vegetarian

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How I Get Home Improvement Projects Done, As A Parent

September 2, 2013 at 11:17 pm , by 

2 years, 9 months.

Dear Jack,

These “before and after” pictures actually pretty well illustrate the cure for Mommy and I not being able to get home improvement projects finished, in the little amount of time we have together as a family.

By the way, it’s completely unintentional that this letter to you has by default become the 3rd consecutive one to talk about my parents, who you know as Nonna and Papa. (And there might even be a 4th after this.)

But just as our 2 and a half hour trips to their house serve as a sort of “time out” for us, it’s their trips to our house that serve as the perfect time for Mommy and I to complete “major” projects; just the opposite. Instead of relaxing while they are here in town… we are productive!

Exactly 3 months ago, it was a backsplash.

As for Labor Day weekend, we painted our living room and installed brand new curtains; taking down the blinds. And because we made such good time, we decided to paint the downstairs bathroom, too.

During all the labor, there was always one adult to entertain and play with you, while the other three worked on the project.

In case you’re wondering why I’m not featuring any pictures of our home’s new makeover, it’s because I know in the upcoming months, the pictures I daily take of you playing downstairs will be featuring the changes.

There will be more than enough… too many, probably…

So instead, I wanted to point out a notable milestone in your life. As a reward for completing our projects early, we decided to do something we never do as a family.

We went to “the city” and dined out.

It’s funny how the last time I remember being in the heart of Nashville, not just on the outskirts of the city limits where we live, was at last June when we went to that random drum circle.

Our family never goes to the city and we never go out to eat.

But this weekend, we did. And it went well!

I was telling Mommy, how a year ago, if we were to have done this, we wouldn’t have made it through the entire meal without me having to escort you outside and distract you from being restless.

However, at 2 years and 9 months, you are able to handle dining out.

Hashtag, “I didn’t see that one coming.”

Admittedly, the fact that Mommy and I let you have a vegan chocolate cupcakecertainly helped the situation.

Seriously, this is epic for me, as your Daddy.

I feel so accomplished after this Labor Day weekend!

We painted the living room and the bathroom, put up a new curtain rod and curtains, and you proved you can handle going to the city and dining at a restaurant… way past your bedtime.

The plan was to officially potty train you this weekend, too. Oh well…

With the grandparents in town, we were able to be very productive in other ways.

Actually though, I think we might need a completely separate trip where they come up and the only project is just to potty train you. Not a bad idea.

 

Love,

Daddy

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Is It Cheaper To Go Vegan/Vegetarian?

April 10, 2013 at 9:30 pm , by 

2 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack,

In theory, a family who buys no meat products should have a lower grocery bill each week. We don’t, though.

However, we still spend less money on food; it just depends on a person’s definition of groceries…

As you lifted up the “tailgate” (box flap) of your “pick-up truck” (Chobani yogurt box) and started to “drive it” (pinched the box with a pair of salad tongs) it somehow prompted me to discuss with Mommy how much our grocery bill has went up or down, compared to the days before we were aware of things like Yellow 5, sodium laurel sulfate, and Monsanto.

Our grocery bill is actually the same amount as it was when we were carnivores. This is because we make up for the cost of meat by buying higher quality (and more expensive) vegetables, fruits, and grains.

It’s not just about avoiding meat, it’s about avoiding toxic chemicals like artificial colors, flavors, MSG, and GMO’s.

Since our conversion, we have learned there are actually few food brands that we trust anymore. One of the few is Chobani.

While most brands try to disguise their ingredients, Chobani is very clear about what is and is not in their products.

They are one of the few exceptions we have found; as well as Annie’s Homegrown. We simply ignoremost other brands, because we don’t trust them.

We are paying for quality and it’s worth it, to us.

So even though our grocery bill is the same, what has definitely changed is the amount of money we spend on eating at restaurants. It used to be between $100 and $200 a month, now it’s basically zero.

