Today’s question is from Katie:
I would love some insight on the following question: How do you stay inside a tight food budget during pregnancy — especially during the first trimester of morning sickness and random cravings? I’ll make a meal plan, go shopping, and two days later everything on the plan makes me queasy. I can squeeze some money out of the budget for snacks, but not for a new snack every day. Worse, my biggest cravings are for pricier foods like roasted nuts and fish and tons of whole fruit. -Katie
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i just spent more on food and then took it out of other areas, like recreation and travel (I didn’t feel like going anywhere or doing much extra anyway).
Also, I kept lemon on hand at all times- if I did have to go somewhere, a smell of fresh lemon discreetly kept in a baggie would take the edge off the nausea.
I would try to stock up on the items that you’re craving the most when they go on sale. The downside is that you might not crave that item anymore or develop an extreme distaste for it. With my 3rd pregnancy, I couldn’t stand the sight of tomatoes and cucumbers and those were both doing very well in our vegetable garden at the time.
Pregnancy cravings are fleeting, so I don’t think it’s a huge deal to give into them, especially since you’re having healthy ones. Look for ways to make them yourself, although those likely won’t satisfy the craving. Good luck!
Oh, you poor thing! I completely understand. I’m 10 weeks preggo with my 5th child and so, so sick too. I’ll be completely honest. My food budget is pretty much out the window right now. I just make it up from other areas where I can. Before my pregnancy, I made my own yogurt (about a half gallon a week) because we go through so much and it saved us a ton of money as well as being much healthier. However, I can’t stomach the thought of making it right now so I buy it instead. Good enough.
Last night my 13 yr. old son was shocked when I mentioned there were ice cream sandwiches in the freezer for after dinner. He said, “Wow, why did you buy ice cream sandwiches???” I sighed and said, “Because I went grocery shopping while pregnant.” My husband cracked up and my son said, “Oh I LOVE when you go grocery shopping when you’re pregnant!” Sigh… You know what? It is what it is. Give yourself some grace during this time. This too shall pass. Good luck!
I’m not taking the time to read the comments today so apologize if this has already been mentioned, but the *best* grocery store for produce is Aldi. Current prices: 33¢/lb for bananas, 66¢/lb for Gala apples, 99¢ or $1.29 for fresh pineapple, $1.29 for large cantaloupes and 79¢/lb for seedless grapes. And the produce is excellent quality.
ALDI isn’t in every state. There are 19 US states without the chain, so it isn’t an option for everyone.
True. I do hope the chain continues to expand so others can benefit.
Katie,
I’m 27 weeks pregnant with my first and did not budget very well during my first trimester. I felt horrible and went from cooking all the time to not at all. First off, I would not try to be too hard on yourself. The frist trimester is hard enough but it will get better & if you’re like most women I know, you’ll feel better than ever in the second and make up for the first! The nesting usually kicks in when you feel better so that means for more time couponing and cooking! I also understand what it’s like to crave really pricey food!! I can’t stop thinking about steak! I could eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner but I have to limit myself and when we do make it, make sure we have left overs to hold me over! I LOVE my crock pot and believe it’s a life saver but it is hard to deal with raw chicken in the morning. If you have everything ready to go the night before, ask your other half to just put it all in the pot and set it so that way it’ll be ready to go that night for you. 🙂 My husband is in Med-School and we live off my nurse salary so I understand how you have to get creative when it comes to money! Congrats on your pregnancy!
I know one person mentioned using a crockpot, and someone else remarked that the smell can be brutal. This may not work for you where you live, but during the summers I run the bread machine and the crockpots or rice cooker either on our sunporch (which has a door to the rest of the house I can close to keep the heat out, or outside on our covered patio since we have an outlet there.
I feel your pain. I was sick the entire pregnancy with my first child and am pregnant again now and it looks like it will be another long, sick pregnancy. Just this weekend my husband and I were talking about the budget and coupons because I am just not able to keep up like I usually do. I finally told him that I just had to let the coupons and saving go for a while–just to be able to survive the pregnancy. Because we do coupon, we are able to let ourselves take a little break now while I am so sick. Here are some things we are trying: we get bulk chicken and meat when it is on sale and divide it up in bags with dressings and freeze it. That way I can pull out a meal and put it in the oven with little prep. A good friend may even be willing to do some of this prep for you. I have been able to do soups in the crock pot, but agree that the smells may be overwhelming to some. I had never thought of putting the crock pot outside or in the garage. During my first pregnancy I lived on baked potatoes, apples and peanut butter–seriously those were the only things I could stomach. So do take your vitamins to help round out the nutrition. If the prenatals are too big to swallow–I couldn’t take them without gagging–ask your dr for a Rx of folic acid which is a tiny pill and then take gummy multi vitamins. But the best advice is to just give yourself a break from the pressure of feeling like you have to maintain the same level of saving/couponing as usual. Good luck.
Great healthy cravings! Every trimester has its challenges. It may be extra food money now, but by the end I was dying for back relief and some sleep, so I ended up spending money on pricey body pillows, pregnancy belt, heating pad, etc etc etc…And the same is true once baby is here. In the end, you have to decide what the VALUE is that you are getting for your money. If something is really important, try to cut out something that isn’t as important 🙂 Blessings to you and your baby!
I am sure someone has already said this but be careful. Your body knows what it needs and it sounds like it is craving the foods that makes a healthy baby! It might be better to cut your budget in another area and know it should be only a few months before you feel more like your old self. Good luck!
I dealt with severe, prolonged nausea/vomiting in all 6 of my pregnancies and my youngest is 2 months old so this is fresh on my mind. 🙂 My tips:
1) Shopping at ALDI helped me because there is no bakery nor rotisserie chickens cooking. Just walking past food smells at other stores triggered gagging. Shopping more frequently also helped.
2) I used my slow cooker plugged in outside.
3) Ate more meals that don’t require cooking (salads, sandwiches, raw veggies, fruit, cheese).
4) Hubby and kids cooked their own breakfast. (Bacon, eggs, coffee- all huge triggers)
5) Gave myself grace to expand the food budget. Growing a new HUMAN is important work and eating well is not selfish!!
