The Buzz
The October issue
Pumpkin ice pops, cool pumpkin play and fall stories
Fall has arrived in Summerland with a heat wave! This month we are making iced pumpkin treats to cool down, splashing and painting with pumpkins, and curling up in the shade with our favorite fall stories.
From Miss B’s Children’s Club, Summerland
Each month we gather the best of the season into one place: a recipe to make together, an activity to enjoy at home and the picture books we are reading at nap time. It is our way of carrying the warmth of Miss B’s into your kitchen, your garden and your story corner, so that learning through play continues wherever your family is.
In this issue, we meet Julie of Rêve Patisserie, our community business partner, and share what’s on along Lillie Avenue this month. We blend pumpkin pie ice pops with a local organic pumpkin, share our favorite pumpkin activities to keep cool, with one for every age, put a spotlight on running in the heat, meet the local pumpkin concierge dressing porches for fall, and settle in with three gentle fall stories for nap time.
Feature · Our community business partner
Rêve Patisserie: a little dream in every macaron
Rêve means dream in French. Julie Hutton, its founder, grew up in Bordeaux with a sweet tooth, and today she makes every macaron by hand here in Santa Barbara.
After a career in hospitality as a concierge and travel planner, Julie turned a lifelong love of baking, first learned with her family, into Rêve. Her macarons are made with real almonds, real fruit, and good chocolate and cream, with no unnecessary additives, preservatives or artificial flavors. Julie sources every ingredient with care, as local and organic as possible, such as regeneratively grown organic California almonds.
Alongside her signature macarons, Rêve creates custom macaron towers and luxury pastries, delivers around Santa Barbara by electric vehicle and ships across the country. It is a female owned small business, and we are proud to call it our community business partner.
Together, we are dreaming up the B Box: a seasonal box of #BEEUnited macarons with a honey ganache made from local honey.
“I make every one by hand, here in Santa Barbara.”Julie Hutton, founder of Rêve Patisserie
Local News
On Lillie Avenue in Summerland
What’s on this month
October storytimes and talks at Godmothers, the bookshop at 2280 Lillie Avenue.
Mondays 5, 12 and 19 October · 11am
Little G’s storytime
Picture books for little ones, from a pumpkin patch tale to a Halloween adventure.
Saturday 10 October · 11am
Little Bee and the Bloom
Author Carly Kremer reads her picture book about pollination and nature.
Saturday 10 October · 11am · Sunday 11 October · 6pm
Dr. Shefali, for parents
Two conversations on raising emotionally healthy, authentic children with the clinical psychologist and bestselling author.
Saturday 17 October · 11am
You Belong in the Wild
A special storytime with the author of this picture book about the wild world around us.
Halloween nearby
Halloween in Montecito
Two afternoons of costumes, treats and pumpkins for families, just along the coast from Summerland.
Saturday 24 October · 11am to 2pm
Halloween Hullabaloo at The Post Montecito
Spooky treats, pumpkin decorating, face painting for kids and complimentary mini totes for trick or treating, at 1801 East Cabrillo Boulevard.
Details at thepostmontecito.comSaturday 31 October · 3 to 6pm
Ghost Village Road and the Great Pumpkin Challenge
Coast Village Road fills with costumed children and families trick or treating along the shops, a Montecito tradition since 1996. Come in costume, and guess the weight of the great big pumpkin in front of Renaud’s.
Details at coastvillageroad.comSummerland Beautiful
Keeping our town beautiful
An all volunteer nonprofit since 2019, Summerland Beautiful keeps Summerland beautiful, safe and welcoming, from tending the planters to monthly clean ups.
- Saturday 3 OctoberThis month’s Pick Up Posse met at the Post Office on Lillie Avenue.
- Tuesday 3 November · 9 to 10amThe next Pick Up Posse, from the Post Office, with coffee after.
- Friday 4 December · 5:30 to 7:30pmAnnual Holiday Party and Fundraiser. Location to be announced.
Summerland Citizens Association
Next meeting: Tuesday 20 October
The voice of Summerland since 1955, the SCA works to enhance, beautify, protect and preserve our town for residents, businesses and visitors.
For the time and place, email sca@summerlandcitizens.org.
Membership starts at $35, and new volunteers are welcome.
summerlandcitizens.org#BEEUnited
One Dollar, One Million Voices
Our community campaign is an empowering movement for small business owners to be seen, heard and loved, for us all as one. Our monthly Small Business Saturday social begins on Saturday 17 October, celebrating the local businesses that make Summerland home.
Save the dateThe Mad Hatter’s Tea Extravaganza, Sunday 7 February 2027, 3pm to 5pm, in Santa Barbara. Venue to be announced.
