I'm Engaged!!!

Look at the splendor of my ring! Eric asked me to marry him. I, of course, said yes! Christmas morning he got down on one knee and asked me and I can't stop staring at my ring. It's the most beautiful ring...I'm in love with it and the man who gave it to me!

So, obviously, it was a great Christmas. We went out for sushi on Christmas Eve for the second year in a row at a restaurant that makes the best spicy salmon roll ever. We were the only people in the restaurant, which was actually really nice. I get tired of how loud restaurants are most of the time.

Besides being blinded by diamonds, I also got Wheel of Fortune for Wii. I love it. I mean, who doesn't like Wheel of Fortune, right? I've been watching that show pretty much since it started 27 years ago so when I heard they were making a Wii version I got all excited. Probably more excited than normal people get about a game show but anyway....

So now, I'm on the hunt for a treadmill because it's way too cold outside to take walks but walking is one of the few forms of exercise I can do that doesn't aggravate my RA in some way. Actually, using a treadmill is even better than walking outdoors because my feet don't hurt as much walking on a predictable, even keel rather than outdoors where there are bumps and other things that make it slightly unsteady. Even the littlest thing will make the RA in my feet really hurt. Blah blah blah.

In other news, it's just about ovulation time again! Yay! I haven't been stressed about baby-making at lately. It's nice for a change. Here's hoping that it works this cycle. :)

Meh

Well, the wicked witch of the east showed up today (AF) so I'm absolutely, definitely not preggo. Oh well. The up side is that my luteal phase ending up being 12 days this cycle. Not the 14 I had hoped for but also not the 10 I'm used to. I also don't have any premenstrual cramps any longer although I do still have the spotting so the B6 and P cream are doing something.

Eric had his nasal surgery yesterday and they kept him overnight to make sure his breathing was okay since he has sleep apnea. His surgery went really well and he's home with me now and not feeling any pain. He hasn't even needed any pain medication beyond Tylenol. The surgeon fixed his severely deviated septum and sort of roto-rootered his sinus passages. I'm really impressed by the hospital we were in because they were super efficient but also genuinely kind and compassionate. The nurses were so sweet and attentive to both Eric and me and even the surgeon was very nice and personable, which I find is rather rare with surgeons. I think I'm going to write them a thank you letter because so often people take the time to complain about bad service but rarely take the time to praise good service.

Well....have to go change my honey's bandages!

Argh!

So, I'm only 10 DPO and I'm spotting. Last night I had a strange pinching sort of pain in my uterus area that went away rather quickly and then I had some residual tenderness for a couple of hours but it was mild. It was very different from what I usually experience in the days before AF so I was a bit hopeful that it was implantation. I can't shut off my brain when it comes to thinking baby thoughts! So fast forward to just about a half hour ago and I had some bright red spotting and then nothing. So, theoretically it really could be implantation spotting but from what I understand it's not terribly common, maybe 30% of women have experienced this. If it's not implantation bleeding it means the dreaded AF is already here. At only 10 DPO??? I haven't had that happen for a while. Once I started taking B6 supplements my luteal phase lengthened to 14 days.

This is so frustrating. I'm trying not to stress and just let whatever happens happen but it's difficult. I want to have a baby so badly and the constant back and forth of my cycle is getting to me. I guess for the time being I need to just keep focusing on losing weight and doing all the stuff I'm supposed to. I have vowed to myself that I will not obsess about baby stuff today and instead put my energy into something else so wish me luck! :)

Click this to print a coupon for free fries at Wendy's!

http://wendysfry4all.com/c/VVhAy1iy

I hate the TWW!

I'm only 5 days into the TWW and going slightly crazy, as usual. Last night I had the weirdest dreams. We're talking finding newborn babies floating on a stream nestled in giant squash blossoms kind of dreams! It was all very Anne Geddes-like and was actually pleasant despite how strange it sounds. So of course now I'm wondering if having a baby dream means I'm pregnant! I have strange sensations in my uterus area and my nips are so sore! All of these things can very easily be explained by luteal phase progesterone spikes and the fact that I have babies on the brain. This is the wonderful thing about the TWW (I say very sarcastically). I'm constantly wondering with no real answers until the TWW is over. I guess that's why they call it the two week wait......

Success...sort of

Success, in that I ovulated...yay! My temp has been up for three days and Fertility Friend concurs that I have indeed ovulated. So I am now officially on day 3 of the dreaded TWW. I didn't have too much hope for this cycle because pneumonia has been lurking in our household but we managed to get in enough BDing to qualify! :) So, I'm on my dirt lotion (progesterone cream) and crossing my fingers. I'm really trying to stay focused on my other obsession, couponing and bargain hunting, so that I don't over-obsess in the TWW like I usually do. The TWW is usually filled with many, many anxieties and I've become (as most of us who are TTC do) so in tune with my body that any little change is noticed and I wonder if it means I'm pregnant. Argh. But fortunately it's Sunday today and that means a new batch of coupons and store ads to mull over so my mind is occupodo.

This past week was rife with free stuff for me. Gotta love that! I received two full size products that I'm testing for manufacturer's, my free Melissa & Doug toy arrived (don't know who to give it to yet...or maybe I'll keep it for my future little one!), and because Eric had pneumonia and had to get prescription medicine, we have gotten $50 worth of free groceries at Meijer. I love that pharmacies pay me to get my medicine! Oh, I also started entering contests selectively and won a $25 gift card to Little Caesar's Pizza and something else that I can't remember at the moment....

I'm actually amazed at how many items I have gotten lately where I have actually made money. Toothpaste is by far the most frequent freebie so far. I don't know what items experienced couponers frequently get for free but so far for me it has been toothpaste, toothbrushes, dental floss, razors of all kinds, lotion, and candy. It's like manufacturers want us to get cavities and yet have good oral care! I had such a great Rite Aid trip this week that the store clerk, at the end of my transaction, looked at my shopping cart full of items, charged me $2.75 and made this noise "mmm mmm mmm!" in a very approving way. The person behind us looked in our cart when she heard the total as if to say 'how did they get all that stuff for $2.75?'. Saving money is awesome.

Now I'm at the point where we have such a stockpile of things that we really have no more room for more so I'm only buying stuff this next week if they're literally giving it away or I'm making money off of it.

Well, here's hoping that the TWW will go by fast!