SUPER cute Shoes & Banana Bread Basics

Two of my favorite things are shoes and baking(specifically cute shoes and special requests for certain baked goods that I make) . I have been wanting a certain pair of shoes for quite some time. I have the shoes debut already planned. The ROAD ministry (http://www.roadministries.com/) is hosting its first Women's Conference next February with the theme "BEAUTIFUL FEET" and everyone is being encouraged to wear cute and fun shoes. My favorite Christian author and speaker, Angela Thomas (http://www.angelathomas.com/) will be speaking about her book, "Do You Think I'm Beautiful." Not only is Angela a fellow UNC Alum like myself, she is passionate about encouraging women's hearts by telling them how cherished, loved, and beautiful God thinks they are. Every woman in America should read this book...it is that good! The scripture it is based on is Psalm 45:11 which says, "Your King is enthralled with your beauty." If you have not read this book, I strongly encourage you to get a copy for yourself and every female you are close to. And, if you live in South Texas then I encourage you to join us for a Girls Weekend worsipping God together in February 2010.



Now, back to the cute shoe topic...the link to the store in which these coveted shoes can be found has been saved in my internet favorites for over 2 months. I have checked on them everyday, hoping that they would go on sale. But, alas, they have not, and this overly-cheap female just doesn't want to pay what the original pricetag reflects. I was starting to lose hope until today when I went to the physical store where these amazing shoes could be found and did the happy dance when I saw that they were on clearance for over 75% off!!! I paid a mere $7.87 for these funky, fun shoes! I like to think that when God planned this little blessing for me He was smiling the entire time as He knew the party it would cause in my heart :-)! And, the cool thing is I wasn't even going to the store to look for the shoes-the shopping trip had an entirely different purpose. YEA! Thank you, God, for unexpected suprises and loving me in little, fun ways!

So, I know you are just sitting on the edge of your seats, wanting to see a picture of these shoes. So, check them out and tell me what you think:

I LOVE it when someone asks me to make them one of my baking creations. One of my most requested baked goods is my Banana Bread. I have been told that it is pretty tasty and many people have asked for the recipe. Several years ago, I experimented with Paula Deen's Banana Bread recipe and made it my own with a few variations. I have baked over 20 mini loaves of this yummy bread over the past two weeks and many of my dear friends have been in 'Nana Bread Heaven :-). The recipe is below along with a few tips on the basics of making the BEST, Super Moist Banana Bread. Enjoy! May your hearts overflow this week in Gratitude to God for your many blessings!

Banana Nut Bliss

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter (1 stick) softened
4 very ripe bananas

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
3/4 cup chopped walnuts (divided)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl.
Mix softened butter, bananas, vanilla & eggs in a separate bowl.
Mix dry ingredients into banana mix and stir in ½ cup of walnuts. Pour mix into greased loaf pan and sprinkle remaining ¼ cup walnuts on top of the loaf. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes. This makes one 9" loaf or four mini loaves.

TIPS:I like to freeze overripe bananas in a ziploc bag and thaw them about an hour before I am going to make bread. Pour the bananas and their juice into the bread to make it extra moist. To soften butter, microwave in a bowl for 10-15 seconds. You can buy really cute seasonal ceramic mini loaf pans at Michaels Craft stores for only $1. These make great gifts and the receiver gets to keep a beautiful pan.