Okay people.
I’m alive. And well. And still vegan.
Just busy.
You know how it is: three small (homeschooled, have I mentioned this? it’s a little experiment we’re doing this year) children, working two part-time jobs, managing a household…expectant with a fourth wee-one. Somehow that last one seems to trump all. Being pregnant is not the same as not pregnant. I know, obvious. But everything really IS different.
Especially relating to food. While I can eat much more normally now than when I was dealing with 24-7 pregnacy sickness, food just ain’t the same. First, my appetite seems to be kicked into high gear. Just 300 more calories a day they say. Hmm…I wonder, are there exceptions to this? It’s not that I even WANT to eat the food, it’s like this little life form inside of me has taken over my body and sends little messages to my brain saying, “EAT!! EAT!!” It’s obnoxious, because I HAVE to listen. And frankly, I don’t really enjoy eating anymore. I kinda see it as a chore. I don’t know if it’s because of the pregnancy hormones or what, but for the most part, food is food. And I’ve realized–there’s much more to life than food.
I should note to that just veggies don’t cut it like they used to. I’ll make myself a huge salad, and can barely finish half of it, before I have to start eating something more filling and dense, it’s as if my body is saying–“find yourself something more calorie dense woman!” This may be partly due to the fact that I haven’t scaled back on my activity level and continue to teach 1-3 fitness classes a day, 6 days a week??
And too much sugar (ie. fruit) makes me queasy. So I try to limit fruit to just a few pieces a day. I eat lunch/dinner for breakfast because lunch/dinner foods are much easier to make sans fruit or sweeteners. My son asked me the other day, when he saw I was eating some pasta and veggies for breakfast, “Mom, why are you eating dinner for breakfast?” My simple reply: “Cause mommy’s pregnant.”
Bread, pasta, nuts (almonds, peanuts, brazil nuts, pumpkin seeds…), Sunshine burgers, these really delicious falafel nuggets from Costco, my husbands homemade flour tortillas, thick & rich chili with chunks of TVP, homemade cornbread, all the creamy & rich recipes from the Seven Secrets cookbook…these foods seem to satisfy. Oh, and my husband’s apple pie (with a scoop of my favorite homemade vanilla cashew ice cream)! That DOES make eating enjoyable. And, I almost forgot, my friend brought over a homemade peach pie the other day. I almost died, it was so delectable. I suppose not all is blah. There are a few bright spots.
For now, I’m going to attempt making 8 or so loaves of bread. No. I’m not crazy, just frugal, and I figure I can make one loaf of bread for about .40 as opposed to the $4 I’d spend anywhere else for a good whole-grain kind I can feel good about giving to my kids. And I must do something with the monstrous zucchini from my garden…looks like zucchini bread is next in line.
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