Sunday Song Day: "Monster Mash", Dairy is Scary, "The Best Halloween EVER!"
There’s a lot of crystallized Halloween zeal in this Cappello realm. It was always a favorite of mine, Ian was the same but took the passion to a whole new level because he’s also been crafting costume perfection since childhood, he learned that love (and prowess) of costume crafting/creating from his mother (who lives across the street and has always decked the homestead out in full spooky regalia), and alllll this crafty-spooky love was shined up like a pearl in Q.
Every Halloween has been “the best one EVER!”, and I wasn’t sure how a COVID Halloween of “Let’s walk across the street to show Grandma your costume, but then we’re going to just come back home and have you trick-or-treat around the house” was going to shake out, but he spent most of the day intermittently squealing in joy, and repeatedly hollered/yell-whispered/screeched/sighed “THIS IS THE BEST HALLOWEEN EVER”, so huzzah. <3
Continue for: Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice; what a Mama Bear who ate her weight in milk-chocolate many times over (looking at you Snickers/Reese’s/Milka/etc) learned that sealed the nutritional deal on never ever touching dairy again (<— and this was the same Hobbit who’d sing “Workin’ on my Night Cheese!” ala Liz Lemon) and why it is harmful for all the cubs out there still consuming it; Grandma Tara’s Halloween Arc; tasty examples of what this plant-based family was eating over the last few days; “Monster Mash” as the homeschooling theme of the week, and a kiddo who finds joy in math.
Live Kindly, Feast Kindly, Grow Forward.
Beetlejuice 2020
How’d we handle the trick-or-treating end? We had Q knock on doors around the house and we passed him off some plant-based treats. We’d bought some chocolate covered nuts & LoveCorn to throw in jars, Grandma gave him some dark chocolate, and Crystal gifted him some vegan/organic candies.
Why on earth would you want to avoid dairy in your Halloween candies (and in your diet in general)?
Most importantly: dairy has a vast environmental impact (as in participating in the extinction of millions of species) and is driving us over a climate cliff that will affect every bit of our kin and every other species on this planet.
Second: you don’t need it nutritionally, in fact it is harming you.
Third: it isn’t compassionate. You are cruelly taking the milk away from another species’ baby, and unless you’re getting it from some kind-and-regeneratively raised farm (and that’s more pricey than most folks can afford) you’re getting it from an animal who suffered all its life to breastfeed you through adulthood, and regardless of where you bought it from it is still filling you with disease and ruining the environment.
If you’re thinking “Who the heck is she to be commenting on cow breastmilk cheese/milk consumption?”: I’m the person who’s eaten her weight in it several times over despite the fact that it was ruining my health (<—I used to say that I couldn’t imagine living without it, and now I know with absolute firmness that I will never willingly try it again), I had a son with failure-to-thrive due to that same swill, and then I got into the weeds of doctor-harked research and I realized how harmful this nonsense is.
Despite the growing amplification of the harms, I notice with a wailing heart that society keeps stumbling backward because it “tastes good” and/or it’s “how we’ve been doing it for years.”
We also had toxic lead in our pipes for centuries, & doctors also used to smoke and promote it as healthy.
We have the ability to grow forward with new information, it’s just understandably hard to do so…especially when you’re addicted. Don’t want to hear these facts and still believe the myth that another species’ breast milk is a health food? Here is some information to consider:
Humans are supposed to be weened around 2 years of age, yet we persist with drinking the breastmilk of another animal. The protein in cow’s breastmilk is meant to double the size of a calf in about 60 days. Humans babies are supposed to double their weight in about 5 months (and not end up the size of a cow), so by continuously feeding yourself an unneeded mammalian growth slurry you are setting yourself up for a feast of diseases.
Wait, why would it give us diseases?
First, you should know that all animal products (muscle, breastmilk, embryo) contain choline. “As bacteria in your gut feast on the choline, they produce a substance called trimethylamine (TMA). Your liver takes that TMA and converts it to TMAO. “
Why’s that an issue / What’s the matter with TMAO?
“The trouble with TMAO is that data show high levels contribute to a heightened risk for clot-related events such as heart attack and stroke—even after researchers take into account the presence of conventional risk factors and markers of inflammation that might skew the results. In their most recent analysis, scientists showed that high blood levels of TMAO were associated with higher rates of premature death in a group of 2235 patients with stable coronary artery disease. Those found to have higher blood levels of TMAO had a four-fold greater risk of dying from any cause over the subsequent five years.”
