It's 2012 Thank Goodness!

 

That means NO MORE cookies!!!!! I and my family have had a fantastic 2011 and I have no complaints, besides cookies. The month from Thanksgiving to New Years is always a blast with my eight year old son, Colson. I am in awe of him and how he changes and grows. One of the changes this year, though, is that he is super aware that he doesn’t get to eat Christmas cookies like everyone else. No distraction technique will work this year and he isn’t down with facts and rationale. The kid is eight and he wanted cookies! Granted, in the scheme of things, it really isn’t a big deal, but I am glad the cookie monster is going into hibernation until next December.

The cookies Colson ate had one-fourth the sweetener that the recipe called for - see Loving This Christmas Season (and Rice Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies)! Note that I used one-half the sweetener for the first batch of cookies as discussed in the original blog post, but I cut back to one-quarter sweetener for the far too many batches that followed. But even this was a bit much.

Then there was this cookie event: Someone Slipped Colson an Oreo Cookie Mickey and the Night from Hell!

What is the outfall from all of these barely sweetened cookies? My son’s gorgeously clear and glowing complexion is now marred by two pimples. I don’t know if it is the sugar in the chocolate or the little bit of sweetener in the dough, but really? Yes, really. I am betting that very few eight year old SAD eating kids have pimples, but mine does. He doesn’t like them at all. Guess that is what happens when you get super clean with the food and then deviate in any significant way. People often blame hormones for blemishes, but it is diet. Eat well and no facial embarrassment.

How have I done with all of these cookies? First, the dough is phenomenal and I have eaten far too much of it raw and baked. A few pimples for me, but not in the same grandeur as Colson’s. What shocked me is how that little bit of sweetener affected my strength. I can’t run the hills as easily with the dog and I have to struggle with the push-ups and pull-ups. Even with these cookies, I KNOW that my sweetener consumption is miniscule compared to most Americans, but it without a doubt made me sluggish and weaker. If I keep this up I will have to change the name of my blog.

Yesterday I made my last batch of cookies for Colson and sent him off to a sleepover New Year’s party with plenty to share. Ryan and I headed off to an actual bar to hear an amazing band, MikeMickXer, with some friends. We danced and danced, and we are now full on groupies. The loose plan is to get out and hear them at least a few times in 2012. Gasp – night life could finally become part of my reality again.

I am not one for New Year’s resolutions, as I am to the point where every day is a day for celebration. It is one more day to love and have fun and hopefully make choices that make each day great.

A less than positive choice – take cookies as a somewhat silly example – is always a point of learning. Mistakes, accidental or knowing, happen every day and there is always something to learn. I learned that Colson is very happy eating somewhat normal cookies during the holidays, I will make them for him every year and he and I will try to find the balance so that he doesn’t get pimples (he really doesn’t like them). I also learned that I like being physically strong, I want to keep getting stronger and that I will eat fewer cookies next year because they make me feel weak.

But next holiday season is a long way off. It is time to walk the dog, reflect on my day and get some breakfast ready for my boy, who should be home soon.