Family, Donuts, and New Year’s Resolutions
I love the holiday season. And just when I think I’m so tired I might actually die, it’s over.
In the past we have really built up to Christmas. Then the day after, it was sort of a bummer. Like, there’s nothing else so what are we going to do now?
This year was so different. Of course we were still excited about Christmas and, naturally, we were still buying gifts for our kids. But there was no huge build up to Christmas that resulted in a huge let down when it was all over. We enjoyed the season. The whole season. Well, I enjoyed the season. I hope everyone else enjoyed it as much as I did.
We had parties, went to parties, and ate like New Years resolutions weren’t right around the corner. We consumes cookies, desserts, hot cocoa, birthday cakes, and roughly 32 pounds of cheese.
And donuts. Oh, sweet donuts!
This is the part where I disappoint my fellow Texans. Sorry guys. I know your affections for and allegiance to Shipley’s. But I just can’t. Sure, their cake donuts are fine. Their kolaches are good. But a light shone down from the heavens while sweet voices sang as my sister brought in not one, but two boxes of Rolling Pin donuts. (This is a dramatization.)
What is this Rolling Pin, you may ask? Ask away! It’s a little, family-owned bakery in Owensboro Kentucky that has the lightest, fluffiest, most delectable donuts. (All my Owensboro peeps holla!) The frosting is rich and creamy. It’s like a whipped frosting that gets spread as opposed to a shiny icing that gets poured. They don’t have anything super fancy, like Hurts Donuts in Sugarland (which are amazing, btw), but the jelly donuts and long johns are perfect, and my big sis brought me a box of each!
Listen to me going on and on about donuts. Carbs dipped in sugar, topped with sugar, and sometimes filled with sugar! That’s a lot of sugar! The holidays are over, though, and it’s time to try to make better choices.
I’m starting today. January 3rd. Because, of course, we had to finish eating all of our party food from NYE. Anything left now will be scavenged by the kids, because I will not be buying sweets for the rest of the month.
The hubs and I are starting the Whole30 today.
We’ve done it before. It was so hard at first. I wasn’t sure what to eat. My body felt hungry for 3 days straight. I suppose that’s a natural response when you live off of carbs and sugar, and then you take away carbs and sugar. I took about 4 days for that to subside, and another 6-7 days until the energy kicked in (also called the Tiger blood phase). By the time it was all said and done, I had lost 11 pounds. Not bad for 30 days.
Honestly, the energy levels that I had were a far more positive consequence than the weight loss. It’s amazing how debilitating fatigue can be. You know that mommy brain fog? It was gone! And when I started reintroducing foods back into my diet at the end of the 30 days, it was fascinating to see how they each affected my body and my mood. My understanding of the connection between what I eat and how I feel was definitely the best thing to come out of my first experience.
Unless….
Unless the best thing was to actually feel in control of my choices. So many times I have thrown my willpower right out the window to get what I wanted in that moment, only to feel regret and dissatisfaction later. It is truly a defeated feeling to feel powerless against yourself! But I learned how to choose for myself and stick with my convictions.
I have to say that I loved myself a little more after the whole experience just for that.
I guess if I have a New Years resolution, it is to make healthier choices for myself this year. No more slipping into old habits or eating my feelings after the kids are in bed. Unless my feelings are grapes. Then I guess it’s okay, right?
Do you have any New Years resolutions? Something you want to do? Somewhere you want to go? I’d love to hear about them in the comments! Do you hate making resolutions? I want to hear from you too!