tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46130128647246381602024-03-06T00:49:43.675+11:00Stuff About StuffI Write About Vegan Parenting and Stuff..Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-18414544364691748112013-03-14T17:24:00.000+11:002013-03-14T17:24:21.808+11:00New Start I remembered I actually enjoy blogging.<br />
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I will not be blogging here though, however I will be blogging over at <a href="http://playlovevegan.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Play.Love.Vegan</a>.<br />
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So if you still want to follow me and the family pop over to the new blog and say hello.<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-60398566053653894012013-01-04T10:16:00.001+11:002013-01-06T10:58:50.041+11:00To this I say Goodbye <br />
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I have decided to say goodbye to the blogging world, i just couldn't be bothered with it anymore.</div>
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I have enjoyed it and have met some lovely people through blogging.</div>
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This blog has given me a lot of support and I have loved writing about our adventures in vegan parenting.</div>
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I just do not find enough time to update this as much as i would like to.</div>
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And have pretty much given up trying.</div>
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May you all continue to raise happy healthy vegan families and write about amazing vegan food.</div>
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I know i will be continuing to enjoy it all :)</div>
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I will still have <a data-mce-href="https://twitter.com/compostkitty" href="https://twitter.com/compostkitty">twitter</a>, so if you enjoyed reading my posts feel free to follow me.</div>
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I may or may not get back into writing a blog but for now i don't see that happening.</div>
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So thank you to those who followed my little blog and took the time to comment.</div>
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Enjoy 2013.</div>
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x<br />
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EDIT:<br />
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I will leave the vegan parent interviews since they are a great resource :)<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-52733463966657865222012-07-11T20:24:00.000+10:002012-07-11T20:25:23.959+10:00Fancy That!Charlotte loves books, She has her favourites that you have to read over and over again.<br />
The first book she got really attached to was a book called Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas by Jane O'Connor she got for a christmas present, This started her new found love for Fancy Nancy books. I must admit they are fun to read and a great way to learn new words and a little french...<br />
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Recently she has collected a few more of them, the newest is one called Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy.<br />
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(<i>find more <a href="http://www.fancynancyworld.com/" target="_blank">here</a></i>)</div>
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I was a little bit worried before i read it, thinking it would be about getting a dog from a breeder or a pet shop.<br />
But it was a pleasant surprise! Fancy Nancy and her family are wanting a dog and of course she wants a fancy dog and loves her neighbours papillon, and thinks that it is the dog for her,but after baby sitting to see if it was the breed for the family they decided against it, After that they then go and look at dogs from an animal shelter and the best line was "all those dogs need a family to love them"<br />
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It was a great story to read, Charlotte loved it, and i loved the fact it promoted Shelter dogs and not pet shops and breeders.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-73941136777098032292011-06-27T09:22:00.001+10:002011-07-10T17:58:33.058+10:00Vegan parents feature: Family friendly cookbooksSomething different this time around:<br />
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This is just a post about some books i think are great cook books to have in a vegan family household.<br />
Mind you i can only say the ones i have are good and i am always on the look out for more so if you know of any please let me know!<br />
So here is my list in no order at all.<br />
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1: The complete idiots guide to, vegan eating for kids:<br />
as most of the idiots guide books its full of great information to help you out with what your child needs to grow up healthy and thrive on a vegan diet. i think this is a great reference book, it does have some recipes in it but i haven't made any from this book so i cant tell you how they taste :)<br />
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2: Feeding your vegan infant-with confidence, by Sandra Hood.<br />
This is another great reference book for babies and toddlers, it really helped me put my mind at ease when i would get negative responses to bring charlotte up vegan when she was younger. It also has some great recipes for starting solids and also for when you baby gets older! i would highly recommend this book.<br />
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3: Vive le vegan! by Dreena Burton.<br />
I love this book, it was one of the first family based cookbook i got, its full if healthy recipes, even has wheat free options or tip on how to make it wheat free for those who avoid it.<br />
My favourite recipes from this book would be<br />
Lemon-herbed tofu<br />
Brown rice pizza<br />
and Creamy Hummus.<br />
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One thing about this book is she uses hemp foods a lot which are not available in australia but still a book worth getting. </div>
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4: Vegan Lunch box, by Jennifer McCann.<br />
its a great book for those who struggle with ideas for lunches, or if you just want some new recipes that are kid friendly, i don't need to say too much about this book as the title pretty much speaks for itself.<br />
there is also Jennifer's second book vegan lunchbox around the world, which has an amazing mini cheesecake recipe!<br />
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5: The Vegan Family Cookbook, By Chef Brian p. McCarthy.<br />
I got this book at the Sydney vegan expo from the<a href="http://www.vegansocietynsw.com/vs/html/index.html"> vegan society</a>, i have only made the sweet potato recipe, but aim to make a very simple quiche and by simple i mean simple, this book has a lot of recipes that are quick and easy (it is american based so some ingredients may be harder to find but most are easy) <br />
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6: Wild Vegan by Angela Stafford.</div>
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I adore this book its full of recipes that use ingredients i always have at home, and even if i don't have them i can just run up to the shops and grab what i need, it doesn't state that its for families but its a great cookbook for families especially if you are on a tight budget! </div>
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The one recipe from this book i have made over and over is the Lentil loaf. </div>
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7: Vegan Family Meals, real food for everyone, by Ann Gentry.</div>
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I only just received this book last week, its a very pretty book and reading through it i found it has great tips, and very yummy looking recipes! one i aim to make is lasagna rolls with tofu ricotta and everyday tomato sauce yup sounds delicious i know. Actually i made a breakfast from this book this morning,</div>
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Quick oats and Quinoa flakes it was delicious, as you can see.</div>
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So i think if your after a book with family recipes that could also impress a lot of people and show of your cooking skills i think this is one of those books and i really look forward to making more recipes from this book.</div>
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8. Happy, Healthy, vegan kids.</div>
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This book is not for mum and dad though supervision and help is needed for the younger ones, this book is for kids! (who are old enough to make basic foods themselves).</div>
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i think it would make a great gift for a child maybe about 8 and up, you could also get it for younger kids who like to see photos of cute animals and read about them and why we don't eat them, after you read about a cow for example they have a recipe to follow like a fruity tuti smoothie using non dairy alternatives instead of dairy its a very cute simple layout, i think vegan kids would really enjoy this book.</div>
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9: This isn't so much a vegan book to buy, It's a go to your local library and borrow some feeding your toddler books like i did, and take what recipes you can from them that are easily veganised. A book i found that i got quite a few recipes from was this one. </div>
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10: again not a book but a recipe! this is one meal charlotte will eat even when in a restless mood it may have something to do with she loves rice!</div>
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<u>Baked Rice with Butternut Pumpkin.</u></div>
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olive oil</div>
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large red onion</div>
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leeks washed and sliced (optional)</div>
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garlic cloves crushed </div>
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butternut pumpkin</div>
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basmanti rice </div>
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vegetable stock (boiling!)- enough to cover </div>
