Happy Valentines Day!

So, yes we are now out of the nursing, changing diaper, spoon feeding, wiping bottoms phase... well... no, there is still some bottom wiping... but we are out of the more physically taxing stage of parenthood! Now, we are sliding into the more... let's say... emotionally taxing aspect of parenthood.  We are also smack in the middle of elementary school years and I actually am loving this stage!

Today was Valentines Day. For us, this means parties at school and since all 4 of my kids are now either in preschool or in elementary school... (when do these parties end? 6th grade maybe?) last night I was up finishing like 80 valentines. LOL. Good thing for google and pinterest!

It really was a lot of fun looking up ideas and getting my kids' input on what they wanted to do. They wrote their classmates names and signed them. The older kids helped more with the making of the valentine. Past years, I think I just bought a box from the store because honestly, I had neither time nor energy. This year, I truly wanted to avoid sweets. It helped that the principle sent out a reminder about their school's "no candy" policy. There really is just way too many excuses for sugar and candy.

Speaking of which... here's little medical tidbit on sugar. Now there is a plethora of information on this subject so this is not at all an in-depth analyzation or discussion. However, as both a family doc and as a mom of four, here is my two cents:

1) Moderation is key... don't completely deprive...
This is not rocket science, but I feel this cliche is very true...
See intaking sugar is not all bad, but binging on sugar may lead to very similar type of cravings and withdrawals that is often seen in addictions. Therefore, the trick is to not to be super duper crazy limiting... (which might lead to unhealthy cravings and binging) but maybe to offer more choices and more opportunities of well rounded foods... and sugars can happen to be one of them...

2)  Don't put it on a pedestal and offer as a "reward"
I think the bigger obstacle is to debunk sugar from this high glorious position... See if we treat sugar/candy as this "trophy" for whatever good behavior etc.  then the kids too will see it as this awesome unattainable.  Now this concept is harder than I thought it'd be. I was surprised to find myself offering candy as a bribe when feeling desperate! So discovering what to replace this "treat" with may take some creative thinking since every kid is different. But the idea is to not make "candy" the prize... offer a better alternative. There has gotta be one out there!

Alright... go enjoy your sweets! Happy Valentines Day, everyone.