VegFest 2009!!!

  Happy weekend! How do you like our family photo? If you look closely you’ll see Kitty (who David is holding) hates her brother and sister and is growling at them! David and I were laughing so hard it was hard to take a normal-looking photo :-)

Today was VegFest!!!!!!!!

“Central Florida Veg Fest takes place in October (in honor of World Farm Animals Day) in Orlando, Florida. The themes of Veg Fest include health and wellness, vegetarian cuisine, the environment, animal welfare and rights, and community-building activism.”

VegFest wasn’t as big as we imagined, but it was still awesome! There were different sections of booths for Mind + Body, Veggie Food, Raw Food, Home and Pets. The whole event was free, pet-friendly and smoke-free. All the food served was actually vegan!

I had plenty of samples, two mini Larabars- and this vegan peanut butter brownie from Food Not Bombs. Food Not Bombs donates all their profits to feed Orlando’s homeless vegetarian and vegan meals. Now that is yummy! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

Costco or Sams?

Costco or Sams?

Grocery shopping for David and me is a lot different than grocery shopping for just myself. When it was just me I would clip coupons and base my week's foods around what is on sale/cheapest. David has more staples that he goes through pretty quickly and must always have- like orange juice ($4/bottle!) and (soon-to-be) organic meat.

I am definitely interested in wholesale options like Sam's Club and Costco (the two in my area) but am having a tough time deciding which would be best.

Ryan did some searching around and found that Costco has Larabars and organic spring mix while Sams had Zbars and organic spinach... so they are different!

Tomorrow David and I are headed to both to check out the store/products/prices and compare. I'd love to get your input before we go.

Have you had experience with either? What have you heard/experienced?

Changing Normal

Almost nine years ago I stopped eating all meat and have been apologizing for it ever since. Seeing Food, Inc. left me feeling empowered and proud of my food decisions now and nine years ago.

My decision to first change my diet happened when my family had a small farm. We had chickens, ducks, geese, goats, pigs, turkeys, lambs, cats, dogs and a horse. The animals were a result of my love for animals and I was so happy to have them. One day I went out to feed my chickens after school and was startled to find my favorite chicken, Fryer, mangled in pieces. It had been attacked by some intruding animal. Sure, what happened to Fryer was natural, but to a 12-year-old girl it is traumatizing.

One week later my mama goat Noel died after several days of (very loud) suffering. The moment I found out was the moment I stopped eating meat: October 3, 2000. I made that decision because I couldn’t justify being so upset when my animals died and then causing other animals to be killed for my dinner. It didn’t make sense to me.

My Nana told me no boys would take me out on dates. My mother said it was too inconvenient and too unhealthy. My dad bet it would only last a year.

Lasagna with mozzarella; eggs, bacon and cheese; pizza; greasy hamburgers with all the toppings; meat and potatoes- this is the food I was raised to believe is normal. It’s normal to buy what meat is on sale at the grocery store. To be a bit healthy buy low-fat. This is what is normal. So by avoiding certain products because of personal convictions I made myself abnormal. And so I entered into nine years of defense and apologies.

From the moment I decided to save animals by the way I eat I have had to defend myself. I defend myself in restaurants when I want to know how the food is cooked; I defend myself to the many people I encounter who are certain I must not be healthy; and I defend myself to my boyfriend’s parents who want to be sure that I won’t make a vegetarian out of their son. Adopting a vegetarian diet has been all about doing the unnatural and defending myself for it.

I decided to also cut out dairy and go vegan one week ago mostly for my own health. Defending myself for being vegetarian is nothing compared to defending myself as a vegan.

Watching the movie Food, Inc. definitely turned the tables. I watched chickens deformed by growth hormones, too unstable to stand or walk. I watched injured cows be prodded by a trailer. I watched the chickens, who don’t have room to move at all, be kicked and thrown into a truck to be sent for slaughter. Watching the cruelty before my eyes was almost too much for me to handle. From that moment I decided no longer will I apologize for living cruelty-free and no longer will I consider the unregulated, horrific practices of mass food production normal. Never again.

The decision to eat meat and animal products or abstain from it is entirely personal. But the decision to support farms where animals are treated with respect is entirely necessary.

With every meal you support how your body is nourished, how a corporation is run, how a chicken is handled and how a farmer is paid. Your choices do count and after watching this movie I hope those choices are handled with radical care.

My essay inspired by Food, Inc. focuses mainly on the treatment of animals in factory farms. There were definitely many more important issues covered. Please see the movie yourself!

Guest Post: Using Vinegar as a Household Cleaner

Hi Healthy Ashley readers! My name is Andrea and my lil blog is called Off Her Cork where I write about food, running, and daily life. Ashley put out the call on Twitter asking about all natural cleaners. I mentioned that I clean with vinegar and she asked me to do a guest post, so here I am!

Vinegar is a great resource for all kinds of things! I started using it as a household cleaner several years ago when I realized that what I had been using to keep my home pretty and "clean" actually wasn't healthy for my family. The cleaners are made up of a lot of harsh chemicals that are toxic and not environmentally friendly. That didn't sit well with me and I started researching other options. What I found was that vinegar is a natural anti-bacterial and anti-fungal and it can be used in many different ways. If you Google cleaning uses for vinegar so many sites and resources come up you could easily spend all day reading.

I stopped using the other cleaners cold turkey and switched right over to vinegar. I pour a little bit in my cleaning bucket (probably around a cup) and combine it with hot water, then I go through and give my house a good scrub down with a cleaning cloth. This includes appliances, counter tops, sinks, and toilets. Basically everything in my house gets cleaned with vinegar.

Vinegar and water will clean up your stainless steel appliances and make them all shiny again.

