The spelling of "vegetable lives" is straightforward when using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) transcription system. The first syllable is "VEG" with a short e sound /vɛdʒ/, while the second syllable is "TA" pronounced with a long e sound /ˈvɛdʒtəl/. The final syllable is "LIVES" and is pronounced as: /ˈlaɪvz/. Therefore, the correct spelling of "vegetable lives" using IPA would be: /ˈvɛdʒtəl laɪvz/.