Fun in Fall

October has always been one of my favorite months. I love the leaves changing colors and the cool crisp air. I have even recently learned to love squash in all of its forms (even zucchini!), which are abundant in the fall. So, I have been excited to see what the fall holds for me in Georgia.

1. Leaves changing color? Um, some of them. We have a lot of evergreen trees around, so the few trees that aren't are slowly deciding that it is fall and they can go ahead and change. It's getting prettier by the day - maybe November will see more leaves change.

2. Cool crisp air? Not so much. It's still getting into the 80s and it was recently in the 90s one day. Steve claims that it's getting into the 40s in the mornings, but I don't believe him (and neither does weather.com). It is slightly cooler in the mornings, but it warms up in a hurry. So, again, maybe November will be a little better.

3. Squash? Check! We have had a lot of squash recently, and it's on the menu again this week in the form of this wonderful-sounding squash and pomegranate salad our friends suggested. (Thanks, Beans!) I know, I know, we're turning into those "strange vegetarian people" you know. Hey, don't worry - I still eat chicken occasionally.

4. The lovely sound and sight of the cotton harvesters. Cotton fields are blooming everywhere! It's crazy - we're almost in November, people!

5. And finally, Halloween! We didn't take Lydia trick-or-treating, because she's not eating candy yet and we didn't feel we needed any more sugar in our lives. But, we did dress her up in a lady bug costume, and I think it turned out really cute!

6. One more thing, I guess. We took Lydia to the beach in Florida for her first time. She had a great time playing in the sand, until we took her into the water. She HATED it! I think it was probably because the water was just a little cold and took a little getting used to. Eventually she warmed up to it - a little bit. She tolerated it. We'll have to practice in big swimming pools until we can get back there.

The Reluctant Vegetarian

So we have been living in southwest Georgia now for about a month, and for just that long, I have become a sort-of, kind-of vegetarian. Not really my idea. But, Steve decided when we moved that he wanted to make some life changes to become a better person. So, we made some drastic changes.

1. We gave up TV. We still have one, and watch movies sometimes, but we no longer have cable or satellite. I didn't really think I could make it without one, but through the miracle of the Internet, I can get my TV fix through USA and TLC online, plus Hulu! It's actually great because I'm finding a lot more time to read and accomplish a lot of goals I've had for a long time. I don't think we'll be getting TV service anytime soon.

2. We only have one car. With Steve being the only breadwinner at the time, we decided we could save a lot of money by only having one car. Steve still has his motorcycle, so it's really not an inconvenience at all. Except when we first moved here and the car broke down and it took the car shop 3 weeks to figure out what was wrong ...... I should save that for another post :)

3. Steve decided that he wanted to lose some weight. In the past, he's tried many different diets: South Beach, Atkins, etc, but he decided the good, old-fashioned way of eating healthier and exercising more was probably going to be the best way. Great. I am all for eating healthier. But when he announced that he was going to become a vegetarian, I freaked out! I love chicken and ribs and bacon and ..... I'm salivating right now so I should stop. Anyway, his compromise is that he still sometimes eats fish, eggs, and dairy. I was very hesitant to help him with this goal because I love meat and I hate beans (where most vegetarians get their protein) and I just didn't know where to start. But, because I love my husband, I reluctantly gave some vegetarian recipes a try. And it's actually not all that bad. We've even had a couple of recipes that we LOVE and will keep on our menu for the rest of our lives, such as:

*Shrimp and Peanut Stir-Fry

*Potato and Kale Enchiladas

*Pinapple Cashew and Quinoa Stir-Fry

*Broccoli and Swiss Soup

*Homemade Pizza with Wheat Crust

*Spinach and Broccoli Lasagna

Now, I should mention that I still eat meat. When Steve's at work during the day, I will sometimes cook myself some chicken or beef for lunch. We went out to eat at Outback last month. Steve got salmon, and I got steak! But I'm seeing some good results happen from this diet. Steve has already lost 25 pounds! I have only lost 2, but I've been eating some candy, so that's something I'll have to change. We have found ourselves trying new veggies, and because of that, we're feeding them to our daughter. Lydia loves them! Maybe this new diet will help her be healthier, because we haven't even introduced any junk food at all to her (besides the 1 lick of ice cream Steve gave her a couple of months ago) and hopefully she will continue to like good, nutritious food. Luckily, with this new diet, we haven't totally cut out dessert. We just eat it less frequently. For example, I made homemade peach cobbler, and we both just loved it! Anyway, we'll see where this diet takes us, but I'm less reluctant than I was at first to eat like a vegetarian.