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Adventures of a First-Time Lobbyist in Washington, D.C.

August 25, 2018 by Jillian Leave a Comment

adventures of a first-time lobbyist in washington, d.c.

adventures of a first-time lobbyist in washington, d.c.

Since I’ve become a Political Science major, my desire to visit Washington, D.C. has increased by monumental (see what I did there?) proportions. It’s always seemed like a really cool, interesting city. Well, guess what? It totally is!

I was contacted by the regional director of Citizens’ Climate Lobby back in May to see if I would like to attend their annual international conference in D.C. They wanted someone to represent my district in Texas and they were willing to cover my plane ticket and hostel. Not only would I get to attend a conference with lots of seminars and workshops that discussed all sorts of environmental topics, but I would also get to lobby on Capitol Hill!

I said yes, and I’m so glad that I did because it was really fun and a great experience. I can’t wait to go back to D.C., and in the meantime, here are some highlights of my trip!

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Bits & Pieces, Travel Tagged With: adventures of a first-time lobbyist in washington d.c., climate change, climate conference, compassionate women, d.c., d.c. travel, famous monuments, kalorama district, korean war veterans memorial, library of congress, lincoln memorial, lobbying, lobbyist, national archives, national treasury, nuvegan, omni shoreham hotel, potomac river, reflecting pool, supreme court of justice, the white house, travel, travel blog, travel guide, u.s. capitol, vegan, vegan blog, vegan food, vegan travel, vietnam veterans memorial, washington d.c., washington monument, wwII memorial

Forgotten Small Towns in South Texas

November 25, 2017 by Jillian 10 Comments

forgotten small towns in south texas

old chevy truck

A year ago today I moved from Beaumont, Texas to the southernmost tip of the Lone Star state in a region called the Lower Rio Grande Valley. About a couple weeks into the new move, my friend asked me to tag-along with him when he went location scouting to some of the nearby small towns. He was trying to get a film produced in the area, and found a local retired teacher to give him a tour. Since I had my Nikon, my friend asked if I would take photos of the locations on the tour.

I remember I had to wake up super early, which made me really grumpy. Plus, it was cloudy and humid outside. But I love small towns, so I was excited to see what the day had in store for us. The teacher giving us the tour knew the history of each town we visited, and since he grew up in the area, he knew most of the local families that had lived there for generations.

We met up with the teacher, climbed into his pick up truck, and set off on a maze of small towns in the Rio Grande Valley. We mainly focused on the towns of Delmita, McCook, and San Isidro, but saw a lot of cool places in between. Many of these towns were so tiny that you’d miss them if you blinked. Some felt like ghost towns. Others were a mixture of historic and modern. But all the towns contained beautiful, old, abandoned buildings. Here are my favorite photos from our tour!

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Bits & Pieces, Travel Tagged With: abandoned buildings, abandoned churches, abandoned houses, compassionate women, day trip, delmita texas, forgotten small towns in south texas, lower rio grande valley, mccook texas, old churches, old movie theater, old well, rio grande valley, san isidro texas, small towns, south texas, Texas, travel, vegan, vegan travel, wind turbines

The Colorful History of Downtown Harlingen

March 30, 2017 by Jillian Leave a Comment

the colorful history of downtown harlingen

downtown harlingen

One of my favorite things about the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas is how colorful it is, literally and figuratively. From the deep blue skies to the green and purple cabbage fields, the food, the smiling faces, and the many intersecting cultures that collide down here along the border of Mexico.

I first visited the town of Harlingen about a year and a half ago to see the original Iwo Jima Monument. Check out my post Exploring the Rio Grande Valley to see the photos and learn more about other nearby towns in the area!

It wasn’t until a few weeks ago that I decided to go back and explore the historic downtown area. I was expecting the typical old brick buildings you usually encounter in small towns, but instead was greeted by a colorful array of unique buildings and murals. Downtown Harlingen really displays the color of the region, while still embracing the history and cultures. Scroll down to see what I mean ๐Ÿ“ท๐ŸŽจ

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Bits & Pieces, Travel Tagged With: border town, centennial park harlingen, compassionate women, downtown harlingen, harlingen, harlingen texas, historic harlingen, historic small town, iwo jima monument, jackson street in harlingen, juiceology, latino, latino culture, mosaic, murals, raul esparza sanchez, rio grande valley, south texas, Texas, texas travel, the colorful history of downtown harlingen, travel, vegan, vegan travel

Tiny Texas Houses in Luling

February 13, 2017 by Jillian Leave a Comment

tiny texas houses in luling

tiny texas houses in luling

tiny texas houses in luling

This post has been a long time coming! I first stayed at Tiny Texas Houses in Luling for my birthday in May… last year. I took hundreds of pictures because it was so amazing and it took forever to narrow them down to the best ones, which still left me with over a hundred photos to edit. Definitely worth it though. I ended up going back again this past fall (another post because I can’t even think about editing more photos right now!) and after reading this post, you’ll probably want to visit, too.

