Friday Favorites!

Hi! Happy Friday!! 

Did you have a great week?? I hope so!!

I got a fun surprise last night- my oldest brother is in the Navy and graduated from an advanced dive school for medical doctors yesterday. He has been living in Connecticut for the last 6 months while he goes to this school. Well..he is making the long drive back to San Diego (where he and his wife live) and because of time constraints, I had not planned on seeing him.  He called me last night around 9 pm and said, "Hey! I am about 3 hours from your house...can I just crash there instead of sleeping in a rest area?" HA! Seriously- my brother is super hardcore- and sleeping in his truck was TOTALLY his plan. Of course I said yes! and so now, I get to hang out with my brother for a little bit this morning before he leaves to go visit my parents for a couple of days. The times I get to see my oldest brother are very sporadic and not often- so I am super thankful for his spontaneous visit!!

This is a picture of a quick visit we got to have with him when he was traveling out to start his speciality school this past June :)

And now for my FRIDAY FAVORITES!  I thought it would be fun to have a little theme for today's post...so I am going to share about my FAVORITES that I have been using, wearing, eating, and reading this week and my over all FAVORITE moment of the week! 

Here we go!

ONE

My FAVORITE item I have been USING this week is this super fun reversible tote!!  I got it for myself with some birthday money I had been given and I am so excited about it!

I have been wanting a bag that is smaller than my diaper bag, but still large enough that it can hold some snacks, a couple diapers, wipes and my wallet. This tote is the PERFECT size, it is reversible- the one I chose is dark purple on one side and hot pink on the other- and it is only $9.97 and you can get it at Walmart!! They are sold out online, but my store had a great selection of them- in lots of pretty color combinations!! 

TWO

My FAVORITE thing I am WEARING this week is my new wristband for my Fitbit! I have been wearing the wristband that came with my Fitbit- everyday- for two years now. You could say my wristband was a tad worn out! HA! For my birthday- Aaron got me this fun, patterned wristband!! I love it because I wear silver/white gold jewelry- and it "matches" all of that. If you have a Fitbit and are looking for something a little more fun than just the solid colored wristbands- check out Amazon!! There are SO many fun, cute wristbands available for the Fitbit- for cheap!! I got this wristband and one other one for $8!!

THREE

My FAVORITE thing I have been EATING this week are these 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies!!  I have to avoid dairy products or else I experience some really yucky tummy issues.  Well...dairy is in pretty much everything- including baked goods!! I made a huge batch of THE BEST chocolate chip cookies over the weekend and couldn't have one since there is margarine and butter in the recipe! Well...needless to say- I went on the hunt for a dairy free cookie recipe and was so happy to find the EASIEST recipe ever for peanut butter cookies! 1 cup creamy peanut butter (I would recommend using something like Jif- versus a natural peanut butter), 1 cup sugar and 1 egg. THAT'S IT. Seriously- these cookies are SO good! I have been eating them all week (which is NOT so good- HA!) and I am just so happy to have a sweet treat that is easy to whip up and one that I can eat! :)

FOUR

I am going to be totally honest and say that it has been quite the week of parenting for me.  I am really being challenged by a couple of my kiddos' behavior and pretty much have gone to bed every night second guessing how I have been disciplining/reacting/ and wondering if I am doing too much? Or not enough?? Anyway...I love following a woman named Lovelyn Palm, who is a mom of TEN, on Instagram (you can find her at @letlovegrow) and I read this post she wrote a couple of nights ago and it totally struck me.  Her thoughts were definitely my FAVORITE thing I READ all week. It challenged me, helped me re-focus what exactly my role should be in teaching my children and basically just gave me a good ol' fashioned slap in the face- which I don't know about you- but I need those sometimes! HA! Seriously- check out what she wrote here and while you are at it- take a look around her Instagram. She is a beautiful, grace-filled, optimistic woman- I find her extremely inspiring!!

FIVE

By far, My FAVORITE MOMENT of the week was seeing our precious baby #5 during our 20 week ultrasound!! This past Tuesday we had our anatomy ultrasound to see how the baby is developing and growing and Aaron and I received the best Christmas present EVER- when we were told the baby is healthy and looks GREAT! When this precious image came up on the screen- we both immediately said- "That looks like James!" Several other people have said the same thing! So- either we are having a girl that is going to look exactly like her brother or maybe we have another baby boy on his way! We shall see at the end of April!!

And I have to tell you- even though this is my 5th baby- NOTHING about the experience of getting to see your tiny baby, who is growing inside of you, gets old.  It is still just as emotional and breathtaking as it was the first time. It is such a MIRACLE! 

We are so thankful!

And that wraps up my FAVORITES from this past week!!

I hope you have a wonderful Friday and great weekend! 
I am linking up with Andrea and Erika for their Friday Favorites Link Up!

 I am also linking up with April for Five on Friday!

 Joining Karli for her, Oh Hey Friday Link Up! too!