[Non Baby Related] My One Year Anniversary!

Ering
Originally uploaded by Bebe Bliss

This post is long overdue. Beginning of this month, I celebrated our one year anniversary in Monterey, California.

I gifted my husband with a rare vintage Collection of Babar Stories: 50th Anniversary Edition hardcover book. I originally wanted to get a first edition of one of his favorite classic children's book. Unfortunately, this idea sprung a day before our trip and I was scrabbling online and boutique bookstores all over. Didn't realize how expensive books can be!

My wonderful husband gave me this gorgeous diamond ring. It's a beautiful round brilliant cut 2.31 ct solitaire set in platinum. I can't tell you the joy I get everyday putting on this ring and looking at its brilliance. You see, it took my husband one year to get my engagement ring. When we first married, we only had our wedding bands as they were very inexpensive. It took a year, but I am so happy I waited!

I took this photo on my iPhone so it's a little out of focus. Will post better photos soon. Don't you just LOVE diamonds? My new BFF!

Thank Heaven for Little Girls!

I just died! My daily go-to online sales just featured [insert details] Luna Luna. It wasn't the 65% off all on items, but the lito girls section of the site filled with adorable dresses and little pink outfits.






TODDLER PRINCESS T SHIRT ORIGINAL RETAIL / $26.00
SALE PRICE / $9.10 (65% OFF)
Soft and girly short sleeve tee with an adorable old fashioned graphic on front.

Baby Events

So as I mentioned in my previous post, the last few months have been "uncomfortable" for me.

What's more uncomfortable is the attention I need to give to my friends who are expecting. Goodness, what happened? I used to be such a sweet happy friend! Always in the festive mood and ready to go above and beyond for good friends. These days, I'm just gritting my teeth as I have to sit through baby showers and try to keep up to par with the rest of the girls as I try to lavish mommy-to-be friends with sweetness and encouragement.

I have to say, what keeps me going to these baby events is the shopping. I love looking at baby stuff! Sadly, it's the only thing that actually makes me feel happy and excited. If I could, I would be buying stuff to fill an empty nursery already. So I make mental notes here and there. I go online and try to look for the same merchandise at a discount. I imagine how I would set up the nursery and as sad as this sounds, it makes me feel hopeful.

I found this cute Elegant Baby Piggy Bank (retails for $31) at an online sale for $14! It comes in different colors and sizes and was featured in O Magazine. Adorable!

[FAM] Chart Cycle Day 75

My cycle reached 75 days before I finally started my next cycle. By Day 65, I was going absolutely crazy. I was an emotional mess, my body just wasn't responding well. I constantly ate and my face broke out like a teenager. Sigh....It's been frustrating to say the least.

Anyway, I couldn't take it anymore and went to go see my gyno who prescribed me progestrone pills to help jump start my period. After taking it for 6 days, I did notice some spotting which then went on for a few days and that was it. That was my period after 75 days of hell.

I don't understand how six months prior to me TTC, my cycles were normal, usually 36 days! Now that I'm finally ready to start a family, my body has gone crazy! I tell my husband that perhaps it's a sign from God, that maybe we should wait.

[FAM] Chart Cycle Day 22

The anticipation is starting to get to me.

Is this finally the day I'll ovulate? Have I ovulated, will I?

Usually prior to ovulation, there's a dip in temperature before it skyrockets up. It's the rise in temperature that indicates you have finally ovulated, but looking at my chart, it's hard to interpret what happened.

I feel a little antsy because I haven't seen consistent fertile fluids in the last few days. Extremely fertile conditions is when you see cervical fluid that look and feel similiar to eggwhites.



Everyday I've been taking my BBT and charting online (FertilityFriend.com), but it's becoming a little frustrating trying to read my chart. Maybe I'm just impatient. I mean, I think I really believed I would get pregnant at the first try.

Day 3 FSH Level
Before this last cycle I had in January, my last period date was November 4th. About three days into my cycle, I went to the lab to get my hormones tested and my FSH result was 8.

Interpretation for DPC Immulite assay - 2007:
Less than 10 - Reassuring level. Expect a good response to ovarian stimulation.

10 - 12 - Fair. Response is between completely normal and somewhat reduced (response varies widely). Overall, a somewhat reduced live birth rate.

12- 15 - Reduced ovarian reserve. Usually show a reduced response to stimulation and some reduction in egg and embryo quality with IVF. Reduced live birth rates on the average.

