Pumpkin Carving

This was our drive to school this morning. Nature wears its very best colors this time of year.

Although Halloween is past, I have to post pics of Jackson and Olivia's jack-o-lanterns. They had an early release from school one afternoon last week, so we grabbed a couple of pumpkins at the store and got to carving. Such intense concentration!

Jackson always goes for abstract shapes.

Olivia's has long eyelashes!

While the kids proudly set their pumpkins out on the porch, I made dinner. Cashew cheeze enchiladas topped with black olives and broccoli.

I also made a pot of black bean soup, using the Peas and Thank You recipe, for Tony to take to a work potluck.

Hula Hooper

While at Target today, I picked up a hula hoop for Olivia so she can practice the routines they do in her dance class.

A born performer.

"Watch this!"

"Ta da! Now Mom, you clap and say, 'Bravo!'"

For lunch I heated up some Indian hot pockets from the Asian market.

Never had 'em before, but they were on special and looked interesting. We had two flavors, paneer tikka and spicy chickpea. They didn't crisp up at all in the microwave, so I dry-fried them in a pan for a few minutes to get a nice crust on them. A tasty impulse buy.

We also decided that we needed some cookies. I made Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls from Peas & Thank You, a cookbook I used to consult often. I guess I forgot about it when she stopped blogging. But I remembered these cookies being good. They flattened out in the oven, so I would just call them cookies, not cookie dough balls. Semantics. 

Helpers.

Kids Fest

At first, the Kids Fest and Baby Expo did not sound like something that would interest me. I thought it would be a bunch of vendors hawking toys which my children would then beg me to buy for them. In other words, not something a sane mother would subject herself to. But then I heard about the fun activities, and I thought we could check it out and just avoid the toy peddlers. And, to my complete surprise, this plan actually worked. The activities were so fun that the kids didn't even notice the toy displays. 

We started with rock climbing. Jackson was psyched.

Up he goes. He actually went up a bit higher than this picture shows, above our heads. He says that next year he will climb to the top and ring the bell.

Olivia climbed too, but I didn't get a good picture of her. She climbed a little bit and then politely announced that she was ready to come down. She was more excited about the bungee trampoline.

Jackson had to take a turn after seeing how much fun his sister had.

There were also pony rides.

It was Olivia's first pony ride, so she wanted hold Tony's hand, but she said she liked it. "I was brave!" she announced.

 After we got home, I made Sarah's Super Healthy Banana Breakfast Donuts. I have a hard time getting my kids to eat breakfast lately. I offer them oatmeal or waffles, and they tell me they are not hungry. An hour later, they are asking for snacks like Goldfish and string cheese. The donuts were a hit when they were fresh out of the oven. Jackson and Olivia each ate three. But come morning, they didn't want to eat them. Same result the next morning. Tony and I are still trying to finish them off. At least I tried.

If you have kids, what do they like to eat for breakfast? 

Play Time

I feel like I have been doing a lot of posts that start with "Today we went to the playground..." I hope this isn't too boring for my readers. But we've been having some beautiful spring weather. This is the best time of year for getting outside every day, before it gets too hot. And, like their mama, Jackson and Olivia are not homebodies. We like to get out of the house each morning and go do something fun. When you're two or three, that means hitting as many playgrounds as possible.

With the high cost of daycare, I'll probably be staying at home with my kids until they start elementary school. I've gone back and forth about this decision in the past. Now I feel good about it.  Am I the best person to be around my kids 24/7 in terms of providing them all the experiences and education they need? Well, maybe not, because I'm not a teacher.  Sitting down and trying to get my kids to learn things, when they'd rather be running around in the backyard spraying each other with the hose, is not my strong suit. My philosophy is that they learn from exploring their world and interacting with others. But I realize they do also need to know their ABC's. That is why Jackson started attending daycare two mornings a week. Now that his first school year is almost over, I think it's one of the best decisions we have made for him.  His teacher is amazing and he loves going to school. Even though his daycare emphasizes play, he has learned so much. While he's there, I get to spend one-on-one time with my sweet Olivia. And on the days he doesn't attend school, we cram as much excitement into our hours together as possible. Because they do go by so fast.

