The Story of My Vegetarian Family.com

Just like a regular Tuesday for me, I sat down to publish my tips knowing my fans are eagerly awaiting what I have to say every Tuesday 😉. I went to hit the publish button + noticed that today I am publishing post number 500 on my blog! So, I thought I would take you on a little journey with me to 500. We can return to the regularly scheduled tips next week! For this week, the story of My Vegetarian Family.com 💚

Tara’s Tuesday Tips:

The Story of My Vegetarian Family.com

I started this blog in 2017.  Some of you have been following along since the very first day + I thank you! My original thought was that I was going to have a place to document my recipes for my children to have forever. What I realized in the process was that there were people who found it very difficult to live meat-free while I found it quite easy! The more I talked about it, I realized so many found our journey fascinating as we are happy healthy adult vegetarians, raising vegetarian kids, and have successful plant-powered athletic lives. So, I thought maybe I had a few things to say that might help other people. I was right!

As of today, February 28^th 2023, 500 posts later, MyVegetarianFamily.com gets thousands of visits per day.  People all over the world visit my little piece of the internet, learn from my tips, make my recipes + reach out to me with success stories of their vegetarian journey. This makes my heart happy + makes every bit of work that goes into the back (and front) channels of this blog worth it!

As the comments, testimonials, emails, and success stories come in via the blog, I am driven to continue to write, create recipes, and dissect the research to help my readers interpret complex nutritional information, and easily adopt any level of a plant-based lifestyle.

After 500 Posts, What is the Mission Now?

I remain faithful to my commitment to not endorse or sell any products or services on the blog.  I won’t accept any free products, and I am not paid to promote anyone else’s message or brand. Everything on this site is here because I am passionate about good food that comes from good places.  I also continue to be firm on managing every aspect of the blog myself.  From the website building to the research, content creation, cooking, recipe testing, and photography.

I will continue to give you my perspective on health, nutrition + science trends. You can skip the tips + just cook if that is your thing! You can also use my tips in your everyday life where you see fit. With a doctorate degree in nursing, I am a scientist first and foremost.  The science of food, disease prevention, using food and lifestyle to promote health + longevity fascinate me. I have over 20 years of clinical experience.  I have diagnosed, treated, and managed all types of acute and chronic illnesses.  Being a nurse practitioner has made me realize the incredible ability of food to prevent, treat, and even reverse illness. My background in science + medicine coupled with my love for cooking tasty vegetarian food make a good combination working on this blog.

The Story of Navigating Food as Medicine

Over the course of the last 6 years, MyVegetarianFamily.com has evolved into what you see here today.  Food is medicine, but food is not only medicine, food is also fuel. However, food is so much more.  Food should taste good and be something we enjoy, share, and celebrate. After battling RED-S, I realized that food is powerful + should be enjoyed when you have the opportunity to do so. The blending of these important concepts is something I strive to do here. As my story of this blog continues to evolve, I will continue to be sure this message is clear in each and every article published.

Living Proof

The food you see here, we eat. I often snap pictures of Mr. MVF’s food right before he eats it. We do the things I write about in my Tuesday Tips, we prioritize health + wellness + honesty over anything else. We are of ideal body weight and muscle mass, and we eat A LOT of real plant-based food that actually tastes good. As plant-powered athletes, we easily get plenty of protein every day! We do eat lots of carbs, we also enjoy the occasional donut, candy, cookie, or bag of chips without any regret. Rest assured, every recipe published here has been tested multiple times before ever making it to you. Mr. MVF is my number one taste tester.  The MVF kids are off living life as adult vegetarians now + return for a good meal as often as they like. After 21 marathons and 29 half marathons, I look forward to many more miles with Mr. MVF by my side.  I passionately believe that being plant-based has made us better athletes + has kept us disease-free.

The Journey to 500

Your favorites over the last 6 years have been The Vegetarian’s Guide to Intermittent Fasting, How to Sauté Frozen Spinach, Just EGG Hack, How to Get Enough Calcium if You Don’t Drink Milk, Dill Pickle Hummus, and The Plant-Powered Athlete.

My favorites to write have been The Vegetarian’s Guide To Packing Food for a Hike  after hiking the Grand Canyon rim to rim in one day +  How To Host a Vegetarian Pasta Party as most of you know I love to throw a good vegetarian party! 

It’s been a fun journey and I love telling the story of My Vegetarian Family.com because it truly is my story as I have grown as a cook, photographer, writer, athlete, and person.

Food For Thought

Keep letting me know what you want to eat, cook, learn, or read about! I love hearing from you, seeing your food photos, and hearing about your own plant-powered journey. For those close to the MVF home, thank you for coming to my kitchen + cooking + eating with me!

Happy 500 MVF.com! Thanks to all of you who keep coming back here week after week, trying out my recipes, listening to my tips, loving my stories, asking questions, and clicking around! Your support means the world to me and my work. I will close 500 with one of my favorite quotes …  “the goal is not to be better than the other person, but your previous self”.

All the best,

Tara 💚

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