M.I.A.

I've been missing in action for the whole summer. BUT I have a good excuse. I'm announcing on the blog some big news: I'm pregnant! Right now, I'm about half way through to my due date of early in the new year. Since finding out I'm with child, there have been so many ups and downs...and surprisingly many of those bumps in the road were food related. I have been more tired than I thought humanly possible. Then there was the nausea and general loss of appetite. And, of course, the weird cravings.

It's been a whole new experience for me. At first I was fine and nothing seemed that different. Then the tiredness kicked in and the food aversions. I was left unable to think about what was for dinner let alone have the energy to actually cook something. And my poor boyfriend hasn't been able to have a fried egg in the house for months. I went from eating mostly healthy, lower-carb foods to high-fat and starchy treats. And I found I couldn't eat many flavour combinations at once or it made me wretch. I remember getting a lovely sandwich as Manna Bakery one Saturday and eating about a quarter of it before having to lie down for the rest of the afternoon. It wasn't the sandwich. It was awesome: turkey, cheese, pretzel bread, mustard and lots of olives on the side. Then there was another time at International Flavours with a friend where I barely got through my curry plate. Barely. And then also had to lay down on the couch for the rest of the afternoon. At times like those, I wished I could talk to my food: "Listen, you're awesome. It's not you, it's me. Really."

Fast food was not what I needed but I ate it more than I'd like to admit. There were times I felt so tired and stomach sick, it was like being hungover. And we all know the cure for hangovers: grease. I also had a whole phase (ahm, more like month) where I wanted ice cream every day. How stereotypical! To be fair, more often than not I opted for a popsicle or frozen yogurt.

And for about a three or four week stretch I routinely woke up at four in the morning craving chocolate milk. I ended up buying my own supply of 1 % so I could trot out to the kitchen at all hours and guzzle it right from the carton. In my second month, I traveled to a national conference and I insisted that the hotel give me a mini fridge room so I could keep some fruit and my precious chocolate milk for when I needed it. I've always liked soy milk so I tried substituting that to curb my cravings. Until, about fifteen minutes into drinking a cup of the stuff, I got sick and it all came back up again. I'm officially off the chocolate milk, soy or otherwise. 

Then I found the Babyfit website and have been tracking my food ever since, the good, bad and ugly. The website allows me to see where I've been strong in my nutritional intake and where I'm lacking on a daily basis. It sound tedious but it's worth it to have a healthy me and a healthy baby!

Thankfully, I'm feeling much better these days. My appetite has come back, I'm getting cravings (which is a whole other blog post!), and I'm eating pretty well...and eating a lot! So I'm looking forward to sharing my new cooking and eating adventures here as I go through the second half of my pregnancy and journey towards parenthood.