The Weekend Send-Off

June 17th, 2011 - filed under: Furthermore » Feedback

Happy impending Father’s Day to all the Papa’s out there!



Hello hello, hello my friends and hellooooo weekend! It’s been another helluva week ’round these parts, but I’m in the home stretch (really, rounding third base, I can see the plate . . . June 28 and it’s all over . . . ) I’m a writing machine these days, and when I’m not writing I’m recipe testing, and raw food imagining, oh yeah, and the mommy part too! Thank goodness for another weekend.

~~~

And thank goodness for giving thanks! Seriously, I am so filled with gratitude this week, I don’t even know where to begin. You know, I’ve learned a whole lot in these crazy project/s days, enough to probably write a pretty profound post about it, haha. And maybe I will. For now I’ll say that a little love, especially a little love from a stranger, can ohmygod go miles and miles when you’re having a bad day. I’ve been touched on a few occasions of late, and it makes me want to reach out and pay it forward. In all this madness, I’m so impressed with the kindness of my fellow humans! We really are an amazing bunch of monkeys. It’s important to remember that.
And now!

Le Love List

1. The Our Hen House Podcast. You all know what a podcasting junkie I am, and I was ripe for a new show to devour. That’s right about when reader Joselle dropped me a line to let me know about Our Hen House, an awesome little podcast where one of the interviewees had mentioned my upcoming Vegan Pregnancy book (squee!). Anyway, I started listening to the podcast and now I’m totally hooked. Jasmin and Mariann are this fantastically eloquent queer/animal activist super couple, who fill their show with wit and intellect and humor and wisdom. Highly, highly recommend!

2. Soapwalla Kitchen Body Products, and the wonderful woman behind the magic, Miss Rachel. I first blogged about Soapwalla when I reviewed the line back in November. I’m not exaggerating when I say it’s my favorite skin care line I’ve ever used. Ever. The attention to detail is simply impeccable, it really feels like the absolute highest caliber of ingredients are used, and the finished product is of exquisite quality. Anyway, so I’ve been having a rough few weeks and I guess that’s pretty obvious, huh? Well, on Tuesday afternoon there was a knock on my door and what do you know, but I had a surprise little box in my hands. I opened it up to find . . . a care package straight out of the Soapwalla Kitchen! For no other reason than because Rachel thought I could use a little extra love.

Rachel, I am still so touched, I can’t even tell you how much that meant to me. Thank you so, so much.

And to everyone else, Soapwalla is an amazing line, if you’re in the market for some new bath and body products, please check them out! All organic, artisan hand-crafted, vegan of course, and *totally* reasonably priced. Rachel is an awesome lady and there’s no one more deserving of your business!

3) Missionary Chocolates. These are my favorite gourmet chocolates, period, and they’re made by a gal here in Portland. Another story:

Yesterday Waits was having a rough day, so I was having a rough day. That’s our problem, see. I literally have too much work to do, and the poor little bug is teething something fierce. So I have less attention to give him at a time when he really needs more, and so I feel guilty, and then I worry about the work I’m not doing and I get stressed, and he senses my stress and he becomes more unsettled . . . you see, it’s a big bad snowball. So yes, yesterday was rough and we decided to get out of the house to try and switch things up. And we were meandering around when we stumbled on a Farmer’s Market (that’s the kind of thing you stumble on in Portland, haha), and inside the Farmer’s Market we then stumbled upon the Vegan Truffle Vendor of Joy™.

I was already familiar with Missionary Chocolates so I kind of felt bad taking samples, but I couldn’t resist. And Melissa was just so friendly and offered Mr Waits a few of her own strawberries since he’s too wee for chocolate, and we were just chatting away. Melissa is an ND, and apparently the mission of Missionary is to eventually fund the opening of a holistic healing center. Love it!

So after all my sampling, and loving the mission so much, I wanted to buy a truffle for the road. Alas, I was a dollar short. I was getting ready to promise to hunt them down somewhere soon, when Melissa grabbed the rest of the sample vanilla salted caramel truffle (HELLO) and tossed it in a little baggie with a few salted vanilla chocolate covered pretzels (HELLO!!!), and before I could protest she was thrusting it into my hands and insisting that I take it. “Every mama needs a little chocolate,” she said. And I really did.

