Eats, Chats, Books, & The Birds & The Bees!

Hello there!  So much to type and so little time - once again!  I will start of by saying that Paco's dental surgery went very well and she's back to normal.  He didn't have any issues with his ITP (Immune Issues) while re-cooping!  Thanks for all of the positive thoughts, prayers, vibes, and asking about him!  That means a lot!

Here's one of the more memorable thrown together meals I have had over the last few weeks!  It's a cheaters meal but super yummy!  I did boxed Daiya Mac & Cheese and added a package of frozen veggies and a little bit of almond milk then topped with sprinkles of nutmeg, smoked paprika, basil, etc.

Another thing I have enjoyed at home lately is vegan egg salad made from mainly avocado, spices, etc.  It certainly hit the spot!

This bread wasn't the best...not sure what kind it was but I highly doubt I will be getting it again.  I remember what the package looks like so I will avoid it.  What I have been craving for lately in the bread section is sprouted bread and I think I will have to make that happen soon!

One of my many attempted at vegan Mac & Cheese from scratch...I swear I do it a different way each time.

With this attempt it was very creamy!  The photo isn't that great but it was tasty!

Of course I threw some smoked paprika on top!  YUM!

I'm not sure why but I have been finishing off a lot of meals with nutmeg and/or smoked paprika as of late.

I'm sure by the title of this blog post you were thinking something different...but...I thought I would literally post about the BIRDS and the BEES today...at least the BEES...anyways!

A few weeks ago I took this photo on the fly on my iPhone...I can't remember a time that we have had bees and flowers this early in the year!

This past weekend it was near 70!!!!  Woot!

My birthday was on the 16th...I treated myself with this Daiya Cheesecake.  I will tell you that I am SET for a while on Vegan Cheesecake...I can't believe how rich and sweet this was!  I'm not sure to that!  It almost hurt my teeth! LOL

I will say I like the strawberry better than the plain.

I really like these vegan offerings but don't have them often and I think that is a good thing...on several levels!

This past weekend we traveled to the Buffalo area for a day trip and I was stoked to find 2 of the vegan cookbooks that were on my wishlist!

First up...Jason Wrobel!  This book is HUGE!

Then a blogging buddy of ours...Zsu Dever's Book as you can see in the next photo!  I can't wait to jump in!

And finally...a shout out to my buddy Opal!  I was able to chat with her on the phone today and it was so wonderful!

She's my oldest online buddy...it's been YEARS since I first came across her blog (and it was a few blogs ago) and a few blogs ago of mine, too!  It was great to talk to her over the phone...I bet it's been about 10 years or so since we 'met' online.  We chatted about family, the weekend, gardening, community involvement, etc...can't wait to chat with her again soon!  It was the highlight of my day!  YAY!

Mailtime Monday...on Tuesday!

I LOVE getting mail!  I always have!  It could be a package or just a simple letter...I just LOVE it! 

Yesterday I received this neat Tea Box from Tea Box Express and I will be doing a Full Length Review over at Sororitea Sisters in the near future.  Tea Box Express is a monthly subscription service for tea lovers.  Each month you will get a featured tea and a few other tea related or tea themed items in your box.  This month Teatulia was the featured tea.  I have had this black tea from Teatulia before and it's a good go-to black tea.  The box is very well done with lovely 'thoughts' and things to make you smile along the way.

One of the other things that was featured in this month's box was tea honey.  No...this isn't vegan.  I will be giving this to my husband - he's a honey fan. 

Another item that I will be sharing because it's NOT vegan is this cookie.  I decided to pass this along to my mother in law.  This cookie was HUGE...like one you might see in a specialty gift shop that is a couple dollars each.

I do really like the tea bag holder or the spoon dish - I guess you could use it either way.  It's sitting on my desk at work, actually.

And you can see the teapot themed stir stick on the bottom of the one photo - it's really neat, too!  Eventho I use Agave I think this would work well with honey or a honey alternative or if you are one of those people who have a milk or milk alternative in your tea and just use it as a stir stick - it's still super cute!  Since I drink all of my teas straight-up with no additives I will most likely be using that for decor OR if I have guests over.


Another piece of HAPPY MAIL I received yesterday was a coupon for an Earth Balance item valued at $6.99 - I won it last week over at the VeganMoFo site!

No Bees, No Almonds - No Bees, No Pumpkin Pie!

Photo from National Geographic

One of my favorite sites to learn about Bees is Opal's site of course!  Over the years we have heard so much about the population of Honey Bees diminishing.  This past week I have received 4 different emails from different non-bee-specific sites with different findings and articles having to do with bees!

Earlier in the week one of the emails concentrated on Almonds.  Saying if there were no bees - there would be no almonds.  The other was from the Center for Food Safety saying that if there were no bees there would be no pumpkin pie.  When you clicked on their campaign link it goes into more depth about just how much we NEED honeybees!  Things like No Cranberries, No Pumpkins, No Green Beans...just about EVERY fruit and veggie we consume is because of BEES!  So if the Center for Food Safety's campaign was timely for Thanksgiving it sure does make me think...this Thanksgiving I will include being THANKFUL for Honey Bees this year.  Not that I wasn't to begin with but when  you have the info right in front of you it sure does put things into prospective. 

Another site I came across was The Business Insider.  This site went into even more saying all fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds rely on bees!  Nearly 1/3 of the world's crops depend on them!  Where are they going?  Why are they dieing?  Well, various reasons!  Pesticides, Disease, Parasites, Poor Weather, Environmental Conditions, etc.  What can we do about it?  Well, I for one, will continue to follow Bee Keepers Blogs like Opal.  I will also be looking into local and regional people in our area to try and support them in some way.  I, personally, don't eat (much) honey...I prefer Agave but that doesn't mean that vegetarians, vegans, and every day people that are meat eaters or otherwise shouldn't support your local bees!  After all...you benefit and are fed because of what Bees do for you!

This Thanksgiving...one of the MANY things I am thankful for is Bees!