Join usFor the children, Sara
The Kitchen
Pumpkin pie ice pops
Organic · Locally sourced
Roast a small organic pumpkin from a local farm and let it cool. Blend 1 cup of the puree with 1 cup of organic plain yogurt, 2 tablespoons of local honey and a pinch of cinnamon, then pour into ice pop molds and freeze for at least 4 hours. Little hands measure and pour, and a grown up takes care of the oven.
For babies under one, leave out the honey.
Where to find local pumpkins
Lane Farms, 308 South Walnut Lane, Santa Barbara: a family farm stand since 1939, open every day and farmed with organic methods. Its pumpkin patch is open October 5 to 31.
Santa Barbara Certified Farmers Market: Thursdays 2:30 to 6pm on Linden Avenue in Carpinteria, Fridays 8 to 11:15am on Coast Village Road in Montecito, and Saturdays 8am to 1pm downtown. Ask the growers for organic pumpkins, and look for local honey.
The Reading Room
Fall stories
- Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert
- Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson
- Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson
Find them at our local bookshops in the Community spotlight below.
At Home · Ages and stages
Our favorite pumpkin activities to keep cool
Every activity in The Buzz is matched to an age group, so it is just right for your little one. Find your B, pick an activity, and stay close by whenever water or ice is part of the fun.
Pumpkin splash
Give mini pumpkins a bath in a shallow tub of cool water, with sponges and soft brushes to scrub. Stay within arm’s reach the whole time.
Ice paint pumpkins
Freeze washable paint in an ice cube tray, with a craft stick in each cube, then paint mini pumpkins as the colors melt.
Frozen pumpkin seed dig
Freeze pumpkin seeds and fall leaves in a tub of water overnight, then free them with droppers of warm water and spoons.
The great pumpkin melt
Set ice cubes in a hollowed mini pumpkin, a bowl and a cup, place them in the sun and time which melts first. Record your results and explain why.
Sara Loves · Spotlight on running
Easy miles in the fall heat
Summerland is made for running, from Lillie Avenue down to the beach below Lookout Park.
With the heat wave, head out early in the morning or in the cool of the evening. Carry water, wear a hat and sunscreen, and let the pace stay easy until the weather breaks.
For little ones, running is play: races to the next tree, tag on the grass and short bursts with plenty of rest in the shade. Big B’s might enjoy timing a family loop each week and watching it get faster.
Summerland Secrets · Now open in Carpinteria
The Larder by Field + Fort
Field + Fort, our neighbor on Lillie Avenue in Summerland, has opened The Larder at 1033 Casitas Pass Road in Carpinteria. We love the breakfast burrito, the peach dream bar and the coffee art!
Fall hours · Soft launch
Wednesday to Sunday, 7am to 3pm
1033 Casitas Pass Road, Carpinteria
fieldandfort.com @fieldandfortSmall business spotlight · Fall porches
Your porch, dressed for fall
Dreaming of a pumpkin porch for Halloween? Meet Carin Richard of Traveling Pumpkins, who designs and installs custom fall porches and storefronts, so you can enjoy the season without the mess or the hassle.
Carin calls Traveling Pumpkins Santa Barbara’s first local, woman owned pumpkin concierge, and it is run by a mother and son team. They source their pumpkins from local farm partners and take care of every detail, from delivery to styling and installation, with sustainable removal at the end of the season if you wish.
Orders are open now for this season’s installations in Summerland, Montecito, Carpinteria, Santa Barbara, Hope Ranch, Goleta, Solvang, Santa Ynez and Buellton. Share a little about your porch or storefront, and Carin will send a few tailored options with pricing.
Community spotlight
Where to find our nap time stories
Our local independent bookshops sit at the heart of our community. Pop in or call ahead, and if a story is not on the shelf, ask about ordering it in. Every book bought locally supports a small business close to home.
- Godmothers2280 Lillie Avenue, Summerland805 696 2340
- Chaucer’s Books3321 State Street, Santa Barbara805 682 6787
- Tecolote Book Shop1470 East Valley Road, Montecito805 969 4977
Prefer to order online? Find Godmothers and Chaucer’s on Bookshop.org.
Know a local small business our families would love? Tell Sara at sara@missbclub.com, and it could be our next spotlight.
Miss B’s Pod · Listen
Soon you can listen in
Empowering conversations with Sara and friends of the club about childhood, play, learning and family life. Join our monthly letter and we will let you know the moment the first episode is ready.
Tell me when it is readyComing in future issues
November
Gathering and gratitude
A harvest soup to stir together, a family gratitude jar and stories about sharing.
Recipe · Organic · Locally sourced
December
Twinkling winter evenings
Cinnamon ornaments, a winter light walk and cozy stories for the longest nights.
January
Bright new beginnings
A sunny citrus smoothie, a kindness jar for the new year and stories about growing.
Recipe · Organic · Locally sourced
The monthly letter
Never miss an issue
The new issue of The Buzz, the B Scope for every sign and a story for nap time, in your inbox each month.
Sign up for the monthly letterUnsubscribe at any time.