The Search for Snacks

The last few routine pre-natal check-ups have been exactly that: routine. The only thing that has really surfaced as a problem is my weight gain. I'm not going to tell you how much I weigh right now because, frankly, it's embarrassing. I'll tell you in six months, when I hopefully don't weigh as much as I do now.

The first time it came up, I shrugged it off. "I'll eat right, give up soda and go walking." Right.

The second time it came up, I had just gone to Culver's and was trying to hurry through the appointment so that I could get back to my chicken strips and deep-fried cheese curds. (I did get bottled water with my chicken basket... just sayin.)

Today I am making a change. Just to make myself feel better, it should be noted that I made (some rocking amazing) kielbasa and sauerkraut for dinner last night, and am probably retaining a lot of water as a result. But what I saw on the scale today definitely made my jaw drop, and something must be done.

I was pretty hungry when I left the doctor's office. So I started looking around for some healthy snack options. Fast food restaurants were completely out of the question. Even the salads aren't that good for you, and who ever heard of eating a salad while driving? That left pretty much... nothing. Amazing what happens to variety when you rule out fast food. (It's better that way, really. The last few times I've gone to a "grease station," as my friend likes to call it, the food hasn't sat well with me later.)

Rule #1 of shopping is never go into a grocery aisle on an empty stomach, but I had no choice. I needed to pick up a few items anyway, so off I went to Meijer to find a healthy snack. After doing my more important shopping (a pirate-ship inflatable pool, will blog about it later), I walked past the soda to the refrigerated area where I picked up a single-serve bottle of Tropicana. It was a start. Then I walked the snack areas. I had to constantly keep myself in check, reminding myself that the goal is to cut down on the sugary and the salty, but really, what does that leave?

My answer came in the produce section. Buying a whole bag of baby carrots or an apple or banana didn't appeal to me, but I came across a teeny-tiny spot in the very back where the "miscellaneous vegetables" hide. (Miscellaneous, by the way, is code for "vegetables we have to stock but hardly anyone buys.") There, next to the bok choy and giant mushroom stalks were the "Take-a-longs." There were a variety of these indevidual snack trays, including but not limited too, apple slices and yogurt, bruschetta and toasted baguette toast, and cherry tomatoes with ranch dip and cheese cubes. After much consideration, I landed on a tray with grapes, snap peas with ranch dip, and a mini Babybel cheese round.

I admit, it was still difficult walking past the soda in the check-out lane, but having my Tropicana staring at me as we walked past helped a lot. And honestly, I was so excited about the tiny cheese round, I didn't even realize I walked past the candy bars! So I feel successful. Not because I ate a healthy snack, but because I found a healthy snack.

Want a snap pea?

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Addendum: Today, 7/25/2010, I went to the Country Buffet and ate a very large and amazing salad, immediately followed by a bowl of ice cream, half a cupcake, half a cinnamon roll, a large piece of fudge and a bite of cheesecake... Needless to say, I don't have the hang of this yet.

Food, Theatre, and Nesting Instincts

Yesterday, my world tossed me something new to juggle. I've been the House Manager at my college for several years now. My plan for this semester was to take my leave of absence from the spring production and rest up a bit. This was a difficult decision, mostly because I'm a control freak and really love doing what I do. At the very last minute, the girl who was going to replace me became a cast member (kudos for her!). So here I am, the HM again. Luckily most everything is already in place for me. I'm going to be so tired at the end of this run, but I'm excited to be involved again!

This would be a good place to tell you all that if you are in the Chicago area, you need to check out Legitimate Geniuses, written by Stephanie Weber and directed by Chad Eric Bergman. Show dates are April 9, 10, 15, 16 and 17 at 7:30, and April 11th at 2pm. The performance is at the Neo Futurarium on the Southeast corner of Foster and Ashland. Make a reservation at theatre@northpark.edu! Ask me at the Box Office if I'm pregnant and get a dollar off your ticket (limit one per person).

As a side note to that, there's an awesome crepe place a block away called the Icosium Cafe. It's on the Northwest corner of Foster and Clark, and if I took the time to describe it to you... okay fine I will. Imagine a savory crepe stuffed with fresh spinach, caramelized onions, goat cheese, pine nuts, need I go on? And it's only a dollar to add chicken, beef or lamb to that. Or you can get sweet crepes... strawberries, kiwis and Nutella with a scoop of ice cream on the side! Why are you even still reading? Go now!

Okay, that's out of my system. But speaking of foods, what can there not be enough of?

1. Mac N Cheese. Seriously, if it's in the apartment, it is gone before the day is over. For some reason it just sings to my soul.
2. Watermelon. If you're very familiar with the movie "Lady and the Tramp," you'll remember the scene where Jim Dear puts on his overcoat at an ungodly time of night. He calls up the stairs, "Darling, are you sure you want watermelon?" Poor Mengyao.
3. Chocolate. The only reason it's this far down on the list is that it's not as filling as the first two. Remember how last weekend was Easter? Yesterday I ate an entire chocolate bunny in two sittings. Earlier today I tried to write the "10 reasons to keep chocolate in the house," but somewhere around #4 I realized that each reason could be simplified down to "it makes me happy."
4. Milk. I don't know why but I've really been guzzling it down lately. I'm trying not to drink too much every day, but when I went home for spring break, I downed a whole gallon by myself (over the course of a week, but still).
5. Pickles. It must be the salt content, or the satisfying crunch. My roommates and I are currently taking turns buying jars of Vlasic dills. No, I've not eaten any with ice cream.
6. Eggs. This mild and unoffensive protein source can be cooked so many different ways. All you need is a little incentive. I made egg salad yesterday using some of the eggs I colored for Easter... the blue egg turned my salad green.
7. Crackers. Again, mild and unoffensive. I've been eating a few before I go to bed every night so that I don't wake up at 3 a.m. ravenous and cranky. I usually wake up anyway, and crackers are a good snack then, too.
8. Peanut butter. Enough said.
9. Pasta. When I just need some carbs I'll cook some pasta (angel hair is my favorite, and it's the fastest) and eat it with a little butter and salt.
10. Vernors. If you don't know what it is, go to Michigan and buy it. It's the perfect ginger ale for settling an upset stomach, or just making yourself happy.

Moving on to developments in my life... Nesting Instincts!

Last night I became possessed by a cleaning demon. It started out with the simple desire to take a bath. I try to clean out the tub weekly, so I grabbed the comet and a rag and headed to the bathroom. When I got there... it was as if I had never seen dirt before. Now really, our bathroom isn't that bad, it just gets dusty and covered with hairspray, but...but... I attacked it! Before I knew it, I was scrubbing the sink with a vengeance not even the super-nanny could equal. Things were getting cleaned so fast, I wasn't even letting the clouds of comet settle. It wasn't until I had actually crawled inside the empty tub to get a better view of the offending soap scum that I realized exactly what was happening. And THEN, oh yes, I cleared off the floor, poured water all over the place, covered it with cleaner and scrubbed on my hands and knees. IN-credible. Fifteen minutes later I was doing laundry, emptying the dishwasher and sending out emails I'd neglected for weeks. I was just about to take out the garbage when I began to run out of steam...

I'm just so confused. I'm going to go do the dishes.