Today we went to a new playground that was designed for children of all abilities. For example, there are fire trucks and racecars and even swings, big enough to maneuver a wheelchair into, so kids who use wheelchairs can enjoy them, too. There are also play stations designed to appeal to children with autism and other special needs. Here's more info about the park. I just think it's a really great, inclusive thing for our city to have.

Of course, Jackson was just thrilled that they had a fire truck. There's an entire pretend village with a fire station, car dealership, and other buildings, all constructed on a kid-friendly scale.

There was a red and a blue racecar. Jackson insisted on driving the red one because, "It's like Lightning McQueen!" Ah, marketing.

I'd never seen a merry-go-round designed like this. I liked that it seemed very, um, hard to fall out of.

Olivia tired of it after a few minutes, but I think Jackson could ride a merry-go-round all day. As long as someone else is doing the pushing.

Still not tired...

I wasn't sure what to make of this odd structure. It looked like a grocery conveyor belt for children. But the kids loved it and seemed to intuitively know what to do, sliding themselves right through.

For dinner we had the Thai Crunch Salad from Peas and Thank You. I couldn't find wonton strips at my supermarket, so I used chow mein noodles, figuring they would add the necessary crunch. (Later I learned that wonton strips are not in the Asian section, where I looked, but in a special "salad fixins" display in the produce department.)

This recipe made a lot. I'd never used a napa cabbage before and I couldn't believe how giant it was. An entire head of napa plus a head of romaine lettuce means that we have generous leftovers. We all liked it, but Tony suggested doubling the amount of tofu next time since there's so much salad. Same with the almond dressing -- it's awesome, but I'm going to have to blend up another batch in order to dress the leftovers tomorrow.

Have a great weekend!

Experimental

On a recent trip to the supermarket, I saw a toy that I thought would interest Jackson and Olivia. You may have memories of it from your own childhood. I do.

The idea is that you take these little sponge creatures and soak them in water for several hours. When you come back to check on them, they will have magically grown!

No growth yet...

Still not growing, Olivia reports...

OK, they were a bust. We left them in water for 48 hours and when we dried them off, they were still about the same size as when we started.

Oh well. The kids still thought they were fun to chase each other around with. "My lobster gonna eat your turtle, chomp chomp chomp!"

For dinner I made Cashew Carrot Ginger Soup, from Peas and Thank You. During the last few minutes of cooking, I stirred in some chopped spinach from our garden. Since this soup is full of Indian spices like curry and garam masala, I served it with some fresh naan from a nearby Indian fast food place.

We all loved it.  At least this experiment was a great success!

Bluebonnet Babies

I know Jackson and Olivia aren't really babies anymore, but for the sake of alliteration -- and to ease my apprehension at how fast they are growing -- here are some photos I took of my "babies" among the bluebonnets, which are popping up in fields all over Texas this week, reminding us that spring has arrived.

For lunch I served Mama Pea's Margarita Smoothie, from Peas and Thank You.  Jackson and Olivia thought the salt rim was hilarious. They would take lick of salt, look at each other, and crack up. And repeat. I was just happy they were consuming spinach, albeit in a concealed form.

For dinner, another PATY recipe -- Pad Thai. I've had many delicious and different versions of vegan pad thai (Vegan with a Vengeance has a great one). This one stands out for its nontraditional, yet tasty, inclusion of asparagus. Every spring I'm like "Asparagus is in season! I should eat some." But then I don't buy it, because I'm not sure what to use it in. Problem solved! This was so good.

Thai is one of those cuisines that I don't eat very often, but when I do, I'm like, "Why don't I eat this more often?!" Do you like Thai food?

Change

Hi all...notice anything different? Yes, I've renamed my blog (even though I'm too technologically inept to change the web address!)

