Blogmas Day 17: Vegetarian for Over a Year

Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well. This will be a bit of a different post today. I wanted to share with you all that I have kept on with being vegetarian for over a year, 18 months to be exact. Since September 2017. The reason why I decided to go vegetarian was mostly for my health and after watching documentaries which I learned about how animals are treated in factory farms I was turned off eating them. Also a large part of why I am happy to vegetarian is for the ethical reason of not wanting to eat animals and wanting them to live.

Photo source 

Being a vegetarian is not easy at all and sometimes I even think of being vegan, when I am at home and then I go out into the world and realize how hard that would be for me, not saying it is impossible but it would be even tougher. Just because you have to cut out dairy which is in a lot of food products.

When you are vegetarian you get questions like "why don't you eat meat?" asked randomly, like your values are being questioned and you have to have conversations about not eating meat with meat eaters while they are eating meat which feels so awkward. Even after all of this it is still important and meaningful enough for me to keep going.

I don't really miss eating meat, only on occasions when I think it would make social situations less awkward, on holidays, or coming up with meal ideas seems difficult but there are so many alternatives that I feel like even as a meat eater, I sometimes had moments of wondering what to eat for dinner or lunch. I do have thoughts one and awhile about going back to eating meat and how it would be easier and why not just some of the time. But I feel like it would be a big decision at this point to eat it again even in small doses that I would have to be sure it was the right thing. But honestly, I don't feel the need to. I do eat fish sometimes but I still feel like I am vegetarian and Pescatarian (you only eat fish or other seafood) feels like vegetarian and is a form of vegetarianism.

I just went out for lunch with a friend who eats a limited amount of meat and shares a similar outlook and values as me on eating meat. We like to go to vegan festivals together and try out new vegetarian and vegan restaurants. There is a new vegan burger restaurant called Boon Burger in Oakville, and they also have locations in Burlington, and Hamilton which are all not far from Toronto. We went together this past weekend and I tried the burger for the first time and it was amazing! I also loved their poutine which was to die for. I have missed having poutine as well.

Delicious burger and vegan!

Yummy vegan poutine

I love how there are so many delicious options out there in restaurants now. The new A&W burger is so good I recommend trying it. I love going to a restaurant called Fresh and there are many locations in Toronto. There are so many restaurants in Toronto I have yet to try such as Doomies and I should try more of them.

My advice to you if you are thinking about going vegetarian is to watch the documentaries on Netflix like Forks Over Knives and Cowspiracy and more. I also watched Vegucated and Earthlings and those were so good but are not offered on Netflix.  Also I think it is good to learn as much as you can and educate yourself on reasons why it is good for you and also ethical reasons so when people ask you feel confident in your decision. Also to talk with other people or read blogs or watch YouTube videos to see that so many other people made this decision and what tips and recipe ideas they have to share. I recommend looking up James Aspey if you are interested in learning more, he is a passionate vegan and has some amazing informative and thought-provoking videos. Do not be too hard on yourself if you slip up with eating meat here and there, it is progress and you don't have to cut it out cold turkey, you can take baby steps to eventually cut it all out if that is what you would like to do. There are a lot of resources online about going vegetarian you can read guides. This article called The Beginner’s Guide To Going Vegetarian Without Getting Sick is very informative and helpful on knowing how to go vegetarian the healthy way.

Thank you for reading my blog post today and I hope that you join me again tomorrow for an update on my knitting and reading for blogmas day 18!

Have a great day!

First Day of My 22-Day Vegan Challenge and Knitting Progress

Hello Friends,

I hope you're doing well. Last night we had the first snowfall of the season in Toronto and it is very cold today. There isn't much snow on the ground, just a sprinkle of it. I hope this winter weather holds off just a bit longer because I don't feel ready for the cold and snow yet.

Today is day 1 of the 22 day vegan challenge I am doing called Challenge 22+. I decided to do the challenge because I am vegetarian now and eating mostly vegan but wanted to challenge myself to not having dairy, eggs, and honey at all for 22 days. I am not sure at this point if I could go vegan permanently just because so many products have milk ingredients and eggs. If you would like to join the challenge, you still can, they have different groups for the challenge starting at different times on Facebook. They match you up with a mentor who you can ask questions and they offer support. My mentor is so friendly, helpful, and supportive and I feel like it will be a great experience.