Source: Advanced Fertility Center of Chicago

Prenatal Vitamins Prescribed

My ob-gyn prescribed Prenate Elite ($69 retail for 30 day supply, with insurance it brought the cost down to $35) to kick start my nutritional health. I didn't quite understand why I had to take these as opposed to just over-the-counter type prenatal vitamins.

What's strange about these vitamins is each tablet is prepackaged in tin foil trays, like certain gums or allergy meds. I was expecting it to be bottled, like most multi-vitamins. Well, what was alarming for me was that there was no info on what each unit contains. Of course, I had to go online and find out what goodies these little oval pills were jam packed with.

Prenate Elite - Each tablet contains:
Elemental Iron (carbonyl iron) 90 mg
Biotin 30 mcg
Pantothenic acid (calcium pantothenate, USP) 6 mg
Calcium (calcium carbonate, USP) 200 mg
Copper (cupric oxide) 2 mg
Zinc (zinc oxide, USP) 15 mg
Folate (L-methylfolate as Metafolin 600 mcg and folic acid, USP 400 mcg) 1 mg --> Very Good
Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) 400 IU
Vitamin E (dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate) 10 IU
Vitamin C (ascorbic acid, USP) 120 mg
Vitamin B1 (thiamine mononitrate) 3 mg
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin, USP) 3.4 mg
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine HCl) 20 mg
Vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin) 12 mcg
Niacinamide, USP 20 mg
Magnesium (magnesium oxide, USP) 30 mg
Docusate Sodium, USP 50 mg

Other Ingredients: calcium phosphate dibasic, carnauba wax, crospovidone, dextrin, dl-alpha tocopherol,gelatin, hypromellose, lactose, magnesium stearate, mono and diglycerides, polacrilin, pregelatinized starch,propylene glycol, silicon dioxide, sodium benzoate, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, starch, stearic acid, sucrose, titanium dioxide, and other ingredients.

Source: Drugs.com

[TTC] BBT Ovulation

How much does my temperature have to rise to indicate ovulation?

In most cases, you are able to see a biphasic pattern on your chart after ovulation has taken place. That is, you will have lower pre-ovulation temperatures and higher post-ovulation temperatures. Your temperature may rise slowly in increments, or quickly, or it may even rise and fall slightly over several days. The rise in temperature is usually about 0.4 degrees Fahrenheit or 0.2 degrees Celsius, but the rise may be as slight as 0.2 degrees Fahrenheit or 0.1 degrees Celsius or even less in some cases. Great variability is possible.

More important than the value of the rise, is the overall pattern of the chart. Fertility Friend helps you determine ovulation based on the pattern of the chart and all fertility signs. Because there are no standard rules that can apply to everyone, Fertility Friend has been tuned and trained to recognize a wide range of ovulation patterns on your chart, based on all your signs.

*Here are some example charts found on their gallery. Most of these are from women similiar to myself - Late Ovulaters, or long cycles with Pre-O Dips.







Source: FertilityFriend.com

[TTC] Go Go Go Sperm!

How long can sperm survive in fertile cervical fluid?


The longest that sperm can survive in fertile (eggwhite) cervical fluid is five days. All pregnancies can be attributed to intercourse that takes place within the five days before ovulation and the day of ovulation.


Sperm, however, do not typically survive for five days, even in fertile cervical fluid. A life span of 2-3 days is much more typical for sperm, even in fertile cervical fluid- less if there is no fertile cervical fluid.


To maximize your chances of conception, keep having intercourse until ovulation is confirmed by a clear and sustained thermal shift as intercourse closer to ovulation is much more likely to get you pregnant.

[TTC] Recording Intercourse

How do I record intercourse that takes place in the night?

There are a few options for recording intercourse data. You can use any one of them, as long as you are consistent.

You can go by a 24 hour clock and record any intercourse that occurs before midnight for the previous day and any later intercourse for the following day.

You can record any intercourse that occurs once you are in bed for the night for the following day. This method is the most natural since you don't have to go back to the previous day's data when entering information in the morning. It is often more accurate as well since the intercourse data entry is more relevant to the following morning's temperature than the previous one.

You can use the AM/PM options on the data entry page to indicate when intercourse took place.

Source: FertilityFriend.com

[FAM] Is for Family

Fertility Awareness Method (FAM)

Some time last year, when the realization hit me that I was well past the age I had in mind to start having a family, I began to research on books and other information about prepregnancy.

