General chatter while we wait (and commentary on the "pull out method")

[shaescott]

You could check the local stores in Italy for them? but yeah, good idea to save them. I got lucky and got my peak this cycle on the last OPK that I had. I was so nervous that I wouldn't catch it because ordering more online would have taken way too long and I didn't want to spend the money for the digis in stores.

Yeah I have a full fertility monitor that gives numeric values of estrogen and LH but honestly I don’t want to use it because if I see the app telling me I have high fertility, I morally will have to tell DH that my app is saying I’m fertile. Ignorance is bliss lol. I just had some EWCM when I checked just now but my cervix is only medium height and when I’m fertile it normally is sky high, and sometimes I get EWCM randomly, so I don’t feel the need to tell him about it. I would take an OPK but we haven’t DTD in like 2 days at least because he pulled a muscle in his back and he’s wanting to do it tonight so honestly I don’t want to take one and have it be positive and morally have to tell him I’m fertile. Still kinda sketchy, not gonna lie, but my natural birth control app says I’m not fertile/safe so that’s what I’m going by. Starting Sunday it will say I’m fertile/not safe and at that point I will start using the fertility monitor. If my progesterone is high/I’ve already ovulated or it says I’m about to ovulate, yay me, I got lucky. I’m praying for that early ovulation haha but we’ll see. All up to God.

 

[Kiwiberry]

Yeah I have a full fertility monitor that gives numeric values of estrogen and LH but honestly I don’t want to use it because if I see the app telling me I have high fertility, I morally will have to tell DH that my app is saying I’m fertile. Ignorance is bliss lol. I just had some EWCM when I checked just now but my cervix is only medium height and when I’m fertile it normally is sky high, and sometimes I get EWCM randomly, so I don’t feel the need to tell him about it. I would take an OPK but we haven’t DTD in like 2 days at least because he pulled a muscle in his back and he’s wanting to do it tonight so honestly I don’t want to take one and have it be positive and morally have to tell him I’m fertile. Still kinda sketchy, not gonna lie, but my natural birth control app says I’m not fertile/safe so that’s what I’m going by. Starting Sunday it will say I’m fertile/not safe and at that point I will start using the fertility monitor. If my progesterone is high/I’ve already ovulated or it says I’m about to ovulate, yay me, I got lucky. I’m praying for that early ovulation haha but we’ll see. All up to God.

Does your husband not want kids right now? Is that why you don't really want to tell him if your fertile or not or use the fertility monitor?

 

[DobbyForever]

Shae I vote save them and don’t but more. Not because of the morality issue because it’s a morality issue regardless if that’s even part of the convo, but because it’s your honeymoon. Have all the honeymoon sex and not stress about when O comes. I’m still honeymoon baby but in a I’m living my life not tracking just DTD-ing kind of way. If that makes sense. Like how it would have happened before fertility monitors and opks and women knew to check their cm/position lol

Kiwi FXed on your TWW. We love over analyzing test pics whenever you start testing

 

[shaescott]

Kiwi yeah, he wants to wait until we can afford to be a single income household, which honestly might not ever happen, so he’s agreed to the natural cycles app that gives me safe days and not safe days based on my previous cycles, and if we screw up or the app is wrong and I get pregnant, that’s okay, we’ll just have a baby earlier than planned. He knows the app isn’t perfect and is okay with that. Using the fertility monitor is not part of our prevention plan, we’ve been using the app for over 2 years now and I’ve only had the fertility monitor for a few months, and I got it to learn more about my hormone levels and make sure the levels were doing what they were supposed to. The OPKs aren’t even part of the prevention plan, they’re just used to know when to expect my period, because once it’s positive obviously you’ve been fertile for days, so it wouldn’t help prevent.


Dobs fair. As much as I want to know so I would know conception date, I like the idea of just not stressing and enjoying honeymoon sex regardless of whether it results in anything. We’re just going by the natural cycles safe days and then pulling out once it says not safe (per his request) and if it’s wrong then I got lucky, if not then it wasn’t meant to be.

 

[PrettyInInk42]

Hello Kiwi. FX that your TWW is successful.

shae - Glad to hear you're having such a good time in Italy, minus the few minor annoyances. Every time I read what you've written about your experiences, it just makes me think of Jersey Shore season 4 when they went to Italy. lol. Sorry that your cycle and DH aren't plying ball when it comes to getting pg on your trip. But I remember back when you guys were talking about rings and waiting for him to propose. Now, here you are, married. I'm sure the babies will come soon.

