Why I had this surgery, Part 3,974 : From the mouths of babes

Back in early spring of this year, something happened that made it necessary to talk to Thing One and Thing Two about the changes their bodies would make as they grew up and became women. I explained to them that their breasts would grow and look like mommy's and that at some point they would get their period and not to be afraid but to come to mommy and that she would help them out with whatever they needed.

Thing One took all this information in stride. In their Little House on the Prarie-type school, she has noticed some of the older girls starting their period and luckily the school has some supplies on hand for these situations. She already had part of the information, and my talk with them just sealed the deal for her on the whole thing.

Thing Two, on the other hand, was a bit squicked out by the whole idea of "bleeding from the area where you pee" and was very thankful that it wasn't going to happen to her for some time. Then she made this comment.

"But will I get fat like you, mommy? I don't want to become a woman if I'm going to get fat."

Ow. That was a wound to the heart. Nothing like being told by your child that yes, you are fat and you look it, thankyouverymuch!

"No, sweetie. You have daddy's metabolism. You know your Auntie D and Auntie K? You'll look like them, honey."

She was very thankful for the information. Even at the tender age of 7, my child has picked up on the "badness" of being fat and wants to avoid it at all costs. Seeing as how she weighs a mere 49 pounds (with Thing One weighing in at a whopping 67 pounds - insert eyeroll), neither of my children are in any current danger of being obese. They look like tall skinny beanpoles - the exact way all of The Husband's family looks like. This is in contrast to my family, who while being tall are all at least slightly plump if not outright obese. Hardy Alsatian stock.

The children eat all the time. Seriously. For example, in their lunches today they had some lunch meat, some cheese, some baby carrots, some grape tomatoes, cheese and peanutbutter crackers and a juice pack. When they get off from school, they are so hungry they beg for a snack, and then they have full plates for dinner. I honestly don't know where they put all that food except that their legs are probably hollow.

In contrast to the average child today, my children get extensive time outside. They have their chores around the acerage to do, which includes feeding the sheep, two pens of chickens and four pens of pheasants. They have to feed the dogs, and are also constantly running around the property every few hours turning on and off some of the waterers for our bamboo. Then add in the trampoline for good solid fun and all the running and playing with the dogs that they do as well as recess at school, and they get well more than three hours of activity per day.

Another thing that we do is that we raise our own meat. Pork, chicken, lamb, turkey. Eventually we intend to do beef as well but haven't gotten around to it. We have raised it all throughout their lives and they appreciate the better taste of meat that is home-grown. No preservatives or antibiotics or growth hormones in our meat. No slopping the pigs. Just whole grain and grass food, Little House on the Prarie style. (Do you see a theme here? I always wanted to be Half Pint!)

Hopefully The Husband and I are setting them up so that they don't fall into the traps that I did that would lead to their becoming obese. I don't want either of them to have to resort to surgery to get their weight under control. Yes, they like their sweets just like any normal child, but hopefully we are teaching them restraint and control. Hopefully they will not become a statistic as many other children their ages are becoming.

I don't want them to get fat like me. I don't want them to face the shame you feel when you step on the scale and the numbers start with a "3". I don't want them to struggle with finding clothes that fit, or facing the subtle and overt discrimination that those who are overweight recieve. I don't want them to feel like less of a person because they are so large. I want to shelter them from the extra cruelties in life that can occur when you are overweight.

I don't want them to become the person that I was, but rather the person that I am becoming.

Normal.