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(i have not used measurements because its easy to make to fit how much you need)</div>
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1: preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius, heat oil, add onion,leeks and garlic sauté until soft. </div>
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2: stir in pumpkin and rice cook for 1 minute.</div>
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3: add to casserole dish, pour boiling stock over the veg and rice mix, cover and bake for 30-35 minutes until rice is tender and stock absorbed.</div>
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Well i hope this was a helpful post and again if you know of any family books or have any books you love that a great for families let me know so i can try them out! i love new cookbooks :)</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-53953252844038893662011-06-24T08:21:00.001+10:002011-07-10T17:52:16.287+10:00Vegan parents feature: #8<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;"></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">This week we nearly didn't have a feature post but luckily we do now!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">We hear from Chloe, who blogs over at <a href="http://reallycrabbycrafter.blogspot.com/">The Crabby Crafter</a> </span></div>
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1:Name and age of your little person(s) and your family.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">Beetroot turns 3 at the end of the month and Raygold just turned 1. </span><br />
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Yes! (I've been vegan for a long time.)</div>
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3: Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</div>
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My best friend from college is a physician (and a vegan) and she is very supportive. My husband is a vegetarian (mostly vegan, except for the odd bit of cheese) and is very supportive. That said, I live in rural Scotland and have yet to meet any other vegetarians or vegans here and a few people at our local health centre have not only been very unsupportive, but have actually been quite rude.<br />
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4: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</div>
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For me, the hardest thing about being a vegan parent is all the criticism. There is the personal criticism, like from our health centre and from a few relatives, but there is also a general criticism of the vegan diet in the media. That is probably the worst -- if something happens to a child who is vegan, it is all over the media and the vegan diet is stressed as much as whatever happened to the child, even when it is usually totally unrelated -- and then lots of people just assume that's what all vegans do! It's frustrating because there are lots of children fed poor diets here (this is only really highlighted on those programmes where Jamie Oliver tries to encourage people to eat better), but when a child gets morbidly obese or type-II diabetes from their diet, it never makes the headlines. There was a vegan child in Glasgow with rickets that made the headlines a few years ago, but rickets has made a huge comeback there (<a href="http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland/Rickets-makes-comeback-as-generation.6729576.jp" style="color: #0068cf; cursor: pointer; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland/Rickets-makes-comeback-as-generation.6729576.jp</a>) and none of the other individual cases have made the headlines.</div>
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5: What do you consider to be the best thing about been a vegan parent?</div>
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My children won't grow up with a cheese addiction! ;p Actually, while that is true, I think having an unconventional diet kind of makes you challenge other social norms, too, and gets you thinking outside the box. </div>
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6: Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</div>
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Well, here in the UK, you can almost always get beans and chips, but I've found Wetherspoons (a pub chain) is very child-friendly and always has a vegan option or two.</div>
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7: Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other parents to try.</div>
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I'm lucky that my kids aren't usually too fussy. My toddler would love to live on apples, oranges, and broccoli if he could, although toast, waffles, pasta, tofu with soy sauce, any kind of bean dip (especially variations of hummous), and soy yoghurt are always winners. <br />
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I don't really have any fancy recipes, but I often serve pasta & a veg (we usually do broccoli or cauliflower) stirred into<br />
- smooshed haricot beans (+ a dash of margarine or olive oil, a few tablespoonfuls of the starchy pasta water, lemon juice, thyme, and a dash of cayenne)<br />
- marmite (+ a dash of margarine or olive oil and a few tablespoonfuls of the starchy pasta water)<br />
- tahini (+ a dash of margarine or olive oil, a few tablespoonfuls of the starchy pasta water, lemon juice, and a dash of cayenne)<br />
- smooshed butternut squash (+ a dash of margarine or olive oil and a few tablespoonfuls of the starchy pasta water)<br />
etc. You get the idea.<br />
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8: How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.</div>
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I think I'm a much happier person now that I have children -- I love being a mom. My parenting style sort of falls under the 'crunchy' label (breastfeeding on demand -- I've been breastfeeding for over 3 years straight! -- co-sleeping, baby carriers, etc.), although that's just sort of how it happened, I didn't even know that parenting style had a name until I was already doing it!<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-29294757249354252552011-06-14T12:08:00.001+10:002011-07-10T17:46:13.135+10:00Feature: Vegan Parents #7<div align="JUSTIFY" style="line-height: 0.45cm; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">This week we have <a href="http://www.thescavenger.net/health/raising-children-as-vegan-a-healthy-alternative-731.html">Alison</a> and her family. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #4f81bd;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">1: Name and age of your little person(s) and your family.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">My husband, Mat, and I share our lives with our daughter, Anika, 7 and sons Jem, 4; Rowan, 2.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">All of my pregnancies have been vegan. I had been vegan for 8 years when I became pregnant with Anika, my first child. During that pregnancy, a GP told me that I ‘looked pale’ and must be anaemic. I was not at all surprised when a blood test confirmed that my ferritin levels were good and I did not have anaemia. I believe that she was quick to ‘diagnose’ me with anaemia because of my vegan diet. She said: ‘I wish you would eat meat, but I know that you won’t’. Suffice to say, she was not my GP for much longer! </span></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">During all pregnancies, I had confidence in my body’s ability to grow a healthy baby. I experienced morning sickness with all my pregnancies, but I did not have any complications or problems, and I did not suffer from excessive weight gain. I supplemented with B12 and vegan DHA. I also attended a weekly pre-natal yoga group<span style="font-size: x-small;">. </span></span></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">3: </span></span><span style="color: #4f81bd;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">My family - and my husband’s family - are very supportive of our veganism. My younger sister, Susannah, has been a vegan for 15 years. My parents no longer eat animal products, and they credit my sister and me with ‘raising vegan parents’! One of Mat’s nieces, Jess, became a vegan about a year ago. I am happy that the existence of vegan family members normalises veganism for our children. </span></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">We share our lives with a large circle of diverse friends – all non-vegan. However, all of them are supportive and accommodating of our veganism. Some of our friends have become very skilled at making delicious vegan food and cakes. I used to pride myself on being the ‘great vegan baker’ in our family, but I think my Mum has now taken the title. Positively, Mat and I have never had to worry that my parents would give our children non-vegan foods, as they fully support our belief system. Moreover, they simply do not have any non-vegan foods in their house. My (non-vegan) mother-in-law has also become adept at making vegan food, and whenever we visit her in Sydney, she ensures that her cupboard and fridge are stocked with vegan foods, including yummy biscuits and scrumptious cakes that she has baked herself. </span></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">I recognise that we are lucky to have a supportive network of family and friends in our lives – and I am very thankful for it. </span></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">4: </span></span><span style="color: #4f81bd;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">Most of the time, I feel safely cocooned in our little vegan existence. However, there are occasional challenges. I am saddened by the thought that my children will one day be aware of the full scale of horrors that humans inflict on non-human animals. I feel sad that I cannot shield them from the harsh realities of a very non-vegan world. I lament the fact that some people- nutritionists, journalists and others - think that raising vegan children is irresponsible or risky. I feel angry that our public education system is regarded as a ‘tool’ by industry groups – such as Dairy Australia- to promote their unethical and unhealthy products to children. </span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">I have never doubted that veganism was the right path for our family. I hope with all my heart that my children will embrace vegan values as they grow into adolescence and adulthood. </span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">5: </span></span><span style="color: #4f81bd;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">What do you consider to be the best thing about being a vegan parent?