Yeehaw!

Well, here we are in Texas, and it shurr is a hot one.  Muy cal-i-en-tay.

Thankfully the flights were uneventful.  Whereas flying for me used to elicit panic attacks, I find myself having fewer and fewer white-knuckle moments the more I fly with Dr. D.  It's to the point now where I can just sit down, buckle up, link my fingers in his, and drift off to sleep.  And by the time I wake up, he's already ordered me a Diet Coke and peanuts.  Good man.

We're visiting my parents for the first time since they moved here to the Gulf of Mexico.  It's strange to see all the furniture I grew up with in a new setting, but somehow their new house still feels like home.  It might have something to do with the fact that there are pictures like this around:

{Our wedding day - Mom being thoroughly entertained by Dr. D}

Of course we started missing J-dog the minute we got in the car on the way to the airport, so it was great to get the customary grunt-filled, tail-chasing greeting from Old Man when we arrived at my parents' house.  It didn't take him long to get back to the sock-stealing hijinx for which he is infamous.  Luckily Dr. D's socks were a little too big for him to down whole---in high school, my footie socks were never as lucky.

{Old Man with Dr. D's socks}

Bye-bye Bananas, Hello Muffins.

As a teen, my Dad insisted that I eat a banana every morning with my breakfast.  I completely resented it at the time, although I'm sure the potassium kept me from being a walking bruise during my rigorous year-round basketball playing days.

Needless to say, once I was in charge of my own breakfast planning, I avoided bananas completely.

It took me a long time to be able to eat anything banana-related after that, but I've finally come around and have discovered that in moderation, they're actually pretty great.  By far the best part about them is when they get too ripe, and I'm absolutely forced to turn them into something sweet and delicious.

Have a recipe!

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup white -or- brown sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 egg -or- 1/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup plain yogurt -or- milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (approx. 2 bananas)

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In another bowl, combine the egg/applesauce, oil, yogurt/milk, and vanilla.  Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.  Fold in bananas and chocolate chips.  Fill greased or paper-lined cups two-thirds full.  Bake for 22 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.  Serves approximately 18 muffins.

Mason Jar Munchies

There are two things you should know about me before we dive in to this post:

1. I am becoming increasingly addicted to Pinterest.
2. Growing up in my mother's household, I've developed a lifelong affinity for mason jars.  They were a constant presence around the house, often filled to their frosty brims with ice water.  Nothing can make hydrating more appealing, in my opinion.

Needless to say, when I found this recipe while investing (not wasting!) my time perusing Pinterest boards, I knew I had to give it a try.  Monkey bread is one of Dr. D's favorite childhood sweets and I was pleasantly surprised to discover that these adorable single-serve desserts are sinfully simple to make.

Here's the recipe and some pictures, if you'd like to give it a try---and believe me, you should.

You'll need:

• four 8-oz. mason jars
• 10 refrigerated biscuts {typically one package}
• 1/2 cup of white sugar
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar
• 1 tsp. of ground cinnamon
• a quarter stick of butter, melted {optional}

First, separate the biscuits and cut each one into fourths.  Mix the white sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon together in a bowl.  {Side note: While buzzing about the kitchen in giddy anticipation, Dr. D discovered that scooping a bit of this sugary mix with a tortilla chip resulted in a tasty snack akin to Taco Bell cinnamon twists.  Go figure.}

Each piece of biscuit will then be tossed into the sugary mix for coating.  I decided to melt a little bit of butter, dip my fingers in, and lightly coat each piece before putting them into the bowl.  The original recipe doesn't call for this, but Dr. D recounted to me the awesome butteryness of the monkey bread he used to eat as a kid, so I decided to go for broke.

Once all pieces are in the bowl, toss to your heart's content!  After the pieces are sufficiently coated, prep the four mason jars with cooking spray and place ten of the biscuit pieces in each, periodically sprinkling some of the extra sugary mixture between layers.

Place the mason jars in a high-edged pan and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 15 minutes, until the dough has risen and you can see the sugar bubbling.  {I let mine cook for 17 minutes, because the dough hadn't risen as much as I wanted---I imagine the timing changes based on the brand and type of biscuits you're using.}

Remove from the oven and let the jars cool for about 5 minutes before serving.  Dr. D and I each had one fresh out of the oven---highly recommended!---and I've lidded the other two and am refrigerating them for later.  We also discovered that chopsticks proved to be a fantastic implement for fishing the delicious bread bites out of the jar.

Yum!

To: Tree, From: Apple

 {Mom's fruit and veggie collection of salt & pepper shakers}

I can't think of a better way to un-ground myself after the successful completion of my marathon paper than with a post about the incredible woman who brought me in to this world.

Seriously, incredible.  She gave birth to me, the first child, naturally and free from pain medications while meditating on a picture of the Grand Teton Mountains.

I mean... wow.  Good find, Dad.

To celebrate you on this day, Mom, I'd like to highlight some of my favorite things about you:

• Your giggle, be it absentmindedly when you're not sure what else to do, or uncontrollable (which is often the case when Dr. D is around and in typical witty form).
• Your artistic skill, from setting a decadently decorated dinner table to drawing construction plans for a room revolving entirely around an antique pane of stained glass.
• The way you've always fostered my artistic side, and that I'm able to credit my confidence in those abilities mostly to the fact that I know it runs in my genes.
• Your occasional absent-mindedness, which has led to many laughing fits in their aftermath.
• How you're such a good sport when Dad, Broseph, and I tease you.
• The way you pinch your bottom lip with your thumb and index finger when you're thinking hard about what to do.
• The way you manage to make any place where you are feel like a home.
• How you've modeling for me the delicate balance between independence and loving devotion to a spouse.

I'm not particularly fond of saying "I could go on forever..." mostly because that's usually a cop-out and in every way a gross exaggeration of time.  Suffice it to say there's plenty more I could list, but I'll save it for a less public forum.  Just know that you're a huge part (at least half, I'd say) of the person I am today, and I am so thankful for you.  I love you.

Happy Mothers Day.