Monday Love List Number Thirteen!

Happy Monday all!

I thought I would get back to an old tradition and write a Monday love list!

There's a lot to love out in the vegan blogosphere, all the Vegan Mofo-ing is producing some great stuff!

1. Raw, Vegan Blackberry Cheesecake Bars by Gena at Choosing Raw

YUM! Just the name of these makes it clear that these will be delicious!! You can find the recipe, and a ton of mouthwatering pictures here.

2. Thought provoking articles

Gena also posted a really great article yesterday titled "New Inquiries Into Eating Disorders and Obesity" which I found to be not only excellently written but also really interesting.

Having studied both eating disorders and issues of overweight and obesity in various classes I was aware of issues with prevention programs for one potentially having negative impacts on those susceptible to the other, but most of what I have read has been largely based on theories and speculation, so it was really interesting to learn about the study Gena references which looks specifically at the concurrence between eating disorders and overweight/obesity.

I also really enjoyed Gena's take on it and as always, Gena speaks beautifully. I would highly recommend giving it a read!

3. A new breakfast to make!

Just this morning I checked out Angela's newest recipe over at Oh She Glows for a Jumbo Chickpea Pancake. I love chickpeas and chickpea flour and plus the ingredients are super simple and it looks easy to make! I will definitely be making this soon!

4. Time for some R&R 

For most of this week my roommate and I are hanging out at her family's beach condo just off the beach at Seaside, OR and it has been amazing so far. I love having the time to just relax and do whatever I feel like. It is also just the perfect vacation to take with school looming in the very near future.

5. A trip to Herbivore (finally)

When my parents and I were stopping in Portland, OR on the last leg of our road trip last month we stopped at the Vegan Mini-mall with the intention of going to Herbivore Clothing Co. Unfortunately they had closed early as Labor Day was the following day and we did not get to go! We did have a great time stopping in Food Fight and Sweetpea Baking Co but I was left longing to get a look at some vegan clothing!

Thankfully, this need has now been met as on the way out to the beach yesterday we got to stop in! I got my hands on a "Compassion is Invincible" t-shirt as well as an "Only kale can save us now" tote bag with some pins and stickers thrown in for good measure! I could have bought a lot more, but I guess that's what the online store will be for in the future!

6. A new web series 

On this week's episode of Our Hen House, Mariann reviews the new Weather Channel web series Brink in which short videos (about 4-5 minutes) highlight different animals that are on the brink of extinction and efforts to help prevent this.

I watched the first one, on jaguars, last night and really enjoyed it. I was really surprised at how much they could fit into such a short video, but I found it really informative and easy to digest.

7. Getting to say goodbye to a vegetarian restaurant

In my parent's neighborhood the vegetarian restaurant, Carmelita, which has been there for over 17 years will be closing at the end of the month. I was lucky enough to visit there one last time with my parents this past week and had a wonderful meal.

While they do serve dairy and eggs here, many items are already vegan or have a vegan option and they also have a large selection of gluten-free meals to choose from, leaving me with many options to choose from! Here's what I went with this time around:

A Hermiston Watermelon Salad with radish, baby arugula, pistachios, balsamic reduction, and a lime-ginger vinaigrette.

For my main dish I had a delicious Summer Vegetable Terrine made with marinated eggplant, summer squash, heirloom tomatoes, squash pitsou, hazelnut agodulce, and greens. It was amazing!

Goodbye Camelita!

Well with that I hope everyone had a great weekend and has a lot of fun things planned for the upcoming week!

Monday Love List Number Twelve

Oh right! It's Monday!

It has been a crazy weekend for me and my family in which we moved my younger sister into college! While we had to carry lots of stuff up stairs and went to target way too many times, we got it all done, and I am so happy for my sister.

So...

1. College!!! 

College is so much fun. So much stress, but also so much fun. I really enjoyed exploring another school's campus and community and it added to my excitement about my sister's college experience as well as my own! I can now say I am excited to head back to school in the fall (although I am still looking forward to the time I have off!)

2. Vegan fast food

This food was awesome. In San Diego, where my sister is attending San Diego State University, me and my parents ate at Evolution Fast Food, a vegan, organic, mostly raw restaurant and it was awesome. Like seriously, we enjoyed it so much that we went back to try it again!

