I'm a particular fan of science fiction short stories, especially older ones, which I find tend to have more humor and humanity. That's why I'm excited that The Town Drunk, a biweekly webzine devoted to humorous speculative fiction, has gone live.

No stories yet, but writers are now on notice to start typing away (or pulling out old stories that were too lighthearted for other spec fic publications). They're also going to be looking for artists to submit designs for "cover art." I'm looking forward to some good reading in the months to come.
(0) comments

Since being diagnosed with gestational diabetes, I've had to change what I eat somewhat and follow specific dietary guidelines. One of the hardest things was figuring out what to pack in my lunchbox for work. I looked online for sample diabetic daily menus, but found very little. Others in the BabyCenter forums have said they're looking for the same information.

Now that I've visited with a dietician and spent some time sitting down with a calculator, an electronic scale, and the USDA Nutrient Database to figure out what I can eat, I thought I'd share that information in case it helps someone else get through this. I'm testing my blood sugar 2 hours after each meal and I'm eating the snacks after I test.

Breakfast

• 1/2 cup oatmeal (measured dry so I can use the nutritional info on the box) with 1/2 cup 2% milk, 1 teaspoon of honey, and cinnamon
• 1 egg scrambled
• Prenatal vitamins

Morning Snack

• Decaf coffee with 1/3 c. milk
• 10 almonds
• 2 dried apricots

Lunch

• Sandwich: meat, cheese or egg salad on whole wheat bread with lettuce and tomato
• Cottage cheese (one of those small take-along containers)
• Fruit (200g of cantaloupe or one medium-sized apple - basically about 16g of carbs' worth)

Afternoon Snack

• 5 Triscuits with low-fat cheddar cheese
• Baby carrots

Dinner

Dinner varies every night, so here are some examples of menus from the past week:

• Beef barley soup with a whole wheat roll
• Pork chop, broccoli, homemade mac'n'cheese
• Half a large baked potato topped with ham, cheese, and broccoli
• Trout, couscous, romaine and artichoke heart salad, and a crab cake

Evening Snack

• Decaf coffee or tea with 1/3 c. milk
• 1 Dove Promises dark chocolate square
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter (the dietician recommended natural PB, the kind you have to stir)

I hope someone finds this information helpful. Getting this thrown at you on top of everything else you're dealing with in pregnancy right now can be a lot to handle.
(0) comments