Day 23

I've been struggling the past couple of days, really wanting something sweet. I sort of expected it around this time of the month. (You girls know what I'm talking about!) It's taken all I have to not down a 1/2 box of vanilla wafers (they smell soooooo good when I am getting them for Maggie) or to eat a sleeve of graham crackers as I'm getting them for her afternoon snack.

Ah, temptation! And I used to give in. Quite often. Actually, I'm a bit shocked at the amount of mindless snacking I used to do. I'd like to think it's something all moms struggle with. It would start at breakfast. I'd always cut the crusts off of Maggie's Cinnamon toast, and promptly eat them. Then it would be a few Cheetos as I was putting them on her plate for lunch, or a handful of vanilla wafers or graham cracker sheets at snack time and then a leftover chicken nugget (or two, or three!) left on the plate after dinner. Seriously, I was eating an extra meal in calories just in mindless snacking.

A lot of the problem was my poor eating habits. I never ate breakfast, aside from the toast crusts. So, of course, by lunch time I was starving and ready to eat whatever I could get fast, usually something non-nutritious that would wear off by mid afternoon. Then I would get home, starved again, and that's when the easily-assessable cookies and graham crackers would come into play. Then it was time for dinner and I'd eat mine and, sometimes, whatever was left on the girls' plates. Then it started all over the next day.

This is where I think eating 5-6 small meals a day have helped me - starting with a healthy breakfast. I really don't allow myself to get overly-hungry anymore. And the food choices really do make a difference. I can't say enough about this. My apple and natural peanut butter, or veggies and hummus go way further than the moon pie and candy bar ever did. It makes it so much easier to avoid the sweet temptations when I'm not starving! I'll admit, I was skeptical at first about eating "so much." But I'm finding that I'm not eating any more than I used to - I'm just more aware of everything I put in my mouth now.

Even after 3 short weeks, I know that I'm still going to have those days where all I want to do is eat. But being equipped with good, health choices really does make all the difference.