Dobby - It may be time to cut your losses with RS. Like you said, having serious talks already isn't great and it seems like he's not quite ready for a proper commitment atm. Just my opinion. You're too mature and busy to be dealing with all that.
How's your leg been recently?

AFM, more crappy news. My back license plate got stolen on Monday night/Tuesday morning. In my province, you need a plate on the front and back of your car. The front one was still there, but the back was gone. Had to drag Matthew and Zoey to a local cop shop to file a report cuz you can't do it online or over the phone for stolen license plates. Then had to wait at our "DMV" to get a set of plates just to make my car road-worthy. And just as I'm paying for the plates, Matthew pees his pants (even though I took him to the bathroom before we lined up). All this before 1pm. Then, on Wednesday, I get contacted by the cops staying they found the plate. It was on a vehicle that was also stolen, so the person (dunno if it was a guy or girl) was arrested and charged. That's all the info that I have. I may email the arresting officer to see if they'll give me any more details.
But anyway, Alex has 5 more days of school and Matthew has 4 more days of daycare and then summer break begins for us.

 

[DobbyForever]

True true it is kinda fun to know the exact conception date. FXed for an early O. I love what pretty said about waiting for the proposal and wedding, and we’re here now.

pretty that’s awful! That’s so frustrating and crazy! I guess it’s nice they found it and charged the person, but that’s so violating. Technically we need front and back plates but my dealer didn’t put my front one on. It’s been 6 years with no issue so lol I have it somewhere if I ever get a fix it ticket.

i officially told RS off last night. His whole thing is how you act after five dates is different than a year in terms of willingness to fix problems and I said no you either fix problems or don’t. And he was like well I thought we were making progress this week just talking about the fun stuff and building a foundation that way and I told him I was so angry with each of those conversations because I don’t like sweeping things under a rug. His communication is just so aggravating. He’ll talk for an hour and I have no idea what he is trying to say. Like OA is a self admitted narcissist but at least the communication was healthy and clear and amazing once we ironed out a few things about our individual communication styles. Back to the drawing board.

 

[shaescott]

Pretty I haven’t seen jersey shore, what was their experience in Italy?

I’m so sorry to hear about the license plate fiasco. That’s just terrible. We’ve seen a good amount of people doing scummy things here, though mostly telling people something is free or some low price and after they take it/pay, they demand more money and will make a huge fuss if they don’t pay the new price. Luckily we saw them do it before someone tried it on us, so we knew to say no from the start.

Dobs sorry things went downhill with RS. Communication is essential, so if he refuses to adjust to better communicate with you, it’s a no from me.

AFM I decided to take an ovulation test this morning just in case, but it was negative. Today is my last safe day per the app, so I’ll start using the fertility monitor tomorrow to see if ovulation is close or not, basically so I know if I’ve got a chance or not. If not, not the end of the world. However my high cervix and EWCM the past few days is giving me hope, tbh. I’m trying to remind myself that my cervix is fickle and I can’t trust it 100%, so I shouldn’t get too excited.

Florence was lovely except for the fact it was so hot I got mild heat stroke while visiting Pisa and I got eaten alive by mosquitoes in our hotel room but the excursions were great. We got to see the statue of David (it’s like 20 feet tall, I thought it was like 10 feet tall or less) and I got some great pictures. We are actually going to get one printed and hang it in our bathroom I’d post it, but I don’t want to risk getting yelled at for the nudity by BnB even though it’s art.

Now we’re in Venice. Unfortunately yesterday our train was delayed by an hour and we had to miss our dinner cruise. We were pretty sad about that, but it is what it is. We had our gondola ride this evening, which was cool, but not as romantic as expected, since the gondoliers were all talking to each other as they passed (like full on chatting), they didn’t exactly create romantic vibes lol. But we spent a few hours exploring Venice, I got a very expensive lingerie set lol, and we got some blown glass souvenirs. Overall, we’re having a great time. The food and wine have been phenomenal. Turns out, I actually like wine that’s not meant to be dessert wine (aka moscato), at least Italian wine. I just get a glass of the house white and usually like it. I’m still not a huge red wine fan lol. DH got us 2 bottles of Chardonnay (French grape but this winery grew them in Italy) to bring home, he thought it would be great for a picnic.

 

[shaescott]

no LH rise but guyssssss

 

[DobbyForever]

Feeling tired and lazy. But Shae your trip sounds like a ton of fun! You know, our train and bus both ran late in Pisa! It was back when they let you go up but we’re very strict on your appointment. We technically missed ours by ten minutes, but the guard let us up because my little brothers and I started crying. But not in a whiny way just sad silent tears

 

[DobbyForever]

I’m so glad the app deciphered the numbers lol cuz I wouldn’t have known what that meant haha. FXed for honeymoon baby! But if your app says your in your fertile window and you know, do you feel like you’re obliged to tell DH?

