Happy 5th Birthday, Blog!

I got this notification from WordPress today that I started this blog 5 years ago – what an incredible journey this blog has joined me on!

From the first unknown years of my marriage and into the adventures of motherhood, through my lifestyle and environmentally-conscious discoveries to vegetarian recipes, do-it-yourself projects, art and designs inspirations and my personal convictions and spirituality – this blog really has been a true reflection of my life these past 5 years.

I never set out to write this blog with any real focus or purpose, if only to be a place that I can come to write and journal. But it’s really taken on a life of its own and morphed into something I couldn’t have imagined. It’s honest, it’s real and most importantly, it’s 100% me.

I have no idea what it may become in the future, but I’m just thankful to have an outlet for my voice (and my OCD brain). Even if a single person never reads my blog again, I’m so happy to have a place to record my life and opinions, collect my photography and ideas and act as a sounding board for life in general.

So THANK YOU to the thousands of readers who have checked out any or all parts of my blog – I appreciate every one of you and your comments, feedback and opinions!!

Much love always,
Katherine

In honor of this 5th birthday, here are the Top 5 Blogs on topics over the years:

Wellness & Health:

DIY Recipes:

Simple Living and Minimalism:

Motherhood & Family Life:

Marriage:

Vegetarian Eating & Whole Foods:

Environmental Issues:

Faith & Spirituality:

Pro-Life Advocacy:

Nature Love & Benefits:

Stop defining who you are by what you eat

“Healthy eating, conscious eating, eating with respect for yourself and the environment and the other people is a very powerful act.”

Carnivore. Vegetarian. Pescatarian. Vegan. Gluten-Free. We tend to latch onto to labels when identifying our personal approach to food and for many, this identification can be somewhat of a religion for them. It’s easy for us to slip into a place of judgment and comparison and feel inadequate that we’re not committed enough or vegan enough for other people’s standards.

Confession time…I decided to turn to a vegetarian eating plan when I was pregnant with my daughter in 2010 and I was very strict about it for the past 3 years. When I had my son, I began craving meat so I added just a bit of organic free-range chicken back into my diet every once in a while. But I felt so guilty about it, like I was a vegetarian poser, a phony. Why am I beating myself up about this? I was only eating meat once or twice a month and I still let myself feel like a fraud and all this built-up guilt and stress doesn’t do anyone’s health any good.

Here’s the thing…how we eat has a direct impact on our health and our environment and we really need to be conscious of our decisions for what we put into our bodies. Going meatless has such an incredible impact on our environment and there are so many awesome health benefits to eating a plant-based diet. Making responsible, conscious choices about our foods can make such a large difference in a world of factory farming, animal cruelty and abuse, huge amounts of waste, and environmental destruction.

But I truly believe it’s about balance and being healthy. Every person’s body has a different chemical makeup and how we eat is so personal to our bodies. Our eating habits should be focused on being healthy and making conscious decisions, and I believe that comes from a plant-based diet filled with delicious vegetables and fruits, nuts and grains…and stop eating processed foods, sugars, and filling our temples with garbage. We need to quit judging ourselves and others and develop a habit of self-love and respect for our bodies.

So while I most closely identify with being a vegetarian, I’m not going to beat myself up if I have one piece this month of responsibly-grown, grass-fed, free-range organic meat from a local farmer who believes in sustainable farming techniques and has a passion for protecting the environment.

A Must-Watch…Former Vegan: “I Am Never Defining How I Eat Again.”

2 Easy (and Delicious) Recipes: Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

After carving pumpkins Sunday afternoon, we separated the seeds from the flesh, washed them thoroughly with water in a strainer and placed them on a towel to air dry. The key that I learned from last year for making nice crunchy seeds is to the let dry out completely or else their more chewy than anything so our seeds sat out for a few days before roasting them up last night.

My sister and I each chose a recipe to try other than the usual butter and salt and both of them turned out fantastic!

Sweet & Savory

Toss pumpkin seeds in 1-1/2 tbsp of melted butter and coat with a brown sugar-cinnamon combination. Place in a single layer on the foil-lined cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Flip and bake another 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Tip: Remove the roasted seeds immediately after baking to avoid the sugar mixture from hardening…ours was more like a pumpkin seed bark that we had to break pieces off of. Still so delicious but a bit more work!

