off the metronome.

It's been one of those days. . . and it's only 10 o' clock.

We forgot to do our weekend homework. oops.

I forgot to pack lunches until 5 minutes before we had to leave. oops.


And my youngest and I smashed faces on the trampoline yesterday, causing me to almost bite the inside of my lip off. Today, it's swollen and it hurts to talk. lovely.

Here's to a better tomorrow...

sick boy.

A barking cough.

A little boy.

A spoon full of cough syrup.

A day at home in momma's bed.

A morning of cartoons.

A cuddle bug.

school's cool.

Alas, the first day of school is upon us again.
An apple for the teacher, our school time tradition.

My youngest was nervous... anticipation of the day!
My oldest was excited, ready to start a new year!
We love FALL!

bubble prints.

Adding a little food dye to a bubble solution...

yields some interesting patterns...

and designs...
easy clean up too!
Just add water!

sugar topped banana muffins.

I simply adore these sugar topped banana muffins. They rise souffle' style in the oven while they bake and fill the house with a spicy cinnamon aroma.
I let the boys do the dirty work and fill up the tins.
I rarely have muffin liners on hand... I usually just butter up the tins and bake them without.

Don't forget to top them with a little coarse sugar. The top is the best part! And-- don't be afraid to fill them pretty high-- I like them pretty large!
25 minutes and they are done, if you can wait that long! The batter is just as yum.
Sugar Topped Banana Muffins

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I added extra!)
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, peeled and coarsely mashed


Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl to blend. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the banana. Add the dry ingredients and stir just until blended.
Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake the muffins on the middle rack until the tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out with no crumbs attached, about 25 minutes. Transfer the muffins to a rack and cool slightly.

a little electricity.

I love a good parade, but the electric ones that glow in the dark are extra special.

This weekend we celebrated summer at Six Flags and (after almost getting rained out twice!) closed down the park-- our last stop was the glow in the dark parade.