It Rains in Rain Forests, B-day Fun, and I Heart Sprouts!

Hiya Bloggers!!

Yes..it rains in rain forests...interesting story. But, first off... recap from little guy's  birthday celebration (on the day of)! My son turned 5 this week! 5 years old!! I say it twice, as I am really in shock. It seems like just yesterday that he was born and having taking life by storm. He is my miracle child. Long story short (I'll include his birth story on another post). So, the morning of big birthday he requested apple muffins..okay, simple enough. WRONG! It was a flop but he didn't seem to mind. Yay! Not sure what went wrong. So, at this point the recipe is not worth sharing..but, I'll share some pics..

Happy boy!!

This week I also started sprouting my own alfalfa sprouts! Yay! I love sprouts: the smell, taste, color..the whole nine yards. There is something magical about watching them go from tiny seed to sprout. Just kinda fun! They are like little babies which grow and flourish...okay, I'll stop.  I also love how nutritious they are..so far I have only sprouted lentils and alfalfa seeds. I'm sure I won't be stopping there.

Here's some info on the benefits of eating sprouts in case you haven't jumped on the sprout-eating bandwagon YET!

Sprout Info

More Sprout Info

Right before I put them outside under the sun for 15 minutes to activate enzymes!

Moving back to birthday fun! Here is one of my favorite pictures taken from his birthday party. It was a carousel theme, but little man wanted a super hero thrown into the mix so I made him cupcakes (which didn't make the trip from home to park to well, thus no picture is included) with Spider Man on them. That made him happy..you see, his younger cousin, who has the same birthday as him was also celebrating her birthday on the same day...it was a shared party. So, carousel theme for her with a splash of super hero for him. ;-)

At the fountains, soaking up the sun

Fun times was had by all..

Now back to Rain happening in rain forests...Rocky and I did a day hike of 13.5 miles at Fontana Dam in the Smokies last weekend. It was great fun! Rocky's mom and dad watched the kids for us! Let's see...it's the Smokies, and being a rain forest that it is it rains ALOT! As I get older and become less and less high maintenance (it's true) I decided I would only pack an extra fleece. Just hike in the clothes on my back. 

So, never wear jeans for even a day hike. Let's just say that by the time we reached the trailhead my jeans were soaked and I asked Rocky if he had any scissors..to complete the hike without being tortured with heavy pants we decided to make them into shorts. I did contemplate just hiking in my underwear, but I thought other hikers might be taken a bit off guard by another hiker trekking down the trail in her skiivies.. so shorts it was...it rained and thunder stormed for about four miles of our hike. Great fun! Seriously...this was a blast as I love mud and spening time with the hubster!! I can't wait to do it again! Next time, I will pack appropriate clothing! ;-) Either that or embrace the idea of hiking in underwear. Hahaha!

No pictures were taken during the hike as I did not want the camera getting wet.  It was so fun..I love hiking! Great to get into nature, enjoy each other's company without the business of everyday life, and exercise all at the same time! We were pulling 3-minute miles, roughly. Fun times!

Have you ever not packed appropriately for a long hike? What are your stories?

Whirlwind Week Recap & Banana Muffin YumYums!

Hello all! It seems like my posts are few and far between. This one is no different. I am so happy, though, that I can take a few moments each day to keep up to date on the fabulous blogs I follow. You all truly inspire me in the kitchen, for sure. I've been trying out lots of new recipes lately (all coming from some wonderful blogs out there). I will post pics and recipes and where I got them soon.

Life here has been super busy!!! It's pretty much been a whirl wind of a week, but a wonderful one at that. This is one of my favorite times of year. This week was obviously 4th of July for us Americans and then...on the 6th, Rocky and I celebrated 7 years of marriage. Since we both had work to do that day on various projects we celebrated it in passing, but will officially celebrate it together on a night without the young sprouts soon.

And...on the 7th our youngest sprout turned 3! Yep, she was born on 7/7/07 and she was three days early. The years have flown by all too quickly. Where's that pause button when you need it,right? Lol.  We will have a small get together with family on the 11th to celebrate!! On the morning of her birthday, I made yummy vegan banana muffins which turned out soooo lovely! Our tastebuds danced!

THREE CANDLE BLOW-OUT

Next time I won't add as much sugar, as the bananas are a great sweetener. Maybe drop the sugar by half next time is what I will do. Here's the recipe: The Best Banana Muffins Ever


FROM VEGWEB.COM
Ingredients (use vegan versions):

    2 tablespoons unsalted vegan soy butter
    2 heaping tablespoons sugar
    1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
    2 very large ripe bananas
    1/2 cup all purpose flour
    1/2 cup dry oats
    1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
    1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
    pinch of salt
    walnuts or carob chips, optional

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Put the butter, sugar, and vanilla extract in a pan on a low heat to melt, then remove and set aside for a few minutes.

Mash the bananas and, in another bowl, measure out the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Don't over mix: just stir a couple of times; you will have a not terribly attractive lumpy sludge, but don't worry about it.

Fill the muffin trays about two-thirds full of mixture. Put in the oven and cook about 25 minutes. Leave in pan for 5 minutes, then remove to wire rack for another 5-10 minutes or until cool.

Enjoy the recipe!! It is really great!!

Serves: 24 mini size or 10 full size

Preparation time: 15 minutes


When these were done in the oven I sprinkled them with chia seeds, as I am chia-seed obsessed. They added a great crunch to the finished goodness! 


Later that evening we headed to Chester Frost Park. This is a very nice place with a nice little beach...the water was so nice and warm.

SAND CASTLE TIME

Rocky tried my raw pasta for the first time...first time I made it so, obviously...first time he tried it. ;-) And YAY...he liked it!! Hmm...the recipe?? It was super easy. I do not currently own a spirlizer YET so I used a carrot peeler and shredded a zucchini squash..topped that with marinara sauce (will soon be homemade sauce once my tomatoes in my garden start coming in and can't wait for that!!). That's it. I will get fancier with it, but I'm was happy as so were the kids and the hubby! 

ABOUT TO EAT

HELLO, RAW PASTA!

Sorry the picture doesn't really show the goodness of the pasta...it was pack and go and no time for a food photo shoot. ;-)

Have you ever made raw pasta? What's your favorite recipe? I'd love to learn new recipes! Please tell Kell..