Keeping Daddy Alive! Woot woot!

Since the whole heart incident went down we have changed our ways! My cholesterol has always been low as has my blood pressure. They usually take my blood pressure twice because it's so low they think they messed up. Matt's was at the top of 'normal' but had an artery shut down, a 99% blockage and now has a big fat stent. He will be on medication for the rest of his life for both cholesterol and blood pressure. However, we brought 4 more beings into the world that got an equal share of both sets of our genes. Who will get the curse of the cholesterol or blood pressure...???? Even though his issue was hereditary we have transformed our families entire diet. Our offspring are going to need to be well educated and eat healthy foods for a lifetime. Well, don't we all?! My goal is for them to actually like it. The day Matt got home from the hospital I went through the cabinets and fridge. I threw out everything that was not a benefit to us. I filled a trash can with mayo, ranch, coffee creamer, ice cream...etc. I have since replaced everything with a "skinny" healthy version. Don't get me wrong, I really don't think we ate badly before but there was certainly room for improvement. For example, when we ate at Taco Bell we chose a chicken burro. Now we choose to drive on by :) I love to cook with lots of fresh whole foods and have a huge garden every year. Traveling for soccer is where we usually fail. After Matt got the stent the cardiologist told us not to go nuts but to use our basic 5th grade health education when eating. Have a salad for dinner, don't eat after 7:00, eat plenty of fruits, veggies and whole grains, eat ice cream...on your birthday. He didn't prescribe a specific diet to him just a smart one. We felt fairly aggressive was really better for everyone on a lot of fronts. I have since made better use of my bi-weekly Bountiful Basket and have a habit of reading the labels. A person in normal health shouldn't have more than 300mg of cholesterol a day, someone like Matt 200 mg. A teeny little container of Ben and Jerry's has 110 mg per serving (2 servings per container). We have quit using cheese which at first was much like giving up my arms. We have identified restaurants that have good choices for when we are busy or traveling for the kids sports. It's actually been a bit fun and challenging. Throughout the last 20 years I have dieted in some way or another a lot. I could always talk myself into or out of anything. It's different this time. We almost needed the punch in the mouth to get us fully commited to eating well, all the time. I was raised with perspective of, "Heck! You only live once! You might as well". Because of that I have had a lot of great experiences. But with food that's tricky. We also always used special occasions and holidays as excuses. After years of that you just start to say to yourself it's okay and you'll change your ways Monday. That infamous "Monday" has become one of our favorite jokes! After soccer last weekend we took the kids and Abbi's friend to a pizza place. The plan was for Matt and I share to a hearty salad and let the kids have pizza. That was a fine plan until that hot, steamy, cheesy pizza is dumped down in front of you! Poor Matt. I can eat it but shouldn't. The kids shouldn't and he can't. It was like he had just been given a bowl of brussel sprouts in lieu of a birthday cake. I shouted out, "Can I get a woot woot for keeping Daddy alive?". All the kids hollered, "woot woot!". He laughed, straightened up a bit and we all ate. Since that night anytime we are having a boring salad for dinner or choosing the "grilled chicken sandwich hold the mayo, hold the cheese, hold the fries" or the egg white omelet no cheese veggies only I shout out for a "woot woot". His near death (and didn't even know it) experience was scary. Our strength as a family and the gift of him in our lives is worth holding on tightly to. So, hold the cheese please!