She read and loved all the Harry Potten books when she was 8, as her first books, and is now re-reading them. Not my first choice of literature for an 8 year old, but it is what it is. Blaming the older brother. :rolleyes: Now at nine she just finished the Warrior Cat series. (I don't really like them either, but she is crazy about cats in general.) She is reading now the Julie of the Wolves trilogy. Darker than I would've liked, but she's loving it. She read some of the Narnia books but didn't love them as much. Started a series by Tamora Pierce and likes it, but doesn't love it. None of those are the books that I would enjoy. I'd really like for her to try to explore something more literary. She's understands nuances well and is a deep thinker. What would be good books to transition with?

Thank you! I'm so happy I asked, because I would not have thought about flat and eggshell of the same colour. I think that's exactly what I'd like! Deciding between New House White and Spun Wool by Behr.

What kind of white? And what about the trim? The same as the walls or brighter? How did you decide on that particular white? I'm hoping to find a warm white, but not a pastel yellow, kwim.

Maybe harm is a matter of scale and perspective. If souls exists and are immortal, then death and even physical suffering might not be seen as "harm." Maybe having their own country was more important for the Jewish people (in the grand scheme of things and in the context of eternal soul) than being saved from the Holocaust in a miraculous way. I really don't know. I'm just thinking out loud.

Congrats!

Just wanted to offer hugs to you and your DD. And your entire family.

Thank you, this makes sense. I got all the oatmeal / quinoa / teff ideas as I was looking for vegetarian sources of protein! I think I need to look at this more holistically.

This is a good point about sugars. Though I only have plain yogurt. Do you mean sugars as in carbs? Even if it is plain oatmeal (like steelcut oats)? I was just thinking about the protein "requirement"--I similarly feel I can't trust some number. The same as we've been told how many carbs we need, and I'm doing so well on so little carbs.

This is something that I would enjoy. Thank you for sharing. I doubt I'll ever be as organized though!

Yes, this makes sense. A big part of my decision is based on a nutritional approach recommended to those who practice meditation / yoga. So it is not only caring about animal life, but also about what I want to put into myself.

Hm...I think that sometimes innner need / intuition is enough. It is not that I just abruptly took this decision. It's been in the air for a while...

I decided to start a more focused thread eating lacto-ovo-vegetarian. I looked up some numbers, and I should be eating around 70g of protein per day as a moderately active woman (and less as I lose weight). Should protein be my main concern? Something else to be aware of? I will be avoiding added sugars. My main goal is to be healthy (feel energetic) but if I want to lose weight (need to), should I be watching calories as well? If my breakfast is 2 eggs, 1/2 cup of quinoa / teff / oatmeal with a teaspoon of butter and some nuts / seeds, and a slice of Ezikiel bread with peanut butter and fruit / berries I'm at about 30g of protein. For dinner I can have beans or lentil stew with veggies and salad. Chia seed pudding with nuts and seeds and some stevia sweetener. 25g Greek yogurt with fruits for supper plus veggies and hummus. Another slice of Ezikiel bread with peanutbutter and apple; 30 g So it seems to me that I can easily cover the required proteins with the foods that I will enjoy. Coming from a LCHF way of eating--this is different! I really want to avoid the cravings for sugary baked foods which I completely don't have right now. I also feel I don't need huge variety, I feel. Any other advice or ideas? What am I missing?

Thank you for this. Yes, I'm worried about not feeling well. I'd really like to feel well on an lacto-ovo vegetarian diet. I like feeling healthy and this is a concern...

This is how I feel on LCHF--I stop craving sweets, I'm never hungry and I pretty much eat all I want, but it isn't that much because I'm not craving junk. Easy to lose weight and without the cravings I feel like my life is under control! lol How to transition to the lacto-ovo vegetarian without immediately gaining weight? And more importantly--without the CRAVINGS!

Thank you! I will look into those!!!

