Happy Memorial Day weekend! Ah, love long weekends especially after a wacky, busy week at work with a lot of projects and covering for people while they’re on vacation. But next week is my turn to go on vacation for a little adventure! We have been working on the garden, shopping, and relaxing so far this weekend which Miko is happy to do with hubby.
And Leela with me snuggled in her office bed.
Our kitchen has been running close to empty most of this week because I just have not had time to get the market with so much going on at work and after work, but it’s been fun using up what we have and creating some interesting dishes. I used up the last bit of fresh fruit and frozen kale for our smoothies yesterday and threw in a huge chunk of broccoli stalk to thicken it up and it wasn’t bad! And I used up a Tofurky vegan sausage in a simple oil free stir fry with chopped onion, carrot, and mini peppers seasoned with garlic, Bragg’s Liquid Aminos, and turmeric and it was delicious!
I did finally make it to Whole Foods to restock yesterday which wasn’t cheap. I usually buy a few things at Whole Foods and the rest from Trader Joe’s or Costco to save money, but occasionally it’s fun to explore Whole Foods and grab new products to try, splurge a little. Typically I grab Vega One Single Serve Nutritional Shake packets for traveling with a Blender Ball Bottle, but Whole Foods has their own brand of plant-based nutritional shake packets now and they were considerably cheaper.
Friday we had a going away party for a co-worker at the Yard House which I ended up arranging for a large group of people. It started as a casual happy hour gathering for people in our department, but I gave the co-worker control of the evite in case she wanted to invite more and she did, half the company! Over 30 people RSVP’d yes, over 40 counting the maybes! Luckily, after a few calls and emails, Yard House was able to accommodate us by reserving a group of tables in the bar area which is not easy to get them to do on a Friday night! It worked, people were able to come and go, drink, and stand or sit around the tables as they floated around the group and chatted. And our CIO showed up and ordered a ton of appetizers for all the tables. I got my favorite vegan appetizer – the tofu mushroom lettuce wraps with spicy peanut sauce and called it dinner.
My dish also sparked some interesting conversation with a co-worker I rarely get to talk to. She has been battling extra weight most of her life and openly talked about her diet and exercise challenges to me and about how she’s trying the low carb diet again and talking about all the rules for the diet which sounded horrible and expensive. What floored me the most is that she’s not allowed to eat too many fruits and veggies for the carbs. I jumped all over that citing a lot of studies like this that state the opposite, that whole plant-based carbs are good and our body processes those differently with the nutrient and fiber content and really recommend she research that further since she’s denying a lot of good nutrients while eating a lot of weird, processed “low-carb” foods. It was sad because she was so hesitant to believe me and take that advice seriously even after trying this low carb diet multiple times in the past and failing on it and me telling her how much fruit and veggies I eat in a day. Ugh. Hopefully she researches it more and tries a new, whole plant based route.
I am slightly obsessed with Sanuk shoes now, I have 4 pairs! 2 pairs of flip flops for the weekend and now two pairs of the Fiona style in gray and coral.
I couldn’t resist when I saw that color on sale super cheap on Amazon in my size. And this style runs large, I have to order a full size down and the styling makes my feet look petite while being very comfortable. Perfect for casual Fridays at work and weekend adventures!
I’m also obsessed with Netflix’s new show Grace and Frankie even though I’m only a few episodes in. For 77 and 75, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin look fabulous, energetic, and witty. It’s a wacky and quirky show with a far fetched plot, but also funny and well-written. Grace and Frankie are complete opposites with opposite kids and family, but the story works great and prompts viewers to consider which character they can relate to more.
Vegan Cuts has 5 apps to help find cruelty-free beauty products which are great when impulse shopping at Target.
Pamela Anderson is getting aggressive with PETA ads and taking a stand for California’s epic drought.
A great short video about linking beans and legumes to increased lifespan.
100 tips to overload you with money saving inspiration. I love money saving articles and follow a few financial blogs to increase my skills because early retirement sounds lovely. We’re currently working on # 2 and # 14 and 15 are no brainers for health nuts.
This is an inspiring story of a cattle ranch turned into a farm sanctuary.
Dr. T. Colin Campbell has great plant-based recipe inspiration for Memorial Day.
Finally, this recipe for Raw Vegan Butterfinger bars looks divine.
Sounds like life is pretty exciting for you right now =) I’m all about the plant based shakes these days, so addicting! I get so lazy during the summer months that I love these as meal replacements. Those coral shoes are adorable! I love Tom’s but they are too expensive. And yard sales are the best! I get so many clothes even for myself at yard sales, yay =)
I’m a huge smoothie fan for breakfasts, so easy especially on week mornings. Sounds like you have better luck shopping at yard sales than me! The ones I go to usually have only kid’s clothes. :-) But I do enjoy thrift shopping too for clothes.
WOW! Lots of great finds! Nice! Adorable Chi photos – as always! How the week’s looking this week!? Still pretty crazy? Mine is shaping up to be that way, too! Eeeeek! Keep your chin up!
Thanks and this week is looking better, only two work days before a little vacation getaway.
Ugh, I can’t stand all of the low carb and no carb diets that cut out fruit and some veggies. When will people get it, diets don’t work!!!
Love the shoes! Tom’s started using leather to make some of their shoes so I won’t buy them anymore. These are a great alternative.
Agreed on low carb, so sad that even with the failures and health challenges, some people still hang on to thinking whole plant foods are “bad” carbs.
Thanks on the shoes and that’s too bad on Tom’s. Tom’s never worked for me because I’m between sizes and one is either too small or fall-off-my-feet too big.