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">I feel immensely happy that my children are being raised with a vegan ethos – that they do not regard animals as a source of food. I am proud of the fact that my daughter knows where gelatine comes from; that she believes cow’s milk is for baby cows. Jem and Anika understand where ‘meat’ comes from – they understand that an animal has died. My children demonstrate genuine empathy and compassion for non-human animals – and it fills my heart with joy that they are not contributing to the suffering of sentient beings. </span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">6: </span></span><span style="color: #4f81bd;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">There is a fabulous vegan place in Lismore called </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>20 000 Cows</i></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"> – it is popular with vegans and non-vegans. They serve amazing food – spinach & nut cheese rolls, Yemeni mellawah, Lithuanian kugelis, nori fritters, tahini cheese cake.... it is impossible for me to nominate a favourite dish! Some of these awesome dishes are included in the owner’s </span><span style="color: blue;"><u><a href="http://lis.net.au/marijonas/WOLF.html"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">cook book</span></a></u></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">. We also enjoy yum cha at </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>Easy House</i></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"> and dinner at </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>Tian Ran</i></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"> when visiting the Gold Coast. </span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">7: </span></span><span style="color: #4f81bd;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other parents to try.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">All of my children </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>love</i></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"> tacos – it is an easy way to ensure that they eat lots of raw salad vegetables. My daughter is very adventurous with food. I can usually guarantee that she will eat whatever we serve up! Jem, on the other hand, isn’t a big fan of dinner. He eats really well - and heartily - in the morning and at lunch time, but just ‘picks’ at dinner. I am hoping that Rowan will turn out to be as adventurous as Anika – so far, all the signs are good! </span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">Positively, all of my children eat lots of fruit. Every morning, I sprinkle their breakfast cereal – weet bix or porridge- with ground linseeds, chia seeds and hemp seeds (I grind the whole seeds in a spice grinder). I find this to be an easy way of ensuring that they are getting a good source of essential fatty acids. We all have a sublingual B12 tablet each day. </span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">An easy dinner that we all enjoy is a creation of mine called (very unimaginatively!) Baked Vegie Cous Cous Salad. Firstly, bake a selection vegies in the oven with a drizzle of olive oil (eg. carrots, sweet potato, pumpkin, roma tomatoes, garlic cloves); then prepare a cup or two of whole wheat cous cous in water or vegie stock. When the vegies are baked, add them to the cous cous and mix. Place the mixture in an oven proof dish, then add roasted pine nuts; chopped parsley; diced capsicum; sliced kalamata olives; sliced vegie sausages or marinated tofu; cannellini (white) beans or chickpeas. Mix well. You can also add sliced red onions and sundried-tomatoes. It is a very ‘flexible’ dish – you can add any vegies that are lurking in the crisper. Bake for about 15-20 mins on 180. </span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">I have found the following recipe to be popular with children. I occasionally pop an Energy Ball in to my daughter’s lunch box. </span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i><b>Energy Balls</b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>2 ½ cups dates</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>1 cup almond meal</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>½ cup linseed meal</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>¾ cup carob powder</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>½ cup sunflower seeds </i></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>¼ cup sultanas </i></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>1 cup water</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>1 cup shredded coconut for rolling</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>Chop dates and place in saucepan with the water and bring to the boil. Leave to cool completely and then roughly mash with a fork.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>Pour the date mixture into a bowl and add all other ingredients, except coconut. Mix well. </i></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>Take spoonfuls of mixture and roll into balls (about 1 inch diameter). Roll balls in coconut. Store in fridge.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><i>(adapted from ‘Vegan Cooking: Recipes for Health and Happiness’, Quinn, A & Lilburne, D). </i></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">8: </span></span><span style="color: #4f81bd;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">During my first pregnancy, I read copious amounts of books about attachment parenting principles and natural birth. I am a strong advocate of homebirth (my sons were born at home), co-sleeping and extended breastfeeding. All of my children have breastfed beyond 2 years of age - Rowan is still breastfeeding. I have spent a majority of the past 7 years as a stay-at-home mum, with occasional forays back in to the workforce (I am a social worker). My role as SAHM is definitely the most challenging and fulfilling ‘job’.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Email me at: stuff-about-stuff@hotmail dot com</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-59986375646736064382011-06-04T16:40:00.001+10:002011-07-10T17:39:43.489+10:00Vegan parents feature #6<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;"></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We have post number 6! and We hear from Valerie who has her very own</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><a href="http://myveganchristianlife.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">blog </span></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Valerie will also be starting vegan cooking classes, as apart of a health coaching service since she has received her </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">certificate from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition.</span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I hope you enjoy reading her story as much as i did.</span></span></span></div>
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1: Name and age of your little person(s) and your family.</div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00407f; line-height: normal;">We have 5 kids total ranging in age from 23 down to 5 1/2. We're a "yours", "mine" and "ours" family. Our 5 1/2 year old Julian(vegan since birth) is the "ours" baby. All the rest are grown and on their own.</span></b></i><br />
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2: Was your pregnancy vegan?</div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Actually no. I've been a vegetarian for 21 years now, with the last four years as a vegan. Julian was my first vegetarian pregnancy though.</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">I initially went vegetarian due to my research into health and nutrition and learning that there appeared to be less degenerative disease associated with those who followed a more plant-based diet. Diabetes is also an issue in my family of origin (on both sides) and I wanted to beat the odds and avoid that risk as much as possible. </span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">My journey towards veganism started about 5 years ago as I became aware again through research and then the internet of what goes on behind the scenes in the production of animal products. I watched many of those undercover slaughterhouse videos and discovered podcasts with such persuasive voices as Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, Erik Marcus, and Howard Lyman, that opened my eyes to such an extent, that I could no longer justify supporting such a cruel industry with my money. </span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">My faith demands love and compassion towards all of God's creation. So, for me this is spiritual as well. </span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">As far as Julian goes, I was in the middle of learning all of these things when I was carrying him and soon afterwards. I would say things like, "I don't want him to have any dairy before he's at least 2". But by the time he reached 2, I was already "ruined". I had made the decision to raise our son as a vegan.</span></b></i></div>
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3: Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;">I</i></b><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"> would say for the most part, yes. My convictions are stronger now as a vegan than they were when I was vegetarian and my older kids were little. Because my reasons for my diet were strictly for health back then, I was pretty easy going about the kids eating meat sometimes and other animal products. I even cooked meat on occassion! I shudder as I think about it..</b></i></span></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">I also didn't really challenge the influence of friends and family very much. I was more concerned about junk food.</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Our friends and family seem pretty supportive of our vegan lifestyle. My husband, Marc actually made the decision a couple of years ago to become vegetarian in support of my convictions but eats vegan at home. Of course, that's the only way I cook! ha ha</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">We have made friends in the last couple of years with other vegan parents through our local vegetarian society and it helps a great deal to have that support.</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">It's also so nice to go to a kids party once in a while where we know that Julian can eat everything there and I don't have to think about it or make sure we bring a vegan snack "just in case." </span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 14px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">I discovered when I was a kid myself that I love to cook and experiment in the kitchen. That's carried over into my vegan cooking today. As a result, I've been on a mission of sorts to prove that plant-based food(especially desserts) can be just as good if not better than those made from animal products. So, I think I've pretty much got our omni friends convinced!</span></span></i></b></b></i><br />
