Veg*n mama's!

[Marlet]

I have been having a tough time eating wise for the last...oh month. I figured we could use a thread for ourselves!

Tell us a bit about yourself and if you are struggling with anything right now. I figure this first bit will be more of a getting to know you type set up. That work? Maybe share recipes too!

We are veg*n. Yes, the veg*n. Dh recently went vegan while the rest of us are vegetarian (though the kids are allowed to have meat outside of the house). We have been vegetarian for about a year now. It was mostly in an attempt to figure out what the crap was wrong with DH.

I adore eating this way. That said, I have been a horrible veggie for this last little bit. In fact, I'm not sure I'd call myself that...if I had to I'd say I eat mostly that. It's driving me nuts. I feel icky and am not happy about it at all. My appetite has all but gone away which doesn't help.

What is everyone eating? I'm trying to get greens in. We went out to dinner last night and I got the tastiest sounding salad and it ended up sucking major backside. I figured though I can't continue to live on pretzels and lemon water. :

[VegMomma]

Oh fun! Me! Me!

All four (5!) of us are vegan. I've been vegetarian for 10 years, and we both made the switch to veganism when ds1 started eating solid foods, and we realized that we didn't really want him eating dairy, etc. (DH had serious dairy allerigies as a lo.) Since switching to veganism, Dh's asthma has become almost non-existent, which is fricken awesome. We have two cats and a dog (all rescues), and he isn't bothered by them at all, which is so good. Oh, we do eat honey, in an attempt to use more local goods. So. I guess we're just mostly vegan.

Luckily my morning sickness hasn't hit me yet (I didn't have any ms with ds1...), so I've been eating normally, if not more consciously. Trying to get lots of greens and iron-rich foods. I want to stock up before going for the bloodwork.

I just got Cathe Olsen's Vegetarian Mother's cookbook out of the library (my copy is in storage), and I am loving it. We just pulled some molasses cookies out of the oven (hello iron!).

I am thrilled that our midwives are 100% on board with us being vegan. You never know how people are going to react. This will be my first completely vegan pregnancy (with ds2, I ate a few pieces of cheese now and then), and I think it will be good!

I have been too exhausted to cook these days, but found that making meal plans for the week have helped. If I put some beans to soak in the morning, making chili in the late afternoon doesn't seem too daunting. And, if all else fails, DH makes a mean coconut milk curry.

Other than that, during the past two weeks, I've been known to eat an entire box of crackers in one sitting. Yup.

[cloudbutterfly]

I'm in! : DH and I have both been vegetarian for years. After a brief flirtation with eating fish last year (I just am too attached to being a vegetarian to make eating fish a couple of times a month worth feeling like a hypocrite when people ask me about my diet), he still eats sushi occasionally, but other than that and the fish oil capsules we take, we're back to being our usual lacto-ovo selves.

My main concern with eating during pregnancy is getting enough protein. Not because I'm a vegetarian, since I think it would be a problem for me even if I did eat meat. I swear the number of grams you're supposed to get in a day goes up every time I see a recommendation. It doesn't help that I'm trying to keep my soy intake to a minimum, and so I only eat tofu when I'm out to eat.

I love seitan, but I think I've read that the protein in wheat gluten isn't easily digestible even if you don't have a gluten issue, so I don't count on it to give me as much protein as it says it does. I normally don't eat a ton of dairy and eggs, but I've been trying to get in two hard boiled eggs and a serving of cottage cheese on top of everything else I eat. Unfortunately, the cottage cheese is only appealing to me under the right circumstances. I've also been making smoothies with whey protein powder, but I hate the smell/flavor of the powder...all artificial smelling even though it's supposedly all natural. Otherwise, I let myself have all the aged cheese I want--luckily I like cheese--and try to make beans and rice or quinoa every time I can work up the energy to work the rice cooker.

Otherwise, I love fruits and veggies and grains and legumes and nuts and everything, so the main problem is just getting myself to cook so I have things to eat! It's tough being so tired all the time, but DH can cook and he tries to take care of me when he's home, so I'm lucky to have such a good partner in this, but I'd like to be cooking more myself and eating better by the time the second trimester rolls around.

[Andee]

I'll join too! I am vegetarian, and DP is a complete omni. Whenever I make food, though, he usually loves it. I don't eat eggs and I don't really drink milk, but I totally Love cheese.
I haven't adjusted my diet too much. I'm eating more fresh fruits and fresh veggies, but other than that I eat the same foods I ate before. I haven't worried about protein, but I'm thinking I should make more of an effort to get some nice beans in my diet.

[dantesmama]

Me too! I've been vegetarian for 13 years; I was vegan for a few years somewhere in there, but I feel a lot healthier with dairy and eggs in my diet. The kids don't eat meat either. DP is omni. He works in a butcher shop, believe it or not.

I need to work on getting enough protein. I'm a very picky eater which makes it kind of tough. I want to work some more beans into my diet, but I'm already so gassy and bloated that I'm afraid to eat anything that could make it worse!

I love Cathe Olsen's cookbook! Her garbanzo stew is awesome. :

[Marlet]

Yay! Glad to see there are a few of us in here.

Can I just say, dantesmama, I'm totally lovin' that we seem to be following each other throughout the forum. Cracks me up!

[rainbowfairymomma]

us too! I've been a vegetarian for about 16 years, I'm a wanna be vegan but can't give up cheese... at least not yet
I have a really tough time getting in all the protein I need... what are you guys eating for protein...??
I need to stop all the sugar (I'm really overweight as it is) esp for this pregnancy but its so hard.

[Marlet]

I'm not worrying about it right now honestly. I cut out my Pepsi habit (SERIOUS addiction) and I know that's a huge milestone since I've been drinking it since my third tri. with DD1 (who turns four here soon). Once I feel ready for eating I do lots of nuts. With DD2 I ate tons of guacamole. I referred to this chart a ton as well. When I was feeling like I neeeded an extra boost I'd go look at the protein content.

[VegMomma]

Oh nutrition. One of my favorite subjects.
Protein ideas:
- nuts and seeds
- legumes and tofu
- whole grains
- dairy and eggs (if those are an option for you)

Some simple ideas are a whole wheat bagel with hummus or nut/ seed butter, whole grain pasta with peanut sauce, even just bread and butter, really.

Protein is super important, but during the first trimester not quite as much, so don't fret if you don't feel like you're getting enough. Most people who eat eggs and dairy are pretty okay for protein.

Just my 0.02.

Signed,

The girl who dropped out of holistic nutrition school because she got pregnant with ds1.

[Marlet]

I ate lots of Ritz crackers with various flavored cream cheeses on them (the good stuff from a real bagel store). I think I lived on that for like 2 months.

[Andee]

I seem to remember reading that their is more protein per calorie in dark leafy greens (such as romaine and spinach) than there is protein per calorie in steak... so maybe protein is not too difficult to come by? I believe that came from Dr. Joel Fuhrman's book Eat to Live.

[VegMomma]

Protein totally isn't difficult to come by, which is one of the reasons the question, "but, where do you get your protein?" bothers me so much.

Iron, on the other hand, can be tricky if you don't eat a lot of whole foods, and a nice, balanced diet.