Who Says We Have To Be Perfect?

I slipped. My boyfriend and I went out for Indian last night, to a place that usually has decent vegan dishes, but alas today they didn’t. My boyfriend’s response? “We’re already here.. I don’t want to leave”. So I did the best I could, but I ended up with one dish that had cream in it. I had a gnawing feeling in my stomach all night. I felt so guilty. I so easily could have said “No, I want to go somewhere else.” but the fact is, I didn’t. I got the dish that has cream, and I ate it. Don’t get me wrong, it was delicious, but was it worth it?

I woke up this morning looking at it from a different perspective. Sure, I could have stood my ground, but the fact is I didn’t. I made the choice to eat the non-vegan dish. Sure, I could feel bad about every little decision I make, and shame myself into full time veganism.. but who wants that? I want being a healthy vegan to be something that exhilarates me, and something I am proud of. I am coming to terms with the fact that the only way that’s going to happen is by accepting when I make a mistake. It’s going to happen, and it’s probably going to keep happening. So rather than dwelling on it, I need to accept that it happened and move on. Plain and simple.

In the meantime I made delicious vegan cinnamon rolls. That  helped me push past it. 😉

I am not a natural baker, but these delicious puppies made me proud! 

A Haircut and a Baking Fail.

I got a haircut! For anyone who knows me, this is a huuuuuge deal. I don’t do haircuts. My last trim was in January. Haircuts are not my style. I pride myself on my long hair. I was proud of looking like this:

That’s my pup, Nikki, by the way. She’s my pride and joy, and a bit of a nutter butter – clearly. I’ll share the story of how she came to be a part of my life sometime soon. It’s a fun story that warms my heart every time I tell it! 

Anyway.. I got to the point where it was just time for a change. The ends were dead, and I only wore it in a bun. So I took the plunge. I went to the only person who I will ever let take a pair of scissors to my head, and

Tada! A Brand new, polished Katie! My head feels 10lbs lighter. Seriously. 

Now all that aside, I came home from work today refreshed and revived.. and ready to bake. I found a recipe on Pinterest for vegan brownies that looked delicious (and easy!) so I thought I’d give them a try. I followed the recipe (except I added a touch of vanilla extract.. but not enough to make a difference.. I don’t think.. Oh, and I used coconut sugar instead of white sugar, but I use it for every recipe I make and I’ve never had a problem before!), but they turned out dense and.. well.. just dense. They aren’t flakey, they aren’t cakey (I would not eat them on a boat, I would not eat them with a goat. Sorry, had to). They actually don’t taste that bad. I whipped up some quick and super easy chocolate frosting, and put in on top. Unfortunately the brownie itself just wasn’t what I was anticipating. Any ideas on what I may have done wrong? Has anything like this happened to you before?

This was the end result. Not terrible, but could have been better! 

Starting point..

I want to share a bit about myself, my body, etc.. To use this blog as a place to keep used accountable. I have a handwritten journal that I use for daily writings, but I have this funny feeling that if I put my info out into cyberspace, where other people can see, I’ll be more likely to stick to it. Crazy? Maybe.

I weighed myself this morning for the first time in a loooong time. 191lbs. Not terrible, considering the scale used to say 230lbs. I have gained 5lbs since Kara passed away. Given all the crap I’ve let myself eat, I’m surprised that’s all! I took my measurements this morning as well.. 45-36-46.

I’m not looking for huge, drastic changes. I may not lose anything. my measurements may stay the same, but once a month (maybe more, maybe less), I want to update these stats and see how I feel at time, if there are any changes, what’s working, what isn’t, etc.

So this is my current starting point. Wish me luck!

Resurrection? Perhaps.

I want to resurrect this blog. It’s been over a year since I last wrote, but I want to come back and try to write some more. I’ve had a lot of obstacles, and I’ve given up on the vegan thing (temporarily.. I will get into that later). I want to try and get back into it , and give it a real shot, again.

Obstacle #1:
I had been doing great adapting a vegan lifestyle for the past 4 or 5 months.. until 3 weeks ago when one of my best friends passed away. It was unexpected, it was unexplainable, and it has been hell. My veganism, and overall health, has suffered greatly. I’ve given myself a pass because I’ve been in major mourning. But enough’s enough. I’m not honoring her memory at all, and I’m certainly not doing myself any favours by making poor choices. So I want to start working towards health again. I am going to forgive myself if I slip up, but I want to know I’m trying. It’s what Kara would want for me, and it’s what she would expect of me.

Obstacle #2:
I had some blood taken a few weeks ago, and the results came back that I have low iron. A normal persons iron level is between 80-100.. mine is currently sitting at 14. I have to start taking control of my diet to get my iron levels back up to normal. In comes diet. I don’t want to have to start eating red meat again, so I have to find other ways to get a large amount of iron. I have started taking iron pills.. but I read that they can take years to get iron levels back to where they should be. So I have to make it up in my diet.

I intend to use this blog now as a place to share my recipes that I’ve tried, that I’ve created, or facts about health that I find. It will be personal, but also informative. I hope you share the journey with me. I want to hear feedback and information if you know something I don’t, or disagree with something I’ve said!

Kara, I love you.