Weekly Thrift Score - Monkeying Around / Banana Bread Madness

This week at the thrift store it was all about vintage plush monkeys. Who knew? I have a vintage sock monkey that my great grandmother Maggie made. I have saved it all these years and now it's in Gideon's room relaxing in a vintage children's rocking chair, arm in arm with a modern-day plush sock doll that I got as a gift when Quinn was born.

So I found 3 vintage plush monkeys this week at various thrift stores.
This little guy is all handmade from the cute little felt eyes to the red yarn pom poms that adorn his hat, tail, neck - well just about everywhere the crafter could put a pom pom she did.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/161038701/that-dapper-monkey-vintage-sock-monkey?ref=shop_home_active

This little guy in his dapper track suit reminds me of Curious George! Gideon loves watching Curious George on PBS and has quite humorously adopted some of George's noises - like his sigh when he's sad.

 https://www.etsy.com/listing/159874730/one-fast-monkey-vintage-speedy-monkey?ref=shop_home_active

Since everything comes in threes - even at the thrift store - this is the monkey I found today. Super cute retro monkey! I think he will look great in Gideon's circus room.

And now I will perfectly segue way from monkeys into banana bread - because ironically Quinn had been begging me to make banana bread all week and last night we did!

I grew up baking. My mom was an extremely thoughtful and giving person (and unexpectedly losing her in April has been so hard). If she knew of a family going through some special circumstance - birth of a child, an illness, death in the family, surgery, etc she would bake them bread (or have me do it once I was old enough). She had a repertoire of banana, pumpkin, zucchini and poppyseed bread. At her funeral my sister asked the attendees to raise their hand if they had ever been the recipient of a loaf of bread from her - everybody! everybody raised their hand. What a testament to my mom's thoughtfulness. So I bake bread just like she did and Quinn's favorite is banana bread. I have altered her recipe through the years to make it a little more healthy (and a lot more sinful).... and maybe when Quinn is an adult - he will add on to that recipe as well.

I say hands down this is the moistest, yummiest banana bread I've ever had. But you be the judge.

BANANA BREAD

2 3/4 cups sugar

2 sticks of butter (1 cup)

½ cup applesauce

6 eggs

9 ripe mashed bananas
1 ½ tsp salt

3 tsp baking soda

2 cups white flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 tbs Flax meal

1/2 - 1 bag dk chocolate chips (depending on how much chocolate you like) (you can also use semi-sweet)

Cream butter, applesauce, eggs and sugar. Add salt, baking soda, white flour,

whole wheat flour, flax meal, mix. Add bananas and mix. And chocolate

chips if desired.

Bake at 325 for 50-60 minutes in 4 lg loaf pans.