 

[shaescott]

Dobs I did tell DH, don’t worry. Yesterday was my last safe day per the natural cycles FAM app, and I took the fertility monitor test this morning. We BD’d last night so Fx’d for me.

 

[DobbyForever]

Here’s hoping here’s some some endurance swimmers. Did he give any inklings about being potentially less careful since you’re married/honeymoon? Be interesting to see if he’s a little more risky now that you’re officially married.

 

[shaescott]

GUYS GUYS GUYS GUYS GUYS

I took a test just now (almost 10 pm italy time) and my LH is higher than I’ve ever seen it with the fertility monitor and I have a super strong positive OPK! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Now to see if my family fertility actually got passed on to me. DH is handling it okay, this afternoon he was like “hey if we have a kid, we have a kid, it’s okay”. Last night I had a dream that I had a little baby girl on my hip, not a newborn but young, had head support and all but not walking or anything. I hope I get pregnant with a little girl, but of course a successful pregnancy is top priority. I pray God lets me get pregnant and lets it be viable and successful.

 

[DobbyForever]

Ooo ho ho so let’s say tomorrow is O at the latest cuz that is super dark. That makes your bd 0-2 at max? Definitely good odds. And the bd wasn’t p/o, right? Full payload? FXed for you! How much longer are you in Italy! Ok bad influence. I know UK has weeks estimators, does Italy?! Can you grab like 4 before you fly back if you do?

 

[Flueky88]

Shae OMG well FX that you O tonight or tomorrow! That would put you in with a great chance! Also your wedding pictures are gorgeous!!

Dobby sorry RS didn't work out but I definitely don't blame you for ending that.

Pretty sorry about all the hassle that you've had to put up with. Also lovely pictures of Zoey and her party. So hard to believe she is 1 y.o.

Giggle I love the renovation on the catch all corner!!

Hi and welcome Kiwi!

Josephine huge congrats on your recent bfp!


Sorry I can't fully respond. I've been struggling a bit mentally, a little depressed, but seem to be getting better. So I've just been so exhausted on the weekends.

Things are fairly good otherwise though. Girls are good and healthy. I heard from preK coordinator last week about S. She told me to expect a call mid September to let me know one way or another if S can get into PreK. They have to wait until the state tells them they can open up spots to those above the income threshold. She said that as it was there were plenty of spots but that she can't guarantee what will happen from now til then. Completely understand and will be grateful if she gets in.

 

[shaescott]

Flueks sorry to hear you’ve been struggling much love to you. I hope S gets into pre-K, do you have a plan if she doesn’t?
Thanks for the love re: wedding pictures

Dobs yes, O-2, and full payload! Idk if Italy has the weeks estimators, their pharmacies are tiny, they don’t have any big stores like CVS or Walmart, at least in the city center. For some reason half the pharmacy shelves are skin care lmao, and ibuprofen is behind the counter we discovered. We’re here until the 30th, only 4 more days

 

[shaescott]

Update on the weeks estimators: I checked at a supermarket and nothing, they didn’t even have a name brand pregnancy test in stock, only a clear blue digital ovulation test. But that’s okay, I’ll just pay for betas to track hcg progression instead of using a weeks estimator.

I’m honestly nervous that I didn’t inherit my family’s fertility, because quite frankly I don’t think I’m going to get another chance from DH any time soon. And of course I’m scared that I’ll get pregnant and have a miscarriage, and again, not get another chance. I was supposed to ovulate 24 hours ago and my cervix is still high and I still have EWCM, I’m pretty sure it usually drops/stops faster than that, so I’m like what if something went wrong with ovulation? Idk, I know there’s nothing I can do about it so I might as well chill out, but it’s hard.

 

[PrettyInInk42]

shae - Oooooo, that looks promising. I think your timeline is bordering on girl territory, based on The Babydust Method. That being said, I've heard if you dream about a certain gender, you'll have the opposite. Either way, keeping everything crossed for you!
Ya, I've heard David's pretty big. My mom loved seeing him back in the 80's. She legit has a 2' replica of him in her living room. lol
Re: Jersey Shore. Just the same old drunk shenanigans, but having to walk down cobblestone streets in heels. And there was one time that Snooki crashed their rental car into a cop car. She was sober though. And the only one of the girls who drove cuz she knew how to drive stick.
Also, I only drink Moscato too, if I'm even gonna have wine.

