Two Things...

One delicious...

These are Browned Butter Banana Waffles I found here. Mine looked nothing like her picture obviously. I don't have a clue why mine turned out soooo brown but they were soooo good, so it's ok. I have one kid who doesn't care for bananas (or anything else for that matter) so I only used 2 versus the three called for in the recipe. I like that this uses wheat flour, but the waffles still tasted good--not all wheaty. I also do what I want with spices--I used more cinnamon and nutmeg and threw in ginger and allspice too I think. Also, I added milk chocolate chips to each waffle--gotta counter that wheat four!! This recipe made 7 and 1/2 waffles for me. Here is the recipe if you don't want to click on the link. It is a bit lengthy but worth it.

Browned Butter Waffles
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (I used salted)
3 large eggs, separated
2 cups buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 medium very ripe bananas

Directions: 1. Preheat a waffle iron. Into a large bowl, sift together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.

2. To brown the butter, heat a thick-bottomed skillet on medium heat. Add the sliced butter, whisking frequently. Continue to cook the butter until melted. The butter will start to foam and browned specks will begin to form at the bottom of the pan. The butter should have a nutty aroma. Watch the butter carefully because it can go from brown to burnt quickly. Remove butter from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

 3. In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks, buttermilk, brown butter, and vanilla. Pour into dry ingredients; stir until just combined.

 4. In a separate small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork; stir into batter. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat egg whites until stiff but not dry. Gently fold into the batter.

5. Ladle the recommended amount of waffle batter onto the hot waffle iron according to the manufacturer's recommendations. Close lid; cook waffle is golden brown on both sides, about 5-6 minutes. Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree F oven until ready to serve. Serving options-fresh banana slices, honey, maple syrup, butter, or peanut butter Note-these waffles freeze well.

To freeze, place completely cooled waffles in a freezer bag and freeze. To reheat, pop the waffles in the toaster.

I take no credit for the deliciousness of these--that goes to TwoPeasandTheirPod.

This is the other of my two things:

I've been wanting to make a new bag for some time now, and finally did it!!

To remember...

Today is a day that causes people to remember. We all know where we were when we heard about the catastrophe just as an older generation remembers where they were when they heard of JFK's assassination.

But, I have trouble remembering what I did yesterday let alone 11 years ago on a certain date. So, inspired by a pin on Pinterest, I made a journal I am determined to keep.

I took a decorative cardboard box with metal corners, sanded the rust from the corners and polyurethaned them, painted the box white, then laid doilies over the box and spray painted it. I cut scrapbook paper to 5" X 8" and stamped the date on each paper.

I record my happenings for the day, then move to the next card with the next date for the next day. Next year, I will stamp 2013 on all the cards and record a few sentences for each day. Eventually I will be able to pick a date at random and read what I did on that day for the past several years. At least that's the idea...

Earthquake, thunder, or huge planes overhead?

None of the above!! Last Wednesday I sat in my kitchen with two of my SILs--Kim & Rebecca. As we were talking, out of the blue we heard a loud booming. Becca thought it was an earthquake and rushed out the back door. Kim thought the kids had busted something upstairs and went to the stairs. I thought it could be thunder but it was just too close and inconsistent sounding. My next thought was huge bomber planes flying over Gilmer like in the movies--yeah right, an earthquake is more likely. I bolted to the front door and flung it open only to walk into this practically on my front porch:

As the three of us entered the front yard to inspect the damage our mouths just dropped. We were in total and utter shock. We made sure the kids weren't crushed underneath--they were in the playroom--and just walked around the tree over and over. Phone calls were made, neighbors walked over, people slowed as they passed on the road. A spectacle it was. We still don't know how old the tree was because as you can see from the pictures, the tree is still as tall as the house. Guesses range from 60 to 100 years. Apparently, the top of the tree split into two main branches which, in the joint, had begun to rot and hollow. The two halves just fell away landing on opposite sides. Unfortunately, one side fell on the house. There are holes in the roof, but only in the garage. Because Isaac was sending rain our way, we scrambled to get the roof cleared and holes covered. We have a friend who came over and with Becca and Ben, patched the roof well enough to hold us over until it can be repaired. We also had people come out Saturday for a miraculous clean up effort. At one point we had about thirty people, not including kids, that helped chain saw, split wood, haul branches off in trailers, and rake leaves. It. Was. Amazing. My heart was full of gratitude. We began at seven in the morning and everyone but family was gone by eleven thirty.

There are a few positives to the tree falling: 1. We have a ton of firewood for next year, 2. I can now grow flowers on my front porch-sunlight! 3. My fall raking will be dramatically reduced. Even with these things, I am still quite upset about losing the tree. It was a majestic oak and really added to the front yard. Oh well--no use crying over a fallen tree!

Back in the habit...

Reunited!!

When we left Hutto in September of 2008 I wasn't sure we'd see the Dayton family again. Natalie and I were pretty close and it seemed like I was always hanging out at her house. When she asked if they could 'layover' at our house on their way back to Hutto from a vacation, Ben and I were so excited! Our kids didn't remember each other but that didn't stop them from playing hard!

It was soooo fun to visit and catch up. We can't let another four years go by next time!!

After all these Dodds, we needed some Leppert time!

The kids and I spent a few days with Chris and his kids in McKinney. We ate at Torchy's Taco, played Kinect, fed Oliver stuff he didn't like, built Star Wars Starships and castles, and had cupcakes. We had a great time!!