Just Thoughts and Nothing Else

Easy to make and you don't even have to take out your mixer. Easy, easy, easy.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 18-20 minutes
Servings: 14 muffins


1 1/2 C all purpose flour
1 teas. baking soda
1 teas. baking powder
1/2 teas. salt
1/2 teas. cinnamon

3 mashed bananas
3/4 C honey
1 egg slightly beaten
1/3 C melted butter


Topping:
1/3 C packed brown sugar
2T all purpose flour
1 T. butter (cold)

Mix 1st 5 dry ingredients together
In a separate bowl combine next 4 wet ingredients
Mix wet into dry stirring until moistened
Fill muffin cups 2/3 full
Cover with topping mix and;
Bake 375 in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes
Remove from oven when centers spring back.
Top with a little more topping if you wish.

Delicious & Easy!!! Enjoy

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 Kids and baseball are such a wonderful site to see but from a grandmother's point of view is seems extraordinary especially when you have three grandsons on the same team!
Yesterday was phenomenal!  Yes of course I notice all the kids playing and I'm a team player but maybe because I'm the Grandmother of those three fantastic boys!  One's a third basemen, one is a pitcher or first baseman and the youngest and fastest is a shortstop and outfielder (don't ask which position because I just was lucky enough to get these spots down in my head)  But he's the outfielder because he's got such a great arm that he can throw the ball all the way to home plate!  They are only 10, 10 and 8. The pitcher is the one that they call in when the game is getting ahead of them and he tries to keep the runs down by striking the kids out.  It's amazing to see.

They have won 10 out of 12 games and then this was their championship game and unfortunately they lost this one and although they were pretty sad and upset, they've got great coaches who really make them feel proud and above it all.  They walk away okay with the whole situation and understand they can't win them all!
But what I find fascinating to watch as a grandmother, is that I remember going through this as a mom and It's like watching my kids all over again.  Difference is, my kids were okay at baseball but they weren't the outstanding players that these little guys are.  I remember one kid that was on my son's team when they were little, and he was phenomenal and really took the game serious for so young and while I watched my grandson's playing yesterday, I saw that my grandson's were pretty darn phenomenal themselves, so much that I think they will be into sports for some time!  Our pitcher, seems to excel in every sport he plays and he loves the game.  I think he will be one of those kids that gets scholarships for college because of his abilities!  His name is shouted so much throughout the game for great plays and fantastic pitching.


So I'm pretty proud and I loved watching their game.
Time passes so fast in your life, so don't blink too fast because you just might miss something phenomenal! 
Being a grandparent feels like watching your life in a sense start all over again but with aches and pains you didn't have being a mom but it still feels like you are really seeing your children out there on the field all over again.  The flashing before your eyes feeling.

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This song is where I want to be again in my life and I'm sure some day that will happen.
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I have this thing I used to call "My to do list before I leave this earth" and suddenly a few years ago I went to a movie called "The bucket list" and I now had a new name for what I've been referring to as my to do list!
I have been trying to complete a lot of things on my bucket list because of things that have happened in my life in the past 4 years that make me think that life is very short indeed and now's the time since there's no time like the present to  make them happen.
So this last weekend my girlfriend invited me to her home in Baraboo Wisconsin and I had the most wonderful time!  Her, her husband and daughter are the most accommodating people I have ever known.  Always so wonderful and interesting to be with.  Lots of laughs, lots of shopping, lots of impromptu moments and lots of long time memories to share.  The impromptu moment that I am referring to this time, was riding past an airport and seeing a sign that said "Airplane rides"  I said, Oooo can we stop and of course they did and before you know all three of us were in a single engine plane, 1,000 feet in the air over lake redstone and the pilot was letting me take the wheel.  He told me to wait until the gage gets to 60 knots and then start pulling back on the wheel (or whatever you call it) and he showed me all the gages and what they do and where I need to be and what a time I had.  I think for a few minutes my friends, mostly my girlfriend were almost ready to panic but it happened so fast, that before they could even get time to think, there we were above the little town of Baraboo and Wisconsin Dells enjoying a beautifully clear day and snapping pictures.
They were responsible for allowing me to get to do one more thing on my bucket list and that was flying a plane!  Yes, I realize I wasn't really doing the flying for real, but it sure felt like it because the pilot only took control of the wheel when he thought I was going to fast or turning it too hard but it sure felt like I was flying and after all was said and done, my friends were also amazed that I talked them into it without them thinking about it.  But they sure were glad when it was over and commented how utterly amazing it really was!
So here's just a few pictures to enjoy of another of the adventures of "Jan's Bucket List"
Maybe you have one too?