The first night we went here I had the raw burger with stuffed veggies and a berry flax smoothie and it was all wonderful. My Dad had essentially the same thing and my Mom tried the mushroom swiss burger. The second time we came here my dad and I had the raw tacos with some more smoothies, my mom tried the south of the border burger and we also had an order of fries. And man those fries were awesome.

I also really liked having the whole fast food experience, something I don't have often. Every once and a while, that's just what you want!

This food was so good that me and my parents have still been thinking about it! If you are in the area you should definitely check it out!

3. Trail-mix cookies

For our travels I made a batch of these cookies and they are amazing. They were great for me since I had almost all of the ingredients in my pantry!

My family also really enjoyed these cookies and they were gone quickly. I try to avoid making big batches of things if I will be the only one eating them, so this was a great time to try them out. I definitely recommend them!

Alright, as I am totally exhausted, I think that's it for now. I hope you all had a great weekend and have lots of fun things planned for the upcoming week!

Happy Monday!

Monday Love List Number Eleven!

I didn't forget!!! It's a little late but HAPPY MONDAY!!!

I have had a very busy, non-stop Monday and expect the rest of my week to be the same. I am preparing to go on a week+ vacation starting this Thursday involving moving my sister into college, visiting family, and get this, staying at an eco vegan resort!!!! It's going to be crazy and awesome all at once!

But, without further delay, the things I am loving this week!

1. Summer break!

Yay! It's finally here! I get over a month off where I get to do things not related to school! Like travel, sleep, read, spend time with family and friends, and well...whatever I want! Hooray!

2. Seeing old friends

My summer break started out with a bang last week with me being able to catch up with some of my oldest friends who were in town! I also get to see more of my oldest friends tomorrow and Wednesday, something I am super pumped about!

3. New resource pages!

Almost as soon as my summer break started I had tons of new and exciting ideas for this blog! The first of which I have already put together.

I thought it would be helpful to include a couple resource pages, one on veganism, and one on handling corn allergies, to hopefully help provide others with information! I am especially happy to have put together my page on corn allergies, since there is such limited information available on this topic.

4. An excellent film

Last weekend I went and saw The Kings of Summer at the Crest Cinemas for only $3 and it was really good!

Morgan and I decided to go on a whim after only seeing the trailer and we were glad we did! It was a great summer coming of age film with both humor and drama and we are already wanting to see it again! It also included great shots of nature, which I thought were just stunning. If you are looking for a good summer film I would definitely recommend checking this out!

5.  A good detective novel...narrated by a dog

I started reading this book a little while ago but have been able to get more into it since I've been out of school. This story follows Bernie and his dog Chet as they run their private investigation business. What makes this story unique is that it is told from the perspective of Chet! This book has been interesting and humorous, and at times a bit dark, and is something I have been greatly enjoying.

I am also rather picky about fiction, so I am happy to find one that I like! I believe there is a series of these books, so I look forward to reading more!

Alright, with that I think it's time I spend the rest of my evening reading and get back to the story of Chet and Bernie!

Happy Monday!

Monday Love List Number Ten!

Happy Monday everyone!

I hope you all had a great weekend, mine was full of a lot of self-reflection, work, and ultimately a new found understanding of myself. For more on that, please see my post from last night, if you haven't already.

Well, let's get right into it! Here are some thing's I am loving this week!

1. Thunderstorms

Late Friday night we had a giant thunderstorm. Lots of rain, lightening, and of course thunder. I have always liked thunderstorms, especially those that happen in the summer. This thunderstorm was even more appreciated because it matched my mood at that moment and was just what I needed.

Check out this awesome picture and video from the storm!

2. The final push

This week is the very final week of summer quarter! I have two finals and a few very demanding days ahead but by Thursday afternoon I will be done with the quarter! While it has certainly been a lot of work I am overall very happy that I decided to take classes this summer. I have been able to feel productive and as though I am doing something meaningful with my time and very soon I will be able to enjoy the almost six weeks I have off!

During that time I will doing a good amount of traveling, something I am looking forward to, but will still have plenty of time to get in some rest and relaxation. I can't wait!

