It’s ONLY Tuesday?
The week started with day light savings and yeah…no need to say much more about that. Brutal.
Monday was busy enough and then our nanny’s car went caput and so I had to go home around 3:30pm to give Lily her heart medication. I ended up staying home and got in a quick workout before going to pick-up the girls, shovel too-spicy (for them) soup into their mouths, and took Shea for her ice skating lesson. By the time the girls were in bed and I was showered it was going on 9pm.
I had my leadership cohort at 8am this morning. It was a struggle to get out the door and get the girls dropped off on time – Shea’s classroom doesn’t even have drop off until 7:50am. But, I managed it and we left at noon with 12 assignments, 2 books and 3 articles to read over the next month, in addition to working on our projects…all while doing our job-job, of course. I’m not whining, per se, but a definite grumble. Too much to do and too little time.
I hopped into an afternoon of meetings while daycare gave me the play-by-play of Piper’s “temperature” which was hovering around 99.3 F (she has to be picked up and not returned for at least 24 hours once going over 99.5 F). I picked up the girls and whipped together dinner that I had prepped on Sunday while unpacking and repacking the girls’ lunches. It was just one of those nights – neither girl ate dinner and so they ended up eating avocado for dinner. I guess it could be worse??
My dad also had shoulder replacement surgery today – as far as I know, everything went well. But I’m not-so-patiently waiting for my mom to return my call for an update. Meanwhile, one of our tenants is calling with plumbing issues. Gaah…2 ½ weeks until spring break and just over a month before my bestie’s wedding! Spring is a comin’!
Perfect to celebrate spring? These Strawberry Oatmeal Bars. The ingredient list is simple and the flavors and divine! A bit crunch from the crust, tender strawberries, and crumbly oat topping – there’s nothing not to love!
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- ¾ cup white whole wheat flour
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp salt
- 6 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 2 cups small-diced strawberries, divided
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about ½ small lemon)
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar, divided
- ¼ cup powdered sugar, sifted
- ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ to 1 Tbsp fat-free milk
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, allowing the parchment paper to hang over each side of the dish.
- In a medium bowl, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, ginger, and salt. Pour the melted coconut oil over top and mix until well-combined and a crumble forms.Set aside ½ cup of the crumble mixture; press the rest into an even layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish using the backside of a spatula.
- Scatter half of the strawberries over the crust. Sprinkle the cornstarch evenly over the top, then sprinkle on the lemon juice and ½ tablespoon of the granulated sugar. Scatter on the remaining berries, then the remaining ½ tablespoon sugar. Sprinkle the reserved crumbs evenly over the top.
- Bake the bars for 35-40 minutes or until crumble is golden. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the bars cool, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, mix together the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk until smooth. Drizzle with glaze, slice, and serve.
It means that dessert can be tasty and healthy!