Topped with chocolatey goodness

(Ari pics in previous entry.)

Last night, Ari spent the night at my parents' house, for the 2nd or 3rd Sunday night in a row. Mom usually watches her Mondays, which entails us meeting at a point roughly halfway between our houses at 7:30 AM. Not a bad situation, but it's easier in so many ways to just bring Ari down the night before. Then my dad gets to spend some time with her too (since we usually pick her up on Monday evening before he gets home). Anyway, I love that Ari is getting the chance to spend some extra time with my parents. It's not that I need a break from her so badly or anything, but I think the more she gets used to spending the night there, the better off she'll be when we go on our cruise and she spends a whole week there.

The biggest thing I miss about her when she's overnight somewhere is peeking in on her when she sleeps. I don't realize how much of a habit that is for me until she's gone. It feels so odd to walk upstairs at night and see her bedroom door wide open, and her bed empty. One of my bedtime rituals is to sneak into her room to stare at her for a few moments. Nothing relaxes me and gets me ready to sleep myself better than a glimpse of her peaceful face.

I got an e-mail telling my that my Kohl's order has been shipped, and it said I should have the package tomorrow. I am so excited. Sure, I splurged a little, but I'm betting I'll end up returning about half the things I bought. You know how it goes--something looks cute on the rack, and it's your size, but once you try it on, all you can think is "eww." And seeing as I was shopping online with only tiny pictures to go by, I'm sure the chances of that happening are even greater. But I'm hoping I'll get at least 1 or 2 decent pieces of clothing out of this little spree.

And this reminds me... it's probably about time I cleaned out my closet a bit. I'm such a packrat. I have lots of clothes that are too big for me since I've lost weight, but I can't bear to part with them, because what if I gain weight again? Or what if I get pregnant again, and need some clothes in that awkward stage when maternity clothes are still too big? Being of "child-bearing age" makes it so much harder to part with clothes. And then of course I am the typical female who hangs on to things that are too small because I am determined to fit into them again. Really what I need to do is sort out some of the really outdated and/or threadbare stuff. (It's like I have this mindset of "if it fits, you cannot get rid of it," which is ridiculous.) So that's my goal for... well, sometime in the somewhat-near future. (How's that for a completely vague deadline?)

I went on a baking binge last night--I made fudge, using my sister-in-law's 3-ingredient recipe (thanks, Jess!) and then when Tony complained (jokingly) about how I don't make desserts that he likes, I made blueberry muffins (just out of a box, nothing exciting).

In case anyone wants the fudge recipe, here it is:

3-Ingredient Fudge

1 bag of semisweet chocolate chips
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
2 Tbsp butter

Melt all in a saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently so it doesn't burn. (Me, I stirred without stopping because I was so afraid of scorching my precious chocolate.) Pour into a well-greased pan and chill in fridge until firm. (And don't neglect licking the spoon and scraping out the chocolatey remains in the saucepan, because you can't just go wasting perfectly good chocolate.)

I added crushed-up Oreos to the top, since I had a handful leftover from my latest Oreo truffle-making adventure. (So I guess, technically, that makes it 4-ingredient fudge.) I sampled a teeny tiny bite before bed last night (it was mostly firm, but not completely), and I nearly died, it was so delicious. I will definitely be bringing it in to work tomorrow so that I don't eat it all myself. My co-workers are going to love me.

And on that sweet note, I bid you adieu.