7 Quick Takes Friday

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I've been meaning to put together an "About Us" page to clean up my blog sidebar for a looooong time.  Well, I finally finished it!  Click on the tab above and tell me what you think!  (You can even comment on the page itself.)  Woo hoo!  My blog is pretty!  Go me!  Next up: cleaning up and categorizing my "Blogs I like to Read" and adding a few new gems that I've found recently.

--- 2 ---

Is there anything cuter...

...than a baby who wears her big sister's tank top to bed, because it's too hot to wear pajamas?

The answer is no.

--- 3 ---

Speaking of babies, our baby is really pretty much a big girl.  She is talking so much.  I had forgotten how much I LOVE watching language develop.  It really shows you how much babies understand before they are able to communicate.  When the words start to come out, you realize that your little one has been listening to your conversations much more closely than you realize!  I think it's even more surprising with C, because unlike L (an experimental babbler) she has been mostly quiet up to this point.  It's as if she waited until she was certain the words were accurately formed in her brain before she would release them to the public.  She comes out with a new word pretty much every day, and it's always clear as crystal.  Her latest is Thomas (taking after big sister, right?), and she says it very deliberately and perfectly, unlike the loud boisterous "TOIDA!!" that was L's first attempt at saying "Thomas".

--- 4 ---

I mentioned that N was at Grandma's this week... she had such a great time!  And believe it or not, when you're used to three little ones, it's pretty relaxing for Mama to have only two!  Last night, N returned, and for the remainder of the evening, both N and L were wired.  Running around the house, screeching, wrestling with each other... I was asking myself, "Did I unknowingly give them sugar or Red Dye 40?"  And then my husband pointed it out... they're just super excited to see each other again after a week apart.

I'm such a lucky Mama to have two girls who love each other so much, and get along so well.  (Most of the time.  These weeks apart came at a good time to break up some bickering that had been going on.  I think they appreciate each other a little more now!)

--- 5 ---

So I signed up for my next race... a 10K that I'm going to do with a friend!  I've blogged before about how I'm not really about doing too many races, mostly because we can't afford the registration fees.  But after I signed up for this race, I felt this huge surge of excitement.  Since I've started a (really relaxed) training schedule for myself, I realized why I'm so excited.  It's because I now have an excuse to put running first on my to-do list.  And it's not just because running is good for me physically and mentally, but also because I'm making it a priority to do something that I enjoy almost every single day.  How often do we do that as busy mommies?  When I'm running, I'm just a more happy person.  Hooray!

My husband also recently introduced me to this Crazy 8 workout.  I was still sore a week later!  I haven't had a workout that really challenged me in that way in a while, so I think it may be the key to increasing my strength and speed a little for this next race.  Plus it's great for those rainy days when you can't get outside for a run, and (as M pointed out) you can do it while all of your kids are awake and playing (try doing Spiderman push-ups with a 20-pound toddler on your back for an added challenge)!

But enough about that...

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I found this super healthy cookie recipe the other day and I'm so excited to try it.  I'm hoping it will be the perfect combination for my eldest daughter, who somehow got a wicked sweet tooth along with digestive issues.  We're trying to be really careful and put only healthy things in her body.  I'll try them soon and let you know how it goes!

--- 7 ---

This awesomeness happened:

Need I say more?

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