Busy Weekend and Pumpkin Bars

Hello. Today I'm coming to you with an uneasy stomach. Last week Sammy wasn't feeling well and then a couple of days ago, Alex complained of a tummy ache. I guess it was inevitable that I too would come down with the same bug. Phooey. Though I can honestly say that it hasn't slowed me down one bit and most importantly, it hasn't stripped me of my Christmas spirit. In fact, during the wee hours of last night, I crept like a ninja to my beloved laptop and ran my fingers along the keyboard pressing the "proceed to checkout" button with the enthusiasm of a shopaholic. It's incredible how much Christmas shopping I've done in my bathrobe. Tummy ache or not, I just couldn't refrain from getting the shopping done. And perhaps this isn't such good news, I've suddenly developed a school girl crush on endless.com, and zappos.com, and amazon.com and a whole bunch more. Whenever I'm on one site, I feel like I'm cheating on the other and so I try to give equal attention to all... not making one feel more important than the other... I love them equally. YIKES, I said, love -- it's gotten more serious than I thought.

In other news...

I had a birthday on Saturday. I had planned to go with the family to a shi shi French bakery and then do a little window shopping but the rain, wind and cold convinced me to think of something to do indoors. We took the girls to Kid's Quest Children's Museum in Factoria Mall. Have you been there? If you haven't, know that it is a delightful place filled interactive displays for children and adults to enjoy. We must have spent a good two hours {or more} there. The kids were thrilled which meant I was thrilled which made for a fantastic birthday. Here are a few images from Kid's Quest:

From left to right:

The play zone for 1 to 3 year old

The suction tubes {so fun}

Waterworks

Tree house

Semi-Truck {which kids seem to love the most}

Giant Light Bright

There are a ton more things to do there and I wish I could show you every nook and cranny.

Then yesterday was a trip to the ice rink ...

...then the book store...

....then the shoe store...

...then we finally stopped to have a snack...

We didn't buy any books or shoes, but we still had loads of fun. The girls drank hot chocolate and you can see Jon in the background waiting for my Cappuccino and his Americano.

And then finally... I know this is a long post so bear with me please... I have a recipe for you. Pumpkin Bars!!! These are so delicious and easy to make. I had one at a preschool party and could not get them out of my mind. I finally broke down and asked for the recipe. I'm told that this can be made with Bananas if you're not so thrilled about pumpkin.

I made these for a Christmas Party and everyone loved them. They're moist and remind me more of a cake than a bar. I think you'll enjoy them too.

Pumpkin Bars

Recipe from: A New Friend

Ingredients

4 eggs
1 c. oil

2 c. sugar
1 tsp salt
2 c. pumpkin (or banana)
2 c. flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 350.

Grease and flour a rimmed cookies sheet (half sheet size). Combine ingredients in order. Mix batter after adding the sugar, then again after adding the pumpkin, flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool and then frost.

Frosting

2 1/2 c. powdered sugar
3 oz. cream cheese (I use 4 oz.)
¾ of a stick of butter
1 tsp milk (I use 2 tsp.)

Allow butter and cream cheese to come to room temperature. Mix sugar, cream cheese, vanilla and butter in an electric mixer, add milk at the end. Spread on cooled bars. Sprinkle mini chocolate chips over top.