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4: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">I guess I would have the say that so far the hardest thing would be sometimes feeling a bit of anxiety about going to an event or resturaunt where the food choices could be limited. Julian is homeschooled, so having to confront a traditional classroom or cafeteria situation is not an issue.</span></b></i></div>
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5: What do you consider to be the best thing about been a vegan parent?</div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Wow, I would have to say that having the opportunity to teach Julian in a very practical and I think holistic way about extending compassion and respect towards all of God's creatures both animal and human. </span></b></i></div>
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6: Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">We have some great healthfood stores here in our area of Humboldt County, Ca. There's one vegetarian resturant, Wildflower Cafe in Arcata, but no vegan ones unfortunately. But there are some very accomodating places here like Rita's Mexican food and Golden Harvest in Eureka. Both of them have great vegan and kid-friendly dishes. </span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Our fav Veg friendly children's books</span></b></i></div>
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<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">Fruits I love and A Gift from Little Bear, by Victoria Boutenko</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif;"></span></div>
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<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">-Herb, the Vegetarian Dragon, by Jules Bass and Debbie Harter</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">-The Fruit Bowl/Vegetable Soup, by Dianne Warren, Susan Smith Jones, and Amy Lorvaag LIndman</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">-The Secret Life of Mitch Spinach, by Hillary Feerick and Jeff Hillenbrand</span></i></b></div>
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<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">-Thats Why we Don't Eat Animals, by Ruby Roth</span></i></b></div>
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7: Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other</div>
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parents to try.</div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Julian loves green smoothies! I've been giving them to him since he was 2. If you're not familiar with them, it's basically a fruit smoothie with fresh greens added. You can use kale,collards, spinach, chard, dandelion, etc. When I discovered them a few yeas ago, I was amazed at the nutrient level of greens. Protein, calcium, vitamins C, A, K. If a kid(or adult) is adverse to the green color, just add lots of berries and it turns the smoothie a more appetizing purple color.</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Kid-friendly green smoothie recipe</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Add to blender and blend well in order listed</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">-2 cups water or orange juice</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">-2 cups washed, chopped, or torn greens(spinach is good to start with due to it's mild flavor. If using kale or collards, be sure to remove stems first.)</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">-2 bananas(chopped and frozen makes the smoothie nice and frosty)</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">-1 mango, orange, or peach peeled and chopped.</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Veggie "ribs" are also a favorite at our house. I grew up on what's known as "soulfood", so these are a real treat. I've made different versions of a recipe from Susan V of Fatfree Vegan Kitchen. <a href="http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/05/barbecued-seitan-ribz.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #0068cf; cursor: default; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/05/barbecued-seitan-ribz.html</a></span></b></i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis-dAlji2lU2fEWl0XG_ZFB9T3mGDjftz70mIEoesQS81uKoe0RrWumGmSMQDp4Hxm-_4YUq52WRO_XiupMZJqVU17L78zUETlB3fsrH8368eHDu76D0bLH0xrhgefPjJsJIBIWmUaFXK0/s1600/more+pics_6_20_10+007_seitan+ribz.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis-dAlji2lU2fEWl0XG_ZFB9T3mGDjftz70mIEoesQS81uKoe0RrWumGmSMQDp4Hxm-_4YUq52WRO_XiupMZJqVU17L78zUETlB3fsrH8368eHDu76D0bLH0xrhgefPjJsJIBIWmUaFXK0/s320/more+pics_6_20_10+007_seitan+ribz.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Another recipe that Julian loves are my chocolate chip cookies. They're actually gluten-free. We're not a gluten-free household(obviously, hence the seitan ribs above.) but these cookies are full of fiber,protein and good fats.</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 14px;"><span class="ecxyiv1569956851Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small; line-height: normal;">Gluten free Chocolate Chip Cookies</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 17px;"></span></span></b></i></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">2 1/2 cups blanched almonds*(dry), ground finely in food processor</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">(as close to a powdery consistency as you can get)</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">2/3 cup brown rice flour</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;"><span style="line-height: 17px;"> </span>1 tsp salt</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">1/3 cup yellow flaxmeal(light colored)</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">1/2 cup + 2 tsp agave or maple syrup</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">1 tsp vanilla extract</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">1/2 to 1 cup fair trade vegan chocolate chips</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">water</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">1. Spray a large cookie sheet with a good vegetable oil spray and preheat the oven to 350.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">2. In a mixing bowl, add all the ingredients in the given order.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">3. Mix well.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">4. Add water a couple of teaspoonfulls at time, stirring, until mixture holds together.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">5. Chill cookie dough in the fridge for about 10 minutes or until stiff.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">6. Drop dough on cookie sheet a teaspoon(an eating spoon) at a time and flatten slightly with a fork.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">5. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes or until slightly golden around the edges.<span style="line-height: 17px;"> </span>Check often to prevent burning.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">5. Let cool for 5 minutes before removing from the cookie sheet.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Makes about 2 dozen</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">If stored in a sealed<span style="line-height: 17px;"> </span>container they become more moist over time and the flavor instensifies.</span></b></i></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvYAwxzTOgk4fDce-4zNuI609YbdTRG7GuJPOHyZr5k2XOKLTuoQNld-wv75R9pt97R-_J5JBrnmSw0KfdEEHV4xrUmObEFcbXyyXTKmOvik11_APalw3-cC5oNeuY_omJrYmk-iajx5Bs/s1600/gluten-free+chocolate+chip+cookies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvYAwxzTOgk4fDce-4zNuI609YbdTRG7GuJPOHyZr5k2XOKLTuoQNld-wv75R9pt97R-_J5JBrnmSw0KfdEEHV4xrUmObEFcbXyyXTKmOvik11_APalw3-cC5oNeuY_omJrYmk-iajx5Bs/s320/gluten-free+chocolate+chip+cookies.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 17px;"><i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 19px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 19px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">*This recipe can be adapted with many different nuts, combinations and flavors</span></b></i></span><br />
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8: How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.</div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">Well, I would say that I adjusted a long time ago, since my oldest is 23!</span></b></i></div>
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<i style="font-style: italic; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #00007f; line-height: normal;">But seriously though, I do feel more relaxed as a parent at this stage of my life compared to when my other kids were young. I know more of what to expect, because I've been down this road before. I know it's cliche', but becoming a parent changes you. Life ceases being just about "me" and forces a person(in a good way) to become more sensitive to the needs of another.</span></b></i></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">email me: </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">stuff-about-stuff@hotmail dot com</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-31528697761413532292011-05-27T08:09:00.001+10:002011-07-10T17:27:57.903+10:00Vegan parents feature #5<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"></span><br />
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This week hear from Caroline and her big vegan family.</div>
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1: Name and age of your little person(s) and your family.</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; font-family: Tahoma; line-height: normal;"> We have 5 children, our eldest son Bj is 18, DJ our eldest daughter is 14, AJ is turning 10, Megan is 4 and Elijah is turning 2 this year.</span></div>
