It's the most wonderful time of the year!

I am getting ready to go grocery shopping. What a relief it is to feel no embarrassment or guilt over what I have in my cart. I used to like to have my kids along, I think, so that people would realize I was shopping for others and not judge me. All that is over and it is surprising how quickly I could forget those days. For those of you who do not know, the DS one of the best options for weight loss if you want a relatively normal post WLS life. I can, at times, forget I ever had surgery. The daily taking of supplements is my reminder. Please check out DSFacts.com for more info.

 

 I have spent every holiday season, up until my DS, not eating!  And, still did not lose any weight.  In fact, often gained weight  eating "regular" portions.  My body just did not work the way a normal persons does.  Since my DS, I can now enjoy foods that were once forbidden!  This morning, I had ample half and half in my coffee!  That was followed by over easy eggs, bacon, and whole grain toast with lots of butter!  Oh, and a few slices of cheese whilst waiting for the bacon to cook up!  Life is good, and the holidays don't scare me anymore!!!

 I really plan on enjoying Thanksgiving & Christmas this year....last year I was very newly post op. :)

I'm cooking dinner again (never a surprise, I've cooked dinner every year since I was 16 and my grandmother turned the kitchen over to me). This years menu...

Turkey (of course, and the kids and I will fight over the crispy skin)
mashed potatoes & gravy
baked sweet potatoes
green bean & broccoli casserole  ( I may just put cauliflower in too, as that's my boys favorite veggie)
stuffed pumpkin (a nice sausage stuffing baked in a sugar pumpkin - yummy...
pumpkin & apple pies 
and I'm making ricotta fluff with homemade ricotta.... 

I'm still looking for things to add to my menu, so please keep posting everyone! 

Oh, and I had to buy new party clothes....none of mine fit from last year.... 

 Going to my cousin's for turkey day.  She is very resistant to the idea of surgery.  And as I was telling her we would happily join them, she hemmed and hawed and said "I guess I need to know what you guys can eat..and what I need to do different for you."

Well, coz, it is easier for me to tell you what we CAN'T eat.  There's nothing we can't eat. There's nothing you need to do different.  We'll eat the protein like it's going out of style, we'll eat taters, veggies and even stuffing a bit, and we'll even have some dessert.  

Really?

Yes, really.  Now we may not eat mass quantities at one sitting but we'll happily continue to munch all day long.  

So you'd be OK bringing dessert?

So, I'm bringing pies, a pumpkin roll (possibly 2, there's 4 teenage boys to consider), Pig Candy and she wants to try my phyllo wrapped baked Brie. 

Leading - and teaching - by example.  Excellent.

Phillo wrapped baked Brie... I think I am going to swoon!

A note on the fat malabsorption: a diet low in carbs and HIGH in FAT is actually the healthiest type of diet for almost any individual, even without any surgery at all! I can't imagine if eating something high in fat would make me feel sick - who wants to eat veggies WITHOUT butter, cheese sauce, cream sauce, or creamy dressing? Or only white meat poultry or very lean beef/pork cuts? I prefer my food to be full of flavor and nice and moist, preferably without the help of artificial ingredients, chemicals, or added sugars (no matter how "natural" a sugar is, it's still sugar).

Me and my half-assed DS are getting along quite well, and the holidays are no exception! I host Thanksgiving at my house, so it looks a little like:

- turkey
- mashed cauliflower with cream cheese, heavy cream, and butter mixed in, baked with cheese on top (sour cream and crumbled bacon on the side for optional toppings)
- stuffing
- homemade cranberry sauce
- broccoli and cheese casserole
- green beans and/or baby brussels sprouts
- possibly spaghetti squash - I made it last year, but it's more labor intensive than I might be up for this go-round
- possibly twice baked sweet potatoes - same note as for spaghetti squash  :P

And, yes, deviled eggs are a MUST for an appetizer. Probably also plenty of sliced cheeses and pepperoni and maybe some bowls of mixed nuts scattered around.

Oh, and store-bought pies because I'm way too lazy to make my own when I'm cooking everything else. And being pregnant, my energy is even lower than usual, so I will even have additional kitchen help this year (family arriving Wednesday evening and staying through the weekend).

 "who wants to eat veggies WITHOUT butter, cheese sauce, cream sauce, or creamy dressing?"

People who like the taste of veggies and don't want them covered up with "stuff".

But I agree about the white meat poultry. I alway go for the dark meat. The differences in calories between the two just isn't worth it to me. I consider the advice to only eat white meat from the turkey to be a symptom of how screwed up our society is about weight and eating.