Quitting Sugar, Again

2012 Re-Quitting Sugar from myyearwithout on Vimeo.

It was easier to go without sugar for 3 years than it has been to give it up for a month at a time. The holidaze were the worst! I think people wanted to watch me feast on the white stuff. Every imaginable favorite dessert of mine was homemade and waiting for me when I returned to the northwest for Christmas.

On the flight to Portland I turned down freshly baked chocolate chip cookies (Frontier Airlines) and ate from a healthy pre-packed lunch. I was superior and not going to give in.

What is it about being home for the holidaze, surrounded by family and friends with fragrant homemade goodies and sweets everywhere?

Sweet tooth trumped Willpower. I don't understand this, because I was solidly off sugar for 3 years!

Let the justifications begin: I wanted to have a good time with everyone else and not be the only one not eating Mom's hot cinnamon rolls with frosting. I struggle with moderation, so once I let myself have a little sugar, nothing was off limits. I loitered in the kitchen every day in search of delicious ways to feed the monster.

Everything tasted absolutely heavenly but it didn't take long for my sweet tooth to become satiated. But the next day my tolerance for sweet had increased, and the day after that I had three cinnamon rolls in one day, not counting other goodies during the day.

If I'm going to indulge, I do not want to feel bad about it. Feeling guilty ruins things, doesn't it? So I made a mental note that after returning from the holidaze I would go back to being a devout non-sugarist. Until then, I would enjoy finishing off my stocking candy. Which led to making peanut brittle, then a chocolate espresso cheesecake (I am going to attempt this with a less-refined sweetener next time) for my husband, and then I made a lemon pound cake which I substituted for lunch.

The other day I looked through my cupboards to purge the demons, and Jeff quickly set up the video camera. Although I wasn't looking my best and would have liked to shower/do hair/make-up etc. (I mean, I am posting this on my blog!) I appreciated Jeff's quick reaction to the spontaneous moment and let it be.

 http://vimeo.com/35040868