When Anthony said that he wanted us to try new recipes as newlyweds, I don't think this is necessarily what he had in mind. For the sake of documenting the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of this journey, I figured I would share the not so peachy sides of my pregnancy.
I admit that I'm an emotional sap...normally. Now imagine that added to the fact that I now have pregnancy hormones bidding war against each other pretty much on a daily basis! Whether it's something on TV, say, a somewhat sappy clip of American Idol, the Bachelor (believe me there is a good bit of laughter in the mix too with this one), or even a commercial, or a "moving" thought that randomly crosses my mind, without fail, Anthony will turn to me and say "Are you crying?" and chances are I am. I can't help it! And you think it would get old for him to repeatedly ask me this as if he is surprised, but no.
So crying is one part of the hormonal equation and then there are the little ol' freakouts. One day at about 12 wks into the pregancy, Anthony (sheepishly, I might add), revealed that he's been keeping a little "journal" for himself. It just so happened that this was right after one of my more epic outbursts and I honestly can't even remember what it was about, but I'm sure I was convinced that I had a very valid point to make. He asked if he could share it with me so long as I promised not to get mad. I agreed and he proceeded to read his little "journal" excerpt that he had typed into his phone. In the interest of fairness, here is Anthony's viewpoint on my little "mood swings", in his own words...
Pregnant mood swings are just very very old at this time. Getting hard to deal with, and at times, amusing. She is starting to get aggressive when she gets in her angry mood swing, she has pinched me (hard), screamed at me, and tonight ... A new one, whipped a shirt at me as I was heading down the stairs. Becoming psychotic? Hard to deal with... But she gets so ramped up about absolutely nothing important and then I can't help but start laughing! She gets more mad when I laugh... Funny.
Yea, it's funny now, but it wasn't funny then! Lol! I feel like the mood swings have gotten better in the 2nd trimester, probably because I don't have fatigue to also contend with. But I must say that I am very fortunate to have a very patient and understanding husband! It may take a few minutes (ok hours!), but we eventually end up laughing about what had me so amped up to begin with. I'll continue to try to control them better, but for now, best to keep buckled up for the rest of this prenatal, emotional roller coaster!
Alrighty, let's move on to the more upbeat topic of cravings. For the record, I am very fond of food. Before preggers, during, and post-preggers, I'm pretty sure that love affair will continue. (Fortunately, I did not have to endure nausea at all during the pregnancy thus far. Early on, I felt episodes more like the feeling of low blood sugar at times, but as long as I kept eating snacks I was good to go!) Pre-baby, I've been known to keep a constant snack drawer at work and am all too familiar with chocolate cravings, to the point I've gone to the supermarket in PJs before. So I'm still trying to figure out this whole phenomenon of pregnancy-induced cravings. I honestly think a lot of it is just mental. By claiming I have a craving, it turns into a convenient excuse to eat things that I normally would try to refrain from, (sometimes with every fiber of my being) like let's say the #2 at McD's (the 2 cheesburger meal for those not in the know). Well, while I've been trying to avoid fast food to opt for healthier options, I admit that my guilt level is now much less when going through the occassional drive-through than it was pre-baby!
I'm fully on board with the cliche pickle craving thing, but I've always been a fan. I mean, who doesn't love a good pickle, pregnant or not? I can't get enough of them normally! (BTW - Mt. Olive small baby dills are my "go-to". Our fridge is currently always stocked with these suckers and Anthony is careful not to let me see him dipping into my stash. Guess he doesn't want a repeat of the shirt-whipping incident!) I guess I probably could say I've been craving bread, because I have been eating that a lot more, but again, I've always liked it.
To the Mamas from the article, Weird Pregnancy Cravings, who claimed to crave fried chicken wings and mozzarella sticks and couldn't get enough of them, I applaud you for taking full advantage of the pregger excuse on those two. I wonder if there is a Mama who actually does crave spinach or some other ridiculously healthy, organic food that most of us normally have to guilt/brainwash ourselves into eating.
As far as foods that repulse me, I'm still trying to figure that out as well. In the first trimester, I had a little struggle with mushrooms...they tasted like dirt, which bummed me out because I normally LOVE them! That aversion went away mysteriously now in the 2nd trimester. Weird, but great!!! I do think that my taste for chicken is off and I'm not sure I trust my taste buds to know if new chicken recipes we've been trying really are good or not. I think my taste is skewed and sometimes chicken tastes a little funky to me. With all this food talk, I'm starting to get hungry! (what else is new?!)