I don’t have time to read through all the comments, so sorry if this was already suggested. I couldn’t deal with food in my first trimester. I had my husband accompany me to the grocery store, and I pointed him towards the meat. (I stayed far, far away.) I made some marinades for him, then left the room so he could get the meat out. He grilled it all, then ate on that all week.
We often ate different things. Meat made me queasy, so I ate vegetarian while he ate his grilled meat. If you’re craving fish, make it just for you if it’s too expensive for both of you. I would hope your husband would be understanding of that. You’ve got to eat what will stay down, after all.
With my first I had a hard time eating stuff for a while, it was just my husband and I, but I remember with my second, since I had to have dinner ready for all of us, I would just make it anyway even if it sounded gross, usually once the food was made I could eat it, there was only once or twice I couldn’t. Good Luck, and Congrats!
1. multivitamin. can help fill in some gaps when you’re doing your best but just aren’t keeping enough down to eat a balanced diet
2. The old wives’ tale of soda crackers and ginger ale, with a little bit of something always on your stomach to avoid low blood sugar, can really help a lot
3. Sounds like you’re one of those lucky ladies that has cravings for healthy food! Fish, nuts, and fresh fruit are exactly what you should be eating, and will help some of the nausea. If you focus on the healthy food you CAN eat and eliminate the stuff that makes you nauseaus, you will eventually come up with a a system. It might take a week or two to figure out what some of those foods are for you, so you might want to take it a day or two at a time and buy in small quantities for this short time to avoid wasting food.
4. Sometimes we crave foods because we’re missing certain nutrients in our diet. If you look at what your cravings have in common, you might find lower cost foods that would provide those same nutrients and satisfy your craving even though it wasn’t exactly what you thought you were craving. For instance, one pregnancy I kept craving avacados and sweet potatoes and some other stuff. Turns out when I looked at everything, what they all had in common was Vitamin A, which is one of the vitamins that is deliberately less than 100% in vitamins to avoid you getting too much (there’s a greater risk of overdosing on supplements with Vit A vs other vitamins, I forget why). Anyway, I realized that I used to eat a lot more tomatoes (also high in Vit A) but they didn’t agree with my pregnancy stomach, and knowing that it was really the Vit A I was craving empowered me to choose less expensive Vit A-rich foods sometimes to save $$. Since you’re craving fish and nuts, both rich in healthy fats, I’d bet if you analyzed you diet vs the new pregnancy nutrition needs you’d find you need more omega-3 fats in your diet. While these are great heathly foods to eat, if you’re not taking a DHA/omega-3 supplement with your prenatal vitamin you should probably add one and you’d probably have reduced cravings for those foods.
5. Fish doesn’t have to be expensive. Shop around, do some research, and ask your local fishmonger for recommendations. A few weeks ago I went to buy salmon and it looked like they were out of the cheaper cut/variety. When I asked the person working behind the fish counter, she said she was just about to cut some up and put it out and just cut up what I needed right then! Also, since you want the fish fresh, this is another good thing about shopping more often for the next little while, since you can just buy fish on the days that you’re craving it and eat it fresh that day!
6. I ate a lot of cold foods like tuna fish sandwiches for a few weeks of one pregnancy. And then I had one time when I couldn’t even go into the kitchen until my husband poured boiling water and lemon down the garbage disposal! Needless to say, he did all the cooking that pregnancy!
7. This too shall pass!
I probably won’t be much help because if anything we probably spent less when I was pregnant because I was so sick absolutely nothing sounded good. Hubby did most of the grocery shopping. I just told him to buy whatever he wanted to eat. Well, that was the first time around. With the ones since then we’ve had kids to worry about feeding too.
I say don’t stress over it. My morning (noon and night) sickness lasted for about half of each pregnancy. Even though it seemed like an eternity, it’s such a short period in the grand scheme of things. So do your best but give yourself a little extra wiggle room in your budget if you need it. You can go back to a more strict budget once you’re feeling better. Splurge on that fruit….it’s great for your baby!
girl. let me tell you. you eat whatever tastes good to you and you can keep down. it’s really that simple. it’s called survival mode, and hopefully you won’t have to do that for long. congrats on your pregnancy!
you’ve got enough to worry about. don’t make it harder on yourself. enjoy this wonderful, glorious time! (even more so when the sickness is gone!)
blessings!
Congratulations! But oh, I remember the sickness. It wasn’t just first trimester for me…. So I do hope it passes quickly for you. My answer is this: relax. So, you blow your budget for three, maybe four months. Buy what you can, eat what you can and freeze the rest. That way, if you crave it, your a microwave or quick stove away and you can eat it before you change your mind. While I do realize that staying on a budget is a matter of keeping up with the bills….you will recover and be okay. We developed the budge habit early on and so to dwindle from it for a little while was noted and promised that we would return to it. And we did. Since I am assuming its your first, also relish in going out for little adventures together to find what you crave. Laugh about it. Enjoy it….because when the baby comes, a lot of that goes away. Relax it…stay conscientious, but real. Have fun!!
I think you cut elsewhere! I am a firm believer that you will often crave what your body and your baby needs! Maybe some hinting to friends and family about how you are craving fresh fruit that doesn’t fit in your budget…
Who needs another baby outfit for a year from now, bring on the peaches!
Remember it’s probably only for a few months. Most people’s morning sickness calms down in the third or fourth month. I would keep a stockpile of food with a lot of variety so that you always have lots of options when dinnertime comes around, in case what you have planned all of a sudden sounds disgusting.
For fish . . . I recently discovered that you can get 2-lb. bags of individually wrapped tilapia fillets at Aldi for about $6. A lot of the time I’m happy to get beef for that price! I have never been much of a fish fan, but the tilapia fillets are very mild and taste good.
