Meatless Mondays!

Whether you're the type of person has has lots of meatless days of the week or the type that orders their steaks at a restaurant "still mooing" (y.i.k.e.s.) the concept of "Meatless Mondays" can still rock! I think I originally heard of this concept as more of a health based suggestion. It's true, reducing the amount of meat you consume weekly can be extremely healthy for you! 

Check out this list from www.meatlessmonday.com -

• LIMIT CANCER RISK: Hundreds of studies suggest that diets high in fruits and vegetables may reduce cancer risk. Both red and processed meat consumption are associated with colon cancer.
• REDUCE HEART DISEASE: Recent data from a Harvard University study found that replacing saturated fat-rich foods (for example, meat and full fat dairy) with foods that are rich in polyunsaturated fat (for example, vegetable oils, nuts and seeds) reduces the risk of heart disease by 19%
• FIGHT DIABETES: Research suggests that higher consumption of red and processed meat increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.
• CURB OBESITY: People on low-meat or vegetarian diets have significantly lower body weights and body mass indices. A recent study from Imperial College London also found that reducing overall meat consumption can prevent long-term weight gain.
• LIVE LONGER: Red and processed meat consumption is associated with increases in total mortality, cancer mortality and cardiovascular disease mortality.
• IMPROVE YOUR DIET. Consuming beans or peas results in higher intakes of fiber, protein, folate, zinc, iron and magnesium with lower intakes of saturated fat and total fat. 

 I don't know about you, but for me the words mixed up in the bullet points above are some of the scariest one's I've ever come across. Cancer?! Diabetes?! Obesity?! and of course LIVING LONGER - that's a big one! Might be worth throwing in some "Meatless Mondays". 

For me "Meatless Mondays" mean even more to me than just the benefits we've already talked about. I really (really really really really) love animals. I really am struggling lately with how ridiculously cruel our nation is to animals. I think I was made so much more aware of this while I was in Australia and there was no concerns of pregnant pigs being so caged up they will never in their LIFE do anything other than lay down or stand up - literally MILLIONS of them, forced into a constant state of pregnancy, injections and hormones. SO SO sad and quite frankly down right disgusting. That fact - I learned from a site I subscribe to, and their investigations of Tyson industries. (you may want to steer clear of all things Tyson ever day of the week!) 

All around environmentally though, here are some benefits to "Meatless Mondays":

• REDUCE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT. The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization estimates the meat industry generates nearly one-fifth of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that are accelerating climate change worldwide . . . far more than transportation. And annual worldwide demand for meat continues to grow. Reining in meat consumption once a week can help slow this trend.
• MINIMIZE WATER USAGE. The water needs of livestock are tremendous, far above those of vegetables or grains. An estimated 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water go into a single pound of beef. Soy tofu produced in California requires 220 gallons of water per pound.
• HELP REDUCE FOSSIL FUEL DEPENDENCE. On average, about 40 calories of fossil fuel energy go into every calorie of feed lot beef in the U.S. Compare this to the 2.2 calories of fossil fuel energy needed to produce one calorie of plant-based protein. Moderating meat consumption is a great way to cut fossil fuel demand.

                          

I've reduced my meat intake a lot more than just on Mondays at this point - but you have to start somewhere and I think "Meatless Monday" is a great place for a beginning. I'm going to start posting what we had each week on Monday for dinner! 

Last night we tried this: 

Trader Joe's Mushroom Ravioli with mushroom truffle sauce. It was delicious and took about 7 minutes to make. We also had a salad to start. We ended the night with a very yummy blended fruit shake for dessert!

If you have a "Meatless Monday" recipe I'd love to see it!

Sydney Day FIVE

After all of the surfing excitement it was time for some scenic therapy. We decided to go on a Blue Mountains tour. I'm really glad we decided to do this. It's always a risk taking a guided tour that lasts for the entire day. If it sucks - you've just lost a whole day in a city you've traveled very far to spend a very limited time in. Luckily though - this did not suck. Meet Sam - our tour guide. He was fun and was willing to trade out Australian information in exchange for us answering questions he had about the U.S. 

We started off the trip mostly through Sydney. It turns out it's actually quite difficult to get out of Sydney because it's so vast, land wise. We drove for about two hours away and were still in Sydney. I like tours like this because they tend to give you a lot of local information you probably wouldn't have any other way. For instance, we found out the cheapest housing to purchase in Sydney is around 300k (AUD - so basically 330k USD). Sam said at that price you don't even have a bedroom, that is a studio apartment. The biggest difference here though is for Australians their pricing on goods is relative to their income. Starting wages here for even non office jobs is around 60k (AUD) Derek and I noticed right away most, if not all, of the people that waited on us in restaurants were older adults - Sam said starting pay for waiters/waitresses is about $25/hour. Because it's so high though. tipping is not really customary here. Tipping only really happens if you had a special occasion, or something went wrong on your part (your baby threw food everywhere etc...). Otherwise - tipping is not so much here. It's actually really hard to get used to the idea, I still feel bad every time we don't tip. I keep asking different Australians their opinion and it's all the same. No tipping. I suppose when you pay $18 for two beers though, it makes sense. We also found out Australians don't pay for health insurance - they have a universal government provided health insurance. Because of this their government really pushes a healthy lifestyle. I have yet to see any sort of even remotely overweight Australian. (seriously! It's almost strange) They also seem to be very content people. I feel like in the US everyone is always competing - who's got a bigger house, better purse, better cars etc.... They don't seem to have status symbol concerns as much here. They also seem fine with working really hard for their paychecks. I think every dinner has had some of the highest service I've ever experienced - and all for no tip. They just are proud of their great work. I wish I could bring that mentality home to the US as a souvenir for the whole nation. Instead of working hard, we have people taking welfare just to cheat the system, or there's always people complaining about how hard they have to work for their paychecks. I suggest they spend some time in Australia. They seem to have it figured out. They are also the best "green" country I've ever seen. They do the following to protect the earth in their country:


