One Lucky Duck products are my favorite raw vegan foods to order online and to have in person in NYC. They even have TWO locations in Manhattan now! Pictured here are two cereals and my favorite way to eat them. I make some vanilla raw vegan hemp milk in my blender and pour it over the cacao or cinnamon crispies and pile on bananas, frozen blueberries, and goji berries. Amazingly delicious and good for me!
I'm expecting my next One Lucky Duck order on my doorstep very soon. This time I'm trying their new chocolate bars (I think I ordered every flavor), two kinds of crackers that I've only had in the restaurant and of course, some cacao crispies! And because I'm on the mailing list I happily took full advantage of some free shipping and free snowflake cookies. Sign up for the treats on the mailing list cause they're changing the specials daily. Happy holidays!
Eliot and I spent some time with this beautiful girl in early October.
She grunted and slept and ate a whole squash while we chatted her up.
Two days before our (bigger) family Thanksgiving the three of us went out to vegan trattoria, Portobello here in Portland for an early feast aka little family Thanksgiving. It did not disappoint. yummmmmm
salad with beets
squash soup with sage
I did it though. I got out and moved for 20 minutes or so. I went back inside, swaddled myself in fleece and thick striped socks and laid back on the couch to watch re-runs of law & order (they are always on, that and golden girls but I dont watch them, really I dont, okay maybe once in a while...)
*I wasted several weeks when I should have been making soap for christmas. Now I am rushed, I have been making a batch a day to have them cured in time for christmas. In fact a couple wont be good until two days after christmas. Ooops. Now I cant lay my head on the couch and watch
I only have one more batch to go, mint will be made tomorrow. Then I can get all those pots and pans and molds and cooler and oils in the garage again. They are crowding my kitchen.
*It is so cold. Frosty mornings. I want to go take pictures, but it is so cold out there. I have not been taking very many pictures lately. I just have not felt the motivation.
*while bringing in a load of wood for the wood stove I cracked my knee on the door frame. It is so dark blue now. I cursed a blue streak (what exactly is a blue streak?). This happened two days ago and even now it is throbbing. I really smashed it. A few weeks ago I stubbed my toe on one of those strips the put in the doorways to separate carpet from wood floor or in my case wood floor from linoleum (I know it is really vinyl, but I love the word linoleum). Well I managed to stub it so hard that it bruised me under the nail, it looked like it bent the nail back. Strange thing is that I have NO idea how that could even be possible. Seriously, how does one bend a toenail back on something that cannot grab your nail? I cried a little and cursed another blue streak. This happened weeks ago and it is still a little tender.
*Mr. L said he will hook up the Wii tonight. I am excited about this.
*pandora has now played 6 Beatles songs, 4 radiohead, and
*I am going to make an eye appointment soon. My sight has become rather bad lately. It is time for Lavender to get glasses. I want some cool, hip, retro, cat eye style frames. I hope I can find some that fit my personality and style and face. I also hope the three spots I have been seeing for quite some time are no big deal. one is starting to bother me when I read. I am scared.
*Just got the mail. I hate it when junk mail reads "This is NOT Junk Mail". Liar!
*I think I am going to go heat up some apple cider and cozy up on the couch and watch some
Since I have had nothing to say lately I will post this...
http://rescuemarriage.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/chains_of_love_t-shirt.gif
I tweeted this last night: ***Holding a space. For forgiveness, gifts, hope, time, prayer and love.*** And this morning this song came on my little ipod shuffle and it sums up how I've been feeling: unfolding.
Unfold by Jason Mraz
Hands in Line
Arms close to my side
I'm fighting tides
Of an ocean's undertow
And I figure that I might not make it
I'm taking empty but seldom speaking
And the words retreat
Yeah, they breath in histories
Still at ease
And the story's untold
And my arms unfold
My hands are high
And I'm holding on, I'm holding out
And i figure that i
Figure that I just might make it
And I'm waking empty but seldom sleeping
And the words repeat breathing histories
Into stories untold but I unfold
See now quality is what you see now
In the corner of your eye
And don't be surprised
If you hear the bells ring
As they form from the sky
They sound bong, bong, bong, bong, ba da
Yea yea bong, bong, bong,bong ba da yea, yea
And I'm always holding on
And I'm already holding out
Said I'm holding out your side
And I'm holding out this time
Cause I figure that I, and I figure that I
Just might make it and I'm
Waking empty but seldom sleeping
And the words repeat breathing histories untold
But I unfold
It's been too long.
Husband and little boy both had the flu and then followed it up with pneumonia and then topped it off with a cold. Five weeks later I escaped with a few days of coughing and runny nose. I think we're all on the mend now.