I really struggling with severe nausea with both my pregnancies and I was on a very tight budget. My friend ( who is a doula, childbirth educator, and labor and delivery nurse) told me to stop trying to eat, or fix, large meals and concentrate on several small snacks during the day. Eating more frequently and pairing a protein with a starch (hummus and toasted pita bread, peanut butter and apples, bagel and cream cheese, crackers and cheese, even those bean burritos) will help regulate blood sugar and prevent some nausea. Bananas, rice, applesauce, tea, and toast (BRATT diet) are very comforting foods and are very inexpensive. If you’re up for it, add some chopped vegetables into the rice with your favorite sauce. I used to mix milk and sugar into cold rice to make a cereal which felt good on my tummy. Go ahead and eat the fruit and fish, they are good healthy foods, just check into which ones may be contaminated with heavy metals and avoid those. As far as meal planning in general, the best thing I found was to cook one day every couple of weeks and freezing the rest in individual portions, then keeping things like sandwiches, quesadilla fixings, soups, etc. on hand. That way my husband and I could each heat up what we wanted and I didn’t have to cook (dinner time was always my sickest time of day). I actually ended up saving money this way since I threw away a lot of food when i tried to stick to my normal meal plans. As far as cravings go, most of the time I told myself that I would go get it tomorrow, and usually by tomorrow, the craving was gone. Although there was one night that I REALLY wanted cherry pie and after nearly biting my dear husband’s head off, he went out and found a pie for me. I hope this helps!
I am loving all of these pregnancy/baby posts lately! Maybe they’ve always been so frequent and I never paid attention until they pertained to me, but either way, keep ’em coming!
In all honesty, I am in my first trimester and our groceries have really been a bummer lately. I have not just had trouble with what I want to eat, but what I can stand the sight/smell of without throwing up… so BOTH of us are eating weird right now.
It’s not smart financially so I can’t recommend it, but I’ve basically just shopped for the basics and a few easy things my husband can make himself, then I shop far more frequently so I can keep up with my current aversions.
I’ve been through the 1st trimester 6 times (2 kids, 4 miscariages). My Dr. gave me great advise, she recommended that I double my normal water consumption and increase my protien intake during the 1st trimester. Wow did it help the nausea and pretty much eliminated the cravings. The nausea is amplified by dehydration, dyhydration is brought on in the 1st trimester by the expansion of your blood veins to accomodate the increase of blood volume needed to support pregnancy (1/2 again higher volume). Try tons more liquids and protien at every meal and every snack. It totally helped me.
Some of the food preparation and storage practices of our time are very different from the time tested whole foods approach of different generations. When I was pregnant, I invested a bit of time to study the unique nutritional demands of each stage of pregnancy. For example, folate is really really important early on in pregnancy. Folate can be found in abundance in dark green leafy vegetables. Another thing I learned is that Omega 3 is brain food for the baby and is found in mercury free fish, avocados and walnuts. Basically, I tailored our shopping trips around the information I researched and paired that with the feedback my body was giving me about what sounded good. Sometimes you are getting clear signals about something that needs done but need to know what to do with that information. If you get cramps in your legs, according to my midwife, for example, you need to get more magnesium and potassium (bananas are a good source of potassium). I always felt that any possible wiggle room that could go into wholesome nutrition would be a really really good investment. Not too much is known about genetically modified foods so that could also be an important piece of information to factor into things. I personally thought that anything that came out of plastic (when I was pregnant) had an unusual chemically type of a taste. All in all, you may be more satisfied and spend less in the long run with some of these time tested whole foods approach ideas. Hope it helps. Praying for a happy healthy baby and mom!!! Best wishes!!!Congratulations!! This is an incredible time!
Sadly, there is no such thing as mercury-free fish.
I would stick to protein foods, like eggs, tuna, chicken, cheese etc. By having basic ingredients on hand you can still make simple meals and not spend a lot of money. Buying fruit, like apples, or grapes would be an easy snack. I wouldn’t worry so much about meal plans during morning sickness. I don’t know what your weekly budget is, but you can look through your pantry and then buy other ingredients to fill out a meal. Actually, when I was going through morning sickness, I bought whole milk and started making whole wheat bread more often and that helped. I did have the whole wheat flour on hand but buying the whole milk was a little more money but I knew my body needed it.
i had terrible morning sickness with my first 2 kids and used to crave KFC or McDonald’s. After reading and researching i found that you only get sick if your stomach is completely empty, and your morning sickness will be a lot less if you eat cereal and pasta, since cereal and pasta are def in our budget, my poor guys had their fair share of spaghetti and cereal this past 8 weeks, and this is my first pregnancy where i actually able to function.
While I agree that an empty stomach makes nausea worse, what to eat depends on the person. Cereal makes me gag and the empty carbs in pasta make me feel worse. Cheddar cheese and raw almonds, plus fruit, are better choices for me.
I have been sick for my whole pregnancy (23 weeks) and most of my food problems have been aversions. I haven’t been able to keep 90% of the food I used to eat down and have eaten a lot of fruits, mild veggies and beans.
I’m on the fence with this one since most of the time I haven’t been able to cook… because of the smell. It is just something that my husband and I have dealt with. I shopped for used maternity clothes and gave up most of my clothing budget to accommodate the very weird food aversions I have been through.
I have also ate a lot of beans and therefore my family has also. It made up some of the loss of my poor family getting takeout or eating frozen meals (heated up in the microwave outside). It’s been incredibly difficult, but it’s amazing to see the little things that you can “give up” to adapt. Also, if you are so sick I’m assuming that you have less “out” time and maybe you can take some of that budget until you are feeling better.
When I waspregnant it was just hubby and me and I was sick 24/7. My nausea. Was to the point that my Dr. Had to give me medication for baby and I to survive. But what helped me most was not planning or cooking.big meals. We just fixed( or got at takeout ) what wewanted each day or two.I was still working so I got a fresh piece of fruit from a local fruit stand on my short walk each day at lunch h time. Also is there someone who could prepare some frozen casserole meals ahead for you or bring in a nutritious meal once a week. There are probably folks who would love. To help if asked. Also if budget allows, just realize food will cost more at this time. You know we can get so far I.to saving mode that we don’t stop to think of the whole picture! Also anything frozen or super cold helps nausea. Frozen grapes are great. Also don’t forget about. Canned tuna and salmon. These are not too expensive and they pack a good nutrient punch! Hope this helps in some way and congratulations to you and your husband. God bless you and I will keep you in my prayers. If you would like to share I would love to k ow how things are going for you. You can email me: [email protected]
I also have odd cravings and terrible morning sickness during my pregnancies! I craved nuts too and shopped around a little to find the cheapest source for them (was Aldi for me). With this pregnancy I again craved nuts so bought TONS of ingredients to make my own trail mix and right after I mixed it up I about gagged at the thought of eating a single bite (talk about wasted $$!!). So I put it in baggies and froze them until I could stand eating it again. Fortunately my DH also loves trail mix so it wasn’t a total waste. He liked having it already mixed up and ready to eat :). I also agree with the ladies who suggested more frequent shopping trips to deal with your cravings. I have scrapped meal planning for now and just make what sounds the best to me that day. And for the more expensive things I crave, I eat just enough to satisfy the craving and try not to eat it all at once. Good luck and hope you have a happy/healthy pregnancy!
