Oatmeal Pancake Recipe

I needed a breakfast to feed the family and immediately thought, "Pancakes!" I did not have the time or resources to make super healthy ones, so I opted for some pancake mix. I pulled the bag down and I only had about a cup and a half of mix. I improvised and the end result was a big hit.

In fact, my daughter Lyvie said, "this is the greatest thing I've ever eaten!" Here some pics and the recipe!


Oatmeal Pancakes
This pancakes are so delicious. They are moderately healthy. If you have a gluten issue, you can purchase gluten free pancake mix and gluten free oats.


Ingredients:

• 3 part oats to 1 part pancake mix
• Cinnamon to taste
• Vanilla to taste
• 1/4 cup (or less) Vanilla Agave Nectar (see ad below for link)
• Warm water until pancake mix consistency

Directions

1. Ladle or pour onto hot griddle in pancake size portions.
2. Flip.

You will have a super yummy, moderately healthy, oatmeal cookie tasting - PANCAKE!

Effective Treatment for Alopecia - Part 1

I am not a doctor. I am not prescribing this plan in an attempt to treat a disease or illness. This is merely my opinion and the results of my own experience. Consult with your doctor before ceasing any medication.

While speaking at Alopeciapalooza last week, I made mention of how I used my diet to effective treat the symptoms of Alopecia. It is my desire to use what I have learned to help other, and not to profit from my experience. So here it is (for free) my personal treatment plan.

Omit from your diet:
All dairy and as many animal products as possible.
I completely removed milk, cheese, yogurt, and anything else containing dairy. I saw immediate results with this. My IBS symptoms disappeared and I saw much less joint pain and headaches.

Watch out for hidden sources of dairy. You do have to read labels. I'll be sure to list some calcium sources in my next blog along with other valuable information, including how to respond to negative comments about your diet. This will help it to not seem so overwhelming!

I personally removed almost all animal products. I occasionally enjoyed a little seafood and rarely some free range chicken or an egg. Other than that, animal products gone! It was easy once I got used to it. Trust me - healthy tastes much better than animal products.

Gluten be gone! I'm currently seeing a connection with gluten as well. I have found that if you remove all the processed junk, you remove most of the gluten. More fresh fruits and vegetables equals less gluten! I also cut out as much bread as I can, this helps as well. I try to buy gluten-free options when possible and affordable.

Supplement with:

• Pharmax Fish Oil (daily) - providing much needed Omegas. I believe this was a key contributor of my hair regrowth.
• Juicing - My favorite recipe. (As often as possible - at least once or twice a day. Don't let the word "weightloss" throw you - it can be used as a snack instead of a meal replacement.)
  Store bought juice does not count. This has to be freshly extracted juice made from a juicer - not a blender.

Improvements include:

• My monthly cycle completely regulated itself.
• IBS symptoms gone.
• No more headaches.
• Joint pain gone (including pain from ruptured discs in my back).
• Energy renewed.
• Glowing skin!
• Nails became healthy.
• A little hair growth.

Vegan Report Card - Target

Store: Target
Location:  Gastonia, NC 
Vegan Friendly Grade:  C


When this brand spanking new Target (now with Fresh Grocery) opened - the whole town got excited!  Yep - me too!  As nice as it is, I would have to give it a mid grade.  The vegan selections were not as impressive as I had hoped they would be.


Here are the vegan pros and cons of this Target store.

Let's start with what is missing:

• No refrigerated faux vegan products - no soy dogs, Vegenaise, or Daiya cheese.
• No vegan or organic pet food.
• Very weak organic make-up selection.
• Most disappointing gluten-free offering.
• Very limited (if any) organic produce.

What was all right!

• Vegan snack options galore, include smoothie drinks for kids!
• Decent selection of "milk" options.
• Several non-chemical based cleaning product options.

Huge Redeeming Factor!!!

This Target store had a massive spice section with affordable spices.  I loved the little bottles and found msyelf really wanting to buy one of each.

All things considered, I would shop at this store to purchase snacks and spices but I would not use this Target store as my grocery shopping destination.




Code Red Alert!


Lyvie loved the Cutie drinks (made by the same folks that bring you the Cutie clementines) - I read the ingredients and they were all approved ingredients.

It wasn't until I went to the website that I found that some of them are not Vegan Approved!  New blog to come on that - the site says that each drink has 10 grams of Whey protein!  The one that Lyvie drank, Tangerine Pineapple did not have that ingredient on the label.  I'm looking into it!

WHAT?


Disclaimer:  I do not own, represent, or work for any brand mentioned in this blog.  I was not paid or provided with product to write this review.  This review is pure opinion based on my own shopping experience.  To submit your product for review, click here.

Breaking a Family Curse - Belly Fat!!!

EE and my beautiful Mother in 1964

All the ladies on my Mother's side of the family make reference to "Voncile's Belly."  My grandmother, who I affectionately referred to as "EE" was cursed with a bloated belly.  She was a thin, attractive lady but still had a belly.  I have always seen it as always looking like we are 4 months pregnant.  We have all allowed that characteristic to remain in our appearance because it we viewed it as a physical curse passed on from EE.

I can recall being a size 6 and still needing to wear a girdle.  That was so frustrating!

I've switched to a vegan (plant-based) diet in the last year and I've been surprised at how I lose weight but the belly fat remains.  WHAT?  That didn't seem fair that I was depriving myself of cheese and still have belly fat.  (The reminder of the cows not suffering engorgement for my cheese consumption brings me out of my pity party.)

Someone at my work mentioned that gluten is a common culprit in keeping belly fat - well, fat.  A light bulb went off!  Don't worry I'm bald so nothing to catch on fire...

So I tested this theory!

I woke up one morning after not having any gluten the days before and was amazed when I put on a dress with no girdle and no belly fat.

Keep in mind, I am the biggest I have ever been and I am trying to lose weight.  I have been wearing a size 12 dress because of my belly.  This was an empire waist dress so it was a size 8.

I looked in the mirror and saw a clean line.  No belly fat!  The dress looked very nice...

Two hours later I ate some homemade zucchini bread and guess what?  I found myself trying to hide my protruding belly under the conference table in our meeting.  That light bulb turned on me, busted me over the head and said, "I told you so."

So - this week without gluten, I have lost 5 pounds and the bloating is gone!

I know it is hard to imagine a life without gluten but it can be done and it is so worth it!