Days 232 through 241

Wow! Has it really been over a week since I last blogged? Yes, it has and during that time I've been continuing my work at being Vegan. During this time I tested the waters to see if maybe I could be mostly Vegan instead of entirely Vegan. You see, I was missing cheese. So, I thought that I'd try just eating a little cheese one day to see what would happen. It made me so sick to my stomach with cramps and pain that I was instantly cured of my cheese cravings. As lovely as that food item is, I can no longer stomach it.

I can remember as a child I didn't want to eat meat and even avoided it for the most part. My mom used to push me to eat it and I'd do my best, but I can remember just really liking a cheese sandwich over a hamburger. But she was relentless. She started giving us what I remember was Stewart's Tonic, which was a castor oil based tonic reported to boost appetite (she thought I was too thin, don't you know) and after a tablespoon of that evil liquid I'd eat anything to make it never be in my mouth again. As you can suspect, I learned to clean my plate (Ugh!), eat meat, fat, sweets and everything as deep fried as possible. I am the perfect example of why it's important to demonstrate a healthy diet and help your children find alternatives if they don't like something. Had I been encouraged to eat fruits, vegetables and simple foods as little prepared as possible, I'd be much healthier today. Also, please, please never push people to clean their plates. That's just bad...really, really a bad idea. Eat when you're hungry and stop when you're full; the only way to live.

Okay, so I don't miss the meat and now, I don't really miss the cheese either. I still eat pizza and enchiladas, but they are without the cheese. I still eat out. I just ask more questions about what's in my meal and ask for adjustments to the dish when necessary (i.e. No cheese, please). When summer arrives I'll probably want more salads, but at the moment I'm not really eating much salad. Most people I talk with about my eating habits either are really worried about my intake of protein (please find something more interesting to ask...really, please!) or they think all I eat is salad, day and night. Well, with my Vegan diet my protein intake is where it should be for my condition (less one kidney) and no thank you, I don't eat salad all day.

I've been reviewing Vegan cookbooks and I'm astonished by the number of volumes that focus on 'replacing' or remaking foods so that the eater is not 'missing' something like meat or cheese. Let me say this, about that: If you want meat and cheese and can stomach it, please eat it. There is no real substitute for either of these. Having said that, I have found a meatless burger that is fantastic. I love the 365 brand Meatless Burgers (below) and these have become a weekend favorite for me. I really

love these. I dress these as I would my favorite hamburger, with mustard, pickles and onions. Lettuce and tomato makes it too wet so I keep those toppings for something else. These don't in any way replace a real hamburger. They are actually BETTER than a their beefy brothers. My boys were convinced that real beef burgers were better than these (I knew the truth already), so they did a side-by-side taste test. They both said that the 365 brand Meatless Burgers are BETTER than beef burgers. Plus, there isn't the messy preparation with these burgers and your house doesn't smell like fried meat all night, either. Yes, these might be a replacement for beef burgers, but because they are really better, I don't see it that way.

So for the past 10 days (Wow, I've been lazy!!) I've been enjoying time with my family and trying to figure out how to accomplish all of the things I want in my life. I've had my annual evaluation at work, taken a short trip to see my sister, celebrated my husbands birthday (he hates surprises) and had my cancer check-up. All is well, but never perfect. There is always something for me to do better or be better at. Practice does make more perfect, you know! I just keep remembering that the days are what I make out of them; I decide how it's going to be. As it's Sunday, it's time for me to get on with the weekly laundry, clean the bathroom and try to get some organization into my makeup area. (What a mess!!)  So, until next time, keep your chin up, eat something good and take a walk and Godspeed, Voyagers!!