Day 1: What I Ate:
Today I ate oatmeal (Robin Hood Quick Oats) with one banana cut up and a sprinkle of cinnamon. I also had some coffee and poured in some almond milk. I like to use the Silk unsweetened vanilla almond milk in my smoothies and coffee to add extra flavoring. For lunch I had an Amy's brand bean and rice burrito. Not all of the burritos are vegan but there are two types that I get all the time which are: bean and the one I had today, bean and rice. I got a veggie burger at South St. burger for dinner on a lettuce wrap with some fries. Later I had a couple spoons of So Delicious dairy-free frozen dessert in the chocolate flavor.

I tried this So Delicious dairy-free frozen dessert tonight and loved it! It tasted exactly like ice cream! I loved this chocolate flavor. I can really see myself switching to dairy-free frozen desserts now over ice cream too. I had my doubts before buying it that it would not taste as good as ice cream, but it exceeded my expectations.

My second stocking is coming along, I knitted some more stripes and should be done in time for decorating this week or next week! I am still working on untangling the alpaca yarn and hope to get started on those socks soon.

 I forgot to share with you guys that I received these cute needles and wool socks as a gift for my birthday. I love these socks, I will wear them yarn shopping with my sister tomorrow!

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Have a great day!

Vegan Challenge 22+ and Progress on Knitting the Stocking

Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well. Last night was so cold, it was the first time I wore my winter jacket this season. I am glad I did, because as my boyfriend and I were walking I had to steal his mittens because my hands got really cold. I had a hat on which was good but my feet were cold in my sneakers. Winter is approaching which is exciting for a knitter, time to pull out the knitted hats, scarves, mittens, and sweaters etc. Last night, my boyfriend and I walked to a vegan restaurant called Fresh and I had a wrap with tempeh and tofu with kaleslaw, it is so yummy I am glad there are these options as a vegetarian it makes it more enjoyable and fun to try out new foods. I also tried the chocolate fudge cake for dessert that is vegan as well and it was so delicious.

I also wanted to mention that  I am starting the vegan Challenge 22, on November 10th, which is 22 days of eating vegan. This means no meat, dairy, egg, or honey for 22 days. I have been vegetarian since September 18th 2017(48 days!) and I have also been reducing my intake of dairy, eggs, and honey. I think I will be able to do this because it is always on my mind and I think it is so important to reduce the amount of animal products I eat for my health. I have been feeling great since going vegetarian/mostly vegan. I just watching Joey Carbstrong's video on YouTube today called "She Saw the Truth and Went Vegan on the Spot", and it really reminded me how important this cause is and to try the 22 day challenge he suggests in the video. Have any of you tried to go vegan for a challenge or are vegan now?

Challenge 22 photo (photo source) Click to go to the challenge!

I have been working on knitting the second stocking and I am finished knitting the cuff now. I started knitting the stripes of the stocking today. I am using the pattern Jumbo Christmas Stocking in a Jiffy- Striped by Jennifer Jackson from Ravelry. I was listening to Christmas music while knitting today and getting in the spirit. Christmas is only 50 days away now!

I am still reading the book Not Working by Lisa Owens and really loving it so far. I like the main character and I can relate to what she is going through in her life as I am also looking for a job soon.

Thank you for visiting my blog, if you would like to keep updated on when I post entries, please follow my blog on Bloglovin', Google Followers, and you can subscribe by email in the top right of the blog.

Have a great day!

Progress on Sweater and a Big Christmas Stocking to Fill

Hello Friends,

I hope you are all doing well. It has been a hot fall so far, but yesterday and today brought some long awaited cooler air. I hope that the cooler air stays now, we are ready for fall. I have been working on sewing up the seams for my 3timesChic sweater. I had to start over the first side I attempted because it was not done right and was super tight under my arm so I probably wouldn't wear it if it was that tight.  I am happy that I frogged it even though it makes this process take longer, but I will be happier and more comfortable wearing it.

The left side of the sweater which I am working on

I am using the mattress stitch to sew up the sleeves and sides of the sweater. I am happy with the tension in the seam this time and I am looking forward to having one side seamed. I will try to have this side done by tomorrow and then I can start sewing the seams on the right side.

