Food! Glorious Food!

I got up this morning to a note left by my youngest, the only remaining child in this home. It said:

All of our food looks flipping good!

Love you both,

J-----

It just made my day, and it was only 5:15! 

As it happens, yesterday was grocery day. Note-writing son was gone all day and into the wee hours this morning so he didn't know that. He dragged in tired and hungry, expecting empty shelves in both the pantry and the refrigerator. Boy, was he ever surprised! Grocery day is a big deal in our household, always has been, guess it always will be. New Food, as it has come to be known, gets a lot of attention. Even kids who no longer live here open the fridge and pantry when they visit. They don't know what it is they are looking for exactly, they just look anyway, and I don't mind. I also get regular texts from oldest son, who lives far away, asking what I'm making for dinner. I think it speaks of provision and care. It is comforting to know we aren't going hungry. We shop every other week because that's how often we get a paycheck. New money makes it easier to buy new food! By the time grocery day rolls around, there are generally some bare shelves. I am usually still quite able to make a meal but no one else seems to see the potential in the motley assortment of products remaining. I am sometimes asked, a little sheepishly, when it comes to slim pickin's, when I'll be shopping again. Based on yesterday's haul, I still haven't quite adjusted to the smaller family size...I think I expect way more people to be eating here than actually do.

We've also made some pretty drastic changes in our eating style over the last year or so. More organic, less processed, more fresh, less junk food. Real food. Clean food. It costs more and usually takes up more room as well. No one minds, really. Eating well has wonderful fringe benefits...at least for the men in this family. They can lose weight without even really trying. The hubs will tell you it is getting harder and harder for him but I still think guys have it easier. But even my girls have an easier time of it than me. I decided after several months of all this good eating (punctuated occasionally by such luxuries as Fro Yo, and then there was the State Fair...) that I still needed to be eating less or differently as I was not dropping the "lbs" like I had hoped. Just because it's all natural or organic does not mean it's calorie or fat free. Am I the only one who has learned that lately? At the loving suggestion of a daughter, I joined her on Weight Watchers Online. Great program, real food, and they were running a special deal. It's so much more fun to do it with someone else, too. I love how easy it is to calculate what to eat and track my progress...until this morning. It was weigh in day. I did not want to weigh in, at least not today. After a few weeks of being a good girl I was sabotaged by a tradition that my sweet husband has apparently established. That tradition would be finishing off our two store, two week grocery shopping extravaganza with a stop at Whataburger. I did not do well. No fries? Check! Diet soda (not pure or natural but calorie free)? Check! Whataburger...with cheese? Bad, bad choice. No way was I getting on the scale this morning! Hubby curiously found that very funny. Commented even on the games we women play. Oh, I'll weigh in...in a few days...when I don't feel so awful about that Man Sized burger. What in the world was I thinking? Wait! I wasn't thinking! I was too hungry to think. I just let him order and ate every bite. One of the reasons the pantry is so full today is I remembered to buy things I could actually eat this time. I forgot that on our last grocery day. I will testify to the fact that celery, lettuce, sugar free jello or SEVEN pretzels do NOT a happy Mama make! Of course I ate a Whataburger! It's a miracle I let them cook it first! Deep breath....OK, I'm fine now. On to the diet. It isn't hard if I plan for it. I've been dieting since I was about eleven. I know the drill. I always make a two week menu and detailed list before our mega shopping trips. I just failed to add in things that worked on my eating plan (such a nicer word than diet!). Now the boys can enjoy their fun foods and I can have mine...rice cakes...popcorn...fruit. Sigh, it's all worth it. One of the things on my "Second Half" list is finally mastering my weight. It will pay big dividends in my future, for me and those who want me around for a while longer.

I love food. I love how it looks, how it smells and how it tastes. I love cooking. I love cookbooks, cooking magazines and cooking shows. I love trying new foods, recipes and restaurants. I love that Mr. Brown and I have started cooking together a lot more. I love that when I go to work he wants to start preparing some meals all by himself. I love how wonderful I feel when I prepare a great meal, simple or elaborate, and serve it up with love. I love it even more when it is healthy food. I also love that my family finds comfort in a well stocked kitchen and enjoys my culinary skills. I am thankful for simple pleasures like good food...and the occasional Whataburger...with cheese.