Wesley Chapel, Florida
Friday morning
The plan originally was to leave on Sunday for Vero Beach. We never make any definite plans though because something always seems to disrupt our plans.
This time is no exception. We had to take Mom to the Doctor on Thursday. She was having some issues, or should I say more than normal.
She is feeling better today, but we still have the kitty we’re looking after. Frisk’s “Dad” Frank won’t be back until Wednesday. Frank…Frisk is just fine. He has been coming out and meowing at me. He will let me pet him, but if I get too “aggressive” he’ll hiss at me to keep me in my place. I think he likes me though! I’ve been going over twice a day….worrying about the a/c but it’s been just fine so far. We’ll look in on him until you return, so don’t worry about him.
While doing our morning walk (stroll) we saw a nice looking silver truck with kayak racks on top. It looked very much like what ours will look like after we get it all set up. We were staring and pointing at the truck as it drove by.
The driver stopped, and then backed up. Uh, oh…do they think we’re stalkers? Are they wondering why I was pointing at them?
Two people got out and walked over to us. They are probably going to ask why we were pointing at them? We have a good reason…honest.
Okay…I recognize them from their blog…
It was Catherine, Jo Beth and Grace
They were bringing a surprise to Sherry. It was nice to meet them in person! (I hope you don’t mind I borrowed your picture from your blog)
Sherry whizzed by a few times on her run. Nothing can stop that woman when she is in the zone! Actually, “whizz” may be a bit of a stretch in the heat and humidity of a Florida summer. She did pick up the pace though, when she saw Catherine and Jo Beth.
Today is day 6 of our Vegan diet experiment. No cravings for “regular” food and no hunger. We haven’t felt deprived at all.
Saturday morning
We got a call from my Mom last night. My brother was in a car accident and was in the hospital. We rushed to the hospital and didn’t get home until 4am. He is okay. Apparently, he had some sort of seizure. It’s a long story, but the short version is that we will not be going to Vero Beach (or anywhere else), anytime soon. My brother won’t be driving and my Mother is okay to drive only in her neighborhood. We can’t leave them without the ability to get around.
Today is day 7 of our vegan diet experiment. We’re both holding strong. We’re not craving any of our old foods, and we both are eating all we want, and feeling satisfied. I rarely feel any hungry at all.
Last night I experimented with vegan tacos. I cooked a pot of lentils in the slow cooker. I drained them, sprinkled dry taco seasoning on them and then put them in a corn taco shell with chopped spinach (could have used lettuce but spinach is more nutritious) and some hot and spicy hummus (as a cheese substitute) When I was preparing them, I thought to myself “this is a bad idea.” I didn’t think they would be any good. I warned Al ahead of time, that I was unsure how they would taste. He was still open to giving them a try. To my surprise he said they were very good. How about that? The old Al would never have tried anything remotely like a lentil taco! After his endorsement, I decided to try one myself, and had to agree with Al. They were good! They didn’t taste much different than beef tacos. I had made up some fresh salsa to put on top of them, but ended up forgetting all about it.
I am still feeling energetic. Revved up might be a better description. I’m wondering if my metabolism has sped up and this is what I’m feeling? I got a little lazy yesterday afternoon and took a short nap. I was worried my newfound energy was about to leave me, but again this morning I feel “revved.” I wish Al would get this good feeling, but he hasn’t. I’m hoping after a few days on his antibiotics he will start to get over his sinus infection. His back is better.
I am down 4 pounds after only 6 days. I’m sure the weight loss will slow, but for now I’m loving it. Al is only down 1 1/2 pounds, but I think that’s because he didn’t weigh himself for a few days after we started. I know he’ll lose weight faster than I will…..men always do, don’t they?
We got the new topper for our truck yesterday afternoon. It looks pretty good. The other parts are in, so we may get them installed next week. I don’t know why we’re bothering though…I see no trip on the horizon anytime soon! We’re okay with that though, it could be worse. We could be in David and Sherry’s shoes!
Sounds like you are doing very well. Pounds seem to come off suddenly, come back unexpectedly, and then drop again. Eat to be healthy! Glad al is "on board."
ReplyDeleteOoh yum, we'll have to try your lentil tacos.
ReplyDeleteDo you guys like avocado? It's become a staple at our house. We like it cut up in a wrap (we usually get spelt wraps) with tomatoes, onions, spinach, black olives and hummus.