Sewing up the seam on the first sleeve

 I have also been knitting the Christmas stocking and getting to the end of the first one. I am planning on knitting two of them for my boyfriend and I. The stocking pattern I am using is from Ravelry, and it is called Jumbo Christmas stocking in a Jiffy. They weren't kidding, this stocking is huge! My boyfriend commented that he'll have to buy a lot of chocolate bars to put into it in order to fill it up. hmm maybe that's why I chose the jumbo sized stockings? more treats? maybe. I have to knit one more row in the white color yarn, then I will be knitting the toe in the color red.

Stocking almost finished 

Thank you so much for the support that I received on the last two posts, I really appreciated reading your comments. I loved reading about all of your experiences and thoughts about being vegetarian or eating less meat. I am enjoying being a vegetarian so far, it has been 1 1/2 weeks now and I am feeling great and I am so happy that I made the change. I am also having less dairy too and feel better about that. I went to a vegan restaurant on Tuesday called Fresh and ordered the clubhouse wrap which included grilled tempeh bacon and seasoned crispy tofu steaks with tomato, lettuce, and garlic mayo. It was so delicious! I can't wait to try other restaurants in Toronto now that I am switching to this lifestyle.

The clubhouse wrap and a kale slaw on the side

I am also enjoying cooking different meals and searching for new ones to make now that have meat substitutes and other meals like pasta which doesn't usually include meat. I have cooked with tofu, and want to look up more dishes I could make to make it more flavourful. I made an Asian Tofu Sauté with rice noodles one night which was so good when the sesame oil was soaked into the tofu. I got that recipe from The Everything Eating Clean Cookbook for Vegetarians.I would like to try cooking with tempeh and seitan as well. The tempeh bacon that I had in the wrap was so delicious, it would be great to get some to cook with.

Joining along with Frontier Dreams for Crafting On, and AsKatKnits for Unwraveled Wednesday.

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Have a great day!

Beginning of Fall, Summer Bucket List Results,Fall Goals, and Thoughts on Becoming a Vegetarian

Hello Friends,

Hope you are doing well. I am happy it was the first day of fall yesterday! It was so hot yesterday, and was even hotter in Toronto today with a heat advisory warning this weekend. I hope that it is sweater weather soon though. It was cold for a while, then it got hot again. I also can't wait to be able to wear some of my knitted things. This year I will hopefully have a knitted sweater to wear once I am done and the kerchief, and a pair of socks. I worked on all of these earlier this year.
Yesterday I went to a flower shop to get a plant as a gift and saw this cute little pumpkin in a basket and had to get it for the start of fall. I worked on pulling out the old seam on my sweater and enjoyed a cup of tea while doing that.  We went to my boyfriend's sister's place later on to see her new apartment and had a pizza and board game night which is always so fun.

Happy Fall!

I had posted my summer bucket list in July and wanted to give you an update on how that went and what I would have liked to do or changed:

Summer Bucket List Results

1. Go camping: in August, I went camping with my family and boyfriend in August and it was a lot of fun. Click here to read about it!

2. Roast marshmallows on the campfire: I roasted marshmallows while camping!

3. Knit socks: I finished knitting some socks for my mom for a Christmas gift! click here to see them!

4. Go on a trip with my boyfriend : We went to Montreal this summer at the end of August! click here to see what we did. 

5, Make Summery treats: I did not make the popsicles that I wanted to, but I did try out a lot of smoothies. Click here to see the smoothies I made! 

6.  Have a picnic : The weather was not cooperative this summer. I planned to do a picnic with friends, but on the day we met up to go to the park the weather was crummy so we did an indoor picnic instead. 

7. Go to the beach: I went to the beach in August while camping and loved soaking up the sun and going into the water.  Click here to see my trip!

8.  Read three books: I only read two and still working on the third one I started in August.  

9. Watch a baseball game : We did not end up going to see the Blue Jays this summer. I hope we can next year! 

10. Go Kayaking : I had a plan to go, but it got cancelled then never happened, hopefully next year!

Summer knitting at the beach.... the best

I wish I had done more of the activities like having a picnic outside, and kayaking. I had not gone on a picnic for awhile and it has been a few years since I have been kayaking. I will try to do these things next summer for sure. 