It’s not a moral issue; instead, it just seems pointless by now. Mommy has, by default, become a vegan/vegetarian chef for our family; thanks in part to the Oh She Glows recipe website.

Making delicious healthy meals is now becoming a sacred (and fun) thing for our family. It is difficult for us to trust random strangers at restaurants who we have to assume may be cooking our food in or with mysterious chemicals. Not to mention, a restaurant meal typically doesn’t ensure leftovers for lunch the next day, the way a home-cooked meal easily does.

To answer the question of whether it’s cheaper to go vegan/vegetarian, the answer is ultimately yes. We now save between at least $100 to $200 a month by simply avoiding restaurants alone.

 

 

Love,

Daddy

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Proof I’ve Deprived My Kid Of Fast Food (And Meat In General)

March 20, 2013 at 10:26 pm , by 

2 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack,

Fate would have it that your parents would become vegetarians right around the time you would be old enough to start eating meat; back in December 2011.

Now that I’ve fully converted to veganism, your chances of trying chicken nuggets anytime in the near future look pretty bleak.

But here’s the thing: You really have no concept of eating animals. A vegetarian diet is all you know.

Yesterday we received some coupons in the mail for a fast food restaurant. You saw a picture of a combo meal, consisting of a burger, fries, and a soda. Your reaction:

“What this called, Mommy?”

This past weekend while you were hanging out at an indoor playground, you discovered the pretend kitchen. After toasting the plastic peas in the pink toaster, you found a plastic chicken leg.

“What this called, “Daddy?”

I quickly responded without thinking about how weird my answer would be.

You were confused, but you tried not to question it, as you are still fairly new to the human experience:

“That’s fried chicken leg? Chicken leg.” You walked away with the plastic chicken leg in your hand, trying to figure out why a human being is supposed to play with a random body part of an animal.

I am trying to put myself in your shoes, simply thinking that all those animals on Old McDonald’s farm are just his pets and nothing more.

It’s going to be weird for me the day you’re old enough to understand that certain animals are a protein source for the 97% of Americans who are not vegetarians or vegans.

I wonder: At what point in your life will you finally eat meat; with the knowledge of what it actually is. If ever.

Aside from your parents’ influence, are you still a vegetarian? I’m sure the truth will come out in your teenage years.

 

Love,

Daddy

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Review Of Toddler Mum-Mums: Apple, Banana, And Strawberry Rice Biscuits

I love reviewing food products! Today I am featuring Toddler Mum-Mum rice biscuits, by a brand called Hot Kid.

For the review, I was sent 2 boxes of the banana, 2 boxes of the apple, and 2 boxes of the organic strawberry.

Toddler Mum-Mum review

To meet the criteria for my review, the food could not contain artifical food dyes or flavors, or high fructose corn syrup; which in my opinion, is the easiest ways to identify junk food.

With that being said, Toddler Mum-Mum rice biscuits do not contain artifical food dyes or flavors, or high fructose corn syrup; nor do they contain preservatives, gluten, egg, or peanuts.

If you are a strict vegan or vegetarian, please note they contain gelatin, which is an animal by-product also found in pudding and marshmallows.

My niece Calla really loved Mum-Mums… all July 4th weekend. My sister, her mom, said she wouldn’t stop eating them!

Toddler Mum-Mum review

As the name implies, Toddler Mum-Mums are especially intended for toddlers and older. (My niece just turned 3, though.)

While at the grocery store yesterday, I looked at the competition. Turns out, unless you’re at Whole Foods, most grocery stores contain mystery ingredient filled versions of Mum-Mums as the competition.

Toddler Mum-Mum review

In other words, Mum-Mums stand out in the crowd in that their brand cares enough about its consumers to not include a long paragraph of ingredients you have to Google to even find out what they are; only to find out those ingredients shouldn’t even be considered as food to begin with. Mum-Mums only contain about 6 different ingredients.

