Let the Cravings Begin

When I was pregnant with my daughter I had some strange cravings. I didn't grow up a vegetarian so my body has associated certain foods with certain needs all my life. Being pregnant was my opportunity to do some reprogramming.

In the first trimester I was in need of iron-rich food often. Which meant that I lost count of how many times I craved steak. Not just any steak. I was drooling at the idea of a steak so rare it was purple.

Now as a vegetarian, I clearly wasn't going to eat a steak. I would have been horribly sick after so long without meat, not to mention how gross I would feel knowing I had actually eaten an animal.

I started paying closer attention to what my body was saying. When I craved a steak, I started looking for something high in iron to eat. What I found curbed the cravings was avacado maki. A great snack, it contains healthy fats, iron, Vitamin E and much more. By the time the end of my second trimester rolled around, I didn't crave meat anymore. When I needed a boost, I craved avacado maki!

Two other cravings stand out from my first pregnancy: salsa and one special veggie burger. My salsa craving was fun because I ate about three large jars of salsa in three days. I remember giving up on the bowl and just digging my hand, with a chip of course, down into the bottom of the jar. It was SO good.

The veggie burger was the point at which my husband turned to me and said, "Ok. Now you're officially weird." I didn't think it was all that odd, he liked hot sauce on his veggie burger, why shouldn't I put red hots on mine? They melted into the burger and gave it this great sweet and spicy flavor. Mmm. So good!

So here we go again and I get to see what cravings will emerge this time around. So far no biggies. Although, there is the occasional Craving ADD.

"Oh, you know what sounds so good? Chocolate cake. Oh, and you know what else, homemade mac n cheese. Oh! And some marinated artichokes. Yum!"

Of course, not all at the same time. Okay, maybe at the same time. Who knows?

Last night I was curled up with my daughter, watching one of her favorite DVDs, Garfield Holiday Celebrations. So I'm not even hungry, we've eaten dinner and then the thanksgiving episode is on. Grandma says, "and the piece de resistance, pumpkin pie!"

And ALL I wanted was a slice of pumpkin pie with whipped cream. Obsessively all I wanted. I got up and called my husband and mentioned that a slice of pumpkin pie really sounded good, about five times during our four minutes conversation.

When Hubbie got home with the milk and cheesesticks my daughter requested, he also pulled out a Henry's pumpkin pie and the healthy version of cool whip (no high fructose, no artificial anything. Truwhip?) which I didn't know existed. I love that man.

So after our daughter was in bed, my husband settled in with his late dinner and I curled up on the couch with a slice of pumpkin pie.

Heaven.

Sleep Glorious Sleep

So all parents know that once your baby arrives you are not going to get much sleep. Everyone (friends, doctors, strangers) tells you to sleep now before the baby arrives. They don't mention that once your baby is big enough for you to feel moving around inside you, sleeping is already a challenge.

The part I forgot about was sleep issues at the very beginning.

I am now about 4 weeks or so, according to the doctor's preference of counting from the first day of your last period, and I am already having sleep issues.

I find myself nearly falling asleep at the table in restaurants half-way through the meal and then tossing and turning throughout the night.

What's that all about?

My morning sickness hasn't arrived, except for being a bit tired (and well, no period), so I shouldn't really feel all that pregnant yet. Right?

Everything was so new my first pregnancy, I didn't know what to expect and everything scared me. I didn't want to do too much because I was afraid of doing anything to hurt my baby or hurt my changing body.

Due to this I did more damage than good by not giving my body the regular exercise and daily challenges these bodies of our need, especially during pregnancy. I am determined to not make that same mistake again.

Apparently a little too determined.

I was so focused on making sure to not let myself off the hook from day one that I was trying to be Super Woman yesterday and spent much of the day walking to the places I needed to go instead of driving. Which sounds great except that my daughter is just over 2 1/2 and is around 30 lbs. A healthy weight, no doubt, but she also gets tired faster than I do and wants to 'snuggle'. Which means I carried her more yesterday in Super Mom mode than I probably have in the last month.

