Happy Friday!

After nearly 18 months, today I had my Mirena removed. There are a couple reasons for this, first, my son is almost 2, and I'm starting to feel a little itchy for a baby. And to be honest, I think he is too. At my cousin's house (who has 3 little girls) he loved pushing around a doll stroller with his Tigger in it. He is so very helpful (most of the time) and will assist with many chores. He throws things away for me, puts his toys away, and will push the right buttons on the dishwasher or washer/dryer when asked to. He also feeds the girls for us. We just have to fill the cup up with the amount we want them to have. He will pour the cup out into the bowl regardless of how much is in it. (And when he misses a couple pieces of dog food, he will sit there and pick each one up and put it in that dog's bowl. It is something he doesn't need to do, because they will eat it, but he is a slight neat freak.) :)

The second reason, is one that is a little bit more detailed. And for that reason I'm going to put it behind a "jump break." That way, it is your own fault if you accidentally read something you don't want to. It isn't too graphic, but it is a bit detailed and personal, so some people might not want to read about it. Hint: it involves my reproductive organs.

Read on...

The suspense is killing me...

Day 46/47.

It appears that Aunt Flo might be making her appearance soon. I have some very slight spotting today. If I start for real tomorrow, I'll call today Day 1 of my second independent cycle, because I'm tired of this confusing mumbo jumbo with 2 possible days.

So I must admit, that I got slightly confused about my cycle. You see, I've been reading How to Choose the Sex of Your Baby by Dr. Shettles, but I had checked it out from the library and had to return it last week. Well, I've come to realize that some resources a person just needs to have at their disposal at all times just in case.

Let me explain.

I had signs that ovulation was starting on Saturday, and it was confirmed on Sunday via the ovulation test strips. The ovulation test strips test for a hormone commonly referred to as LH (or Luteinizing Hormone). This hormone is released prior to ovulation and is usually detected for 24-48 hours in the urine. (I unfortunately had no tests with me on Saturday, and had I tested then, I'm sure it would have been positive, making my LH surge on the long side at 48 hours or so.) But since I didn't test on Saturday my first positive test was Sunday at 1700. I continued to test positive at 2200 on Monday, with my first negative test on Tuesday morning at 1100.

The positive LH surge signifies impending ovulation, it does not necessarily mean that ovulation has occurred, which is where I got confused. The "fertile period" begins about 4-5 days prior to ovulation and ends 24-48 hours after ovulation. This means if a couple is not trying to get pregnant they should abstain or use a condom beginning 5-6 days prior to ovulation (which gets tricky if, like me, your cycles are new to you and/or not regular), and continue until 48-72 hours after suspected ovulation. In my head, I was thinking that Saturday was the day I ovulated, so on Tuesday, the day I had my first negative LH test, I thought we were in the clear. We had unprotected sex on that day. Now, I realize that I was possibly ovulating on that day and should have waited 72 hours after Tuesday. (Which, if you do your math is actually today.)

It isn't likely that I'll get pregnant, but there is a chance.

Confused? Join the club. ;) Even as a nurse I feel overwhelmed with the planning, timing, and details of conception and fertility. It takes a while to get a good handle on all of this fertility craziness, and that is why I decided I needed to purchase some resources so that I could easily reference them if I had a question or concern. I ended up with the following:

I actually enjoyed How to Choose the Sex of your Baby book, even though there are some chapters that I skipped over as they talk about the history of sex selection. People have wanted to be able to pick the sex of their baby for a very long time. It was kind of funny reading about some of the ways they used to increase the chances of having a boy (or girl, though I think it was more common for people to prefer to have male offspring.) The methods in this book are not 100% effective, because there is always a chance of having either sex, though you can increase your chances of having either a girl or a boy if you time intercourse at a certain time.

I will love any baby I am blessed with, but I really want to have a daughter. I also want to have a son, but I am my mom's last chance to have a granddaughter, and I promised her way back when I was 19 that she would get one. I just love little girl clothes etc...

Fertility and Conception, was a book I picked up because it looked like a good one from the outside. After perusing it a bit, I found that it was very colorful with lots of pictures and looked like it had a variety of information, so I chose it for a simple resource. It also looked like a fairly simple read, and looks like it has a bit of humor as well. Let's face it, when you're reading about cervical mucous, positions of the cervix, and timing of intercourse, a person needs a little humor.

