Lucy's Story

On September 23rd, Mr. GV's mother called him to ask a question about a stray dog that was hanging around their house.  This was that stray.  Mr. GV's parents are old-school, and so her solution was to drop her somewhere else, while his father told me she looked so bad he thought he would have to shoot her.  That's how it was done in the past, and I'm sorry to say that's how it's STILL done sometimes.  

I have said many times that I have a heart for dogs that are old and sickly.  Well, this stray was brought to the right place at the right time.  She was absolutely pitiful.  Hair missing from fleas, teeth worn down from fleas.  How long would you have to have been full of fleas to have worn your teeth down??  Ears full of black gunk, cheesy smell to her body, mammary tumor plus large vaginal tumor that stuck out of her body. And her hearing and sight were not so good.  The vet estimated her age at 10-12. Plus you can just imagine how dirty and skinny she was.  

I took one look at her and thought "She's going home with me.  Whether she has two days or two years left, she's going to be loved."  

And oh how she was loved.  After a couple days she was sleeping between us at the foot of the bed.  She had a good appetite.  She enjoyed her treats.  

She was also positive for heart worms.  Because of that, the way her lungs sounded, and the fact that she was having to work a bit to breathe, our vet did a chest X-ray.  It was cloudy but did not look too bad.  She went on a course of steroids and antibiotics for a couple weeks.  Her breathing improved and she had surgery to remove the tumors.  The mammary and vaginal tumors were all benign, which was a pleasant surprise.  She was spayed at the same time (Did I mention she was in heat when we got her??  I was so thankful she was not pregnant, because we would have had to end it.  

She recovered quickly from her surgeries and had lots of energy and appetite.  Her hair grew back, and she had a beautiful coat of white hair with black spot. She was enjoying life; you could just tell.  

And J took to her right away.  He used to cuddle with her, want her to sleep on the bed with him, and tell her he loved her.  And she loved being with him.  She would choose to stay with him in whatever room of the house he was in.  

And she loved her daddy more than me, which is totally fine!  I am just glad she could bond with someone after all she had been through.  

Riding home after a walk in the park.

She was a chilly little girl, so she got a sweater.

In November, I noticed she was developing multiple lumps on her body.  They came up suddenly, and I took her to the vet.  The vet was not too concerned about the lumps but wanted to put her on another round of antibiotics for her skin, which had not healed completely.  Within a few more days she started having trouble breathing again.  Back she went, had another chest X-ray (which looked worse than the original one) and she received oxygen for a while then came home. 

The next day I was laying in bed with her, snoozing, when a strange noise woke me.  Lucy had stopped breathing.  I gave her a couple of breaths by mouth, not knowing if it would do any good.  She began breathing on her own again, but was obviously struggling.  At this point we thought we were fighting an infection.  If I had known then what was to come, I would have let her slip away, comfortable in her own home.  

But since I didn't know, I rushed her to the vet where she was again put on oxygen.  Our vet did a needle aspiration into her lung and discovered that unfortunately, Lucy had cancer.  The hazy X-rays probably were obscuring any obvious tumors.  The lumps might possibly have been mast cell tumors.  Or maybe not.  We'll never know.  

But she was struggling, and her time was near.  We decided to do the most loving thing we could, and release her from suffering.  And so on November 26th, Lucy left us.  

Would I have done anything differently?  Yes, but only in that I would not have put her through surgery for spay and the other tumors.  I do not regret one penny spent on her, nor the heartbreak of losing her so quickly.  I would do it all  over again, and plan to take in more elderly and/or sick dogs.  I am waiting a bit to continue though, as my nephew J was so heartbroken over losing Lucy.  He asked that the next dog I get be a puppy so it wouldn't die.  And so I am trying to take into consideration that it is traumatizing for J to lose someone he loves, but at the same time balance that with the fact that there are so many needy older dogs out there.  

In the end, Lucy spent all but a few of her last days like this:  snuggled up in front of the fireplace, snoozing, with a full belly, and feeling LOVED.  I couldn't ask for a better ending.  

Please consider adopting an older pet!  Or if you don't feel like you can go through the inevitable loss, please donate to a group such as Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary.  Look them up on Facebook.  They are doing a fantastic job of taking care of multiple senior dogs!

Back in the Saddle

Well, hello there!  I purposely took the month of October off from blogging.  And then had some issues with iPhoto not letting me into my pictures.  But after some handy-dandy help from Apple customer service, everything seems to be working again.

October was a busy month around here.  One of the biggest (yet smallest) things added to our lives is this:

Details to follow on how we ended up with this sweet thing.

I'll be back soon with lots of picture posts!

Wild Cow.....Again

When we found ourselves in the Nashville area for Mr. GV's CE, we of course had to have a meal at The Wild Cow.  We went with our old standbys that we love so much.  

Mr. GV had the The Philly (which is spicy) with a side of Seasonal Mixed Vegetables with Garlic Aioli

and I had a Wild Reuben with Chickpea Salad on the side.  We split our side items, because they are both delicious.  

For dessert we had a slice of delicious cake.  My one stipulation was that it had to have chocolate, and the person who waited on us suggested this cake, which was chocolate with cookies on it!  Yummy.  

