Kids – TOTALLY SIMPLE. VEGAN.

Every Saturday all year-round, Davis, California has it’s own Farmer’s Market from 8am to 1pm. It’s also open on Wednesdays evenings from Spring to Fall. Wednesdays is my favorite day to go because it’s right after work and they have live bands and bounce castles for kids. It brings the community together. Friends can enjoy the music while drinking some beer or can grab a bite to eat from one of the food stands. College students practice yoga and tightrope walking (where they tie a string from one tree to another and try to walk across it. It’s pretty interesting). Families lay out their picnics in the grass while they watch their children run around. There’s a spot where children can get their faces painted or they can get a balloon animal from the Dilly Dally the Clown. There’s even a carousel at the site and two parks where children can play.

My girls walking through the Farmer’s Market.

There’s a variety of stands. There’s coffee, pastries, clothing, artwork & pottery, fruits & vegetables, and so much more that you can choose from. I used to love getting my Pachamama coffee, but lately I’ve been try to save money (ugh) so I make my coffee at home instead (but is not the same!). I do buy organic strawberries and oranges almost every time I’m there. They’re so flavorful! When I buy strawberries from the grocery store, the berries have very little flavor and almost taste watery. It’s weird. These, however, omg. ❤ ❤ ❤ Strawberries for life.

It’s pretty much perfect here. The only problem is that we’re VEGAN so there isn’t as much to choose from as far as hot food goes. On the positive side, there’s a kettle corn stand, a HUMMUS stand, and some pastries to choose from. From the food stands, the Hotdogger sells vegan hot dogs and there’s another stand where I’ve gotten cooked cauliflower with potatoes on Naan that was phenom-nom-nomenal. I wish I knew the name of the stand. Next time I’m there, I’ll try to take note.

During our latest trip to the Farmer’s Market, we grabbed a few cherry turnovers that were, yes, vegan! The first time I discovered these, I couldn’t believe it. The pastry puff itself was everything that you could expect it to be. It was not the dry kind of flaky that results in a million crumbs, but instead was the sweet, soft kind of flaky. The kind where every bite melts in your mouth. The cherry filling was sweet but tangy. It had the ruby colored cherries that were slightly sour but balanced out the rest of the treat. Just take my advice, if you’re ever at this Farmer’s Market, try it for yourself. You won’t regret it.

If you find yourself far away from this location, check out your local Market. Try it at least once and let me know what you think. If you already visit your local place, what is it like? Leave some comments below with your experiences. I’d love to hear them!

Live. Love. Laugh.

…and Go Vegan. 🙂

Last night I was sitting on my bed with my little ones. They were hilarious, being the silly goofballs that they are. They were crazy. They usually are. I’m sure our neighbors love us… The fighting, the “cut it out” yelling from me, the laughing, the sounds of things hitting the wall.

From someone else’s point of view, it would sound like a complete madhouse.

Most people probably wouldn’t realize that my kids were just flat out exhausted. The craziest times always happen in the evenings. Funny thing is that even when they’re tired, they have more energy than I would ever know what to do with.

So there we were last night. Tickling, giggling, and enjoying life. I enjoy them. Their presence, their hugs and kisses, their silly jokes and stories about their day.

My eldest daughter stopped playing early on and was relaxing peacefully with her laptop, reading my blogs. She’s fascinated knowing that people can make their own websites. She desperately wants to make one of her own. She’s eight. I’ve purchased her many coding books, but have not gotten around to teaching her much. With one of her books, I did help her set up her first “website” using Notepad++. She was on there for hours! I have quite a gift for her this Christmas, but I can’t post that since she’ll no doubt be reading this. Let’s just say, it’s a step in the right direction to what she wants to do. My skillful, brilliant girl.

My second oldest, almost seven, is absolutely hysterical. She can make me laugh until I’m literally in tears. (I know people overuse the term “literally”, but here, I MEAN IT). The best way to describe her personality is this: she’s a troll! Not on the internet, but in person! She provokes people until she sees the rise in them. She likes to “stirs pots” so to speak. Then, when the person is about to snap, she gives a devious successful smile and blinks her eyes slowly with that grin on her face. Little troublemaker, but she also has a huge heart. If someone is upset, she is the first to try to fix the problem. She loves making and giving gifts to people. She likes to make people feel special. She is remarkable.

Then there’s my son. Oh, my son. My four year old boy. He’s his own animal. He is now a typical “boy” if there ever was one. When he was two, however, he used to dress up in his sisters clothes. He loved being a princess. By age three, he transitioned to a fighting fairy (or princess depending on the costume of the day). He would walk down in his outfit, heels and all, and storm into me or his siblings to “beat chu up” as he put it. Now, age four, the dresses are gone, but the fight is still there. The kicking, the punching, the magic powers that he uses (“magic, magic, make you dead!” “magic, magic, make you alive!” are just a few of his spells). His favorite thing to do right now is the oh so popular “the floor is lava” game. He plays with his sisters and jumps onto any shoe, sock, or box that he can to avoid being burned alive by the imaginary lava. But that’s him. Wonderful and creative.

Last night was a strong reminder to myself how good I have it. How lucky I am to have them. They bring so much life to my own. They ARE my life. Through all of the good and the bad, they are always there to make it better.

This is all I had time for. I will try to add some photos later. Just remember, enjoy the simple things in life.