Well, if you aren’t eating lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, you definitely should! I can’t speak to the cravings or morning sickness as I didn’t experience that, but when my stomach is upset, I tend to stomach fruits and veggies best. Maybe continue buying those (but only what you will be able to eat before going bad) since they are good for you and you can eat them, and rely on your stockpile to round out the rest of your meal on a day-to-day basis. If all you can stomach for a while is fruit and nuts, so be it! Drop the menu plan until your stomach is more reliable and you know that the food you buy will be eaten.
Raw almonds are good for nausea.
I used raw almonds not only for the morning sickness but to help get foods down.
A few raw almonds with every bite of other foods.
Also strong homemade lemonade helped to get foods down.
Raw almonds are also very good for you during pregnancy because they have so many nutrients.
I agree with previous posters. If you are nauseous, cook food for the family outside whenever you can. This could include asking your significant other to grill or plugging in a crockpot/toaster oven on your back patio or in your garage. All of these have worked for us.
For those trying to get pregnant (who are the cook in their house) I recommend freezer cooking enough food for the first trimester before getting pregnant. This can really help once you become pregnant to get your family fed without extra illness for you. It is especially good to freeze meals that your husband can just dump into the crockpot straight out of the freezer and cook outside/in garage with minimal work from him. Taco mixes, soups, chicken breasts frozen in marinade or bbq sauce, spaghetti sauce and meatballs all worked great for us for this purpose.
Also if you can’t afford it, don’t feel guilty about not giving into cravings. Do what you need to do for your family’s well being. Your baby will grow fine and be healthy whether you give into cravings or not.
Oh my goodness I have to laugh because this was so me! I finally started to realize I had issues with hot food and only wanted cold things like sushi or sandwiches or slushies. Once I realized that I adjusted my meals to have more of the cooler foods which thankfully is easier to do during the summer.
Make your meal plans for one or two weeks which allows for more customization in the month. If you come up with one meal where all of a sudden you can’t stand the thought of spaghetti…see what else those ingredients will make…..like stuffed hamburgers and pasta salad.
Well, I want to point out that the foods that you are craving are incredibly good for pregnant women and babies. So you likely need more of those nutrients in your diet. My recommendation would be to make room in the budget as best you can to accommodate these cravings (a little at a time, rather than eating the entire can of nuts). I bet over the next week or so as your body gets what it needs those cravings will reduce some. Also, just because you are craving something does not mean you need to feed the whole family that as it increases the costs tremendously. keep the more expensive special foods for yourself for now and see if you can feel better soon.
Hey! So I e-mailed Crystal with this same question when I was pregnant with my first & can totally identify with your concern. That first trimester gets expensive REAL quick (as you know) & I don’t remember anybody warning me….. Here are some tips that helped me & hopefully some may help you as well.
First, all budget aside, eat what your body tells you to. No, really. Don’t eat spaghetti because its the only meal you’ve got in your pantry if its going to make you sick. If it comes back up, isn’t that wasted money?:-P
To help with the budget:
– buy lots of “staple” “simple” “plain” items to have on hand- milk, flour, cheese, chicken breasts, steaks (yes, I know those are costly meats). That way when you are trying to figure out what you can stomach, you can make what you crave from what you have on hand. For myself, I learned I craved/could stomach more “plain” foods (like chicken breasts, steaks) rather than casseroles, etc. this is the only time we ever bought steaks “routinely” in our marraige. My husband was quite happy…..
– make your grocery list on what you crave. that day You will eat that. You’ll spend a lot less buying what you want & know you will eat then if you bought what you can afford & should eat but end up not being able to stomach it….
– set aside money for weekly “staple, perishable” groceries. as far as produce is concerned, I always bought bananas (b/c they were cheap & yummy) & whatever fruit was on sale that week. That usually lasted me almost a week
– its soup season now. Stock up on a lot of soup- it will help you when you don’t feel like eating anything else & will help your hubby when you feel like you can’t cook anything else;-) again, saving you from desperate Fast Food trips….
– accept that its going to cost a lil’ more for a season;-) most likely, it just will.
Congrats on your pregnancy!!!! I’m excited to see & learn from the other tips posted:)
I am with you Deb.. they are cravings.. not something you have to have.. I had gestational diabetes with both my kids.. Guess what it was not on the menu.. I could not have it. period..
The great thing was I did not have a ton of weight to lose after my babies were born..
Sue in NJ
I agree with you all…mostly. Sometimes cravings are just that, but other times it can be your body alerting you to something you really need. If you are craving a lot of junk food, you can know it’s a simple craving that you should use self-control over. But if it’s a craving for something like fresh fruit or nuts, as the author of this post mentioned, I think you need to pay attention and “cave” to those cravings, as much as your budget can possibly allow.
I struggled with this too! I found that the food I had stockpiled made me sick. There were only a few things I could eat without getting nauseated. I made the mistake of stocking up on foods that I could eat, but then by the next week they made me nauseous too! We spent a lot of money on groceries during the first trimester, I had to make up for it during the second. Next time I am going to try to save up money beforehand. That way there is extra in our budget.
I had this during my pregnancies. Definitely worse with pregnancies #1 and #4.
I understand the telling yourself that you don’t NEED something. Of course you don’t. but, when smells make you nauseous, and you’re already throwing up 5 or 6 times a day, sometimes eating things you like just makes you feel better.