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2: Was your pregnancy vegan?,</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">no but we were Vegetarian at that stage. I wish i had been vegan though, as i think i would have been healthier.</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> </span><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: 17px;">We have been on and off Vegan since we were married but made a total commitment to being vegan for our health and our children's health 2 years ago. We have encountered so much evidence about how a meat eating and dairy eating diet is so bad for your health. The crunch for us becoming totally vegan was listening to Dr T Colin Cambell the guy who wrote The China Study. We just couldn't give our children dairy or animal protein laced foods knowing what we knew. Fu</span><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: 17px;">nnily enough the children have never asked for any of those things that we used to have.</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: 17px;"> My eldest daughter and i love to shop at organic markets and try new vegetables and fruits. We have just moved down from sunny NSW to Vic, so we are missing the awesome markets up there but are excited about growing our own. </span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">We are pretty eco minded and our next project is to be self sufficient. </span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> Buying organic and locally is important to me but not always something we can afford or do. </span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> Its an attitude you have about life,vegan is more than just eating the right foods and treating animals right. Its how you feel about life and what you value, if you value others and this world we live in it will show and come out in all that you do.</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> There is a lot that makes us different from the normal, we homeschool, use cloth nappies, don't immunize and i make and sell cloth pads. This can be very confronting for other people but don't ever be afraid to stand up for what you believe is right for you and your children.</span><br />
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3: Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">My family is accepting of us becoming vegan as my youngest sister has been vegan for quite sometime. She pathed the way for us. They have seen the positive health change it has had on her. </span><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: 17px;">They also see that our children are healthy, happy and in a normal weight range. Friends have also been good about it, some take time to prepare vegan meals for us. But we do get a bit of negative reactions, my husband is the one who stands up and gives them the information when they start having a go at us. He is awesome with the facts and because people dont research they have nothing to say to us. I think because our choices are made on firm decisions with lots of facts that when we meet opposition they back down. I find it crazy that people just accept what the media tells them.</span></div>
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4: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> I just asked my husband this question and he things there is nothing hard about being vegan! LOL! I think its making sure they have enough protein, calcium, iron etc etc. If i feel we haven't had enough of these things i go to the books. I also keep a suppliment handy. I do believe though that if you low in something, say vitamin C then you should just go and eat an orange.</span></div>
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5: What do you consider to be the best thing about been a vegan parent?</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">That you are giving them the best! All the food choices that are available are amazing, There is just so much variety. I feel sorry for the people caught up in the "meat and 3 veg" syndrome. Its crazy that they "worry" about vegan children's diets when they are having more variety than 90% of the population.</span></div>
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6: Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">We love going to The Vegie Bar in Brunswick st. We mainly eat at home as eating out is expensive with 7 to feed. :) I definately like organic stores, the atmosphere is so different to regular stores, I think growing what you can at home makes a difference, a few herbs etc, there is great satisfaction in growing your own. We also love going to Eastfields an organic shop in Croydon, it always smells so good in there.</span></div>
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7: Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other parents to try.</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">Aj doesnt like nuts at all, so i hide them grounded up in food. but apart from that we make our children eat a good range of things as we believe that they will eventually start liking them. letting them be apart of what you are buying, cooking helps. The eldest three regularly cook the main meal.</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: normal;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: normal;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">Aj just told me that she loves my carob cake. </span></span></span></span></span><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: 17px;"> Its hard to name a favourite we really enjoy food at this house. A quick and easy recipe we like to make is pancakes with vegies in them.</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> Vegie pancakes</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> Make a basic pancake mix with SR flour and oat or soy milk, blend up vegies such as broccoli, carrot, zuchini, tomato, pumpkin, etc mix it together with pancake batter, salt, massel stock (we use chicken for this one) yeast flakes, onion powder and fry. </span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> We stack them on our plate with a little BBQ sauce and vegan mayo. Yummo!</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> Carob shakes are always a winner at our house. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> carob powder, soy milk, banana, dash of flax seed oil. we also sometimes throw in a few blueberries.</span><br />
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8: How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;"> </span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">Having happy adjusted children i believe involves parents being selfless, giving and giving till it hurts, Loving their children always, loving discipline, good principles that are demonstrated by the parents. we cant seriously expect our children to not do what we are doing ourselves. This is hard when you are grounded in bad habits.</span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #fc9229; line-height: normal;">For us having children has made us better people, better communicator with each other and more fun. I totally advocate big families! :)</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-39822904415546299832011-05-21T06:57:00.003+10:002011-07-10T17:20:23.952+10:00Vegan parents feature: #4<div align="LEFT" style="line-height: 0.6cm; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This week were have Rachael With a school aged vegan child.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">1: Name and age of your little person(s) and your family.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">our family consists of me Rachael (vegan 12yrs), Matt (vegan 8yrs) and ocean aged 7yrs who has been vegan since conception.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">2: Was your pregnancy vegan?</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">when Matt and I found out I was pregnant we moved our housebus up to bangalow near Byron bay and picked macadamia nuts until I was 8mnths pregnant. I didn't have any doubts about staying vegan whilst pregnant, my body was telling me that it really appreciated what I was putting into it so I saw no reason to change that. It also helped having a doctor who was open minded when it came to diet. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">My iron levels only fell lower than average once and they were still well within the healthy range but my doctor suggested I freeze pineapple chunks and blend them with parsley to make a kind of sorbet and this worked wonderfully.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">3: Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">whilst both our families may not 'get' our reasons for being vegan they do try and cater for us and don't give us a hard time for being vegan. They have never questioned our right to bring ocean up on a vegan diet and I think they can see that he is a normal healthy 7yr old who gets sick alot less often than most of his cousins.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We haven't met any other vegan families since having ocean but there are families at oceans steiner school who are vegetarian.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">4: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I don't know what the hardest thing is about being a vegan parent is. I think the hardest thing about being a conscious parent is interacting with families and people who are less conscious and trying to counteract any negative influence this interaction causes. Even at a Steiner school we have had times when peoples thoughtlessness has caused a bit of a kerfuffle. Oceans teacher decided to reward the kids with some 'natural' lollies from the healthfood shop which contained milk and gelatine. Ocean asked me if we could eat them (which he always does if he is unsure) and was very upset when I told him what was in them. I sat him down and said I totally understood if he would like to eat them and that it was his choice as he was old enough to know what he was choosing to do but he shook his head and made it very clear that wasn't an option so we took him to the healthfood shop and bought him a vegan treat and he was very content.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">5: What do you consider to be the best thing about been a vegan parent?</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">the best thing about being a vegan parent is watching my healthy happy 7yr old be conscious of what he is eating, where it came from, how it was grown and why it is good for him. It is also great to see other kids being brought into awareness of these things through interacting with ocean.