Again, I was so touched by this act of generosity. So I just wanted to put it out there – if you’re looking for gourmet vegan truffles that will seriously knock your socks off (and really, who isn’t?), please consider supporting this amazing small business. They ship everywhere! It’s for a good cause, too, so you pretty much have to eat the chocolate, right??!


Alright guys, now it’s your turn! What do you love this week?

My darlings, this happy little post will stay at the top of the page all weekend, so stop by any time to leave your Love List, ask a question, or offer some feedback! Or if you’re new, please introduce yourself and say ‘Oi!’! This is your community, so get involved!

Have a light and lovely weekend!

  • http://www.sarathomas.etsy.com sara thomas

    1. i love arts & crafts. they rock my world!
    2. my sweet, wonderful husband. i cannot wait to celebrate his very first father’s day with him on sunday.
    3. my local farmer’s market. this wednesday was the first market of the season and i was pleasantly surprised at how much it has improved since last year. yay!

  • http://mutualmenu.blogspot.com Joselle

    Sayward, thank you so much for the shout-out! Isn’t Our Hen House totally wonderful and addictive?! :) I’ve enjoyed your blog so much since I found it after reading your birth story on Offbeat Mama. You’re very inspiring and I can’t wait to read the book!

    1. Going up to see my mother and stepfather and other family with my husband and our dog tomorrow. Barbeque! I’m making the avocado potato salad from Vegan Brunch. It’s guacamole on potatoes. How can you go wrong?

    2. Finally checking out Sprig and Vine in New Hope, PA for brunch on Sunday (http://www.sprigandvine.com/menu_brunch.pdf), thanks to a gift card we got as a wedding gift from my friend, Sky who has a great blog called Vegan Favorites (http://veganfavorites.wordpress.com/).

    3. Wrapping up my pre-nursing school assignment in the next few days, which, while not difficult, has been very time-consuming these last few weeks of my supposed time-off from school. I’ll be glad to have a REAL week off to decompress before the craziness starts for real.

    Happy weekend, everyone.

  • http://indiearsenal.com Farmingtheburbs

    1. spending the night at a swanky hotel for 1 night sans little toddler boys with my hubby for our anniversary
    2. feeling pretty worn out and yucky but for good reason and can’t wait to hear the heart beat for the first time
    3. Peaches, i had a delicious organic juicy peach tonight and it tasted delicious which is nearly impossible these days since nothing appeals to me in the midst of morning sickness

  • Danika

    I recently found your blog. I am in love and have been devouring your archives for the last week. I love that you are thorough with your research and that you are willing to share all of this information and positive energy with your blog community. I am learning a lot and made your coconut yogurt the other day (love).
    I completely understand what you’re going through with the poor teething babe. I am 26 (vegan and trying out high raw this week) with three daughters (4,2,1) and a stepson who is 10 yrs (such a helper which is awesome). I am back in school full time to become a registered dietitian and pass all this good diet information along to unsuspecting folks. It is so hard to balance time between school (or work) and giving your children the attention they deserve. I love seeing what you’re feeding Waits and he photographs beautifully. You are obviously an awesome mommy!

    1. Your blog and a couple others that help me remain strong in my principles.
    2. My high-raw diet that is giving me tons of energy and making me feel amazing.
    3. The fact that I finished my summer math class today and can enjoy the weekend with my family.
    4. My babies. I can’t get over how freaking cute they are, and I just *love* watching them interact. They are so sweet to each other.

  • Melisa

    1)Sex. So invigorating and binding and amazing.
    2)Our impending holiday in Asheville, NC. I spent all day day-dreaming about a meal at Barley’s Taproom and one at the Early Girl, and coffee from the double decker bus…*sigh*
    3)Gals like you and Danika up there who give me hope that I can figure out how to be vegan and feed my kiddo vegan, too.
    Bonus:4)My sweet, beautiful, SMART baby girl who despite my neurosis is blossoming every day into the most incredible individual.

