Day 5

Well I broke down and went to subway....not I didn't cheat!!! I just needed a veggie sub today and it was good. No cheese, no real mayo, just veggies and bread with a little vinegar and a little oil. I came home and put nayonaise on it and it hit the spot. Still finding I am not craving sweets, really weird not to be craving sweets. In face we went shopping today and I of course forgot to eat and Jo wanted something so I just grabbed chips at miejers and a sweet tea at sonic....I almost couldn't finish it. It didn't taste good...it tasted normal but not good to me anymore. Guess I should be thankful so I will be.
Like I said yesterday there are some foods you just shouldn't smell, well I think there are some foods you should just close you eyes on...vegan boca burgers. They look a little not tasty but did taste good. I don't think the family wants me cooking with my eyes closed though. I think I could do it though, lol.
Been reading other things on internet today about veganism....really sad how people can't just accept that some people just want to stop eating meat and products from animals. I'm doing it to see if it does have a good effect on my health. Some people do it for other reasons. I'm not trying to get anyone else to do it, not even my kids. It's a personal choice and it just saddens me some people are so narrow minded. And I am soooo thankful I have supportive friends and family. Love you all!!

I think I figured out why I lost a lot in 2 days....not due to diet or not eating enough, just that time. I'll still take the 3 lbs though however it came off!! Really did not have an appetite when I got up so this morning instead of grabbing a couple of vegan cookies I just grabbed some nuts. Figured that would be better for me than the sugar. Then a little later I made J and I some oatmeal. I forget how much I like oatmeal, of course it wasn't as healthy when I added sugar and fake butter but I will gradually reduce those things as time goes on.
#1 lesson for the day--don't smell things, especially if it is fake meat, just cook and see if you like the taste. It does not usually taste like it smells, thank goodness! Found that out with Fotdogs(fake hotdogs) but I just added mustard and relish and was able to get it down. I find that I probably won't use much of the fake meat because it just doesn't do it for me. Now boca burgers are another story, love those. We did the southern thing tonight, pinto beans, mashed potatoes, fake kielbasa and sauerkraut. So it was a fairly easy night. I have a request for Mexican tomorrow night so I guess I will try a new recipe. I'll let you know how it goes.

Day 3

I fear I am doing something wrong! I get a little lightheaded in the afternoon and wonder if I am not eating enough. I think what I am eating keeps me satisfied and I don't feel the hunger pains but then get dizzy because I haven't ate enough. I have lost almost 3 lbs since Monday so maybe I am not eating enough. Can I say eating enough too many times? haha I feel fantastic other than being lightheaded. Systems are running smooth, TMI huh? Still loving my FLT(Facon and tomato sandwich) for breakfast and my yogurt, fruit and chocolate chips for an afternoon pick me up. Tonight was pizza night and it was way yummy. Pillsbury pizza crust and ragu pizza sauce are both vegan. Throw a bunch of veggies on and then the fake cheese(can't remember the brand) and it was a success. Of course we had 3 pizzas--mine and Harry's vegan--Bethy's gluten free--and Nate and Jo's regular. Bethy's had homemade crust and homemade sauce, not mine, I went for easy. The grilled cheese for lunch was not as successful. Not all the cheese melted and the texture was a little weird. I think I will try to find some other brand of sliced cheese when I go back to whole foods.
My goal for tomorrow is to remember to eat more often and see if that helps.

Tofu stirfry: Stirfry cut up tofu(1 1/2 cups) in peanut oil in a wok with a little sesame oil til tofu is browned. Then add some garlic and about 4 or 5 cups of veggies of your choice(broccoli, red pepper, onions, green onions are good) saute til crisp tender then add a combination of 3 tbsp of hoisin sauce, 3 tbsp of soy sauce, 1 tbsp of sesame oil, 1 tbsp sugar mixed together and pour over and cook additional 2 or 3 minutes. I think next time I will add a little ginger. Then serve over rice. I am typing this from memory so if you need additional help just let me know. I may have forgotten something. OK I checked recipe and the amounts are right. For you tofu avoiders chicken can be used.

