Today is a Great Day!!!

Today is a great day! First of all look at what I got from my adorable, sweet husband to celebrate our 5-month wedding anniversary...delivered to my office this morning!




Here is a recent pic of us in case you all forgot how adorable he is....he is the best!!!






Next of all, look who I won't have to hear/pretend to listen to much longer....

Gerald Myers announced his retirement from my beloved Texas Tech University...he will not be missed! At least not by me or any of my Tech-lovin' friends.

Now, it's officially time to get my football on!! Go TECH!!!

Happy 5-month anniversary back-at-ya my sweet hubby!!

Hope all of my blogger friends are having a fabulous day too!!!

Banana Bread

I took to the kitchen again this afternoon in the mood to bake something. I wasn't quite sure what I would make until I looked in our fruit stand and two very sad looking bananas were staring back at me.

Their days were limited so of course my answer was to make banana bread. I went to my stockpile of recipes that I have had for years, found my favorite recipe and planned to make it. Clearly I used to not give a darn about calories or fat content as the first ingredient was shortening....and a lot of it.

I could not do it. I knew there was no way I would be able to enjoy the way over-ripe fruits of my labor with that much shortening (other ingredients were oil and butter so needless to say Weight Watchers would not be proud of 16-pt per slice loaf of bread. So I took to the internet and found this fabulous recipe that I had to share:

Before Pic:

 

Ingredients

2/3 cup white sugar
1/4 cup margarine, softened
2 eggs (I used egg whites instead)
1 cup mashed bananas
1/4 cup water
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 heaping teaspoon of cinnamon (not in original recipe but I added and it's yummy!)


Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Spray one 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with a non-stick cooking spray.


In a medium bowl, beat the white sugar and margarine or butter until smooth and creamy. Beat in the eggs, water and bananas with the sugar mixture until it is well blended.


Mix in the flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder just until the mixture is moistened. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl to blend all ingredients.

Note: I used my KitchenAid so started with the sugar and butter then just dumped the rest of the stuff in the mixer till it was all mixed in and moved the mixture to the loaf pan.


Bake at 350 for 55 minutes (mine was perfect at 55 minutes). Bread is done when the top is firm to the touch and a golden brown color. Time will vary according to loaf size and oven type. When bread is removed from oven, allow it to cool on it's side for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and let cool on a rack. This bread is also excellent if you add mini chocolate chips or small fruit pieces to the mix just before baking.


Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 169
Total Fat: 4.9g
Cholesterol: 35mg
Sodium: 275mg
Total Carbs: 28.8g
Dietary Fiber: 1g
Protein: 3.1g

Here is the finished product and it's delicious!!! Enjoy!

Zac Brown Band

My husband and I love music. He moreso than me for sure but we love having the tunes on at home while we cook or sit on the back deck relaxing. This morning he asked if I would want to go to the Zac Brown Band show at Red Rocks. Ummm....YES!!! Red Rocks is a pretty awesome venue in itself!

 

 

So I just logged on to get us some tickets and, much to my dismay and clear dissapointment tickets for general admission are $197 a piece. Really? I want to know the secret to the other fans to know how $400 is an affordable decision for a couple to go enjoy a concert? $400.

 

Here is what else I could get for $400 dollars:

• Round-trip flights to Texas to see family and friends
• Haircuts for two years
• Weekend in the mountains with my husband
• Electricity in the house for six months
• Gas for another six months
• Groceries for 2.5 months at least

And the list goes on...

 

So, needless to say I will not be spending $400 on a 3-hour concert. So instead, we've opted to save $385 and go buy this:

 

 

 

And we'll crank it up and sit here:

 

 

 

And enjoy a little concert of our own at home. Just the two of us. And for free.