Happy Mother's Day! (And Some Exciting News!)

I'm so happy to be back!!!!  Rarely am I as aware of the passing of time as I am when trying to keep up with this blog. It honestly doesn't feel like that long ago since I last wrote, but it really has been a while, and I'm very sorry to those of you who've faithfully and patiently checked in. Last time I wrote I mentioned that I'd been feeling sick. That, paired with my long absence, may have sent waves of suspicion into the ether that I might be pregnant. ...aaaaaand I am!!! I hope this revelation will help you to forgive my absence and will restore some of your confidence in me that I won't regularly drop off the face of the planet for no good reason. Aside from being sick, I've really been exhausted, and placing blogging on the shelf for a short time, though sad, provided some needed relief as I passed through this first trimester. So, again, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for being true blue while I took a break.

I'm now 13.5 weeks along, which means that Baby is somewhere between the size of a peach and a lemon. Two magnificent fruits to be compared to, wouldn't you agree?

Shawn's been a total stud this weekend with a dozen and a half of my favorite flowers, tulips, a favorite activity of mine, (reading a book together,) and dinner of my choice last night. I opted for Panera at home. I LOVE their Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich. Drooooooooool. He did the dishes last night and cleaned, did the dishes again today for me, and took Kate in the morning to allow me extra sleep. (We're all battling colds at the moment, so it was extra good of him considering he needed the sleep as much as I did.)

In honor of my own mother, I'll offer my kudos to her while simultaneously offering you readers some mental goodies. Here are a few of my favorite cooking words of wisdom from her repertoire.

• "Don't you be stingy with the vanilla!" This rings in my head every single time I add vanilla to my baking.
• "The secret to good cooking is good ingredients." I knew the moment she said it that it must be true, and it IS!
• "Mm, I don't know... Yeah, that's good." This is what she almost always says when I ask her how much of something to add, or how much to stir, or how long something needs to cook. So much of what she knows comes from experience and her senses. She doesn't just read a recipe; she reads her instincts. If the batter looks too runny, she'll adjust it whether or not the recipe says to. She uses her eyes, her hands, and her taste buds to determine if something's going to turn out the way she wants. In being a little vague with me by not answering my questions exactly, she taught me to pay attention and hone my cooking instincts. 

Happy Mother's Day!

Don't know what I did to have lucked out with this one. xoxo