30 Days of Vegan

Well, it's day 30 of my vegan challenge!  I really feel great (except for the brief stomach flu incident that had NOTHING to do with being vegan...Mom!) and I am going to choose to be vegan, for now on...maybe not forever but I am so pleased with the choices I have been making everyday that I want to continue.  I will definitely make better choices through the holidays than I have in the past...I have been known to eat a lot of Grandma Brown's shortbread in one sitting!!!

Some discoveries over the past couple weeks have been:
I attempted a pine nut "cheese" it was a wee bit too onion-y (I used an onion instead of the shallot the recipe called for) but it was a great snack in celery with chia seeds on top for extra nutrition points!

Stella's veggie burgers are vegan...without the cilantro sauce!  I just added guacamole and presto...instant YUM! (well not instant...the guys do have to cook them...but I don't cook them so it's zero effort for me!)

After my stomach flu I was craving some macaroni and "cheese" I learned that "Mac & Chreese" is NOT a great substitute for Kraft Dinner!!  I have also decided that I should just make noodles with Daiya "cheddar shards" ( I LOVE the names they come up with for substitutes!!) if I have this craving again as the amount of preservatives in KD or the like is horrendous!

So AMAZING for special coffee treats!!!

I topped our Saturday morning fruit salads with this coconut milk yogurt substitute!  It was amazing!  I have to say out everything I miss yogurt only! This is a PERFECT substitute!  The fruit salad was amazing too...it was holiday inspired with fresh organic raspberries, kiwi, grapefruit and pomegranate.  Even though it looked like a crime scene in my kitchen after getting into that pomegranate...I highly recommend adding this to your next fruit salad...it was really yummy to have all those juicy seeds...and it made the fruit salad festive...if you are into that sort of thing!

Remember my $2 find at the thrift store a few weeks back?  YUP here it is!!  I LOVE it...it reminds me of being 10 and I like that! hee hee

This Saturday G and I are taking our nephew out to find a tree!  I'm hoping for the above type tree!  I hope the weather is nice as it would be nice to have alot of the family out with us looking for trees...I am getting really excited!  I haven't done this in years! I usually feel bad about "killing" a tree but this year I will have a special blessing for the tree before we take it and have faith that a new sappling will be planted in his place in the spring...(I know, I know...but that is how I roll!)

http://www.pickyourownchristmastree.org/XMT.php?URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.timbertrails.ca%2F

Really excited to make some precious memories this weekend!  I am also going to work on gratefulness and read the following quote everyday.

"Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can."

-- Dalai Lama

I am looking forward to sharing my new experiences in the days to come with you!