Some things I would like to focus on in the fall, are to:

• Continue knitting Christmas gifts
• Carve a pumpkin
• Decorate for fall
• Bake a pumpkin pie
• Do a DIY fall decor project
• Finish knitting the stocking for Christmas
• Finish sweater seaming and neck edge

And for anyone wondering if I went vegetarian or how that is going, I have not eaten meat for 6 days now but am currently still having dairy products. I did not eat meat last week, but did have some on the weekend when I was still contemplating what I would do. I am feeling great, lighter and have more energy. I also feel happy that I am doing this and I am learning more every day. I have been watching documentaries such as Cowspiracy (a must watch), Vegucated, What the Health, Forks Over Knives. I love watching them and becoming more knowledgeable about what is really going on in factory farms. Even if the documentaries are hard to watch sometimes, I would rather know the truth and make decisions based on that then to not be aware. I also have been watching YouTube channels like So You're Dating a Vegan who are so informative and fun to watch. I have enjoyed watching their series on people they know who have taken two week to a month challenges to go vegan. I am seriously thinking of becoming vegetarian for reasons concerning health, the environment, and compassion for animals. This change just sort of hit me the past couple of weeks but sometimes that happens in life and you just have to go with it. Things all of a sudden make sense for you. I had thought of going vegetarian in the past, but there were always excuses and now I will make it happen. I would definitely consider going vegan in the future, right now I am taking it slow and starting with meat first. Please email me(lknitter09@gmail.com) or comment below if you are one a similar journey and want to chat about it!

Thank you for visiting my blog and welcoming fall with me. If you would like to keep updated on when I post blog entries, please follow me on Bloglovin', Google Followers, or you can subscribe by entering your email in the top right corner to receive emails when I post.

Veg Fest in Toronto, Knitting Updates, and Reading On

Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well.  On Friday night I went to Veg Fest which is organized by the Toronto Vegetarian Association. I had a great time going with my friend, trying samples, and learning more about a vegetarian and vegan lifestyle. We first spoke with a woman from Mercy for Animals about their organization and how they work to make lives better for animals on factory farms. I have since added them on Facebook, Instagram, and visited their website and love what they are all about. Then we went to the area of the festival where they had lots of food and products which were all vegan. I tried the Chick Chicken burger at a food truck which was made from chickpeas and my friend got the imitation beef burger. It tasted so good, I would not miss chicken eating that burger. Then we went around and ate samples and I also bought a vegan ice cream made from oatmeal. It was so good and my friend bought a donut from Bloomer's to share. I was pleasantly surprised how delicious it was.

Photo of me about to eat the vegan ice cream

Veg Fest tents set up 

My chick'n burger which was really made from chickpeas. It was really good!

My friend's burger, she got their famous burger which looks like beef patty but it is also made from chickpeas

I have been thinking lately of cutting back on eating meat and I want to live a more vegetarian lifestyle. Right now I am not limiting myself and saying I won't eat meat, but I want to gradually reduce eating it for my health and compassion for animals. I am excited about this change which I have been contemplating for quite awhile. I can share some vegetarian and vegan recipes I like on the blog too. I have gone a few days without meat now and eating more nuts, beans, other foods which contain protein but I am still learning about supplementing my diet with other foods to get the protein and nutrients I need.
Tonight while I was at Loblaws, I saw these snacks in the natural food aisle that I sampled at the festival and had to buy them because they were so delicious. The Hungry Buddha coconut chips are so good and they a crunchy and so flavorful. The SimplyProtein chips I have not tried yet but did try the granola bar and liked it, so I am looking forward to giving them a try too. They were a decent price, under three dollars each. I am not affiliated with these brands in any way, I just wanted to share which snacks I liked from the festival with you.

Vegan snacks

In knitting, I have not been knitting too much this weekend. I was busy seeing family this weekend and getting organized before school starts. I will share some progress made on my stocking and sweater seaming in a couple days to catch up! I will also be starting to knit some other projects soon and looking forward to sharing those projects with you.
I am still reading Love the Wine You're With: A Novel and enjoying it so far! I have also started reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing and I am loving it! I will be posting an entry soon on my experience with the book and how it helped me to get organized and start tidying up properly!

Thank you so much for visiting my blog today! If you would like to keep updated on when I post entries on my blog, please follow me on Bloglovin', Google Followers, and you can also put your email into the subscribe button at the top right corner of my blog to get email updates when I post!

Have a great day!