this and that

Happy February! This year is already going by pretty quickly to me. Oh, and this weather! It's AMAZING. High of almost 70 degrees today. Pure bliss. I'm tellin' ya... it's amazing how much easier it is to get out the door in the mornings when you don't have to bundle everyone (including myself) up... one less thing to worry about. Makes me a happy mama! We have been spending a lot of time outside, which just makes everyone happy. I'm going to be sad when it gets chilly again in a few days. Come on, spring! (Minus the pollen)

First and foremost, I am proud to announce the birth of my new nephew... Benjamin Thomas! He was born on Friday, Jan 27 (my dad's birthday!) and he weighed in at 9 lbs. That's pretty big, but not quite as much as his big sister! My sis-in-law is a pro at delivering those good-sized babies. Benjamin is so precious and I am so excited for Evie to have a cousin so close in age - 3.5 months apart!

Isn't he so adorable?!

The boys meeting their cousin for the first time. These 3 fellas are going to be trouble one day... I have a feeling!

When Benjamin was 4 days old, we went to visit him at home. Evie got to meet him for the first time (she wasn't allowed in his room at the hospital)! I didn't quite realize how big she'd gotten until I laid them side-by-side. Goodness!

My sister sent Evie this ADORABLE owl hat. She had it made just for her! (Well, she decided to get it made gender-neutral since we didn't find out what we were having. She just didn't know at the time that she was having it made for Evie) I can barely stand the cuteness. It fits perfectly, and if it gets cold here again soon I'll be able to finally use it! Thanks Aunt Bonnie!

I have been doing fairly well with my "get healthy" plan. I am still not exercising like I want to, but I have made a few changes in my diet. I am trying my hardest not to have anything to eat after dinner. Especially sweets. I do know that I cannot cut out sweets from my diet completely, because I would without a doubt go into extreme withdrawal. Life's too short to do that, anyway. SO, eating some semi-sweet chocolate chips has been a good way to satisfy my sweet tooth without consuming tons of empty calories. Semi-sweet has less sugar, and antioxidants! (Oh, I do sometimes eat a jolly rancher in the evenings if my sweet tooth is begging me for something sinful. It does the job fairly well.)

I LOVE Pinterest. Love it. Finding recipes has probably been my favorite use of it so far. I love how I can have them all in one place, and they are so easy to access. Nowadays, when I sit down to make my meal plan and grocery list, I have my Pinterest recipes right there with me. I have tried several new recipes and have loved them all. I'll share those another time.

I love these three babies. My heart is so full.

Finally, just because I can't stop taking pictures of this baby...

YUM!