3. Corn...a common allergen?! 

While I'm never happy to hear about the growing number of people experiencing food allergies or intolerances, recently there has been an explosion of mentions of corn as a common allergen. When I first learned I had a corn allergy I had never heard of anyone else experiencing this allergy and there were, and really still are, very few resources out there to help me determine what contains corn and what doesn't. As a result it took me a very long time to determine what is really safe for me to eat and use and what isn't, something I still have to think about. 

However, if corn is finally recognized officially as an allergen and is identified as something many people are dealing with, my life will be exponentially easier. I can just picture it, more products saying "corn-free" or even just corn being added to the list at the bottom of the ingredient list stating the common allergens in the product. 

While these would be small changes, sometimes small changes can make a big difference and lead to even bigger changes. That's my hope at least, in regards to allergy labeling and awareness as well as many other issues I care about. 

4. Vegan MoFo

This weekend I signed up to participate in the "Vegan Month of Food" or Vegan MoFo. This means during the month of September I will be blogging as often as possible, at least 20 times but hopefully every day, about vegan food and all the wonder it has to offer! 

I look forward to this challenge and to seeing what other bloggers post about!

5. Friends coming home!

Last but not least my roommate and best friend returned from her travel in Africa this summer! While she wont be back as my roommate until September she was able to visit for part of the weekend and I had a great time catching up and spending some time with her!

Alright, I'll be back soon, but for now I hope that everyone has a good week!

Monday Love List Number Nine!

Hi all! It's love list time!

After a rough morning of many difficulties going from a dead asleep to a functioning human, today has turned into a relatively productive Monday! While Mondays always seem to go by very quickly with not too much getting done, there are always things to love!

1. Books!

And a whole lot of them! For me summer has always been a time to read read read and this summer, despite me also taking classes, has been no exception. As you can see most of these are from the library, a wonderful resource I do my best to utilize, which does however sometimes makes it difficult to actually get through all of my books! In fact just today I had to return two books that I would have loved to hold onto just a little longer. But, there is always another book to pick up (or two or three...).

2. Raw chocolate

Last week I purchased Go Raw's mint chocolate and man, I may have to just say this is the best chocolate bar I've ever had!

This chocolate, which actually came in six individually wrapped squares, was very reminiscent of Ghirardelli chocolate squares except even better (and vegan). These were quite pricey, but something I thought was well worth it! 

3. I joined "the flock"

As someone who has been vegan for over a year now and has settled into the ways of vegan eating with very little trouble, I have been interested in exploring the broader implications of eating the way I do and living as a vegan. 

Along this journey I have been trying to move all my purchases, especially those non-food related, away from those involving animals to come more in line with my dietary choices. While I think it is relatively easy to eat a vegan diet and know if what I am eating contains animals products, the content and production processes of other products is much less transparent. These desires led me to the wonderful organization Our Hen House, which is a nonprofit aimed to "change the world for animals" through inspiring, humorous, and thought-provoking multimedia resources such as podcasts and their online magazine. 

This resource and the wealth of information I have been finding has been so inspiring and helpful, and as it is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization I decided to give back and become a donor! Through becoming a donor and thus joining "the flock,"  I also received a couple awesome gifts, namely the documentary Vegucated and the book Defiant Daughters. 

I have actually already seen Vegucated, a wonderful and interesting film, and am excited to start Defiant Daughters! If you are vegan and looking for a great resource, I highly recommend checking out Our Hen House, their podcasts have made my bus ride to school extremely enjoyable! 

(To all my non-vegans out there, since I know that most reading this are likely not vegan, I encourage you to check this out as well, although I may recommend other resources if you are interested in learning more about veganism, as this may not be the best jumping off point. For example, come watch Vegucated with me or check it out through the many online ways of accessing it!)

4. Vegetable art

At the farmer's market this weekend, where I again bought a bountiful amount of kale, there was an awesome sculpture made out of beans! It was to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the market and was made of beans, foam, and chicken wire. Check it out!

5. New shoes

As a birthday gift I received a Nordstrom gift card, helping me buy a beautiful new pair of shoes!

These will surely become a staple in my footwear collection as my other pair of keds are worn close to daily! I also plan on picking up a couple more pairs of colorful laces, because why not?!

6. Stubborn-ness 

While I have never considered myself a stubborn person (although who knows, this may be a vice hidden to me!), I am apparently quite stubborn when it comes to buying plants. I have bought and killed, both through under and over watering, many many plants, and yet they always call out to me when I see them at the store! And when I saw these I just couldn't resist.

