Candyland of your Life

I probably starting eating candy at a very early age.  It was most likely around 2 1/2 years old.  Sugar was not considered the devil in those days so it was common to give kids treats. I have recollections of going to stores and doctor's offices and being offered a lollypop. My parents didn't buy a lot of candy but I don't remember ever being denied a treat.  In those early years I mainly remember lollypops.

As I entered elementary school age, candy became much more important!  Let's not forget Halloween!  It used to be such a fun holiday for me but I also remember having to inspect all of our candy for possible razor blades.  I still don't know how many kids ever found one!  I also remember being told at this age to never accept candy from a stranger.  That could lead to all sorts of horrible things.  So, during these years candy was great but it also had a negative side.

I also remember in the summer time a group of us neighborhood kids would ride our bikes to the local drug store and buy a bunch of candy with a dollar.  It was such a treat!  Some of my favorites were, Jolly Ranchers (cherry was the best), Lemonheads, bubble gum, Good and Plenty, Dots on paper strip, Tootsie Pops and Smarties.  It would last us for a couple of weeks.  I developed a taste for sour candies at this point.  I was a huge lemon lover and would often suck on them raw so I loved sour candies.  Once again, other than the possibility of cavities, candy was always allowed.

Towards my teen years and into college I became aware of calories and my weight.  I wasn't eating as much candy and when I did it was either just to have something to munch on .  It occupied me when I was bored. I still liked sour candies. My favorite candy in college was Skittles.  I had a friend who also loved them and we would joke about how much we loved Skittles!  I had even mailed him Skittles over the summer break.  I'm not sure why we thought this was so funny, but we giggled a lot about Skittles!  We also loved Starbursts!

As a young mother I didn't give my son sugar until he was 18 months old.  I eased him into candy.  He also loved sour candies and as the candy market changed you could find a lot more super sour candies.  Warheads, Sour Skittles, Sour Patch, sour ropes are some the the candies we would share. Actually both of my kids love sour candies!  For special treats, I would go to one of those candy by the pound stores and fill up little bags full of every sour candy I could find. 

In present day, I'm not eating as much candy but still love gummy bears, gum, swedish fish and my new favorite is champagne bubbles.  Champagne Bubbles are a lot harder to find and I have to go to specialty stores to find them and they can be pricey!  But they are soooo good! Every once in a while when I want a little treat or something sweet that is actually low calorie, I will eat one of the above named candies!  I have been known to keep a secret stash in my closet and I will grab a few before I go to bed.  It does satisify me and is better than eating a couple of cookies or ice cream.

I think in the future, I will continue to eat candy in the way I am now. I don't think I will eat more candy than I do now.  Maybe if I'm super bored!  If I felt it was effecting my health then I'm sure I would stop or eat less.