I don’t think you can handle this, Gorgeouses. Can you? Want to prove me wrong? Huh? Huh? Are ya SCAAAARED? Because I dare you. I dare you to try going vegetarian for a week. Think you can handle it? I don’t think you can handle it….

So, can you handle this? Can you take the VEGGIE CHALLENGE? This is a DARE, Gorgeouses. ARE YOU GAME? OR, are ya scaaaaaared?! Bock buck buck buck buck BOCK buck buck buck buck (that’s my effort to sound like a CHICKEN!!!).

Even if you don’t do the whole week, this plan — devised by my city’s very own The Toronto Vegetarian Society — is full of great tips and recipes for incorporating more plant-based meals in your (and your family’s) diet. You might find you even LIKE eating this way. If you’re lucky, like me, you might notice your skin take on a new glow, or you’re less congested, you feel lighter, more balanced and more compassionate….!

Here’s an example of a day on the diet:

Breakfast
• Whole-grain cereal with your choice of milk, sprinkled with dried or fresh fruit.
• Calcium-fortified orange juice.

Lunch
• Avocado slices with sprouts or lettuce on whole-grain bread, grape or cherry tomatoes.
• Cantaloupe chunks drizzled with fresh lime juice.

Dinner
Chinese stir-fry over brown rice: toss in tofu chunks, broccoli, pea pods, and bok choy.

Snack
Dried figs.

Mmmm…. FIGS. Love! I may stay away from those figs because they’re high in sugar and HIGHLY addictive. But, they’re also high in calcium and iron and other good stuff.

You know, I’ve been researching vegan weight-loss diets, like Dr. Fuhrman’s well-known Eat to Live diet and various macrobiotic diets. But, they’re all so dang restrictive. And, the vegan diet’s restrictive enough — especially if you’ve been a CHEESE lover all your life, like I was…. So, I’m excited about this Veggie Challenge. It’s realistic. It’s simple. And, it’s not restrictive or rigid. As long as I keep the sugar and cheaty snacking to a minimum, I should lose weight on it! (Especially with my new TURBO JAM DVD!)

Bah bye, diet full of peanut butter on bagels! Hello BALANCE and VARIETY…and DELICIOUS.

I’ll keep you posted on how the recipes are, etc.. So, you in? Or, are you too chicken to give up the chicken for ONE WEEK? (Or, even just one DAY a week?)

LOVE!
xo Haley-O

I do not eat animal products.
I do not wear leather.

I used to snicker at people like me when I was younger.
I’ve turned into someone many would find silly and annoying.
Because my not-eating meat is a reminder that things are NOT okay in the world.

I don’t preach my veganism to anyone — not even my kids.
I just put it out there so that people realize they have a choice in all this.

The cruelty to animals (on farms and beyond) in this world is beyond mind-boggling and beyond disturbing. Some people can handle it. They can stuff it in some pocket in the back of their mind and forget all about it.

I can’t.

Every time I cook chicken for my children, I feel it in my heart. I see packages of meat in the supermarket and I feel sick with sorrow. I can’t drink milk or eat eggs without knowing where they’re from.

It’s hard.

And, so I’ve decided. I’m no longer a vegetarian. I’m a vegan. All the way.

Please enjoy this blog as one of your sources for vegetarian recipes. So you can incorporate more vegetarian meals into your diet — thereby saving more animals. I do cook meals with poultry, eggs and dairy for my children, and I will continue to include them here.

Why aren’t my children vegan, too? Because I can’t make this choice for them, or for my husband. I respect everyone’s freedom to choose — to choose their causes and the foods they eat. It’s an individual choice.

I do make sure that I buy free-range eggs, organic milk and chicken and turkey (when possible and affordable) that’s hormone and antibiotic free and that are, preferably, from a smaller farm. I gently encourage you to do the same.

I also encourage everyone to thank the animals (before meals) for giving their lives for our nourishment…. A little respect can go a long way in your own eating experience.

May all the animals on this earth find comfort tonight….

Love, Haley-O

So, when I got home from our little vacay in the countray, I decided I needed to bake the Monkey some cookies once and for all — healthy of course. And, guess what? In the words of Ni Hao Kai Lan, “I DID IT! I DID IT! I DID DID DID!” Soooo catchy, I knoooow! Monkey says that all the time.

Anyway, check it….

Hooraaaahhh! And, can I get a WOOT WOOT!

Anyway, the big difference between this cookie-baking experience and THAT cookie experience (last week) was that I was in a MUCH better mood, and so were the monkeys. THIS time, I didn’t have monkey’s pulling at me and whining “Can I haaaaaaave one? Can I haaaaaaave cookie, momma?” in UTMOST nasally voice. No, this time, everyone was relatively calm.

Another big difference between THIS and THAT cookie-baking experience is that I got smart and bought a MIX:

Yummm….

It wasn’t totally easy. I mean, there was an egg involved, and softened butter…. But, I worked it out, and the cookies turned out really well….

Too bad someone ATE WAY TOO MANY OF THEM….BURRRRRP.

Anyway, so lately, when I haven’t been busy eating and making cookies, I’ve been busy researching Ayurveda (Yoga’s sister science), Veganism, and Macrobiotics. Yes. I’m a busy, obsessive girl (ahem, Virgo, classic). I’m just fascinated by all this stuff. Whether or not I can actually make the desired radical shift in my diet — i.e., breaking the sugar habit, eating at night, etc. — I really enjoy the reading (except some of the veganism reading because it makes me cry for my animal friends). So, you can expect a lot of new info and recipes on all the new things I learn coming soon.

In the meantime, I’m off to the gym for yoga and a little cardio….

Eat well, Gorgeouses! xo Haley-O