I have always had a weakness for gerbera daisies and well...here they are!

Alright! That's a lot of love for the day!

I hope you all have had a wonderful Monday and have a lot to love as well!

Monday Love List Number Eight!

Happy Monday my friends!

I had a very busy week last week so unfortunately I have less to share with you, but there's always something to love right?!

1. Yum Universe test drive

If you may remember, a few weeks ago I mentioned I had purchased a bundle of ebooks. This was one of those ebooks and I loved trying it out! It included a shopping list with five days of meal plans.

I actually had tried out a different meal plan the week before, which was not my favorite, but this one I really enjoyed!

This may not be something I would recommend to everyone, as it is a bit complex, but for someone who has been cooking and preparing vegan, plant-based foods for over a year it was enjoyable and had me trying some things I've never done before. Most notably was the soaking and sprouting that I tried. This included soaking grains and beans and sprouting lentils. I always love sprouts on salads and now I know how to make my own at home! Hooray!

As I had a busy week, taking photos was not on the forefront on my mind, but I did get some pictures of a couple dishes I made this week!

Taco salad before dressing with salsa verde

Post mixing and after eating a few bites, I couldn't resit

Kale and creamy millet salad

I had never made millet before and it was pretty awesome! It was overall a very tasty week. I will definitely be making many of these recipes again! Both of these recipes are available online, here and here. 

2. Feeling like a real adult

This week Morgan and I replaced our old (and broken) bed frame and got a new one with a headboard! We also got new, amazing, sheets in the mail so we have been living in luxury, and like real adults, this week! Having a headboard has been especially nice since previously not having one before always resulted in our pillows falling into the window behind our bed, no fun! 

All and all a very adult and comfortable development!

3. Over halfway done with summer quarter

I am really drawing on blanks this week my friends, I think because my week was so filled with school work. So, along those lines, I am very excited to be on week six of eight of summer quarter, almost there! It's been a lot of work, but it has also added an element of accomplishment to my summer that most in the past have been lacking. Again, making me feel like a real adult! Nothing wrong with that right?!

Alright, not much going on here, so how about a clip of surprised kitty? I always love watching that! 

I hope you all have had a wonderful Monday and I hope to have more time to do cool things and take some cool pictures this week!

Monday Love List Number Seven!

Happy Monday all!

As I prepare for a very busy week ahead, I think it is all the more important to remember the things I'm loving right now!

1. Homemade Non-Dairy Milk and "Hippie Vegan Moments"

For my birthday one of my oldest and closest friends made me delicious homemade almond milk and also gifted me my very own nut-milk bag! I had never had homemade almond milk before and man did I love it! It was much creamier than store bought almond milk and was a beautiful bright white color.

Inspired by this wonderful beverage, I decided to use my new nut milk bag and make my own non-dairy milk!

I have been making oat milk myself for a while which gave me the idea of making an almond-oat milk blend! To do so I combined the oat milk recipe and the almond milk recipe from Oh She Glows and the result was amazing!

It was so good it's all gone already!

When I made this, I decided that it would be best to peel my almonds once they had been properly soaked. The original almond milk I had been gifted was made with peeled almonds and that was where the beautiful white color came from. Now, peeling almonds is not as hard as it sounds as the soaked almonds "pop" right out of their skin. However, it does require handling and peeling each individual almond.

As I was doing this, and rather enjoying it, I had a bit of a moment. A moment I self-labeled as a "vegan hippie moment." While I certainly do many things that your average Joe does not, and may not have ever heard of, I don't normally self identify my behavior as that far out or odd. But hand peeling a cup of almonds? I just had to laugh at myself for that one. Nonetheless, I think my almond milk was much better because of that peeling and I thoroughly enjoyed my "hippie vegan moment." I'm quite sure I will have many more in the future!

Now, once my delicious and nutritious almond-oat milk was made, I had left over almond pulp. As I loath wasting food I wanted to find something delicious to do with this pulp, so I made cookies! I used the vanilla almond sugar cookies recipe from Choosing Raw with a few modifications. Namely, I used oat flour instead of almond and sweetened with maple syrup instead of dates. I also baked them for less time than recommended to get more of a cake or macaroon like cookie. They were tasty!

