Welcome to Small Steps to Health where we do not take orders from a cookie!
I am turning 31 this weekend. Birthdays are always an exciting time for me. But birthdays always include food. All the free lunches and free dinners because people want to treat you. Then there are the birthday cakes (yep, multiple ones). Lastly there is the grand finale feast that my mom spends all day shopping and preparing when I visit. And of course, there are all the restaurants my husband drags me to because of the lure of a free birthday meal.
Whenever there is love and people, there is always food. And birthdays and food go hand in hand. I am blessed that I have never spent a birthday alone. But the amount of food involved! I cannot just have soup and a small salad when the people buying you meals want to “treat” you. My relatives would be so offended if I do not order an entrée plus dessert! And sometimes we go to places where they give you a free dessert plus my friends would have a hidden birthday cake in the background. Ironically, I am a food pusher myself when the table is turned.
Interestingly enough, I rarely get actual gifts for my birthday. In my culture, money is always an acceptable gift in a lucky red envelope no matter what the occasion (white envelope for funerals) as long as it has the appropriate Chinese characters are on it. So even though I have forgotten most of the lessons from the Chinese school I attended as a child, I always make sure to remember the characters for “Happy New Year” and “Happy Birthday.”
Of course, now that I am actually married and considered “an adult” in my culture, I will not get the lucky red envelopes any more (up until last year, I was still getting red envelopes from the “adults” in my family). So with no gifts and no lucky money to give, I get food for my birthdays instead.
Any tips for me to look like I am actually eating all this food without actually eating it?
Until next time and thanks for stopping by.
Photo by: barisione.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
First of all, Happy Birthday!
As far as eating everything, I know that problem (my family is Italian) usually, I take very small portions of everything. Eat slowly and savor every bite of what your eating.
Order to your hearts content at the restaurants, and get Doggie bags. If people ask why, tell them it’s so you can keep the celebration going during the week with leftovers ^_^ I also talk a lot during the meal to distract people from the fact that while I may have eaten a sensible amount of food, I have not yet gone for seconds! (big insult in my family)
Also, don’t beat yourself up if you do indulge a bit during your birthday. A few extra calories or even one day way over your caloric budget isn’t the end of the world.
.-= Meg´s last blog ..Dojo Mentality =-.
Happy Birthday!
One word: leftovers
Meg and Sagan – Thanks for the good wishes. The talking and the leftovers ideas are great. It was a wonderful weekend filled with people, laughter, and food.