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">6: Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">where we live at present pretty much has zilch opportunities for eating away from home so we have alot of picnics instead. When we travel we try and find places before we leave where we can stop and enjoy some great vegan food. Ocean always wants to stop in Newcastle when we head south so he can have either a funky chunky pie or what he calls a pumpkin pie which is a vegani pie made by Byron bay gourmet pies I think.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">7: Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other parents to try.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">oceans favourite meal is vegan lasagne, closely followed by nutmeat w/ gnocchi both with lashings of nutritional yeast flakes. He also loves any type of nut butter with a vengeance! He has a great appetite and is always willing to try new foods. If he says he doesn't like something after trying it then I respect that and do not make him eat it, Although I will try and introduce it later on as I have found his tastebuds go through phases.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">8: How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I'm not sure Matt and I have adjusted to being parents yet!!!!! I guess we have always tried to respect ocean as a person with his own ideas and feelings rather than just as a child to be steered this way and that. At times when I am exhausted and fed up I wish I didn't care so much and could just give in to the mindless crap that surrounds us but there is always an instinctual part of me that won't let that happen. I think the main thing Matt and I have tried to do is to make sure each decision has been thought about and made consciously instead of out of fear or pressure from other people</span></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">If you would like to be apart of vegan parents please email me: stuff-about-stuff@ hotmail dot com</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-63144133212852561782011-05-15T07:50:00.001+10:002011-07-10T17:11:22.383+10:00Feature: Vegan Parents #3<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;"></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px;">So now we have number 3! This time we here from Simone who has a facebook page <a href="https://www.facebook.com/beingvegan">Being Vegan </a>.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">1: Name and age of your little person(s) and your family.</b></div>
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I'm Simone and I'm a single mum of Connor, 19 months.</div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">2: Was your pregnancy vegan?,</b></div>
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No, I became vegan 6 months after Connor was born. I became vegan because I couldn't eat meat without thinking that what I was eating was alive at some point, and a living, feeling being, with parents or even children. It really upset me as a new mum. I saw dairy as stolen breastmilk from cows and as a breastfeeding mother, this broke my heart. If I ever have another child I will definitely have a vegan pregnancy. I know my diet gives me everything my body needs right now and will be beneficial in pregnancy. As an omnivore, I just ate to live and didn't know where any vitamins, minerals, etc came from. Now I know so much about nutrition, and am nearly a qualified vegan and vegetarian nutrition consultant. </div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">3: Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</b></div>
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My mum is a vegan, which is great! I have had family members express concern to other family members, who know nothing about nutrition and assume that my diet, and my son's will be lacking in iron. I'm very strong in my opinions so family and friends don't say anything. I live my life confidently and try to be a good role model. I think if you don't believe in what you are doing, nobody else will. I obviously believe what I am doing is the best for our health and that shows to people. I have influenced people in my life to lead a more compassionate lifestyle, and some have even given up animal products. I have met many vegans on Facebook and I consider many of these close, lifelong friends. Its great to have support, because sometimes I feel like the only vegan in the world. Its helpful on those days where I feel like nobody cares about the treatment of animals, and i just speak to them, and I feel better.</div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">4: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</b></div>
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I think at the moment its easy being a vegan parent, but my son is only 19 months old. I think the hardest thing will be when he gets older and goes to school and birthday parties. I will do my best to raise him vegan, and ultimately let him decide whether that is what he wants to do. I believe I will raise a compassionate boy and he will choose this lifestyle. I don't want him to see it as annoying, because he may rebel and eat animal products. I will never doubt how healthy a vegan diet is, because I recently had a blood test, and I am 110% perfect and that's as a breastfeeding vegan!</div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">5: What do you consider to be the best thing about been a vegan parent?</b></div>
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I know I'm giving my son the best start! He has a mad diet, full of superfoods, fresh fruit & veggies, wholegrains, and delicious treats. His diet is very alkaline and will benefit so much from being vegan. I also feel good knowing that no animal had to suffer for him to eat a meal.<br />
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">6: Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</b></div>
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I think if you know how to spot an animal ingredient in a product you can easily pick out vegan friendly options wherever you are. There are some good iphone apps available if you don't know all the ingredients. And if you are going to a pizza restaurant for example, just order a vegetarian pizza without cheese. Its so easy eating out, there is always something you can order or change a little. </div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">7: Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other parents to try.</b></div>
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My son loves chocolate smoothies!! They are healthy, but kids will never know hehe! I blend a frozen banana (or tray of ice), non-dairy milk, agave nectar, cacao, vanilla extract and flaxseeds. The flaxseeds give it a texture like crumbled cookies, and tastes awesome!! He also loves soy cheese, soy yoghurt and his favourite dinner is pasta. I fry a can of Sanitarium casserole mince and add it to an organic tomato pasta sauce. I use a gluten free Orgran kids pasta because I think its better on his system. Then I sprinkle some nutritional yeast on top for a cheesy taste and for b12. Here are some yummy kid-friendly recipes:<br />
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<u style="line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Not Pigs In Blankets</b></u></div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Ingredients:</b></div>
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Pack of vegan sausages</div>
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2 sheets puff pastry, defrosted</div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Directions:</b></div>
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1. Wrap sausage in enough puff pastry to cover and press pastry together to seal.</div>
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2. Bake for about 15 minutes on 175'C.</div>
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3. Serve with mustard and sauce.<br />
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><u style="line-height: 17px;">Zucchini Pasta</u></b></div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Ingredients:</b></div>
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Zucchini, spiralised</div>
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Pasta sauce</div>
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Can of vegan mince</div>
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Nutritional yeast</div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Directions:</b></div>
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1. Fry mince.</div>
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2. Heat pasta sauce and add mince.</div>
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3. Pour over zucchini and sprinkle nutritional yeast on the top.<br />
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><u style="line-height: 17px;">Honeycomb</u></b></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 14px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma; line-height: normal;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Ingredients:</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" />2 Tbsp golden syrup<br style="line-height: 17px;" />1/3 cup white sugar</span></span><span class="ecxtext_exposed_show" style="display: inline; line-height: 14px;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma; line-height: normal;"><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 17px;">1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Directions:</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" />-In a large saucepan, heat the golden syrup and sugar together, bring to a boil then simmer on low heat for 5 minutes.<br style="line-height: 17px;" />-Remove pot from heat and add the bicarb soda. Quickly mix it in because the mixture will foam up instantly (Make sure its mixed well or there will be clumps of bicarb in it.) Pour immediately into a cake tin. Leave to set for about 10 minutes</span></span>.</span></span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">8: How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.</b></div>