These were gone in less than 12 hours

So, all and all, it's amazing what almonds and oats can do! I especially enjoyed making a combination non-dairy milk as the result tasted much less "oaty" or "almondy" than either milk does alone, instead having a unique and mild yet delicious flavor.

2. So Much Produce!

On most days, my small section of our very small fridge as well as my produce bin are completely stuffed to the brim with fruits and veggies. After my trip to the farmer's market this weekend this is especially true! For six dollars I got all of this produce!

Three different types of kale and one giant zucchini!

Yummy yummy! I have since made multiple kale salads made with all three types of kale! How cool is that?!

3. So Many Desserts to Make!

So many of the blogs I follow have been posting mouth-watering dessert recipes lately! I normally avoid making entire dessert dishes for myself as I will just eat the whole thing immediately, as we saw with the almond cookies. However, these recipes have made me question this decision!

Just today Keepin' It Kind posted adorable double chocolate truffles, along with an inspirational story about keeping things simple. Oh She Glows has also been posting intriguing dessert recipes including raw almond butter cups and dark chocolate pie. Stepping away from all the chocolate (although really when can you have too much chocolate!?), Healthy Bitch Daily just posted a collection of fruit popsicle recipes which look sure to cool down any hot summer day!

My only problem now is deciding which of these many recipes to try first!

Well, it seems I am loving a lot of food this week! But then again, what's wrong with having a love affair with healthy and delicious food?

On that note I should turn to my nutrition assignment and get working on all that stuff I have to do this week!

Happy Monday everyone, I hope you have a lot to love and lots of good food this week!

Monday Love List Number Six!

Hello my friends! I'm sure you know what day it is...MONDAY which means love list time!

I hope that everyone had a great past week and have some good things coming up this week!!

Here are some things I'm loving this week!

1. Productivity

After a couple speed bumps last week I managed to have a  really productive week, which was a good thing since I had quite a bit of work to get done! Thankfully this week will be a bit less demanding, but I am hoping to keep the momentum going and continue to get lots done!

2. Parks and Recreation 

(Source)

I just started watching this show and I've been really enjoying it!

Normally I have so many shows to keep up with that I don't have time to try many new ones. So, what better time to do so than in the summer when I have more time and fewer shows are airing?! This show is also great because episodes (without commercials) are just over twenty minutes long, the perfect length for a quick break from work!

3. Despicable Me 2

Speaking of screen time, this weekend I saw Despicable Me 2 with my dad and sister and it did not disappoint! I of course loved the minions, I don't think I will ever get over their cuteness, and it was overall a great movie! We were some of the only adults in a theater full of children and their parents and I could tell it was a hit because the children stayed remarkably quiet, excluding of course the laughing, throughout the whole thing! If you are looking for a cute and funny movie I would definitely recommend seeing it!

(Source)

4. New Music

I was listening to a playlist on Songza and one of the songs really jumped out at me, leading me to the artist Ivy Levan. It was her song Hang Forever which first hooked me, which unfortunately does not have an official music video out yet, but soon after searching on youtube I found her other songs and knew I had to buy her EP! I especially like her song Hot Damn, check it out! Her music just makes me want to get up and dance!

5. Digital Cookbooks Galore 

The site Vegan Cuts is having a special right now where a bunch of digital downloads of cookbooks, meal plans, and more are 90% off! I just downloaded 9 different ebooks for $14.99! Look how awesome!

I haven't had a chance to explore the books yet, but I am excited to do so! A couple of them I had been pondering trying out at the full price and the rest look super tasty, so I figured why not!

6. Re-affirming Articles

I came across this article about positive thinking this morning. Many of the reasons talked about there are why I love doing these lists! No matter what else is happening, especially on a Monday, there is always something to love and appreciate, the silver lining if you will.

In this article I especially like the mention of gratitude, something I am working on in myself. Whenever I find myself in a funk or bad mood that I just can't seem to get out of I like to think of at least 3 things I am grateful for, it really puts things into perspective!

So, what are you grateful for? I'd love to hear!

Happy Monday everyone, I hope you are having a great day!

Monday Love List Number Five!!

Hello everyone and happy Monday!

I can't believe I'm writing my FIFTH love list! Has it really been that long?

Well apparently it has and I still have a lot to love!

