Woman in Real Life

One event that I get excited about every September is the Toronto Vegetarian Food Festival. I have been going to it for years and years and now I cannot miss it. One of the many awesome things about the Veg Food Fest is that it is always held at Toronto's Harbourfront. So not only do you get to sample great vegetarian food, but the location is perfect for a leisurely day out with the family too.

The picture above shows us on our way to the food fest (after the ordeal of finding parking - I didn't realize they had closed part of Lakeshore for repairs). You can see from this pic that I'm super excited, the children not so much. The little gal is probably complaining about something (not sure which part of her list she had gotten to at that moment). The dude just wants out of the picture. Why do you have to take pictures all the time?

TVA HOLIDAY GIFT PACK

Toronto Vegetarian Association

For a limited time, the Toronto Vegetarian Association (TVA) is offering this fun holiday gift package. For $50 you get:

• a one-year membership to the TVA
• a subscription to their newsletter (Lifelines)
• a Toronto Veg Card, offering 5 to 15 % off at more than 100 restaurants and shops across the GTA
• a gluten-free, vegan caramel bar from Sweets from the Earth - yum!
• a TVA member button
• an inspiring vegetarian cookbook!

What did people do to record their special moments before cameras were invented? Scrolls, cave drawings, paintings? Frankly I'm glad it's so easy to photograph our family events and activities. Although I do sometimes go overboard. But then I have this blog as an excuse.

This Insta-Friday is not entirely "Insta." I am mixing photos from my cell phone camera and my Nikon camera, because I carried both of them around with me this week. I recorded two fun days, starting with a visit to the Toronto Vegetarian Food Festival on Sunday (above).

I actually have my own cell phone. With a real plan!

I have had cell phones before, but they were pay-as-you-go and I used them basically for emergencies.

No data plan yet, though. Don't get crazy now.

A new cell phone means more photos for Insta-Friday...which is all about capturing simple moments from your week via your cell phone cam.

It's What I Ate Wednesday! I am sharing a look at some foods that my family and I have enjoyed over the past week.

I am continuing to have fun trying new, simple recipes. I don't go for anything too complex. If I do, I get hot and irritated by the time I put the food on the table. And that's no fun for anyone.

One night, I paired an old favourite, Tina's delicious lentils and rice, with a new recipe for rapini with rotini. The lentils and rice recipe is great for parties because it makes a lot. When I am cooking it for my family of four, I often have trouble. You can cut the recipe in half, but NOT the water amount. So, this time I tried six cups of water, and it worked out great.

When I was a child, my favourite season was fall. I loved the cooler air, the changing colours of the leaves and the late summer excitement of buying new clothes and school supplies for back-to-school. With a few more years under my belt, I find the allure of fall has decreased some, and I can't help but associate autumn with the long months of winter that follow.

In order to keep my spirits up, I try to focus on all of the joys that September and the fall season can bring. The first, for me, is always the Vegetarian Food Festival (this year from September 9 to 11) in Toronto. My family likes to hit Govinda's at the World Cafe for some delicious food from the people of the The Hare Krishna Centre. After that, it is apple picking on a fall weekend. We usually head to Avalon Orchards in Innisfil, Ontario for some of their delicious apple cider and fresh organic apples off the trees. Seeing the kids in their rubber boots running around eager to find the perfect apple is always a joy.

Add to that a Pearl Jam show, a Wilco show, the promise of a meeting with my beloved book club gals and a friend's fall wedding, and September is actually looking good. Of course, October brings Halloween and the chance to eat a little candy (okay, lots of candy), pick out some fun costumes for the kids and carve a few cool pumpkins. Even if you don't have little kids, carving pumpkins is a good outlet for your creativity (everyone has some!) and can help cultivate a little Halloween spirit too.

"Instead of brooding over the fact that nothing lasts," says Harold Kushner, "accept that as one of the truths of life, and learn to find meaning and purpose in the transitory, in the joys that fade. Learn to savor the moment, even if it does not last forever. In fact, learn to savor it because it is only a moment, and will not last. Moments of our lives can be eternal without being everlasting. Can you stop and close your eyes and remember something that happened for only a moment or two many years ago? It may have been a view of a spectacular landscape, or a conversation that made you feel loved and appreciated. In a sense it did not last very long at all, but in another sense it has lasted all those years and is still going on."