Okay, so I have a confession to make. I've always loved Halloween. It's one of my favourite holidays...even though it's not really a holiday. But who doesn't love dressing up, going door-to-door, and getting pillow cases full of free candy? Even as an adult, even though I don't get to do the door-to-door thing anymore, I still really enjoy the dress-up part, spooky decor, and the discounted boxes of mini chocolate bars all over the place! |
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At my worst times, I'd unwrap a plate of them. Yes, a plate of them. Then I'd pop them in the microwave for 20-30 seconds so that they were slightly melted, and I'd lap them up all gooey and chocolatey. I remember one time being in such a zombie-like state (no pun intended) as I binged on them, that after I was done I was shocked to discover that my entire coffee table was filled with empty wrappers.
I haven't done something like that in a long time. In fact, since I started eating real food I really haven't been compelled to overeat at all. I think it's because the food I've been eating has been giving my body enough of the nutrients and substance it so craves, that a little ends up going a long way. Eating junk food, as it's so correctly named, gives our bodies little more than....well...junk. Junk that our bodies can't process, or can't use to nourish our cells. We end up gorging on them because our body wants us to keep eating until it gets what it's really after: nutrition.
But here's the funny thing: I had a few of them...okay, maybe 5 or 6 of them. And I quickly noticed the discomfort: My stomach started to feel queasy, and I got a headache. Like, right away. I was shocked actually, that my body reacted so quickly. And, I have to be honest, I didn't find the chocolates as tasty as I remember them. I mean, I remember thinking they were sooooo sinfully good! These were just....okay.
So now I have the rest of the box and....I don't want it.
I feel like that's kind of a win, I don't know why. More importantly, it has kind of reiterated to me that when my body is not so full of processed, junky foods, it is a lot easier to recognize how little they do for me in the first place. They don't make me feel good, and....they don't actually taste all that great. Not compared to real food anyway; real food made from quality, natural ingredients. I guess I never noticed that before because that's all I was eating.
In any case, I have to figure out what to do with the rest of this box of chocolates, because I can't take it into the school (nut-free), and I live in a condo so children don't come here for trick-or-treating.
While we're on the subject, I was really struggling with the idea of bringing in a bunch of sugary treats for my students after I've spent all these months contemplating how harmful they truly are for our bodies. I didn't want to be that teacher that takes all the fun out of tradition just because it's not healthy. So I decided to compromise. I gave each of my students one mini chocolate bar each, and then on their desks I made one of these cute frankenstein snack cups. I found them at Green Lunches, Green Kids. You should check out that site. (It's where I got this picture from too!) The students actually loved them! They were right on their desks in the morning when they came in. They are always asking "can we eat these right now?" whenever someone gives them a treat (like for birthdays, or special occasions, etc). I usually ask them to wait until the afternoon, after they've eaten their healthy snacks and lunches. This was the one time I could say to them, "Go ahead. Eat it right now if you want." They did, and they loved it. I guess at Halloween, all bets do not have to be off. |
I found these instructions (and the picture) HERE
- Fill a plastic cup about 1/2 way with green grapes.
- Put 2 marshmallows in facing out.
- Fill the rest of the cup with more grapes.
- Top with lid. I didn't have a lid so I topped with upside down cupcake liners.
- Draw eyes and mouth on side of cup. I used a squiggly line for a "monster mouth."