I have a great-niece and a granddaughter that have a serious issue.  They are small children and can be bribed with vegetables.  I don’t know how it happened.  It worries me sometimes.

My daughter first demonstrated to me this childhood anomaly when my oldest granddaughter was about 2-years-old.  She wouldn’t do something, I don’t remember what.  Her
635201mother went to the refrigerator and got a fresh piece of broccoli.  When my daughter showed it to my granddaughter there was excitement on that little face and she promptly did whatever it was that she had been asked.  As she eagerly climbed up to the counter and grabbed the broccoli I just watched in amazement.  She devoured it and asked for more.

My niece planted a couple of tomato bushes in the front yard last spring.  The grew very nicely and were covered in yummy cherry and grape tomatoes.  Her daughter was barely a year old when she was introduced to the tomatoes.  My mother loved to drive her Jazzy chair over to the tomato bushes and snack on the fresh, juicy tomatoes.  One day my great-niece was on her lap and grabbed a tomato out of the bowl.  It promptly went into her mouth.  We waited for her to spit it out, but instead she grabbed another and began cramming them in her mouth.  Juice trickled down her chin as she scarfed on these tomatoes.  After that she wanted to go outside everyday and visit the tomato bush.  She ate them so enthusiastically that we began to call it the candy bush.  Needless to say, we didn’t have very many tomatoes that actually made it into the house let alone into a salad.

I have six children and only one who would willingly eat any vegetable.  He is my oldest son and he would steal the open cans of green beans off the counter while I was making dinner.  I couldn’t bribe him with them though.  The rest had to be bribed to eat their vegetables.

This started me thinking.  Why don’t I like to eat my vegetables?  I don’t dislike them.  In fact, I actually like most vegetables.  It would definitely help me lose weight better than the other things I’ve been eating.  Knowing does not make it so.  No, I’m not going to promise to eat my vegetables.  That promise would not be counter productive.  I would stress out about my eating habits and then it would feel like a diet.  Remember, diets cause binge eating and weight gain.

Okay, so here is the plan.  Remember when we talked about snacking in “The Weight is Over” (http://wp.me/p22Nrd-2t)?  I’m going to keep more fresh vegetables cut into bite sized pieces and out in plain sight.  Then I can pop a bite into my mouth whenever I walk through the kitchen.

I’m a lazy eater, I know.  I will cook for my family, friends and special occasions, but I won’t cook if it just me.  I may heat up leftovers if I’m really motivated and they sound really, really good.  Mostly, I think it is because I am tired so often from the stress in my life right now.  But things are starting to get better and will continue to do so.

Just and FYI.  I have lost about an inch around the middle.  Now, not only can I zip my pants standing up, but I can sit down and still breath!  Have a great Wednesday all.