Getting My Spray Paint On . . .

Ok, so my day started with car lines (early ones today) and then came home to this -

12 cans of spray paint!
The current cramps in my hand are reminding me of all this!

Lots of touch-up needed.

This is the first coat.
Definitely a little splotchy so added a second coat to blend a little better.
No judgement on my lack of green grass.
The weeds should fill in nicely and make everything
green again!

Getting there.

Going to make this over instead of throwing it away
(unless the makeover looks horrible and then it's being recycled!).

I painted a couple tables.
I am so over green, that is so 1990s!

So I am sitting here with all the above painted and just realized that I didn't take after pictures! Oh vey! What was I thinking?? I guess it is because I am not used to taking after photos, usually just befores!! I will take them tomorrow when the sun is back out because this tired rear end is on the couch! So photos to come, but that is for another post!

Funny Ha, Ha - Part 2

A girl can multi-task right!?!?

Also, these Monkey Bars are so freaking good, I thought I would share the recipe with you right now:

Monkey Bars

Ingredients

Banana Bread Bars:
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 1 cup sour cream
• ½ cup butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• 1 ¾ cups (3 or 4) ripe bananas, mashed
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Browned Butter Frosting:
• ½ cup butter
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
• about 3 tablespoons milk or half and half

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease and flour 10x15 jelly roll pan. Beat first four ingredients until creamy. Blend in bananas and vanilla for one minute. Add dry ingredients and blend for one minute. Stir in nuts and spread in pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Cool slighty until warm but not hot and frost with Browned Butter Frosting (recipe below).
2. For the Browned Butter Frosting: Heat butter in saucepan over medium heat past the melting point until it is boiling and a delicate brown. Remove from the heat and immediately add the remaining ingredients. This should be thicker than a glaze and thinner than frosting. Using a spatula smooth over the top of the Monkey Squares immediately. The frosting will be easier to spread once it's on the warm bread.

Notes

Source: TheWelcomeMat

Time to go whip up the Browned Butter Frosting and then lick the mixer paddles and clean the kitchen, but that is NOT for another post!

Funny Ha, Ha!

Ok, so I spent today cleaning out two refrigerators, reading Sea of Monsters for my book club at my daughter's school, going to the book club (yes, I read it just in time!), and now I am busy removing glue from all over after making Flubber in Girl Scouts (without the help of my co-Leader who was out-of-town!). I thought I could use a good laugh so I pulled some of my faves off my Pinterest Funny Board. Enjoy -

With that being said, I am going to call it a night too! Super tired tonight and knowing I have a busy rest of the week, time to shower, put my jammies on, pour another  a glass of wine, and put my feet up. Crap, tomorrow is the teacher's luncheon - off to make Monkey Squares! Excellent recipe that I will share with you someday but that is for another post!

Turning 40 Is Not So Bad . . .

Ok, so turning 40 is not so bad when you get 40 presents! First, I have a confession, I am not the one turning 40, I have already been there, done that (a few years ago).

These are for my sister Jennie.
Doesn't it look pretty & super fun???

Now let me clarify this a little bit. My Mom, Aunt Cyndi, sister Becky and myself each bought 10 gifts for my sister Jennie. Some were little, some were big, but the plan was for each gift to invoke a memory of Jennie, whether from childhood or an adult. There were lots of great food gifts - Lays Sour Cream and Onion Potato Chips, Twizzlers and wine, some unique gifts - a jar of cold cream (once thrown at me by the bday girl but my Neo-like (Matrix reference here) allowed me to duck and the cold cream hit a framed cross stitch instead of my face) and Mardi Gras beads (heading to New Orleans for Sugar Bowl games), and some fancy gifts - a Pandora bracelet with meaningful beads and a quilt.

I used chalkboard tags I bought on-line at
Save on Crafts and then wrote a brief little hint
as to what the gift might be.
These were candy eggs my sister adores. 

This is Gator plates and napkins.

Earlier in the day, we shopped (I will show you what little goody
I bought for myself later) and wined and dined ourselves.
Then we came home for some more appetizers,
some more wine and all the gift giving!

I tried a new recipe - Pull Apart Bloomin' Bread.
The overall opinion was okay to good.
Personally, I think I would like it better if I add
fresh garlic to the butter and use the full 16 oz. of cheese -
more is always better!

The birthday girl . . . 

is the Queen of Bumper Pool!

My mom pulled tons of old photos and we had a
great time remembering all our adventures and missteps -
like really bad bowl and asymmetrical haircuts!
(Note the clothing change, this event takes a long
time and that makes it super fun!).

The girls made a large chocolate chip cookie cake

and then helped eat it.

This is always one of my favorite weekends. Every time we get together, it always seems to be for a super busy holiday. It was nice just to mosey in downtown Ocala (yes, I said that) and visit with my family. Now I am off to go hang the souvenir gift I bought but that is for another post.