1) All city busses run on natural gas


2) The government here pays you to install solar panels on your homes. They will pay HALF of the installation, then if the solar panels are providing enough energy for your home AND others they will pay you monthly too and you won't have an energy bill.


3) It's been practically impossible to find any rubbish (trash) anywhere it's not supposed to be, it's so clean here I'd consider eating off the ground. (consider)


4) Every piece of meat served to you anywhere is considered Organic. They do not have giant chicken or cow manufactures that have animals that have never and will never see the light of one day or one blade of grass. Every animal they have as food here was originally free-range and never fed one preservative etc...of any sort. It's really amazing. Every single menu promotes eating organic and being aware of where your food comes from. Every menu also has full on vegetarian options. I haven't really seen a lot of vegan - but a TON of vegetarian options. It's really awesome!
First top on the tour was the Featherdale Wildlife Preserve. This place rocks and is is a definite must do for anybody traveling here. It's basically one large up close and personal with the animals experience. It was SO cool. They had almost every bird that is found in Australia, which is a ton and some are very colorful and beautiful. We saw a Tazmanian Devil (he did not spin around in cyclones - to my dismay), a dingo, and my favorite the Koalas and Kangaroos. They have a whole area you were allowed to just walk around with the Kangaroos. You could also buy ice cream cones filled with food for them to feed them! It was fun but a little scary - there were no employees around just Derek and I and the two French people we were traveling with - left to our own devices with the Kangaroos. We were also the first people in the park that morning and they were eagerly anticipating the food we brought them (never mind their giant piles of food the keepers had already put out). This picture really only tells part of this particular story. This is Derek nicely feeding one - but look at the big Kangaroo to the left approaching - the baby Derek was feeding took that cone. The big Kangaroo did NOT like that so he (she?) went over to the baby and kicked it to get it to surrender the cone! Literally kicked it! Poor thing - so we turned over our only other cone to the baby. We did both pet one (not that big one!) baby Kangaroo. Then at the end of our tour one of the keepers put a bag (pouch) over my neck that had a really tiny Kangaroo in it! 

After that we headed to the Botanical Gardens where we also had lunch. The view was spectacular. I'm not sure I've ever seen something so huge and filled with so many trees. Sam kept telling us it was similar to the Grand Canyon, but that (to my memory) was brown and dry. These mountains (more like rolling large hills really) were filled inch to inch with trees. Again, it's Fall here so some of the flowers were starting to wilt -which is so strange to think because ours are starting to bloom! Here's a really cool flower we saw though!

After these gardens we went driving through the mountains. They are called the Blue Moutains because from a distance you can see the oil reflecting off of them and it gives them a blue tint. These mountains make up 60% of Australia's National Park land. Sam took us to three different stops for great views. The first stop was not a usual tourist stop - it was just a location he had found. He told us he thinks some people come here for an "Australian Divorce" a.k.a. push your spouse off the mountain. It was really high up, but Derek and I climbed on the highest rock we could find and it was breathtaking:

Next we went to another stop and saw a natural waterfall! It was just so unbelievable how large these mountains and valleys were. 


Finally we stopped by "The Three Sisters" rock formation. The original settlers in Australia (the Aboriginals) have a legend of how these rocks were formed you can read here. These were very cool too and gave us some great pictures. Also, we found out most of the worlds Opal's come from Australia. There were a ton of Opal shops around the area. 

We finished off the tour by driving through their Olympic Park. The Sydney 2000 Olympics were held here. The area the park is in now is actually really flourishing and the hot thing is to live in the athletes housing. I don't think I had ever seen an Olympic Park before (if I have my Dad will prove me wrong), but it's amazing how large they are. Also, how much was built around it - hotels, grocery stores etc... just to try and manage the crowds.
We took the ferry back to Circular Quay to avoid the Saturday rush hour traffic. I would definitely tell anybody to make sure they take this tour if they are visiting Sydney.


At night we went to one of the most beautiful dinners I've ever been to. It was a grill called Wolfey's and it was right on the harbor. It was just so beautiful I was giddy like a school girl the entire meal. We took this picture before - and our restaurant was about 10 steps from here. 