Yeah, I've been thinking that to feel physically healthy and to be losing weight I enjoy LCHF and it works and I can maintain it easily. But something else, maybe like emotionally / spiritually (?) is making me think that I have this inner need not to eat animals. I guess if this is the case, I should not worry about my weight. And yet it is tempting to lose some more. Maybe I'm just slowly losing my mind! lol

See, LCHF is what I can easily stick to. Yes, I've strayed, but I also ate like this for years, and I lose weight I feel great. But I feel something is changing in me in terms of what I want to be not eating. I'd like to explore this more. I occassionally do a 5:2 fasting week. I guess I should stop being worried about my weight and just give it a go.

When I don't "stray" from my way of eating, I eat no sugar (other than minimal berries), some veggies low in the GI, and lots of protein and fat. No grains, no beans. I'm relatively happy this way and feel healthy. After several months of disorganized snacking on everything, I've been back on the LCHF for 3 weeks now and also quite a few inches around my hips and waste (very needed.) I need to lose another 30-40lb. I've been discussing vegan / vegetarian diets with my teen DD on and off for years--many of our friends are vegan. Frankly, nothing compelled me to even think "vegetarian." I always maintained that I am a meat eater, and that was it. I feel best on a paleo style diet. But I feel something is changing. I think I don't want to eat something that was killed anymore. I'm not sure where it is coming from and I'm not sure if it is a phase, but right now I'm seriously considering becoming a vegetarian. I'm envisioning myself eating different beans, lentils, veggies, fruits, grains such as quinoa, oatmeal, teff. Yogurt. Occassional free range eggs. Those are all the foods that I love. I won't eat added sugar, but would eat fruits. However, I really want to lose weight, once and for all this time. It's my "baby weight" that should've been gone 7 years ago! I'm done with this. I'm worried that I will stop losing weight if I switch from LCHF to vegetarian. How to approach this? Can I be LCHF-ish and vegetarian? How to lose weight while vegetarian?

My old blender I could tighten just right. This new one has a notch and I'm supposed to tighten over the notch. Which is tight. I love the blender, but I'm really sturggling with undoing the base... Only pouring hot water in it for about 20 min, and sometimes even another round of hot water, will help me unscrew. Or DH. But I blend more than he is home lol

My blender wouldn't work this way. There's a notch to prevent this kind of turning.

My instructions say not to store fluids in it, but the only way I can unscrew it from the base is after leaving some very hot water in it. Am I ruining my blender? I love my blender.

So do you wear it for yourself or for others?

Do you wear it to be attactive to men, or for some other reason? Can we be biology-reductionist about this? As in, make-up highlights the features a mate would be looking for, such as bright lips, rosey complexion, dark lines around the eyes, i.e. the signs of fertility? I don't wear make up. In the past years I'd wear some barely pink lip gloss or some foundation to even out my skin. My reason was that it was fun, pretty, different (from my routine.) I never thought about it as "pretty" for someone else. Especially not as "pretty" as in sexually attractive to some men who would see me. But again, I just didn't think about this much. I'm sure women have different reasons to wear make up. Those who are in the process of looking for a husband / dating, might even think that they are dressing up to be attractive to potential mates. But the idea of "make up is for the men" seems to be so repulsive to me. I was surprised to hear this argument. (Yes, I'm naive! lol) It made me uncomfortable that there are men who would think that because I take care of myself and dress nicely and have some make up on, that this is somehow "for them." I feel so exposed. I feel my daughters are so exposed. They don't wear make up, one is too practical for this and they other one is too young, but this objectification is horrifying. I'm struggling because it is someone close to me and my daughters who talks openly about this.

or the chewing gums. Xylitol is actually great for teeth. When I have a tooth sensitivity I take a spoonful of xylitol and just swish it around in my mouth for some a couple of minutes, several times a day. My teeth feel so so clean after and the sensitivity goes away.

Good for your DD for setting up boundaries and protecting herself. It is your DH who is acting like a spoiled brat. Well, actually, like an abusive manipulator. The world does not revolve around him. Your DD is making good decisions for her own mental health, and this is what mature and this is responsible and mature on her part. DH forbidding you to see her in her place? Wow...sorry, but this is insane. Hugs to you and your DD. Don't promise things on her behalf anymore. Don't force her to see him on his terms. Her mental health is fragile, she doesn't need her dad's controlling behaviour in her life. And KUDOS to your DD for trying out that art class and following her dreams.