 Taking Off, Yahooooooo!











Over Reedsburg, Wi. near the Dells
















 Over Lake Redstone










See the wheel?












By the way, I've got more things planned for this summer that are on my bucket list, but I'll surely have loads of pictures to share once I make them happen!
I've already jumped in the ocean and did some snorkeling even though I can't swim and I really can't use the  snorkel because I have asthma, but I used the goggles to view the fish beneath me because of a wonderful young captain of the catamaran who went into the water with me and a couple life jackets.
Then I was able to get onto a train all by myself again this last fall to meet with my friends in Elmhurst so they wouldn't always have to drive so far to get me.  I know it doesn't sound like a lot, but for me it was a great accomplishment.
I've also gone on a plane by myself to meet up with friends in Florida this last winter and went on a cruise with some friends too!  I am starting to have so much fun again.
So in a couple of weeks, I am going to try Hot Air Ballooning at a festival in a nearby town.  I'll let you know how that goes too.



RISK more than others think is safe

CARE  more than others think is wise

DREAM more than others think is pratical

EXPECT more than others think possible.
(unknown author)
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Here's the cake that my granddaughter designed!  The only things not edible on this cake are the animals, the rocks, and the green leaves.  The trees are made from pizzeles and gum paste. The bumble bees are of gumpaste too that are on the top bee hive cake which is a lemon poundcake.  The middle cake is a confetti cake filled with sprinkles and has green grass like frosting to represent what else, grass.  The bottom layer which represent the earth is chocolate, chocolate, chocolate.  The waterfall is made of chocolate as well

My granddaughter loves to draw, paint, create, dance, sing and is the love of my life as are all of my grand children, and they are all so special in their own ways.

 She is always there for me and I will be always there for her.  She brings light into my life and makes sunshine come in each and every moment that I think of her. 
I give her respect for her thoughts and she does for mine.  She is a little girl with an old soul that is thoughtful, caring, loving and generous.  She tries to see good in all.

So I hope her birthday was special for her as I hoped, especially since creating this cake together was so special for me too.

So Happy Birthday to my sweet, special angel and know that you are loved!
 
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I'll tell you a little story about our friendly little birds we call Robins.

