Pregnancy Cravings

Everyone always wants to know what pregnant women crave. I think this is because it makes for great conversations at parties! Someone says "Listen to this, I once knew a woman who craved jalapenos stuffed into chocolate cake while she was pregnant!" and the crowd responds with exclamations of disgust or amazement! Unfortunately, (or maybe fortunately) I haven't had many exciting cravings thus far.

Since my appetite has returned in the second trimester, I've been craving fruit (mostly mangoes and watermelon since they are in season right now), dairy (milk, yogurt and ice cream), smoothies (which are, of course a combination of the fruit and dairy), eggs and cheeseburgers. Luckily, all of these things are pretty readily available here in Thailand. Even the hamburgers are not too hard to find, as there are a couple restaurants here in Chiang Rai that serve a decent burger. However, what really satisfies my burger-craving is a McDonald's Double Cheeseburger... which can be obtained with a mere 3 hour drive to Chiang Mai! We had to go to Chiang Mai a few weeks ago and the Micky-D cheeseburgers almost made me cry, they were so good!

I've always been a "chicken girl". So much so, in fact, that my husband teases me about how every recipe I make calls for boneless-skinless chicken breast! But lately, I've really had an aversion to chicken. While I can eat it, I don't really enjoy it and can't usually finish a full serving. So, my standard lunch meal of Khao Mun Gai has been replaced by the tofu, eggs and bean sprouts of the famous Pad Thai. In the past, Pad Thai was never my really one of my favorites, but today's lunch was the third day in a row where nothing but Pad Thai would do!

All in all, I'm really enjoying food lately (that is, aside from spending last week in the hospital with an over-glorified stomach bug; I was not enjoying food last week!) And Little George seems to enjoy food too! After almost every meal the kicking and punching starts up with vigor. I'm know it really has to do with increased blood sugar levels giving him that extra energy to move about, but it's so much more fun to say things like "Oooh, George must really like mangoes!" Anyway, it seems like there's something about pregnancy that brings a whole new meaning to the word "satisfied"! After some meals, I just sit and bask in the glory of a happy mouth, a full tummy and a kicking baby!

Tags:

• food
• pregnancy
• babies

What is your #1 baby gadget?

Over the past few weeks, the reality of having a baby in a little over 4 months has started to set in. Maybe it's the recent arrival of our friend's baby girl, or maybe it's the fact that we have crossed that half-way mark, but either way, those notorious pregnancy-nesting-tendencies are starting to appear!

Up until now, I've avoided thinking too much about "preparing for the baby". I'm sure, in some ways, there was an element of self-protection involved; if we had another miscarriage, I didn't want to have too many "baby things" hanging around making the grieving process that much more difficult. However, on a lighter note, probably a larger part of my procrastination was just that - procrastination; nine months really feels like a long time and it's easy to say to yourself,"There will be plenty of time for that later." But like I said, with just four months to go it's time to start getting ready for the baby!

Now, the process of "getting ready for the baby" can mean very different things depending on what culture you're in! For instance, when an Akha baby is born, the only "supplies" needed are a few sets of clothes and some fabric for an Akha baby sling. Sometimes the Akha will make a baby hammock out of an empty rice sack strung between two bamboo poles, but other than these few simple items, the arrival of the baby doesn't require too much preparation. In our two years living in a village, we've seen many children grow up happy and healthy with just these "bare necessities" to carry them through their first months of life. In America, however, "getting ready for the baby," takes on a whole different meaning! Just look at everything included in a traditional American nursery checklist, not to mention all the fancy gadgets & accessories available to today's parents, like baby-wipe warmers, cribside mp3 docks and even "pee pee tee pees"!

During the past few weeks, I've been feeling really caught between these two drastically different worlds! On one hand, there's no denying the fact that I'm an American. When I think about preparing for a baby, my mind immediately finds itself in the land of cribs, changing tables and rocking chairs! On the other hand, we are working with the Akha and we desire to understand the Akha culture and way of life not only through observation, but through experience. So, we find ourselves in that familiar, yet tricky, situation of finding a balance.

Right now, we're trying to narrow down all the options out there and decide what items will really be useful in simplifying our life with a baby. This is where you come in! I want to hear from all you parents out there, those of you in America as well as any missionary parents on the field.... What is your #1 "must-have" baby item?

Tags:

• pregnancy
• babies
• Akha
• culture

Too Modest

Our 21 week ultrasound appointment has come and gone, but we still don't know if it's a boy or a girl! While we did see the heart, spinal cord and kidneys, apparently George was a little too modest to reveal those other organs that would let Grandma know whether she should buy the pink or the blue onesies! Of course, we were just a tiny bit disappointed that we weren't able to learn the sex of the baby, but we are honestly just happy to know that the baby is healthy and everything is progressing normally. And since ultrasounds are so cheap here (around $12), we can certainly try again later!

Tags:

• babies
• pregnancy