Flueky - Sorry you were feeling down, but glad to hear you're starting to get back to your old self. And FX S can get into PreK.

AFM, just 2 more days of school for Alex and Matthew goes to daycare on Wednesday and Friday and then that's it. Summer break. And then, in a couple more months, I'll have 2 elementary schoolers. :')
In other news, SO and I have finally talked to a contractor about getting our kitchen fixed up. And he came back with a quote: $45,000. We thought it would be in the $10-15K range, so either this guy is crazy or we seriously have no idea what stuff costs. We asked to have a few things taken off the to do list and altered a few other things and the price came down to $37,800, but that's still way over our budget. Apparently we have another contractor that lives 3 doors down from us, so we're gonna get him to have a look next week and see what he says.
Lastly, I convinced SO to DTD without protection on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. According to my fitbit app, I should be getting AF in the next day or so, so we're well within the safe range. He's slightly waiting in pins and needles for me to tell him I've started it though. lol

 

[DobbyForever]

Fluek hugs. Glad you’re feeling better. Hopefully she gets into the prek. And hopefully some you time soon.

Pretty oh my! You know, I thought 1 room remodels were 10-20k, but my mom told me it cost nearly 60k to do her remodel. They just did some interior cleanup painting, converted a laundry room to a bathroom, and updated the kitchen. Nuts. Hopefully the second person can get you a better quote. She also wanted to add a bedroom or convert the garage to an adu, but so far the quotes are all closer to 100k!
Are the kids excited for summer?

Shae I agree sounds like girl timing though tbh I think my pregnancies are a mixed bag and most were -1 or -2 timing. FXed I think the cervix doesn’t close immediately. I had an exam the day after O and she said it was still slightly open. Otherwise all those O+1 spermies wouldn’t get past the get lol. That’s crazy about the tests lol they have to be somewhere. But if I recall in Geneva the grocery stores were grocery stores. They don’t sell pregnancy tests. You needed a pharmacy. They had tiny stores that focused on a very specific thing. Same for the town I stayed in in Germany. Enjoy your last few days! Maybe order a couple on Amazon’s Europe site to your hotel Lmfao jk jk mostly

afm I’m exhausted. Horse camp is so much fun! A is in a group of 4, and he and one other boy are definitely the handful of the group haha. Second week of horsemanship (grooming and leading) went better. We’re ditching school but oh well lol. Saw OA and he spoiled me. He’s moved into a cute little SFH in the same downtown area. His daughter has her own room now down the hall from his master. He surprised me with dinner. Cooked me a perfect ribeye, asparagus, and tiramisu. We played catch up then DTD on his staircase then his bed. He said I couldn’t stay over originally but then didn’t want md to leave so we cuddled all night. Then we DTD in the morning and he walked me to my car. It was exactly what I needed. Haven’t heard from RS but I think he’s in Italy/I don’t wanna hear from him lol. OA was like wow sounds like you’re just living your best life and I’m like that’s my motto!

oh so the kid across the street gets to stay at the school with transportation! His mom just emailed the district and said our homeschool is not inclusive and she refuses to send her kids there and expects busing! And they gave it to her no questions asked!!!! WTAF. My new lawyer is setting up a meeting to see if he can just talk them into it. Haven’t heard back. I’m so pissed. The only difference is he’s white, blond hair, blue eyes. It’s even worse because they just changed his placement to Gen Ed not sdc! He’s mainstreamed so he could tech go to any school. A is 49% SDC with their latest offer. Ridiculous

 

[shaescott]

Dobs yeah I’m hoping the O-2 is girl timing. The pharmacies here are tiny, literally no aisles at all. The grocery store actually had a section with feminine products, baby stuff, condoms, etc. I don’t think we have time to order off Amazon lol, we fly out at 10 am Friday and it’s 10 pm Wednesday. But that’s okay, I know when I ovulated, and I honestly would rather do betas than weeks estimators.

I’m glad OA treated you to a wonderful evening. Sounds like you had an amazing time!

That’s crazy that the other boy got all those accommodations. Definitely use that case as an example to get what you need.

Pretty it’s so crazy that the boys are getting so big. It’s wild to see kids conceived during this thread that are in elementary school now. And $45,000?! That’s crazy. But I also don’t know normal pricing so maybe it’s just that crazy expensive.

AFM CM has turned sticky but cervix is still high. Odd. Might drop soon though, I’m sure my body doesn’t know if it’s pregnant yet. Now I’m all anxious that I won’t be pregnant or I will but I’ll have a miscarriage or a million other things that could go wrong. Agh.