Craving a time of not-craving

With N I never craved anything...aside from basic nutritional sustenance when my ob just about allowed me to starve in the final third of my pregnancy (no one should lose 7 lbs while pregnant thereby making their entire weight gain a mere 11 lbs. Yes, I am still bitter over this and refuse to let it happen again).

This pregnancy is all about cravings, which means I am carrying a....what??? Is there any old wives' tales about this?

Early on, I wanted Arby's beef & cheddar sandwiches and burgers. Protein, protein, protein. Lately all I've wanted is Kroger Derby City chicken salad and strawberries. I've probably sucked down 4 lbs of strawberries in the last week and a half. In the last day or so I've been daydreaming about when watermelons will come in season.

I cannot tolerate any kind of sweets---pies, cookies, cake, ice cream. D and I took N last weekend (before the temperatures plummeted to near-Arctic records) to the frozen custard place. I got a vanilla with hot fudge, which tasted excellent at the time I ate it. Within an hour I was feeling a nice strong surge of nausea that lasted far longer than it took to eat (and perhaps make) the custard.

Vegetables are still difficult. I cannot cook them at all. The only way I am able to eat them is in salad form, and once again Kroger came to the rescue with their broccoli salad. Tonight I also picked up an artichoke salad that looked pretty good. I figure I better eat vegetables in whatever form I can tolerate them.

So now, similarly to my pregnancy with N, I am thinking about food all the time, which is so unlike me in normal life. It is really a pain, although I can now go about 3.5-4 hours without eating as long as I've had a good blend of protein and carbs in the previous meal.

I am hoping my little love affair with Kroger deli food doesn't last too long, otherwise we'll be opening a line of credit to fund my addiction or I'll have to take a part-time deli job to learn all the recipes. I guess there are worse places to work.