Not a great choice. Today my back is not happy with me. Especially my lower back b/c subconscious or not, I am not using my stomach muscles as much and my back is forced to compensate.

Note to self, take it easy on yourself. And remember bringing the stroller isn't a hassle, not really.

Off We Go!

We did it! We're pregnant!

Now what?

We have been so focused on 'getting pregnant' that, now that we are, it doesn't seem like such a big deal. Don't get me wrong we are definitely excited, but we put so much pressure on ourselves to get pregnant that now that we are there we just get to be.

We tried for three months. Our third and successful try, was the one where we finally threw out the stress book and said, "Let's just let it happen." We still paid attention to the days I was ovulating, but unlike the first two months there was no "Are we or aren't we?" time afterward.

In fact I was so focused on our next opportunity to try and make a baby that I almost didn't notice when my period didn't show up.

Now I am two days late.

I grabbed a pregnancy test in the middle of my grocery shopping this morning and one short trip to the bathroom later, according to my digital test, I'm "pregnant".

Now that we're there I can relax and just enjoy it.

I went looking online for information on where I'm at in my brand new pregnancy and found myself yet again on Parents.com perusing their wealth of information.

I even found a guide on "What to eat your first trimester!"

I am using that as my guide for this first trimester to make sure I get, and baby gets, just what is needed! The great thing is that it was pretty easy to break it down into something that works for a vegetarian.

I intend to buy as much of the following suggestions as possible in the healthiest (natural or organic) form possible. The fruits and vegetables when possible. The Dairy, especially milk, yogurt and cottage cheese, for certain will be purchased organic. Cheese can be a challenge to find in organic form. I will choose my battles.

I will not be filling my vegetarian diet with soy as excessive amounts have been linked to early development in girls and underdevelopment in boys. I will substitute almond milk on occasion for cow's milk and almond cheese for cow's milk cheese.

Fruit: 3-4 servings a day

Examples of Servings:

• 1 citrus (orange, etc.) (The fruit is better than the juice b/c it has more fiber)
  
• 3/4 cup 100% fruit juice (orange, apple, grape, etc.)
• 1/2 banana
• 1 medium sized (apple, orange, pear, etc.)
• 1/2 cup chopped (halved grapes),
  
• 1/2 cup cooked or canned fruit (in natural juices - pineapple, etc.) (avoid fruit in syrup)
  
• 1/4 cup dried fruit (apricots, raisins, figs, cranberries, cherries, etc.)
  

Vegetables: 3-5 servings a day (Eat a rainbow!)

Examples of Servings:

• Dark Green (broccoli, kale, spinach, etc.)
  
• Orange (carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, winter squash, etc.)
• Yellow (corn, yellow pepper, etc.)
• Red (tomatoes, red pepper, etc.)
• Purple (purple cabbage, eggplant, etc.)
• 1/2 cup chopped, cooked or raw per serving
• 1 cup leafy (spinach, lettuce, etc.) per serving

Dairy: 3 servings a day

Examples of Servings:

• Low Fat Milk, Low Fat Yogurt, Low Fat Cottage Cheese - 1 cup per serving
• Part Skim Cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, etc.) - 1 1/2 ounces per serving

Protein: 2-3 servings a day

Examples of Servings:

• Beans (pinto, kidney, black, garbanzo, etc.) - 1 cup cooked per servings
  
• Lentils, split peas - 1 cup cooked per serving
  
• Nuts and Seeds (unsalted roasted almonds, etc.) - 1/4 cup (1 oz.) per serving
• Peanut Butter - 2 Tablespoons per serving
• Eggs - 2 eggs per serving

Whole Grains: 3-6 servings a day

Examples of Servings:

• Whole grain bread - 1 slice per serving
• Cereal, Crackers - 1 cup (1 oz.) per serving
• Pasta (whole wheat or brown rice pasta), Rice (brown not white)- 1/2 cup per serving
• Cooked Cereal (oatmeal, etc.) - 1/2 cup per serving

So this is going to be my guideline for what to eat each day to make sure that the microscopic person in my tummy gets what he or she needs and leaves enough for me to have too.

Now I'm hungry!

Away we go!