What exactly is Tiny Texas Houses? It’s a company founded by Brad Kittel in Luling, Texas (which is a little over an hour southeast of Austin) that uses salvaged housing materials to build custom, hand-crafted tiny houses. These materials are 100% American, toxin free, and more environmentally friendly. Plus, Brad makes adorable and unique houses that are almost unreal!

Best part is, if you aren’t in the market to buy a tiny house, you can still rent one through Air BnB and enjoy not only the house itself, but the beautiful natural surroundings of Luling. What follows are some photos to whet your appetite… for delicious tiny houses! ๐Ÿ˜

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Bits & Pieces, Travel Tagged With: bathhouse, central texas, compassionate women, countryside, custom made houses, day trip, environmentally friendly houses, flowers, handcrafted houses, luling, luling texas, miracle mountain, nature, pond, recycled housing materials, rural texas, rustic, small town, Texas, texas day trip, texas houses, tiny houses, tiny texas houses, tiny texas houses in luling, travel, travel texas, vacation, vegan, vegan travel, wildflowers

Cozying Up in Austin for the Holidays

January 10, 2017 by Jillian Leave a Comment

cozying up in the austin for the holidays

christmas tree

During the Christmas/Hannukkah/New Year’s holidays I spent two weeks in Austin doing what I do best – house & pet sitting ๐Ÿก๐Ÿ•

Well, it’s not that difficult really, just super fun and you get to hang out with fur babies all day! I also got to spend lots of time doing my favorite things, including plenty of photography for my blog. The days in Austin leading up to my trip were super cold, so I was worried I was in for a chilly time, but upon my arrival the weather warmed up and I got to enjoy some very beautiful days.

I decided to write about my time spent in Austin over the holidays and post my favorite photos from the experience. I hope you enjoy it!

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Bits & Pieces, Tidbits Tagged With: animals, austin, austin texas, blog, blogger, bouldin creek cafe, cats, christmas, compassionate women, cooking, counter culture austin, cozying up in austin for the holidays, dogs, holidays, holidays 2016, mastiffs, new year's eve, rescue dogs, Texas, travel, travel blog, vegan, vegan blog, vegan food, vegan recipes, vegan restaurants, vegan travel

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HEY THERE! I’M JILLIAN.

I live near Houston, Texas with my rescue dog Stella! I create cruelty-free recipes that are delicious, to demonstrate that it's easy to follow a plant-based lifestyle. Not only are the health and beauty benefits noticeable, but it creates a more sustainable planet and keeps our animal friends safe & happy. In our spare time, Stella and I also love watching movies, reading, snuggling, and taking long walks! LEARN MOREโ€ฆ

Check out the documentary I directed!

remember my soul

Feature-length documentary that uncovers the Jewish history of the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas and the customs & traditions the Jewish people there have contributed to.

Subscribe to my mailing list and receive a FREE RECIPE E-BOOK as a thank you!