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I've adjusted really well I think. I use to be an out of control teen, but settled down as soon as I became pregnant. But since having my son I have completely changed and became a positive, healthy, calm person. I consider my style to be natural parenting. I breastfeed, co-sleep and I don't believe you can ever spoil a child with love and hugs. I never knew about baby-wearing or cloth nappies, but if I ever have another child I will do these things.</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you would like to be apart of the feature please email me at stuff-about-stuff@hotmail dot com</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-38202092053302611782011-05-10T15:21:00.001+10:002011-07-10T17:02:52.288+10:00Feature: Vegan Parents #2<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 14px;"></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Welcome to the second vegan parents feature.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The first one proved very popular with over 260 views! That is a lot for my little blog.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This week we will hear from Sarah and her little miss. </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><div class="ecxcontent" id="ecx242a5d61a26b4446a2c5828df7b24d6e" style="line-height: 14px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-bottom: 1px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px; text-align: center; width: 350px; word-wrap: break-word;">
1: Name and age of your little person(s) and your family: <span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I have an almost 2 yr old daughter (approx 20 months), her name is Alison Constable-Kerr, my name is Sarah and Ali's dad's name is Owen. We also have 2 cats (Jack & Pepper), 3 guinea pigs & 1 dog (Toby).</b></span></div>
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2: Was your pregnancy vegan?, <span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">My pregnancy wasn't vegan, not because of any health reasons, but because, I only just went vegan not long before I fell pregnant and didnt know much about it, wasn't familiar with all the foods yet and hadn't gotten myself used to the diet yet, so when I fell pregnant, the cravings got the better of me and the main things i craved were cows milk, cheese and milo, but as i said, i didnt know much about the vegan substitutes back then like I do now.</b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I became vegan when my daughter was about 3 months old. Mainly because I was breastfeeding and didn't know much about the nutrients I needed, etc, at the time, I was doing my research, so when I knew I could do it, I went vegan.</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkN9YgCWoyMewyf_ZLHIrsFr8BpM8sR8-XyuWPvhWLLPVaaubCTt_j1V9FFO60TIFOilJFE20eocmDyOGhOIAmnmg1sXEini1l8WBr9EefYqBgAObo_XlS8bxlB90Q8jLGa80SVhW5_hvW/s1600/9622_149964681809_743731809_3485775_7846758_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkN9YgCWoyMewyf_ZLHIrsFr8BpM8sR8-XyuWPvhWLLPVaaubCTt_j1V9FFO60TIFOilJFE20eocmDyOGhOIAmnmg1sXEini1l8WBr9EefYqBgAObo_XlS8bxlB90Q8jLGa80SVhW5_hvW/s1600/9622_149964681809_743731809_3485775_7846758_n.jpg" /></a></div>
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3: Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I didn't have any support from friends at the time, and the only people in my family I had support from was my dad (he is vegetarian) and my twin sister (vegan), and my partner who eats meat. Since then I have new friends and they are vegan,vegetarian or just love animals alot and respect who I am. </b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">My mum absolutely HATED the fact that I was bringing Ali up vegan and told me I was cruel and not giving her a choice, but i always told her-"Mum, forcing a child to eat meat is exactly the same-its not giving them a choice." I have told her that I hate the fact that she brought me up eating meat, I wish I was vegan since birth, so bringing Ali up as a vegan is actually giving her more choice and she wont have any regrets about eating the animals she loves! </b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">My partners family (Ali's grandparents and cousins, uncles,etc) were the same and it took me ages to be able to trust them alone with Ali because alot of them would make stupid jokes about giving her steak,cheese, etc. But I trust the grandmother now because she has done her research and knows the benefits of a vegan diet and knows it isnt bad at all!</b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">It is so much easier having like-minded friends, it feels great to let out everything you have inside about veganism, why you're vegan,etc that you can't talk about to someone who eats meat. I met these vegan friends when I started attending Animal Liberation meetings.</b></span></div>
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4: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">The hardest thing about being a vegan parent is the fact that we have SO many negative people out there that will be happy to tell us that what we're doing is wrong,some people think a vegan diet will actually kill a baby. (I've been reminded many times of the 2 babies that died from malnutrition which they called a vegan diet)</b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I panic sometimes because I know its up to me and me only to make sure Ali gets the right amount of nutrients she needs every day, I know I am giving her enough but being a worrying parent, I worry about things like that a lot. But a lot of the reason I get worried about what to cook her, is because I can't cook and don't have imagination when it comes to cooking haha!</b></span><br />
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5: What do you consider to be the best thing about been a vegan parent?</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">Knowing that I'm feeding my daughter healthy food! knowing that I'm not putting something in her body that had been slaughtered for her. I feel good when I see Ali pat an animal and know that she doesn't eat them!</b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I hate seeing parents feeding their children animals that they love to hug and pat, and the fact that these children have NO idea where the food came from is wrong!</b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I also love the fact that she is on a totally different diet than most kids around her, I love talking about it, I am proud of it and love telling people WHY i chose her to be vegan.</b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I love when people say how beautiful and healthy looking she is and when I tell them she is vegan their mouths drop to the floor, they do not expect it at all!</b></span></div>
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6: Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I don't really know which places are child friendly but I know of a few vegan restaurants in newtown including green gourmet. There is a shop in penrith called croc foods that sell vegan food (frozen), and an organic shop on the same street that sells vegan and organic food!</b></span></div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;"></b></span><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">A VERY important thing to remember is-just because your child can't eat animal products it doesnt mean they have less of a choice when it comes to meals-A vegan can make ANY meal that anyone else can have and they arent restricted at all! You can still make cakes, spaghetti, nachos,casseroles,ice cream,anything!</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I have actually had ppl that have never liked any cake before-taste one of my vegan cakes and they are shocked and say they love it! they have more and even take some home to let their family try it!</b></span></div>
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7: Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other parents to try.</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">Ali LOVES avocado, if she doesnt like a meal I have made her, I put some avocado in it and she eats it! one of her fave meals are meals made with cous cous, and her fave snacks are the corn flavoured cruskits spread with avocado. She also loves steamed carrots. I take them out with me for a snack and she eats them all! I usually make up a months worth of food and keep it in containers in the freezer so when its dinner time and we're in a hurry to get things done at that time, i can just take out an already made meal and defrost it, it has made life so much easier for me at dinner time which is always a rush around!</b></span><br />
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8: How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.</div>
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<span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="color: #c0504d; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 14px;">I LOVE being a parent, obviously it is very time consuming and I wish I had more times to do a lot more things but no matter what the cons are, its worth it. I don't know how to describe our style of parenting, we are not strict but we still tell her whats wrong and whats right and what she can and cant do and touch, etc. I don't breast feed anymore, I only did the first 4 months since birth and I got mastitis so I stopped, it was way too painful. </b></span></div>
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If you would like to be apart of the vegan parents feature please email me: stuff-about-stuff@hotmail dot com </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4613012864724638160.post-6696612364186201022011-05-04T20:46:00.000+10:002011-05-04T20:46:53.344+10:00Feature: Vegan Parents #1Welcome to my new feature!<br />
Lately vegan parenting has been in the media for all the wrong reasons, so i think its about time we saw some positive news about vegan parenting and what better way to do it then hear from vegan parents of happy healthy vegan children!<br />
For the first installment we hear from renee who blogs over at <a href="http://veganza.com/">Veganza</a>.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">1: Name and age of your little person(s) and your family.</b></span><br />
