On Being Pregnant

I love being pregnant.  I love everything about it.  I love getting bigger, feeling the baby kick, and even all the little pregnancy symptoms that might seem to be a little "inconvenient."  I attribute this great love for my pregnant self to the fact that for a while there, I didn't think it was going to happen.  In fact, I had come to an acceptance of it not happening, and had even moved on from the sadness of it all.

So now that I am lucky enough for it to happen anyway, I am taking full advantage!  I have lost track of the number of books I have read in the last few months about pregnancy, childbirth, and infant care.  Here are just a few that happened to be floating around in my living room today.

I've read books from the library, free pregnancy/parent magazines from the women's center, and online articles.  I am learning A LOT about pregnancy and childbirth.  And one bit of knowledge that I have appreciated the most, and that appears in most of the books I've read, is that I can control quite a bit about how I feel and how I handle this new experience.  And the things I choose to do now can benefit the baby and myself in the coming months.  Right now I am focusing on a healthy diet and good exercise.

Healthy Diet

From day one of finding out I was pregnant, I improved my eating habits.  I wouldn't say I was a terrible eater before, but there's always room for improvement.  I am making a conscious effort to get more fruits and vegetables in my diet, and I am working on cutting out empty carbohydrates and replacing them with whole grains.  I am also trying to get more protein every day.  For me, eating more fruits and veggies is easy because I like fruits and veggies.  I also like meat, yogurt, cottage cheese, and other high protein foods, so it's not too hard to get more protein.  But whole grains, now that's a different story.  I love me some good old fashioned white bread from Grandma Sycamore.  And white rice.  And pasta.

So if you're like me and looking to increase whole grains in your diet, here are some tips.  Winco has great whole grain bread for a really great price (around $1.50 a loaf I think).  The brand is Cascade Pride, and they make a bunch of different whole grain breads.  Read the labels though, because not all "wheat" breads are whole grain.  My favorite is the 100% Stoneground Whole Wheat.  It makes great toast, grilled cheese sandwiches, and is good with chicken salad.  I don't love it for peanut butter and jelly though.


Here are some other whole grain foods worth trying out.

With the pasta, I make it with half whole grain noodles and half regular.  Using just the whole grain noodles is a little too much for me.  

The whole wheat tortillas are great for enchiladas.  Of course, if you put enough cheese and sauce on top, anything will taste good, right?  I haven't tried the tortillas for something simple like a quesadilla yet, so I'm not sure how they would work for that.  

I got the wild rice medley at Costco, and I think it makes a great side for chicken or another meat.  It's heartier than white rice and has a more earthy flavor.  The different textures of grains is nice too.  And you can make it in a rice cooker just like you would make regular white rice.  I don't know how it would work for something like fried rice.  I'll have to try it out one of these nights for dinner.  It's more expensive than white rice, but at least it's something worth eating.  White rice seems a little like a filler food. That's probably why we had so much of it when we were poor.  It's cheap, it fills you up, and it tastes good!  I don't like the taste of regular brown rice, so this wild rice mixture is a good alternative for me.

Exercise

This has been a tough one for me.  I've never really had the need to exercise, and that makes the motivation hard to come by.  Usually what happens is I go in little spurts of exercise activity.  When we were in Idaho, we joined a gym and I was really good about going on a regular basis.  We did a lot of rock climbing at the time too, so I was motivated to be stronger so climbing would be easier and more enjoyable.  When we moved, there was no more gym membership and not a lot of opportunities for climbing, so I slacked off.  Then for a while I found some exercise DVDs that I enjoyed and could fit into my schedule, but that didn't last long.  But I always imagined that if I ever got pregnant, I would be really diligent about getting in a good amount of exercise.  Then came the first trimester, and I had ZERO energy.  I felt like I couldn't walk the dog because since we live in the foothills, everything seemed too steep for the amount of energy I had.  I didn't want to do the exercise DVDs because they weren't designed for pregnancy and were too intense.

So for the first trimester I basically did nothing.  And starting the second trimester, while I did feel more energized than before, I still couldn't get myself going.  But for the last little while, I have miraculously found some inner motivation again.  I signed myself and Spencer up for memberships at the local rec. center, and I now go to a prenatal class every Tuesday and Thursday morning called Baby Bump Pump.  The instructor is great, I feel like I am really working hard every time I go, and it's all exercises that are safe for pregnancy.  It's working my muscles enough that I feel sore muscles afterward, but nothing feels strained or injured.  So far the class is pretty tiny too.  It's usually me and one or two other girls.  I feel like I have my own personal trainer that way.  I tried a beginning yoga class that I could do every Monday, but a lot of it was boring, I didn't like the instructor, and time seemed to drag on FOREVER.  My plan now is to go to my class every Tuesday and Thursday, and on the off days try to walk the dog or do some walking or cycling at the gym.

I am so thankful that Spencer is working hard and doing well with his office so I can stay home and dedicate my time to enjoying the pregnancy.  It's much easier to plan healthy meals and get into an exercise routine when I don't have to worry about lesson plans or annoying coworkers and don't have to spend 8 - 10 hours a day at school.

I am still trying to earn my keep around here though.  Read the next post to see how I'm helping around the house.

(Disclaimer:  While this post and the next one makes it sound like I am busy being productive all the time, keep in mind that I still spend way too much time on the computer, I watch a few episodes of my favorite sitcoms on Netflix every day, and I play games on my iPhone a little more than I should.  But the important thing is, I am trying to do something worthwhile every day.  Today's big accomplishments:  I walked the dog and I updated the blog.  Maybe later I'll do some vacuuming.  And that's good enough for me!)