~Thursday Five~

It's more than halfway through the day, but I'm still making the time to link up with Mrs. Gambizzle at Life as a Sailor's Girl for Thursday Five.  It's where you take a moment to post about five things about the week that have made you content, happy, giggly, adored and blessed. 

One.  Earlier this week, my hubby spent the evening cleaning the entire house.  He did the laundry, washed the dishes, swept and mopped the floors and cleaned both bathrooms.  I'm so thankful for him.  I don't feel like cleaning much lately because of the baby, and I love when he helps me out like that.

Two.  We went to the mall after my doctor's appointment today and were able to find a costume for Baby V at The Children's Place.  I've been looking all over the place, but no one seemed to have one in her size because she barely fits into sizes 0-3 months.  That's how small she is.  Well, we found her a butterfly costume today and, even better, it was on sale for $15.00!  She's going to be so cute in it.

Three.  Since El Paso is still so sunny and hot, I went to look for a hat for Baby V and scored on this cute one at Baby Gap.  It's big enough to fit her until next year, which is a plus.  An even bigger plus--it was on sale and I got it for $1.41. 

You can't tell me that she doesn't look so adorable in it.  I was also able to get her some other stuff on sale, like her first pair of blue jeans and some t-shirts for no more than $3.00.  I'm so glad we decided to stop by the mall on our way home!

Four.  I found out that tomorrow is National Homemade Cookie Day.  Now I know this goes completely against my new post-partum diet and exercise plan, but really?  How could I not make cookies to celebrate?  The excuse I gave my hubby was that I was to bake them and give them away to friends.  I packed enough to give away to them...and left us half a dozen to nibble on (which he allowed me to do because I looked so pathetic when he suggested I give them all away). 

These particular cookies are Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies and I'll be posting the recipe to my cooking blog shortly.

Five.  Speaking of cooking, I'm excited about posting about my first experience with the French Fridays with Dorie cooking group.  We made french cheese puffs called gougeres.  Delicious.  I'll also be posting that to my cooking blog as well.

And those are my five good things.  The one thing I'm unhappy about is that my hubby is leaving again this weekend.  His unit has drill which requires him to go back to Colorado.  He'll be leaving late tomorrow afternoon and returning on Sunday.  I know...again.  Sometimes I don't even know how I do it.  I just do.  And that means no wine festival for the two of us.  Boo hoo.

In any case...Happy Thursday everyone!  Hope it was a great one :)

Ten on Tuesday

Welcome to another edition of my Tuesday Ten!  Just a set of ten random things that are going on in our crazy lives--in case this is your first time reading my blog.

One.  This week, my hubby and I are starting a workout plan that'll help me lose the weight I gained during my pregnancy (about 20 pounds) and get me back in shape so that I at least get to the point where I can do PT without feeling like I have to keel over, as well as start to look and feel good and healthy.  I'm already fitting into a lot of my pre-pregnancy clothing, but my body has lost its firmness and has been left with lots of pudge!  Part of the plan includes implementing a healthier diet.  I am NOT excited about the plan.  I mean, for someone whose been indulging in whole jars of nutella with, well, just about anything (fruits, pretzels, bagels) for I don't know how long...it kinda sucks.  And last night's workout...let's just say I'm in pain today.  And my husband really took it easy on me.

Two.  Speaking of last night, I made a delicious pasta dish that was in this month's issue of Rachel Ray's magazine.  It's a Ribbon Pasta with Tomato, Dill and Ricotta.  I know, I know, pasta has a lot of calories.  For the record, the cherry tomatoes and dill sauce made the dish seem very light.  Could have left out the ricotta cheese...but hey, it's in the recipe, and it really pulled the dish together.  I posted the recipe on my cooking blog.  And speaking of the cooking blog...I gave it a new look the other day.  You guys should head on over there to check it out!

Three.  While I'm on this cooking topic, I should let you guys know that I joined a new online cooking group (thanks to my friend, Angie).  It's called French Fridays with Dorie.  The group is going to cook through Dorie Greenspan's new cookbook, Around My French Table and post about the recipes every Friday.  Almost two years ago (when I was in grad school), I was apart of the baking group called Tuesdays with Dorie and we did the same thing, only through Dorie's baking cookbook.  I did it for a few months, but then had to quit because I had no time to bake when I moved to El Paso.  I actually got the cookbook in the mail today and am excited to look through it.  Some of Dorie's recipes can be intimidating at first glance, so I'm going to use this time in the group to learn tons of new techniques!

Four.  This morning, we woke up to a very happy baby.  And that's always something to be happy about!  It doesn't matter what time it is when she wakes up, as long as she's in this mood, I'm thrilled.  And Baby V is like this a lot in the mornings...until she is out of her sleepy stupor and realizes that she's hungry.  I like to use that time to talk to and play with her, and to teach her new things--even though she may not understand quite yet.  But she always makes me laugh with her cute smile.  I was able to capture a few pics this morning.  This one is my favorite.  Are you as amazed as I am at how much she's grown?  Look at all her hair.  I mean, ALL of her hair.  She got it from her mommy for sure.  And we called it...we always knew that our baby was going to come out looking like Ewoks since both the hubby and I are pretty hairy!

Five.  Even better...Baby V is currently napping with her daddy in her nursery...on the rocking chair.  Seeing that never gets old to me.  It's my joy!

Six.  The La Vina Winery is having it's fall festival this weekend and we are sooooo there.  I've been to all of them since I've moved here (the winery is about a 30 minute drive from where we live) and the last one I went to, I was pregnant.  It wasn't as much fun.  And this is the first time that my hubby will be with me when I go.  Can't wait.

Seven.  I'm so happy I got a glimpse of some fall weather this morning.  It was actually in the mid-60s for a change.  I'm totally a cold-weather baby, so these extended El Paso summers (where it's 90+ degrees during the day) are so not cool.  It's so bad that I don't even feel like putting up fall decorations (and don't think I will since we'll be moving soon).  Right now, it's hot out, but it was nice to feel it for a while and to have somewhat of a nice breeze when we went for our walk this morning.

Eight.  Next weekend, we'll be going to Utah to visit Malu's grandparents and aunt and uncle.  It'll be Baby V's first trip out there.  It's about a 14-hour drive that we're both dreading.  But they really want to see the baby and it'll be fun once we get there.

Nine.  I got Baby V's newborn photos weeks ago and I still haven't shown them to you guys yet.  I'll do that tomorrow.  They're so cute.

Ten.  I probably should have done Five on Tuesday...it took me forever to get to ten!  Happy Tuesday everyone!