Mr. GV needed lunch for the next day, so he ordered the Three Sides (chickpea salad, couscous salad, and hummus and chips.)  

The Wild Cow is a great place to eat if you ever find yourself in Nashville!  

Good country cookin'

Things have been busy around here (new dog, a stray with multiple problems) and lots of other tasks so I've found myself without a lot of free time and/or energy to blog.  But yesterday we went to my Mom's house and had lunch with her.

Mom made kraut, stewed potatoes, crowder peas, and cornbread, and we brought the Field Roast.  It was a simple yet delicious vegan meal and there were even leftovers that she sent home with us.  Smile.  

Indian Buffet

Mr. GV ventured off to Nashville last week for some continuing education and I got to go along on the trip!  One day while he was attending class, I wandered off for some vegan Indian food for lunch.  

It was buffet....which is a dangerous thing for me at an Indian restaurant!  But I took my time and "only" got a couple plates worth.  

If I had to eat one type of food for the rest of my life (and didn't have to worry about getting too much oil/fat in my diet), it would be Indian food.  

Pizza Pizza

Sometimes it's just pizza time.  Thankfully the crust recipe I use is easy and doesn't take a lot of time.  I had some tomato sauce I made recently, still in the fridge and ready to add spices to, and it was easy enough to pick some fresh basil, and thaw out some Daiya cheese and vegan pepperoni from the freezer.

I added some pepperonis on top of mine so they would be crispy.

Mr. GV likes pineapple and bell pepper on his as well. 

Other than buying a can of pineapple, this was a meal from the 

pantry/freezer/fridge/front porch (basil.)  

Your Turn:  What are your favorite vegan pizza toppings??

Oatmeal

Oatmeal.  Just the sound of the word conjures up visions of pasty, gloppy food to me.  But there is an easy way to change that vision:  just add in lots of healthy, appealing foods that still have some texture to them!

For this particular batch of steel cut oatmeal, I added:  walnuts, raisins, dates (pitted and chopped), tart cherries, flax seed (ground), hemp, and salt.  Sometimes I add chopped apples, especially if I've got some older, going-South fast, wrinkly ones.  

I used to add cinnamon directly to the cooking pot, but it made the oatmeal stick even worse, so now Mr. GV just adds his to his individual serving.  

Your turn:  What do you add to your oatmeal to make it more interesting?  

Sushi

Until I was vegan, I never had sushi.  My idea of sushi was "Ewww....raw fish." Now I know that not all sushi is made with raw fish or even with animal products at all.  The word sushi refers to the rice, with some definitions saying it means "vinegared rice" and others saying "seasoned rice."  

A chain grocery store in a nearby town recently remodeled, and now they make sushi right in the store!  There are a few vegan options for us:  veggie rolls, vegetable gyoza, and veggie wraps.  I absolutely love the veggie rolls.

Carrot, avocado, cucumber, nori, rice, and sesame seeds.  Served with a bit of pickled ginger and wasabi, (which I don't really care for.)  

I also got the vegetable gyoza, seen in the picture below.  A few seconds in the microwave, with the gyoza in a small bowl and a saucer turned over top, and they were ready to eat.  

I really should start making sushi at home.  I've seen tutorials on it a few times and don't think I would have a problem making it, but so far I just haven't tried.  

Your turn:  Do you like vegan sushi?  Do you make it at home, buy it at a grocery, or indulge at a restaurant?  

Red Beans and Spice

I'm sure just about every vegan knows about Dr. McDougall.  We have a couple of his cookbooks here and have a few favorite recipes.  

One of those is Spicy Red Beans and Rice.  Mr. GV loves to eat it and I like it because I can just chop up a couple things, soak some beans (doesn't say you have to, but I like to), open a couple cans, put it all in the slow cooker and let it cook overnight.  

There are a *lot* of herbs and spices in this recipe.  We also add a bit of salt, even though you won't find that in the original recipe.  

Your turn:  Do you follow Dr. McDougall's diet or have any favorite recipes from his cookbooks?  

Oh deer.....

Do you think if I hadn't told them "Don't worry, we're vegan" they just might be a little more afraid of me when I step out the front door?  Or at the very least not be so bold as to stand IN my garden beds?  Ha!  They also ate our one cantaloupe on the very day it would have been picked.  I guess they know when it's ripe too!  One of them seems to mainly be interested in the bed you see here in the front.  That bed used to have sweet potato, cantaloupe, and some volunteer peas.  Now it mostly has lots of little nubs.  Mainly I wish they had just left the sweet potatoes alone, as we eat the heck out of them here at our house.  

Next year Mr. GV plans to build a better fence around the garden.  I hope it works.  I don't mind sharing with the outside critters, but this is a bit much.  

YOUR TURN:  Do you battle it out with wild creatures for ownership of your garden?  

Chickpea Salad

 I never was a fan of creamy animal-based salads.  You know the ones.  And I never really liked mayo on a sandwich either.  

But....one day I decided to try the chickpea salad at The Wild Cow restaurant in Nashville, and it was love at first taste.  I had it many times as a side item when we ate there, and was always disappointed when they had run out for the day. 

