[mecca1]

Hello everyone;

Laurie suggested I start this thread as I had visitors all weekend and fell of the wagon . (Mum's homemade goodies).

What do you all do and eat when you have visitors?
And also visitors that you would rather not know you are on the beach?

I am still on phase 1.
The coment's I got went along the lines, "Oh potato isnt fattening" , and "there is nothing wrong with bread, It's the cheese and eggs that you should be watching".
I must admit im not so good at standing up for myself at the moment.
This place and the support is doing me so much good and im sure when I get a bit more confident with my new eating style I will be fine..
It would be great to hear what you all do...
Thankyou all,
Karen..

[femmecreole]

Sometimes it's a tricky situation. You don't want to say no to something that someone spent a long time making. If you can't say no to them, then take a small serving.If it's a casual setting where everyone is eating in different areas..like a barbque, then wander off and dump it out. If you are at the table with them, then just kind of spread it around your plate like kids do when they don't want to eat something. You can always eat a lot of salad or whatever is OP and then just say you are full and can't eat another bite.

Phase 1 is only a couple of weeks and it should be easy to handle social situations for those 2 weeks. After that if you are invited somewhere, bring a large salad loaded with stuff you can eat. I've had social events at my house since I started SB and have SB foods that I serve..no one has even noticed the difference. I do usually have a dessert, but just don't have any myself.

Usually just saying "no thankyou" or "I'm full, can't eat another bite" should do the trick. Or "It looks so wonderful, but for health reasons I can't have any...sure wish I could!" or something along those lines so you don't offend the person who is offering it. If they insist, then tell them "I'm stuffed right now, but I'd love to take some home for later...can we wrap some up?" Then either dump it, feed it to the dog etc when you get home...or when they are gone.

I'm lucky in that all of my friends and family know how I eat now and no one has insisted that I eat anything. I felt really bad yesterday though. We have a once a month "birthday" celebration at work and one lady makes the cakes which are out of this world. Yesterday she asked me what kind of cake I wanted and I told her "Well, you KNOW my favorite is your praline cake, but I can't eat sugar or flour anymore..but I know everyone else will just love it! Just looking at it is a treat!" She is a sweet person and understood.

We are all going to be in situations where we may feel bad about saying no thank you, but we are doing this for not only our looks, but our health. I figure I'd rather say no than be taking insulin shots. I'm eating this way to prevent health problems and if friends and family can't understand that, then the "problem" is on their shoulders, not mine.

In my situation, all of my friends and family know that my Dad died 16 months ago. Most of his health problems were preventable (diabetes, congestive heart failure) and they know I don't want to have to go down the same road he did. I promised him I wouldn't and I'm keeping that promise. In the long run that promise is more important than turning down a piece of cake.

[cottagebythesea]

Well said, Cat!

[mecca1]

Thanks Cat,
All of that is so helpful and I will use all of your advice.
The no thankyou doesnt work so there are some good answers that will come in handy.
So sorry to hear your Dad went thru all that, its wonderful that you are drawing strength from that to help yourself and other people.
Thanks again Karen...

[weezle]

Make healthy things that you and your visitors can have.

Appetizer: Spinach Dip

1 lb fresh spinach
2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 wedges Laughing Cow Light Swiss
2 tablespoons grated parmesan

Wash spinach and spin in salad spinner
Sauté garlic in olive oil, then add spinach a little at a time, stirring until wilted, about 3 minutes.
Add LC and stir until cheese is melted
Sprinkle with parmesan and stir

Serve with crackers/bread for your guests, and cucumber slices, pepper strips, celery sticks, etc for yourself.

Veggie Side: Zesty Mexican Cauliflower

1 cup cauliflower florets
1/3 cup low-fat sour cream
2 tsp. low fat mayonnaise
3/4 tsp. hot red pepper sauce
1/3 cup salsa
2 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. low fat cheddar cheese, shredded

Cook the cauliflower florets by steaming them over boiling water for 5 minutes until tender. Drain and set aside.
Combine all sauce ingredients in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat until bubbly, stirring constantly. Add the cooked cauliflower. Toss well and serve.

Dinner: Taco Soup

1 can of FF beef broth
3 cans of beans (pinto, black, kidney, whatever)
2 cans of diced tomatoes (maybe a can of rotel, too)
1 pkg of taco seasoning mix
1 pkg of Hidden Valley Ranch mix (not sure if that's cool on SBD, check it out first)
chili powder to taste

Dump all in a pot and simmer for an hour or so.

Etc.

Tell them that you're doing SBD and that's your perrogative. If they continue to go on about potatoes and such, tell them they can be fat if they want to but you're trying to be healthy and do what's best for your body. If they don't want to support you, why have them as your support system?

Good luck to ya.

Lisa