Expectations

Pregnant women poised on the very edge of becoming mothers are a curious species. On one hand, they are huge, exhausted, hormone ridden, and very very tired of being pregnant. While there is the occasional perky pregnant woman who cheerfully chirps about how easy the last nine months have been and how she'd really prefer to be pregnant all the time, the vast majority of us are spending our hours plotting the perky lady's downfall while shoveling rocky road ice cream into our mouths and growling incoherently at our husbands.

The curious paradox to this is that no matter how tired and hippo-like we have become, there is an inner demon driving us to activities well beyond whatever energy we have remaining. This little voice whispers in our ear telling us that our home needs to be prepared for a child to inhabit, and that we should dedicate ourselves vigorously to doing this. My husband came home one day to find me scrubbing the inside of our cabinets. Trust me when I say this is highly out of character for my slovenly self.

But once in a while the little voice would have a good idea, something much more sensible than washing our linens three times or crocheting enormous piles of baby hats. And the good idea that was imparted to me was Stockpiling Food.

Understand, readers who may still be expecting their first child, that everyone has told you that you will have no time, but that truly won't register until you bring that little being home. In the back of my mind, I smugly felt that I was so on top of things that I would manage with no more than mild difficulty. Instead, I became a half-crazed, sleep-deprived crazy woman. One of the only consolations I had left was that I had a freezer full of tasty items just waiting to be reheated whenever starvation overtook us.

The next several posts will be dedicated to Food Hoarding For The Expectant Mother. I'll be outlining what worked best for us, and including a number of recipes to follow as well as general tips on the most useful ways to spend your remaining free time.

Enjoy!