Welcome to February, friends!

Is January always 99 percent busier than you expect it to be? It is for our family.

Here are some favorites that we’ve been stockpiling since our last edition of Katie Loves This. What have you been swooning over since we chatted last?

One.
I seem to have an itch to buy a new pair of shoes and I’m loving these New Balance 420 Sneakers (Nordstrom, $70). I wear sneakers at least three days a week and I realized recently that all of mine are bright colors. A pair of black sneakers would be a nice addition. (However, I’ve vowed to not buy any more shoes until I Instagram-sell some of the ones I don’t wear. My shoe closets/baskets/under-the-bed storage containers are stuffed!)

Two.
Does anyone else already have summer on their mind? I certainly do. I’d love to build the kids somewhere to play in our backyard and have fallen in love with this design a million times over. I had pinned it three times, from three different websites, on my Outdoor Spaces Pinterest board and finally hunted down the original post on The Handmade Home. Which I’m now obsessed with via Instagram.

Three.
I’ve had the worst time finding a book to read since the new year. I’ve started and stopped reading a few books (including Lena Dunham’s, which I was just not that into, sadly), which I try very hard not to do. Last night, I started One Plus One by Jojo Moyes and it’s captured my attention. Have you read it?

Four.
Last, but certainly not least, I had to share this post from my lovely friend Nichole, who has also been my editor on-and-off for the past few years. This is her first post with mom.me, a site that I adore, and she nails it with her thoughts on keeping Valentine’s Day simple (SIMPLE!!!) and shares an easy way to do with her Failproof Valentine’s Day Treats.

Katie Loves This: Edition 1. October 2014.
Katie Loves This: Edition 2. October 2014.
Katie Loves This: Edition 3. November 2014.
Katie Loves This: Edition 4. November 2014.
Katie Loves This: Edition 5. November 2014.
Katie Loves This: Edition 6. January 2015.