A few weeks ago, I noticed that I was having trouble drinking the amount of water that is recommended in pregnancy. That the water, along with most everything else, was making me nauseated. So one day, I tried orange juice instead of water.
I was instantly hooked. It was wonderful! I wanted it! More! More! More!
But really, a 40-year-old Mo can only drink so much orange juice before she starts to pack on the pounds, so I knew I had to get ahold of myself. I could only convince myself this was "healthy" to a point. In reality, it was healthy, but with a lot of calories, a ton of sugar.
So I tried to make it a bit healthier. No more juice. I switched to the oranges themselves. Which are incredibly cheap and delicious this year, and I figure are a better choice than orange juice because of their fiber and other nutrients, etc. (I imagine all the nutrients going straight across the placenta to create healthy baby connective tissue and to help baby grow!) Lately, I've been having at least a couple of small oranges daily.
So it's hopefully healthy(ish) and definitely tasty!! But odd. I'm not used to such a strong urge for fruit...or well...really for anything. I've been trying to expand my palette some (this weekend had a whole container of fresh pineapple). After all, in line with my nod to a very talented novelist with this post title, oranges are really not the only fruit. And more variety must be better, yes?
I am trying, but really it's only oranges that I want.
I could eat like five of them in a sitting, I think. I am dreaming of them at night. But I am limiting myself.
I will be curious to see if this sustains for the long-term, or if this orange frenzy will pass, transitioning to something else (a craving for spinach perchance? That would be healthy!). All in all, I am slightly in wonder of this strange body I'm inhabiting. That things I like don't taste good and other things are suddenly must-haves.
Pregnancy. It's a funny thing. Still kind of can't believe it's happening to me. Who ever would have thought? I mean, really, hadn't you almost given up hope on us too?
Thanks also for your thoughts on the weaning process...still waiting to hear from the Denver nurse. Will let you know what she says when/if I hear from her...
Mo
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I don't need to see you to know that you are glowing, I can feel it in your typing. It is so wonderful to hear that you are doing well.
ReplyDeleteI went off chocolate and ice-cream and developed a craving for apple and cheddar cheese - together. Cravings are odd things, but I went with mine as I assumed it was what my body needed. Yours is a good one - vitamin C helps you process iron, which you can run low on in pregnancy.
ReplyDeleteYou just made me want a tall glass of orange juice! =)
ReplyDeleteI was never much of an OJ drinker (or any juice for that matter), but as soon as I got pregnant I fell in love with it. Now every Saturday morning when we go out for breakfast, I get a huge glass of OJ and drink it down immediately.
ReplyDeleteHaha! Love this : ) For my entire 2nd & 3rd trimester I ate an entire watermelon, and 2 whole pineapples per week LOL! The fruit craving was no joke (I am very greatful it wasn't chocolate or fast food...) Baby willmo must love their vitamin C, enjoy!
ReplyDeleteYay for a healthy craving ... you are lucky ... with #1 it was Boston Creme Donuts for me. With another, it was spicy food.
ReplyDeleteFor beverages ... I have trouble drinking glass after glass of water alone. Lately I've been doing club soda with fresh lime or orange squeezed into it ... if that helps.
Cheers!
I totally Craved oranges and pineapple!!! Old wives wisdom is that that means its a boy, which in my case was true : ). Best wishes for your pregnancy!
ReplyDeleteI've really been craving fruit the entire pregnancy. At first it was apples...they were one of the only foods I could safely eat without wanting to barf. Lately it's strawberries...I ate an entire 4lb costco pack of them...by myself...over 4-5 days. Then it was clementines. But I got a weird rash all over my body around the same time I started eating them, so I sort of associate the two. Just ate an entire pineapple the other day. Oh, and juice...I've never had so much juice in my life. Apple and orange are my favorites. But the orange MUST be not-from-concentrate. The concentrated stuff just tastes gross!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy every minute and treat yourself. Your body knows what it needs and your cravings will change as your pregnancy progresses. So happy for you!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy every minute and treat yourself. Your body knows what it needs and your cravings will change as your pregnancy progresses. So happy for you!
ReplyDeleteI also loved oranges, orange juice, orange drink from McD.onalds - pretty much anything orange flavored while I was pregnant! Funny how the cravings are so overwhelming and it sometimes feels like nothing else will do. Glad that things are going well for you :)
ReplyDeleteI never had any cravings, but did have food aversions. Particularily sweets. Unfortunately they went away after E was born. :-/
ReplyDeleteI say, enjoy the oranges!
