Sophie - Giving up milk

So this Monday I gave up on all forms of cow's milk. I have been attempting to do this for years now and that is why Tyler and I cook mostly vegan. However I have never definitively said, "From this day forward I will not consume anymore milk products." I did this on Monday.

Let me explain my reasons for doing this: a. I am lactose intolerant, and have been for many years. b. I have an allergy to the protein and cow's milk, and beef. So not only does the consumption of dairy (cow's milk and it's derivatives) affect my digestion, it also affects my ability to breathe and complexion.

For the last couple of years I have limited my dairy consumption but have a very difficult time in giving it up completely, mostly because I LOVE cheese. To make things more difficult my work provides free snacks and most of them contain some sort of dairy. They also periodically provide chocolate candy, which is very hard to resist. This has just made things more difficult to give up the dairy.

Now, I am not making a big fuss over the whole thing. For example, if I go out and order something I believe is non-dairy and it ends up having some milk in it I will not return it. But I do need to take a stronger stand against ordering things with cheese or milk products.

I foresee the most difficult times to keep this promise to myself is going to be at church potluck. We all know how Adventists tend to cook. It will also be difficult when going out to eat. I have, so far, resisted temptation at work with the snacks, even though they had one of my favorite chips Cheddar Ruffles, and that makes me proud of myself.