Eliot is adorable as always and wants to snuggle every morning the same as he's wanted to for years. I find myself relishing in it even more now as he approaches 5 and a half years old! He loves video games on wii, ds and playing on the computer with his daddy. He still plays play-doh, moon sand, tinkertoys, legos, board games, puzzles, builds forts, puts on puppet shows and on and on. It was so scary to see both husband and son so sick for so long that I feel ever so very extra grateful as we approach Thanksgiving this week.
So I wanted to do a quick post and a link to my talented brother's site and particularly to his new festive Thanksgiving song. (If you scroll down there's also a song inspired by Eliot that we love!) http://mchatton.com/2009/11/the-happy-vegan-thanksgiving-s/index.html Enjoy!
Much love, wellness and warm cozy houses for all this season.
xoxo
Ami
1. did not go grocery shopping last night so I have empty cupboards and fridge, it will be a scavenger hunt for lunch
2. so many piles of laundry to wash
3. kittys have fleas
4. tummy not feeling awesome
5. not a lot of sleep last night
YAY!!!
1. I listened to raindrops hit my windows and roof all night long
2. squirrels leaping across my fence
3. coffee
4. rain
5. big soft ugly sweatshirts
6. ideas for a rainy photoshoot
7. Mr. L laughing at my goofiness
8. weekend plans
9. thursday I do a maternity photoshoot, and I have lights now
10. fire in the fireplace
My To Do List for today:
1. dishes
2. two loads of laundry
3. make laundry soap (have to do that today, I dont have much left!)
4. have fun in the rain
5. research maternity sho
I enjoyed this more than I thought I would...and I really enjoyed the last third as all of the seemingly disconnected bits came together. I haven't read a book this strongly about "identity" since the Auster binge I went on about 15 years ago. (Speaking of which, his new book is next up in the queue...)
Thank God for Dr.Oz and so many others that are showing a vegan diet can be healthy and are encouraging people to give it a try!
Specifically, a few family members of mine are taking Dr.Oz's 28 day vegan challenge and I'm so happy for them! And so of course I want then to enjoy the food so very much that they don't miss what they thought they might. I have about a zillion ideas so let's see...
*While I don't own this book I have heard good things. And I like to keep meals easy so this book could be a good choice: The 30 Minute Vegan
*Books I know and love: Eat to Live and Skinny Bitch
*Website: Post Punk Kitchen - Loads of free recipes!
*One of my personal favorite dishes from a local PDX vegan restaurant called Blossoming Lotus is called the Green Gaia which is steamed kale, mixed greens,
sprouts & avocado tossed in garlic olive oil, topped with sesame
seeds with a choice of rice or quinoa. Actually all of Blossoming Lotus's bowls are fantastic and you could make them at home. I highly recommend quinoa as a great rice substitute. Find it in the bulk bins at the grocery store and cook it up like this:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups filtered water
Rinse quinoa well and drain.
Add water and quinoa to sauce pan and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce
heat to simmer and cook on low heat until all liquid is absorbed,
approximately 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and enjoy. Makes about 2 generous servings.
*Doing a bit of research online is very helpful. Exploring a food shopping site like Food Fight will give you lots of ideas of things you might want to try to find and/or ask your grocer to carry.
*Field Roast and Gardein are amazing. My meat-eating husband likes them. Seriously. So Good! I would suggest Gardein's Santa Fe Good Stuff with a big spinach salad. (Husband even diced it up and put it in a whole wheat tortilla with salsa, guacamole and greens once). Yum! Or the Smoked Apple Sage sausage from Field Roast sliced onto mixed greens, chopped celery and use fresh salsa as dressing. Delish.
*And last but most importantly increasing fresh low sugar fruits, eating more greens then you ever imagined possible, eating colorful veggies, orange peppers, broccoli, red peppers, carrots, zucchini, cucumbers... explore the produce section like you never have before. When I first started eating more raw foods I was not shy about asking the produce man questions, and most of them were basic, like how do I cut this open? And again going on line really helps just omit the dairy and meat from whatever recipes you find and use the yummy Earth Balance butter and eat more greens and eat more greens and eat more greens. Can't say it enough.
*My personal dessert of choice is Endangered Species 88% dark chocolate. One square satisfies my sweet tooth. And another sweet craving curbing food for me is Kombucha. I adore Kombucha. Here's a link to my fav: http://www.synergydrinks.com/
Coming up I hope to share breakfast ideas, more greens recipes, and smoothies. Tell me what you need and I will do my best. I hope I can help. Much love and yummy food to you all. Love you!
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