The Official TTC Thread!

[Missy0483]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

I thought the time between O and when AF starts is usually fixed each cycle, not always 14 days for everyone but needs to be at least 10 days for implantation to occur? Maybe I'm wrong?

 

[monkeyprincess]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Missy you are correct the second half of the cycle (luteal phase or LP) varies by person but it should be consistent within a day or two from cycle to cycle. My LP is about 12 days. If it shorter than 10-12 days that may be an issue. I think it can be as long as 16 days for some women.

 

[monkeyprincess]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Firecracker - 2ww = two week wait. The time between ovulation and when you get either a bfp or af.

 

[monkeyprincess]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

S&I - I usually get my first positive opk 2 days before I ovulate. So if I got a positive on a Monday evening, my temp would go up on Thursday meaning I ovulated on Wednesday. I usually test in both the evening and morning when I know it is getting close, and my first positive is usually in the evening. I usually get a second positive the following morning and then it fades out. Hope that made sense.

Sorry I had to separate all of that into three entries. My phone is being weird

 

[lizzyann]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

So I am so annoyed. My opk still looks pretty positive even today. I think I'm going to run out and get some digitals to confirm. If I get a smiley I am going to call my RE as I want to find out what's going on!

 

[Missy0483]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

S&I - I usually get my first positive opk 2 days before I ovulate. So if I got a positive on a Monday evening, my temp would go up on Thursday meaning I ovulated on Wednesday. I usually test in both the evening and morning when I know it is getting close, and my first positive is usually in the evening. I usually get a second positive the following morning and then it fades out. Hope that made sense.

Sorry I had to separate all of that into three entries. My phone is being weird

MP - I guess I did learn something from the TCOYF book about the LP
I was actually kinda asking the same question. I only got one positive at 1pm yesterday, then it had already faded by 6pm. we only BD'd the 2 days before my positive, so we'll see what happens. Not feeling too optimistic about it, but at least I have a better idea of what's going on for next month!

Lizzy - I don't blame you! You said you're using the CVS brand right and that they're more sensitive? I hope you figure out what's going on!

 

[monkeyprincess]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Missy you definitely still have a shot this month. It's possible you will ovulate today so maybe try to BD again tonight. But you definitely have a shot even if you don't .

Lizzy I hope those tests are just too sensitive too. Let us know what you find out.

 

[S&I]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Thanks for the explanations, monkeyprincess and LtlFirecracker! I'll start testing with CD10 (Sunday) and go from there.

Missy, my LP last cycle was only 10 days, so I'll be keeping a close eye on it this cycle to make sure it isn't any shorter. Oh, and I just went back to your old posts and realized that you were married exactly one year before I was! I hope that wasn't too stalkerish of me.

lizzyann, I hope you are able to talk to your RE today and figure out what's going on with you!

 

[amc80]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

amc80 - I guess I never thought of it as weird as it all kind of makes since to me. I know a lot about this, so if it is too much info just tell me to stop and I will back off (that goes for all you ladies). Just today at work the nurses (who handle the pos home pregnancy tests in my clinic) were trying to figure out what to do with a woman who had 2 "faint positive" pregnancy tests in a row. Just off the top of my head I told them how to handle it. And I have not taken care of adults in years (although I do care for teens who get into trouble sometimes). As for your wedding, is still pretty far out. I think at the 2 month point is when I made a decision on what to do for OCPs. I was on them at the time, and did 2 packages back to back. I would have been fine for the wedding, but not the honeymoon.

I read about how sperm gets up there and then sort of goes to sleep while it waits for the egg. I told my fiance that and he was cracking up.

As far as the BCP thing, you're exactly right, I will be deciding at the 2 month mark (which will be my cycle starting around October 1ish. I'll do 6 weeks which will give me AF in mid November, which will put my O time during the cruise. Hopefully we'll be able to bring home a little souvenir

 

[amc80]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

amc, hopefully your cycle will normalize soon. How exciting that your wedding is coming up soon - are you all ready on the wedding front? I just saw that you were expecting the delivery of your beautiful dress today. Any idea when you can get it from Fedex?

Getting there. I think all of the major stuff is either deposited or decided on. At this point we are just trying to deal with all of the small stuff. Sort of like when you move and everything is in boxes except for the random crap you have scattered around the house. The only problem with our wedding/cruise is we have to plan both a wedding and a vacation. Luckily I'm a planner by nature (um, if you couldn't tell by the way I'm doing pre-TTC stuff 6 months before I TTC), so as much as I whine I actually enjoy it. I am heading over to fedex soon to get my dress (yay!!).

 

[Clairitek]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

AMC- You are exactly right. It took 3 days of high temps to get FF to agree with what I already knew! Cross-hairs with O at CD15.