1. Family vacations

Over the Fourth of July holiday I got to spend a vacation with my family and Morgan in Vancouver, BC. I had a great time exploring the city, visiting with our family that lives up there, and having a lot of good food! Hooray for vacations!

2. Lots of great food

On our vacation we had a lot of wonderful food, feeling stuffed after practically every meal. Additionally I did not get poisoned by any of the food we had! Traveling is always a bit of a danger zone for me, especially when I am going out for all meals of the day. However, this trip I only had delicious food, without any bad stuff!

The first night of our trip we went to a Lebanese restaurant called Nuba. This place was amazing!

My falafel dish, which I started devouring
before I remembered to snap a picture. 

We also had a great cauliflower dish that we all loved!

The next day we went to Aphrodite's, an organic cafe in the Kitsilano neighborhood where we dined on brunch and amazing pie!

My vegan, gluten-free mac and cheese!

Mmmm, vegan, gluten-free pies? Yes please!

I had the chocolate pecan pie, which was likely
the most decadent pie I have ever had!

We had so many other wonderful meals throughout the trip, we were certainly well fed!

3. Coconut yogurt

I found this yogurt at Trader Joe's yesterday and I was thrilled. I've found other non-dairy yogurts I can have, but none in the stores I usually shop at. Needless to say I was happy to try this and it did not disappoint!

I was surprised by this yogurt! The texture was much smoother than I thought it would be and the coconut wasn't too overpowering! If anyone is looking for a vegan yogurt try this out!

4. This post and video

5. Sun!!!

The weather has been beautiful! I'm glad the heat streak seems to have passed for now, leaving us with pleasant and sunny weather. Even though I have been working for most of the afternoon I made sure to get out and run some errands just to get outside!

Alright, that is it for now! I hope everyone is having a wonderful Monday!

***Also, to anyone who subscribed to follow my blog before this posting, please re-subscribe! With the change of my blog title, I need to reset the widget that allows email following. Thank you!***

Monday Love List Number Four!

Happy Monday everyone!

It is beautiful, and very warm here in Seattle. I hope that everyone is staying cool!

Here is my love list for the week!

1. Cucumber water

I've just started drinking cucumber water in the mornings and it is sweet!!

I've been doing this as a replacement to having hot lemon water which is praised by many as a great way to detox and start the day. Unfortunately for me, citrus is a migraine trigger and as such I cannot consume lemon on such a regular basis. So, enter cucumber water!

Mmmm, yummy

This takes very little time to prepare. I have just been slicing cucumber, adding water, and letting it sit overnight. Then when I wake up I have a refreshing, energizing drink waiting for me!

As an added bonus, once I finish all the water I get to munch on the left over cucumbers, which are even more delicious than normal because they are so saturated from the water!

It's almost like the prize at the bottom of the cereal box!

I've also started playing around with this, for example last night I added some mint leaves to the water and man was it good! I think you could pretty much add anything you like! If you are not sensitive to citrus I would imagine a squirt of lemon or lime would be nice and any essential oils would also add a fun twist!

2. New straws and drinking lid

I ordered these from Vegan Cuts to supplement my mason jar collection and make smoothie and tea drinking super fun and easy!

This lid fits any small mouth canning jar, instantly making it a handy drinking cup! I also got three stainless steel drinking straws and a brush cleaner. What more could I need?!

Indeed, I have found that
"everything taste better out of a glass jar!"

The very entertaining packaging

3. DOMA being ruled unconstitutional and Pride!

Hooray!!!!!! I was so excited to hear that DOMA had been ruled unconstitutional. Unfortunately I was unable to attend this year's Pride Parade, but I'm sure it was a ton of fun! I was able to experience all the pride and support there was on capitol hill last week though, it was inspiring!

The banners that were all over Broadway

Me after Pride 2012

4. Weekend trips out of the city

This weekend Morgan, my parents, and I went to our river house in Rimrock Retreat (about 30 min out of Yakima) to get away from the heat in the city and have a relaxing time. On Saturday it seemed to be monsoon season as it thunder-stormed and poured down rain all afternoon and evening. This allowed us to get some things done around the house and play a lot of board games!

Carvings near the house

The Teiton river during a break in the rain

Fog on the river from all the rain

Sunday the weather improved and we got to spend some quality time outside!

Sun!

