It's Not Over til the Red Lady Sings

...But sing she did. To the tune of spending an hour of Saturday night on the bathroom floor doubled over in pain and sweating through my clothes. The only thing worse than a Big Fat Negative is when it is accompanied by crippling cramps and, er, potty issues.

I'm feeling pretty sad these days. I made the mistake of getting my hopes up thanks to a nice non-implantation dip in my temps eight days after I ovulated. The other thing is that we're not sure if any "trying" will occur next month. A BFP this time around would have been unintentional (ya know what I mean?) (I mean, the goalie was there, but maybe missed a few pucks), but although Victor agreed that he would have been delighted if it had occurred, he doesn't feel quite secure enough about his job situation to INTENTIONALLY try.

I cannot wrap my head around it, as hard as I'm trying.

A Tale of Two Ovaries

I have successfully completed my first charting cycle! Time for a party!

Unfortunately for me, that party involves nasty cramps, headaches, and tight jeans. After so many years on birth control pills I had forgotten what it was like to have real PMS until late last night when I stayed awake moaning for an hour. Please send chocolate for me and a helmet for Victor.

In case you don't know, by charting your waking basal body temperature (BBT) you can determine exactly when you ovulate. Recording the texture of your cervical mucus can give you a clue of when you are ABOUT to ovulate. A nifty website called Fertility Friend will keep track of and analyze your information so it can tell you when you ovulate and how likely it is that you are pregnant, if that's what you're trying to accomplish. This month was a test run for Victor and I. But, I have to say, I'm pretty pleased with my chart.



Nice, no? I was waaaaay too excited when I saw that I had been given a red line indicating that I had O'ed. And once my luteal phase made it past 10 days? Ecstatic.

Yes, I'm a nerd.

Cycle 2 started today. Victor and I are going to (ahem) keep the goalie in play for at least another two months. After that time we'll figure out whether it's time for the official period of TTC. I will certainly keep you, dear Internet, abreast of our decisions and progress. Because what's the point of this blog if not for me to discuss the inner workings of my lady bits?

Let's Get This Party Started

Last night I took my last birth control pill. While Victor and I aren't in baby-making mode quite yet, we've decided that I should stop taking the pills to give my body some time to get used to life without extra hormones. We'll use other methods to prevent right now, but we both agreed that if I were to get knocked up, we could handle it. I read an amazing book called Taking Charge of Your Fertility that explains how to chart your waking temperature and the texture of some down-there stuff (okay, I'll be a grown-up...it's cervical mucous) to determine when you're most likely to be fertile. Maybe I am a nerd, but I am SO EXCITED! I'm a scientist and this undertaking is like an experiment on myself. I think seeing that first temperature spike (which means ovulation) will be so cool. And I'm going to tell you, Internets, all about it. My mama would be so proud.