Goodbye (or good riddance) to the Holidays!

Like most of you I'm sure, I enjoyed the holidays but I'm glad they're over.  Being home and not in a routine is more difficult on this diet than being at work and on a schedule.  The food temptations were there, but I was able to resist and kept reminding myself, "I've eaten all this before".  I mean it's not like I was at a French bistro in Paris. 

People asked me all last month, "Why are you starting this diet during the holidays?" and saying, "Oh, isn't that going to be so hard during the holidays?".  Are the holidays really all about the food?  Isn't that the kind of thinking that got me to this size?  These are the questions I asked myself during Christmas and I had a few realizations.  I realized that some of our traditions are about food.  There's no way to deny it; like making Christmas cookies and Christmas dinner, and drinking hot cocoa or spiced apple cider by the Christmas tree or while watching a Christmas special on TV.  But, at the crux of all these activities it's really about being with friends and family and making a memory.  So, I made the Christmas cookies with my daughter (I doubt she'll remember years down the road that I didn't eat one), we sat around the Christmas tree and watched all our favorite Christmas specials on TV (I don't think anyone noticed or will remember that I was drinking a shake instead of hot cocoa), and we went to our friend's house for Christmas eve dinner to start a new tradition and I mingled with my friends while drinking a steaming mug of formula soup.  I don't remember what we ate Christmas day and I don't think anyone else does either, but I do remember the kids being happy with their gifts and getting to spend time with my family, at home, together.  So, all in all no one's holiday hopes and dreams were dashed and most traditions were kept, and some new ones were started.