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compassionatewomen

Compassionate Women
Perfected my vegan pulled pork recipe ๐Ÿ‘… Made so Perfected my vegan pulled pork recipe ๐Ÿ‘… Made some tacos with it, a side of roasted potatoes, and my "magic" sauce ๐Ÿ’ฏ
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#tacos #vegansofinstagram #veganlife #vegano #veganshare #veganfoodlovers #vegans #veganfortheanimals #veganrecipes #veganfoodshare #veganfood #veganeats #vegansofig #veganfoodie #vegandinner #veganfoodporn #healthyfood #healthyeating #glutenfree #foodblogger #foodlovers #foodblog #foodstagram #foodpics #yummy
Vintage 1940s cameo ring. If my daughter didn't ha Vintage 1940s cameo ring. If my daughter didn't have such large paws, I'd pass my jewelry down to her ๐Ÿถ
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#cameo #jewelry #vintage #vintagejewelry #vintagestyle #jewellery #jewelrygram #ring #rings #ringsofinstagram #jewelrylover #dogmom #daughter #bloglife #blogger #bloggerlife #instajewelry
Took a lot of coaxing but Stella ventured out to e Took a lot of coaxing but Stella ventured out to experience snow, and also peed in it as soon as she could ๐Ÿ˜‚๐Ÿ˜‚
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#snow #snowday #snowdog #texas #snowyday #ilovemydog #ilovemypitbull #pittiesofinstagram #pitbullmom #pitbullsofinstagram #pitbulllove #pitbulladvocate #pitbullpride #petsofinstagram #petstagram #petlovers #pets #dogstagram #dogsofinstaworld #dogsofinstagram #doggo #dogs #dogsofig #dogmom
In the past week I made 2 deeeelicious lentil soup In the past week I made 2 deeeelicious lentil soups. The first is green lentils with potato and mushroom. The second is Greek Red Lentil soup that tastes like a gourmet tomato soup ๐Ÿ… and also has carrot, rosemary, lemon, and a hint of cumin. Both soups have kale because that makes them ๐Ÿ’ฏ% better. 
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#soup #soupseason #winterfood #comfortfood #yummy #veganfood #vegansofinstagram #veganeats #vegan #vegansofig #veganshare #veganfoodie #veganfoodlovers #vegetarian #vegetarianfood #vegandinner #veganism #veganfoodshare #veganrecipes #plantbased #crueltyfree #dinner #healthyfood #healthyeating #fitfood #healthyliving #healthyrecipes #foodblogger #foodlovers #foodstagram
One of the things that has interested me about the One of the things that has interested me about the horrific scene at the Capitol yesterday is the connection between veganism and colonialism. Some of the mob members yesterday were proudly covered in the skins of dead animals. To me, it's no surprise that white male supremacists are speceiests at their core. They believe they are inherently superior. They have historically compared people of color to animals, and treated them as sadistcally as they treat animals. In America, the government orchestrated the slaughtering of 60 million buffalo for no other reason than as a way to starve Indians into submission. Among other things, white supremacy and colonialism is linked to an obsession with killing, hunting, and dominating over others. So here are some bomb homemade VEGAN Butterfinger I made yesterday. Free of cruelty and made from plants. I'm not just vegan for the animals, I'm vegan for people because it is all connected.
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#veganfood #vegansofinstagram #vegancommunity #veganeats #veganfortheanimals #vegan #vegandessert #veganlife #veganshare #veganism #veganforlife #veganfoodlovers #vegansofig #plantbased #crueltyfree #veganfoodie #foodblogger #foodlovers #foodblog #dessert #chocolate #foodshare #foodstagram #veganfoodporn #speciesism #animalrights #animallover
My little wheel of crystals โœจ๐ŸŒˆ I researched e My little wheel of crystals โœจ๐ŸŒˆ I researched each one, including their healing properties, and wrote a blog post about them (link in bio) ๐ŸŒ™๐ŸŒŸ
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#crystallove #crystalenergy #crystals #crystalhealing #crystal #crystalcollection #crystalsofig #stones #amethyst #obsidian #healing #healingcrystals #healingenergy #healingstones #heal #growth #vegansofig #vegansofinstagram #bloglife #blogger #blog #energyhealing #energy #emotionalhealth #spiritualhealing
Stella's New Year goal is for you to follow her @c Stella's New Year goal is for you to follow her @cindersmella_stella ๐ŸŽ‰๐ŸŽ‰
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#dogstagram #dogsofinstagram #dailydog #doglife #doggo #doglovers #dogsofinsta #dogs #dogmom #dogslife #dogsofinstaworld #doglover #dogs_of_instagram #dogsofig #dogs_of_instagram #doginstagram #vegansofinstagram #veganlife #vegansofig #rescuedog #pittie #pittiesofinstagram #pitbullmom #happynewyear #newyearseve
I made this creamy cauliflower dip today and it wa I made this creamy cauliflower dip today and it was delicious with my salad ๐Ÿ˜‹๐Ÿฅ— Cashews, roasted cauliflower, fresh rosemary, lemon juice, and spices ๐Ÿฝ๏ธ
