And It Begins...

I want to take a minute to explain what this blog will be about and why I decided to start it.  Let's start with the title: Moms Do Not Eat Alone.  There is an obvious (I hope) truth to this statement.  Beginning with my first child's move to solid food and continuing until all my children are moved out of my home, 90% of the meals I eat will be in the company of at least one or more of my offspring.  More than that, I will be primarily responsible for the planning and preparation of each of those meals.  Now, let's be honest.  For many years, this hasn't exactly been an issue that weighed heavily on my mind.  I'm a mom.  Of course I fix food for my kids.  So what?  They certainly aren't starving, so where's the problem?

The problem is that it's apparent I'm not starving, either.  And I mean that in the "looks like she could stand to skip a few meals" kind of way.  Is it obvious yet? I'm over-weight.  The thing is, I'm not alone.  I know more women who are struggling with their weight than I do women who are even close to their "ideal" body weight.  There are a LOT of programs or products available to help people got control of their weight.  Let's see what comes to my mind: Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, Slim Fast, Nutrisystem, Alli, Fastin, Ultra 90, Sensa... and the list continues.  I am not bashing any of these things.  I'm sure for any individual person, one or more of these solutions would produce weight loss. 

Oh, wait.  Did you read that?  "...for any INDIVIDUAL person..."  This is the point of my blog (I know, I know, it sure took me a long time to get to it).  If a mom decides to embark on any of these weight loss adventures, she often has to exclude herself from family meals.  For some women this would mean not eating at the same time her family eats.  Maybe she will make their meal, serve them at the table, and then heads back into the kitchen solo to prepare her "special" meal.  Perhaps instead, the woman starts meal prep an hour earlier than usual just so she can make two meals; one meal for her and one for the rest of the family.  She sits with her family and gets to have a family meal.  Except she really enjoys the food she made for the family.  Oh Yum....  Doesn't it smell good?  Ooh! Look! There's one small extra slice of lasagna left over in the pan.  Hmmm....  Her "special" food is gone, but just that last little piece wouldn't be so horrible to her diet, would it? And why should she be the only one who has to deprive herself of the succulent food???  Does any of this sound familiar to you?  It certainly describes me every time I have attempted a specific diet plan.

So, my goal here is to address this issue.  I want two things to happen: one, women can control their weight while enjoying the same delicious meals their whole family eats, and, two, the entire family benefits from the move toward healthier eating habits.  Please keep in mind I am talking about a MOVE TOWARD healthier eating.  Don't judge me if I slip and feed my family a frozen pizza one night. :)  I'm not perfect and no change like this is going to happen over night.  My blog will be about my personal journey, but I do hope you will join me.  Everything is more fun with friends!