Our next routine Dr's appointment is tomorrow. Fingers crossed that all is still well!
At 18 weeks, my belly is measuring about 37.5". Here's is the latest profile shot...
Love,
Ulana & Anthony
I admit that I'm an emotional sap...normally. Now imagine that added to the fact that I now have pregnancy hormones bidding war against each other pretty much on a daily basis! Whether it's something on TV, say, a somewhat sappy clip of American Idol, the Bachelor (believe me there is a good bit of laughter in the mix too with this one), or even a commercial, or a "moving" thought that randomly crosses my mind, without fail, Anthony will turn to me and say "Are you crying?" and chances are I am. I can't help it! And you think it would get old for him to repeatedly ask me this as if he is surprised, but no.
Pregnant mood swings are just very very old at this time. Getting hard to deal with, and at times, amusing. She is starting to get aggressive when she gets in her angry mood swing, she has pinched me (hard), screamed at me, and tonight ... A new one, whipped a shirt at me as I was heading down the stairs. Becoming psychotic? Hard to deal with... But she gets so ramped up about absolutely nothing important and then I can't help but start laughing! She gets more mad when I laugh... Funny.
Yea, it's funny now, but it wasn't funny then! Lol! I feel like the mood swings have gotten better in the 2nd trimester, probably because I don't have fatigue to also contend with. But I must say that I am very fortunate to have a very patient and understanding husband! It may take a few minutes (ok hours!), but we eventually end up laughing about what had me so amped up to begin with. I'll continue to try to control them better, but for now, best to keep buckled up for the rest of this prenatal, emotional roller coaster!
Alrighty, let's move on to the more upbeat topic of cravings. For the record, I am very fond of food. Before preggers, during, and post-preggers, I'm pretty sure that love affair will continue. (Fortunately, I did not have to endure nausea at all during the pregnancy thus far. Early on, I felt episodes more like the feeling of low blood sugar at times, but as long as I kept eating snacks I was good to go!) Pre-baby, I've been known to keep a constant snack drawer at work and am all too familiar with chocolate cravings, to the point I've gone to the supermarket in PJs before. So I'm still trying to figure out this whole phenomenon of pregnancy-induced cravings. I honestly think a lot of it is just mental. By claiming I have a craving, it turns into a convenient excuse to eat things that I normally would try to refrain from, (sometimes with every fiber of my being) like let's say the #2 at McD's (the 2 cheesburger meal for those not in the know). Well, while I've been trying to avoid fast food to opt for healthier options, I admit that my guilt level is now much less when going through the occassional drive-through than it was pre-baby!
I'm fully on board with the cliche pickle craving thing, but I've always been a fan. I mean, who doesn't love a good pickle, pregnant or not? I can't get enough of them normally! (BTW - Mt. Olive small baby dills are my "go-to". Our fridge is currently always stocked with these suckers and Anthony is careful not to let me see him dipping into my stash. Guess he doesn't want a repeat of the shirt-whipping incident!) I guess I probably could say I've been craving bread, because I have been eating that a lot more, but again, I've always liked it.
To the Mamas from the article, Weird Pregnancy Cravings, who claimed to crave fried chicken wings and mozzarella sticks and couldn't get enough of them, I applaud you for taking full advantage of the pregger excuse on those two. I wonder if there is a Mama who actually does crave spinach or some other ridiculously healthy, organic food that most of us normally have to guilt/brainwash ourselves into eating.
As far as foods that repulse me, I'm still trying to figure that out as well. In the first trimester, I had a little struggle with mushrooms...they tasted like dirt, which bummed me out because I normally LOVE them! That aversion went away mysteriously now in the 2nd trimester. Weird, but great!!! I do think that my taste for chicken is off and I'm not sure I trust my taste buds to know if new chicken recipes we've been trying really are good or not. I think my taste is skewed and sometimes chicken tastes a little funky to me. With all this food talk, I'm starting to get hungry! (what else is new?!)
Our next routine Dr's appointment is tomorrow. Fingers crossed that all is still well!
At 18 weeks, my belly is measuring about 37.5". Here's is the latest profile shot...
 |
| 18 wk profile |
Love,
Ulana & Anthony
