Vegan Holiday in NYC

 Making Birthday Memories in Manhattan

Where in the world is Jacey Birch?!?

Oh, well, she's that little white dot right there! And she's celebrating her Birthday Week in NYC & loving every minute of it!  Ok there's definitely a tie with NYC & Key West for my favorite city in the world. So what better way to spend my special week then by heading North to see & feel some of that seasonal spirit?!

(Let's rename birthdays - birthweeks - sooooo much more fun turning 1 day into 7 dontcha think?!?)

Anywho... Bigger-than-life-size decorations were everywhere you looked in Rockafeller Center! The tree was gorgeous, the decorations oh-so-festive and the mood was electric - everyone packing the streets and feeling the holiday festivities! NYC is quite possible the most special place during Christmastime!

I loved seeing the vendors selling fragrant Christmas trees right on the streets...

The cheerful & bright twinkle lights in Chelsea Market...

The ice skaters at the Winter Village in Bryant Park... 

And my favorite part of the entire trip was visiting Jenny, my BFF of ten years & also my fabulous tour guide for the week! Jenny is from Miami, just like me, but she is an honorary NYC native now because this girl can navigate the streets, the subways, correct a cab driver & track down the best cocktail in the city - all before I roll out of bed!

My friends mean the world to me & as always, my girl made my trip pure perfection! She took me to all her holiday parties along with the new hot spots in the city, which included the most amazing Vegan restaurant!

The Buthcher's Daughter... Cute play on words huh? The daughter is bucking the family trend by building a fabulous menu full of animal-free choices!

I ordered the white bean & fennel sausage with spinach & mushrooms. It was one of the tastiest vegan meals I have ever had the pleasure of sinking my greedy teeth into!

Jenny had the black bean burger with cashew cheese & fat steak fries. She loved her meal & didn't even have to leave her comfort zone to go all-veggie for the night. I will definitely be heading back to this restaurant well-known for it's daily menu changes & seasonal produce that is chopped, filleted & carved - just like at a butcher's shop!

And when it was time for an after dinner coffee... I found the best coffee shop in the city! I tried to get the family discount, I showed them my ID & everything but I couldn't prove that my family owns this place - since they don't! But I wish they did because my latte made with hemp milk was pure heaven!

I took that as a sign that I will find love in 2014... Or maybe it just means "I heart NYC" ?? That's probably more likely ;)

I also heart a little lady you may have heard of before... Her name is Bethenny Frankel & she is a bit of a life coach for me these days as she is also going through a divorce & learning how to start over & look to the future while leaving the past behind.

I love her mantra of, "Come from a place of YES!" I try to incorporate that saying everyday along with YOLO. Both motivate me to live for today instead of focusing on my failures.

It was my birthday wish to go see a taping of Bethenny while I was in NY & I was lucky enough to do just that with my girlfriend, Dana, & we had a blast! It was even snowing the day we set off for the studios - which was an added treat for the beach girl from the Sunshine State!

After a little healthy life coaching session from Ms. Frankel, it was time for retail therapy in the Village, fueled by winter-weather liquor libations with my gorgeous cousin, Amanda. Yeah, that's my fancy way of saying we got toasty with cocktails while spending some money & helping the economy. Hey, we all gotta do our part, this world isn't going to save itself, now is it?! ;)

The next day I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge by myself - it was a great way to burn off some of those cocktail calories - of course! But more importantly, it gave me some time to reflect on the end of the roughest year of my life & prepare for a fresh start. I'm truly ready to say goodbye to 2013 & HELLO to 2014!

This trip was very special to me, not just because I had a week off to eat, drink & be merry! And not only because I spent massive quality time with friends & family that I love & who truly mean so much to me. But also because I really embraced living in the moment & enjoying every movement of life I witnessed.

From a falling snowflake outside my window...

To the enormous emotion evoked when I took my first look at our new Freedom Tower...

To the beauty & symbolic nature of a simple Christmas tree erected in a parking garage...

To the architecture of our forefathers that enveloped & surrounded me on every street... reminding me of how very small I truly am... 

To goofy moments in time with the people that love me no matter what mistakes I make or what direction my life takes...

My Manhattan trip was a reminder to focus on all that I have... instead of looking at what I have lost. 

Cheers to that! 

Is it time for another cocktail?! 

Ha ha ;)

Till next time New York...

Vegan Comes Clean

No more hiding behind a mask... 

It's time to come clean.  

I haven't blogged in more than 4 weeks & the reason is simple: FEAR

Fear of the repercussions of being open & honest, fear of what people will think, fear of being judged, fear of exposing the truth & not being able to take it back, fear of accepting my past & embracing my future.

Let me explain...

My divorce was finalized on July 30, 2013.  I was devastated.  I was broken.  I felt like a failure.  I never thought that I would be "one of those" divorced people.  I pride myself on being strong, a fighter, never say die, I can do it all & I still can't believe I couldn't save my marriage. I'll spare you the details because it's the same old tale: we grew apart, we wanted different things, we couldn't compromise, we were on different pages when it came to kids & career & religion... 

With a 60% divorce rate, I'm sure you've heard it all before.  But even though (sadly) I'm in the majority - I still felt so alone.  I felt abandoned, I felt people giving me those pity looks & I felt like I failed everyone.  My parents, my in-laws, my family, my friends, my husband & of course, myself.  Plenty of my friends have gone through a divorce but nobody could prepare me for the immense pain.  It's like taking a bullet.  It's like a death... But without closure.  It makes you doubt who you are & what you stand for & it makes you lose your confidence & your belief in yourself.

