Muffins, AC, & the BG

Even if you don't like bran, I bet you'll like these. Mama made the original recipe for me while she was here just after MC's birth. They called for raisins, which T and MW won't eat, so when we finished off the original mix, I decided to tweak the recipe a bit...in an effort to make these babies a little more healthy and with raisin substitution plans...

Here's the beautiful thing about this recipe...the mix keeps for 6-8 weeks in the fridge and takes minutes to prepare and you get fresh, made from scratch muffins anytime! And they are DELICIOUS!!!

All-Bran Blueberry Muffins

4 c flour

1.5 c wheat flour

2.25 c sugar

5 c All-Bran

3 T baking soda

1 qt buttermilk

1.5 c oil

4 eggs

.5 c molasses

turbinado sugar (for sprinkling)

fresh blueberries (you'll add these the day you bake 'em - I do 8-10 per muffin)

Add liquid to dry ingredients

Keeps 6-8 weeks in fridge

Baking Instructions:

Spray or line muffin tin. Fill cups half way and sprinkle with blueberries, top with another spoonful of muffin mix and more blueberries (I have to push them in a little to get them to stay). Sprinkle lightly with turbinado sugar. Bake 20 minutes at 375˚

Enjoy!

Saturday morning we went to the pool.

MC chilled in the stroller.

MW got to show off her skills. She can swim underwater with her eyes open...and jump off the diving board...and go down the slide. This is BIG! (Um...slightly over exposed pic...oops.)

Little man kept cool in the baby pool. No swim diapers allowed in the big pool. (Which has been motivational...I think.)

After a full morning of swimming, we headed home for lunch and some down time. Sometime Saturday afternoon things began to feel a bit warm in the house. And they only got warmer. T, being quite literally a jack of all trades, headed out to remove the AC panel and investigate. He's done this several times before and successfully made repairs (even in the middle of the night sporting nothing but his boxers...).

When he pulled the panel off, the wires on the unit sparked. Long story short, the contactor had literally burned. And so the AC wasn't cooling. And it was Saturday afternoon. Home improvement stores don't carry that kind of thing. I assumed we were sentenced to intense heat until Monday, probably Tuesday, as the part would have to be ordered...but alas, my genius husband made several calls and tracked down the part. A very kind repair guy in a town not too far away had the part and actually agreed to sell it to us. We loaded up, drove way out, T talked the guy into selling him a second contactor, so we'd have a spare, and we headed home. T made the repair in a few short minutes and ahhh...that wonderful cool air!

He's always telling me he's "just a man."

No. He isn't "just a man."

He is "the man." Every single thing he puts his mind to, he does, and does well.

Oh, by the way, each contactor cost us a whopping $10.98. Not bad, huh?

Sunday morning we got to worship the Lord together, as in, all five of us! MC slept the entire time. MW "took notes." (Post service, we asked her what the sermon was about. Her reply: "I think he talked about God and Jesus and the Bible." Um, yes...we have a little work to do there.) Little man made it partway into the preaching. That's the longest he's lasted. Time spent singing "How Great Is Our God" was precious. We sang about time being in God's hands...the beginning and the end, which is an awesome and precious truth to be reminded of, especially while standing there, surrounded by my husband and our three precious children. The beginning and the end - it is all in His hands.

Sunday afternoon we headed to the Botanical Gardens to stretch our legs a bit.

We saw some beautiful Koi fish...

and watched them splash a bit near the surface...

Little man led the way on the trail...

closely followed, and sometimes passed by a delighted big sister...

who pretended we were on a treasure hunt...

and also wore her Cinderella dress...

she and her bro were too busy fighting to spot this beauty...

but man did they team up and have fun skipping through the muscadines...

T gave a lesson on how windmills work...

little man was enthralled...

and kept looking up...

and when he was forbidden from playing in the water beneath the windmill, he took off running...

I was the odd ball snapping pics left and right. No one else noticed this. I think they were hot and tired and ready to go at this point.

Makes me marvel at God's creativity.

MW was wiped out. As soon as T unlocked the car, she was in it.

But a few feet shy of the car, the little man got a rock in his shoe and sat down to remove it...at which time a bug landed on his face...resulting in a total meltdown.

All said, it was a wonderful day!