Zesty Garlic

Mix 1-1/2 tbsp of melted butter with 3 tsp of Worcestershire sauce in a bowl. Add in pumpkin seeds and toss until all are coated. Place in a single layer on the foiled-lined cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes on 350 degrees. Flip and sprinkle with garlic powder. Cook another 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Tip: Don’t add the garlic before baking the first time – wait to add until you flip halfway through. I added it on from the beginning and the powder ended up cooking way faster than the seeds. By the time the seeds were golden brown, the powder was just a bit burnt.

Immunity Boost: All-Natural Flu Shot Smoothie

I recently posted my thoughts on why we don’t get the vaccination in our house and some ugly facts about the flu shot. Without the shot, you may wonder how to stay healthy and protect yourself against this nasty season of colds and stomach bugs. From taking a daily vitamin to getting plenty of sleep and vitamin C to eating the right types of fruits and vegetables every day, there are a number of natural ways to build up your immune system to fight against germs.

There are also many natural flu smoothies or blends that you can whip up as soon as you start to feel something creep up on you. Because most of these recipes have all-natural ingredients, you can take this as soon as you are feeling under the weather – no need to worry about overdosing on medicines or weakening your immune system with chemicals and drugs!

The Flu Shot Smoothie

This particular recipe I found and have been using is jam packed with immunity-boosting, flu-fighting ingredients and is sure to get you back on your feet in no time. Having used this before, I can say that the flavor isn’t exactly exciting, but it’s definitely manageable enough to drink a cup or two when you need it most. It’s really the after-zing that gets me, so have something tasty ready to chase it down with.

And an added bonus: these ingredients are so cheap to buy and the powders and honey you can use with multiple batches throughout the season – much cheaper than doctor visits, prescriptions drugs and time off of work!

Ingredients:

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced or chopped – strengthens the immune system as well as helps to fight chest infections, coughs and congestion
2 tbsp on ginger powder – clears the ‘microcirculatory channels’ of the body, including the pesky sinuses; a great stomach calmer for flu or nausea
juice from 6 lemons – has strong antibacterial, antiviral, and immune-boosting powers; reduces fevers; filled with immunity-boosting Vitamin C; antiviral properties to fight off the virus on the mucous membranes in the nose and throat
2 tbsp on honey – is anti-bacterial and anti-fungal; reduces cough and throat irritation
1/4 tbsp of cayenne pepper – is a well-known digestive aid; breaks up and moving congested mucus; is an anti- agent and helps relieve allergies;
3 cups of pineapple juice – rich in vitamin C and can fight off viruses; has bromelain, which is effective in suppressing coughs and loosening mucus

Directions:

Blend everything together and drink 1 cup 3-4 times days until you are feeling better – or even beyond that to strengthen an already-weakened immune system and build up your defenses! Store extra juice in a glass jar and refrigerate.

** This article and the information presented in it are my own opinions and personal research and are not intended to be medical advice. Please consult a professional before making any medical decisions!

October: Let’s Rock the Veggies!

“Those who claim to care about the well-being of human beings and the preservation of our environment should become vegetarians for that reason alone.”
– Peter Singer, Animal Liberation (1990)

Happy Vegetarian Awareness Month! Being a vegetarian is one of the best health and environmental decisions I have made in recent years and I couldn’t be happier with this lifestyle shift. Even my husband has come around to my new recipes and really doesn’t even notice when I put a meatless meal in front of him.

There are all kinds of great reasons to embrace a meatless life! Eating meat is one of the most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global. In the United States alone, more than 260 million acres of forest have been clear-cut for animal agriculture – holy smokes. Over 7.3 million Americans are already vegetarians and the health benefits are proven and worthwhile: a vegetarian diet is associated with low blood pressure and cholesterol, better heart health and even lower rates of cancer. Who wouldn’t want these positive things for their body?!

So…in honor of the beginning of this great month and in hopes of sharing some of my personal knowledge and research, here are some of my favorite vegetarian articles, experiences and recipes!

Vegetarian Recipes:

Recipe: Black Bean & Quinoa Salad
Recipe: Vegetarian Meatballs
Recipe: Caramel Apple Crisp for Two
Recipe: Baby Zucchini & Quinoa Salad
Recipe: Veggie Prima Chili – a fall favorite of mine!

A Bit from Me:

Vegetarian Online Resources:

Ben & Jerry’s: Fair Trade AND Non-GMOs!

“We have a long history of siding with consumers and their right to know what’s in their food.”

