The Times writes up what’s apparently a growing trend — nonalcoholic food pairings. This pregnant girl likes that. Big time.

We signed up for this westsideorganics.com organic produce delivery service, in an effort to eat more healthily. Got our first delivery last week and so far, so good. There are a couple of things I don’t know if we’ll use (need to put them on our “don’t” list), but last night was a winner.

I cooked up a bunch of carrots to go with some chicken/turkey sausage. And then for dessert, I baked a delicata squash. Just sliced the one squash in half, scooped out the seeds, and baked it in the toaster oven for 40 minutes, sliced side down. Semi-following a recipe I’d found online, I filled the scooped-out hole with nonfat cottage cheese, sprinkled brown sugar over the top, and threw in a few sliced pecans. It was delicious and, I’m sure, nutritious. I need as many veggies as I can get these days, for sure, and getting the more nutrients for the least calories is the best.

I honestly can’t believe I’ve only gained a pound. It MUST be the not drinking — and I never thought I drank that much. It might also be that my body is working hard building another little body and that takes energy. But I have been eating pretty crappily, to be honest. It’s been tough with moving to a new place, adjusting to having a 1 hour commute, etc. And the burden of planning the meals tends to fall on me, which I guess isn’t terrible. Anyway, much work to do, yet, to really get a healthy lifestyle going…

hello, hello? I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if no one was out there anymore, but moving across the country, adjusting into a new routine, etc. has been taking up a lot of time.

good news is that so far I have still only gained like 1 pound. I can feel my body adjusting a bit, and I feel like I’ve been a lot less active, but I am proceeding to set up one of our extra rooms as an exercise studio, where I can have the TV/DVD unit set up to do exercise videos. Ordered something called Maternal Fitness yesterday so hopefully it’ll be arriving soon.

One week until I have that chromosomal testing procedure, the CVS. Am so nervous. Just want to get it and the results over with. I’d like to be happy about being pregnant and I’d like to be able to tell people (I have already spilled the beans to too many people I think), but I’m waiting…

Well… it apparently wasn’t real. Anyway, it didn’t stick around for my weekly Sunday weigh-in. In fact, on Sunday I weighed less than I have thus far. 188 point something. Tonight I pigged out on some scrumptious Indian food, but I’ve mostly been doing pretty darned good, indeed, and even eating healthfully and prenatal vitamin-fully.

So far so good on the 15 lb weight gain goal. Of course, I’m only 5 weeks into a 40-week process full of ups downs and arounds. And, of course, I’m in the notoriously nauseous and non-hungry portion of the journey, which I guess helps on the non-weight-gain front. I haven’t thrown up or anything but I definitely get a little queasy feeling now and then.

Meanwhile, I am dying to get moved, which happens this coming week. Big cross country trip is in the works, which will probably have some grueling elements and some fun ones. One more day at work before the much-needed week’s vacation. Yippee. Weird to think that when I start back to work it’ll be in a whole different state on an entirely different coast.

Well… it’s been almost a week since I’ve known I’ve been pregnant, and I think I’ve been doing pretty good diet-wise. Mostly I’ve been concentrating on eating lots of vegetables and drinking plenty of water, and ensuring I get my vitamin every single day.

According to the scale, I think I’ve already gained the whole 3 pounds I’d allowed myself for the first trimester, and I feel like a beached whale. I feel all swollen up and bloated, and my legs rub together like crazy. It’s not a good feeling.

I keep telling myself I’ll do better when I can get into a routine and start exercising again. Right now, I’ve only got a week before my move across the country and every extra moment is focused on move-related things and on sleeping. Besides flatulence (yuck!) and frequent urination, being extra super tired is apparently a hallmark of the first trimester. I guess your body is doing all of these heroic dramatic things behind the scenes. Whatever they are, they seem to take a lot of energy (but apparently not calories because I haven’t been doing too bad on eating, I didn’t think). I guess part of the routine is to start putting on the fat, but I already had plenty of fat, thank you very much.

Today I went to get the car serviced, in preparation for the trip, and I used the waiting time to walk around a bit. Even walked over to my gym and did some weight lifting and some abdominal exercises. So, that’s good. I’m just trying not to focus on the negative, and just get myself through the next couple of weeks. Hopefully morning sickness won’t hit me too bad. It would be good for me weight-wise if it did, but it’d just be so miserable. Then, once I’ve survived a couple of week, the whole California fitness ethos will kick in and I’ll be golden. Right?

There’s a piece in the New York Times today (free reg. req) about that NBC show, “The Biggest Loser.” The conclusion? Dieting the old-school way (sans extreme makeovers) can be boring, repetitive and no fun. Duh.

Anyway, it’s interesting to compare and contrast the two approaches — the quick fix (Extreme Makeover) and the long haul (The Biggest Loser). We all know method number 2 is the correct, most long-lasting way to lose weight and keep it off, but we’re all addicted to the instant gratification.

Well… I did a pregnancy test this a.m. and… it was positive! (Sssh! This is a secret. I’m not telling hardly anyone until I feel more confident it’s going to “take” and be OK.)

Freaking out a bit now. But setting a 3 pound weight gain for the first trimester as my goal and 15 pounds total which is the recommended for women my weight. Joined that BabyFit.com thing, which lets you log food intake and make sure you’re getting all of the proper nutrients. Seeing a doctor on Monday. Wish me luck!

Interesting piece in The NY Times (free reg) about actors losing and gaining weight for roles. It makes me ill that Renee Zellweger had to gain all this weight for a role in which she looks — to me — simply NORMAL.

Those venerable nutrition watchdogs, the Center for Science in the Public Interest, are lobbying the FDA to force companies to get real about what’s really a single serving size.

It cites some examples in its press release:

24-ounce Coca-Cola. Although Coke is relabeling 16- and 20-ounce bottles of soda, it’s new 24-ounce bottle is clearly intended for one person to drink. (“It’s BIG! For those who thirst for more,” reads the bottle.) The label claims the bottle provides three 100-calorie servings, but many consumers would drink all 300 calories in one sitting.

Safeway Chicken Caesar Salad. Clearly meant for one, this salad comes with one fork. But because the label claims the container has three and a half servings, the nutrition information makes the salad look far healthier than it is. Many label readers might think this salad has 240 calories and 21 grams of fat, when in fact it has 840 calories and 73 grams of fat.

Maruchan Ramen Noodle Soup. This college staple looks small, and the nutrition numbers on the label are for just half the package. The whole package has 400 calories as opposed to 200—and a whopping 1,420 mg of sodium as opposed to 710.

3.5-ounce Chex Mix. This General Mills snack would be a prime candidate for a dual-column Nutrition Facts panel, according to CSPI. The bag is small enough to fit in a vending machine, yet contains 3.5 servings. The bag has 455 calories, not the 130 calories the label lists for a “serving.”