About 2 1/2 years ago, this Robin suddenly appears at my window that faces the south and has a railing near the window where as a bird can sit if he likes, if he behaves and doesn't leave me his droppings all over the deck, the glider, the railing and much to my amazement, all over my windows too. 
Shortly after my husband passed away the following spring this bird appeared and of course my children have a tendency to think it's my husband coming back re-incarnated in this bird!  I understand their need to hang on, but a bird?
Well, now that I've been dealing with this bird for 2 1/2 seasons, I'm starting to wonder myself only for the sheer fact that this bird is relentless and is wearing on my patience.  My husband was a very determined man and his favorite place to sit any time of the day was in that particular area of our deck.  He loved his glider very much.  But the odd thing is this, when the bees or flies would bother him on his glider he would swat them with his fly swatter and then line their bodies on that particular railing located next to the window in question.  He said he was doing that so they (the bees and flies) would go tell their friends to stay away from that crazy man on the glider once they seen their buddies bodies laying all over the railing.  Yes, this might sound a little crazy but if you knew my husband, you would know immediately that he loved to make people laugh and he loved to make people wonder how sane he really was?
So back to the bird.  One day this bird was sitting on the railing and I started to hear a loud sort of thumping.  at first, I didn't know where it was coming from because I guess as I passed the area where you could see the windows I am talking about, the bird would fly away.  It happened several times throughout the day but always started about 5:00 am every morning like clockwork. A few days of this had gone by and one day I noticed there was this white stuff all over one of the windows.  I got closer to the source and noticed it was bird droppings and I kept thinking that it was impossible that this just couldn't be that because birds don't fly sideways.  The thumping continued and now I was sneaking up on this bird in case it was the reason for the bird droppings and I wasn't quite convinced yet that a bird could do this because it was not actual bird droppings but smeared white stuff.  Well, it was the stupid bird and he was slamming his body against my windows and jumping back on the railing.  He would slam his body for 20 minutes if you let him and come back later in the day and do it all over again.  I'm telling you he is crazy!
I got all kinds of advice from the internet, friends etc, but the thumping and droppings continued and the first season of this bird almost drove me insane!  Next spring came and back again.  This time the bird was getting braver and if I blocked one window with newspaper and then colored paper, he would go to the next one.  But each time he would get nastier.  He would hop along the railing as if he were daring me to try and catch him.  I couldn't wait until the summer was over with this bird and the only reason I didn't kill him, is because I just couldn't!  I had people offer to kill him for me, but I couldn't bear the burden of the guilt of killing something so much smaller than myself and I am the one supposedly with the intelligence here and why can't I figure out something to re mediate this problem.  Why couldn't I find the answer?
Another summer gone and now I'm on my third season with this bird who seems to be trying to get into the house or just get even with me for something!  Yes, I'm going a little nuts right now because I don't feel that I should have to cover my windows completely with paper as not to be able to see out of them, let alone deal with not having sun shine through my cleaned windows.  So I tried hanging things from the window like a balloon sock, a wind spinner, snakes on the railings (rubber ones) and decals on the inside of the windows.
To no avail, this bird just tries to go between them and still if they are moving too much, he goes to the next window, and by the way there is stuff all over them too, but whichever one is moving less he goes to.  Now I've resorted to hanging balloons off the back windows but they deflate too quickly and I'm left with having to put up with this again.
This morning was the the last morning I could stand it anymore and I had to go out and clean everything off of everywhere because he had a field day this weekend because I was gone quite a lot and wasn't here to monitor his actions and throw a slipper at the windows to scare him away.  He ate something bad I think cause it was a mess.  This bird is so determined, that I've given up and taped all kinds of paper all over my windows again!  He is so determined that when I put the paper on the windows and I do it to all of them, that this season he just goes to my skylights and starts slamming his body on them.  I can't throw the slipper up there because I can't look up to do so and the noise and the fact that I can't find the answer to this problem is driving me NUTS. 
So there's my dilemma, and if anyone has a real solution that really works and that I don't have to cover my sunshine from coming in, please feel free to comment.  I will not kill him, because What if?

I love my local library. They have so many activities for the young and old and most are free! It's great to go on line and easily put myself on a waiting list for the latest book. I can even renew a book I have yet to finish. Librarians make recommendations and give a little synopsis of their favorite tales. Ease and convenience make the online library a great resource. So get to your local library this summer and don't forget to bring the kids!

I have to say that I was pretty impressed with the teacher!  Soft spoken yet very expressive and exuberant when explaining things.  His story telling is really an approach that makes me see what I've been doing wrong with my writings.  Well at least a style of writing I kind of prefer.
People in the class were very nice, atmosphere was very comfortable and clean.  I could park the car very near the door and class wasn't too far to walk to.  All in all a good experience.

I have to write a 2-3 page story about an event in my life that was autobiographical in nature for next weeks class and then we are to read it to the class.  I don't know if I can do the reading part because of all the up and down looking but I'm going to give it a try.  "Never say die"

Coming out of the parking lot was the hardest thing I did all night!  Way too many yellow lines to follow and I don't know how people who haven't a balance problem do it let alone me, but I did get out of there and I didn't crash into any trees or posts so I guess it all turned out well.

I'm a happy camper! 

