VICTORY!!

The old skank whore finally decided to show her face... which is good because I wasn't sure if my boobs or my brain would explode first from their respective painful swelling/frustration.

It must've been the cookies that I had last night--apparently the magic recipe to make her appear is 2 gingerbread, 2 no-bake chocolate cookies, and 2 marshmallow holly wreaths.

So now I get to switch to my new BBT and start tracking! Yahoo!

This is the cycle that will not end. Yes, it goes on and on my friends...

I think Provera is what messed me up. My cycles had been about 38 days for awhile now, but my RE wanted me to try Provera to induce a period during the litany of previous visits, but she'd always show up before I could get to it, so I did that in early October and now I'm stuck on a long cycle.

I didn't think it was possible to O on CD 47, but I started temping around CD 35 and entering them into FF, and I had a dip/spike around CD 47 that FF marked as my O day (but it was only dotted CH's, so who knows).

I had about 15 days of elevated temps after that, but they dropped over the weekend, so I'm sure AF will be soon to follow (my bb's hurt like a mofo), but to add to this massive amount of confusion, my temp was back up again today, but not as high as it was.

Seriously, this cycle has to end!

Dear AF,

Dear AF,

I baked cookies. Lots of cookies. Please come home for Christmas.

Love, Me

Seriously... it's CD 63 and I'm sooo ready for this beeotch to arrive. She no-showed for Thanksgiving, the least she could do would be to show me some love by Christmas...

Dearest Aunt Flo,

I'd like to cordially invite you to my Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. I know this seems like a last minute invitation, but really, I promise that you have been on my mind. It's not just that I'm ready to commence with the charting, obsessing and BD'd that I'm sure is to follow, but seriously? I've just become a hormonal, irrational bitch and I'm hoping that your speedy arrival is the case, not the fact that sometimes I'm just cranky and/or an awful person.

But back to the issue at hand--I'm making turkey and stuffing (I know how much you love carbs!) and I'm going to make an attempt to bake a chocolate and raspberry torte. Maybe I'll throw in a glass of wine and something super salty and we can call it a date, yes?

xoxo, Me, my vagina, and my DH's sanity

Was that a false start?

I was a little worried that I'd posted my TTC thoughts too soon--that DH would get cold feet. But I came home today and he was a little sad--one of his friends in NC called to say his wife is PG and he was a little jealous.

I know it's nothing compared to what girls with trouble TTC have gone through, but that little moment where he was sad was super cute and I think it made him further realize how much he wants this. Maybe we really are there.

Is this it? Is it really, really it?

I know I'm probably getting ahead of myself on a lot of this, but since I try to be an organized list-maker, this is what has transpired in my noggin' lately that makes me think that we've reached the cusp of being ready to TTC (please note that this is not in order of importance):

- I'm turning 30 next year... ICK!
- My maternity leave rocks, as does DH's insurance.
- Savings is in good shape.
- Went to Europe, learned that while I enjoy travel, I do not want to sell off my worldly possessions and become a citizen of the world. Settling down and having kids sounds like a better plan.
- Finishing up my dental work that needs to be done (last real "procedure" is Dec. 2nd).
- I already eat a pretty healthy diet with lots of fruits and vegetables. I've cut back on carbs and kept what I do eat to mostly whole grains. I could do better on the low carbs thing, though. I avoid processed foods, too, but could always do better on going out to eat (but I don't eat fast food).
- I don't drink coffee or pop, but I do drink tea. I need to up my water intake on a daily basis. I've cut back on alcohol for the most part, but I'm sure there's going to be some more holiday fun before I'm officially done with it (and officially TTC).
- I've been taking a prenatal vitamin since last January (RE's recommendation), Target brand.
- I need to add some sort of exercise plan, especially including pilates because of my herniated disc... I've heard it's a b*tch while PG.
- I've learned how to check CM, CP, temp and chart. I'm not 100% sure that I've ever detected ovulation, but I do get EWCM sometimes. This year since we weren't TTC, I just kept CM/general cycle info in FF, but I did do a little temping here and there... I know, I know... Unacceptable. Believe me, I regret this now because I could have a whole year's worth of cycle information at this point instead of wondering and worrying.
- I'm not sharing this information with my family in order to avoid unnecessary questions/suggestions from well-meaning loved ones.
- I did that whole check-up series with my RE this summer and it looks like there's no visual barriers to conception, just a chemical inbalance that prevents ovulation. However, my periods have been more regular this year than ever in my life (Almost every cycle was about 38 days instead of the months and months that I've experienced before--I tend to think it's diet related). So do I give it a couple of months on our own and have an appointment set with my RE for Feb/March? He said that when we're ready to TTC to give him a call, but I'm fairly certain that's just to start clomid.

What am I missing to try to increase our chances of this happening naturally? Preseed? Evening primrose oil? OPK's? I know those things can't increase chances of ovulation, but might they give me a better understanding of what's going on in the uterus department? That's all that I can think of for now.

May I please be crowned the valedictorian of TTC? Or at the very least, the Eagle Scout of TTC?