Healthy Banana Bread

I'm throwing a quick post at you today because I have my last paper of the semester to write and turn in today.
I have to share this recipe for healthy banana bread that I made yesterday with the kiddos.
It is really good and doesn't taste "healthy."
I had some ripe bananas and I didn't want to wast them so I looked up some recipes and then made some changes to make it a little better for you.

Yes, I had to try it before I took the picture. Needed to make sure it was worthy.

Recipe:
4 bananas, ripe
1/2 cup Truvia Baking blend
1/2 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups  whole wheat flour 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.
Place bananas in a large bowl and mash with electric mixer. (I put all of the wet ingredients into my VitaMix and blended)  
Stir in sugar and let stand 15 minutes. (I only let it stand for about 5-8 minutes while I put all dry ingredients in another bowl)
Add applesauce and eggs and beat well.(Again, they went into the VitaMix with the bananas and sugar)
I put all of the dry ingredients in a big bowl, stirred them together, and then added the wet ingredients.
Pour into greased 9x5 loaf pan.
Bake for 45 minutes, or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Remember:

It isn't healthy if you eat the whole loaf in one day. 

Don't judge me...it was a long day filled with lots of tears.

BUT I am a strong believer that portion control is the number one key to weight loss.  

Low Key Weekend with a Somber Ending

We had a low key weekend and it was AMAZING.
I got up early Saturday morning to continue my cleaning from the day before.
The hubs went on his normal bike ride, so the kids were home to help clean.
Yeah, right.  They made a mess as I would clean up another.
At one point, I was upstairs sweeping the bathroom floors and Lucas was downstairs splashing my mop water all over my freshly cleaned floors.
Luckily, my mom called a few minutes after and offered to pick up the kids and take them for the day.
The kids were going to stay the night with them anyways, but being gone all day and night was a bonus for us.
We had some possible concert plans for Saturday night, but they fell through which worked out better.
What did we do?
We ran some errands and then spent the afternoon watching two movies and eating.
Again, it was awesome.

Sunday morning I woke up to the news of Kidd Kraddick passing.
Honestly, I have been heartbroken ever since.
It is hard to put it into words.
I tried to explain it to my husband, but just couldn't.
I spent all day Sunday checking news and social media outlets for any updates.
I was hoping it would turn out to be some bad prank after all of the "Deathbed Confessions" on the show last week.
Really, what crazy timing?
Did he have a feeling something would happen?  Was there some underlying medical issue only he knew about?
When I heard the crew would be on air this morning, I knew I had to listen.
I got up and found the live streaming of the show.
I spent the next two hours bawling my eyes out.
They have major composure to keep it all together like they did.
I know they are hurting as much, probably more,  than I am.
I listen to KKITM every day.
Probably a little too much as I would tune out my kiddos to listen to the show on our way to school.
Yes, I know he is a radio guy that I have never met, but he really touched my heart with his funny little bits and generous heart.
He gave so much of his life to help others and gave when he did not have to.

Of course it makes me stop and think about what I have done for others, especially those close to me.
Believe me....it has not been enough.
Ironically, I have been thinking a lot about death of myself and my family in the past couple weeks.
No, I don't really know why but it has been on my mind a lot.
If I left this earth tomorrow, would my kids truly know how much I love them?
Would they remember me playing with them and doing activities with them?
I know they would be sad, but as time went on, what would they actually remember?

Those that are close to me know that my father passed away when I was in high school.
I don't remember a lot about my father because he worked a lot so I didn't really spend much time with him.
I do remember him teaching me how to roll up my burrito so that the stuffing wouldn't spill out.
My step-father(the best man I've ever known) has many health issues.
I'm thankful for every day, week, and year I have with him as I don't know when our time will end.
I try to prepare myself and think about how that time will be as I know one day he will be gone.
And then I think well it may not be him that goes first.
It could be me.
We never know what is in store for our future.
We don't know how long we will be here.
We don't know if we will live longer than our children, our parents, or our spouse.

