March woodland

Some  more photographs of this little patch of woodland near home. The ground is now green with bluebell woods growing on the banks of the stream.

The warmth and sunshine has brought out more flowers, this month there are celandines amongst the bluebell leaves

and in the damp ground near the stream, golden saxifrage.

The buds are just starting to open on the hazel

but looking up the trees in the canopy are still bare.

Vegan month update

vegan packed lunch

I am now a third of the way through the "30 Day Vegan" workshop so time for an update. This workshop is excellent and the course materials are very well presented. Already I have lots of new recipes to try as well as nutritional information and ideas for taking care of yourself.

I don't eat meat often but still I am surprised at how easy it has been to stop eating both meat and dairy produce. I have also chosen to cut down on caffeine, replacing tea and coffee with Redbush tea. After ten days the main change I have noticed is that I seem to have more energy through the day and I don't have a slump in energy levels in the afternoon.

I have been eating mainly vegetables, grains and beans so far which might sound boring but with sauces and dressings everything tastes really good. I am cooking vegan just for me (couldn't persuade the rest of the family to join in) but I usually cook enough for two meals so I have something already prepared for lunch the next day. Many of the meals taste just as good cold so I have packed lunches for work all sorted the night before . Eating properly at lunchtime rather than just grabbing a snack may be the reason my energy levels seem to be more constant throughout the day.

I am looking forward to the next batch of recipes to try out this weekend.

sewing

Sewing is not a word that crops up very frequently on this blog. I have made clothes before but my sewing machine has not had much use lately.

This year I wanted to start sewing again and I have been taking a class called "Kick Start to Sewing" with Alice and Ginny. We are making two items in the four week course and the first one was this cushion..

I used fabric from IKEA and now have a new cushion which matches my yoga mat.

I am enjoying sewing again and might even be confident to think about making some clothes but for now I have my class homework to do - to cut out the fabric to make a bag in the next class.

Vegan for a month

This month I am taking part in the  "30 Day Vegan" workshop run by Heather from "beauty that moves".  It is described as a cleansing wholefood workshop - a month of clean living and clear thinking, which seems just perfect for this time of year.

I have been interested in eating a mainly plant based diet for a while particularly since reading The China Study and this is a good opportunity to give it a try with lots of information, encouragement and some brilliant recipes.

My family have decided not to join me in this so I am cooking two different meals each evening but it does mean that I can choose to eat exactly what I want! My husband and sons like a meat based diet and I rarely eat meat so usually I cook a meal that they will like and then I just eat the vegetables with some cheese or houmous.  For the next month I am going to try to cook myself balanced vegan meals and from the recipes that I've tried so far I think its going to be a good month!

Moss

A few photographs of moss growing on a brick bridge that I often pass while out walking.

On the vertical surfaces, it seems to prefer the mortar rather than the brick producing rectangular patterns.

On the top, flat surfaces the little cushions of moss look so delicate.

Where the moss is growing thickly, other plants get a foothold as well, what a perfect miniature garden