Like Heather, I also tended toward food aversion with all pregnancies. But with LG I *loved* mango. With Tiny Boy I drank a lot of lemonade early on as it helped with nausea. Oh, and ate pan after pan of gluten-free brownies. I mean, my RE said I needed to gain weight :)
ReplyDeleteI know it's just a voice on the internet...but you sound good, Mo.
I craved grapefruit juice like CRAZY. Like, I had to have it and it's not normally my thing. And then I got gestational diabetes and I switched to the actual grapefruit (1 a day was all I could have), which still satisfied the cravings and like you said is a lot healthier. I had the grapefruit thing going up until the day I delivered and now, no interest whatsoever. Pregnancy can be so strange...
ReplyDeleteI have never been an OJ drinker, but couldn't get enough during my pregnancies. If there really is an old wives tale that such a craving means it's a boy, I might be proof that that's true (I have two boys).
ReplyDeleteI also craved oranges during my pregnancy with my older son. I would eat at least one orange a night, sometimes two, and a few times I even ate three! I loved them straight from the refrigerator. I figured that there was no way it could be a bad thing because oranges are so good for you. During my pregnancy with my younger son, it was salad, salad, salad. I like to think that my body was directing me to nutrients that I needed, but I don't know if that's true. You are pregnant at the optimal time of year for fruit, though -- just think of all of the wonderful things that are coming to market soon like cherries and peaches and nectarines and all the berries... good for you and the baby too, I bet!
ReplyDeleteIf you want to cut down on sugar, just top up the juice with water... I also put Wild Sweet Orange essential oil in my boy's bathtub water every night... I wonder if he dreams of oranges!
ReplyDeleteI did the same thing with clementines! Those and pineapples were my mainstays!
ReplyDeleteWith this pregnancy and with Birdie's, I craved both orange juice and lemonade. I diluted them greatly (like an ounce or two of juice to 8+ ounces of water) and that really helped me drink a lot more water. I justified it by saying that it was really like drinking one glass of juice, just spaced out throughout the day.
ReplyDeleteI have been eating strawberries and yogurt and fresh pineapple too! Yum. I also craved salads and coconut popsicles. Enjoy these cravings! Oranges are good for you!
it was nectarines for me when I was pregnant with my daughter. my vote is that your little bean is a girl:) (if you develop insatiable cravings for mint chocolate and sugary cereal and gag every time you see any type of white cheese, that will seal the deal;)
ReplyDeletejust go with it mo. enjoy it, live in the moment, with your pile of oranges! maybe in a month it will be something different.
ReplyDeletefor me, it was cherries. i highly recommend :) unfortunately, organic cherries are like, $15 bucks a bag, so it was a treat, but i totally indulged it as often as i could.
things are going well! and that's ok!
Boy.
ReplyDeleteI've had orange cravings too! My favorite thing is is to squeeze two oranges and crush ice in my Vitamix and then our the fresh orange juice on the shaved ice and eat it with a spoon - it's like a healthy snowcone!
ReplyDeleteThat is funny - I was totally into green apples when I was pregnant and they are not something I normally want. I think oranges (or apples) are an excellent craving compared to say chocolate :)
ReplyDeleteI found that putting a dash of orange in my water (or mint, for that matter) made it a bit less gross and so I could drink more of it. My hypnosis for birth instructor actually flavored all of her water with lime or lemon or orange as she said that the citrus was good for us (can't recall why). Enjoy-- so glad that you've moved past nausea to cravings; more good signs!
ReplyDeleteI craved fruit like crazy. I was eating 3-4 apples and a couple of oranges a day when pregnant. I also ate 3 1lb bags of cherries in one week at one point late in my pregnancy, and an entire pineapple in one day. I was just happy that it was not my normal chip and dip craving:)
ReplyDeleteOh my - all I wanted was oranges too! I ate them all day, every day for the first half of my pregnancy. And then, all of a sudden, that urge went away.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy it while you can!!!
I too hate drinking water, during pregnancy I would fill up the water 3/4 and then 1/4 OJ, over time I decreased until it was just a few splashes of OJ with the water. Thought I'd share :)
ReplyDeleteI am so happy for you!! I am also a survivor of RPL, although we did not require any interventions to get pregnant. My son (now 6 weeks) was lucky number 6 for us. I was still pretty surprised that I had a baby at the end, as pregnancy loss really can twist your brain around!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your oranges!! I had more food aversions than cravings, although in the third trimester I thought I was going to turn into a mini-wheat.