You can also take a look into mTOR research so you can understand that the enzyme within that breastmilk causes cancer cells to grow (because again, breastmilk is meant to GROW OUR BABIES, adults are not supposed to be drinking it through life, and especially not some other species’ breastmilk), and when you consume animal products (whose proteins are flush with mTOR) it begins to perpetuate the growth of cancer.
In the same vein, you should look into the research surrounding IGF-1 (insulin growth factor) and how it perpetuates cancer. How? Why?
“When we consume too much animal protein, the body increases its production of a hormone called IGF-1, (insulin-like growth factor 1). IGF-1 is one of the body’s important growth promoters during fetal and childhood growth, but later in life IGF-1 promotes the aging process. Reduced IGF-1 signaling in adulthood is associated with reduced oxidative stress, decreased inflammation, enhanced insulin sensitivity and longer lifespan.4 In contrast, IGF-1 has been shown to promote the growth, proliferation and spread of cancer cells, and elevated IGF-1 levels are linked to increased risk of several cancers. Several observational studies have suggested that high circulating IGF-1 may translate into promotion of tumor growth in colon, prostate and breast tissue.5-13”
Additionally, there’s metabolic acidosis. What’s that? It’s a negative chemical reaction that happens within your body when you try to consume another species’ protein. Why? Because those animal proteins are not meant for you, your body knows this and recognizes them as a harmful, it is trying to neutralize the threat, but by doing so the stress of this back-and-forth can cause osteoporosis. This process is called metabolic acidosis.
Here’s a video that explains it perfectly and how it is causing osteoporosis and cancer. Countries with the highest milk consumption have the highest levels of osteoporosis.
If videos or the research articles highlighted above aren’t your thing, let me explain:
When animal products enter your system, they cause an acid reaction (your body is trying to kill them, because it DOESN’T WANT THEM IN IT) and this reaction is metabolic acidosis. To neutralize the acid, your body utilizes its most readily available acid buffer (calcium) and pulls it from your bones which leads to osteoporosis. You flush this all out in your urine, which leads to a direct correlation between prostate cancer and casein (cow breastmilk protein) consumption.
These animal proteins also linked to other cancers, asthma, hormonal diseases, kidney failure, and diabetes.
Hormonal diseases? But I get the kind of milk that is RGH free, so I’m good…right?
This is a great interview with Dr. Neal Barnard explaining it all in depth, but in short: estrogen is a handy little hormone that we naturally produce, and it likes to signal cells to multiply and divide. When we add high-in-estrogen-cow-breastmilk into our systems it throws our body out of balance leading to: early menstruation, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, endometrial cancer, ovarian cancer, and the prostate cancer mentioned above.
Wait! How do they cause diabetes? Your body can’t process those animal fats, so they build-up and create toxic fatty breakdown products and free radicals that block the insulin-signaling process, close the 'glucose gate,' and make blood sugar levels rise.
What do our kidneys have to do with this? Again (and again, and AGAIN), your body isn’t meant to process those animal fats, so your kidneys go into overdrive trying to filter out the contaminants. Just like your endothelial cells are affected moments after you consume animal products (harming your whole cardiovascular system and leading to heart disease and dementia), your kidneys are put in the same lurch. Animal products cause “an impairment of kidney blood flow, inflammation, subsequent leakage of protein in the urine, and a rapid decrease in kidney function.”
Did you know of the environmental impacts tied to cow-breastmilk consumption? It’s right up there with the affects of raising animals to consume their flesh:
Did you know that even Canada removed dairy from its food pyramid and we have doctors here in the United States trying to do the same thing, or to at least post warnings that it is linked to cancer? Did you know that 70% of humans are lactose intolerant and that the numbers are higher in those of Asian and African descent? Did you know there are doctors out there —like Dr. Milton Mills— sounding the alarm that the American Dietary guidelines pushing milk are institutionalized racism?
If you like the taste of cow breastmilk so much you don’t care about any of the above damage and could care less about how dairy production is harming the earth (and the animals suffering to give it to you), that is your choice to make.
It is my empathetic choice to keep verbally shaking you awake to the realities; because (again): ignorance is bliss until you have been informed, and then it is just willful disregard.
