Mardi Gras brings... Reflection

Happy Mardi Gras y’all! [best with texan drawl]

So I love Mardi Gras – the family version anyway.  I was born in New Orleans.  I think I was fed king cake as my first baby food.  Had huge boxes of beads and dabloons to play with as a kid.  Love it.

Tonight, I am introducing it to my kids.  Sausage with red beans & rice for dinner, some king cake and they each have a bead necklace.  [We might also have a rum-based drink for the adults.  Yum.]

I’ve spend a lot of time today trying to remember the whole reason there is a Fat Tuesday – its the feast before Lent.  A time to self-reflect and to give up something, or change a behavior.   In college I took it as a time to give up something easy, like chocolate – stick to it until Easter, you are done.  But I wasn’t self-reflecting.  I was giving up something just to say I could give it up and have the will power to do it. 

Headed into this year, I am trying to truly look at myself and see some behaviors I want to change.   The first I thought of, the second my husband brought up – and both are worthy and so I’m going to do both.

First – while its still giving up food, its giving up a night time dessert/snack.  I am trying to be healthy and workout and lose weight – yet every night around 8 pm I get this sweet craving.  I justify it by saying, well its a ‘weight watchers ice cream’ or its only 3 points… but I really think its part of a bad cycle for me.  And I need it to stop.  I know how – I know that a cup of hot tea with a touch of agave can tide me over – that I’m not hungry.  Its a behavior I need to stop, and so it stops tomorrow. [Tonight is King Cake afterall]

Second – the smartphone.  Gosh we love them don’t we?  And I have been better about not being on it around the kids, but not great.  So for Lent?  No smartphone around the kids at home.   This doesn’t count phone calls – its not about that.  Its about checking Facebook, Twitter, blogs and email.  I only get a couple precious hours with them at night – I shouldn’t be on the smartphone. 

So hopefully I can turn this spring truly into one of self-reflection and improvement.

Anyone else want to join me?

[And workout update on my March challenge - March 8th and I have done 20+ minutes of working out 8 days in a row!!!  I'm very proud of myself.  I didn't want to a few of the days, and I always feel better after.]

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