Following you closely and sending healthy happy baby vibes.
Kirsten
heehee! I <3 that you are having a craving!
ReplyDeleteI agree -- the glow radiates all the way across the internet and it makes me so happy to read! Eat 5 oranges, make your own orange juice. If you are that hungry for it your body must need it. And you are supposed to gain some weight.
ReplyDeleteI think every woman's body is different. I gained like 45 pounds, but lost every pound of it and a few extra by 9 months post birth. I am not sure I buy the 25-35 pound thing. Eat those oranges.
And just to warn you, my palate has not yet returned. I used to love love love red wine and now its really hard for me to stomach. And spicy food has lost its amazing appeal. Weird. And my allergies are an order of magnitude better...
I craved oranges too. It turned out they were not very fun on the return trip, so I ended up eating fewer of them than I really wanted, but...mmmmm. Also I went through a peach-craving phase.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize until somewhat after the fact that my nearly inexhaustible appetite for grapefruits and grapefruit juice during the first trimester was not standard (for me). From what I've read citrus fruit cravings are pretty common!
ReplyDeleteBut, wow, did those grapefruits taste good.
Water made me nauseous during pregnancy too. I had to flavor it with something. I often drank very weak Kool-aid (just enough flavor to keep it down, but not so much to add too many calories to my day).
ReplyDeleteCan you water down your orange juice?
Now that you mention it, I remember craving oranges too (well, all fruit but definitely oranges) - I think I used to have 3 a day and that was not normal for me because you know I don't like mess :)
ReplyDeleteI also went through corn on the cob like nobody's business - even today I smell that smell and start drooling...
An Oranges fan here!
ReplyDeleteI loved oranges totally...and having the fruit is SO much healthier than the orange juice! You get the fiber too!
Try watermelons - they have a high water content too!
Do you get fresh coconut water?
ReplyDeleteI love that you are experiencing food cravings. It's odd that your pregnancy symptoms are filling me with such joy!
ReplyDeleteWhen my mom was pregnant with each of her children, she ate so many oranges that my dad couldn't help her peel them fast enough. (My siblings and I all love oranges too.)
Just go with whatever your body wants, especially if it's fruit. I'm sure it'll subside and make room for the next craving.
Sending love (as I'm listening to the trio waking up and calling, "mommmeeee?") I frequently have these flash forwards of what your life will be like a year from now... Such indescribable joy awaits you and Will.
How fortunate you are that your cravings are for healthy food! I say to indulge yourself--besides, you may be besotted with some new food next month, and the month after, and.... For me, at about the point in pregnancy where you are now, I couldn't keep away from potato chips (preferably sour cream and onion) with Boy #1, but with Boy #2, it was fruit, especially strawberries and blueberries. Every day for lunch, I'd polish off a huge bowl containing about a pound of fruit plus vanilla yogurt.
ReplyDeleteI second what InB said about weight. I gained a pound per week with EVERY pregnancy, even the ones that didn't stick; clearly that's just my body's way of approaching pregnancy (didn't matter what I ate, either).
ReplyDeleteJust remembered that I couldn't drink anything but certain brands of bottled water with my pregnancy with LG....tap water tasted like chemicals.
I am enjoying being on this journey with you. Thank you for sharing. I had one craving my entire pregnancy and it was tomato juice! For two weeks I wanted nothing but tomato juice! And then that was it. Good luck with the Denver nurse!
ReplyDeleteI went crazy on fruit during my pregnancy, and man that fruit salad can get expensive! That and I had no desire to eat meat.
ReplyDeleteOJ was my craving as well when I was pg with Lexi. I HAD to have it...but it gave me heartburn. I then found the Low Acid OJ and LOVE IT! I still drink it...though not in the gallon per week quantity that I did.
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy for you! You have NO idea how giddy I am to see each of your posts and know that you are one day/week further along than before. Lots of hugs to you and Will.
I, too, craved citrus. I amazed myself with how many POUNDS of clementine Cuties I could eat in 1 day. I'm thrilled you are pregnant and doing so well!
ReplyDeleteAgree with Gwinne's tap water comment, and I loved NYC tap water. But while I was pregnant, everything but fancy water didn't seem to agree with me. Also--it's gross now, haven't had it since, but smart water? the lemonade flavor? I remember loving it with a passion. Also--coconut water. Delish, very refreshing, good for you during (and after) pregnancy, and yeah, it's liquid and you can find it all over the place these days.
