About Meg

I am a newlywed, newly-vegetarian living in southeast Virginia, USA. I spend my time working, going to school and hanging out with my husband and our two dogs: a 2 year old wheaten terrier and a husky/poodle mix born in February. I love writing and storytelling so this is my way of sharing that with you. I enjoy cooking and altering recipes to incorporate more healthy options into daily life.

My sister and I, 2007

I don't know when my interest in healthy living really started, but my sister and I grew up loving fruits and vegetables and rarely ate meat aside from chicken. We're not sure where this came from since our parents did their best to teach us to eat fruits and veggies but they weren't super-heath minded, and I have a brother who is a coca-cola guzzling, dorito crunching, full-blooded meat and potato kind of guy. I also grew up thinking strawberry twizzlers counted as a serving of fruit. My dad works as a meat cutter so we always had meat at dinner but my sister and I usually ate around it.

I took dance lessons and danced competitively in high school along with cheer-leading so I stayed active. After high school I was part of the Minnesota Vikings Cheerleader training program where I fell in love with the gym. I started running up to five miles a day and lifting weights and in turn became concerned with what I was using to fuel my body. I became a fan of protein shakes since I knew I wasn't going to become a fan of steak anytime soon.

My husband and I, 2010

A few years after this I met my (now) husband who, at the time, lived on hot pockets, microwave burritos and fast food. I did enjoy hot pockets in high school but rarely at the stuff now. Compromising was a challenge. I tried to explain he benefits of healthy eating and he fought for the convenience of pre-packaged meals. My roommate at the time was also a healthy eater so we began "tricking" him into eating healthy foods by substituting ingredients into foods he already liked. I was making appetizers for a party that involved baking various veggies (my mom made them with ground beef when we were growing up) into wonton wrappers with cheese. Along with the veggies and cheese I tossed in a little crumbled tofu. After eating a number of them he said "these are really good what are they?" I made him promise he wouldn't freak out, since he already liked them; and thus, sneaky tofu began.

My goal is to move toward a *clean* lifestyle which means very little processed food and chemicals in the products I use in my home. I consider myself somewhere between the super consumer Americans and the hardcore tree huggers. I am also hoping to fill the gap in households that want to eat healthy, but aren't sure how; and those living in a house with a mixture of omnivores/vegetarians. I plan to share lots of recipes and some of my favorite products with you and I look forward to hearing yours, too!