Resolute

Holidays + a trip home = maximum indulgence conditions. Chocolate. Ice cream. Indian food. Candy. Cheese. I probably could use more self control this time of year, but honestly I find it so much easier to cut back on sweets after taking a vacation from self-restraint. So for a couple weeks I let myself eat a banana split and then finish off a Hershey's Cookies and Cream bar and then maybe drink some hot cocoa. During the holidays, my sweet tooth knows no bounds.
We're back in our own place now, and ready to settle into some healthier habits. After a sweet vacation, my mind clears and I focus more on what I want my normal life to be like. Can there be chocolate? Maybe a little hot cocoa now and then. Can there be Indian food? If you allow me to call what I prepare from my best recipes Indian food, then yes, that will be in my new reality as well. For me, though, there are only two realities--the sweet vacation and the healthy home life. I have yet to find that in-between place where chocolate bars disappear in small increments and the first signs of stress do not lead to a disappeared bag of chocolate chips. Perhaps my food journey will lead me there someday, a balanced and golden place in my opinion, a place where you can have your cake and eat it (slowly!) too. For now I'll stick to my all-or-nothing approach. Which brings me to my new year's resolutions.
As I've thought about what I want my life to be like starting in 2009, one of the strongest visions that materializes is all about food. More fruits and vegetables, home-baked (gluten-free) breads, and a clean kitchen are part of the picture. I also want to continue my cooking and baking education. I have learned so much and we have tried so many new foods, but I still have foundation to lay. I hope to share my successes here, and learn from the recipes that fall apart.
So in 2009, I resolve to nourish my family with healthy, fresh food and to write all about it. I want to make this my healthiest year ever and to find or create better gluten-free foods for my husband. If that's not enough, I'm sure I'll find something else to do too.
What do you resolve to do with 2009?