Hey Here4Help...
I'm in much the same boat - I live with my BF who is thin and does not need to lose weight. He is also quite a picky eater, and does not like veggies at all (besides carrots & corn *sigh*) and does *not* like to try new foods. Since I do the shopping & cooking, this means I have to do a lot of double preparing ... and while he's totally supportive, he's also totally clueless in a lot of ways
Having always been thin, he's never needed to read labels or figure out what foods have what effect on your body. (Which also means I can't use the, "try eating this way.. you'll lose weight" argument
) So, to help me smooth things out for myself, I asked him to pick a time when he could sit and listen to me explain this in a lot of detail. This meant he picked a time he was willing to listen and learn, and it meant I got to really explain why I was eating this way, and what I could and could not have. Since then, he's been really respectful of not offering me goodies I can't have. Since I've gotten over the hump, I'm not tempted anymore by my former carby favorites (or at least not unmanageably so) so even though he asked me a bunch of times if it bothered me if he at this or that, I can honestly answer that I"m fine. (Plus *evil grin* since I do the shopping, we just don't buy some of my really tempting favorites hehehe).
The biggest factor for me is getting past the real cravings hurdle - and that helps make the cravings manageable for me. In my case, the fact that "just a taste" of something *IS* the kiss of death is a blessing. Otherwise, I can talk myself into trying a bit of this or a taste of that all day :/
My biggest hurdle right now is I don't have anyone to taste all the yummy concoctions I've come up with!!! AFter my big success, I want someone else to try it and see how good it is!
Closest I can get is describing it in detail to my mother (lives in Toronto) and e-mailing the recipe to her for her to try ... she's good about that! She's LC-ing it too.
Are there any real big foods that trigger cravings for you? I've managed to find replacements for almost all of my favorite foods, (chips, pasta, candy, ice cream, fajitas, tacos, dessert, etc. etc) that I make at home, so I'd be happy to share if there's something you're looking for in particular!
Anyways - kind of a long-winded ramble, but if you're ever looking for support let me know! I can relate! (Oh yeah, and what kind of dogs do you have ??- I'm so envious!!! Always had dogs growing up, and I'm really missing them ... living in an apartment though, so not fair to have a dog *sigh*).
Wynter