I have felt for a long time that I need to give up caffeine. It all started when my super-expensive lattes started giving me the shakes. I'd feel sick for a minimum of half a day and I'd have to eat a horse-load to feel like I wasn't going to pass out. I switched from lattes to diet coke, and allowed myself the rare 1/2calf treat.

Now, I don't drink a TON of caffeine. I usually drink black tea in the morning and a diet coke in the early afternoon. Nobody has actually told me to stop drinking caffeine, but I just have a feeling that it's contributing to the headaches and aches/pains that I get on a fairly regular basis. Plus, I have decided that for my quest to be completely relaxed for pregnancy #2 (a ways away, people), I want to be completely caffeine free for the whole pregnancy. And I don't want the pregnancy to be what makes me caffeine free (because, that could be stressful).

I keep putting Give Up Diet Coke Day off. It's kind of a scary commitment! But, this weekend my sister-in-law drank the last diet coke in the fridge - and I didn't care. I got to work and decided that instead of purchasing a diet coke in the vending machine, I would choose a different option. Easy enough!

I eventually want to be completely caffeine free, which means I'll probably give up black tea one of these days (does tea even count? really? how much caffeine does tea really have?). But for now, the diet coke is out the door.

So. I drink a lot of water, but I need something more. I think part of the thing with diet coke is that I have a routine - I drink it around a certain time every day and I look forward to it. It's a nice break in the day, a treat, if you will. And I need something to replace it with. Any suggestions? I will especially appreciate suggestions that are comparative in cost to a 12 or 24-pack of diet coke.

Disclaimer: I still get the occasional treat. I'm not shunning caffeine forever. Because if I knew I could never, ever got to have a caramel latte again, tears would fall out of my eyes.