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I am starting a class tonight at our neighborhood college.  I am pretty excited about it and I hope it will be the "something" I am looking for.  I am really trying desperately to write all the things in my head that fill my days. My life experiences, my thoughts, my dreams, my silliness and if only it could help me put all of the jumbled thoughts together in a book, I would so love it.
So tonight is my first creative writing class and I will let you all know how things go.
First I have to meet the challenge of driving there, but it is within my 15 minute limit so I just might be okay.  Then I have to see how much looking up and down there will be in order for me to follow along in the class, and then it will be whatever homework is involved.  Then of course it's the embarrassment of walking in with a cane, but I know I can do this!


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I have to say I really enjoyed this picture!  I think any pictures that these two are  in are always worth seeing.
Not too realistic, but funny at times.  Watch the trailer for yourself and see what you think.


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This issue is getting increasingly front-page.... as it should!

This is very interesting and if Arizona can do it, why can't  the rest
of America ? (Read to the very last line! Shocking!)

MEXICO IS ANGRY !   Three cheers for Arizona

The shoe is on the other foot and the Mexicans from the State of
Sonora,  Mexico doesn't like it. Can you believe the nerve of these
people?  It's almost funny. The State of Sonora is angry at the influx
of Mexicans into Mexico . Nine state legislators from the Mexican
State of Sonora traveled to Tucson to complain about Arizona 's new
employer crackdown on illegals from Mexico .  It seems that many
Mexican illegals are returning to their hometowns and the officials in
the Sonora state government are ticked off.

A delegation of nine state legislators from Sonora was in Tucson on
Tuesday to state that Arizona 's new Employer Sanctions Law will have
a devastating effect on the Mexican state.  At a news conference, the
legislators said that Sonora, - Arizona's southern neighbor, - made up
of mostly small towns, - cannot handle the demand for housing, jobs
and schools that it will face as Mexican workers return to their
hometowns from the USA without jobs or money.

The Arizona law, which took effect Jan. 1, punishes Arizona employers
who knowingly hire individuals without valid legal documents to work
in the United States. Penalties include suspension of, or loss of,
their business license.

The Mexican legislators are angry because their own citizens are
returning to their hometowns, placing a burden on THEIR state
government. 'How can Arizona pass a law like this?' asked Mexican Rep
Leticia Amparano-Gamez, who represents Nogales .  There is not one
person living in Sonora who does not have a friend or relative working
in Arizona,' she said, speaking in Spanish. 'Mexico is not prepared
for this, for the tremendous problems it will face as more and more
Mexicans working in Arizona and who were sending money to their
families return to their home-towns in Sonora without jobs,' she said.
'We are one family, socially and economically,' she said of the people
of Sonora and Arizona.

Wrong!

The United States is a sovereign nation, not a subsidiary of Mexico ,
and its taxpayers are not  responsible for the welfare of Mexico 's
citizens.  It's time for the Mexican government, and its citizens, to
stop feeding parasitically off the United States and to start taking
care of its/their own needs.

Too bad that other states within the USA don't pass a law just like
that passed by Arizona.  Maybe that's the answer, since our own
Congress will do nothing!

New Immigration Laws: Read to the bottom or you will miss the message...

1. There will be no special bilingual programs in the schools.
2. All ballots will be in this nation's language..
3. All government business will be conducted in our language.
4. Non-residents will NOT have the right to vote no matter how long
they are here.
5. Non-citizens will NEVER be able to hold political office
6. Foreigners will not be a burden to the taxpayers. No welfare, no
food stamps, no health care, or other government assistance programs.
Any burden will be deported.
7. Foreigners can invest in this country, but it must be an amount at
least equal to 40,000 times the daily minimum wage.
8. If foreigners come here and buy land... options will be restricted.
Certain parcels including waterfront property are reserved for
citizens naturally born into this country.
9. Foreigners may have no protests; no demonstrations, no waving of a
foreign flag, no political  organizing, no bad-mouthing our president
or his policies. These will lead to deportation.
10. If you do come to this country illegally, you will be actively
hunted and when caught, sent to jail until your deportation can be
arranged. All assets will be taken from you.

Too strict ?  The above laws are current immigration laws of MEXICO!

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