Queer Conceptions April 2010 - Page 9

[AmandaMom]

Giggle - Have you tested again today? When is AF usually due? I'm thinking your test could be more faint depending on how concentrated your urine was... So if you peed only an hour or two before you tested, it would be more faint than if you used first-morning urine. IDK. Thinking of you and crossing my fingers so much they hurt!

escher - We also wanted to use a KD and even had one picked out who agreed to help us. Too many problems with that though: He lives in AZ, my cycles are unpredictable at best, we didn't want to wait for the 6-month quarantine to have his stuff frozen and stored for IUI, plus here in NC the laws are not on our side for using a KD and having DP do a 2nd parent adoption. It all added up to too much, so we went with an identity-release donor through TSBC.

library - I'm in total agreement when it comes to redhead males. They often cannot pull it off as well as we can! I love my red hair now, but I really hated it as a child. I remember telling my aunt about how I was teased for being different, and she told me to just wait... before long I would be getting all kinds of positive attention because I was different. Boy, was she right! Julianne Moore wrote a cute children's book called Freckleface Strawberry. You and lauren (and anyone else) should check it out.

AmandaHope - It sounds like you have a great plan! I've got a good feeling about your KD's fresh swimmers and this cycle.

Newbian Mama - I can't wait to see pictures of your baby when s/he decides to come along! Mixed race babies are especially cute! I expressed this to DP, but she wasn't having it.

lauren - I'll send out some fertilization and cell division thoughts your way! Good luck!

max - GREAT SIGNS! I can't wait to hear about your BFP!

AFM, just dwelling on the fact that AF showed up so early and my temps are kind of high... then I came across the post on the TTC board where someone thought she had her period, had a big temp drop, and believed she was on CD9... when she found out she was preggers. I thought stuff like that was just urban myth.

I will not take a pregnancy test! I will not take a pregnancy test!

[justrose13]

18 dpo

DP and I chose a donor with similar features as DP and based on health, we disregarded personality, eating habits, etc. because we firmly believe in nurture over nature. we ended up using some donors simply because they were available and they didn't even look like either of us. also, we didn't want identity release. we didn't/don't really care what the donor was/is like, our child will be our child. however, it is extremely interesting to hear what is important to others!

AHope, i'm glad you came to a decision! FX that everything lines up perfectly!!

escher, good luck learning to do at-home IUIs! i really wanted to use this option, i hope it works for you!! G/L!

lauren, sounds like your timing will be spot on! :fingerx

max, eeeekk! i have all my limbs crossed for you!!!!!

library, that show sounds too cool! i watched a preview online... i couldn't find anywhere to watch it online though. and we are too cheap to have cable.

giggle, i'm thinking of you and hope for the best!!!

to those in the TWW,

afm, i joined the Q&P thread this evening... i'm still cautious about being excited... my hcg levels are rising pretty slowly... 55hrs doubling from 1st to 2nd and 80hrs from 2nd to 3rd draw... first u/s is next monday, FX for a nice little yolk sac!

[LibraryLady]

Wehrli (and everyone else) if you go to YouTube and enter 'great sperm race' you can watch it in ten minute chunks. It's totally worth it.

Newbian~ are you serious that your bank only had two Black donors? WTF? Ours had plenty, but I wouldn't be in any way prepared to equip a mixed race child with the tools they'd need to negotiate other peoples' ignorance, cute as the kiddo may be. Eyesight is an interesting factor to look for too. I guess I'm lucky in that respect. I just want smart and tall! And, y'know, not crazy. It's going to be hard enough having two mommies in the Bible Belt, best to equip them with as much as you can.

I can't believe tomorrow's only 6 dpo. It feels like it's been a thousand years!!

[maxK]

Dpo 10

AmandaHope- I would have said wait one more day so I think it is a better choice. If you found out that your KD does not have great mobility you may try staying in bed for a while after insemination, or do a headstand

AFM- I broke down and tested tonight, it was a BFN. I still have hope though because it is day 26 of my cycle and I should have AF by now too. The weird thing is I have no symptoms of PMS, bloating or sore boobs.

[justrose13]

max, if you had implantation spotting at 9 dpo maybe it's still early for the test to pick up the hcg?! idk, but i'm holding out some major hope for ya!!!

[LibraryLady]

Ugh, stupid progesterone. My temp is soaring and I'm sick to my stomach, but it's 6dpo so it's all the cruel cruel drugs!


Max~ sorry about the bfn, but I also agree that you shouldn't give up yet, especially if af hasn't shown up. My fingers are crossed for sure!

Pardon me, while I eat a soda cracker and complain about how this probably doesn't mean anything...

