vegan cuts box - may

I got my second Vegan Cuts box last week! I was really anticipating it this month. There were lots of goodies! (And I'm gonna be honest - I was most anticipating those ranch chips!)

Last month's box, food wise, has a couple things I haven't tried yet, just because I don't normally eat them. This month, though - I think I'm gonna devour most of this pretty soon.

I'm gonna be honest - I don't like olives. And yes, I've had them. I just tried one about a week ago at the restaurant where I moonlight - I couldn't get over the texture. I want to love olives. I really do.

I'm not sure how the lemon fig bar will be. I normally only eat lemon/lemon flavored anything in the form of fresh lemons in my water, but I'll give it a shot.

Since it's been 90+ degrees almost every day here in Virginia, I'm probably going to wait for one of those rainy weeks to use the Jiva hot chocolate.

We've finally gotten our stove wired, so I can start making dinner! I'm going to make tacos pretty soon, so the Meatless Select Vegetarian Taco Meat is perfect!

And more spread! I've been wanting to get some mini bagels to try all my spread samples on - this month's sounds delicious!

I am a potato chip fanatic. I cannot wait to get into these ranch chips from Beanfield! I'm a little leery of the kale and chia chips, just because they're not normally something I would buy, but I do love kale, so they should be great.

We love pizza in this house, so the pizza dough is going to work out great! I might make some homemade sauce and venture out for some veggie cheese - I can't wait!

The Jyoti snack mix looks pretty yummy - I'm thinking I might settle down with a good book and snack on it.

So there's this month's box! I'm sure I'll have more mini reviews on my Instagram when I finally delve into these awesome products.

my first vegan cuts box

Monday I got my first Vegan Cuts snack box! I was so excited. I have a hard time finding products specifically targeting the vegan audience (or new and exciting products, period) - our area hasn't really gotten with the program yet. My solution? Have those products sent to me!

First, let me explain the box a little. For $19.95 a month, you can have a box sent to you that's full of vegan goodies! And no, this isn't a "if you click on the links, I get credit toward a box" posts. I just think this is a really good idea and wanted to share it! It's a great opportunity to try new and existing products before you buy full size.

Since this is my first box, I didn't know what to expect. All the goodies looked so good, and I really can't wait to try out the Numi Tea in Tomato Mint! It's such a bizarre sounding flavor, but I think it'll be great. The protein blend looks pretty awesome, too, so I'm gonna blend that up one morning with some bananas and strawberries! I'd never heard of the other products, but incorporating more animal free items into my routine is always welcome.

The thing I was most excited about was this:

The BNTO canning jar lunchbox adaptor! These were included with all the boxes last month when I decided to sign up (and I'm gonna be honest - this and the $15 Vega credit were a large part of why I decided to go for it) and I was so excited. I've wanted one of these for a while, because ain't nobody got time to fish two plastic containers and lids out of the cabinet for veggies and dip.

So there you have it! My first box! 

latest thrift find - books

(Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business / The Mermaid Chair/ Star in the Storm/ They Eat Puppies, Don't They?: A Novel / Pride and Prejudice/ Animals in the Family (could not find online)  / Dogs Never Lie About Love : Reflections on the Emotional World of Dogs)

I've always been a sucker for books. I read constantly - it's my way of beating anxiety and relaxing. Bored? Read a book. Worried about something you have no control over? Read a book. The list goes on.

I found these pictured at Goodwill. I think I'm most excited about Dolly's! I picked up Pride and Prejudice because, honestly, I've never really read any of the "classics". Yeah, pretty terrible. I really loved The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, so I grabbed The Mermaid Chair in the hopes that it's just as good. And, of course, I'm a sucker for all things animals, especially dogs.

Do you have any favorite thrifted books?

books - what's coming up

(all thrifted and waiting to be read - The Dead Zone and Hearts in Atlantis from Re-Tail)

    I've always been an avid reader. I was first to read in my kindergarten class, and I was one of the first to start reading "chapter books" in elementary school. Since then, I've read almost anything I could get my hands on.

    When I was eleven or twelve, I discovered the worlds that Stephen King had written, starting with Cujo. I was an animal lover (then and now), so of course I started with a book about a dog, though morbid. Since then, I've been reading every Stephen King book I could find. I can remember just starting to drive and spending all my time in book stores reading the back covers of King's novels in the horror section, trying to decided which one I'd take home. I ended up with quite the collection of little paperbacks before I stopped buying the expensive books in stores and resorted to thrifting and online shopping. It was almost an unconscious thing, though, buying King's work. Every time I entered a thrift store I'd always end up in front of the books, scanning every title hoping for KING to pop out at me. I've been doing that for eight years. It's been slow progress, but fairly lucrative. I've only had one or two trips that I haven't found at least one novel I haven't read, but the number's dwindling. I've been finding lesser known novels each visit, which is fine with me, but I know my search will come to an end soon.

    The books above are my latest finds. As soon as I finish the last book in the Dark Tower series, I plan to start these. I can't wait!