ReplyDeleteCan't tell you how delighted I am that you're having cravings. Cool, aren't they? And oranges are a good thing to crave--I say eat as much fruit as you want to. You WILL gain weight during this pregnancy--you'd BETTER!--and fruit is a good way to do it healthily. And, I'm also a believer in the 'if you want it that much (and it's not, like, an entire pie) then it's probably something your body needs right now' school of thought. Enjoy your oranges!
When I was pregnant with our triplets I craved salads and could not stomach ground meat. I had to meet with a dietician after getting gestational diabetes and her guess, upon hearing that, was that there was at least one girl in there. Nothing scientific, just based on her own former patients. Sure enough, there were two girls and a boy in there.
ReplyDeleteBut then again, when my friend was pregnant with her first daughter she couldn't get enough Mexican pizzas from Taco Bell.
With both pregnancies I had hyperemesis and one of the only things I could keep down was grape juice, cranberry juice or lemonade. Go figure. I'm so excited that this is happening for you!
ReplyDeleteOh my...that is soooo funny. I am not an OJ fan....it is too sweet and too acidic for me. But in my last pregnancy I would die for it and drink it by the gallon. And...not sure if this means anything...but I had a girl!
ReplyDeleteAlso...not sure what kind of pics you got from the NT U/S...but check out this study...I was able to use one of my NT u/s pics and it showed the right stuff and it was right!
http://www.baby2see.com/gender/study_ultrasound.html
KD
I lived on lemonade for m/s. The coolest part of a triplet pregnancy is being ordered to eat 4000 cals! Hopefully you can indulge a bit in this most special time. So happy for you.
ReplyDeleteI can almost feel the excitement in this post. It's so wonderful to see!
ReplyDeleteAt least you're craving fruit. I was so nauseous I could barely eat anything more than crackers some days. Once I went on meds, I craved cheeseburgers from McD's. :P
I am so loving reading about your cravings. Eat whatever the hell you want! As long as you take your vitamins and aren't starving yourself, the baby will get what he or she needs. (Sounds like the guesses are trending toward GIRL! I want to buy her cute girlie baby socks!) I was told that except for the folic, prenatals are mostly for the mom. The baby will suck the nutrients from your marrow if need be. You're eating for 1.something now. Wait until you're nursing! Then you're really eating for 2. The hunger and cravings are crazy then!
ReplyDeleteI always craved fruit when I was pregnant with my son. And mint chocolate chip ice cream!
ReplyDeleteLove the name another commenter used for your little one....Willmo! Cute!
I never liked orange juice but craved it constantly when I was pregnant. We did not find out the sex of the baby, but I had a very, very strong inclination that it was a girl. To my surprise, I gave birth to an adorable son - so maybe OJ does equal boy. I think you mentioned that Will has alot of nephews?
ReplyDeleteSo happy for you, Will and baby.
Pg here, and now I am craving oranges!
ReplyDeleteThis is Alina. I am eating an orange and thinking of you. Try also apples and mangoes! :)
ReplyDeleteMy sister had horrible morning sickness and one of the only things she could eat was oranges, she couldn't get enough of them!! I craved chicken with salt and pepper on white bead (which I hadn't eaten for years
ReplyDeleteI admit it, I had almost given up hope for you guys, especially after the hideous run of bad luck you had leading up to this pregnancy (and the previous 5 years aswell, obviously). But there's nothing in the world I'm happier to be wrong about that that though!
ReplyDeleteI almost want to say thank goodness that de.pot lu.pron stuff is so evil, as it seemed like not wanting to waste the time you spent tearing your hair out on that stuff was the main thing pushing you towards trying again with your own body one last time after the DE thing fell apart. If dep.ot lup.ron wasn't so awful, you might never have found out that your prefect embryo was there waiting for all after all. Silver linings and all that!
Vitamin c helps us absorb iron. Since we are in the process of increasing our blood volume, I bet that's part of the citrus craving! I'm craving lemons and limes-- lemonade, salsas with lime juice, lemon zinger tea. Delicious!
ReplyDeleteDella is made almost entirely out of cape cod lower fat potato chips, salsa and mango.
ReplyDeleteI could not stand the smell of cooking food.
But Fruit Mo? Go ahead and indulge a little more-- you're growing a person,and I'd trust your cravings (except for, say, detergent).
And no, I had not given up hope for one moment.
love,
Kate