ATTENTION EVERYONE!

EVERYONE:  Due to the fact that I'm exhausted of repeatedly typing the same thing in three blogs; I will only be publishing my recovery entries in my wordpress blog- A Vegan's Eyes.  I will continue to write in this blog, and my other blogger blog, reflexiones de mi vida; but I think it'll be a lot easier on me to just dedicate one blog to my knee recovery.  Or, I could always make a new one.  Nah, I'll just stick with what I've got.

Thanks to everyone for reading!

Take care,
Cassie

Post-Op Day 3.

Honestly, the only thing I really know to do right now is to blog.  Blogging has been so critical in my recovery so far.  Even though it's only the third day after my knee surgery, I've been feeling all kinds of different emotions.  I'm doing a lot better, though.  I'm getting around on my crutches better; I can stand up on my own.  There's no way to go but up from here.  Although, I have been experiencing very mild "depression", I guess you could say.  I'm not 'clinically' depressed, but I do feel down sometimes; mainly because there are so many things that I really just cannot do YET.  I did say yet, because I will be able to do them again.  It's a struggle getting in and out of the car, so I don't go many places.  My family has been catering to my every need (thanks so much), but it really makes me feel somewhat helpless.  I'm so freaking used to being able to do everything on my own, and now I just need help with everything though.  I just don't feel too great right now.  I do know that everything will get better though, and I'm gonna keep my head up and get through this recovery.  Just a few thoughts :)  Thanks for reading, and thanks for the support.

It's over with!

Hey everyone!  Just wanted to let those who read this blog (I don't know if anyone even does), that my surgery went well.  I got it done yesterday afternoon at Lexington Hospital.  As it turns out, the ACL Reconstructive Surgery is the most painful surgery that they do at that hospital.  I was so nervous in pre-op that they had to give me a sedative to calm me down.  Then, they did a 'nerve block' on my whole left leg, which completely numbed it.  I don't remember too much after that.  They put me to sleep, and then I remember them trying to wake me up after surgery.  All in all, the surgery was a breeze.  The only issues I had with it was nausea.  After surgery, I drank some ginger ale and some water, and couldn't hold it down.  According to my surgeon, that's normal for people who've never had anesthesia before.

Today is day one of post-op.  I've had moderate to severe pain in my knee, mainly because they used my patellar tendon bone autograft, instead of a hamstring tendon autograft.  I have been prescribed to percocet and a nausea medicine (painkillers make me sick), which has been helping SO much.  My family has been so lovely to me.  They've been helping me out a LOT, which is making my recovery a lot smoother.  I'm supposed to take this knee immobilizer off twice a day and do knee exercises for 30 minutes.  I did some of that today, and it really made my knee feel good, surprisingly.

In 10-14 days, I have a follow-up appointment with my orthopaedist.  After the follow-up, he'll more than likely put me in a physical therapy program.  PT is the only thing that worries me.  I've never had it before, and I'm really afraid that it'll hurt bad.  Even if it does, I know it's intended to help strengthen my knee.

Thanks to EVERYONE who's supported me and prayed for me.  It all helped.  I know that I've got loving people around me to lift my spirits when they're down.  Thanks to all!

Have a safe, happy Halloween!

Cassie

Vegan MoFo: Beauty Product Reviews

Recently, I've bought some vegetarian and vegan organic face washes and lotions.  Yes.  I didn't know that they had VEGAN lotions and face washes.  I knew that there was cruelty-free products, but vegan?!  I was so amazed by this when I saw it, I just had to buy it.  So, I did.  The products that I purchased are by Full Circle.  Full Circle makes all kinds of organic foods; everything from baby food to frozen organic fruit.

I got the Full Circle Papaya & Soy Milk Natural Foaming Facial Cleanser.  It smells really, really good, and gives your skin a natural glow.  It's 100% Vegan and cruelty-free.  All of the ingredients are organic, which is always a plus.

I also bought the Full Circle Nighttime Renewal Cream.  It's 100% Vegetarian, cruelty-free, and, like the facial wash, is completely organic.  These products are really great and I highly recommend fellow vegans/vegetarians to try them.  They are, however a bit costly, depending on where you go.  I paid a good sum for them where I went.  Just sayin'.

Who would've known that finding Vegan products is way easier than most people think.  All you have to do is look for it, and chances are, you'll find it!  Take care.

Vegan MoFo: Day 8

Today is October 8, the eighth day of Vegan MoFo.  Tonight, I am making a homemade Vegetable Lasagna.  This will be my first time ever making a lasagna.  I decided to get those oven-ready noodles.  You don't have to boil them, which relieves me.  I was a little nervous about boiling lasagna noodles- I was afraid they were going to rip.  Anyways, it isn't dinner-time yet, therefore the picture and recipe will be posted once it's made :)  I'm just giving everyone a heads-up!  I have also gotten enough veggie stuff to be able to particpate in Vegan MoFo for the next week or so...  Y'all will be hearing from me around 8ish.  Look out for me!

Cassie

Vegan MoFo: Day 7

Confession:  I have been really busy, therefore making me unable to really keep up with Vegan MoFo.  It makes me feel sorta bad about it, but I can't help it.  I really have been working a lot.  I don't actually have a recipe for today, so I'm going to provide a cool link for vegan candy bars!!!  The company is called Go Max Go.  I hear they have really good candy bars.  I have yet to try one.  Take care, everyone!

Vegan MoFo: Day 3

Hello there, everyone!  Tonight is Vegan MoFo Day 3!  The recipe that I have to share with everyone is a Vegan Spaghetti.  Everyone's sure to love it.  My omnivore family loved it.  Yes, I am cooking for an omni family (which is a little difficult, because they expect everything to taste like meat).  Anyways, this was a huge hit with them, and I thought it was fabulous as well!  Recipe is as follows: 

Vegan Spaghetti- serves 6 people
1 66 oz jar of Ragu World Favorites Original Spaghetti Sauce (I checked the ingredients- no meat by products)
1 pound box of fettuccine noodles, or whatever type you prefer (whole grains is better)
1 pound Smart Veggie Sausage
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
salt
pepper

1.  Heat skillet on medium-high until warm.  Add 1/4 cup vegetable oil.  When heated, add Veggie Sausage.  Break up into pieces with spatula, and cook until golden brown.
2.  Pour in all of spaghetti sauce with the Veggie sausage.  Turn the heat down to medium.  Add 1 tsp. onion powder, 1 tsp. Italian seasoning.  Salt and pepper to taste.
3.  Boil 6-8 cups water (I don't measure the water exactly).  Add noodles.  Continue to boil until al-dente.
4.  Drain noodles when finished cooking.
5.  Serve and enjoy!

The best part about this dish, was that the veggie sausage actually tasted and smelled extremely similar to pork sausage.  This is good for new vegans, like myself, who are used to eating meat.

An issue that I've noticed with myself, is that I am having a hard time weening myself off of cheese and eggs.  I was able to completely cut out the milk, but for some odd reason, I'm seeming to have a difficult time leaving out the eggs and cheese.  Not sure why.  I really love cheese, and the vegan substitute doesn't even look like cheese.  I'm a little nervous to buy it until I know that it's worth my dollar.  In South Carolina, especially the town that I live in, specialty vegan foods are a bit more expensive than regular foods.  More tomorrow!

Take care.
Cassie