Friday, January 13, 2012

A Clarification on Cravings

As a pregnant woman, I get asked a lot of questions. The three that pop up the most are:

1) Is it a boy or a girl? - Boy
2) Do you have a name picked out? - No, but we aren't revealing the name until he is born anyway.
3) What has been your biggest craving?

Let's talk about this last question for a little bit. Before I was pregnant, I got cravings all the time. I would go on kicks where I would eat the same food every single day just because that's what sounded good to me. Those foods have included, but are not limited to, pretzels dipped into chocolate icing, guacamole and tortilla chips, clementines, big salads with tons of chopped veggies, egg & cheese sandwiches on english muffins, and I could go on and on. Like I said, I would get on these kicks for a week or two, then be done with them. I would also make different types of baked goods just because I felt like it. Or I would see an ad for some new blizzard at Dairy Queen and immediately want one.

Then, I got pregnant. I honestly don't think things have changed very much in the eating category, but people's perceptions of my eating habits have. A lot of times when I post about a food I want or just randomly had the urge to make, many people usually respond along the lines of, "Ohhh, a pregnancy craving!" That's not how I look at it. It's just how I've always been. I just happen to be pregnant now.

But, I guess if you need to know what I have "craved" during my pregnancy then there are a couple of things that I've eaten that I normally wouldn't, or at least not as much. In my first trimester, I ate a lot of chips. I've never been a huge chip person, but for some reason I really craved a salty snack for a few weeks. Secondly, I made a few quick runs through the McDonald's drive-thru for a McDouble. Again, I typically don't eat McDonalds's, but those sounded good to me for about a week or so. Lastly, right now all I really want to eat is sugar and carbs. NOT healthy by any means, but they are my comfort foods. I can't say that it's because of pregnancy though. I usually really like sugar and carbs (especially in the winter), although I find that I don't cut myself off from it as much right now than I would have if I wasn't busy growing a baby.

So, there you have it. A complete post on why I believe I don't really have pregnancy cravings and just believe it is an extension of who I have always been when it comes to food. Now, excuse while I go find some pickles and ice cream... :)

- S

Monday, January 9, 2012

2012 is starting with a lot of transition.

Oh, hey there. I've been absent from the blog, but now that we are only 8 weeks away (!) from my estimated due date I figure I should probably start posting more often.

I've been extremely fortunate to have an easy pregnancy thus far, so I was waiting for something to creep up that would make things a little more difficult. Enter the dreaded back pain. It started around Christmas and has yet to ease up so I think it will be here until baby boy makes his appearance. I find that if I sit up extremely straight and put a heating pad on my back then the pain seems to dissipate some, but even that is just a temporary fix. This should make the transition of moving really fun!

Speaking of... let's move onto one of our transitions this month - moving from our current house into a decent-sized apartment. We knew that this day would come since we have been living in a house that's been for sale for the past year and a half. We also knew that we would have to move even if it didn't sell because it takes a lot of work to keep it clean and orderly all the time (not to mention having to leave anytime there is a showing). However, we did not expect it to take this long for us to find a place to live. We will be moving next week when I have just 6 short weeks until my due date left (we wanted to be moved by October...so we're only 3 months behind!). I feel slightly crazy and overwhelmed. In preparation, I have been purging, organizing and packing and still have a long way to go. I have a tendency to want to "just do things myself," but I have to remember that I can't lift very much and need to take it easy. That whole back pain thing? Yeah, it definitely flares up when I have been busy doing stuff. I just pray that everything goes smoothly and we get the help we need to make our move happen! I hate that I have to push a lot of this on Jon and others.

Another transition this month has been the fact that my long-term subbing job ended. Today was the first day back to "regular subbing" and I couldn't find a job. I have a feeling this is going to happen a lot in the next 2 months unless I get requested to fill in for a teacher. Additionally, it's super weird to go from being at the same school with the same kids and teachers every day to...not. I really do miss that community. I hope that I will be able to find a decent amount of work in the next couple of months since I won't be working for awhile once the baby is born.

Alright, I'm off to go relax this tired back of mine, but wanted to keep you updated on our lives currently!

- S

P.S. I will post a picture soon for those of you who like to see the "bump" grow!

Monday, January 2, 2012

Restarting My Life

Seriously? It's been over a month since we (Stef) have updated? My deepest apologies. I know you all hang on our (my) every word.

Thanksgiving was fantastic. Unfortunately, we were unable to see Stef's family for Thanksgiving. It was just too difficult to try to see two families on one day, a problem that will be compounded by introducing a new life to our family, no doubt. Like Thanksgiving, Christmas was also awesome. I was able to get some extra time off from work around Christmas, so it was great to be able to be able to see our friends and both of our families and spend time with those that we love. Also, we had an great baby shower thrown by our closest friends. It was good to experience that, even though we're heading into new territory in our life as a family, we have many people to lean on and learn from. Thank you to everyone who allowed us to experience your friendship and love through conversation, laughs, food, and gifts.

The past few months have been a growing time for me as I continue to think about what my life will look like with another addition to our family. There are many things that I spend time thinking about: how our finances will be affected, what kind of social changes this addition will bring, how my role in our family will shift from being a husband to being a husband and a father. However, I think the thing I've been thinking on the most has been how the birth of our child will bring about a completely new start at life. Obviously, giving birth to our son will bring new life to him, but also bringing him into the world will bring a new life for Stef and I.

Part of that transformation into a new life is how having a child will affect the things that Stef and I already engage in, with friends, family, or by ourselves. But the other part, and the more exciting part, is how having a child will open doors to new things. Sure, it will bring things that we never did before like changing diapers or rocking a baby to sleep. But it will also bring about new ways of thinking about the world, about our parents, about our family, about our friends, about the world and about each other.

I could be totally wrong, but I think having a child is a "fly by the seat of your pants" type of thing. You roll with the punches. But it's great to think about things that I want to do with my son, or things that I want to introduce him to, or how I want to teach him to be tolerant of other people and points of view or how to love others unconditionally. Having a child is becoming more of a reality to me and not so much as a concept of thought anymore. Being born brings a new life to our son, yes, but it also brings new life to Stef and I. For this, I am simultaneously excited and completely humbled.

That's it. Short and sweet.

- J