Boring You With The Details...

Before I start rambling about random crap that has been happening the last couple months I thought I would share with you something that I FINALLY found LOCALLY!  YAY!  I have tried a few of the other flavors but this is a first for me with THIS Sparkling Live Drinking Vinegars.  THIS flavor I am speaking/writing of is the TART CHERRY Apple Cider Vinegar with Coconut Vinegar.  I had a thought that I would enjoy it but I have to say I really LOVE it (way more than even I thought I would). 

It had to be a treat because it was still priced at a bit over $3 for the ONE bottle.  I figure some people throw money at cigarettes and other awful things so what if I splurge on this little gem, eh!?

Anyhow...on to a few other things.  I have mentioned (but haven't expanded on) how the last several months I have had a LOT going on.  And even now...I don't know where to begin.  I don't want to lay out all my dirty laundry or anything but I figured I would list a few things that have been on my mind as of late.

My MIL was diagnosed with cancer almost a year ago.  She went thru the treatments wonderfully and is now cancer-free but she's been having other issues since about June that no one can fully explain.  As you can imagine this is something that we worry about day-in and day-out.  It's on-going. 

Several months ago the company I work for was supposed to be sold.  We were looking forward to several changes.  In the final moments of the sale, it fell thru which was a bummer.  It's been doubly difficult because my MIL has worked at the same place for over 40 years and because of the health-related concerns she has retired and we haven't hired anyone new.

Of course, I am giving you the shortened versions of these stories but I have had some people ask me about different things and wanted to update my buddies without sharing TOO MUCH information - if you know what I mean.

DH is on the fair board and exec board of our county fair and that has come in to play more this year than in past years.  I have gotten more involved as well.  In addition, I have been very involved with our League of Women Voters and other community events and committees. 

The beginning of December will be our last time selling for Wildtree.  We've been reps for 9 years and LOVED it but several things have told us it's time to move on.

One of those things is the birth of my niece Trinity.  With everything else going on I want to make sure I spend as much time with her as possible.  My sister lives about 45 minutes from where I do and with both of us working full time it's already hard enough to see her each week (or two or three) even if it's only for a few moments.  This will be her first Christmas and I'm already trying to figure out what we are going to do for her.  I want to start traditions with her...that only her and I will have.  One of the things is UNICORNS.  As many of you know I have collected unicorns my whole life and someday Trinity will be getting all of them whether her mother likes it or not!  hahaha!  I was thinking about giving her a Unicorn from my collection each year but even if I did that for all of her first 18 years that would only be 18 unicorns and I have over 700!  So I don't know if I will give her one this year, 2 next year, 3 the following year, and so on or what but she will start getting them THIS CHRISTMAS!

I'm really trying to get back into cooking more and blogging about it more but I have had some pretty frumpy attempts as of late.  I hope to turn that around soon.

My parents seemed to be excited about their new camper.  We hope to transport it back sometimes this week so it's closer to them for when spring comes around.  I feel bad that they will have to wait months before using it.  But it's something to look forward to and possibly something we can think about for holiday gift giving, too!

This winter I really have to work on many areas of our house.  I just have no idea where to start.  It's quite overwhelming. 

Speaking of overwhelming, these last 6 to 8 months have been just that.  With all of the stuff I mentioned in this post - among other things - not to mention the ongoing vet issues with all 4 furkids - it's been rough to say the least.

Thank you for those who sent me messages and thoughts/prayers.  I let the stress get to me more than a few times but I'm hoping on moving forward and improving the ways I deal with stress from here on out.  It's an ongoing journey so any and all encouragement is appreciated.

A Lovely Bunch Of Randomness

There has been a lot going on.  Some of which I am not quite ready to talk about but I will fill you in soon, really!

Sorry I have been away for more than a week and a half...it's been a very weird couple of weeks - but, again, more on that in the future.

Today I have a bunch of random updates for you!  Including this photo of me wearing one of my favorite hats of the season!  Some of you know my LOVE of hats!  This came in handy this winter with the bitter cold temperatures...it's probably the warmest hat I have right now! 

I have been working on my Craft Room again but still have a long way to go!  Here's a nook in the one corner that I took so you can see some of my supplies as well as some of the stuff I am working on organizing! 

In the white canvas compartments I have smaller paper, some scraps, random photos, and other odd-ball things I didn't know what to do with yet.  In between the two larger shelves/racks you can see a smaller structure that I have put my ink pads in.  At first I was going to pitch or repurpose that but I decided to keep it just the way it was.  It works just fine for what it's for and sometimes I need to tell myself to 'leave well enough alone'.

This structure is NEW, however!  A couple of weekends ago my husband did this for me...he's been getting into his tools again.  I thought it was great since he hasn't really been into the tools for years...unless he needed to...so I have been encouraging him!  I think it's GREAT! Plus...he's been making some really great stuff for around the house including my craft room!  For this space I really needed something that I could put a BUNCH of stuff ON so I could have it in front of me...I'm a very visual person - that needs to see everything in order to use it!  We also weren't able to hang anything from the walls since our house is over 114 years old and the room I use for my craft room has wall of a Spackle or something close to it anyway and it's very "weak and crumbly" so I don't want to many any more holes in the walls than are already there, ya know!?  So with this massive shelving unit it was able to sit on the table top up against the wall - we did try and adhere it to the wall a but just for a little extra sturdiness.  It's working GREAT so far and it is as long as the table...so...6 feet or so.