I had such little knowledge on the matter having only a few friends who had actually given birth and not many of them talk about the time before the pregnancy. It's as if that period in their life never happened. They were living their lives one day and poof - they're preggers!

I suppose that's usually how it goes. Majority of couples don't really plan out and strategize on the timing of their pregnancy. It just sort of happens for most women. If I had a choice, I would love to have a "surprise" pregnancy, but that wouldn't suffice for this super control-freak.

It wasn't til I started perusing Taking Charge of Your Fertility: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control and Pregnancy Achievement by Toni Weschler, I discovered FAM, or Fertility Awareness Method.

Because I was so impatient, I just purchased the book and then started researching on FAM online. Had I done it the other way, I probably would not have bought the book. Although it is very informative, there's just so much info on the web and with great resourceful websites such as FertilityFriend.com, you really don't need to be that educated on it.

What is FAM? It's a method of following your cycle from Day 1 to ovulation and beyond. By taking your daily basal body temperature, you will be able to chart and see what your temperature pattern is and determine when you ovulated in that cycle. You can also keep track of your cervical fluid and check the position of your cervix to help give accurate assessment of the big O day. I don't check my cervix, but I do keep a note with my daily temps on my cervical fluid action.

If you do it right, your chart will reveal:
-when you've ovulated
-how long your luteal phase is

These are super important if you want to conceive. It will give you and your doctor insight into any potential fertility problems if you and your partner have been trying for longer than six cycles with no + sign on that HPT.

I started officially charting at the start of the year. Let's see how it goes~

[TTC] Home Pregnancy Test

When should I take a home pregnancy test (HPT)?

You can take HPT as soon as two weeks after conceiving.

When will an HPT give me a positive result if I am pregnant?

HPT taken as soon as two weeks after ovulation, can show a very faint positive line. Do not be confused by this. A line, however faint still means BFP!!

Additional Info:
You need to know when you ovulated before you can reliably determine when to take a pregnancy test. Your BBT chart can help you determine how many days past ovulation you are. You can take an HPT when you are past your usual luteal phase length (the time between ovulation and when you get your period) but if your usual luteal phase length is shorter than 13 days, then you should probably consider waiting a day or two longer.
Once you have a full cycle charted in Fertility Friend, a reasonable test date will be proposed to you based on your cycle statistics. If you do not have a full cycle charted, the software will recommend waiting until you are 18 days past ovulation to avoid the disappointment of early negative or false negative results and wasting tests.
Whether or not you test earlier than is recommended really depends on your attitude towards seeing negative or false-negative test results. In general, results are usually accurate once you are 14 days or more past ovulation but if you want to avoid wasting tests and your luteal phase length is longer than that, or you do not know your usual luteal phase length, waiting a bit longer is recommended.

Source: FertilityFriend.com

{le} Baby Bliss

Happy New Year!

The start of 2009 was a mighty happy one for this married, 31 year old internet addict. Fresh off a fun-filled Carribean holiday, with uninhibited smoking, boozing, and late night dancing. A homecoming to kicking all my nasty habits and taking folic acid, why? Because this is the year we start trying to conceive {TTC}, I have to say babydancing has been fun so far!

Background:
I finally married the love of my life last April and have been happily awaiting the perfect time to start a family. Of course after many months, I've learned that there is no such thing as the "right time" to start having babies. For me, it's just a dream come true that I'll be {TTC}.

Although there isn't the perfect time to start a family, you do need to prepare yourself for the biggest life changing event of your life - motherhood.

Advice I wish I Received:
Try to accomplish as much as you can. If you are young, try to party and enjoy as much as you can...just get that out of your system. And for heaven's sake, travel travel, TRAVEL!!!

Life is not fun if you have regrets and although there's no way we can live flawlessly, try to minimize those moments of regret as much as possible. I still haven't seen the City of Lights, Barcelona, Niagra Falls, the French Riveria, or the Sahara Desert. I've always daydreamed of Paris and the little cafes and the bread! Oh my, the food and wine....deeply inhaling a cigarette with my Jackie 'O dark glasses, reading French Vogue and discussing high fashion and art. Such a shame....but I am grateful for the places I have traveled to and the chic moments I've had. I will have to post my travels another day for this introductory has gotten much too long!

Thanks for reading,

{TTC} Bebe Bliss