If you start craving something burger-like, a marinated and grilled portabello is a great substitute. I like to marinate them in soy sauce and garlic. Roxanne also likes them marinated in Marsala wine but I thought the wine was too strong. Anyway, whatever I'd normally put on a burger is what I use on the mushroom.
We don't eat mushrooms. I think its more of because of what they look like than the taste. We did look at some portabellos at the store yesterday...not sure I could eat one, but maybe some day. :)
DeleteI love avocado but Al, not so much. I'm going to work on that though. I guess I'll have to look and see what a spelt wrap is.
Oh I'm so sorry to hear about your brother. Seizures are terrible and, at least in Virginia, once you have one, you can't drive until you have been on medication for 6 months. That could really have a bummer effect on you guys. Maybe Florida laws are different.
ReplyDeleteGreat suggestions by Annie. I think your taco sounds great too. One of the things I really love about Vegan is the creativity. It's just amazing what you can come up with that doesn't take a lot of time.
LOL at whizzing....no one has EVER used that term for my slogging around in this heat. I'm flattered even if you did later take it back. :-)
So sorry to hear about your brother. But it's wonderful that you can be there to help out. Not fun but necessary. So glad your diet is helping you feel better.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about your brother. Glad you will still be around when we move up to quail run.
ReplyDeleteNice that you got to meet Catherine and Jo Beth, they are very thoughtful people (and a lot of fun).
ReplyDeleteBet you can't wait to get your new truck all set up to tow. It may not be cheap, but it will work well for a long time. :c)
I'm sorry to hear about your brother and relieved that he has no serious injury.
ReplyDeleteI identify with your frustration.
It's not easy to be the one taking care/responsibility of others.
Many times over the past months I've thought of making a comment but wasn't sure what to say.
My mother lived to 96 3/4 years. Mum was 59 when Dad died and lived alone all those years. As her 90th year drew closer I made a personal commitment on the grounds that Mum had dedicated her life to her family and the least I could do was see that she was not alone in her older years. Mum was quite healthy, fit and independent until around the 91 year mark when she began to suffer with congestive heart failure.
I am the eldest and we were retired so naturally accepted the responsibility for her care and were very happy to be able to keep her in her own home. We put on hold our plans to live full time in our old converted Purple Bus travelling around New Zealand.
The last two or three years were the most difficult as we began to feel our years slipping by without achieving our dream. The cost was high in stress both on our health and to our pocket. Mum died early this year and while I miss her the stress is no longer. Our dreams are changing according to our age since John is heading for 77 and I am 73. I don't regret the "lost years" because we did have some adventures and we are still fit enough to plan for more.
I was fortunate in that our daughter decided to live with Mum so we were able to share 'being there for Mum.'
We still plan to travel in the Old Purple Bus when we get it roadworthy once more. We still hope to have one or more trips to North America. The latter is dependent on affordability and particularly the cost of insurance. Our age has become a significant factor.
Take care and continue to plan for times when you can do what you want even if it has to be a modified version. Above all look after your own health and find ways of keeping your stress levels as low as possible.
Blessings
Thank you so much MargieAnne. I'm sorry about the loss of your Mum but it sounds like she had a long life surrounded by the people who loved her.
DeleteAl and I have also considered that we're not getting any younger and as the years pass by we may not be as healthy as we are now and therefore unable to do some of the things we want to do.
We feel we're taking steps to improve our odds by our change in diet, but one never knows.
I always like to know who is reading my blog and comments are the best way. Thanks for taking the time to do so!
Hey, great job! I'm so happy you're feeling the "boost"! If Al is eating the same way, I think he'll feel it as soon as he's back on track with his sinuses. And, if he tends to have sinus problems, this way of eating may lessen or eliminate them. I am much, much less congested than before.
ReplyDeleteYes, Al is eating exactly the same way. I'll pass this on to him. He would sure like less sinus congestion.
DeleteI'm also sorry to hear that you're being waylaid. Not that you look at it that way. It's good you're able to refocus on what you want to do for your family.
ReplyDeleteI make lentil sloppy joes, and I'm also a big fan of grilled portabella with provolone cheese on bread in the broiler. Quick, easy, delicious! Got a new book at the library yesterday called "Eat To Live" if it's any good I'll post some recipes! I tried to make tofu tacos a couple of weeks ago and did not like them so I'll give the lentil tacos a try instead, thanks for the tip.
ReplyDelete