The other night I noticed West Side Story from 1961 on Netflix and it's been a few years since I have seen it so I decided to sit down with the furkids and watch it.  I think it's the first time I have watched it since they remastered it in 2011 and I thought the quality was wonderful!  I've always LOVED West Side Story!  Of course, I have been a fan of musicals most of my life.  I'd like to get back into them more this year!

Last weekend my mom, sister, dad, and I were over at our local mall for an Outdoor Show with our Wildtree Products.  This is the 2nd year we have done this show and it's a fantastic one sales-wise!

We stocked up as much as we could on product and it was good that we did.  We ended up taking some orders and got a few more orders after the event was over (throughout the week!)  We even got a few leads for parties and a possible rep!  YAY!


As for food - I have been plugging along with some home made stuff, of course, as well as some stuff from my stash from my trip to Trader Joe's a few weeks ago.  I do need to go shopping to replenish my frozen and fresh foods very soon!  I have been going thru a lot! 

I have been doing a few Bento's the last couple of weeks and need to get back into DAILY Bentos!  This was one of my bigger meals which included a nice salad with a little bit of Daiya Shreds and Nutritional Yeast.  I did a smoothie for breakfast that day.  I used some leftovers of Garlic and Pine Nut Couscous topped with peas and Hemp Seeds.  In the snack sections I packed cashews that I had seasoned at home and they were great - along with a bit of Coconut Chips.  The dark liquid is just red wine vinegar for my salad.  I didn't have any home made salad dressings left at that time.  It worked out well for a Vegan Bento Box, tho!

Eventho I don't have a complete recipe for you with this photo here, I will tell you what's in it!

The photo doesn't do it justice...it looks a little "iffy" but I assure you the flavor was YUMMY!

It has the following in it...Avocado, Corn, Lime Juice, Coconut Sugar, Hot Sauce, Cumin, and a very little bit of Pink Himalayan Sea Salt Crystals.

As for this Dressing...I must say I LOVE it!  Here's what I used for this and it make quite a bit!

1 C Water
1 Large Orange Bell Pepper
1 Large Red Bell Pepper
1/4 C Tahini
2 T Lemon Juice
1/2 C Cashews
2 Sundried Tomatoes
1/2 C Nutritional Yeast
1 T Hot Sauce

And FINALLY - my lunch for today...Mustard Brussell Sprouts and Corn:

1/2 Small Onion
Garlic Powder to taste
Onion Powder to taste
1 T Lemon Juice
1 C Frozen Corn
1/2 pound Brussell Sprouts
1 T Coconut Oil
1 to 2 T Yellow Mustard

What have you been up to!?

Random Thoughts, Vegan World Foods, Vegan Egg Replacements, Vegan Food Trucks, and More!

I know this is a different sort of a post for me lately but I have been finding some really interesting sites, resources, ideas, and things to think about and I thought I would share them with you all!

First, I was reading this article on the Smithsonian Mag and tried to not let the negatives bother me and concentrate on the positives which I found to be that there are approx. 400 Million Vegetarians in India alone!  How wonderful is that?  Of course I LOVE Indian Food and I have been craving it lately so I might have to try and make a dish in the near future.  Another Veg*n Food Friendly Country is Mexico and I also happen to LOVE Mexican Food!  Thailand is another country that shouldn't be forgotten when it comes to veggie food.  I would love to try more of Thailand's native fruits!  Chile.  I NEED to try more Chilean Foods SOON!  I just might have to challenge myself...OKAY FINE...it's an official personal challenge!  Give me some encouragement in comments.  Which Vegetarian Foods from Chile do you enjoy!?  The older I get the more I get into foods from Lebanon.  Ethiopian Meals?  I'm game!  What I have had I have enjoyed and look forward to more of their traditional foods in the future.  Greece.  I like Greek food but haven't tried a large amount of vegan foods from Greece yet.  We have a Greek restaurant in town, here, but it's jam-packed with meats and dairy.  There are a few simple things I can order which I am very grateful for but I am interested in more options, too!  Lesotho is one I MUST research and FAST!  I've always LOVED learning about different countries and I think Lesotho is a good place to start this time around!

I've been receiving the Earth Balance Newsletters in my email and they always having interesting things to say!  They are one of the better email newsletters these days!  Today I received a link for Vegan Egg Replacements.  The 4 listed I already knew about but want to 'play' with some of them more.  I used to use Flaxseeds years ago much more than I have been recently.  A mini goal of mine is to get back into Flax a bit more.  Not just the seeds but the meal and oil.  Since I have never been much of a 'baker' the idea has been haunting me more lately.  I might have to TRY again and this time around use Applesauce as mu 'egg' source.  Speaking of Egg Alternatives...I see a Scramble 'Egg' Tofu in my near future, too!  I have done one of those in a while and have been craving it.  I also want to try the "vegg" in a Scramble with Tofu as well.

Another thing I was reminded of with their newsletter was Vegan Food Trucks.  A while back I researched this topic a lot but it's been a while and I know things evolve so I must do this again and FAST!  Yeah...can you tell I'm "Little Miss Research" these days!?  In addition to their list linked in the previous sentence I came across PETA's post and Mobile Cuisine.  I LOVE looking at Food Trucks!  I love all of the art that goes into the designs and logos and colors and such.  I think it's wonderful that there are more and more veggie options stepping up to bat!  Unfortunately, I don't have those options in my area but my eyes will be peeled each time I visit a larger city!  Pardon my random and scattered thoughts in this post - just a few things I have been thinking about and researching lately.  More coming soon!  I will have multiple posts again, today, too!  Feedback always welcome!