Vegan Pregnancy: April 2014 (weeks 8-12)

   April was serious time. We had March to vacation, eat without aversions, and relish in our shared secret. April wasn't as carefree. During this month, I started to experience the oh-so-dreaded sickness. Not in the morning, but rather a constant feeling of queasy unease. Definitely not the number one perk of carrying a baby. This feeling presented a debacle with how I address food. While I love sweet carbohydrates, I also love kale, collards, beans, etcetera. The baby didn't want any of that healthy stuff. I was lucky to eat a few spoonfuls of oatmeal and maybe suck down a banana-almond milk smoothie. I lost a few pounds during this time, but that is pretty common in this part of pregnancy. I decided to eat what sounded good, just to make sure I had something in me. I would sneak some kale into my smoothies and had a brief tryst with vegetable sandwiches--just with soft, white bread. These options were better than not eating at all.

    I started to let the secret slip to some friends in April. We had already told immediate family and were waiting to tell extended family in May, after taking a family trip to Portland. When you tell people you're pregnant, you find everyone has a strong connection/opinion regarding pregnancy. Especially the pregnancy of a vegan.

  " How will you get enough protein?"

  "Are you going to force your child to be vegan?"

 " Oh, you'll eat meat while you're pregnant. Everyone does."

    I've always hated the comments from the outside. The same comments every time, and I've been hearing some of them for thirteen years. Now, these comments had morphed into hyper-concern for my baby. Apparently these people forgot that. This baby wasn't theirs to raise, feed, or teach values to. That was our job, Eric's and mine. Even with raging pregnancy hormones, I didn't join in a futile debate. I just politely opposed these views and concerns, while doing my own research. I purchased Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven and The Everything Vegan Pregnancy Handbook. Both were decent reads, but, honestly, I had read all that nutritional stuff before. I scouted out the internet, joining online support groups, and becoming ecstatic when finding out my favorite recipe blogger, from Oh, She Glows, was also pregnant. She has been great support, even if only from a computer screen.

    And, you know what? I'm now 24 weeks pregnant and still find the thought of consuming animal products appalling. Take that, naysayers.