baby stuff

The doctor's office called with the results of my glucose test. I am not currently diabetic. Everything looks normal. Doesn't mean it won't happen, but there are no indications so far. However, and this will come as NO surprise to my mother, I am slightly anemic.

My doctor all during high-school, every time I went in (which was a lot because I had strep every few months for years until he agreed to take my tonsils out), said "You might be anemic. Let's test your blood. Take iron supplements. Eat lots of red meat." The tests always came back normal or close to it. Even this time, she said I am only two points lower than normal. She said "diet should fix it. Eat more lean red meat and dark leafy vegetables." Then I asked about the major leg cramps I have been having and she said "more potassium and calcium. Have a banana split every night." She was only slightly joking about that part. I try to keep my calcium intake high. But there is only so much milk and cheese you can eat in one day.

For the iron problem, I have created a smoothie option that will hopefully increase my iron and potassium and vitamin c (which helps absorb iron), not to mention my overall fruit and veggie intake. You can't take calcium with iron, because it blocks absorption. But I think more potassium will help more than more calcium. The smoothie is cranberries (which happen to be in season, yay) for potassium and C (and the other thing they are good for, most women know), a banana for potassium, spinach (frozen has more iron than fresh because it is more concentrated), and pineapple for more C and flavor. Plus water or OJ to make it less sludgelike. I had one this morning, and it tastes pretty good, even if it is green. I can also add broccoli for some extra iron, but broccoli in a smoothie is not a good option. I have tried it. It overwhelms everything else. I bought two fresh pineapples (also almost in season) this weekend and cut them into individual smoothie sizes, and froze them. I had about 4 1/2 pounds of pineapple, which should last me about a month I think, maybe longer. Once oranges are in season, I will probably replace the cranberries with oranges, and maybe add some cranberry juice back into my diet. It doesn't take long to make a smoothie, and it is easier to drink all this than try to eat it.

We really don't eat a lot of red meat. Mostly we eat chicken. I might be able to add a few more beef meals into our menu, but who knows. I guess I can start eating a hamburger for lunch every day. Ugh. I have a better plan though. Chickpeas have a LOT of iron in them. So I am going to make some hummus and some 4 seed crackers I found (did you know that sunflower and pumpkin seeds both have a good amount of iron in them) and have that as an afternoon snack. Almost everything in hummus has either iron or vitamin C in it, so it should be a good option. And I like hummus a bit more than a hamburger. And I am ALWAYS snacky at about 3:30, so this will give me an excuse to eat something good for me that also satisfies the grain urge, instead of the Wheat Thins I usually raid.

Otherwise she is doing good. She moves more every day it seems. Or I am more aware of it. Either way. Only a few more months.....
Also, I have apparently crossed a threshold where non-maternity shirts no longer cover my belly. Or it is just this shirt. It's annoying.