May Day(s)
It’s the third of May, and I totally blew NaBloPoMo in April. #FAIL. Which is fine – clearly I am the kind of person who only blogs sporadically, and that’s okay. I had big plans to start again in May, but I forgot to write on Wednesday, and then again yesterday… oh, well.
There is so little going on right now with the baby-making efforts that it’s hardly worth mentioning. I started out this cycle on letrozole again, but my response just wasn’t what the doctor was hoping for, so no insemination this month. Next cycle, we’re going to add injectable gonadotropins to boost the quality (and hopefully, quantity) of my eggs. I’m really hoping that’s all it takes; I’m running out of money, and it’s going to take me longer to save enough – I will have to skip two cycles just to do one, and that just sucks.
Indiana House Rabbit Society participated in a confiscation in April that netted us 11 new rabbits, one of which I’m going to adopt. I haven’t had a bunny of my own for a couple of years, but something about her speaks to me. She’s a big French Lop, with the fluffiest, giantest feet I’ve seen in a long time. Her front legs are stocky, her face is squishy, and her ears are super-floppy!
And that, my friends, is officially the news from here. I’m out!
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Fresh… Food
Oh, NaBloPoMo, how you confound me. It’s like I have a mental block about blogging, so much so that even signing up for a daily blog challenge doesn’t help! Day 1: failure! Ah, well. Since the theme of the month is “Fresh”, I’ll start over today.
About a month or so ago I decided to start eating a plant-based diet. Not for any particular reason… it was more of a “why *shouldn’t* I go vegan?” I don’t cook meat at home, if there are veg-friendly alternatives at restaurants I almost always order them… and once my friend, Dawn, pointed me to The Happy Herbivore and her weekly meal plans, I decided to dive right in.
So far, so good. Like Lindsay Nixon (a.k.a. The Happy Herbivore), I don’t go by the vegan moniker; I prefer to say that my diet is plant-based, as opposed to vegan. For me, the ethical implications aren’t a primary factor, though they are a nice side benefit. I will still likely buy leather shoes and purses, though I try to make eco-friendly decisions when I can. My biggest reason for the lifestyle change is health. If I can reduce my risk of disease while still eating tasty food? Sign me up! While I haven’t lost a very significant amount of weight, I know that if I were watching calories more closely, I would be losing faster. Some people might call this a drastic change, but let me ask this… is changing your diet completely any more drastic than major surgery to remove over half of one of you major organs (e.g. gastric bypass)? By the way, that surgery comes with just as many dietary changes as going plant-based… and those dietary changes don’t necessarily lead to long-term health. Just because you can’t eat the same volume doesn’t automatically mean you make wiser choices about what you eat.
I’m feeling good about my choice, and while it can be a little challenging to find herbivore-friendly food in your average restaurant, I’m making it work. There are a ton of websites out there with fantastic recipes, I have all three of The Happy Herbivore cookbooks (I can’t say enough about them; Lindsay uses ingredients you can find in most grocery stores, and the recipes are easy and QUICK, which is key for me), and I’m lucky to have really great grocery stores and farm markets not far away. Hooray for FRESH food!
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Project MCP :: Challenge One – Favorite piece of holiday decor
I took a photography class last spring, as one of my electives for the BS program I was working through. I started out with my trusty Kodak point-and-shoot – it has a manual mode – but after the first class realized I would need to upgrade to a DSLR if I wanted my photos to be decent. I also figured it might come in handy later… you know, for baby pictures. Whatever, this is how my mind works now. Anyway, I bought a Canon Rebel T3i, and I LOVE it. I did very well in the photography class, learning how to use the manual controls and learning the basics of composition, but to become better I need a challenge. I need accountability! I need someone to review my photos and provide feedback.
To that end, I joined the Project MCP photo challenge. My first submission is the picture above – my Santa ornament. I inherited this ornament from my grandmother; she loved Santa’s cheery face, and it was one of her favorites. He gets a prized spot on my tree every year – I try to make sure he can dangle sufficiently, rather than resting on a branch, and I try to make sure he’s well lit.
I’m excited to participate in the December challenges. I like that you can do one, or you can do all – it helps to know that if I can’t find a subject that matches the weekly theme, I can choose to sit out for that week. LOVE THAT. I hope they continue this into the new year…
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