This And That II

BISAC (Bangkok International Schools Athletic Conference) had its basketball tournament this past  weekend so the kids were away Friday evening and all day Saturday. They each played in two games on Friday and five games on Saturday. Neither team did particularly well which was disappointing but the kids all had fun. I think the girls ended up finishing 5th in the tournament and the boys 7th. 

We begin baseball and softball team practices this week and Opening Day for the 2012-2013 season is next weekend. Christopher is playing on the Orioles and Caitlynne will be on the Twins. Christopher is also practicing twice a week with a travel team that is going to Singapore in just a few weeks to play in the 2012 Turkey Tournament. 

Saturday evening I went to dinner at a friend's home and made a hummingbird cake to take along. I usually make this cake using this recipe from Southern Living. The Southern Living website notes that, since the recipe first ran in 1978, it is the most requested recipe in Southern Living history. And, for good reason. Doesn't it look delicious? 

(Photo by Lee Harrelson/Southern Living).

This time, I tried a different recipe (not sure of the source though). Other than the appearance (and the fact that it was much easier to make), there was really no difference between the two cakes.

I had some difficulty getting the cake out of the Bundt pan, hence the missing piece! 

For the chocolate lovers in the group, I also made a Chocolate Charlotte that looked just like this...

(Photo byRandy Mayor; Styling: Lydia E. DeGaris - www.myrecipes.com). I really need to remember to keep my camera handy.

This morning, I am going with a group of friends to the watch the Melbourne Cup races at the Amari Watergate Hotel downtown. The Melbourne Cup is held the first Tuesday of each November - similar to the elections in the U.S. but heaps more fun! Held in Victoria, the Melbourne Cup is Australia's premier horse racing event and is known as "the race that stops a nation". When we lived in Australia, I remember this as being a huge event in our town, to the extent that the kids made fancy hats in their art classes and wore them while they watched the races in the school's assembly hall. The Australian-New Zealand Women's Group of Bangkok is sponsoring this charity luncheon but I am not quite sure of the benefiting charity (or charities).  

There will be ten of us at our table - all of us are from Nichada and I think we all have children at ISB. We had dresses made (same style & colors) and will be competing in the "Best Dressed Table" contest. Although the dress is totally not my style, it is nice but it is very, very tight. In fact, before I left my final fitting at the dressmaker's shop, I made sure I could walk up the stairs and sit down in a chair without ripping open a seam. I am still not sure how I will get into the car - I might need to hike it up around my waist and climb up quickly. It will be interesting for sure. 

Since horse races and fancy hats go hand in hand...One of the women in our group is incredibly talented and she designed & made amazing hats for all of us to wear. It seems the contests are quite competitive because we were warned to keep our outfits and hats undercover until the day of the event. However, since I will be leaving in a little while, here is a sneak peek of my  hat...

Have a great Tuesday!