I think there’s something to the mindfulness in eating movement. Most of the time we tend to eat without even thinking about it — especially moms. I have to even watch what fruit I eat since it affects my blood sugar so greatly. Some things just aren’t worth wasting the taste opportunity anymore - breads, potatoes, my favorite Starbucks drinks (sorry — still mourning that).

When you start paying attention, a lot changes. It’s just always a real shame when one MUST start to pay attention. At least that’s where I’m at right now.

No Starbucks? Not even with their new sugar-free syrups? If I wasn’t a plain ol’ skinny latte fan I’d be mourning that, too.

And you’re 100% right about Moms and the problems we face with mindful eating. I can’t tell you how many times last week I started to poach the leftovers off my son’s plate only to realize I couldn’t have them. I literally whimpered over macaroni and cheese.

When I look back at my and my sibling’s baby pictures, it strikes me as odd that my now skinny brother was the fat one. I mean roly-poly rolls of fat. My sister was actually such a skinny baby that I remember Mom worrying about getting enough food into her.

Me, I was toward the fat baby side, but not too much. Now my sister and I weigh about the same, had trouble with our weight since puberty, and have both tried bariatric surgery (with minimal success in my case, my sister is bigger than ever).

Also, old family photos show obese women (on both sides) during the depression when they were raising small children and working on farms all day. Being farmers, they had enough to eat, but couldn’t really be picky about it. I’m quite sure they loaded up on starches and pig fat.

Still, their activity level should have helped more with that, don’t you think?

At my next family reunion (this coming weekend in Colorado), I’ll see mostly overweight, if not obese people.

There’s likely several genetic effects that make it easier to gain and harder to lose for some people. Maybe my extended family should volunteer to be researched on?

I’d say we’re not contributing to the current obesity epidemic, because we’ve been this way for years. Years!

I miss Kraft mac-n-cheese. I know it’s like the worst mac-n-cheese ever, but it’s also the BEST mac-n-cheese ever. I’ve made my own a couple of times, but it’s just not the same without fluorescent orange “cheese.”

I do recommend keeping Larabars and Clif Nectar Bars onhand. Lara - I love the cherry pie, banana cookie, and lemon bars. Clif Nectar (they don’t contain oats) - the lemon, vanilla, & cashew bars are to die for, as are the dark chocolate raspberry. I carry them in my purse, keep them in my desk at work, have a drawer full of them in the kitchen. Because sometimes I just need something fast to tide me over until later.

Cashew bars sound yummy!

That’s one bar — lemon, vanilla, & cashew. Larabar does have a “cashew cookie” bar, and Frank likes it, but to me it tastes like a ham sandwich. I like ham sandwiches, but not when it’s supposed to be a cashew cookie!