Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Swimmer
My Sunday has finally joined the ranks of awesome swimmers everywhere! She just jumped right in while we were hiking in the Greenbelt!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Reflections on week one of being vegan
This week has been great! I've been cooking up a storm and creating some delightful meals. Rip's recipes are really great and not that complicated. The only thing I would say is that it is too much. We always have leftovers from dinner and so that because a sandwich (for the most part) for the next day. That works for us. Besides that we have definitely been eater better and more delicious meals, so I will follow the breakfast and dinner plans for Week 2 and just skip out on the lunch bits.
Another comment would be that it is a very different approach to vegetarianism & vegan-ism than I have ever done before. The meals & recipes are catered to people who might miss eating meat, and so last night we ended up making a tofu/meat crumbles (delicious) "meatloaf". I have never been one to buy meat substitutes, and have held to the school of thought that if you don't want to eat meat there is no reason to eat a meat-like meal. I will admit that I have been getting a lot more protein from this and have been feeling more energized and less hungry as a result. I think my ideal situation would fall somewhere between the two.
So far my favorite meals have been the E2 Black Beans & Rice Extravaganza & Meatloaf. I'm excited for week 2!
Click for the Weekly Engine 2 meal plan!
Another comment would be that it is a very different approach to vegetarianism & vegan-ism than I have ever done before. The meals & recipes are catered to people who might miss eating meat, and so last night we ended up making a tofu/meat crumbles (delicious) "meatloaf". I have never been one to buy meat substitutes, and have held to the school of thought that if you don't want to eat meat there is no reason to eat a meat-like meal. I will admit that I have been getting a lot more protein from this and have been feeling more energized and less hungry as a result. I think my ideal situation would fall somewhere between the two.
So far my favorite meals have been the E2 Black Beans & Rice Extravaganza & Meatloaf. I'm excited for week 2!
Click for the Weekly Engine 2 meal plan!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Friday, April 16, 2010
My next camera bag: cute, stylish. discreet & purple
As I've mentioned in the title this bag meets all of my current requirements for a camera bag. I've been searching for something that looks good and will mask the fact that I am actually carrying a camera bag. The front pockets will be great for my "must have" knick knacks that I am always carrying around with me. I'm just starting out my journey into photography and so far am really enjoying it. I would love to have this bag to tote around my new found hobby!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Hot Rods on SoCo
Makes me love this area even more! I need to find a house over here. STAT. Stopped here to grab a lil' Home Slice & Hey Cupcake!
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Friday, April 9, 2010
We can go ahead and say that Sunday is pretty submissive
Wimp, wuss...genius? Everyone has their own survival technique.
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Wildflowers make my drive home wonderful. It's like I live in a DixieChick song.
When I got back from Paris, I noticed the weather had warmed up. I was pleased after having spent a week in mildly cold Parisien weather. The result of the lovely spring weather has been a gorgeous sprinkling of wildflowers all along the Texas highways! It makes me feel delighted and giddy at the same time. The bluebonnets are everywhere and the sky is a BIG great blue. All of it is making my commute a bit easier and filled with small joys.
I love spring and am not looking forward to summer, when the flowers shrivel with the heat and everything is so of dead. For now, I'm just reveling in the magic of spring (probably not coincidental that a "magical" device came out in spring).
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I love spring and am not looking forward to summer, when the flowers shrivel with the heat and everything is so of dead. For now, I'm just reveling in the magic of spring (probably not coincidental that a "magical" device came out in spring).
Monday, April 5, 2010
Meet Forever 21’s stylish sisters, Linda and Esther Chang
via latimes.com
Interesting profile on Forever 21's secret sauce: the founder's two daughters. The siblings are working on different projects, but the eldest, Linda, started the entire Social Media branding department for the retail chain. A marketing strategy that has kept Forever 21 with an edgy look and connected with its target market via blog, facebook, etc. Her sister, Esther, heads visuals and has given Forever 21 that cheeky in-store experience that we have all grown to love.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Vegan Week 1 — The Engine 2 Diet has a grocery list included to matchthe recipes FTW
via engine2diet.com
My sister and I are beginning a month long vegan experiment. While I've been a vegetarian for 5 years, I've never been able to commit to not eating cheese and eggs and making the leap to become a vegan. It really is the next step. Lately, I've felt really bored with what I've been cooking at home and found myself relying on cheese to brighten up a tired meal. While that is at times delicious it is not a healthy alternative. Cheese is always something I've been obsessed and may in fact be heavily influenced by my love of delicious French delicacies. Eggs, I can live without, and do not pose that much of a problem for me.
A few months ago, I watched Rip Esselstyn speak on TEDxAustin via a livestream. I had been toying with the idea of trying a vegan diet, but had been nervous about the logistics of it all. I had the normal fears that the food prep would be too long, and that it would turn into a disaster and something that I wouldn't be able to keep up on. But I could feel that it was something I was going to do and was very interested in. Three weeks ago, I was hanging around BookPeople and I saw that they had The Engine 2 Diet Book. I sat in the cafe with a Vietnamese iced coffee and leafed through it. I knew immediately that the cooking wouldn't be that difficult and that it had solid meal plans so I wouldn't end up lost along the way. I took the book home with me that day.
The Story:
Rip Esselstyn is a triathlete, Austinite, Firefighter and vegan. His journey to documenting the Engine 2 Diet was started on a bet between beefy firefighters about their cholesterol levels. The results were compelling and convincing enough to start his Firefighting shift-mates to try a plant-strong (his hilarious euphemism for vegan) diet.
The book is peppered with firefighting anecdotes and even an ever-so-random insert about checking your fire alarm. I know that this approach is to help the masses that feel so weird about being called a vegan and I think his approach is tactful and helps the resistant but interested few to try out his program. By making it a 28-day program it also helps those who would be nervous about converting to a vegan get on the program.
My favorite part of everything is that the website hosts a ton of the recipes from the book and also includes grocery lists! I was going through the book this morning and thinking about how I needed to write a grocery list to get started. As luck would have it - before writing a word down - I looked over the website and there, my friends, was the gem of all gems: weekly grocery lists!
Friday, April 2, 2010
Garlic growers in China currently set to become (scuse the pun) stinking rich!
via money.cnn.com
Garlic is of my favorite ingredients in almost anything. Interesting to see that one of the reasons of growth in China's garlic demand is it's mild antibiotic properties - something that became more important with the Swine Flu epidemic.
Google and Hans Christian Andersen: Adorable x 1000
via google.com
I love mornings that include a new Google logo. What a perfect way to create a story with a logo.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Peeps Krispies Treats? Why thank you @SeriousEats
via seriouseats.com
Since I don't really celebrate Jesus or Easter bunnies, might as well make Peeps Rice Krispie Treats this weekend!
