Hey, Sugar!

My little family and I got to spend two [long overdue] weeks in Texas, with my family.  I didn't even THINK about blogging while I was there.  I just wanted to enjoy every. second.  And THAT, I did.

A little too much, as evidenced by the huge paragraphs you're about to read, listing all of the junk I ate while there.  We wanted to make it to Salt Grass for some cheesecake, Braum's for the greatest mint chocolate chip milkshakes in the world (I had THREE in the two weeks that we were there), some brisket at Cole Mountain, bananas foster custard that my brother said we HAD to try, some DE-licious gelato from Paciugo, pie shakes at s-CRUMBS-cious, owned by a family friend, and we had a baby shower for my little sister at Cheesecake Factory, where we got three slices of cheesecake to share.  Not to mention her OTHER baby shower, where I indulged in some other treats.


 We also made s'mores in the backyard one night, went out for pizza, steak, mexican, and burgers on different nights, went to McKinney, to see Kjirsten's family and, aside from walking around the cute little town, looking in the shop windows, playing at the park, and participating in a magician's show, we stopped at the cutest little candy shop, where we filled a bag to the brim with treats (and finished them within 24 hours).  While we were there, we also enjoyed dinner at a cute little cafe that had a really fun (LOUD) atmosphere, with good music and yummy pies for dessert (we got pecan, chocolate creme, and coconut creme).  We went to Austin too, to visit Mike and Caroline, and she made some delicious chocolate mouse cake with crunchy toffee on top (I couldn't stop eating it!  SO good!).  AND, my siblings and I agreed that mom and dad's house somehow makes you hungry.  I pretty much snacked all day long.  My 1 1/2 year old, Penelope, learned really quickly, where the snack cupboard was, and would stand under it, screaming and pointing, until mommy gave her some chocolate covered raisins or pomegranates, both of which grammy conveniently kept stocked while we were there.  I ate and ate and ate without a care in the world.  MMmmm, it was GOOD.

BUT. . . .


Now I'm back home and reality is setting in.  As you might imagine, there are 8 extra pounds showing up on my scale, my energy is extremely low, and I need to do damage control.  Before my trip, I was working on my eating habits.  Drinking nothing but water, decaffeinated green tea, and protein shakes, eating lean protein and superfoods in every meal, eating 5 or 6 times a day, and eating fruit when I craved sugar.   Why is it so EASY to let go on vacation, but so HARD to come back and eat healthy again?  I read something on Pinterest that said, 'Losing weight is hard, maintaining weight is hard, staying fat is hard.  Choose your hard.'  Ummm, sorry, but I think the first one is hard, the second one is a little easier, and the third is REALLY easy.  I'm just sayin'.

 I think my biggest downfall is that I. LOVE. SUGAR.  I've been reading a lot lately, about how bad sugar is for us, even more addictive than cocaine, and how much more we're consuming with each passing year.  I don't want to fall into the trap and I don't want my kids to get into the habit either, so it's my goal to find healthy alternatives and try to lower my sugar consumption.  It's overwhelming to think about, because I know it won't be easy, but when there's something I WANT to do and KNOW is a good thing, I just read, read, read, until it becomes less overwhelming.  Knowledge is power.    If you'd like to learn more, read the link above.  If you don't want to read the whole thing, there are a few bullet points at the bottom, in the blue box.  Also, I just started reading a little bit from Sarah Wilson's blog.  She's the author of 'I Quit Sugar', an ebook, and she also has a cookbook coming soon (which I purchased while in Texas.  Just thinking ahead.)

So, that's the plan: start cooking healthier meals for me and my family to enjoy, stop snacking on junk, keep myself full so I don't crave sugar as much, and hopefully feel the energy restored.  Enjoy a few more pictures from my blissful, sugar-filled, two weeks in Texas:

  I also feel the need to add that I worked out EVERY weekday that I was there.  I guess that's my silver lining, so to speak.  Maybe it's not SO bad if I was exercising?