  • TeniseRae

    I’m going to have to agree with @Melisa here and add Sex to my love list. Hubby and I have been having a stressful week….or two…okay, maybe three. :-\ It’s just simply amazing what one night of togetherness will do for a relationship. I heart sex. Heeehee… :D

    Number two would be our new tiny little pool. It’s nothing extravagant but it’s just enough to fit me, my husband and our three year old. We can swim a little, get a nice full body submersion, all while teaching our little girl how to float, kick, blow bubbles, dunk, etc. It’s just truly wonderful to take an hour or two and just BE with your family. Not worry about the chores, dishes, floors, laundry, gardening, blah blah BLAH!!!! To just stop for a moment and enjoy each others company is priceless!!! So glad summer is here!!

    My third and last choice would be how grateful I am to have an aunt-in-law that works as a Montessori school teacher. Being a one income family we are not able to afford this school on our own. She has managed to offer us an opportunity for our daughter to go to this school for the summer (and possibly fall and spring). Just simply an amazing opportunity. I’m so excited for my daughter, it’s mind boggling. She’s such a social little creature. She needs a lot of stimulation and is, frankly, just dying to go to school. She’s not even three yet! So yeah, basically I’m extremely thankful for this amazing opportunity for my daughter. Not to mention the two days a week I’ll get to spend all by myself! I look forward to having time to concentrate on my business and crafting projects. WAHOO!! HERE WE GO!! :D

  • http://made2give.blogspot.com Zipporah

    My love list
    1. Finding new ways all the time to give to others…even if that is simply letting someone in during heavy traffic.
    2. A future husband that understands me so much that he has offered to fill a bathroom full of yarn just for me and my addiction to the pointy sticks
    3. Parents that have always loved me and are willing to transform enough to backpack through Europe (not easy when you are 55 and 56)
    4. Memories of family
    5. A God who has taught me the meanings of life and the importance of compassion

  • http://veganonthegogo.wordpress.com/ Teniesha @ Vegan on the Go-Go

    Thank you for sharing Our Hen House! I’ve been seeking out some new podcasts lately, too, and am now downloading a few of their recent episodes. Can’t wait to hear them! :)

  • http://natsmithillustration.etsy.com Nat

    Hang in there, dont get too stressed out. Just remember theres always time for a couple minutes to yourself with a nice cup of tea :) Thats what I do when my 10 month old and I are having a crazy day

    Love list:
    1. Chia seeds! Im putting them on EVREYTHING!
    2. A dash of cinnamon in my coffee
    3. The fact that all ive been thinking about has been FOOD! HEEHEEHEEHEE (healthy food, of course!)

  • Hyla

    I think you balance life, family and work beautifully. Don’t be too hard on yourself!
    My love list…
    1. Spontaneous change of mind. Because I can.
    2. Neighbors that make you cocktails and deliver them to you.
    3. The 100-Mile diet concept. I’m just finishing the book and am so inspired to simplify my diet and focus on more local/seasonal/foraged foods. A lot of which I hope to produce myself.

  • http://fromscratch-blog.blogspot.com Amy

    1. Getting things accomplished before my daughter wakes up. God has blessed me with a child that likes to sleep in with her daddy, which means I’ve been able to get in 2-3 hours of PhD work before she wakes up and I don’t miss spending any time with her!
    2. Walking with friends in the Botanical Gardens. Just what I needed several times this week.
    3. Sleeping on my stomach. I was a dedicated stomach sleeper before I was pregnant and it was hard learning to sleep on my side. Now I’m thankful that it’s once again comfortable enough to do so.

  • http://www.soapwallakitchen.com Soapwalla Chef

    It was my pleasure, Sayward! Seriously.

    My love list includes:
    (1) finding a new secret (at least to me!) waterfall in Prospect Park. How awesome is it to find this gem in the heart of Brooklyn?
    (2) my lovely girlfriend, who’s doing everything in her power to keep me calm and collected as I prepare for surgery on Monday.
    (3) the easiest, yummiest homemade vegan fudge recipe ever!