Lizzy- I think my first positive was on CD 14 PM and continued through CD 16 AM. I put down + OPK results in FF for 14 and 15. Sorry your OPKs are frustrating you! Hopefully if your RE says to go for another day of BD your DH (and you) will feel up to it! I'm seriously impressesd with your BDing schedule. Looking forward to the 31st for your test results.

Missy- YAY for a blazing positive OPK!

 

[lizzyann]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

So I went out and paid $30 on CBE digital OPK, waited 4 hours to pee, and it's negative! Pricey, but worth the money! The CVS OPK's still kind a look positive so they must be ridiculously oversensitive. I feel so much better now though!

Is it hot where you gals are? It is over 100 degrees here in MA today. I am staying indoors with my central air as much as possible. I am cooking pulled pork in the crock pot today though and it smells delicious making me hungry all day!!!!

Monkey, my 2ww buddy...I hope this is it for us!

Clairitek, thanks for telling me about your OPK's too! I feel so much better now that I got the negative on the digital!

2dpo!!!! I pray I get the stickiest bean ever!!!

 

[Missy0483]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

S&I - Nope not stalkerish!! That's pretty cool, so 10-10-10 for you huh? I like that date What was your old screen name? I'm not sure if I remember seeing you around.

MP - I guess we'll see what happens now. From the movie Dumb and Dumber- "So you're telling me there's a chance? YEEEAAAAHHH" (I love that movie, I quote it whenever possible!) Haha...we might give it a go one more time tonight!

Amc - So exciting to be picking up your dress! I remember that day for me almost 2 years ago! I love that you're doing the wedding cruise thing. I SO wanted to do that but DH wasn't up for it, until we started planning and putting deposits down on stuff and it was too late to change things. Both sides of the families clashed and we had a bunch of drama going on. Then I was able to tell him "I told you so!! "

Claritek - Congrats on the CHs!! I know I was so excitied to see those dark lines yesterday...it only lasted a short while because when I tested again 5 hours later it had already faded! I just hope we were able to catch it since we BD'd the night before the positive (the day I got the "almost" positive) and the night before that. I was expecting to see at least 2 positives while testing, but I only got the one.

Lizzy - Whoops just saw your post. Glad you know what's going on nowwith the OPK thing! Yes it is HOT! Weather channel says 97 degrees right now and feels like 112. WHAT!!! We don't have central A/C at our house, just one window unit down stairs and one in our bedroom and it's having trouble keeping up with the crazy hotness going on. In a way I'm happy to be at work with the central air!

 

[amc80]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Amc - So exciting to be picking up your dress! I remember that day for me almost 2 years ago! I love that you're doing the wedding cruise thing. I SO wanted to do that but DH wasn't up for it, until we started planning and putting deposits down on stuff and it was too late to change things. Both sides of the families clashed and we had a bunch of drama going on. Then I was able to tell him "I told you so!! "

Are wedding is about as minimal as possible and I still wish we would have eloped. The reason we didn't is my brother basically eloped and I felt bad for my mom, and my fiance is an only child, so we would feel bad for his parents. Of course the parents are the ones causing all the drama now and I'm regretting my decision to not elope. I am really excited to go on a cruise with all of our friends, though.

 

[S&I]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

amc, I hope your dress is perfect - so exciting! Post pics when you get it please.

lizzyann, too bad you had to spend so much to confirm the negative, but at least you know now! Congrats on getting to 2DPO, and tons of sticky vibes to you! I really hope you get that BFP on the 31st! And yes, it's really hot over here in TX - I hate going outside during the day.

Missy, I hope all your BDing this cycle was successful. My old screen name was sandyandisaac, so I just shortened it for ease. I didn't really post too much when I was planning our wedding, since we actually changed our wedding date from 11-12-11 to 10-10-10 with only about 5 or so months to plan. So everything happened super fast!

 

[monkeyprincess]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Lizzy, I hope this is it for both us this month too! So glad the digi gave you peace of mind. I still have three digis left from my initial twenty pack, and I really don't want to have to buy anymore! (hint, hint universe) It's been way too hot where I live as well. It has been for over a week with no end in sight. It is making me crabby not to be able to get my jogs in outside after work.

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend! BFP dust to all!

 

[Clairitek]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Glad you confirmed the negative Lizzzy! Fingers crossed for that sticky bean.

 

[KatyWI]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Clairitek, super excited to see you here even though you have a long time before you actually give it a go!!

MP and Lizzy... we haven't forgotten about you!! I want you both to have sticky beans so badly, you both deserve it so much. Just know that I am rooting for you and sending as much dust your way as I possibly can!! I hope you caught those eggs and are hopping over to join us JBPers so quickly your heads spin!! I hope this is your month!