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#salad #healthyrecipes #healthyfood #healthyliving #healthyeating #vegan #veganfood #vegansofinstagram #veganeats #veganfortheanimals #vegansofig #vegano #veganshare #veganism #veganfoodlovers #veganfoodie #veganrecipes #veganfoodshare #vegetarian #glutenfree #foodblogger #foodlovers #foodblog #foodie #foodshare #foodstagram #foodpics
Took a break from audio editing to make my own coc Took a break from audio editing to make my own coconut syrup for some iced coffee ๐Ÿฅฅโ˜• It was my first time making it. Next time, less sugar and more steep time! 
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#coffee #coffeelover #coffeetime #coffeegram #coconut #homemade #recipe #easyrecipe #veganeats #vegansofinstagram #veganlife #vegansofig #vegan #veganshare #veganrecipes #syrup #dogmom #drinkstagram #coffeeholic #foodblog
My first attempt at chickpea tuna salad ๐ŸŸ and i My first attempt at chickpea tuna salad ๐ŸŸ and it was amazing! It tasted like the real thing. I used chickpeas, fresh dill, lemon juice, chopped pickle, vegan mayo, s&p, and garlic powder topped with red onion and on a bed of spinach and tomatoes ๐Ÿฅ—
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#tunasalad #veganfood #vegansofinstagram #vegancommunity #veganeats #veganfortheanimals #vegan #veganlife #vegansofig #vegano #veganshare #veganism #veganfoodie #veganfoodshare #veganfoodlovers #veganrecipes #plantbased #crueltyfree #foodblogger #foodlovers #foodblog #foodie #foodshare #foodstagram #foodpics #foodlove #yummy #healthyrecipes #healthyfood
I hate selfies but I loveee this Frida Kahlo shirt I hate selfies but I loveee this Frida Kahlo shirt I found for 10 bucks!! ๐Ÿคฏ๐Ÿคฏ
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#fridakahlo #tshirt #tshirtslovers #tshirts #frida #selfie #selfportrait #vegansofinstagram #vegansofig #veganlife #vegan #tuesday #clothes #veganfortheanimals #instamood
Another successful Hanukkah! Stella is scared of a Another successful Hanukkah! Stella is scared of any kind of fire but she still helped light the menorah every night, then we went across the living room to turn the lights on the Xmas tree because one December holiday just isn't enough! ๐Ÿ•Ž๐ŸŽ„
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#hanukkah #holidayseason #holidays #menorah #chanukah #pitbullmom #ilovemydog #ilovemypitbull #pitbull #pittiesofinstagram #pittie #tradition #vegansofinstagram #vegansofig #jewish #judaism #bloglife #blogger
Adventures in vegan & gluten free pizza making! ๐Ÿ• The first pizza has homemade alfredo sauce (from cashews), mozzarella, chicken, mushroom, kalamata olive, kale, and shallot. The second one has tomato sauce, cheddar cheese, Beyond sausage, onion, broccoli, and mushroom. Both are topped with vegan ricotta. The pizza dough was pretty good, found it at a natural foods store ๐Ÿ˜‹
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#pizza #pizzalover #pizzatime #glutenfree #veganfood #vegansofinstagram #veganeats #vegan #veganlife #vegansofig #veganism #veganfoodie #veganfoodlovers #vegandinner #veganfoodshare #healthyeating #foodblog #foodstagram #foodblogger #foodlover #foodpics #foodie #foodlovers #foodshare #foodiesofinstagram #foodlove
Last night I was in bed and realized I hadn't seen Last night I was in bed and realized I hadn't seen Pixie in a while. I got up to look for her and she was nowhere to be found. I kept calling her and looked in every nook and cranny of my house. I thought something terrible happened to her. Then I noticed a pillow moving. She was sleeping inside the pillowcase next to me the whole time. I didn't even know she could climb onto the bed by herself ๐Ÿ˜‚๐Ÿ˜‚
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#kittycat #kitten #kittenlovers #kittensofinstagram #catsagram #catsofinstagram #fosterkittens #fosterkittensofinstagram #cats #adoptdontshop #catlover #kitty #rescuekitty #rescuecats #instacat #instakitty #funny #funnycats
Keeping it handy. Gotta manifest that positivity ๐ŸŒœ๐ŸŒˆโœจ๐Ÿ’Ž
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#crystals #crystalhealing #crystallove #bookstagram #book #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaddict #booknerd #bookworm #positivity #positivevibes #manifestation #manifest #vegansofinstagram #vegansofig #veganlife #read #crystalenergy #readersofinstagram #readingtime #readersofig #reader
Good 'ol Tofurky on ThanksLiving Day ๐Ÿฆƒ๐Ÿฆƒ . . Good 'ol Tofurky on ThanksLiving Day ๐Ÿฆƒ๐Ÿฆƒ 
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#thanksgiving #veganfood #vegansofinstagram #veganeats #vegan #veganlife #vegansofig #veganism #veganshare #vegans #veganfoodie #veganforlife #veganfoodlovers #veganfoodshare #vegandinner #crueltyfree #plantbased #vegetarian #vegetarianfood #dinner #healthylifestyle #healthy #healthyliving #bloglife #blogger
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