I blinked, and here it is mid
April already. We enjoyed a spring break
trip to visit Kristen at pilot training in Oklahoma, and grandparents
in Arkansas. We were blessed with being
present with Granddad Connell before and as he passed. The dear man lived to age 77 after having
Type 1 diabetes since his early 20's, with little to no complications evident
until the past year. Rest in peace,
sweet Granddad.
The passing of loved ones
helps you gain perspective on what's important in life. Lessons learned for me on our trip and the
events of the past two weeks include:
have the courage to be vulnerable, for it transforms the way we live and
love. Laugh often, be present in the
moment, and have the confidence to be wholly, completely myself.
"While in Rome, do as
the Romans do." So while in
Oklahoma, we ate some traditional southern fare including fried pickles and homemade
biscuits & gravy. I was pleasantly surprised
with the most delicious homemade carrot cake ever, to celebrate my birthday.
What a gift it was to be with family and to forge new friendships.
Back home now, I stocked up
on a colorful bounty of fruits & veggies.
Wednesday night I attended
the Camas & Washougal on a Diet
community event. We watched a segment
from the HBO "The Weight of the Nation" documentary on childhood obesity. My take-away message: the most important determinant of a child's
weight and health is the home environment.
Unfortunately, parents have a tough battle against the forces of
advertising. Dr. Kelly Brownell says, "Food marketing for children is powerful, pernicious, and
predatory." And, "We need to change what 'good' looks
like". The role that parents play in shopping,
cooking, and eating is crucial in developing healthy habits among our
children.
That's a good segue into The Eating Well Project April topic: Begin with a plan: breakfast & lunch. Let's just say that skipping breakfast simply
cannot be an option. Our metabolism is
like a fire, and it must be stoked at the beginning of the day and throughout the day so we can keep
our energy up. Additionally, eating a
good breakfast and lunch helps prevent becoming over-hungry which often
triggers overeating later in the day.
Question for reflection -
what qualifies as a "good" breakfast in my home? Ideally, for me a good breakfast provides
adequate protein for satiety until the next "stoking of the fire", along with
carbohydrate and healthy fat from whole foods.
And it is consumed sitting at a table.
Since everyone in our home is
on a different schedule in the morning, we all pretty much fend for ourselves
when it comes to eating breakfast. For
the kids, precious morning time is often wasted trying to decide what to eat for breakfast. I recall
David saying once that it would be easier to figure out what to eat if he had
some ideas/options listed for him.
Here is my experiment for
this week: to develop a menu of options
for quick, healthy, & tasty breakfasts. I will share that plan next time, along with
the results of using it. My hope is that
this experiment to put more intention into providing a healthy breakfast will make
for more productive use of time in the morning, and reduce the occasions of
eating a poor quality breakfast in a scramble, on the way out the door, or (worse case scenario) not at
all.
A memory just popped into my
head. I recall as a child, my mom
setting the breakfast table the night before.
Hmm, that gives me an idea.
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