Friday, I took the girls to the Children's Museum. This was so much fun - now that Emily is walking all over the place, it's a completely different experience. She and Ava will play together, or of course, go in completely opposite directions. Ava is very into the construction area lately. Emily, however, only wanted to hang out in the medical area. Paging Dr. Barsotti!
On Saturday, I had a MOMS Club Regional Training to attend (which completely reminded me of sorority life in college, complete with a formal pledge and that sort of thing). Joel and the girls were planning on going to OMSI while I was away, but his alternator belt decided to blow - luckily he was close to home and was able to get back on what was in his battery. We took the girls to the park in the late afternoon too, and then we all crashed early!
Sunday was spend driving around looking for birthday gifts for all of the September birthdays that we will be celebrating, as well as new gyms. We belonged to Club Sport, which was really amazing, but when their monthly family membership went above $200 per month...we realized that they were crazy, and we were crazier for paying so much. We managed to find a great gym close by. Their child care is not nearly as nice, but c'est la vie. Last night we had a fun evening at Chuck E Cheese thanks to a very sweet girlfriend whose husband owns a CEC franchise on the east coast. She sent me a gift card for a family dinner and tokens when she heard about our loss, and it was so nice to be able to get out and do something fun as a family.
I'd like to say that today was low key after all of our craziness over the weekend...but not so much. The girls came with me to the MOMS Club monthly business meeting (where our speaker talked about ways to prepare your children for elementary school. She should know - she just won Oregon's Teacher of the Year award). Then we ran some errands. Somewhere in there I managed to clean my floors twice (post breakfast and lunch), do 5 loads of laundry, make the beds, clean the bathrooms, fold the laundry, and oh yeah...play with my kids. Luckily, my girlfriend Bridgitte called and invited me over for some wine. I'm trying a Beaujolais that I've never had...will let you know if it's good.
Finally, I made some really good banana bread today with Ava, and I thought I'd share the recipe:
Lower Fat Banana Bread
1/3 c white sugar
1/4 c applesauce
2 eggs
1 c mashed bananas
1 c whole wheat
2/3 c all-purpose
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray one 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. In a medium bowl, beat the white sugar and margarine or butter until smooth and creamy. Beat in the eggs, water and bananas with the sugar mixture until it is well blended. Combine the dry ingredients, add, and mix just until the mixture is moistened. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl to blend all ingredients. Bake for about 60 minutes. Bread is done when the top is firm to the touch and a golden brown color. Time will vary according to loaf size and oven type. When bread is removed from oven, allow it to cool on its side for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and let cool on a rack. This bread is also excellent if you add mini chocolate chips or small fruit pieces to the mix just before baking. And of course, I like mine toasted with cream cheese. Perfect with a cup of coffee!
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