Thank you! I do understand that beef would be the quicker fix, and maybe I'll be able to add in a little bit eventually. The important thing about the meat addition in my opinion, and my doctor's, is the heme vs non heme issue. Iron from meat is better absorbed, which is why it is an improvement, despite plant and legume sources seeming to have more.

edited because I'm on round 3 of my plans. :banghead:

I'm glad to hear the movie was good, and now that I know there is a book, I need to read it. I really like Tina Fey, I've been wanting to see her in a more cerebral role.

Just started The Girls from Corona del Mar. It's really good so far. http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-rufi-thorpe-20140720-story.html Rising Strong by Brene Brown was wonderful. I highly recommend it. 1. The Alchemist 2. Between the World and Me 3. The Whole-Brain Child 4. Dream Work 5. The Help 6. We Should All Be Feminists 7. 10% Happier 8. Better than Before 9. Rising Strong 10. The Girls from Corona del Mar

Well it's better than nothing so I'm starting there. My doctor thinks it will still help.

Just an FYI, your posts come across as insensitive and condescending to those of us who have had to cut people out of our lives. I understand you can't imagine it, but I also can't imagine having my kids around abusive people just because they are my parents. I did have an extreme event, proceeded by years of abuse, and a supportive therapist, so I don't feel the need to justify my actions, or question them. Everyone's line is different, and I think we'd all do better to respect that.

I'm familiar. I also read "Thrive" by the guy who started theVega brand. it's about being a vegan and endurance athlete. Nothing works long term. I should have put a disclaimer that I do not want to be talked out of eating meat. I have a ton of family stress and my anemia mixed with anxiety is causing panic attacks. :( I appreciate the help, and I understand the desire to help me continue on as a vegetarian. It's just I need at least something in my life to be easy, and I've given it a concerted effort. Like I said, I should have said that in the OP. :)

Also I plan on running my first marathon this fall so I need to nip this in the bud now. I should mention that I went vegetarian for the health benefits, and the effect farming has on the environment. I'm not ethically opposed to eating pasture raised meat.

My goal is to have fish twice a week and chicken maybe once a week. I ate half an organic chicken finger for dinner tonight and it was not appetizing. 😷

Yes, my b12 is always fine. I've been on 3 different supplements. They work beautifully to add the iron back in, but it's always a slow decline back into anemia.

I couldn't find one, and I need a little inspiration. :)

I agree with all of the previous posters, that it's kind of guesswork even with an assessment. That being said, I've found achievement testing to be helpful. It gave me a ball park. His spelling came back at post high school at age 7 so I finally felt confident enough to drop spelling. :laugh: I don't think it's necessary, but if you are really struggling with the confidence to accelerate, it does help.

I bet there is something to that. B12 is a big one, along with iron. I do think a vegetarian or vegan diet can be very healthy, if you eat the right foods. My husband is a vegetarian and his health is better than ever. I think it might be harder on women especially because we have the monthly blood loss.

I'm glad to hear it was relatively easy for all of you! I bought some fish yesterday to test the waters. I also bought a new cookbook to get me excited about the idea. I appreciate everyone's responses!

So sweet! Congrats!

Tell me about it! How did it go? Did you get sick? Are you still an omnivore? I've been a vegetarian since 2011. I've been battling anemia since 2012. (I also have heavy periods, but I've always had them.) I am also a runner, which makes me more susceptible to anemia. I do not like taking 3 iron pills a day, and I haven't been able to figure this out diet wise in the past 3 years, so I'm considering adding in some meat to my diet.

All I have to say is thank god neither sides of our families are sports fans, because this all sounds like the pits.

Probably too much. I have lots of fun doing it! We have food allergies too, so they don't get a ton of candy. I don't like buying cheap stuff that will make it to the landfill in a month either. I'm at around $60 a basket I think. 😬

Not exactly what you are looking for, but I love soulemama. http://www.soulemama.com/ Also, dig this chick. http://www.digthischick.net/#sthash.Af2C0Enh.dpbs This one is great too. http://sewliberated.typepad.com/ These are all blogs that I've followed for a long time, I'm not aware of any newer blogs out there. (I'm probably not that interested anyways, I'm past the baby stage and most newer bloggers have very young children.)

We love Mo Willems! They also love Richard Scarry books, which I also loved as child, not realizing how dull they are to read as an adult.

I could not get into Go Set a Watchman. I plan on giving it another try in a year or two. Does it get better after the first few chapters?

I'm reading Rising Strong by Brene Brown this week. It's pretty good. I've had about 2 years of stressful junk and I'm finally (with the help of an excellent therapist) digging out of my hole. This book found me at the right time. :) I finished Better Than Before last week. It was boring. I'm not a fan of Gretchen Rubin's writing, yet I keep reading her books. :lol:

Pretty much this. For us the pros far outweigh the cons.

I'm just getting into trail running. My 16 years of road running is doing a number on my body. I'm glad to see so many trail runners on TWTM!

They are beautiful! Also thank you all for the tip on the sharpener. We've been using a regular one. 😬