haircut

i just got a haircut and decided to join the bang club. jared thinks its silly since i spent the last 2 years growing my bangs out, but what can i say? i missed them. :) anyway, now i have a measly little ponytail and i can't wait for it to grow out!

before

after

she walks!

she walks! as long as there's a pillow in front of her...and she doesn't have to take more than 1.5 steps to get there. :)

pretty pretty poo??

Eva has a plethora of these little felt flower bows I made a few months ago when people kept mistaking her for a boy. Due to this I try to have her wear a bow whenever we go out. After returning from some errands I sat down to go through the mail while Eva was happily dragging everything out of the diaper bag. I look over a few minutes later and the bow is missing. So I look for it, but can't find it and figure she's eaten in. When Jared comes home that night the following conversation ensued:

me : "Jared, Eva ate her bow"
jared: histerical laughter "are you serious?"
me: "umm yeah i'm pretty sure"
jared: "you know why i like you? because most moms would be freaking out right now.
me: "why?"
jared: "well it could get stuck in her intestines and she'd have to have surgery!"
me: after a major freak out "do we need to take her to the hospital?"
jared: "nah, lets just keep an eye on her"

so i spent the next week mashing her belly to make sure it wasn't too hard, keeping track of her diapers and digging through doo doo to see if this bow had emerged. Aaaannnnd Jared found the dang bow under the couch a week later.

I think i'm finally starting to understand why mothers like to say things like, "If you had ANY idea what I went through for you!"

lighter mac n' cheese

I recently came across this recipe from America's Test Kitchen ( i LOVE these peeps) in their Test Kitchen Favorites book and thought I'd share. I don't recommend using sharp cheese (it was still good, but a little too tangy), and we also used 1 % milk with no problem. Enjoy!

Note: they recommend grating your own cheese rather than using pre-shredded.

Ingredients:

Salt
1/2 pound elbow macaroni (about 2 cups)
1 (12 oz) can 2 percent reduced-fat evaporated milk
3/4 cup 2 % milk
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/8 tsp garlic powder or celery salt (optional)
pinch cayenne
2 tsp cornstarch
8 ounces 50 percent light cheddar cheese, grated (about 2 cups)

Directions:

1. Bring 2 1/2 quarts water to a boil in a large saucepan. Stir in 2 teaspoons salt and the macaroni; cook until the pasta is completely cooked and tender, about 5 minutes. Drain the pasta and leave it in the colander; set aside.

2. Add the evaporated milk, 1/2 cup of the 2% milk, mustard, garlic powder (if using) cayenne, and 1/2 tsp salt to the now-empty saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Whisk the cornstarch and remaining 1/4 cup milk together, then whisk it into the simmering mixture. Continue to simmer, whisking constantly, until the sauce has thickened and is smooth, about 2 minutes.

3. Off the heat, gradually whisk in the cheddar until melted and smooth. Stir in the macaroni, and let the macaroni and cheese sit off the heat until the sauce has thickened slightly, 2 to 5 minutes, before serving.