But I have a very wise, loving, caring, sensitive & faithful best friend who told me that angels would watch over me & take care of me through this time when I didn't think I could handle the overwhelming, suffocating pain.  I didn't think I would ever be "me" ever again.  But she was right... My Angels arrived.  

I can't explain it. 

Some were here for a second & then gone forever.

Some are still in my life today.  

But every single one of them saved me.  And I would NOT still be standing today if it weren't for My Amazing Angels.  

You know who you are & I thank you with all that is left of my broken heart.

At times, it seemed like my tears would never stop flowing. And then my friends aka "my angels" would make me smile or even better, bring out a buried laugh & I would think, "it's going to get better..."

And it is... slowly, painfully & with time.

Oh that may be the worst of all! 

Just waiting for time to heal my broken... No... my shattered heart.

Less than 3 months after the end of my marriage... On October 15, 2013... I received the news that my father had died of a heart attack.

My Dad was not the picture of health & I knew that I would get the call one day that his hard & fast living had beat him in the battle for life in this world... But it sure didn't make anything easier. I was no more prepared or equipped to deal with losing my Dad. The pain was more than I thought I could handle. It's not just a mental pain, it's a physical manifestation of all that is now lost & gone forever. 

At the time I thought the memories of my Father were all that I had...

That was my Dad.  Danny Creel was a Hunter, a Fisherman, a Boater... pretty much an all-around outdoor enthusiast! Kinda funny that I became a Vegan right?!  But don't get me wrong... He LOVED animals, he respected them, he never hunted for sport, only for food.

And so I realize that it's not just memories of my father that exist in my mind... it's also the love that he had in his heart... It didn't leave this world with him.  It now lives in my heart.

I exist today because of my Father.  I am who I am because of my Dad.  He taught me unconditional love for all beings... But Especially for Animals!  And he taught me to laugh & to live & to love & to forgive.

So even though I lost my husband & my Dad both within months of each other... 

I'm going to laugh...

I'm going to live...

I'm going to love...

& I'm going to forgive...

Life will continue on.

It's not easy.

But I'm learning a lot about who I am (thanks to my Dad) & who I want to be.

My divorce will no longer destroy me.

And my Dad's death will be a reminder that in this world...

This is what really matters! 

LOVE YOUR FAMILY.

Don't let "life" get in the way of time together.

Say "I love you" often & show it even more.

I can't bring back my Dad anymore than I can bring back my husband but I'm going to learn to let the loss help heal my heart.

For all those who have loved & lost or suffered the loss of a loved one... Let's remember to support each other, pray for one another & help put our hearts back together... one piece at a time.

And never forget you always have your Angels...

Just Veggin' Around Town

Even when I'm not traveling... I'm still kinda sorta traveling!  Recently I made the short 2 hour drive north to Sebastian (about 15 minutes from where my family lives in Vero) so that I could hang with friends and go paddleboarding! 

But believe it or not... Us humans had a harder time balancing on the board than a little 4-legged furry pup I know!

The best part about my paddleboarding adventure, (besides getting a great workout while working on my tan!) was that my baby boy Jagger joined me.  And this munchkin really has NO fear!  He tackled the exercise like a doggy with a 6-pack... because you really have to control your core to balance on the board!

But after his wild water ride (he did fall off once & he had to do the doggy-paddle!)... Jagger passed out at the tiki bar while the rest of us enjoyed the sunset with cocktails!

And showed off our best squid lips!!  The weekend away was the perfect way to blow off some steam with fun friends & forget all about work for awhile... before it was time to get back to the grind!

Luckily for me, I love my "grind!"  I'm so blessed to be the Animal Advocate Reporter at the ABC station in Miami.  So on any given day, I could be reporting on stolen 100 year old turtles...

Or interviewing feather-less parrots... Yes this one actually talks, so he answered all my questions!

Going through K-9 training by being "attacked" by a German Shepherd...

Checking out the latest furry-fashions at a puppy-boutique...

Swimming with a baby manatee being rehabilitated at Miami Seaquarium...

Reporting on the latest South Florida cities to ban circuses that use inhumane training equipment...

Learning how hawks with broken wings & missing feathers get nursed back to health...

Finding forever & foster homes for rescue dogs at local shelters...

Making sure the kitties get great homes too...

Being an Orangutan "Teacher" for the day... These apes can work an iPad better than I can!

Covering this beagle's retirement from Miami International Airport after nearly a decade of sniffing baggage for illegal produce coming into the country...

I really do LOVE my job!!  I'm so passionate about saving animals & educating people about their plight. My goal is to get all pet parents to "Adopt, Don't Shop!" when it comes to bringing in a new family member.  And of course, spay & neuter is a MUST.  We have way too many unwanted animals that are euthanized needlessly every single day.

And it's because of my love of animals, that I incorporated the vegan lifestyle (one of many reasons).  I decided that my passion can't be just for puppies & kittens... It's also for cows & chickens & turkeys & fish & shrimp & lobsters... 

And every other animal that is raised & then slaughtered in horrible, inhumane conditions, all so that we can have a meal.  I am no longer a carnivore... 

And why would I want to be when I get to eat meals like this:

That's a portobello mushroom "burger" wrapped in lettuce & topped with zuchini, squash, tomatoes & crispy onions.  I get these vegan burgers all the time at Gilbert's in Fort Lauderdale because of this dish & because of the daily non-dairy vegetable soups... Love this restaurant!

And how about this scrumptious meal that I made all by myself?  Falafel balls, organic green beans, organic quinoa & sautéed orange peppers.  I think I have another motto I'm going to start touting: "It's easy being Vegan!"