Veggie Fueled Mama

This post was inspired by a text conversation I was having with one of my baby's daycare teachers, and I think it's a good follow-up to my last post, which was about not being a helicopter parent (read it here). I wrote to her and asked her if they make any art for Easter using real eggs. They make really cute art for most holidays, and I was sure they'd be making something for Easter. I figured it wouldn't involve real eggs at this point, but I wanted to confirm so I could b

On March 5, 2014, I went vegan for Lent and thought I'd give it up on Easter. I wanted to see how difficult it was and how I felt not consuming any animal products. Here I am, a touch over 5 years later, still going, and I'm never, ever, ever looking back. I, like many others, have always dreamed of being vegan--I loved animals and wanted my lifestyle to reflect that--but I truly thought it was impossible unless one had a private chef. To be fair, when I first started thinkin

As I mentioned in my very first post, I knew if I had a child I would want to raise him or her as a vegan. Well, here we are, almost 8 months into my daughter's life, and she's a vegan! And, as I mentioned in my last post, I am 99% plant-based, 1% junk food vegan. For the time being, my baby girl will be part of that 99%. The food we provide our baby is from the earth, and it will be a while before we start offering her meat, dairy, and egg replacements, because she's just ge

**Before I get too far into this post, I'll put this out there for anyone who doesn't know: there can be a huge difference between something that is vegan and something that is whole food, plant-based. Something that is plant-based is necessarily vegan, but something that is vegan is not necessarily plant-based. For example, you can eat Ritz crackers, Fritos, Oreos, and Swedish Fish and be eating vegan, but these things are obviously not plant-based. "Vegan" is also, for the

I knew from the beginning that I'd be going back to work after I had my baby. Even when I was on maternity leave and would get sad at the thought of leaving her, I knew I'd be going back. For us, that meant we'd be sending our baby to daycare. I never had any qualms about sending her to the place we chose. It's a wonderful place and the teachers there love our girl! However, always knowing that I'd be sending my baby to daycare came with also always knowing she'd most certain

Ask anyone who has had a baby if she has had any issues with postpartum self-image. If she tells you she hasn't, she's lying. There’s a deep, dark voice in all of us, and some have a quieter one than others have. But it’s there, telling you that your body will never be the same again and that that’s a bad thing. For some, that voice is a motivator that lights a fire and whips them into shape as fast as possible. For others it can become a degrading nag when they put themselve

Not every mother wants to breastfeed, and not every mother is capable of breastfeeding. Then there are breastfeeding mothers who under produce, and there are breastfeeding mothers who over produce. Lip ties, tongue ties, bad latches, mastitis, clogs, thrush, babies who won’t take bottles and don’t give their moms any freedom, and pumping for some freedom for those babies who will take a bottle. These are just a few of the common complications breastfeeding mothers deal with e

When you're at the hospital, you have this wonderful option of allowing them to take your baby to the nursery so you can sleep. Not everyone takes advantage of this, but we did. They kept her there at night and brought her in when she needed to nurse. You can give them specific wishes such as “don’t bottle/formula feed” or however you want them to handle their awake time. After labor, you are SO exhausted, and getting the chance to catch up on some shut eye was something I wa

**I will preface this post by saying that I know no two labor and delivery experiences are alike. They are not always pleasant, and many (if not most) do not go as planned in some way. In fact, some end up downright traumatic for all involved. I realize that. There is no judgment here about the type of birth plan anyone chooses or has chosen for herself. This post is just about MY experience--how my labor and delivery went and how I felt about it.** The day before I went into

One of the typical questions you get when you’re pregnant is, “What are you craving?” And people will tell you their husbands drove to get them food in the middle of the night to satisfy their wildly weird needs. Not me. I was mildly disappointed that I didn't have any funky cravings, like the stereotypical ice cream and pickles combo. I barely even had any cravings, and I was disappointed about that, too. I should also mention that at no point did I ever, for a single second

After the shock of being pregnant wore off (frankly, it never really did), I started mentally preparing myself for comments and inquiries from friends and family about whether I'd still be vegan during pregnancy. The answer, which was non-negotiable, was an emphatic "YES!" I mean, there was no question. To my surprise, I wasn't questioned AT ALL (other than my husband's 90-year-old grandmother innocently asking me if it's OK that I wasn't drinking milk, but, honestly, who cou

Before I get into the substance, I’ll start by saying there is a spectrum, like there is for so many circumstances we all deal with, for how vegans deal with and feel about use of animals in things other than food. Most won’t support zoos or circuses, many don’t support horseback riding, and a minority do not support service animals. But I would say a vast majority of vegans don’t wear clothing (including shoes) made of animal products like leather, wool, silk, or down, and t