 We also stopped on the way home just outside of Rainier National Park at Wapiti Woolies, a clothing and gift store with a coffee shop.

A ski chair!

5. Washington sticker

I found this glittery Washington sticker at Wapiti Woolies. Now I just need to find a spot to put it!

6. New makeup

I went out on a limb and ordered some makeup online from Lush as the store normally located in Westlake center is under renovation and I'm so glad I did! This vegan, cruelty-free, and natural makeup is awesome!!

I got their mascara "Eyes Right" as well as their "Light Pink" color supplement. Next time I can get to a store I also want to try some of their face masks, which look really nice!

Alright! That's a lot of love for the day. I hope that everyone can enjoy the weather and doesn't get too hot, try some cucumber water to stay hydrated!

Happy Monday!

Monday Love List Number Three!

Happy Monday everyone!

I hope you all had a great past week and have some fun things planned for the upcoming week!

Here are some things I am loving!

1. Mail from roommates

We just got this wonderful postcard from my roommate who it is Africa this summer. How awesome is that?!

2. Birthdays and birthday celebrations

Last week was my 21st birthday and I had a wonderful time, getting to spend time with the people I care most about!

I also received many super thoughtful, useful, and perfect gifts. From my parents I got the Ninja blender which is UH-mazing! I finally have something that can blend the giant smoothies I make on a near daily basis. This thing has a 72oz pitcher which a couple nights ago I filled to the brim with smoothie good-ness! I also got a vast array of tazo teas, something I am extremely grateful for, cause can you really ever have too much tea? I certainly don't think so!

From Morgan I also got some wonderful gifts. I had asked for a new yoga mat and a deck of yoga pose cards both of which are super useful for my yoga practice. I was also pleasantly surprised by some beautiful natural amethyst earrings and this painting!

It was overall a wonderful birthday and thank you to everyone who I was able to celebrate with!

3. My first bar experience

The night of my birthday I went out with Morgan and my parents and had my first legal drinks! We first hit up a bar in Ballard called the Copper Gate which is unfortunately closing at the end of the month. This place has quite unique decor with pictures of women in the nude everywhere you look as well as a viking ship. Here, as my first legal drink I had a Cidre Bouche Brut de Normandie which was delicious and tasted like an apple cider made like champagne. Yum yum!

Here are a couple pics I got of the night!

The naked ladies in the bathroom

The ship in the middle of the bar

4. Undiet

I just finished reading this lovely nutrition/cook book last week and it was one I absolutely adored! Normally I just get books from the library, read them, and then move on. However this book is one I want to own, and so my amazon order is on its way!

Some of my favorite parts of this book were the sections on how to prep and store different fruits and veggies, the chapter on beauty products and the different plastics in food storage products, homemade herbal tea blends, tips on limiting or eliminating refined sugars, as well as some delicious recipes.

5. Homemade oat milk

I started making this this past week and I love it! It is super easy, cheap, and fast to make. It even has cinnamon in it, which gives it a really nice taste!!

I found the recipe here, one of my all time favorite blogs.

6. Homemade granola

Another oat centered item! Since I had the week off I did a good amount of recipe experimenting and this was another experiment that turned out really well!

Check it out!

This is part of my second batch of the week,
it was so delicious I couldn't resist the first batch!

7. Bramblewine tea

This tea is so delicious! I first encountered it at the tea bar in the tazo store in University Village and fell in love with it on the spot! This was one of the teas I received as a gift from my parents and have cold brewed it for the past two nights.

Look at how beautiful that is!

A blend of hibiscus, freeze dried strawberry,
raspberry, and blueberry, jasmine green tea,
rooibos, orange peel, rose petals, chamomile,
and blackberry leaves. Yummy!

8. Good tv

I just finished watching the season finale of Mad Men and also started re-watching 30 Rock this past week. I love going back through shows from the beginning, I am always amazed at how some actors will look really different in earlier seasons while others don't age a bit! I also find that going through the years on a tv show is a great way to see how fashion trends and styles have changed over the years!

(Source)

Well that about sums it up! I apparently have a lot that I'm loving this week, I hope you are too!

Also, tune in later this week for some installments of my personal experiences with illness, recovery, and finally health and how this connects so centrally to my diet, who I am today, and who I plan to be!

Happy Monday!