Here is a pic of a cake I made for my niece’s birthday party this past weekend. It was very easy as most of it was a plastic kit (for the turrets). It was a vanilla cake with an almond butter cream frosting.

I also have been experimenting and I have finally been able to make a vegan version of fondant! Woohoo! This is a huge success because for so long now I have felt that I could not use fondant because it is made with gelatin and I want to avoid any animal ingredients. By using agar powder instead of gelatin I am able to get the same effect.  I tweaked the recipe a bit and I made a batch of vegan fondant from this excellent recipe from Epicurious.com. I made my niece a smaller cake using the vegan fondant. I don’t like how amateur my cake looks but considering it is the second time I have worked with fondant and I don’t really know what I am doing I guess it is okay. I am going to take a fondant/gum paste course next month and I cannot wait to learn!

I have been researching feline diabetes online to find out more about the insulin we give Midnite and food he should eat, what to expect, so on and so forth. This website, FelineDiabetes.com, is fantastic and filled with a plethora of info on care.  I was kinda freaked out at the cost of the insulin, but it turns out I am a tool and was not reading the vial correctly The insulin will be far less expensive, which is good considering the last visit to the vet was $500…..::sigh:: Anyways, this site was very helpful and an excellent resource; I thought I would pass it along.

Midnite is at the vet to test blood glucose levels throughout the day and I will find out this afternoon what we will need to do for him. He does seem more perky but he is still eating, drinking, and peeing nonstop. He is back to biting my toes and swatting my ankles, which is a good sign :).

Update 08-15-08

Well the vet said yesterday Midnite’s levels were in the 400’s so we need to increase his insulin amount. There were no ketones this time in his urine which is a really good thing. I have to take him back again next week for a recheck of his blood glucose level. It is better to go slowly with raising insulin levels than giving too much as too little blood sugar can be fatal (as opposed to too much and feeling yucky). He was so upset when I picked him up yesterday but is really glad to be home I am glad that he is hanging in and doing ok

Did y’all see the Olympics Monday eve when the women gymnasts from USA and China competed? Slack and I caught a bit of it. As we were watching Slack comments, “I did not know they allowed 9-year-olds in the Olympics”, quckly followed by, “Then, of course they are probably forty years old and just age really well.” He was commenting on the Chinese gymnasts. Apparently we are not the only ones who have noticed but it appears the IOC is content to let this one ride. I want to beleive that China is doing things legit but I pause when I read they used taped segments and computer images in the “live” opening ceremonies to make the footstep fireworks and the young girl chosen to sing in the ceremonies was actually lip syncing another girl, who was behind the scenes, as she was deemed not pretty enough. I would like to think it is nonsense that China would lie and cover up the age of their gymnasts but, the doubt is there and that sux.

Midnite, our 12-year-old cat has not been feeling well lately. He has lost a lot of weight and not eating, peeing outside the catbox, etc. I finally took him to the vet on Friday and tests were ran on Saturday. It turns out he has diabetes. His blood glucose levels were 527 where the norm for a cat (even under stress) would top out at 225. Yikes. So, for now, he is getting insulin shots two times a day. He has a recheck later this week and I guess we will evaluate what to do from there. I feel so bad and I certainly do not want him to suffer. He seems to be feeling a bit better as he is not constantly meowing anymore. I guess we will wait and see….poor kitty.

I am a foodie. I LOVE FOOD. It has been awhile now that I have been a vegetarian. I sure miss a steak and still love the smell of bacon :). It has been a test to my beliefs to not eat meat as I had done for most of my life. It has been a learning experience filled with sadness and enlightenment. I have read so much about animals and the farming industry that I have no doubt I am doing the right thing for my conscious. Early on in my journey into vegetarianism I ate eggs and milk products but avoided any meat, poultry, fish, or any animal ingredients (gelatin, lecithin, carmine, etc.) in food. I also purchase toiletries and household cleaners from companies who do not test on animals or have animal ingredients in their products (BTW, that pretty much eliminates any big name brand at the store). Being a lacto-ovo vegetarian is really easy in comparison to being a vegan.

