7 So you wanna have a baby

“The time has come my little friends…to talk of other things.” (Anyone know what movie that is from?) Warning: this post is not about weight-loss…so if you are looking for that, come back tomorrow when I’ll be weighing in. But if you are a women and currently are or have been trying to become a mother then please read on, I could use some advice and thoughts to let me know if I am crazy or if this is normal.

We are officially trying to have a baby. Wow…that’s a big thing to put out into the world for all to read! But it’s one we made last month and thought we would stop worrying about all the "what-ifs" and focus on the joy a child would bring and see if the stars align for us. I’m only telling my closest friends and one family member, don’t want everyone to know we are trying until it happens and I well am into my 1st Trimester. So if you came upon this blog somehow and know me or my family on a local level, please don’t mention this to them….no use in getting anyone excited until we have something to be excited about? My family is known to talk and share almost everything, so news of me getting off the pill would be passed along faster then the President being in town. Thanks for understanding!

I took my last birth control pill on September 16th. I have been on BC pretty much since I was 18 or 19 years old in one form or another. Mostly the pill, but I have also tried Nuvaring….which wasn’t really for me. So for me, not taking a pill everyday was going to be weird. My husband and I decided to just let things happen naturally, at this time we don’t see ourselves going for medications or procedures to help us get pregnant (mostly because of finances), but fully support anyone who goes that route. If it’s meant to be, then it will be. I’m putting everything into Gods hands and if he thinks I can handle it then may we be blessed with a baby.

But then the analytical and emotional sides of me come out. Like going to Target and seeing a Winnie the Pooh Pack & Play on Clearance for $60…should I get it just in case, I could always use it as a gift later on if it doesn’t happen right? Hours have been spent researching names and options for births etc. But then I figure why am I getting excited for something that may never happen you know? There are so many stories of women who haven’t been able to get pregnant or stay pregnant, several in my family including my mother who had several miscarriages before having me.

I am 32 and my husband will be 35 next month, so we are closer to the end of the window then the beginning for a first time pregnancy. So I started taking prenatals a few months ago when we started deciding when the pill popping would stop. I also take an Omega 3-6-9 and B6 or B12 supplement too. I have continued to watch my weight and have lost 46 lbs and exercise at least 4 times a week, combo of Shredding and Walk/Run intervals. I also stopped drinking my 3 cups of morning java which I covered with so much SF creamer you couldn’t even taste the coffee anymore, and now have a diet soda every morning instead. Hope to ween myself off of that, but for now I’m still using that as my caffeine boost. So I started to focus on making myself healthier so that when the time came and we were gifted with a little bean, I would have done the best I could do to make a safe womb for baby.

I started charting last month, anyone who has researched TTC knows of the things I am speaking of. Things I never thought I would put into an excel table are now being updated daily with temps, exercise, aches, cramps, headaches, fluids, etc! Thought it would be kind of interesting as I am an analyst by trade, so I love watching trends and trying to guess what’s going to happen next. While I know you can’t plan these things, it’s interesting to see how my body is reacting to going off the pill and to being a woman in general.

Question for my readers: Have any of you charted your temps or used Ovulation Predictor kits to figure out when your “primetime” is?

Anyone who remembers or is going thru this now knows some of the questions that have been popping up in my head lately. Since I have been on the pill, my periods have gone from being 5-6 days to about 3. Does this mean I am less fertile? They also have gone from being pretty heavy to being lite to medium. Does this mean I’m less fertile? Of course, with the my cycle was about 24 days consistently. But this first month of being off the pill, had put me in a 35 day cycle. Does this mean my cycle is off track since I’m not showing hormones to trick my body anymore? Apparently so, because I have had pre-cramps, no moodiness, no tender breasticles…but when the time came, my cramps were worse then ever. Does this mean I’m less fertile? I have been exercising pretty hard this last month, getting my heart rate between 180-200 most days. Is this too much stress on my body…am I delaying ovulation because of the physical stress I am putting on my body or just with the emotional stress of worrying about it happening? So much for not worrying, huh?

I have been achy and tired this last week, but I’m attributing it to the fact that it turned butt-ass cold in Ohio and a bug is going around or that I’m staying up to late at nights and getting up earlier a few days a week to exercise. But other then that, I find that I am actually a little more chipper then normal, I think the hormones were possible making me crankier. Or maybe it’s just the thought of babies that brightens up everything around me.

So in the mean time, its business as usual. I will continue to have the occasional beer or wine, continue to exercise my arse off in an attempt to shed a few more lbs before it happens and try not to worry about the chance it will never happen. I am just going to focus on the fact that my husband and I have so much love for each other and our marriage that we want to create someone to share that with. And it’s fun practicing!