I thought it would be good to write about where we are in our journey today. So many things swirling about in my mind as of late. I realize that I am not where I want to be in some things, and yet so much further along than I thought I would be in other things, at the same time. As in life, our choices greatly depend on what's available, our experiences, and more. Many things involve others along the way. I have always believed that if progress is made in a positive direction, it's better off than before. If you can make good big changes quickly, good for you, especially if it involves moving away from something destructive. I will speak up for the baby step idea though, it can't be overlooked as a more permanent option for most.
It might get a little long, so hang on!
While my family and I continue our vegan diet (as originally summarized in my "food philosophy" blog posts, we have changed things here and there. We have gone from using wheat (and other gluten grains) to gluten/wheat free for a few years, and now back again with an emphasis on organic whole grains and doing more of our own baking if we can. As you know, I really love making our own food from scratch. I still favor organic if I can. Local and sustainable food sources are important to me.
While at one time, we used to have daily green smoothies (I still love them!), it's not quite as often anymore. We now also balance our breakfast choices with some organic rolled oats (soaked or cooked) with nuts, seeds, and dried/fresh fruit, or even a breakfast of whole grain toast with some yummy avocados or even coconut butter. Leftovers should not be overlooked either, and we are known for checking out what's in the fridge to eat in the mornings.
We tend to eat out less than we did before, mostly for financial reasons (as of this month, we are debt free!). When we do go out, we try to choose a reasonably healthier version of cuisine to enjoy. Lately, we have been doing added oil free at our house, so eating out can be a challenge, but we also allow ourselves to have the vegan options at restaurants without a lot of requests for no added oil (we try to choose the best options we can without customizing our orders).
Regarding eating foods without added oils: I have found that we are adjusting quite well, in fact. My son, who will be turning twenty soon, embraced it from the get-go. He routinely now makes his stir-frys and sautés with water or broth, and we all still eat just fine. We don't have the greasy feeling in our mouths when having "fried" rice and such. Added oils contribute a lot of calories and not much else. We do routinely still use foods like nuts and nut butters, shredded coconut (what I make our coconut butter from), seeds, avocados, etc.
We prefer eating foods in their whole form, more or less. We have now adapted our diet to be what most people call a whole food, plant based diet. I have always believed that eating real food, as close to it's original form, is best for everyone! The term vegan has almost become synonymous with no animal products, but vegan processed/junk food is welcome. That is not my philosophy here at Vegan Footprints! You can continue to find wholesome foods and recipes here!
We continue to adopt habits that help us not only save money, but are better for the environment. That means to us, using cloth napkins at mealtimes, cloth handkerchiefs (preferred by my family anyway!), reusable water bottles (stainless steel is our preference - I can't remember the last time I drank or even bought a one-time-use bottle of water), recycling what we can (which is expanding all the time!), and buying things with less packaging (or none at all). Having said that, recycling isn't everything, and we are trying little by little to do low/zero waste instead. Our trash is considerably less, amounting to about 2-3 small kitchen size trash bags per month. We compost our food waste and recycle what we can otherwise.
When we do buy things, whether it be clothing, school/office supplies, furniture, kitchen misc., etc., we try to find it second hand first. There are so many things that are still useful out there. I look for yard/garage sales, thrift stores, consignment shops, antique places, flea markets, etc. Friends sometimes will offer things they don't need anymore. I tell them if I can't use it, I can donate it for them.
There are so many benefits to not buying disposable products! This goes for just about anything bought that is meant for one single use only. I will add here that we still buy toilet paper, so for those of you wondering, you can breathe a sigh of relief! Ha, ha! Seriously though, just think about bottled water (I have survived without), paper tissues/napkins/towels/plates (you can eliminate), plastic wrap/foil/plastic bags/utensils (I have not bought these for years), and the list goes on. I even have lined up a still-good-to-use antique safety razor. Just today, I realized that along with writing this blog for ten years, I have also used a reusable menstrual cup for even longer!
Cleaning products in my house now consist of an all purpose liquid soap (which we use for hands, body, hair and household cleaning purposes), vinegar, and baking soda, along with all kinds of brushes and rags. Along with a second hand acquired Rainbow vacuum (for a total of only $40, which includes a power head!), a few essential oils, and a feather duster, we can cover just about anything. We can't forget our small brush that cleans out our reusable stainless steel straws! Love those straws for our green smoothies!
For storage containers in our kitchen, we generally use glass or stainless steel. It might be canning jars, in all sorts of sizes, to glass storage which I can bake, freeze or use in my cupboards. I bake mostly using an assortment of stainless steel pans. Using silicone mats for easy cleaning and no added oil baking and roasting. To go shopping, I try to have reusable cloth bags for carrying groceries. Keeping them in the car helps tremendously!
My husband and I will celebrate 25 years married this year. So glad he is the one who has been by my side in our journey together. My children have grown to be taller than me - not a great feat since I am only 5' tall! My daughter is just now reaching that milestone, having passed my shoe size awhile ago! My son has graduated from our homeschool a couple of years ago now and will be moving out soon. My daughter is still in middle school, so we will continue for a good few years yet. I am happy to have found a good homeschool rhythm for us that's been working well for us this year! And it involves much less paper and textbooks than before, so I am happy about that for sure!
Recently, my husband and I repainted our antique secretary desk. I held off for so long, because I really love wood, but I am so glad we did it. It really brightens things up and doesn't look nearly as worn. I polished up the metal pulls and realized how nice they really are! This is one of only two pieces of furniture we have owned from even before we were married when someone gifted it to my husband just shortly before we were engaged.
In the last three years, I have enjoyed being part of the stage again. I haven't acted on stage since my high school and college days, so it is challenging me! About five years ago, my son wanted to be part of the community theater in town, so that's how it started. It wasn't until I saw an advertisement in the local paper for auditions for a favorite musical of mine, that I realized it was something I thought I wanted to do. I didn't want to regret not doing it. So I auditioned, along with my daughter. I got a nice part to come back to the stage! And because of my love for singing, being part of The Sound of Music musical was really an honor (role of Sister Margaretta). Both my son and daughter also were in that production as well. Since then we have participated together in two other plays, Anne of Green Gables and The Secret Garden (Mrs. Sowerby). Last year, it was an honor to be part of Cheaper by the Dozen, my biggest part yet (Mrs. Gilbreth)!
I am still a music lover and a couple years ago, we chose to acquire a bigger piano. We found it second hand from the first owner (now in her eighties), who has owned it new since she was my daughter's age. I love my antique baby grand! My children also play and we all enjoy the sound. And yes, it does bring me joy. I play to relax and could use even more time on it. Along with some piano books people gifted us, some hymnbooks we have, and a good metronome, we are all set to play for years to come. Our musical collection also includes a recorder, ukulele, a couple of Djembe drums, and guitar in this house. You can never have enough music in the house! As homeschoolers, I feel it has been well worth our time to learn music. For anyone really, it adds so much to life!
The Lord has been good all along the way. He remains faithful. May God bless you and yours today! Shalom!
Some other flowers my mother has planted by the house...