Being a life-long lover and regular consumer of ice cream, I’ve been eating Ben & Jerry’s ice cream for a few years now, (when my husband isn’t picking out the ice cream) mainly because I love the fact they’ve been using Fair Trade ingredients. I get so excited when I see that little Fair Trade logo on my foods! Now, in a recent press release, Ben & Jerry’s is pledging to go completely GMO-free by the end of 2013. In support of the “GMO Right To Know” labeling movement, they are going to take their current 20% of GMO ingredients and find ways to make that 0% by the year’s end.

“Currently, in the United States and Canada, 80% of Ben & Jerry’s ingredients by volume are sourced non-GMO. We commit to sourcing non-GMO ingredients for all our products everywhere by year-end 2013. In fact all our products made in Europe are already non-GMO.”

I’m just loving this company – when you visit their website, it is so fun, friendly and innovative. And they have an entire section dedicate to Activism and the different ways they are trying to be a better business and better stewards on this planet. What a great example for other food companies who don’t think it’s possible to source in an Eco-conscious, healthy way that benefits the workers and protects our environment. In the midst of all this environment turmoil with big businesses, it’s nice to know that there are companies out there that still care about their consumers.

Next time you are browsing down the ice cream aisle, keep your eyes open for Ben & Jerry’s 🙂

Non GMO Project Verified

My husband has been doing our grocery shopping as of late and I usually send him with a list of what I’m looking for. Yesterday I went with him and I saw for the first time a very interesting label while I was picking out granola: “Non GMO Project Verified“

A brief summary for what Non GMO Project Verified means: “The retailers who started the Non-GMO Project were motivated by a simple idea. They believed that consumers in North America should have access to clearly-labeled non-GMO food and products, now and in the future. That conviction continues to guide the Non-GMO Project, as North America’s only independent verification for products made according to best practices for GMO avoidance.

What is a GMO? GMOs, or “genetically modified organisms,” are plants or animals that have been genetically engineered with DNA from bacteria, viruses or other plants and animals. These experimental combinations of genes from different species cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding. Most developed nations do not consider GMOs to be safe. In more than 60 countries around the world, there are significant restrictions or outright bans on the production and sale of GMOs. The United States currently DOES NOT require labeling of foods that have GMOs in them.”

How have I not heard of such label before? If President Obama and our Congress will NOT require the labeling of our GMO foods, why not have a label for everything else does NOT use GMOs? Could they ever stop this type of labeling? If every person only purchase foods with this label, could we put Monsanto out of business? Isn’t amazing how one tiny label on food can be such an empowering tool for Americans?

What a brilliant idea.

Cook’s Herb Gardening

Yesterday evening, my mom, 2 of my sisters and I attended a cooking class at Laurel Run Cooking School and it was fantastic! My mom has taken others classes at this school and just raved about them, so she invited us to join her for this class called “Cook’s Herb Gardening” and it was a 2-1/2 hour overview of all your basic herbs and planting, harvesting and cooking with them.

As someone who has been growing herbs for 4 years now, I learned so many things I didn’t know about these wonderful plants, their maintenance and how to bring their vibrant flavors into my kitchen in simple ways. Each participant received an HERB NOTEBOOK filled with recipes, history and lore and growing tips. And we got to sample every dish they prepared using the different herbs – everything was so delicious and had such unique flavors.

Now I am inspired to take my herb garden to the next level and really infuse my fresh herbs into some great summer cuisines! And possibly take a stab at brewing my own herbal teas…ambitious, maybe.

Opening Day at the Farmer’s Market

Yesterday marked the opening weekend for our local farmer’s markets and my mom and I with my kiddos paid the Oberlin market a visit this morning. It was wonderful spring morning full of sunshine, as we browsed through the stands, chatting with the farmers and picking out some goods to take home with us.

This totally beats out shopping in a grocery store for food that was made thousands of miles away, often times in a different country with pesticides and chemicals to make them ripe as they travel their long journey to northeast Ohio. I’ll consume like this any day of the week!

Recipe: Black Bean & Quinoa Salad

I have been in a cooking mood these past few weeks and it may have to do with all the fresh produce coming back into season in our local area! So I sort of stumbled across this recipe and having all the ingredients in my refrigerator, I decided to give it a try for dinner. My hubby gave it an A-, which he said is the best I’ll ever get out of him for my vegetarian cooking. I’ll take what I can get 🙂