And all the other ladies that I never got to know so well, totally rooting for you, too

 

[Dreamer_D]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Age I was over 30 for both my kids I was 31 and 33 to be more precise, when they were born. Don't buy worries, ladies. Until there is reason to be nervous, best to just truck along.

Ltl welcome out of the closet I found with both my TTC experiences that monitoring my cervical fluid was the simplest method and least "medicalized". I did take my temperature to validate my observations, and it took a while to get the hang of my CF patterns, but once you know them it is in my opinion to easiest way to time your intercourse. I have a friend in your shoes with the long distance thing and it is frustrating her to no end. They are so rarely together at the right time! Hopefully you two can make it work better than they are so you don't have to go through the frustration!

 

[lizzyann]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Katy, great to see you! And thanks for the support and dust! How are you doing?

Clairitek, I was so relieved to get the negative. I didn't want to be worried and have to call my RE.

Monkey, I hope this is it for us too! When will you test?

S&I, thank you! Once you get an idea this cycle as to when you normally ovulate, you'll have more knowledge for the next cycle which will be really helpful. So are you just using OPK's this cycle?

Missy, yes just too hot out there! Did you have any luck getting one more BD in?!

AMC, I'm sorry you've had crazy wedding planning family stuff going on. You will enjoy your big day though! And that's all that matters!

AFM, 3dpo! I started my prometrium this morning. We have a party to go to today and then we are going to take it easy. It's just too hot out there. Enjoy your weekends ladies!

 

[PilsnPinkysMom]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

SI: Welcome to TTC land! Glad you’re here!

Missy: I think you BD’d enough to catch that eggie… all it takes it once within 5 days of the egg drop to get KU. So you’re officially in the 2WW- time to start the countdown!

AMC: Sleeping sperm, lying in wait… you learn somethin’ new every day! FWIW, I think it’s great that you are a planner. No harm in knowing what you want and making sure you get it!

Claritek: I love reading your posts here. I get what you mean about feeling like you’re passing up great opportunities each time you O. For the past 8 years of my life I could have cared less about ovulation and now I think about it all of the time. Bizarre.

Lizzy: $30?! WOW! Those smiley faces are EXPENSIVE… But as you said, well worth the $$ for peace of mind. Hope you’re finding refuge from the heat in AC. Fingers crossed for a strong, sticky bean- let the countdown begin!

Dreamer (In case you’re lurking!): Thanks for the EWCM insight. If it was EWCM it did not precede ovulation, which is entirely possible. Is your birth story up yet??? I have read Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth and really enjoyed it. I want to pick up Spiritual Midwifery next.

To SBA, MP, and anyone else I missed: Hope you are well and wonderful!

AFM: I think I O’d. Maybe. My temps have been between 96.8 and 97.0. Yesterday I transitioned from semi-lotiony but dry CM to copious amounts of watery CM. Curious, I caved and purchased/peed on an OPK mid-day. To my surprise it was positive (or damn near positive). I peed on another around midnight and it was not positive. Nor was it positive this AM… but today my temp shifted upward to 97.4. I know that I need at least three days of higher temps to confirm O, but I think there’s a good chance it happened and I barely caught my LH surge. I’m currently on CD 21. Pre-Mirena I had a pretty consistent 29 day cycle. I’m hoping this long cycle is simply a side effect of coming off of BC and that once my period begins I will have a more typical cycle length. If so, that will put ovulation somewhere around mid-late August which would be the absolute best time to conceive job-wise. ….Not that I’m stressing or anything

Ooooh- I also found out this weekend that my SIL (mother of my 14mth old niece) is preggo with #2!!! I'm ELATED!!! The sad news is that she spends most of her pregnancies, labor & delivery in Findland She and my niece leave this Tuesday

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

MP and Lizzy... we haven't forgotten about you!! I want you both to have sticky beans so badly, you both deserve it so much. Just know that I am rooting for you and sending as much dust your way as I possibly can!! I hope you caught those eggs and are hopping over to join us JBPers so quickly your heads spin!! I hope this is your month!

I couldn't have said this better myself. Lizzy and MP, I wish you both tons and tons and tons of luck this month. MP, I want so badly for you to get your BFP. And Lizzy, you have no idea how much I want a sticky bean for you.

And, of course, I wish all of the other TTCers good luck as well!

 

[S&I]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Dreamer, thanks for reminding me that my age shouldn't be a problem just yet. I read a lot of your advice during the first 150 pages of this thread, so hopefully I can put it to use. I especially loved your detailed description of CF.

lizzyann, I have been taking my BBT every morning for a while now. This cycle, I'm going to use the OPKs (starting tomorrow!) as well as trying to monitor my CF more closely.

