Scoping out the dinosaur bones at the American Museum of Natural History for Roman’s 2nd Birthday.

Hello all! How have you been?

We’ve been going through a bit of an adjustment period here. Roman–who just turned two at the end of January!–recently gave up his nap, which means that mommy no longer gets a break during the day.  It’s definitely nice that we don’t have to schedule around his nap anymore, but this change has also meant that my days feel much longer and are often pretty exhausting.  Finding time to write and read has become challenging.  We’re working on solutions, though.  This whole parenting thing is a delicate balancing act–just when you think you’ve got it sorted out, something changes and you have to regroup.

Despite the schedule upheaval, I have been able to eek out a few words here and there, so I should have a couple recipes coming your way soon.  In the meantime, I thought I’d pop in with a handful of links to things I’ve been making or have found interesting lately.

Easy Lentil Walnut Tacos
I made the lentil-walnut filling, skipped the slaw, and served it in romaine lettuce leaves instead of taco shells–and wow was it delicious!  I didn’t bother toasting the walnuts (because I’m lazy) and subbed a couple tablespoons of tomato paste for the sundried tomatoes (because I was out), and it still came out great–though I imagine it would be even more flavorful as written.

Sweet Potato Curry
I’ve made this sweet potato curry a few times now because it’s that good–and, admittedly, because it’s an efficient way to use all the carrots and sweet potatoes (or “fwee-tay”, as Roman would say) that we’ve been getting in our CSA.  It takes a little while to come together, but the result is so worth it.

Juicing Removes More Than Just Fiber
As I’ve discussed before, while I thoroughly enjoy a nice green juice on occasion, I really love me some smoothies.  Part of the reason is that blending keeps all that awesome fiber in the mix, but I’ve had a sneaking suspicion for some time that the remnants of juicing contain more than mere roughage.

Beyond Carnism, and toward Rational, Authentic Food Choices
A really thought-provoking TED talk from Melanie Joy about the psychology behind why we eat certain animals and not others.

On Vaccinations, And Living In Community
There has been a lot of vaccine-related commentary going around in light of the recent measles outbreak in the U.S.  I particularly enjoyed this balanced, thoughtful piece by Sayward Rebhal on her decision to vaccinate her son.  As someone who tends to lean crunchy, but takes an evidence-based, logic-driven approach, I appreciated her process and thoughts on the subject.
Related: It seems we may finally be coming out on the other side of the vaccine/autism controversy (at least I hope we are), but I thought this piece written by a woman with autism provided an interesting and rarely considered perspective.

Twenty Years Vegan: How to Age Without Regret
For all the good–if a bit hyperbolic–PR that veganism gets these days for bestowing glowing skin and being a virtual fountain of youth (*cough*Jared Leto*cough*), this post takes a look at the vastly more important thing that a vegan lifestyle will offer you through the years.