If you’re like us and the above information slapped you right up side the head: here is a great pediatrician podcast describing in light-hearted/yet-earnest mechanistic detail the many ailments kids have that tie back to dairy (<—have a constipated kiddo? Constipated yourself? Speckled with acne and/or eczema? You may want to give her a listen. ), here are a feast of plant-based calcium sources that are as kind as they are healthy; and here are the simple directions to make a cashew cream, spicy/tasty cashew queso, cashew cream cake, chocolate mint nice cream, fudgy brownies, a simple oatmilk recipe (great and SO CHEAP for baking), and how we make creamy tasting mashed potatoes.
view through my Lydia camera
He was so thrilled/pleased with the outcome he spent the next few hours intermittently squealing. <3
I went as Lydia but couldn’t stop laughing. Tara gave me this great thrift-store-find years ago (it’s handmade and super-thick wool) and Ian and I have a old camera collection we started in college.
The original plan had been for Ian to be a sandworm, and that costume was going to be something the whole family worked on; but the time needed to be siphoned away to Your Kind Kitchen’s First Tasting, so the plan is to now work on that over the next few weeks and present it at Christmas… like a backwards Nightmare Before Christmas. :-)
Yearly tradition of visiting Grandma and Grandpa’s across the street. (This year Grandma’s scare table surprisingly spooked him enough that he wanted me to hold his hand! <3 )
2020
2019
2018
2018
2017 - walking the same street she walked with his father.
2017 - “I don’t want to be someone else, I want to be Quillan!”
Let it be known that there was once a time (3 years ago) that he wasn’t perpetually pretending to be some imagined entity. <3
Ok, so dairy info, costumes, and Halloween love are all fine and swell, but what-on-earth does one eat when avoiding animal products?
Here are a few things we ate over the last few days.
I made a big batch of berry oatmeal (black raspberry, cherry, blueberry <— all were frozen, just add them to the pot with the oats, add water, and cook them down together) and we’ve been topping it with bananas, nut butter, flax meal, and cashew cream.
If you’re doing maple, throw that on there. Coconut flakes, sunflower seeds, walnuts, apples etc etc etc.
A Quill plate of Arepa Pizza Spear topped with Parmela Creamery Cashew Cheese (there’s mixed bell peppers, broccoli, garlic, paprika, and olive oil under that just-as-goods-as-breastmilk option), roasted delicata squash (a you-have-to-try-a-little-please portion <— then you could have more arepa pizza), and chunky marinara topped with toasted brazil nut “parm”.
Lentil Loaf Tostadas with queso, fresh greens, balsamic tomatoes, and olives.
Made a large scalloped potato casserole with some of Crystal’s plant-based whole-food “cheese” sauce, topped it with some hemp “parm” (<—toasted hemp hearts, nutritional yeast, salt, garlic powder, paprika), and ate it with side salads, steamed broc, etc. (The week was so rushed I kept forgetting to photograph.)
Garlicky peas, black rice, seared pumfu, sunflower seeds, hot sauce, furikake, and sesame dressing.
Banana, almond butter, crushed up chocolate dipped cashews.
You’d think I’d spend all my time cooking, but I have almost no time to do so these days and what you see above is the result of taking one afternoon last weekend to prepare me for the week.
We make time for what is important and within our realm of ability. I’m lucky Ian spent the early years of our relationship teaching me how to cook (he got that from both his parents), and I’ve spent the the next decade showering us in the fruits of that patient labor. If cooking isn’t your thing, Crystal and I aim to help you starting in January.
In the meantime, my weekdays start with pre-dawn starting-a-business-from-scratch/writing on this website, homeschooling Q through the day, squeezing as much business work into the evening as I can reasonably while still giving my family time, and then starting the process all over again.
To keep it fun, we do things like, “Since you like ‘Monster Mash’ so much, why don’t we work through the lyrics of that this week and you can practice writing/sounding-out-words, finding rhymes, and drawing spooky things?” (<—his heart’s delight).
His Dracula-and-Son may be one of my favorite things ever. This is a boy much-loved by his father and it shows. <3
And not just loved, but extremely well-guided. <3
Here seen: another page of their daily back-and-forth (Ian leaves messages and Q leaves him a drawing). Q drew the basilisk from Harry Potter Chamber of Secrets (we’ve been reading through the series at night), and when we got to the part about Mudbloods he immediately piped up, “This is like racism but with wizards! They are being racist toward Muggles!”
Words matter: they grow minds and hearts.
And what were all the numbers at the bottom of the Monster Mash pages? They are extra math work.