PilsnPinkysMom, thanks for the warm welcome! Hopefully your cycle will get back to normal so you can time your August cycle perfectly.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

[monkeyprincess]

Katy and NEL, thank you so much! You guys are so sweet! I hope both Lizzy and I and the other ladies who are just starting to try can join you both very soon! It means a lot to have so much support from internet "friends"!

Lizzy, I want a BFP for you almost as badly as I want for myself! Hoping the next couple of weeks fly by for you! I probably won't test unless AF is late. Seeing all of the negative tests is such a bummer. I don't feel any symptoms or anything at this point, not that I necessarily would.

PPM, I hope that your temps confirm O and that your timing next month works out. I've learned that these things do not always go as planned, but I hope that you get your BFP quickly!

S&I, have fun POASing!

Hope everyone enjoys the rest of the weekend!

 

[PilsnPinkysMom]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Temp dropped from 97.4 back to 96.8. Gosh darn.

I peed on another OPK (First Response brand) out of spite and it was CLEARLY positive, not just "Probably, maybe, 99.7% sure it's positive". I'm still feeling skeptical, as I've read some lackluster reviews of FR OPKs. I may fork over some $ to get a smiley-face digital. Then again, I'm not trying to catch the egg this cycle, so maybe it doesn't matter.

Hi, my name is PPM and I'm addicted to POAS

 

[lizzyann]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

PPM, it's ok! I think we all enjoy POAS!!! If you aren't too caught up on catching an egg this cycle then I'd wait to buy the digitals.

MP, I hear you on waiting till your late to test. I hate the anxiety that testing brings so I totally understand. When would AF be due for you? Sending you tons of dust this cycle!!!

S&I, I think you'll really be able to pinpoint O with temping and OPK's for sure. And I agree with dreamer on the age factor. Good Luck this cycle!

NEL, hi lady! Miss you and hope you are doing well! I am really positive about this cycle and I just hope we can be blessed with a sticky bean!

ALL - My best advice on OPK's is to buy the cheapy ones that show the two lines and the digitals. Start using the cheapy ones as soon as your period ends and watch the second line get darker. When the second line is getting darker and close to being positive - start using digitals too. I found I got a lot of positives from the cheapy ones but only 1-2 days of positives with the digitals. IMO, the cheapies are a great tool to use to watch O get closer and closer and the digitals are a great tool to confirm O. Just my 2 cents! I also recommend to start BD'ing EOD when the second line on the cheapy is getting darker and close to being positive. Then as soon as you get a smiley on a digital, BD that day and the day after. Hope that helps!!!

AFM, 4dpo!

 

[PilsnPinkysMom]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Lizzy: I think I will follow your advice, especially as it relates to OPK use in the future. I think your method will save me money and ward of stress. Time to put an order on Amazon! (Whatever happened to my plan to 'go with the flow'?)

And simply because I love looking at others' photos, here are two of my FR OPK strips. One is an almost-positive (that I incorrectly interpreted as positive) from 48 hours ago. The other is my clearly-positive from this morning. FR says that to be positive, the test line must be the same as or darker than the control. No comments regarding width of the line.

Of course, these results mean absolutely nothing other than there's a LH surge goin' on. Whether or not I will actually ovulate is undetermined.

 

[S&I]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

lizzyann, how do you keep busy during the TWW? I have absolutely no patience.

PPM, your temp won't spike until after you ovulate, so I'm thinking it'll go up either tomorrow or the next day, given the results of today's OPK. Good luck!

AFM, I used my first Wondfo stick this morning on CD10, and I think I can see the world's most faintest line ever. I know that isn't much to get excited about, since it's got a long way to go before it gets as dark as the control line. But at least it's a start! I'm looking forward to seeing it get darker and darker - I'm such a dork!

 

[Dreamer_D]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

Dreamer (In case you’re lurking!): Thanks for the EWCM insight. If it was EWCM it did not precede ovulation, which is entirely possible. Is your birth story up yet??? I have read Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth and really enjoyed it. I want to pick up Spiritual Midwifery next.

Its not written up yet, I'll let you know when I post it! My friend also sent me "Birthing from Within" when I was pregnant with my first, she did a home birth. It was not really my style but a good book none-the-less.

 

[monkeyprincess]

Re: The Official TTC Thread!

PPM, based on your OPKs, you will likely be ovulating soon. Keep monitoring those temps!

S&I, you've definitely come to the right place. I think we all get dorkishly excited about the little things Just wait til you have a smiley

Lizzy, hope you are doing well. I'm feeling optimistic for you!

AFM, my hopes are a bit dashed for this cycle. I checked my CP earlier today for the heck of it, and I noticed some red spotting in my CM (sorry, TMI). And I just checked again and noticed a little more. That seems to be a pre-cursor for AF for me. It's not over til it's over, but darnit anyway. I should be used to this feeling by now, but it hurts each time. Sorry to be a downer. Dust to the rest of you in the 2WW!