Begining the new year right, with light and positivity!

 

    Things have been much better for me this week; I am starting to get back on track from all the holiday stress and my body is showing the progress!

 

 

    The number on the scale has gone down considerably the past six months with a small peak end of November beginning of December, but I am back on track to health now and focused on bringing more love and positivity in my life.

 

    I hope everyone's Veganuary has started out great and on track, things are always going to get better if you keep doing your best and 2024 is a year for us all to do better for the animals and for ourselves. If you are new to veganism, check out the 10 Weeks to Vegan Challenge for lots of helpful tips and useful information about going vegan.

    

     I had a lot of holiday leftovers to enjoy this week and it was nice to cut back on cooking and dishes. I also learned about some of the health benefits of tomato paste and that it is loaded with antioxidants and makes a great little snack a couple teaspoons at a time will do.

 

 

    I started out this week with some much-needed self-care and used a clay face mask and cut and dyed my hair.

    For the sake of convenience, I used my favorite box dye that is definitely not vegan or cruelty free... Loreal, in the hues Starry Night and Sapphire Smoke.

 

 

 

     It also saves me a few dollars to use the Loreal dye but for a good vegan alternative I recommend...

 Lunar Tides Silver Lining

And Lunar Tides Magic Shadow

 

    The very next day after I dyed my hair, I received a new hair dye by Loreal via influenster.com to test out next time.

 

 It is a beautiful coppery reddish black so I am excited to test it out, but I do have a PPD allergy. 

 

    I am just going to dye the tips and hopefully I won't have a bad reaction. I'll be sure to double wash it with shampoo.

    Wednesday was one of the worst days for food cravings, but I still managed to lose 4.1 lbs. this week!

 

    Wednesday morning, I had a smoothie and sandwich for breakfast. For most of the week I ate a lot of holiday leftovers, but I did make a few tasty new recipes.

    Wednesday night I had extreme cravings for top ramen and salty fatty food, so I decided to eat saltines with hemp butter, and it satisfied that craving along with the last of the Juanita's chilipeno tortilla chips.

    Before my nap that morning I had munchies bad, so I made a tasty banana bacon, bell pepper, onion and peanut butter sandwich in my Foreman grill.

 

    And then with the left-over banana bacon "drippings" I made a Borlotti Bean and Potato Hash for breakfast.
 

    My sleeping schedule was all over the place and out of whack this week (but don't worry I straightened things out this next Monday.) Thursday, I did manage to wake up at 8 am when my weekly food box was delivered but sadly, I couldn't eat any of the canned goods because they were all meat. So, I had to give them to the neighbors, but I did get exciting and unexpected produce!

    On Thursday I also went to Walmart with the nurse in my mental health team. We had a lot of fun and I got a lot of essentials I needed including more airtime minutes for my phone and my prescription medication for my mental health. I also decided to try Gardein vegan fish fillets. They were super tasty but they tasted a bit more like tuna than cod.

    At Walmart I also got a cute pair of yoga pants and to my surprise when I read the tag when I got home, I discovered they are ecofriendly and made with recycled materials.

    The pants also fit perfectly and look super cute. I love how wide the flare is on the pants. And the ribbed comfortable fabric feels nice to the touch.

    For breakfast Friday I finished of the BBQ Beans from last weeks blog on another roasted sweet potato.

    I wanted to go to yoga class Friday afternoon and got all dressed up and prepared, but I discovered it was way too cold to work out. So, I opted into sleeping in and getting some much-needed cleaning done.

    I was really happy with how the look turned out, I love the glossy lips, strong eyebrows and dewy glow.

    After I woke up from a cozy winter nap, I discovered an amazon package was waiting at my door with a replacement for my eyeliner pen and Oregon grape root powder which totes a long list of health benefits.

    After cleaning I worked up an appetite and ate more of my holiday leftovers. Then I reviewed all the December empties that I saved for the month.

 

 

    Then I finished my evening with some artsy craftsy fun time working on painting my magic candles and cutting out scraps for upcycling into future art projects.

 

    Saturday morning, I had an intense craving for rice which I often tend to have near the end of my cycle, so I had 2 bowls full of rice. The first one I seasoned with my usually favorite rice seasoning, vegan butter, vegan bacon bits, coconut sugar, mushroom powder, and soy sauce (or substitute sauce). and this time I was a little extra and used sesame oil and sesame seeds. But then I got a crazy idea for the second bowl of rice and wanted to try it with butter and yellow curry powder, and it was also very delicious that way.

 

    I woke up Saturday morning cozy and warm in my blankets with an extra blanket of snow. Definitely staying home and safe and warm.

 

Saturday afternoon I had a small Thrive Market and Amazon haul where I show my replacement Pacifica mascara, the new tasty Ultima electrolyte water enhancers, and my new adaptogenic mushroom tonic, and my new awesome yoga mat!

    I decided to stay up all Saturday night and Sunday morning in a desperate attempt to get my sleeping schedule back on track.

    I had a late dinner Sunday morning of tomato soup and a vegan grilled roast beef sandwich.

Tomato Basil Soup

Ingredients:

    can of tomato soup concentrate

    18 oz. of water

    can of diced tomatoes

    2 tbsp. tomato paste

    1 tbsp olive oil

    2 tsp garlic powder

    2 tsp onion powder

    3 tbsp dried basil

    1 tsp Italian seasoning

    1/2 tsp paprika

    2 tsp Montreal Steak Seasoning

    2 tsp black pepper

    1 tsp agave nectar

    1 tsp vegan parmesan for garnish per bowl

Instructions:

    Add a can of tomato paste and water to a medium soup pot. 

    Simmer on medium stirring in diced tomatoes and tomato paste. 

    Then stir in olive oil and seasonings and allow to come to a bit of a boil and then reduce heat to a gentle simmer for at least 15 minutes before serving. 

    top with vegan parm, a dash of pepper and basil before serving.

Yield: 

    3 servings 130 calories per serving

    The sandwich was made with whole grain bread spread with vegan butter and ranch dressing, with vegan roast beef, 4 slices banana bacon, and sliced onions and peppers sandwiched between then grilled on a Foreman grill.

    Amped up on my new mushroom tonic I had an amazing hula hoop work out! It was super fun, but I definitely overexerted myself. I pushed myself to stay up to go return cans and bottles with my friend and peer support on my mental health team JS and then we went to my friend's house JB to donate my 2 bags of decluttered items and a box with my old yoga mat.

     JB has a large plastic covered bookshelf at her house for people to donate unwanted items. I grabbed a bag of pistachios, an amaretto chocolate truffle, a flavored candy cane, and a cute painted rock that say I love coffee, with a coffee cup painted on it.

    When I came home, I was very excited to see daffodils and bluebells sprouting up from the melted snow. I think that is a sign we may have an early but possibly wet spring here in Southern Oregon. I then took a much-needed rest very optimistic about my amazing start to my new year! I hope you all are making the most of 2024 as well!