He’s filling in a traditional workbook, but he also likes to work with his math manipulatives and these are helping big-time on 3 digit comprehension/visualization.
He pulls numbers like a game (Ian idea) to make new creations.
And then fueled up with fun examples cruises through the workbook.
And because everything is a pendulum swinging back toward art in this house, he gets to doodle all over the sheet when it is complete.
And lest anyone worry we are pure Luddites: he gets access to new technology via his drawing tablet.
He practices ELA by going to Google and typing in the letters of the image reference he wants to use (in this case he’d heard there was a Mario creature similar to Audrey 2 he wanted to see it, then he immediately wanted to draw it) and then draws elaborate drawings… like this latest “Mama, I think I’m getting better at 3D mouths!” gem.
Another new/unexpected delight: he figured out there was a recording feature on that thing, spent the first night making over 12 recordings (of sounds he’d made with his body, mouth, or tools; Ian and me talking; songs he loves), and would watch in rapt attention at the shape of sound.
Maybe we’ll have an audiophile? <3
The result is that now a favorite way to end the day is to pull out blankets, hunker down on the floor, and watch sounds like TV. (Here seen, he’s listening to a recording he made of “Feed Me” with an Audrey2-esque decoration Crystal got him.)
What’s the most impactful thing you can do as an individual to help your kin, community, millions of species, and planet? Transition as plant-based as possible.🌎♥️
Why? Plant-Based foods are environmentally imperative 🌎. They also promote ideal health💪 (which takes stress off our overburdened health care system), are inexpensive🙌, delicious🤤, & compassionate. 💕
Why imperative, though? 🤔We’re approaching (& have crossed) climate tipping points that will doom our kin & millions of other species. 😱📣Reducing/eliminating animal products is the *most impactful thing an individual can do* to prevent worse. 🌎🔥
Why? Animal Agriculture creates more emissions than the entire transportation sector combined, it’s tied to water waste/loss/pollution (<-- freshwater is our most precious resource💧), land loss/deforestation (<-- exacerbates climate change by reducing our ability to sequester carbon🔥🌎), ocean acidification (<-- FYI 50-85% of earth’s oxygen originates from oceanic plankton🌊) & vast species loss/extinction/suffering💔📣🌎
Plus, consuming animal products is tied to increased risk of cardiovascular disease❤️🩹, diabetes👎, cancer👎, and chronic disease👎; whereas Plant-Based feasting is linked to preventing/reversing some of our most common diseases (<— like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer); plus it promotes ideal health & robust strength (ie Olympians, Weightlifters, Endurance Athletes are thriving via PBWFs too). 🎉🙌♥️
What organizations are promoting plant-based diets for best health and environmental stability? National Institutes of Health, Mayo Clinic, Yale, the United Nations, Harvard School of Health, American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology, American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, The American Academy of Pediatrics, National Kidney Foundation, even the Parkinson’s Foundation.
We’re all overwhelmed in one way or another, but for the sake of our kin (and the millions of species we share this planet with) we need to start pivoting forward. As someone who once rarely ate green things & used to eat animal products at every meal, I can assure you that is possible, affordable, enjoyable, & purposeful to pivot Plant-Based. In fact, our whole family is now healthier/stronger than ever. 🙌♥️
Anecdotally, our son had failure-to-thrive, was also plagued with perpetual ear-infections/sinus-infections, and had an omnipresent runny nose. What was he eating? Grass-fed milk, organic/antibiotic-free/grass-fed/local meats, eggs from organic-fed/well-loved chickens from a neighbor, every meal came with vegetables, and we limited junkfood. He was healed via a plant-based diet: he’s launched out of that diagnosis and the last time he had a sinus-infection (or was sick at all) was in 2019 when he had some cheese at a school Christmas party. Before shifting to PBWF’s he was sick every month, and how he’s a robust, vital, thriving kiddo. 🙌🎉♥️
If you think any of the above sounds over-reached/absurd/impossible, please go read the links above. I understand the inclination to hackle-raise (<—because I was once totally there) but the science is clear: any step we make forward is imperative (<—and again “STEPS” is the focus. Don’t leap, just start making steps!). It’s as simple as starting with one meal a week and growing from there.💕
We have the ability (deliciously, healthfully, kindly, inexpensively) to *preserve/protect* the planet we share with millions of species & our kin. How are we going to use that power today?✌️🤟🖖
