Before and After

I did it.

I finally took the plunge.

I.

Chopped.

Off.

All.

My.

Hair.


Eeek!

Before.

After.

I teased Dan that he had to hold the camera lower when taking pictures of me. This is what I got. 

I like it. It took me a day, but I definitely like it. What do you think?

A good book, a good laugh, and a good drink

Peyton has a favorite book. Two, actually. "Goodnight Moon" and "I Love You Baby." "I Love You Baby" is a touchy-feely book. Peyton loves the fuzzy textures and he especially loves to turn the pages all by himself like a big boy. Seriously. He gets mad if you don't let him turn the pages. In fact, Peyton loves the book so much, that he even licks (yes, I said LICK) the touchy-feely spots. Weird kid. Anyway, here's a shout-out to Amy Condie for sending him the book, because she couldn't have picked a better one =)

Peyton's other favorite book, "Goodnight Moon," is a very useful tool. He recognizes the title and words and responds to them far better than "No, no!" or even his own name. All we have to do is say, "Goodnight moon. In the great green room ..." and Peyton comes running (and by running, I mean speedily crawling) to read the book with you. You can even fool him with just the words and no book sometimes. I'm so glad he already enjoys reading [and licking] books.

Though I don't have a video of him tasting the touchy-feelies, here's a video of him responding to "Goodnight Moon."

Sometimes, the most random things will send Peyton into a fit of giggles. We absolutely LOVE IT when we figure out what those random things are. Recently, it was balancing a ring on our head and then letting it fall off. Peyton also thought it was quite hilarious when we put the ring on his head. He'd squint his eyes and bat at his ears until if fell off. Too cute.

Here's a video of Dan with a ring on his head -- and Peyton's reaction.

Lastly, who doesn't love a good, non-alcoholic drink (or in this case, an empty sippy cup)? And by love, I mean want to destroy. Prior to his sippy cup thrashing, he was playing whack-a-mole with Dan's hands. Unfortunately, that's not what we were able to capture on camera since Peyton lost interest in the game as soon as I thought to film it =)

And now, a few more pictures (at my mother's request):

Gearing up for a chomp-down.

Got teeth? 

Hook 'em Horns. 

Vegetable Stuffed Shells

I was hoping THIS recipe would turn out well ... and it did! I made a few minor tweaks, but for the most part, I stuck to the original. It was delicious and packed with veggies (and there wasn't too much cheese to offset the vegetable good-for-you-ness).

Vegetable Stuffed Shells

• 15 oz can diced tomatoes


• 8 oz can tomato sauce


• 1 C water


• 2 cloves garlic, minced


• 1 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped


• 2 tsp fresh oregano, chopped


• 1/2 sprig rosemary, chopped


• 1 Tbsp Parmesan cheese


• 15 jumbo pasta shells


• 1 tsp olive oil


• 1 1/4 C broccoli, finely chopped


• 2 carrots, shredded


• 1/2 onion


• 1 clove garlic, minced


• 5 oz spinach, thawed and coarsely cut


• 1/2 C water


• 2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped


• 1 C lowfat small-curd cottage cheese (2%) or part-skim ricotta


• 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan


• 1⁄8 tsp each salt and pepper


• 1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella, divided

Combine tomatoes, sauce, water, two cloves of garlic, basil, oregano, rosemary and 1 Tbsp Parmesan cheese in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until ready to use. 

Preheat oven to 400º F. Cook pasta, drain and cool on baking sheet per box directions.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté broccoli, carrot, onion and garlic for 3 minutes or until just tender. Add spinach and 1⁄2 C water; cover and cook 2 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Remove cover; cook until liquid is mostly evaporated. Stir in basil, cottage cheese, Parmesan, 1/4 C mozzarella, salt and pepper. Spread tomato sauce on bottom of an 8x8-in. baking dish.

Spoon filling into each shell; arrange in baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining 3/4 C mozzarella, cover tightly with foil and bake 35 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 486 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories  333 Calories from Fat  81

% Daily Value*

Total Fat  9.0g 14%

Saturated Fat  4.5g 23%

Trans Fat  0.0g

Cholesterol  29mg 10%

Sodium  1053mg 44%

Total Carbohydrates  41.3g 14%

Dietary Fiber  6.7g 27%

Sugars  12.6g

Protein  23.1g

Vitamin A 193% • Vitamin C 86% Calcium 42% • Iron 20%

Nutrition Grade B

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• High in calcium


• Very high in vitamin A


• Very high in vitamin C

Bad points

• High in sodium

I use no-sodium-added canned tomatoes and sauce. If you do the same, you won't have the high sodium content that the nutrition information suggests.