A confession (which I think many of you already know) -- I've never been 100% vegan. I cooked vegan at home for a year and a half, and that was the focus of my blog. But I was OK with eating vegetarian in restaurants and other people's homes. Tony, the kids, and our extended families are all omnivorous, so this was a compromise that made things easier for everyone. Well, lately I've been cooking the occasional vegetarian meal at home. And liking it. I was vegetarian for most of my life, switching to veganism after Olivia was born. For now, vegetarianism once again feels like the "right" diet for me. I didn't want to come off like a fraud, so I figured a name change was in order!

Vegan readers, I hope you'll continue to visit my blog, as I'll be reading yours.  But I understand if you choose not to. I think the majority of my posts will still be about vegan food. I was never a big consumer of dairy. I am rediscovering it in small doses, like a sprinkling of feta cheese on a salad.

Last night, I made the Jambalaya from Peas and Thank You. Very tasty.

Tony loved it, mainly because I used Field Roast Apple Sage sausages.  He's caught the cold I am just getting over, so I'm trying to give him his favorite foods. I always baby him to the max when he is sick. I think that when our loved ones are sick, our tendency is to treat them how we want to be treated when we're sick. I throw a pity party for myself and want to be fussed over, while my stoic husband wants zero fuss made and just wants to be left alone (I still baby him, though.)  This afternoon I took the kids to run errands, to give him a little peace and quiet, and now we are off to do some baking while he rests on the couch.

My Blog Name is No Joke

My goodness, we have been so busy lately. Today, Olivia and I accompanied Jackson's school on a field trip to a Christmas tree farm. It was so much fun, but this mama is wiped out! Truly, if the energy of a pack of three-year-olds could somehow be harnessed, we would never be dependent upon foreign oil again. I thought for sure J and O would take nice long naps this afternoon, but actually, twenty minutes in the car on the way home was enough to recharge their tiny batteries.

Some recent eats:

Vegan Brunch Pumpkin Pancakes.  Seen here with Jackson's pinecone turkey.

Appetite for Reduction Lotsa Veggie Lentil Soup.

Peas and Thank You Chewy Energy Bars.

Appetite for Reduction Catalan Couscous Salad with Pears and Romesco Dressing. Like a dummy, I forgot that I don't really like the mealy texture of couscous.  It had been so long since I'd eaten it. Next time I'll make this with a chewier grain like quinoa or bulgur. The dressing is amazing.

Appetite for Reduction Chipotle Lentil Burgers.

So good on a whole grain bagel with spinach, Veganaise, and dill pickles.

Gratuitious cute toddler shot. She will tire soon. I know she will.

Peas for You (Giveaway!)

Tony typically goes out for lunch a few times a week, but the BVM household is in penny-pinching mode right now, so he's brown-bagging it. This week, he requested that I make him some kind of "quinoa salad thing" to take to work. 

Since he would be eating it for a few days in a row, it had to be full of flavor, something he wouldn't get bored with.  I cooked quinoa in veggie broth and tossed it with chickpeas, green and red bell pepper, carrots, frozen corn and frozen peas. Then I blended up a batch of Lime Tahini Sauce from Peas and Thank You, for him to drizzle on at lunchtime.

I would probably toss in some cubed, baked tofu to make it substantial enough for my taste, but Tony says he likes it just the way it is. He is sweet like that.

Do you have the Peas and Thank You cookbook?  You should. The tahini sauce is one of countless amazing, delicious recipes in this book. If you don't own it, I am pleased to offer you a chance to win a copy in my FIRST EVER giveaway! It's even signed by Mama Pea. 

You see, I won a promotional pack from Mama Pea and I didn't realize it came with a copy of the cookbook, which I had already bought. So I am excited to share the love and pass it on to one lucky reader. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post. Y'all know I love cookbooks, so please tell me, What is your all-time favorite vegan cookbook recipe?  The contest is open until midnight on Monday, October 10. I will announce the winner on Tuesday, October 11.  Good luck!

And here's one more giveaway to check out -- Robin Robertson is giving away a copy of Party Vegan.