Plant-based life

I've been amazed at the transition...My husband and I used to consider heating up frozen veggies w/loads of shredded cheese on it in the microwave as "eating our vegetables."  Now, everything I cook begins, ends and is filled in the middle with something plant-based.  I have the most yummy meal heating in the oven and just wanted to share a couple of my recent favorite recipes.

Vegan Nacho Stuffed Shells I forgot and used the black beans in another recipe this week and I used chili beans instead. This is what I'm currently waiting on in the oven :)  Yummy cheezy goodness!!

Vegan Open-Faced Tempeh Reuben Still not sure the vegan-ability of some store-bought bread so I made homemade tortillas to eat w/.  I admit this doesn't taste like the real thing, but it is still good.

Homemade Tortillas I used whole wheat flour and canola oil instead of shortening to make them healthier; the recipe IS vegan as-is

Creamy Peanut Butter smoothie Don't knock the spinach in the recipe - you can't even taste it!!

If you make any of these recipes, let me know what you think!!

All the gold in California...

When the Japanese mend broken objects, they fill the cracks with gold. They believe that when something's suffered damage and has a history it becomes more beautiful. ~Barbara Bloom

I happened across this quote on the post of a FB friend.  It immediately struck me.  This woman has a daughter with a CHD. I see the value this quote has for the mom and the beauty in it for her daughter.  I see what it means to her for all the struggles she’s faced looking into the eyes of her daughter that doesn’t understand the pain or the need for one more surgery; the mom looking to God with the same questions her daughter has for her.

But then I take a step back and think about the beauty in it for me; the beauty in it for you; those of us who have faced different struggles.

Gold is a precious metal, sought after for millennia.  There is even a TV show on now (maybe on Discovery or is it the History channel?) that chronicles the lives of current-day Alaskan gold miners.  Gold is used for jewelry, money, sweet grills (awwww yea, show me them teeth!) and from the above quote - to mend broken things.  What’s even more interesting to me about this is that gold isn’t that strong of a metal.  It’s very ductile and malleable.  Only by introducing impurities does it gain strength.

I believe in the beauty of mistakes, of broken relationships, of chances to mend with a precious metal – a precious forgiveness.

I believe that we are all broken or have been broken in one way or another.  I believe in the hope that comes with a chance to mend.

I believe in the idea that strength doesn’t come from purity, but in fact from impurities.  Strength comes not from living a straight path, but from wandering and wondering, finding our own answers, calling on God to help pour the gold into the cracks we’ve made, and then continuing on our journey more beautiful and stronger than before.  

Shameless Plug!!!

Check out my Etsy page www.etsy.com/people/LittleOwlPeep and my other blog www.LittleOwlPeep@blogger.com.  Stay tuned for my Valentine's Day and St. Patty's Day onesies.  Super excited as I just got some new fabric.  Woot woot!!

Feed Me Seymour

So my appetite's ego took a hit this weekend.  The push to go/try vegan has been relatively easy as I stay home with Quinn.  I do the grocery shopping and decide what to cook.  The internet's at my fingertips with advice and recipes.  No problem.  This weekend I had several opportunities to go out to eat with friends.  While I've looked at this new way of eating as a chance to do something good for myself...a choice to be better than I have been, I couldn't help but think "I can't eat that; I'm giving up all these tasty foods."  I don't always do well when I'm told I can't do something.  My appetite (appetite not hunger) starts trying to convince my brain that what I've read, what happens to animals isn't that big of a deal...that I'm human and better than them anyway. (Let's not go there...)

Yes I made good choices, but it wasn't easy.  A friend of mine has gone gluten-free because it makes her feel better.  She doesn't have an official diagnosis of an allergy, and I'm not sure there's a real good way to test for sensitivities.  I watched her today thumb through a huge binder at Panera to find tasteful foods that were GF.  I admire her for doing that.  I admire her resolve, her strength, her willingness to forget about what others think and do what's best for her.  I wonder if her appetite's ego ever took a hit.  How do you convince something that isn't motivated by reason?

These are a few of my favorite things!

Yup, I'm still kickin'...is it bad that I have to start my blog saying that?  It's been too long!  Don't worry, my love, I haven't forgotten about you :)


Quinn celebrated his first birthday shortly after ringing in (or should I say sleeping through) the New Year. Here are a few of my favorites from the day. (Momma worked REAL hard to get the party together.  I kinda feel real bad for the next kid.  Will I have the energy?!?)  Of course I HAD to have an owl theme.  After the party and cleanup, Bobby asked if we were done with the owl thing yet.  Ha! Heck no!  I'm just getting started :)

Whoooo's One?

craft for the kids

Jillie showing off her owl

yummy owl cupcakes
(Thanks Jill for letting me borrow your dishes!
And thanks Noni Lisa for letting me borrow your Cricut!!) 

birthday boy hanging w/Uncle Brian 

Yaaaaay! Cake!
(I'm surrounded by such beautiful boys!)

It ain't easy looking this good

 The party was a mad-house...but it's so nice to be able to get everyone together!


Can you see what I haven't blogged?  No really, I'm just using that as an excuse.  I've been up to a few other things lately as well.  One of them is focusing on food!  Not just food, but our food practices and the relationship with the environment and more.  I watched Food Inc back in October and have slowly been making the change to vegetarian these last few months.  In just the last couple weeks, I've read The Kind Diet and am finishing up Skinny B*&ch. After reading both of these, I'm testing the vegan waters. I know, I can hear the groans from some of you.  We're all entitled to our opinions and we're all entitled to our own version of doing what's best for ourselves and others :)  I've never felt better in my life and it's nice to know that doing what I feel is right for myself helps out those of you that are groaning right now.


Bobby asked the other night if I was going to drink milk or eat cheese (my favorite) ever again. I told him I needed a transition time to make sure this is what I really wanted. He thought that was kinda funny...either you know or you don't :) It's hard for me to do this knowing he's a hunter!! But every time I think about eating a meat product, I can't help but think about everything I've read (just exactly what happens to animals before during and after the "chopping block" and how meat and dairy really aren't very good for you anyway). On the way positive side, I've been eating sooo sooo much better lately and have even lost the last 5 pregnancy pounds (nevermind I'm more flabby than I've ever been). 

I've never been a huge meat eater so "giving up" meat really has been very smooth for me. I've enjoyed the task of trying out new foods and new flavors all while keeping it in our tight budget. I never thought I'd enjoy cooking, but it really hasn't been that bad.  My meat-eater hubby has actually enjoyed most of my dishes.  (And no, it's not the newlywed "Yes, dear this dish is lovely" kind of enjoyment.  He actually likes it...like Mikey.)

So that kinda sums up my new obsession lately :) I've been doodling some cute little pictures I'm going to use as appliques for onesies.  Teaching my friend April how to sew has lit a new fire in me. I've opened an Etsy account a couple months ago and now I need to get busy!!  I'll keep you posted on how it goes, but my Etsy account name is LittleOwlPeep.


Lastly, I've started doing the newsletter for the yoga studio I teach at.  It's been a nice and quick creative outlet for me and I get to share some of my favorite vegetarian recipes.  


In the parting words of one of my most favorite people I'd love to meet, Ellen DeGeneres, "Be kind to one another."