We absolutely had the best table in the place and it was all open so you could feel the evening's air while we were eating. I think it was one of the best views I've ever had for a meal. I ordered a Caesar salad and it came like this:

Derek had Baramunda fish for dinner and I tried one of their pizza's. Both were great. After dinner we went to a bar, that had a band playing. Every single song they played was something you would hear at a wedding at home. I asked the bloke (guy) next to me if they ever play any non-American music. He said no. There were also a bunch of Bachlorette parties taking place where we were, and the guy next to me looked at me, rolled his eyes and said stupid Hen's. I clearly look confused because he then explained to me they call those pre-wedding parties "Hen's Nights". The other unique thing about Australia is their bars don't have chairs at the actual bar. It's strange to see and normally Derek and I will grab a seat at the bar, clearly though we have left normal. 
Yet another amazing day and you won't hear any complaints out of me - maybe just that we have to leave this city soon....

What's USDA certified - and why do I care?

After I figured out the milk situation, everything snowballed from there. The googling could not (would not) cease.

The first thing I started to figure out was the difference between USDA certified organic, natural and locally grown.

USDA Organic approved food is defined by the USDA as: Organic is a labeling term that indicates that the food or other agricultural product has been produced through approved methods that integrate cultural, biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, irradiation, and genetic engineering may not be used.

USDA Organic Farmers must adhere to: Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations.  Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.  Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation.  Before a product can be labeled ‘organic,’ a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards.  Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.” Consumer Brochure, USDA National Organic Program 

  

If you’re like me you just read all of that and said WHAT?!

After I read all this I took a trip to Trader Joes to see what this was all about. If you’ve ever been to Trader Joes, have you noticed everything that is 100% organic has yellow tags and the rest of their shelf tags are blue? I found several foods that had that USDA Organic logo on the front. Who knew? Sometimes the label is smaller but it will always been on the front (at least in my experience so far).

What I have figured out so far is the USDA Organic label is VERY difficult for companies to obtain. (to grasp the full depth check out this site: http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/organic-production) Knowing these farmers and producers have to go far above and beyond just to get these labels makes me feel a lot better about putting their products into my body.


(Natural and Locally Grown - up next)

Green Challenge: look for foods that have the USDA Organic label on them the next time you are at the store – bonus points if you buy it rather than the non-organic version!

My going green story...

I feel like this is my "coming out" as a greener me story - maybe we need a name for it when people "come out" as green. Any ideas??


Regardless - here's my story:  A year ago if somebody had told me they ate only (or mostly) organic, I would have thought they were snobby hippies who were wasting money on a bunch of propaganda food. So what changed my opinion? Last year I ran into a client of mine at a party - she told me how she spent her day taking her 4th grade daughter to the doctor because just had her first period. (sorry for the TMI!) The point was though, her very young daughter's body had already matured very early. My first question to her was asking if her daughter felt strange being first in her class. To my complete surprise over half her daughters female classmates already had their first periods too! (getting real for a second, mine came along in my junior year of high school, which I realize is a little later, regardless though these girls were VERY young in my book to have this happen already) I asked my client what her doctor said and she told me his theory was: milk. MILK?! WHAT?! How could the delicious cold amazingly yummy with oreo's drink I'd loved my whole life cause a girls period to come earlier than it was supposed to. The answer: injected hormones. 
Of course the first thing I did when I came home from the party was get to the googling. 
Basically I found drinking organic milk has the following perks: (in order of importance to me!)

• no artificial hormones (especially no rBGH*)
• Organic cattle must spend the majority of their lives grazing in open pastures (USDA regulations)
• Organic milk has about a 2 month shelf life (seriously!)

*rBGH is an additive in regular milk that has been linked to causing breast cancer, colon cancer, and prostate cancer in humans. This is so detrimental it has been banned in Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, and the entire European Union. (completely grossed out that it's still in the US? = yes)

Here is a great article about this: http://greenliving.about.com/od/greenshopping/a/Organic-Milk.htm

I literally have not drank non-organic milk since. 

Green challenge: try organic milk - I don't think it tastes any different but I honestly did start feeling healthier right away (maybe it was mental, but mental health is important too!) OR even if you don't really care about hormones or happy cows think of the $$ savings with your milk never going bad!

If you try it - make sure you stop back and let us know what you thought!

See! Look how happy cow's can be...let's get more of those!

We Heart the Earth

Welcome to our earth friendly blog. What is "earth friendly" you ask? Well that is a question I don't feel our family completely knows the answer to (if anybody even does?) but I'm determined to at least have us start down a "more" earth friendly path. 
I can't really say when I became a LOT more aware of my actions and their repurcussions on the earth and it's inhabitants but I know it's increased quite a bit over the past year and a half or so. Although I can say we're doing a lot more to become more "green" - I think there is SO much more we can be doing.
So thats it - this blog is our families quest to make sure we leave the earth just as beautiful as we found it (if not better!) We hope you learn something or a lot of somethings to also show the earth some lovin! 
I guess we have already made it through one step because this blog is online - and NOT being mailed to you on paper that used ink and used gas to be put in a mailbox near you! Ta da!!! Do you have any tips for starters? 


Here's a picture my husband and I took on our honeymoon - we really do heart the earth! :)