Pregnancy Cravings

I sent this photo to J last month, a day or two after he emailed me a picture of the fancy pancake that he had just eaten in Amsterdam. I sent this as a joke, showing J that he was missing out on a very eclectic meal (a chili cheese dog with roasted Brussels sprouts!) while he dined on Dutch food. I didn't plan for Sam and I to eat such a strange meal, but I was struck with a craving for Brussells sprouts that evening and had to indulge myself.

When I was pregnant with Sam, I felt like I had a few cravings but I also felt very limited to eat things that I felt like I could stomach. I remember one day I felt like the only thing in the world that could keep me alive was grapes. My mom called as I was walking into the produce section of the grocery store, and when I mentioned that I felt like eating grapes she gave me a big lecture about grapes and how much they absorb pesticides. I bought a bag of green grapes anyway (while she was still giving me her well-meant advice on the phone), not because I was being defiant but because I was more interested that moment in staying alive! I needed those grapes to give me sustenance! I feel like my mom didn't understand my situation at that moment, either. My mom's pregnancies were not as difficult as mine with Sam (at least, in terms of morning sickness and nausea); she couldn't understand how difficult it was for me to keep anything in my stomach at all. If I ever felt like I could stomach anything, especially during my first trimester when my nausea was at its worst, I tried to act on that.

I think the lowest point in my first trimester with Sam's pregnancy was once at three in the morning: I woke up in bed and felt like the only thing I could eat was dry, stale Cheerios. As I sat there at the kitchen table, pulling the stale Cheerios out of a box and eating them by the handful, I remember crying and considering how my life had become so restricted and limited. Luckily, things improved and I was able to eat more, especially after I began to take anti-nausea medication. (I never told my mom that I took anti-nausea medication, because I knew that would have concerned her.)

I remember that I also ate a lot of oatmeal and peanut butter sandwiches when I was pregnant with Sam. I also craved grapefruit on several occasions. Above all, though, I probably craved barbecue sauce the most. I remember sending J to Gandolfo's to buy me an Urban Cowboy sandwich at least once, just so I could have the barbecue sauce. 

This pregnancy, I haven't been so restricted in my diet, although I did eat and drink some things to help with mild nausea in the first trimester (like ginger ale, raisins, and bananas). Over the past few months, though, I have craved avocados above anything else. I usually have them in salads with (pasturized!) feta cheese, tomatoes, mixed greens, and a little bit of poppyseed dressing. I also have liked eating guacamole. And every once in a while I will make a Brazilian vitamina (or smoothie) with avocado and banana. One or two of my sisters have noted that I must already have an "avocado baby" in my tummy.

The two other things that I have craved most this pregnancy are Brussells sprouts and grapefruit. I'm glad that I'm craving healthy things to eat! I feel like eating sweets and chocolate sometimes, but I'm really trying to avoid eating very much sugar. (And I don't think that my desire to eat chocolate is related to my pregnancy - I just like chocolate!) I really don't want to gain as much weight as I did with Sam, and I figure that avoiding sugar can't hurt that goal in any way. I try to limit having dessert or some kind of treat to once or twice per week.

What do/did you crave when you are/were pregnant? Or, if you haven't been pregnant, do you know of any interesting stories about pregnancy cravings?