The sudden passing of Kidd Kraddick sort of confirmed my thoughts for the past few weeks.  
I know that i need to make changes now.
I need to do everything I can to be happy with my kids, husband, and family every day.
I need to let go of our petty arguments and the misbehavior of my kiddos.
They are, after all, just kids.

I have spent lots of time with my kiddos this summer, but at the same time I have been disconnected with them to some extent.
I have spent numerous hours on my phone and on the computer doing 50 million different things.
Some of them have been necessary, but lots of others are just out of self entertainment.
So here is my list of things to change:

1. Read a bible story and pray with my kids every night.
2. Every evening put away all electronics and focus only on my kids. i.e. play games, read books, color, etc...
3.  Spend time truly talking with my hubs about our day and thoughts.
4.  Start a Bible study with the hubs. (If you know of any good books for couples, please let me know.)

I know life gets busy and hectic, but I have to spend more time with just my family.
Life is too short not to show your love every day.

New Table

A few posts ago  I mentioned that I am re-doing my kitchen table.

Well, it still isn't completely finished, but i decided I would go ahead and show it off a little.

Here is the before

 I'm not a fan of light wood and it seems that all older pieces are lighter.
This was graciously given to us, so I figured that I would take it and paint it.
I was going to do something completely different, but then decided white would be good because it will match any decor I may decide to use.
This took me a good 3 days to complete.

 On the bottom, I applied 2 coats of primer, 2 coats of white paint, sanded it down some to give it a worn look and then applied a glaze.
The top and the chairs were re-stained with a dark stain.
I sanded the top, applied denatured alcohol, lacquer thinner, and sanded some more to get rid of the old top finish.
The table top didn't get quite as dark as I would have liked, but after 5 coats I was done.

 The chairs were only given one coat of stain, but it took me ALL day just to do the one.

Overall, I'm really happy with the final project.  

If only I can get my booty to the gym now...

Happy Tuesday!

Nice Break from the Kiddos

I had a blast this weekend!
I don't have any pics because I knew everyone else would be taking a ton, so I left it up to them to document it all in photos.
I'm sure my pics would be the same as the ones they've already posted on IG, so I will save you from looking at them again.

Luckily, my hubs was A-okay watching the kids all weekend so I could enjoy some time with Megan, Brandi, Holly, and Becka.
We hit up the bowling alley on Friday night where I got to meet Amy, Tracie, Crystal, Charla, and Kristen.
Everyone was super nice even when I was losing to Jenn.
I don't lose, but Megan told everyone that I was going to win so she set me up for failure.  I blame her for the crappy bowling that occurred.
I don't perform well under pressure.

Saturday we went out to the lake and then dinner.  It was a full day of fun and it felt amazing to take a breather from the kids.
I love them to death, but since it is summer I have them all day every day.
I can only tolerate so much fighting and yelling before I need a drink break.

Sunday the kids and I went to church and then to my parents for lunch and naps.
It was a busy, yet surprisingly relaxing weekend.
I'm definitely blessed with great friends and family.

Unfortunately, my eating was shit all weekend and I have some work to do this week.
Time to get my booty to the gym and work off some beer and fajitas.

Have a good week!

Uh Oh...New Clothes?

I feel like I always have some sort of countdown going.
This one sucks...
I have 19 days until I have to attend a workshop for school.
Why does it matter?
All summer I wear pajamas, sweat pants, and work out clothes.
What do they all have in common?
Yep, an expandable waistline.
Not such a good thing because you don't realize how much weight you've gained until you suddenly put on some nice clothes and everything is too tight and I can't pull them over my fat ass.
I have to lay on the bed, pull them up, button them, and then squat down to stretch those B's out.
My mom told me once that it is bad being a nurse because you wear scrubs all day and you don't realize when you've put on some extra LB's because you just don't tie them as tight.
She was right, like always.
I started out the summer hardcore taking the kiddos to the gym everyday during the week, but then July started and it has been crappy ever since.
It has slowed to about twice a week.
A workout is a workout, but it doesn't do much when you stuff your face of candy, donuts, ice cream, and every other sweet you have in the house "for the kids."
Who was I kidding...it was all for me.
I cannot afford to buy all new work clothes, nor will I.
So, I'm on day 3 of clean eating and working out.
I have to stick with it full force to lose the 10 lbs I've gained this summer.
My clothes have to fit.
I refuse to buy bigger clothes.
My plan is to eat clean 90% of the time and 10% is left for alcohol because I know I won't be giving it up anytime soon, especially with Holly being in town this weekend and me getting to hang with my girls.
I WILL be good the rest of the time, food wise.

