Amanda Miller
Columnist
Lettuce Eat Local
A melody began to burrow around my head when I started thinking about being at 20 weeks — halfway through this pregnancy. I had to look around a little to fill out the lyrics beyond “halfway something-something, hummm, halfway there?…” but I’m not sure if that’s due more to me having baby brain or me listening to that Lifehouse song way back in the middle of my college years.
It turned out not to feel as fitting since the song is actually Halfway Gone instead of Halfway Here; I guess I’ll sing that about my ability to wear actual pants, with a strong dose of denial since it’s more like 98% Gone.
Regardless, it is a big milestone to reach halfway carrying this new treasure. Technically, we’re probably not quite there yet, since my babies tend to be very lax about due dates, preferring to come on their own timing/aka late. But we can always dream, right?
A few things change with the coming of the 20-week mark. For various prenatal safety reasons, 20 weeks is the accepted time to stop lying on my back (sleeping or exercising), riding my bike (way ahead of that this time, too cold anyway), and doing movements that strain or twist my core (or lack thereof). I’m also supposed to avoid contact sports, which will not be a giant sacrifice, and “lifting toddlers, other children, and heavy objects,” which is far too optimistic for anyone with other children or heavy objects to lift.
A major thing that I had been really anticipating was the halfway-point ultrasound. There is something particularly incredible about the first time seeing your unborn baby now that it looks like a baby; watching it move on the sonogram screen, matching the movements you feel inside. Everything is measuring and looking normal, so we are extremely grateful.
I was so excited for the kids to see their little sibling, and while Kiah was more concerned that her hamster stuffie was comfortable beside me on the bed, Benson was appropriately delighted to see tiny hands and feet. (We did have to explain that we were seeing the same foot again, as fortunately, it does only have two.) At one point, two of those itsy fingers were stretched up in a peace sign, so we are expecting a peaceful child…or an infant hippie.
As is the nature of such things, reaching halfway on the 40-week timeline makes the remaining half feel both exhaustingly long and alarmingly short. The baby weighs only around 10 ounces, so it has to grow a lot yet, and I already feel like I have a basketball stuffed in my belly. It’s a long time to walk around with another human inside me. Yet it’s a distinctly short time to only have two children anymore, to not have a baby constantly attached to me, to have sometimes-uninterrupted nights. A long-short, short-long time until we get to hold our sweet baby — we’re halfway there.
I wanted to write about foods that have something to do with halfway, but it was more difficult than I originally thought. Underbaked cookies, maybe, but not actually half-baked; half-cooked beans, rice, or grains are just bad, not to mention half-cooked meats. Half-ripe fruit is unappealing, half-roasted vegetables should be one way or other, half-seasoned dishes are blah. None of the vibe I was going for!
I finally settled on something half-spicy, half-sweet, or half-caf: all those can be great in the right context. I’m finally back to being able to manage a little coffee instead of the smell or taste making me feel nauseated, but I never make full-caffeine, baby inside or not. I usually like it black, but not right now, so half-milk-half-coffee sounded like the right idea, and it went from there. Although once Benson and Kiah figured out what I was making, the real question became whether the glass was half full or half empty, because it was already halfway gone.
Half-Caf Half-Fancy Coffee
Even though I only brewed half a pot of coffee for my first batch in three months, I couldn’t even get through half of it; but leftover cold coffee is great to have on hand for drinks like this. Just mix half each regular and decaf coffee grounds to make it, but don’t take the theme too far and brew it half-strength or that’s just disappointing. I settled on cold coffee since I knew it would be only half-warm by the time I got around to finishing a hot cup. More good news is that it’s far less than half-price to make this half-fancy drink yourself than to get it from a coffee shop.
Prep tips: I used salted caramel creamer; I rarely buy creamer, but the baby wanted it, so you know.
½ cup half-caf coffee, cold
½ teaspoon cocoa powder
½ cup half-and-half (or whole milk)
½ tablespoon flavored creamer of choice
½ pinch salt
½ piece milk chocolate (eat the other half), grated
Mix coffee and cocoa. Froth the half-and-half with creamer and salt, and pour into coffee (if you don’t have a frother, just add to coffee, topping with whipped cream if available). Top with grated chocolate.
Lettuce Eat Local is a weekly local foods column by Amanda Miller, who lives in rural Reno County on the family dairy farm with her husband and two small children. She seeks to help build connections through food with her community, the earth, and the God who created it all. Send feedback and recipe ideas to [email protected].
