but the season is a bit shorter than in Southern California. Even my little Minnesota town of Walker has a fabulous farmer's market in the front lot of the Green Scene organic grocery store and deli. So if in Walker this summer, don't forget to stop by the farmer's market. But if you miss the chance in Walker, then come to Southern California any time throughout the rest of the year and we'll bring you to our year-round farmer's market.
The 10 months since we moved to SoCal from northern MN have been packed with one adventure after the other. I'm hoping we passed the initiation and that the next year can be uneventful. Here's a little recap:
1. Arrived in CA for Braden to start school on August 10, 2011. Had to live in a hotel until we could move into our house on September 19 (instead of the originally planned August 25).
2. Used pillows on the floor for 5 weeks while waiting for new furniture to arrive.
3. Enjoyed living in our house for 4 months, then had fire in the garage on January 26.
4. Moved into hotel...again. After being in hotel for 6 weeks, we moved to a rental house.
5. Started a new job in January, and tried to settle into the new groove while dealing with house fire and hotel living.
6. June rolls around, 5 months since the fire, and still in the rental house. Hoping to be back home to our renovated real house by Halloween. We've now spent more time living away from our house than in our house since we moved to CA.
7. Decided to have a positive attitude when all my boys (husband, son, dog) left for MN by taking advantage of the time to write, run, and bike. Instead, had to spend my time changing locks and hooking up alarm systems because some S.O.B. managed to get in to our house right before I came home from work, then hid in a closet until I left 40 minutes later, and hightailed it out of the house leaving the door wide open. Nothing stolen, but then again, we don't have much in our rental house because it's all in storage from the house fire.
There is something to be said for the mundane. We've had enough adventure this past year, so I am really hoping the next year is uneventful and boring, full of days at our real house, not our rental house, lounging in the back yard, gardening, going for walks in our neighborhood.
This weekend I plan to enjoy the art festival in Old Town Temecula,
visit the a winery, and float in the pool with friends while I remember
all the good things about SoCal.
Both Fritz and I were so excited when we stumbled on the local farmer's market in Temecula. And even more excited when we found out the market takes place EVERY Saturday! Every chance we get, we bring friends and family with us to explore this little treasure. It's become a Saturday morning tradition, and best breakfast in town. 