For more informations, you can check out the Mum-Mums website at mummums.com.

Thanks for visiting Family Friendly Daddy Blog today. I wonder what I’ll review next?

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Survey Predicts Vegetarian Families Won’t Eat Turkey This Thanksgiving

November 15, 2012 at 11:42 pm , by 

23 months.

Imagine gratefully sitting down at the table for a classic American Thanksgiving meal, only to notice the glorious turkey is nowhere in sight.

As strange as it sounds, a survey shows there are around 7 million Americans identifying as vegetarians; meaning this Thanksgiving they will intentionally pass on the traditional turkey, ham, and chicken-infused dressing.

If you happen to be in a room of 100 people right now, look around you: Statistics would predict that 3 of those people are vegetarians; meaning they choose not to eat meat.

Cue the Shell family from Nashville, Tennessee. Every time they walk into a room of 97 people, they become the token vegetarians.

How is it possible to have a Thanksgiving meal without any meat? Doesn’t that somehow defeat the purpose of the feast?

Nick Shell, father to 2 year-old Jack and husband to wife Jill, gives some insight on what will be on their Thanksgiving menu this year:

“We have this awesome recipe for vegetarian meat loaf. I know this sounds weird, but you make it with cottage cheese, bran flakes, French onion soup mix, chopped walnuts, and an onion. You mix it up in a big bowl then bake it in muffin tin in muffin form. It so believably tastes like real meat loaf, I often feel guilty when I eat it.”

While many of the Shell family’s daily typical meals are simple and based around whole wheat pasta, they plan to prepare some of their more special recipes for this Thanksgiving.

To accompany their “meat loaf,” they also plan to indulge in “baked spicy fries” and cucumber sandwiches on Jewish Rye bread. Of course, it goes without saying they will have a salad to start off their vegetarian Thanksgiving feast.

It sounds like the Shell family have their menu figured out for this year, but how would things be different if they were guests at someone else’s dinner instead?

“It’s actually not that big of a deal,” Nick explains. “When you live the extreme lifestyle of ‘no meat’ every day, you’re already accustomed to coming up with a Plan B. A lot of times, it becomes our responsibility to bring our Plan B with us to a dinner. We’ll volunteer to being a dish or two that we know will fill us, and that will also contribute to the meal as a whole, so others can enjoy it too.

For our son Jack, we seem to always be carrying out a bag of Cheerios and pouch of pureed veggies with fruit any time we drive him somewhere anyway. Or he can try what we’re having. So we really don’t have to worry about what to feed him; this lifestyle is all he knows. Even at his daycare, he’s used to being the only kid in class to have a separate vegetarian version of what the other kids are eating.”

But even with a fancy vegetarian selection, does a person truly enjoy their Thanksgiving as much as the other 97% of America? Nick shares his perspective on this:

“Honestly, I never really was a big fan of the Thanksgiving meal. For me, I always felt obligated to eat too much turkey and overcooked vegetables, becoming too lazy to escape whatever VH1 countdown was on TV. But now, as a vegetarian, I can be completely full, yet not feel bogged down. In fact, it’s becoming our tradition to go for a long walk after our Thanksgiving meal. Fresh air and sunlight are basically part of the menu too.”

Of course, vegetarians aren’t really limited when it comes to desserts. Sure, marshmallows and pudding are made from the skin and bones of pigs and cows; but other than that, a vegetarian can enjoy pumpkin pie, homemade cookies, and egg nog with the rest of the crowd.

However, if you are of the majority of America who will be eating turkey this Thanksgiving and the concept of a vegetarian Thanksgiving meal does not intrigue you, then there’s one more thing to be thankful for this year:

Be thankful you’re not a vegetarian.

To see the actual recipes of the menu items Nick Shell mentioned today, check out his Pinterest and click on his page called “Proven Vegetarian Recipes.” Then you can make your very own vegetarian meat loaf out of cottage cheese and bran flakes.