I add vinegar and a little bit of baking soda to the toilets and let sit for about 15 minutes. Then I scrub them with a regular toilet brush and flush. They are clean without having to use toxic chemicals.
I use about 1/4-1/3C of vinegar plus lots of hot water to mop my floors. This includes hardwood flooring. Vinegar is great for floors because not only does it clean well but if you've got pets or little ones running around, if they touch the wet floor and then lick their paws or suck their thumb there is no risk of them ingesting a harmful chemical. It's just vinegar. It might not taste pleasant but I'll take that over toxic chemicals any day.

I use vinegar instead of liquid fabric softener when I do laundry. Liquid fabric softener is just another chemical and really isn't needed at all for clothes. Since I have a dog, his blankets and bedding (along with ours because he likes our bed!) can get lots of hair and smell on them, vinegar neutralizes this. I also use it for all my workout clothes. Not only does it neutralize stinky sweat odor but it helps remove the sweat stains as well.

The most common question I get asked is, "What about the smell?" Well it's vinegar, so it's going to smell like vinegar. However, you aren't using that much and the smell dissipates quickly, so it's not a big deal. My question is; would you rather smell vinegar or a fake pine scent created in a lab so it covers up the harsh and toxic chemicals you're coating your house with?

If you don't think you could trust straight vinegar or maybe aren't ready to take that step yet, Method is a great company that makes all natural household cleaners. I use their hand soap, dish soap, and dish washer pellets with great success. They can be purchased at Target and most stores that have an all-natural cleaning section.

I hope you found this article useful! Thanks Ashley for allowing me to guest post on your blog!

Andrea
http://offhercork.com

Thanks for the great info and tips, Andrea!!

Do you use clean & green cleaners for your home? What are your favorite mixtures/products?

Bar Review: Cascadian Farm Vanilla Chip (Something Sweet!)

Hey guys! Busy, busy over here, so I'm going to make this review quick!

Bar Review: Cascadian Farm Vanilla Chip Organic Chewy Granola Bars

I don't usually go for "chewy granola bars"- something about the 'chewiness' makes me think of them as unnatural and unhealthy. But when I began my quest looking for healthier bars and saw that the Cascadian Farm's Vanilla Chip Organic Chewy Granola Bars are both organic and vanilla chip, I had to at least try them! Boy am I glad I did!

Taste: SO Yummy! I definitely taste the vanilla chips. The entire bar is sweet.

Texture: Like it says, CHEWY GRANOLA BAR. Yums.

Nutrition: Certainly not a piece of fruit, but no HFCS or any junk like that. Just pure organic (sugary!) goodness!

Satiety Factor: This isn't the wonder snack in terms of keeping me full, but it definitely treats my sweet tooth!

Overall: I really enjoy this bar. Most days I'd rather choose a Clif Brownie Zbar, but this bar is so tasty too!

Have you tried this bar? Are there any other bars you use to tame your sweet tooth?

Bar Review: Clif Kid ZBar (YUM!!)

Sometimes I crave a good energy/protein/granola bar. When I noticed many of the bars around me were full of excess sugar, trans fats and HFCS, I began a mission to find fulfilling organic bars. Over the next few days I'm going to share a few of my finds. Today starts out with a new obsession: Clif Kid ZBar.

Chocolate Brownie

Sometimes I crave a good energy/protein/granola bar. When I noticed many of the bars around me were full of excess sugar, trans fats and HFCS, I began a mission to find fulfilling organic bars. Over the next few days I'm going to share a few of my finds. Today starts out with a new obsession: Clif Kid ZBar!

From the website: The ZBars are "an excellent source of complex carbohydrates, valuable antioxidants and fiber; they fill kids (note: and big kids!!!!!!) up and help them avoid energy spikes and the crashes that follow."

So far I've had the Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Brownie and Peanut Butter. The Chocolate Chip is the best, I love the Chocolate Brownie, and I could live without the Peanut Butter.

They're all basically the same in nutritionals and texture, but we'll focus on the Chocolate Chip for this review! Mmm!

Ingredients: Organic Chocolate Chips (Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Unsweetened Chocolate, Organic Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, Natural Flavors), Organic Rolled Oats, Organic Brown Rice Syrup, Organic Oat Flour, Organic Fig Paste, Organic Tapioca Syrup, Organic Evaporated Cane Juice Syrup, Organic Maple Syrup, Organic Soy Butter, Organic Chocolate (Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Unsweetened Chocolate, Organic Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, Natural Flavors), Natural Flavors, Organic Milled Flaxseed, Organic Oat Fiber, Baking Soda, Salt. (USDA Organic)

Nutritional Highlights: 130 calories, 4g (6%) Fat, 1.5g (8%) Sat. Fat, 24g (8%) Carbs, 3g (12%) Fiber, 11g Sugar, 3g Protein. Lots of vitamins.. including.. 35% Vitamin C, 30% Calcium and 20% Folate.

Texture: The bar is soft. Not grainy or clumpy or "protein-y". Lovely, really. A natural, soft texture. It's like a cookie-bar.

Taste: It is a chocolate chip cookie. I swear. A soft, perfectly sweet cookie.

Chocolate Chip

Size: I can't stand most energy bars with their tiny size and high calories, but the Clif Zbar is different. It's a perfect snack size. See photo!

Satiety: As a snack, this bar really fills you up and leaves you satisfied! I totally don't get any lumps in my tummy, but I'm very content after this bar.

Overall review: Get it! It's the healthiest treat too spice up your life. This bar has become a daily habit. It's organic (no HFCS!!), has tons of nutrients and really tastes divine. I want one now.

Have you tried any other flavors of the Cliff Zbar? Let me know about them in the comments!