busy bee

It's going to be a busy couple of weeks, or maybe months. B and I packed a ton of stuff yesterday; we still have a ton more to pack. I found more things for our garage sale next Saturday. I probably could have gotten rid of more things. I have a lot of fun party and holiday dishes that we don't use very often. We can actually have people over to the new house - it's great for entertaining, so maybe we'll get more use out of those things.

We are also on the hunt for a new daycare or home daycare. It's a hard choice; it's a big decision. The place where Anna goes now won't be convenient at all for B or me. We visited one home daycare where the lady and her husband are super nice, but I worry that they are too old. I have a few more people to call. I also found some places online to check out in the coming weeks or during the summer. I feel stressed about this decision.

As far as the recipes from this post go:
1. I made mini breakfast pastries - they were delicious. PW likes them warm out of the oven, but I prefer them the next day. They taste like cinnamon sugar donuts.
2. I also made the banana nut muffins as minis. They were good. I would make them again.
3. The mini chocolate chip muffins weren't that great. I wouldn't make them again.
4. The punch was yummy. I had to make 1/2 at a time because there was so much liquid involved. I froze it in 4 gallon size Ziploc bags. I took it out to thaw when I left in the am (around 6:30), and by 10:30, I could use my hands to crush it inside the Ziploc bags before putting it in the punch bowl.

We only have 8 days of school with kids - I can hardly believe the year is almost over. It's been a good year, but I'm excited to spend the summer with Anna. We've had a fun 3-day weekend. She's so darn cute.

baking plans

I'm getting excited about my many baking opportunities coming up. I know, I should be packing, cleaning, or putting the laundry away, but that's not fun - planning a party is much better. I'm having a little program for my students and their parents next week. I have PLANS to bake the following things, but I might just end up with the regular boxed version, which is ok too.
These links will help me organize my to-do list as well as help me remember what I'm doing!

1. From PW: French Breakfast Puffs. I made these once before. They were yummy. I think I will make minis this time and dip in butter and cinnamon & sugar rather than coat.

2. From www.allrecipes.com: Banana Crumb Muffins. Allrecipes is a great site with endless recipes. I will probably add chopped pecans since plain banana bread is just not-quite-right.

3. From www.allrecipes.com: Chocolate Chip Muffins. The reviews suggest making it a full cup of milk, adding 1/2 t of vanilla, and 1/2 c sour cream, so I'll do that. Baking time: only 18 min.

4. From www.allrecipes.com: Party Punch IX. The reviews make it sound pretty good. I will definitely cut back to 2 c of sugar. I could probably make this a little ahead of time.

Maybe I'm crazy to think I can do this, but it's fun to think about.

grocery list: sour cream, 3 boxes fruit flavored jello, 2 (46 oz) cans pineapple juice, 1 (16 oz) bottle lemon juice concentrate, 2 bottles ginger ale, gallon Ziploc bags.