Happy Friday!  Enjoy your weekend!

It's only Thursday?

Again, we have been super busy.
Today, I sent the kiddos off to school so I can get a blog post in and some school work completed.
Luckily, my summer classes are winding down and I will have a couple weeks off before work begins.
Last weekend we went camping and luckily our BFF's came out for a day.
They are soooooo cute.  I could squeeze their little cheeks off.

 Kaylee is playing indoor soccer and it isn't going well.
She is always tired and she plays on a boy/girl team this season.
I think she does better on her all girls team, even though they play teams with boys.
Hopefully the Fall season will get her back in shape and playing.

I decided it would be a great idea to re-do my kitchen table.

Everything sounds good until I actually start the project, then it sucks!
I was over it the day I started and it still isn't finished.
Anyways, it was given to me by a friend and I hate light wood, so I'm making it pretty.
I'll show you the finished product when it is done.

 And I've been potty training this boy.  Whoa!

My daughter was potty trained by 2 years old and he is almost 2 1/2.
I feel so behind...
He does great when we are at home and he is naked, but not when I put undies on him.
I don't know if he just needs more time to know the feeling, but I'm tired of cleaning up pee.
He will start peeing and then realize what is going on and tell me he needs to go potty.
I guess it is better than nothing.
Please Baby Jesus help him figure it out soon!
Mama needs a break from cleaning up pee and changing diapers.

Last, I am getting back on the wagon.
This was posted on my IG yesterday and I felt amazing afterwards.
There will be more about this wagon later.

Happy Thursday!

MIA recap of the last couple weeks

We have been on the go for the past 2 weeks and I'm so thankful it is starting to slow.
Get ready...this is going to be a long post.
Let's begin with the wedding.
We left early that Saturday morning to drive to Austin.
It's not a bad drive...only about 3 1/2 hours, but this little toot was getting an attitude over everything.
Shoot me now or else I may shoot her when she is a teenager.
J/K I love her to death, even with a bad attitude.

The wedding was at 2 pm, so we dropped off our stuff at my friend's house, changed, and hung out for about 15 minutes until it was time to leave.

It was a Catholic ceremony so I was a little nervous  about keeping the kiddos quiet for so long, but they did great!

Next, we headed to the reception.  

It was beautiful.  The food was great, we danced, and the wine was flowing.  

This little cutie was my main man.  He was dancing like crazy.

and since I never post pics of the hubs...

I know it is blurry.  That is what happens when you try to take a selfie and you've already had too much wine.  

Sometimes I like to think I'm freaking 21 and can drink like a fish....I probably shouldn't admit this online, but let's just say I'm not and I spent most of the next day laying in the car. 

It was horrible and I will never do it again. (haven't said that before LOL)

Next up was the 4th of July.  We had a great day. 

We headed over to a BBQ for this little guy's 4th birthday.

The kiddos played.  Lucas was in heaven because there were boy toys galore.  

Poor baby always plays with Kaylee's toys.   

Of course there was some of this as well.  

Yes, I tried both of them.  (hmmm is that why the scale is creeping up?)

After the party, we headed to the FC Dallas game and watched fireworks.  They were awesome, but I didn't take any pictures.  #momfail

Friday, we headed out to the lake and spent the day swimming and riding the Sea Doos.  

Saturday we headed over to my Uncle's house and BBQ and swam.  

I will leave you with this awesome video of Lucas getting my dad.  

Apparently this lizard is super hard to balance on.  

The adults were having more fun than the kiddos.