Monday, March 23, 2009

Mmm Honey Bars...

Jumping from this blog to that, I stumbled upon the most delicious sounding treat - honey bars drizzled with a sweet glaze. Perfect to pair with a warm cup of tea on a drizzly spring day in Oregon. The recipe didn't dissapoint, but instead of the sophisticated presentation I found online, Abby and I pressed the sticky sweet dough into our teddy bear demarle pan for a fun, kid friendly treat.

HoneyBars:
3/4 c. oil
1/4 c. honey
1 c. sugar
1 egg
2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon

Mix oil, honey, sugar, and egg together and set aside. Mix dry ingredients together. Add dry to wet ingredients and mix well (expect a thick, pasty batter). Spread into a greased pan* (the recipe suggested a cookie sheet). Bake at 325 for 15-18 minutes.

*We used a demarle silicone bake pan so we did not add any grease.

Icing:
1 c. powder sugar
1 tsp vanilla*
milk as needed for consistency

*I did 3/4 tsp vanilla and 1/4 tsp almond for flavor

Ice the bars while still warm. Cut into squares once cool.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Blogging...

I haven't been a very good blogger... perhaps it's that I always put off sitting down to write unless I have time to post pictures as well, or maybe it's because I am so busy between work and kids, or maybe I am just lazy. It certainly isn't for lack of things to talk about... so here goes, another feeble attempt to keep this site up to date (regardless of if I can post pictures).

Just when we thought the weather had turned for the better, we got snow - in March! I think the kids and myself are all a bit stir crazy for warmer days when we can play at the park without needing hats, gloves, clothes of many layers, coats... on and on.

Caleigh is growing like a weed. She is our little string bean, tall and thin, and her caramel colored curls are coming in to frame her face in sunlight. Sunlight actually best describes her! She is so easy going, tumbling haphazardly through this life, always trying to get into something and trying desperately to win her sister's affections. Caleigh loves: her blankie, baby dolls, running around "nakie" (naked), finding her belly, finding (and poking) your eyes, and books. She has quite the vocab, perhaps a bit more than Abigail at this age, in part because she listens and tries to repeat everything you say. Daddy calls her his "little boy" (he wishes) because compared to her older sis, she doesn't mind getting dirty, climbs on everything, is able to take a tumble w/o tears, and laughs like an old man - a deep belly laugh that surprises me and makes me smile every time. Caleigh is still not much of a sleeper, but I'll be damned if she drops her only nap this early!!

Abigail continues to challenge and amaze us. She is a very sensitive little girl, creative and dramatic - most happy in her own little dream world I think. This is not unlike someone else I used to know (me maybe?). She is the polar opposite of her sister - dark thick curls and constant attention to detail. Abby has a photographic memory, reciting songs and books verbatim - I am just amazed. Abby loves: princesses, playing baby (she is the baby) or playing mommy, reading books, doing school work, ballet. At school, Abby is learning a new letter each week, and while she already knew her letters going in, she is now learning phonics and reading - so she likes to point out street signs everywhere we go with the latest letter. She is also obsessed with growing up - we actually had a fight that lasted all the way to school about when she could turn five (5), as if I was somehow holding her back from this magical age. I know that I have told her that she gets to go to the big school (i.e. public school) when she turns 5, so perhaps this explains the obsession. She also loves school buses and can spot them a mile away which invariably leads to the "when will I be 5" discussion.

Our days are full lately - these two little princesses keep us on our toes. I still love working part-time, though there are days when I think I am way better at my job than as a mom. I get totally overwhelmed by why I can't seem to keep my house clean, come up with creative new activities with the kids, cook, sew, save the planet, on and on... but then Caleigh smiles, or Abby sings a new song about animals (American Idol she is not) and I am saved for the moment... Abby just woke up and is doing chasse moves around the kitchen to get my attention... til next time...