  • RK

    1. My backyard birds. I put up a couple feeders this year and a mama bird made a nest in one of my hanging baskets. The perfectness and preciseness of the nest she made was breathtaking!

    2. My kids. I find them to be the funniest most adorable little people on Earth and can’t imagine spending most of my time with anyone else.

    3. My Mama. It’s awesome how that relationship comes full circle as you get older.

    *As a side note. I’ve been vegetarian for over a year now and am on most days eating all vegan. I was wondering if you beautiful BA readers have any suggestions for good snack recommendations. I am doing great with the meals but having a harder time coming up with on the fly snacks in between!

  • Sam

    Everything in my life has been changing a TON lately, so I have a lot on my mind to worry about but also a lot to love!

    1. My new apartment: I’m moving out of my mom’s and into a gorgeous one bedroom July 16th. It was a totally unexpected find, and I didn’t think I was going to get it but they liked me and approved my application! It’s gorgeous with hardwood floors, ivy covered windows, cathedral ceilings and best of all a big balcony for growing herbs and peppers and tomatoes and hanging a bird feeder! :)

    2. My new job at Northstar Cafe: the owners are locavores and vegans and the food is AHHmazing. Their food (and the six plus hours I spend running food there each shift!) inspire me to eat healthier.

    3. New hopes and possibilities: I have like, two friends in town- everyone else is away at college or moving out of state- and I’m excited to begin a new life in Columbus with a new place, a new job, a new school opportunity and hopefully lots of amazing new people!

  • http://twitter.com/alihalsaba Alina S

    RK- some of my favorite vegan snacks are… hummus with pita chips or carrots, raw fruit, smoothies, green juice, banana plus almond butter, lara bars (all raw and delicious), nuts, popcorn with some melted earth balance and pink Himalayan salt, raw kale/avacado salad, and (let’s be honest) dark chocolate

    love list!
    1. my boyfriend- gotta give props
    2. my neighborhood farm stand is back as of this morning! woohoooo! just bought a bunch of delicious peaches, cukes, tomatoes, onions, potatoes, and a big-ass watermelon
    3. yoga 3 days in a row. I intend to practice at least 6 days a week until my big move to California in August!

  • Sowande

    Love list:

    1. Good food
    2. Great friends
    3. Memories of Gat Jeans and good luck trolls

    You are doing so well!!!! I miss ya! Fab blog! Get in touch!

  • Meghan

    1. homehomehomehomeHOME! I was away for three weeks dealing with family stuff, and it is soooooo good to be home! (even if my husband has left on a business trip to Portland… I really should have bought tickets to go with him!)

    2. Straw! I love my glass dharma straw… I got a big thick one with red dots for smoothies. I think I’m going to order a thinner one that bends for iced tea/lemonade/water

    3. Tomatoes! My first garden at the house definitely isn’t at 100%… especially since I was gone for so long. But one thing that is going super strong is our tomatoes! We have 31 plants in the ground (I think? I thought I bought 30 bamboo stakes, and I have one unstaked tomato plant) as well as several in pots. (This is what happens when you feel like you can’t thin your seedlings! You end up with a bonkzillion tomato plants!) Lets see if I can recall the varieties… Japanese Trifele Black, Cherokee Purple, Beefsteak, Siletz, Stupice, Rutgers CS Select, San Marzano… I think that might be it for the normal sized tomatoes. I also have two varieties of cherry tomatoes–one the traditional red, and another that is white! I can’t wait!

  • Kelly H.

    I adore these stories of random kindness. Let there be more all round!

    1) My first CSA box of the season with the best tasting veggies EVER!

    2) My awesome coworkers that met me at the Vegan Bar for my last day of work. Later, a few of us found ourselves singing karaoke. It was an incredibly fun night. :o)

    3) http://www.simpleapothecary.com/ He made my facial cleanser and toner as I waited!

