family health

There's a new round of commericals on TV. I wish I could remember who sponsors them, because I would love to find a clip on the internet and link to it here. Hopefully I'll get to edit it in soon. Anyhow, it's full of cute toddlers asking their parents not for snacks, but diseases.

"Mom, can I please have some diabetes?" "Will you pass the heart disease, please?"

I love these commercials, and they've really hit a nerve with me. I've had body and weight issues for a long time. Once upon a time, I lost a great deal of weight. It took me from September 2001 until September 2003 to lose 100 lbs. How did I lose the weight? It was the easiet thing ever, quite honestly. I made a decision one night that I didn't like living in that body anymore. I was watching family members deal with serious health problems due to their weight issues, and I never wanted to find myself in that very avoidable situation. I also remembered that my body was a gift from God, and I was not being a good steward of the body I have been given to enjoy on earth - I missed the frequent sports, hiking, swimming, etc. Most of all - I wanted to know I was healthy. It was that easy. I made one decision, and I found myself eating much more healthfully and exercising often. After having Jacob, I found myself losing weight because I wanted to be thin again, fit into those prepregnancy clothes again, etc. But being thin doesn't necessarily mean you're healthy. A bunch of the weight I lost right after I had Jacob has re-found me. Instead of just trying to get the weight off to be thin again, I'm finding my focus going back to health. Jacob adores fruits and vegetables. Today he brought me a can of V8 and said "V8 - pLLLease!" Alrighty, then. It's yours, buster. The other day he chose carrots over cookies. Of course, there are times he begs for chocolate, cookies and cake - words he knows all too well and uses all too often. And I find myself giving him more junk than he needs. How has that commercial affected me? Intensely. I understand that Jacob won't always choose fruits and veggies over baked goods. But why not try to make it last as long as I can? Why am I bringing sugary cereal into our house to give Jacob and Nathan for breakfast when they like hot oatmeal (and not the sugar-filled flavored kind - the plain old quick oats) just as well? How, exactly, is a bowl of Fruit Loops or Cinnamon Toast Crunch any different than a chocoalte cupcake? Why am I going to offer Jacob goldfish crackers or cats cookies instead of fruit leather and string cheese - two things he loves? Why am I going to continue eating less healthfully than I should, setting a poor example for my children? It's not just about fitting into that pair of pants, looking a certain way or getting ready for swimsuit season. It's about being healthy and making sure my family is, too. Getting rid of this extra weight is harder this time - my entire life is different. It's harder to get to the gym (they don't let babies in the day care before they're 6 months old and I've not been able to get there before Nathan leaves for work since I've been exhausted by the late night/very early morning feeds for Josh - what did you say? excuses?), harder to fix meals for my family and stick to decent portion sizes for myself instead of grabbing something when I got home from work or grad school. But I think it's more important this time. For me and my family. Stay tuned.