So, do what you can and know that your energy will come back, and you’ll be able to save money later.
Hi , Hopefully you got some help. I totally relate. 4 babies and I had the worse time with nausea this last time around. I read online 100 grams of protein, most in the morning (say 50grams)and throughout the day would help because it’s slower to metabolize than starches or sweets and it eliminated 90% of my nausea. I would eat a salmon filet for breakfast (about 40 grams) a cup of cottage cheese and it was amazing how much better I felt. Like day and night difference.
Initially I had to force myself because I just didn’t have any desire to eat, but the payoff throughout the rest of the day was worth it.
Second tip was eat little bits every hour or two and don’t let your tummy go empty. Hope this helps, as it’s also helped a lot with cravings.
Exactly! Going with cravings often means that the food STAYS DOWN, which is good for your budget and the baby.
Can this mom apply for WIC? She could get cheese, beans, carrots, tuna, juice and a few other groceries. It’s for low to moderate incomes.
I am 17 weeks pregnant and have had a lot of exhaustion and nausea. We have used money that we normally save to eat out more, buy more expensive food, and even hire people to clean our house. This is my third pregnancy and I just feel like this is a necessary part of being pregnant–spending extra money on things that you normally don’t.
Look, those of you who can differentiate between “wants” and “needs” – you had a different pregnancy experience 🙂 Please believe those of us who say “I can only hold down X” or “I really only can eat Y” because every pregnancy is different – even the same mom can have wildly different experiences with different babies!
Katie, in addition to the really good advice here about finding room by eliminating other things in your budget for the healthy foods your body needs – it’s not like you’re craving pop-tarts, which honestly was the only thing I could hold down for many months, even though I don’t like them at all and I ate lots of healthy food, all of which came right back up – do speak up to friends, church community, etc. People want to help! Whether they might be able to loan you maternity clothes, freeing up that money for healthy food, or pick something up at the store – let them! When I say to a pregnant mom at our church, “I’m going to Costco; do you need anything?” I mean it. And I don’t mean “And have the 12 bucks for almonds in your hand when I drop them off at your door.” I mean that lots of people helped me out when I was pregnant or juggling little ones or even disciplining teenagers, and because one of those dear, wonderful grandmotherly helper has died, I’d like to help other young moms as a tribute to her. I’d like to pass on the help I got. So speak up! And good luck – that queasiness gets so tiresome, doesn’t it? 🙂
I focused on frugal choices for the closest things to ‘real’ food.
Instead of spending $3 on potato chips, buy a bag of potatoes and eat them baked, fried, mashed, boiled, …and they’ll go much further than the chips. (Chips are bad for blood sugar- eek!)
Rather than buying candy bars for $2, buy chocolate chips and make your own cookies- our of whole grains if you have them.
Speaking of grains- buy oats instead of cereal.
Apples instead of cookies.
Grapes instead of chocolate kisses 🙂
Eggs are a great source of protein with lots of goodies in them for the baby. They are quite frugal per serving.
For treats- homemade milkshakes and smoothies. (Calcium, protein, vitamins and minerals.)
I completely understand. In my 1st trimester I was nauseous 90% of the time. Before pregnancy, I would always bring lunch from home, was very careful about what I cook trying to keep food costs low, but after nausea hit, I just let everything go for several month and ate whatever I craved and whatever made me less sick, often buying prepared meals and snacks at work instead of bringing my own ones. I spent way over what we normally did, mostly cutting budget in other areas. Looking back I don’t regret extra money that I spent on food. At that point I didn’t have energy to plan and prepare multiple meals and snacks for every day. I believed that whatever I craved had the nutrients my baby needed to grow (I also craved fruits a lot) and the health of my baby was more worth to me than sticking to our budget.
My advice for you would be to stock up on whatever fresh fruit is that is in the season (and therefore cheaper), buy nuts in bulk or stock up when they are on sale. Don’t deprive yourself healthy food that you crave (there is a reason for those cravings). See if you can temporarily cut some other expenses to come up with the money for snacks. Hopefully nausea will be gone in 2-3 months and then you can try to get back on track with your spending and make up for all the extras you ended up spending now.
ALDI and price matching at Walmart has been how I’ve made it, but I have still gone over budget for a few weeks, because I needed to go stock up on extra fruits in the middle of the week.
This idea may not apply to everyone, but if you are planning on getting pregnant I could see how building a freezer stash of extras ahead of time might help. That could lower grocery expenses on the essentials to allow for the snacks and the cravings that change every day. Plus, it might give you some variety to choose from on an given day, especially if you freeze individual portions.
That’s a great idea…except when it takes you 2 years to get pregnant! 🙂
But seriously, for many women that idea would work well b/c they are better able to predict when they will get pregnant.
I don’t know your situation, but if it’s possible give yourself some extra ‘splurge money’ for cravings, even a few extra dollars can get you a lot! I craved expensive foods while pregnant and since I was still working full time we had the income for me to buy lots of fruit (b/c I crave craved craved it too!) and not feel bad about it.
If you don’t have the room consider taking some money from say…your maternity clothes budget (consignment stores have great maternity clothes often) or sell a few items on craigslist etc…
Good luck!
I agree with what you are saying because we have lived this way throughout my pregnancies as well. I am currently expecting our fifth baby and although I may really be wanting a certain yummy something, reality is I have to be creative with what is in our pantry and fridge. And I don’t mind it, that’s our life, and we’re living out choices we’ve made. For example, me being a stay at home mommy means I’m not bringing in a paycheck–if I were working then maybe there would be “extra” for my cravings, but then I wouldn’t be the one raising my children and that isn’t something we’re willing to sacrifice for our little, immediate wants. I should also add that I am severally nauseated with all of my pregnancies until around the 4month mark, but I just have to eat what is the most appetizing to me at the time from what I have to choose from…and smile…because it is SO worth it!! Children are such a blessing! 🙂
Well said–and what a refreshing attitude! Best of luck!
When I was pregnant I was miserable. Everything tasted and smelled funny. I was constantly dehydrated from the vomiting and I had low iron. My hubby bought whatever I could stomach at the time. I actually lost weight in the beginning because I couldn’t stomach much so I ate whatever I craved at the time. Money needs to be set aside for your cravings make a list of the foods that you can stomach and try to keep those on hand. I ate a lot of Subway while pregnant but couldnt stomach shrimp.
As far as the “pricer” foods you mentioned, can you tag along on a trip with a friend to a warehouse club or do you have a Trader Joe’s nearby? They have great prices on fruit and nuts. We also buy large bags of nuts at Costco for a fraction of the price of anywhere else.
I’m in the middle of this right now with pregnancy #2, and to be honest, we have upped our food budget. My “cravings” definitely fall in the line of “this is one of few things I I can eat right now without throwing up” (and even that is iffy, as I’m still throwing up at least once a day!). It is hard!!
My initial plan after being so sick with my first, was to have a whole variety of healthy snack food ready to go in the freezer before we got pregnant again. I have been sick since the day before we found out we were pregnant, so that obviously didn’t happen. But if you can, that would be a great way to save money.
What has worked for us:
– Buying a variety shelf-stable, easy to grab snacks and bars so that I have options, and we won’t waste food if I can’t eat it until weeks or months later (also works well for my husband and son to have easy food to eat!). I really wish I had been able to make granola bars and muffins for the freezer to avoid buying packaged ones now.
– Freezing any and all leftovers so we don’t waste food that worked for me one day and didn’t the next.
– I can’t grocery shop without throwing up, so my husband does that. He is such a huge blessing to me!
– Recognizing that this is a short season of life that we need to spend more in order to survive, cutting back where we can elsewhere and ultimately knowing that the Lord is in control and will take care of us.
I think this depends on how bad your morning sickness is. I had severe morning sickness and lost 10% of my body weight during the first two weeks of pregnancy. My nausea and vomiting continued daily until my baby was born. What worked for us was cutting other areas of our budget (for example, entertainment, becuase I was not up to much) for food I even remotely thought I wanted. Sometimes I kept it down, sometimes not. But spending extra on groceries and occasional takeout (which my husband had to do the shopping and cooking) to end with a healthy baby and mom was worth it to us.
I’m usually very frugal, but after my first couple of pregnancies, I realized that pregnancy (pertaining to food) is not necessarily the time for frugality. If your body is craving nutritious food, you (and your baby) probably need the nutrients in that food. If there’s any way you can afford it, my suggestion is to give in to the nutritious cravings.
Let me give you my dirty first trimester truth- I didn’t stick to my budget. I did the absolute best, and did my best to use my stockpile, but we ate out a lot and made meals based on whatever I could hold down that night. Here is a blogpost I did about my grocery budget going through that. Hang in there, mama!
http://brandy-momonamission.blogspot.com/2012/07/sharing-wealth-give-yourself-some-grace.html
I ended up eating a lot of fruit during my first trimester, and veggie soup or just crackers when I didn’t feel so hot. Anything fried or fatty just made my stomach turn. My strategy was to use a crockpot when possible to make the veggie soup and get all of my fresh ingredients from Aldi to keep my costs down. I made smaller batches of the soup, so I could adjust what went into it every time in case one day carrots sounded amazing one day and horrible the next. I also asked my husband if he could pick up the task of making dinner for the two of us a couple nights a week, so I could rest a bit more. Sharing the responsiblity for the meals helped him feel involved and took some of the pressure off of me.
We did a lot of sandwiches for lunches. (I have three kids, they love sandwiches anyways) You can switch it up according to your cravings, pb&j, tuna, grilled cheese, tomato, etc.
We also did soups. I would buy some boxed or canned soup, which isn’t always the most budget friendly, but I didn’t have to smell them cooking for hours!
For produce I found a local produce stand that’s really affordable. It took a while to find a place, since the local farmers market and well known produce stands around me are terribly expensive. (Seriously. $4 for a mushy tomato!) Try looking at asian and mexican markets, their produce prices are more reasonable.
Have you looked into the federal gov. program WIC, Women,Infants and Children? http://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/aboutwic/howwichelps.htm If your income is in the right bracket, it is really worth applying for. I had help from WIC with my first pregnancy and, it is a good supplement. I hope this helps:)
This post made me smile because this was an issue for me too (and now I am near the end of my second pregnancy). We were new to the whole budgeting thing during my first pregnancy, but I was floored when I looked back over our expenditures during the first trimester. We usually budgeted a small amount for eating out (sorry, this is one thing my hubby will not give up) and a much larger amount for groceries. During those first three months, it was literally like those numbers had flip-flopped!!! And understand, we were on a tight budget – both of us working full time and working on post grad work (and we didn’t get any school loans).
So during this second pregnancy, I have just had to be honest with my husband and others. If I buy things that are simple to prepare – my husband is more than willing to cook for the three of us (but coming from a home where my dad NEVER cooked, I know this is not an option for everyone). But be honest with people who ask if you need anything – you may find some of your friends/family would be thrilled to bring you a meal. Personally, I don’t put much stock in cravings. Plain and simple, we need to eat healthy – as much as we are able. Keep healthy snacks readily available.
Right now I am stocking my freezer with meals (thanks for all the recipes, Crystal) for when the baby is born and I don’t feel like cooking.
Hopefully your nausea will be gone soon. Even if you try your hardest and your budget is still blown – this is only a short time period- you’ll get back on track.
I think it’s great that you are craving healthy foods! Baby needs those good fats for brain development, and lots of vitamins, of course. I always craved potato chips (not healthy or cheap). Try to trim from other areas of the budget to allow more $ for groceries if necessary. Try to satisfy your cravings with things on the lower end of the price range. For example:
Fruit – pears and apples are in season. I can buy a half bushel of local apples for about 50 cents a pound. They cost double that in the grocery store.
Fish – will canned tuna work? Lots cheaper. Make sure not to eat too much fish, though, due to mercury levels in some kinds. Info on that is readily available online.
Roasted nuts – Can you buy plain, unroasted ones and do it yourself? Lots cheaper. Look up recipes online for spiced almonds. Very easy to do, and much cheaper per pound than buying those little cans of Diamond almonds. Also, there is a big variation in the price of nuts – lately pecans are double the price of almonds.
One idea is try to find some substitutes. If you crave sweet, try to have something like frozen waffles on hand (which you or your husband could make ahead of time and freeze), and you can enjoy fruit and maple syrup for a healthier sweet craving option.
I believe you tend to crave what your body needs, so if there is any way to make more room in the food budget (maybe by temporarily doing with less budget in another area), try to get enough money for healthy foods like nuts, fish and fruit.
Also, try to make something that uses your craving food, but less of it if is expensive – for example, add some nuts to stir fry (a little goes a long way), fruit on the waffle or in yogurt, some fish, but not tons, etc.
Im in my 2nd trimester right now so speaking from experience, it was difficult to stay on a budget during my 1st trimester. For nausea I drank a lot of ginerale, and the generic didnt quite cut it. But ginger root is super cheap and you can gnaw on that for under a buck. But for food, If you know your going to eat fast food save the Wendys, McDonalds, Arbys coupons and keep them in your car so if you are going to splurge you get the maximum deal for your money. Or just get one dollar menu thing or a side salad from Wendy’s . Also I chopped up sharp cheddar and grapes and pretzels and had them in little to go containers so I could munch around. It seemed the only thing that tasted good too was potatoes and starches so I would eat instant mashed potatos for breakfast or sometimes even a loaded baked/microved potato. Sweet potatoes are fancy and cheap too and definitely in season, thats great if you craving a sugar snack. Add some brown sugar to it.
A crock pot can really help when you don’t feel like cooking! I always put mine on the back deck or in the garage so I didn’t have to smell the food cooking all day long 🙂
I also think it might be a good idea to go to the store a couple of times a week if you can manage it. Try to stock your pantry on things like carbs b/c they are often the least offensive foods with morning sickness.
Best of luck with your pregnancy and I hope the morning sickness passes soon!
So, when you say cravings are you talking “I really wish I had…” or “this is the only thing I can keep down…” Most of us mean the former, and those are flexible. Overseas I craved things that just weren’t available, so I found ways to redirect or make a similar thing from scratch–I learned how to make stew taste good using less-than-quality cuts of meat, for example.
However, when you mention whole fruit, nuts, fish… I think those are good sources of vitamins and essential fatty acids–you don’t want to skimp on those things these first few months. Being intentional about what you eat and eating healthy, whole foods will really help your baby and your own quality of life. Maybe stick with local/in season produce.
I did not see a mention on the other posts of the WIC (Women, Infants, Children)program but I think they help pregnant women too. If you are craving certain more expensive foods it sounds like your body is telling you what you need like protein (fish and nuts). If your budget is really tight it sounds like you could qualify. Take care and good luck with your pregnancy.
WIC does offer a program for pregnant women also (as well at nursing moms and kids). Its just the basics, but when you know some of that is taken care of, it helps ease your mind.
The comments about differentiating between ‘need’ and ‘want’ seem the best advice I’ve seen to deal with cravings.
I didn’t have much nausea with my pregnancy, but the small bit I did have (in the 3rd trimester) was somewhat alleviated by having something pleasant smelling with me. Mint was quite pleasant for me, so I could keep a minty chap stick or such with me, so that when a smell got to me, I pull that out and take a nice whiff. It worked for me while teaching, might work at a grocery store (though perhaps not a restaurant).
FYI to all, peppermint Is naturally a anti-nausea smell. When it’s the real thing, it will help alleviate some of the queasiness. Try carrying a stick of Burt’s Bees lip balm with you and waving it under your nose when you’re nauseous. It works great during labor too!
I struggled with this during my pregnancy, too. It can be expensive being pregnant! If you have any wiggle room in your budget at all, I would recommend making cuts where possible in other areas and allocating the savings to food, maternity clothes, etc. One thing that helped us was that due to my morning-noon-and-night sickness, I couldn’t be near a restaurant. Any money we would have spent on eating out went toward groceries and other baby-related expenses. I wish I could offer better advice – I know it’s hard, and I know we could have done a better job ourselves. I look forward to seeing what others have to say. Good luck and congratulations!
I know it’s not easy but I know during pregnancy my husband stepped it up some and he started doing some of the meal prep and planning- he would grill or make something on the weekend when he had more time to last us a few days. He also would hit the store for me if I couldn’t. He was a lifesaver. If he is not at your disposal, then I think a lot of the other folks on here had great suggestions. Cook when you can, don’t if you can’t. Your children, hubby that need food will be fine if you give them breakfast or cereal for dinner, something any grown adult (males included) should be able to fix. As far as the budget, I would give yourself some wiggle room while you are pregnant, you should be eating more than usual so you may spend more anyways. Hopefully you will feel better soon!
I had really bad morning sickness with both my girls and honestly made mild dinners to freeze (when I wasn’t really sick) and was able to choose what I had to thaw and eat rather than deal with the smells and work to cook daily. Fresh fruit is best, but frozen fresh is a nice substitute to curb cravings. Also, go to a local farmer’s market (if you have one), towards closing time and haggle with the vendors to get the most for your money. They would rather sell their produce for cheap than take it home to go bad!
You may just need to allow yourself a bit of wiggle room and know that this will pass. I know I totally blew our budget with our second child but I had severe morning sickness for the first 5 months and just didn’t have the energy to worry about it and I don’t feel bad about it now because I have two healthy little boys and now I have the energy to stay on budget. Hope you have a healthy and happy pregnancy!
I agree with this! When I was pregnant with my first was so nauseous that I really didn’t eat much at all. I NEEDED to eat anything that I could possibly stomach (whether it was on sale or not). I say give yourself some space to eat whatever you’re in the mood for (keeping health in mind, of course), and try to accomodate the extra spending by cutting corners with other budget categories. Don’t worry, you’ll be back to frugalgrocery shopping in just a few months!
Maybe try doing more “kid-friendly” type meals. By that, I don’t mean “kid” food necessarily, but more so in the sense of planning for smaller portions of a variety of foods each night. My kids love variety, so it’d be silly for me to make one huge *something*. Rather, I often plan 3-5 different “smaller” items for a meal. This would keep the budget down since you’re doing “smaller” portions of items, but allow for you to pick at least something from the meal that you planned, while avoiding the others without much waste. Just a thought!
