3 things about thursday

Thursday night was all about 3 things:

(1) FAMILY

My cousin Patty was in town visiting from California.  I haven’t seen Patty in 2 years, so it was really nice to catch up with her in person (although, Facebook has made it much easier to keep in touch with our family out on the West Coast).  Plus, we also were able to see my Aunt Mary + Uncle Roger and my other cousin Ananda + her husband Chris.  Although they only live across the river (not through the woods though since Illinois is more farm than woods), we don’t see them often enough, so it’s always nice to have a reason to get together.

(2) FOOD

No family gathering is complete without good food.  Hamburgers + hot dogs (black bean burger for me, of course), chips, fruit, veggies, and of course, dessert!  I’ve been really wanting to make cupcakes lately, so I thought this was a great opportunity to make some rich, delicious cupcakes.

But, I couldn’t stop there.  I admit, I’ve been slacking on making ice cream lately.  I guess I’ve been a little uninspired, but when I saw Natalie post a certain delicious ice cream recipe this past week, I knew I had to try it.

Both cupcakes + ice cream were a huge success, but you’ll just have to wait until next week to get those recipes.  (Although, you can go stalk Natalie’s blog now since she always has delicious recipes to share!)

(3) BABY HOLDING (!)

You may remember Ananda from 2 months ago when she looked like this (and my bump was hardly showing):

She is no longer with-child and has a beautiful baby boy, Lucas!

Seriously, he is The. Cutest. Thing. Ever.  I fell in love with him the instant we walked in the door.  It helped fulfill my craving for baby holding, and Matt got a little practice for when our Baby Girl comes along in a few months (the only baby he has ever held is now 13)!

It was definitely a wonderful night of family, food, and baby holding and a perfect way to go into the weekend!  Have a great one!