Canine Costume Contest

For my last catch-up post of the year, let me tell you all about the doggy Halloween costume contest and parade at my workplace (which is dog-friendly if you didn't know). Here are a few of the players:


Nell of course


Slayer (Nell's co-dog), the headless horseman


a turkey and pig


a turtle and Max


a pumpkin, banana and chicken


Bear as Nell's favorite - a squirrel


waiting for the parade to start


parade!


judges scrupulously judging


Guess who won a prize! Miss Nell for cutest. Duh!


I convinced Gene to join in the fun later in the weekend. Three cheers for corn, carrots and peas!

Italian Vacation Home Video

For Christmas, I gave Gene a DVD of the edited and compiled footage from our trip to Italy this year. We hoped to capture some of the sights and sounds of this beautiful country with our low quality camera which has a diana-like light quality. If you are into home videos (!!) you can watch these 4 video segments, each about 5 minutes long.









Also, we recently purchased a fancy-pants HD video camera. So, you can look forward to hours and hours of more riveting home videos from us.

Churrasco

Earlier this year, we held a churrasco or Brazilian barbecue. The cuisine was inspired by our trips to Brazil in 2002 (Gene) and 2003 (myself) and by the Brazilian community we recently found in Philadelphia. On the 6500 block of Castor Avenue in northeast Philadelphia, you will find a sprinkling of Brazilian flavor. Start by eating at Picanha: it will be one of the most delicious and inexpensive culinary experiences you will have had in Philadelphia. Classically Brazilian, you pay for your food by the pound. Then go next door to Bull Boi to buy ingredients and delights straight from the Motherland. Here are some of the dishes we created for our churrasco:

Pao de Queijo - cheese bread

Beans and Rice

Feijoada - meaty stew

Brazillian Kale

Brazilian Vinaigrette

Brigadeiro - chocolate candies

Here are some photos of the massive amounts of meat and fun times at our barbecue:




Ben and Issac


Gene


Laura, Ginger, Melissa


Justin


Gene


Jenny, Levi, Caroline, Leo


Ben, Laura


Joanna, Zac, then Ben and Gene in the background


Kevin

Carrots

I've neglected to post several photos and highlight certain events over the past few months, so I'm going to make up for some lost time with my next few entries. First on the list are some photos of the ridiculous carrots that I grew in my garden plot this year. They range from bright and colorful, to spiral to - well, let's say - masculine. We just couldn't eat him.

Nell's First Snow

a few other scenes from the weekend of snow: