Small comforts are alien to the pregnancy police

Monday, April 10:

Yesterday, a friend gave me a Starbucks gift card. Today, I promptly used it on a new blackberry green tea frappuccino. It's delicious. It was so good that tonight I said the phrase "blackberry green tea frappuccino" at least three times in my husband's presence and mentioned if he were in the vicinity of a Starbucks and wanted to do something nice for a pregnant person, he could bring me one of those.

Yes, I know there are pregnancy police out there who would be shocked at the thought of anyone carrying a baby drinking green tea and probably high-fructose corn syrup. I am a reasonable person who does things in moderation (other than sleep). And I've given up enough other things and made plenty of sacrifices to warrant a treat now and then. After all, I'm pregnant, not a non-human.

I've eaten feta cheese and blue cheese without knowing a pregnant person should avoid non-pasteurized cheeses. I've never slept a night completely on my left side so as to provide the best blood flow to the baby. I've consumed beverages sweetened with artificial sweeteners. I do drink a cup of coffee some days (organic half-caf). These are nothing compared to what my mother did when I was just a fetus.

Besides, for everything I read or hear what I'm not supposed to do, I read or hear that a little bit of the very same no-nos is all right.

So if you have a spare Starbucks gift card you want to unload, just let me know.