And finally Taking Charge of Your Fertility is a book that I had heard of, and also googled online and got it because it spans the lifespan of a woman. It features explanations of how to conceive, how to naturally avoid pregnancy, and generally teaches about reproductive health. It looks dull, upon flipping through it, and since it is pretty thick, it will be a daunting read, but the reviews say that the text is easy to understand and enjoyable. We'll see. It might be one of those books that is more effective to use by going to the index and reading what you desire at that moment in time...(The reason I say it looks dull, is because the pictures are in black and white, and there appears to be a lot of text, in pretty small font. I didn't even read a word out of it, so I don't know how it flows.)

Hope you all don't mind hearing about my reproductive parts in action...

Exciting News.

Day 41/42.

I've been freaking out. While I want to get pregnant, I am not quite ready to get pregnant right now. I need to figure out my cycle first and get to know my body. Also, I would prefer to look a little less like a fat cow at my good friend Kristina's wedding in August. :)

After working all night Friday night, I got home on Saturday morning, showered and got in the car to drive to Portland. We went to see Bret's new house that he bought, and to play beer pong. I was nervous, because it was day 40/41 and I was beginning to be concerned. And then, in the car, I was nauseated. Only slightly, but still nauseated. I felt bloated and slightly crampy. I got so nervous that I went out and bought 2 different types of pregnancy tests (secretly) and didn't tell anyone that I took one.

It was negative. But then, as everyone went out into the garage to play beer pong I stayed inside. I really didn't feel very good. Pizza did not sound good, carrots and banana and wheat thins were all that sounded good to me. Then, as I was sitting on the couch I realized I felt wet, you know, down there.

When I went to the bathroom to check, I found very slippery, clear cervical mucous. There was a lot of it. Since I have been on the pill for nearly 5 years now, I haven't really had any cervical mucous, so this was a huge thing for me to notice. It hit me that I wasn't pregnant, I was ovulating.

Today, when I got home, I took an ovulation test, and it was immediately positive.

So while I am slightly disappointed that I'm not pregnant, I am very excited that I ovulated. I'm hoping that it continues to be quite obvious when I do ovulate like it was this time. Though I hope that my cycles shorten a little as it has been a very stressful month.

Kristina, it was a very very short trip, next time I'll come visit you, I promise.

Taking a break...

Oh night shift, how you make me crazy. ;)

Yesterday I got off work, and since I knew I didn't have to go back to work until Friday night, I was a bit wired when I got home. Finally, around 1000, I shut my eyes with the intention of waking at 1330 (1:30pm). Well, next thing I knew my hubby was calling me to let me know he wouldn't be home on time, and it was 1730. Oops...I had to get up and move, because I had water aerobics last night, and I need to leave my house by 1815.

Then at midnight, the hubby and I went to sleep. I found myself awake again at 0600, and began thinking of my plans for the day and my crafty ways to the point where I decided I would get more done up and about.

My "To Do" list for the day is getting longer and longer by the moment.

1. I'm picking pictures to get printed, and have been doing that since 0600, and will pick them up later today at Costco. (I love being able to upload pictures at home, and later that same day pick them up from Costco.)
2. I would like to buy some frozen fish fillets from Costco if they have individual servings of fresh, wild caught salmon or cod. And a few other things like condoms. ;)
3. I will be going shopping with my mom later, I want to go to Kohls to get a jacket and matching shoes. (Don't know if I'll find what I'm looking for there or not, but I have a gift card, so it's worth a shot looking.)
4. We received our tax credit check in the mail, so I need to deposit that today.
5. It's time again to do dishes, so that will be what I do after I'm done blogging.
6. Water aerobics again tonight at 1900.
7. Groceries for the rest of the week, however, I might just find something for dinner tonight and tomorrow instead of buying for the rest of the week, since I might be pressed for time today.
8. If time permits, I'd like to work on a project of mine...
9. I want to take Jamaal and his dad and brother to see Charlie Murphy when he comes to Seattle in March, so I need to buy the tickets.
10. Jamaal and I (and a few friends) want to go to Vegas in March as well, so I need to book the hotel.

Whew...