However, the more I read the more I became conflicted with eating eggs. I think eggs are an excellent source of protein and necessary amino acids and really really wish I could eat them. After reading how chickens are treated, even in the so-called free range farming, I could no longer support eating eggs. If I had my own chickens I think I would use eggs but alas I do not have the opportunity to do so as my HOA does not allow farm animals. Did I mention I need to move? I digress :).

So now I avoid eggs (::sigh::) and I do eat some dairy: mostly sour cream, cheese, and butter. I don’t like milk so that has not been a big issue for me and soy milk works great for anything I need to use it in. I buy organic milk (from companies that make a clear statement that the cows are treated well) for Peanut and am slowly transitioning to organic butter, sour cream, and cheese products. That is expensive to do. I am not sure if I will transition from using milk products to avoiding them as well. I LOVE CHEESE :). And that would be a very difficult thing for me to give up. No cream or butter? I don’t know about that. I am only human :).

That said, it is a struggle to adapt recipes to be vegan or vegetarian. I am really into baking and eggs are so essential to baking; at least in the western world! It has been an experience trying to find egg substitutions that work and work well. My impression is often vegans say to themselves, “Well, there are no animal ingredients in this so I will sacrifice taste.”  I CANNOT agree to this! Food should taste GOOD!! I am on a quest to find good vegan recipes that taste good too :). I can have both dammit!

So far I have been able to make an excellent chocolate cake and chocolate chip walnut cookies that are delicious and vegan. I even have hard-core carnivores (such as my hubby) tell me they are da bomb. Yay! So I will keep experimenting to find good vegan baked goods and know, for me, I am doing the right thing for myself, the planet, and all living things. Slack you are right, I am a damn hippy :).

Yesterday was birthday and I made, for the first time, a vegan carrot cake! It turned out delish! It seems to be more of a quick bread texture but I think with a few more tweaks it could be perfect. I used vegan cream cheese in the frosting and toasted pecans and coconut for the sides and top- YUMMO!

Interested in the better treatment of farm animals? Click on this link to take action and sign your name to the pledge by the Humane Society of the United States. It is free. It takes less than 45 seconds to fill out the form. It is painless. It works. Do it :).

Dear Peanut,

Well it is back to school for you and you are doing great :). You cry for a few minutes every time I drop you off. Wiping your tears on your shirt you tell me you are a tough guy.  Every time I pick you up from school though you are happy as can be. One day when I picked you up from school and asked you how school went you said, “Well, I am learning to control my fears”. Hahahaha.

We made sign for door: No Monsters No Bugs Allowed. That seems to help you feel better too :).

I don’t know what to think about this teenage attitude you have going on. Simultaneously I love you and I want to ground you to your room until you are 21 because you drive me nuts with your talking back and looks. What am I in for?!

Your boundless energy truly amazes me. You are nonstop from the very moment you wake, “So, what are we doing today Mama?” to every night when we tuck you in, “So, I was thinking about sleeping in your room”.

I LOVE YOU PEANUT. xoxoxo

America is full of pet lovers. Heard of Greenies? They are treats for dogs and now cats. I have heard these are quite popular. I think it is cool that they have capitalized on how difficult it is to get house pets to take pills and offer treats that a pill can easily be tucked into. Get a free sample here.

Do you remember in the movie, Forrest Gump, when Forrest runs across America? I always thought that would be the coolest thing to accomplish and a huge part of me has always wanted to do this. It is definitely on my List of Things To Do Before I Die. I just found out that Google Walking is in beta. You can type your From and To destination and it will give you directions and a time frame for how long it will take you to walk there Did you know it would take me 3,577 miles or about 28 days to walk from Tucson to Anchorage?