  • Denise

    1.Farmer’s market in a beautiful setting. Visited the one in McKinney, Tx this weekend. Although it’s about an hour drive, it was lovely. Beautiful trees provided nice shade which was great as it was a hot day. Can’t make that trip all the time, but it was a nice treat. Farmers markets aren’t so prolific as to be “stumbled upon” like you have there in Portland. If only I can convince the hubs to move there. ( I’ve actually started a mini- campaign of sorts. I grew up in Southern OR – all the family is still there and would love to come home to Oregon. )

    2. Again my baby girl. So in love with her.

    3. A big pecan topped with a fat lump of caramel and covered in dark chocolate. Truly a treat. Thanks to the hubs for sharing his Father’s Day goodies with me.

    As far as the teething, I have to ask, what do you do for Waits? My girl has a teething necklace but I’m looking for something more should she need it. Ive seen homeopathic pellets and a homeopathic gel- but the gel had sodium benzoate.

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com Sayward

    For some reason, the Love Lists this weekend seem *particularly* spectacular, and made me *especially* happy to read. So much good stuff going in on the lives of you incredible folks! Also, HERE HERE to the sex! And thank you Melisa for being bold enough to bring it up, and to the rest of y’all for being willing to talk about it. I love that we can openly celebrate a somewhat taboo subject here (wouldn’t want it any other way!). Ah, you guys are just amazing. =)

    @ RK – Snacks are what I live on! My favorites (these range from pretty heavy mini-meals to totally light filler, so you know, different stuff for different times) = quickie green smoothie (spinach + banana + liquid), apple + nut butter, carrots and hummus, any raw veggies and any dip (I whip up different dips all the time, so easy, just some tahini + acid like lemon or acv + salt or soy sauce + spices like garlic/onion/cumin + I always add nutritional yeast because I love it) or even quicker veggies + soy sauce, or even quicker than that just veggies plain!, banana with almond butter, beans with salsa or beans with avocado (I like black or pinto), Lara Bars or other raw bars, granola, figs and pumpkin seeds or other trail mix, hmm, that’s all I got for now. If you look at my What I Ate Wed posts, you’ll see I don’t really eat a “meal” until dinner, I just sort of graze all day. I eat tons of raw veggies and some raw fruit, with denser things like nuts and seeds thrown in. Fat is key to staying full (and healthy), and a little protein with every snack adds up throughout the day. Luck!

    @ Sowande – OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! Holy crap CRAZY, emailing you, haha. =D

    @ Denise – We used a teething necklace but we lost it on a trip. I’d forgotten about that thing, and damn I think it really worked. Need to get another one! The homeopathic stuff . . . meh, I haven’t felt like it’s done much. BUT! There is a product called Gum-omile Oil. IT IS AMAZING! It’s mostly clove oil, so it numbs topically. It works wonders and if you can’t find it locally I’d say it’s totally worth ordering. it’s seriously the only thing (natural) that I’ve found that actually does something. Not gonna lie, once in a while we give OTC pain meds (ibuprofin). That’s a personal decision I think every hippie parent has to make for themselves, and everybody’s line wil be somewhere a little different, you know? For me, there just comes a point where withholding pain relief seems to cross a line and just become cruel. I think maybe different kids teethe differently and not every kid experiences pain that extreme. Some parents never feel they need to give OTC meds. We have, a few times. Like I said it’s a really personal decision, you know?

    ~~~

    I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Love you guys!

  • Denise

    Sayward- Thank you! I will definitely try it! We’ve given her OTC pain meds and prescription as well in the past (she had surgery) but I’m of the mind that if it’s needed, yes- no need for her to suffer un-necessarily. But if it’s not, then it’s not and I avoid giving her anything at all if it’s not needed.

    Appreciate the recommendation!!

  • RK

    Your tips and advice having been rocking my world lately! Thank you thank you!

  • Meghan

    What is the best Missionary Chocolates thing? Their website says they sell stuff at 7Planet on Couch, which is near where my husband is staying for a conference, so I’m hoping I can smile pretty at him through the internet so he will go buy me some. :-)

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com Sayward

    @ Meghan – Oof, sorry to respond to this so late. Did Aaron end up getting anything? I guess for future reference, my absolute faves are the meyer lemon (OMG) and the salted caramel. They’re all good though. REALLY good. =)