Hey there, party people! How’s it going?
Today’s post is going to be a little bit different because there won’t be a recipe, just some vegan desserts I’ve made recently and updates on my life.
Tomorrow is my 9 year vegan anniversary, which feels really special to me. It’s a solid goal that I never really sought to achieve, but it just kind of happened.
I’m glad to live a vegan life and I have zero regrets. I feel great, healthy and strong and I think I look pretty damn good too and that’s on top of the animal lives I didn’t contribute to taking and decreasing my carbon footprint!
Author Life
2026 has been a pretty busy year for me. I’ve published two books Confessions of a Former Fat Girl came out in March and the prologue to Kira’s story, Take Me Home Tonight came out on May 21st. If you haven’t read the Emerald Creek series, start it today, please & thank you!
I also have a new pen name, Willa Renfro, so if you like short & steamy age gap romance reads, these books will be right up your alley. I have 4 books in the billionaire series and the Blackstone Triplets are up next!
And that’s one slice of my work.
What else?
Weight Loss
Weight loss is going great, I’m so close to my goal weight, which feels surreal to even say!!! But more than that? I feel healthy and fit, more than I’ve ever felt in my life, even when I was a young athlete and to say that at my age feels like a big win.
Because I’m feeling so fit, my plan this summer is to hike Omu. I’ve already done Babele and Caraiman Peak and this is the third I really want to do.
Travel
Not sure how much traveling I’ll get to this summer but there are still a few places within Romania that I want to see and if there are any you think I should see, let me know in the comments.
I plan to do the Danube Delta again, a ziplining tour and possibly a waterfall hike but I’ll keep you updated as I figure it all out.
Baking
I’ve officially entered my vegan baking era, I guess. I’ve been making tons of baked goods, which my Romanian friends and family are happy to receive! My mother-in-law is loving all the cookies and cakes and especially cupcakes. So far, lemon is her favorite but she’s also learning to love cinnamon and nutmeg flavored anything.
Vegan Brownie Cookies – these were delicious and chocolate-y with a soft chocolate center.
Vegan Pineapple Banana Bread – This is an incredibly moist vegan dessert using fresh, overripe bananas and canned pineapple, mashed in a food processor. Add rum extract and use brown sugar to make the most of the natural flavors of the fruit.
Vegan Blondies – this is a fantastically decadent recipe. If you’re familiar with blondies, this uses melted vegan butter, nut butter and chocolate chunks to get the gooey center you know and love. It’s super, super decadent but well worth the calories!
And that’s what’s been up with me lately. What’s up with you? Tell me about your latest read or your summer plans! What are you cooking this week?
Tell me what you think about this!