<div style="line-height: 17px;"><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;"><br style="line-height: 17px;" /></b>Alice just turned 2! And a son, due June this year. And our adopted cats, of course! Mao (10) - a white fluffball - and the-cat-who-thinks-he's-a-dog Fuji (5).</div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5104/5642407773_7062946131_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5104/5642407773_7062946131_m.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">2: Was your pregnancy vegan?</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Absolutely. There was never any question of it. I already knew there were happy, healthy, vegan-raised children out there, thanks to the internet, and Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven came out while I was pregnant the first time, too. It was always going to be a question of "how do I have the healthiest vegan pregnancy I can manage?" rather than "can I be healthy?" <br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Veganism and eating more raw food improved my health so much. With my experience of overcoming a lifetime of chronic seasonal allergies practically overnight, it's difficult to imagine why it wouldn't be a good idea! I'm certain I'm giving my child the best start in life, and the information to make informed, healthy, ethical decisions about their consumption habits when it comes time to do that on their own. I'm confident they'll make the best choice! Alice loves animals, just as I did when I was young - I saw animals as different sorts of people, and our cats as family members, which is what led me to veganism in the first place.</div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3341/3452234368_f7c309ca0a_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3341/3452234368_f7c309ca0a_m.jpg" /></a></div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">3: Do you have support from family/friends? If you have made new friends since becoming a vegan parent please add how you met and how helpful it’s been to have like minded friends.</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />I had lots of vegan friends before I had kid, so I've got plenty of support there! Most of our family had some pretty decent vegan food at our wedding in a 5-star restaurant on the river. It hasn't been a hard-sell since! My husband David and I are healthier than we used to be, and Alice grows like a weed and never gets ill, so it's been easy. <br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />There is a shortage of vegans who are also parents in my area, though. The internet is so helpful for networking! There are lots of vegan parents out there, scattered around the globe. Alice has one little vegan friend, a few months younger than her. The large volume of positive vegan parenting articles on the internet makes it easy.<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />I feel like the odd one out where negative reactions are concerned sometimes. The only incident that stands out was someone telling me I was "forcing" my diet on my children - and it came from a vegetarian! By that logic, a non-vegan diet was forced on me as a child - so anything you feed your children or companion animals is done by force? It doesn't make sense. Vegans - by definition - strive to not participate in violence, which includes imposing force on others - including animals.<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">4: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being a vegan parent and how do you handle moments when you might doubt yourself?</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Being vegan is living outside the box - boxes of fast food anyway! - so it's not always comfortable under pressure... and there's no pressure like a hungry infant going through a growth spurt interrupting your sleep several times a night! It makes the "where do you get your protein?" clichéd harassment seem like child's play.<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />When I'm tired as hell after a few sleepless nights I've had doubts, thinking I need more iron or B-vitamins or something for energy... but my levels are always high when I have them checked. All parents have doubts. It's healthy to question things. <br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />The hardest thing is reading media beat-ups about sick children of "vegan parents." Anyone who knows anything about veganism knows it's rubbish. Where are the headlines criticising "non-vegan parents" with sick kids? Or praising vegan parents with exceptional children? The fact is there are parents who stuff up or do silly things diet-wise, and their veganism or non-veganism has nothing to do with it. It can be difficult not be irritated by the "infotainment" that passes as "news" when it's implying an ethical, healthy, eco-friendly diet is a form of child abuse.<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">5: What do you consider to be the best thing about been a vegan parent?</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />The general consensus seems to be that vegan kids are rarely ill. I feel awkward when parents are commiserating on common childhood illnesses - I never have anything to add to the conversation! Alice has usually been a good sleeper, too. It seems like a relatively low-drama lifestyle, contrary to the fear-mongering rubbish in the media. I think most vegans with kids are more determined than average to prove how fantastically healthy a plant-based diet can be and are extra-vigilant about maintaining a good-quality diet. But hopefully the best part about being a vegan parent will be having an actively compassionate kid who respects all life - when they're old enough to understand more about what's going on!<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">6: Please add any tips and favourite shopping and eating places that are child and vegan friendly?</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />We've found Loving Hut to be kid-friendly - they have an excellent play area and collection of toys out the back of the restaurant in Brisbane! In fact, all vegetarian restaurants seem to want to give free food and extra attention to our vegan kid!<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Yum cha is a fun way for a kid to get to try a huge range of foods - Alice loves Easy House on the Gold Coast - lots of different foods to try - she always asks for tea and a bowl of corn soup! Fresh produce markets are great for that, too - lots of interesting fruits to sample that stupormarkets never stock.<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Online, Herbivore Clothing has good quality vegan tees for kids, and Vegbooks.org is handy for book ideas! It's surprising the number of children's books around that promote objectifying animals... but there are a few surprisingly vegan-friendly classic books as well, like Horton Hears a Who!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4022/4374931446_74d310031c_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4022/4374931446_74d310031c_m.jpg" /></a></div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">7: Do you have any no fail foods for your fussy eater? Or please name some of your child's favourite meals/snacks, if possible please include recipes for other parents to try.</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Alice loves avocado! On toast with lemon, thyme, and nooch is a favourite. She loves pudding! Tapioca, blancmange, rice, raw - whatever it is, she'll eat it. One of her favourite recipes (adapted from Ani Phyo):<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">Chocolate Pudding</b> - serves 4<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />2 avocados<br style="line-height: 17px;" />2 large ripe/sweet bananas<br style="line-height: 17px;" />2 soft dates<br style="line-height: 17px;" />3 tablespoons carob powder<br style="line-height: 17px;" />1 tablespoon cacao powder<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Process everything in the food processor until smooth. <div style="line-height: 17px;"><br style="line-height: 17px;" /></div><div style="line-height: 17px;">Add a dash of agave for sweetness if necessary, and top with sprinkles of coconut, sliced fruit, goji berries, buckwheaties... or whatever you like! </div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5103/5642440855_d7c9077f39_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5103/5642440855_d7c9077f39_m.jpg" /></a></div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><b style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 17px;">8: How have you have adjusted to having children? feel free to describe your style of parenting. because we know it’s not always just about veganism, being a parent is a whole new world.</b><br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />We're somewhere in-between "attachment parenting" and Dr Spock's approach. Dr Spock also promotes a vegan diet from birth as the best option, which is good to tell people! The Continuum Concept by Jean Liedoff has influenced us a lot - it's a fascinating anthropological study of peaceful parenting in an old tribal culture. We've not stuck to anything too religiously: we co-sleep on and off depending on what suits everyone, and switch between slings, in-arms, and strollers as circumstances and sub-tropical weather permits.</div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Breastfeeding is the single most important part of early parenting, I think, for future health, bonding, and ease of care. Alice was breastfed until this pregnancy began to interfere with my milk production. She didn't quite make the 2-year minimum I had in mind, or the full-term feeding I was ultimately hoping for (contrary to what goes on in western society, the world average is 4.5 years). After the new baby is born, we might mix her various nut/soy/rice milks with expressed milk.<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />Parenting is more difficult than I expected, but not in the ways I expected. I don't cope well with any level of sleep deprivation! A prolonged labour followed by emergency surgery coupled with an infant - and my complete lack of experience with children of any age! - made recovery a very drawn out process.<br style="line-height: 17px;" /><br style="line-height: 17px;" />It's easy for people to say "always accept help" but when that help is conditional on conforming to parenting styles and lifestyle choices that suit the helper, it's a problem. Living by non-violent principles is more important than fitting in, and I won't compromise my child's future for a few extra moments of peace on the hard days... which, thankfully, there aren't too many of them in the end! It's taken me these 2 years to adjust... I'm sure I'll still be adjusting for years to come! Children are always growing and their needs change</div><div style="line-height: 17px;"><br />
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</div><div style="line-height: 17px;">*if you would like to be apart of the vegan parents feature please send and email to stuff-about-stuff@hotmail dot com</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7