We don't visit  Nashville all that often, so I decided it was time to try and mimic their delicious dish.  

Ingredients:  cooked chickpeas, onion, celery, parsley, and dill.  Not pictured:  vegan mayo and salt.  Mash some of the chickpeas and mix in the mayo and salt to your taste.  

We like our chickpea salad served on toasted bread or a bagel, open-faced or as a sandwich.  You could serve it over lettuce or just as a side dish.  It's a nice, cool dish on a hot summer day!  

Your turn:  Where do you fall on the "yum" scale of vegan mayo-based dishes?  Any favorites?  

Red Robin Options

Yesterday I went with my Mom, sister, and nephew for a day out.  We have found that Red Robin is a good place for our family to eat in this particular town.  The omnis like what they get and I can get vegan foods!  There is a Gardenburger (not vegan, but vegetarian) and a vegan Boca burger, which is what I got.  

Along with that we had the hummus plate.  The hummus was yummy!  They served baby carrots, celery, and kettle chips with it.  (The celery was supposed to be cucumber, according to the menu, so that was a disappointment, as my nephew absolutely loves cucumber.)  I am not a huge fan of raw celery, but did manage to eat most of one piece when I had it loaded with hummus.  Ha!

My advice when eating at Red Robin:  Make sure you emphasize that you want the Boca vegan burger.  My husband was served the vegetarian burger once before and didn't realize it until he was a few bites in, which really turned him off to eating there in the future.  

Your turn:  Have you tried eating vegan at Red Robin?  Are there any other "surprise" vegan foods that you have found at typical burger joints?  Hummus was a big surprise to me the first time I noticed it at RR!  

A Favorite Convenience Food

Gardein--have you tried it?  Yes, it is a processed food, but in my household we do eat some convenience foods at times. I have had a few different products from the company.  The sliders are pretty good, but my favorite is the mandarin orange crispy chick'n.  My mom, who eats an omni diet, likes the teriyaki chick'n.  

At my house, we like to take the cooked chick'n, then add some vegetables such as steamed broccoli, carrots, and squash, some chow mein noodles and sesame seeds, maybe throw in a dash of tamari, and put it all over brown rice. It's so good!  Or you could substitute salad or greens for the rice.  

Your thoughts:

Have you tried Gardein, and if so what did you think about it.  Which is your favorite product in their line?  Do you have any omni friends who tried Gardein and liked it?  

Welcome!

Welcome to Vegan MoFo!  I hope to be able to share pictures and thoughts at least 20 times this month.  

A little bit about me:  I'm Mrs. GreenVeggies (GV), a 41 year old old gal living in the Southern United States.  You'll find the rest of my family listed here on the right side of the page.  -------->

This is my third year participating in Vegan MoFo.  Last year I had a theme of "Bake Something Already!"  and boy oh boy, did I bake!  A lot.  So this year I am back to no theme, just sharing meals I cook, products I find, and one short out of town trip.  

I hope you'll stick around and enjoy what I'm dishing up this month!  

Play Time

J is dramatic.  Everybody in the family knows that.  So taking part in the children's theater this summer was a natural fit for him.  

He played Toulouse in "The Aristocats."  He was a tough-acting, orange kitten.  

He learned his lines very well.  And everyone else's.  Seriously, if he was old enough he would have been a perfect Edgar, the butler.  

Pretending to drink milk laced with sleeping pills.  (Mean ol' Edgar...)  

He is a typical 5 year old boy when it comes to dancing!  Uncoordinated and oblivious to the fact while he gives it his all. lol  But cute as all get out while doing it!  

I predict more summers will be spent participating in children's theater.  I hope he never outgrows his outgoing personality.  

Karate Promotion

Somebody earned his yellow belt!  J has really taken to karate.  It has most definitely helped his sense of balance.  

Proud boy!  (And deservedly so!)  

Swimming Lessons

J took a week of swimming lessons this summer.  He made a cute little friend.

After some initial fear, he enjoyed being in the water.  

At the end of each day, the children went off the diving board.  Again, he had a fear (understandable) but after a while he was getting into it.  

Victory!  On Friday, after the last lesson, the children were treated to ice cream from the snack shack at the pool.  

Mr. GV went along on the last day and hung out with J.  I love this dive---J was completely letting go and trusting his "Big Guy" as he refers to his Uncle sometimes.  

A couple of happy boys.  

Stomp

This CCFC (cheap crap from China) is so much fun.  It's a Stomp Rocket, and J has the best time with it.  He gets adventurous and jumps off the steps to give it a really good boost.  

Taken on the same day, but otherwise totally unrelated to stomping, this is the magnolia tree that we planted when it was about 6 feet tall.  It was a gift from our realtor when we bought our house.  They are slow-growing, long-lived trees, but it sure has grown quite a bit in the past 11 years.

Art

J loves to do art.  Especially when it involves stampers and glitter. 

The beauty of a child's face is art itself, isn't it?  

Whenever I have a random item that has outlived its purpose, I'm always thinking "Hmm....can we use this for art?"  The 'yarn' you see below is from a rug that unraveled.  And now it has a slot in our art supply hanger (shoe holder.)