Good luck! It’s always hard during that nausea time, but you’ll make it through!
I second the crockpot suggestion. It can help to be able to cook when you are not nauseous… I have found that I am sometimes more able to eat at a mealtime if I haven’t been dealing with the food first.
It is counter-intuitive to the way many of us shop, but is it possible for you to make more frequent trips at this stage, even have your husband pick things up for you? If you make lists and stick to them instead of grabbing lots of extras each trip, it might help you to be eating what works each day and therefore not wasting what you bought for the week.
Finally, I have to say that I feel it is important, if at all possible, to allow room in a budget for proper nutrition in pregancy and nursing stages (and for growing children as well!). You are craving nuts and fruit and fish because your body needs those nutrients to grow a healthy baby! In the past I have taken $$ from other budget areas for good nutrition in pregnancy and nursing and I will do that again… growing a healthy baby is one of my biggest priorities in physically caring for my family. Healthy baby development has lifelong benefits.
A book that is helpful in understanding prenatal nutrition is ‘Real Food for Mother and Baby’ by Nina Planck. My library has it, yours may as well. It is certainly not budget focused, but I found the info very helpful and inspiring and have been able to adapt many principles to careful spending habits.
Please eat fresh fruits, nuts, and fish! All the best for a healthy pregnancy!
Agreed! I had to get into the mindset that eating well was not a luxury at that point, but a necessity, a gift I was giving myself and my child. I bought almonds and other nuts in the bulk bins at Winco – good protein snacks! I too took money from other budget areas, not only to save for maternity leave, but for the good food my baby and I needed.
I don’t know if you’re feeding a family or just your husband, but crock pot meals are great for a family. If it’s just you and your husband, get his input on shopping. I had a lot of nausea and the best thing for us was for him to make dinner most nights. (Which meant buying foods that he knew what to do with!) We made less of a main dish since I didn’t eat much, but it still allowed my husband to have leftovers. And then I was able to buy more snacks to keep the nausea down. The biggest blessing for me was that my husband was really understanding. He not only cooked, he didn’t mind having the same meal A LOT because it was all that appealed to me!
Also, if you have a discount store nearby, such as Aldi, they often have good fresh fruit for a great price. If you crave a lot of it, Costco or Sam’s can be a good place to get fruit and nuts.
Do be careful with strong smelling crockpot foods though. I did bbq chicken with my last pregnancy and had to stay out of the house until it was done cooking because the smell made me so nauseous. I still haven’t been able to make it.
If you have a garage, you might consider plugging the crock pot in out there! Keep the smell out of the house.
Also, eating outside on pleasant days helped. The fresh air gave me more of an appetite.
Yes….me too. I made a roast in the crockpot when I was pregnant with my daughter and oh my…..I couldn’t even look at it when it was time to eat. The smell was awful
( and I love roasts!) I think i ended up eating chicken noodle soup that night.
My sweet husband tried to make me potato soup (which I normally love) when I was pregnant. But he didn’t realize to add the milk at the very end … and we were both gone all day … so I came home to … well, you can guess how terrible it smelled. I laugh now … but I cried that day!!!
I second Ashley. My husband has an illness that makes him sensitive to all kinds of strong smells. I plug the crockpot in outside on the deck.
Most of what I can say is about trying to avoid waste:
If you’re feeding a family, I’d go with crockpot meals. You can stick the ingredients in when you feel okay, and you’re not forced to try and cook at a specific time when you might feel yucky.
Try to pay attention to what foods you crave repeatedly: if whole fruits are always appealing, then buy them! Frozen fruits are another good choice, since they won’t go bad and you can make smoothies when you’re craving fresh fruit. Freeze your leftovers in small, single-serving portions so you can reheat what seems good to you (and something else for anyone else in your family who doesn’t share your cravings). Nuts are expensive, but they’re also more filling, so I’d keep some on hand and eat them throughout the day when you’re hungry for them.
If you are sensitive to food smells you may want to be careful with using the crockpot. Smelling a roast ALL.DAY.LONG can be brutal if it triggers your nausea.
yes. been there done that.
This will add a lot of work to your schedule, but think about splitting your shopping trip into several smaller ones throughout the week. Only buy food for a day or two at a time, depending on what sounds good to you that day. Just don’t buy anymore than you would when shopping for a week at a time.
I think your idea is great! I would look at it as taking the time to pamper myself by taking the time to make several trips and choosing whatever it is that catches my eye.
Yes, I agree. Shop in mini trips like the Europeans! And scrap the meal plans and keepwhole food staples on hand for sandwiches or simple meals: chicken breasts, cheese, veg, fish, eggs, fruits, nuts, etc. Then you can make something healthy, suited to your appetite. Skip processed.
Fresh fruit: Need not be pricey! Buy in season, at international produce stores or farm markets. Frozen berries and grapes are good. Aldi occ has good fruit.
Nuts: Buy bulk or from Costco and toast your own in a pan on the stovetop.
Have hubby do it if the smell is nauseating.
Fish: Fresh on sale, or Tilapia from aldi. T Joes has good frozen fish for a good price.
And yes, eat little meals instead of 3 big ones. That helped me not get over hungry.
Peace!
Being sicky while pregnant bites. Just do what you can to ingest all of the recommended servings of fruit/veggies/protein/calcium/whole grains with $_X__/per diem. Apply daily savings to next months budget to get some wiggle room.
Know that your pre-natals will cover the gaps quite nicely; that’s what they do 🙂
This too shall pass and congratulations on your pregnancy.
I had major nausea and occasional vomiting during my pregnancy with my son and with this pregnancy. I didn’t know how good I had it with my first, because I had no nausea! With my son I could only eat scrambled eggs, toast, grape juice and pretzels until about 16 weeks. With this baby, I could only eat bean/rice/cheese burritos for about that long.
My first trimester I rarely went to the store because I was so sick. I just couldn’t stand the sight or smell of the meat department or fish area.
One suggestion would be to ask your husband to do the shopping for you to avoid nausea. With your cravings, can you just buy a small amount per item so you’re not stuck with a giant box or bag of something you cannot stand?