I'm currently sipping on my Breakfast shake, and working on taking my vitamins. I need a system that helps me to remember to take my plethora of vitamins!! I want one of those plastic weekly medication containers, but none of them are big enough for my chewable calcium. I'll keep my eyes peeled for one though. Here's one I found on amazon.com but I don't know if that is big enough or not. I'd have to see it in person.

On the Fertility front, still no real signs of ovulation. I'm currently on day number 31 or 32 with no signs of Aunt Flo. (I was supposed to start my period on a Monday and only barely spotted so I don't really know if I should count that as day 1 or not. If I do, I'm on day 32, if I don't I'm on day 31.) I hope she comes soon. I'm getting anxious for my cycle to normalize. I KNOW I'm being silly, but I've been kind of wondering if I'm pregnant already. I've tested with pregnancy tests, and according to them, I'm not. BUT I looked into it, and hCG doesn't show in the urine for a few weeks after conception. It doesn't show until 1 week after a missed period, for most women. That means conception was probably 2.5-3 weeks prior to the positive result.

Though like I've said before, there have been no signs of ovulation thus far.

I'm going to be a nutcase for a while until I regularize...I guess I should say, if I regularize.

Pregnancy dreams...yet again

I had a dream last night that I was 3 months pregnant, and had a pretty big bump. I was extremely disappointed because I couldn't feel the baby. I just felt fat. My baby bump wasn't firm either it was saggy so I could like lift it up and move it around. It was upsetting because of all the things I look forward to, feeling another life growing inside me is number 1.

Side note:
My quick research tells me that most women don't start to feel the baby move until 4 months at the earliest (16 weeks). So I guess my dream had some truth to it. I read Kay's old blog entries of her first pregnancy experience and even though she didn't feel the baby move she was still thinking about the baby. She started to notice a small bump at roughly 10 or 12 weeks (but most people wouldn't be able to tell with her fully dressed).

Back to the dream:
My dream fast forwarded to later in the pregnancy (though my belly did not change it was still floppy). And I was having super mild contractions, nothing worse than a mild cramp, and I freaked out. Turned to Jamaal and said "I want the drugs." My doctor (or midwife) asked what I wanted, an epidural or IV meds. I really didn't want an epidural (because there is a risk of permanent damage) and I was concerned about becoming paraplegic. But I was also concerned about the baby and asked which would make him the least stoned. And yes I said him. And the baby was due in November/December.

-----------------------------------------

I woke up thinking about my dream and the fact that it was something that could happen. (Well I'm going to assume that my baby bump does not flap in the wind...) But well, Jamaal and I haven't exactly been too careful yet. Sometimes he will reach for a condom, but sometimes not. I don't like the smell of them at all, so I can't stand to touch them. And I don't really have that will power to say no. Plus, I haven't ovulated yet. I'm on day 26 of my first independent cycle, and my ovulation test strips have been negative thus far. (And I've had pretty much no cervical mucous all month. Which is weird because I had some while on the pill, and now nothing...) For those of you who are curious, I'm not using the basal body temperature method since I'm working night shift and my sleep cycles are so irregular. (And for those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about these are the methods that help to determine when a woman ovulates, or are fertile, and are the basis for methods associated with natural family planning. I am using the methods to determine my ovulation, but will rely on condoms to prevent pregnancy, and to help me to focus on my bodies signs of fertility. Cervical mucous is difficult to see, for women new to looking at it, if there is also semen in the mix.)

So what I'm getting at is it is highly unlikely that I will conceive at this time, but as I recently read in How to Choose the Sex of your Baby, some women have a very short LH surge, and most women's LH surge happens later in the day (and I was previously testing in the morning when I first woke up, or right after work). So it is possible that I missed my LH surge this month. Though I doubt it.

I would prefer not to conceive before April 23rd. (my due date would be January 14th 2011). As, like I've said before, I don't want Thanksgiving or Christmas overshadowing the babe's day of birth. But of course I'll take anything I get. ;)

I should also mention that Jamaal was very supportive of me, and when I asked for the drugs, he was right there agreeing with me. (I think that was more for his benefit, and he didn't want to deal with me in a ton of pain.) But I remember thinking that he was being very sweet, and very proud to be having a baby with me. Which, of all the important things, shares the number 1 spot with being able to feel a life growing inside me. :D