Day 2

Two days down! Only weak moment was when I was leaving Walmart and the smell of the fried chicken wafted over my way. Ahhhh the smell! If I had just remembered everything on my list I wouldn't have been there anyway. But am coming to realize I will have to go to grocery store more often because I buy more perishables now. Also find I am not craving sweets much the last two days. I thought it was my diet coke that was making me crave sweets but I am still drinking those. No I have not become a total health nut.....just can't give up my diet pepsi yet. I tried and tried but I need a vice and that is it for now! It is vegan, I think, not looking to find out! Don't tell me if you do know it is. Ignorance is bliss sometimes!!

Loving Ezekial 4:9 bread toasted. Today I added nayonaise(fake mayo), fake bacon bits, and a tomato fresh out of the garden and that was my breakfast. It wasn't bad but I think tomorrow I am going to try a new facon(fake bacon, haha) to go with it. The leftover beans was my lunch spiced up with fritos(yes they are vegan, yes). I cut a watermelon in half today and have ate a whole half of watermelon today, just went by and would grab a bite so that was my snacks today. And yes we did have tofu tonight and I ate it and liked it. I will add the recipe and you can replace the tofu with chicken. Just serve it over rice. It was extremely yummy!! It versatile too since you can just add whatever your favorite chinese style veggies are. I won't probably get around to adding it til tomorrow. I am typed out today! So nite all!

Creole Beans & Rice

Requested Recipe

This has been a favorite of ours. I just do it by memory so this will be not recipe style.

Saute 1 med onion in a big pan in a little canola oil. After a couple of minutes add 1 small can of green chiles and 1 cup of rice and mix and stir for about a minute. Then add 2 cans of vegetable broth, 2 cans of black beans(rinsed and drained), 2 cans of pink beans(rinsed and drained), and 2 cans of tomato sauce(the 15 oz ones). Simmer and stir frequently. Will take about 20 minutes for rice to get tender and for it to thicken. I like to add corn to mine when I put it in the bowl. I will try to find the recipe because I have the ww points added on it. It has tons of fiber.

I made it through my first day as a vegan...had a close call when Jo left her leftover pizza laying on counter. It's that old mother thing where you just pick up what your kids have left and eat it. It's funny because Harry had come home for a few minutes and he almost did the same thing. Found out today that I looove Amy's lentil vegetable soup but it doesn't love me. Oreos are vegan...yes O*R*E*O*S are on PETA's approved list of grocery store items. And lay's potatoes chips. Yes I am eating for health but the 1st month I'm told is the hardest so any little treats are fantastic. I will wean off after I have gotten use to this. It is hard going in the grocery store though. I didn't realize just how little you find in a store that is vegan. We got to the checkout and I looked around and told Harry that everything you see you can't have. Peanuts was the only thing on the checkout aisle you could buy. It was a little depressing when I realized that all those candy bars are off limits now but then again there is a very clear line on what I can and cannot have so in one sense it is easy. Favorite thing of the day was my blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries with soy strawberry yogurt put on top and sprinkled with vegan chocolate chips. YUM! Our old standby for dinner was creole beans and rice. I've been making it for years and it's one of our favorites so I'm sure once a week it will be on the menu. Tomorrow I am breaking down and making Harry a tofu dish. It sounds good. We'll see. I will try to keep an open mind.

On a side note it's funny how people think this is radical but how much more radical is it that someday a dr may take a vein out of my leg and put in my heart. Hmmm I think I want to try to avoid that. May not but I am going to give it a try!

Well I have spent the last few weeks eating foods I will not be eating for a while or very very rarely. I am ready for this now I think. Over the last few weeks I have realized that while traveling I will probably be a vegetarian. It just seems so hard to travel and be able to fit the vegan lifestyle in. Maybe after I have done this a while it will be much easier than I think. Took the trip to whole foods last night to stock up on a few things we need to get us started. They make vegan pizza in their pizza section, isn't that cool? We would have tried it but there was 2 pieces left and guess what the people in front of us ordered...you got it....2 pieces of veggie vegan pizza! I tried not to be angry and just ordered the last two sausage pieces....they were goood! Next time we are just going to order a whole pizza before we do our shopping. The vegan not the sausage, I think! lol

Ok so my goal is to blog almost every day and basically keeping a record of what I'm eating and what works and what sucks! Hope there is not too many of the last. And record my slips, on purpose and not on purpose. I will have turkey on Thanksgiving not tofurkey. Unless I find I love it, I somehow don't think so though. So tomorrow here I come. Taking pictures, measurements, and weight and we'll see where I am at in a month. Won't be posting these things yet, I'm not that brave people!! Wish me luck! See ya tomorrow!