[tigerlily1]

to all of those BFPs and

to all of the BFNs and painefaria

AFM: AF is here so please can you move me to waiting to O. I finally told someone other than you guys that we are TTC . It felt good to tell someone and get some good vibes from some good people. I'm quite proud as a person and I don't like failure so I told some friends of ours, as I needed to find the "right" people to tell who I felt I could trust with our information.

Anyway I'll go back to lurking and will be back in a couple of weeks to check back in.

to everyone in the TWW.

[korey]

Hello, Everyone!
I'm new to the forums. Thanks to wehrli for inviting me over!

My partner and I are TTC and we did my first insemination at home Monday night! (ICI, frozen sperm)

I had a weird sensation that I haven't read about anywhere: my cervix and upper vagina were tingling for a good hour or two after the first insemination! The sensation was pleasant, and didn't feel like cramping whatsoever.

I'm taking it as a good sign, and just wondering if anyone has experienced this or has an explanation for it??

Thanks! Looking forward to connecting with you all!

[seraf]

Newbian - that is not nearly enough donor selection! We weren't really looking for a Jewish donor, but when DP saw our guy, he was the obvious favorite.

So we inseminated for the second time last night. I expected a nice temperature spike this morning, as I have had on the 3rd day of positive OPKs for months, but noooooooooooo, that would be too simple. We insemed at midnight last night, so hopefully I'll O today sometime. Of course, I somehow managed to leak lots of the goods out. Guess this turned out to be a practice run anyway. Oh well, I expected it.


To make for a longer 2 week wait, I already started with meaningless symptoms. Woke up nauseated 18 hours post insemination. I even barfed. Haven't barfed since I was knocked up with DS, so I think it was the garlic in my chicken. Happy marinating to all. And peacefull waiting as well!

Seraf

[AmandaHope]

16 dpo: another request for advice (last one this cycle, I promise!)

Welcome, Korey. Good luck with your first (and hopefully only!) TWW!

Max I agree with AMom--with day 9 spotting, it is probably still too early for a reliable hpt response...and you weren't using FMU...so will you test with FMU tomorrow morning? (Or did you already this morning?) Great sign that AF hasn't shown up yet.

AFM, Here's the deal this morning. At 10pm last night, I had a definite test line on the OPK, but it was undoubtedly still lighter than the control line (ie, negative).
First thing this morning, I had an obviously positive OPK and a peak on the monitor. So apparently my LH surge happened over night.
My conclusion is that TODAY is the right day for a fresh insemination.
Alas, my KD is sending the swimmers today, and I can't get them until tomorrow morning.
Today's advice poll: Given that the insemination will occur over 24 hours after the LH surge, should I go ahead with the at-home insem or do an IUI? My past charts suggest that I probably don't O until 24-48 hours after the positive, so I might be ok. But with fresh, conception rates are definitely higher on the day before O, rather than O day itself. The IUI downside (besides $$$!) is that I don't know where I O in that 24-48 hour window, and Brill suggests that IUIs need to be really closely timed (6 hours). (Then again, Brill and others say that most women have the LH surge between 10am-2pm, which apparently isn't true for me...sigh.) Thoughts? Thanks so much!

[Newbian Mama]

AmandaMom - If my kiddo looks anything like me, s/he will be gorgeous

Wow that's an interesting story about the belated pregnant woman! if women can be pregnant for 10 months and never know until they give birth, I believe anything is possible!

Just so you know, my temps are high during AF and then dip drastically 6-8 days into my cycle; I think the dip is cause by the switch from mostly progesterone to mostly estrogen.


LibraryLady - I'm sorry the progesterone is making you ill.

YouTube is our friend Thanks for the info.

Yep, only two Black donors, one Japanese donor, and one Mexican donor. In the past there was more ethnic diversity so maybe some of the sperm was still in quarantine. I really wanted to use a local bank and the other one close to me, The Sperm Bank of CA, has many Black donors but most of them were not donor ID release.

I think it's very mature of you to know what you can and cannot handle. I don't think having a multi-racial child is a decision to be made lightly. Even after I made up my mind to use a White donor, I was still a bit nervous to talk it over with my mom. Her response to my announcement was silence. I asked if she had heard what I said and she said yes and she was still waiting to hear my "big news". She didn't care one way or another. I am grateful that we were raised to acknowledge people's cultural and racial heritage but to never be divided by it. BTW, my mom was also not shocked when I made my other two "big announcements' (that I am bi and I chose to be a solo mom). She's pretty damn cool Sorry for going off on a tangent!

maxK - I'm sorry for your BFN . If AF hasn't come yet and you have no PMS signs there is still hope. Maybe you tested a bit early. :fingersfx

korey - No advice on the tingling but I would take it as a good sign too! Welcome to MDC and to the group!

seraf - Good luck this cycle! I've read so many stories about the imperfect cycle that resulted in a BFP. I hope you'll be the newest mom to tell that story. It only takes one good swimmer to make it your egg so maybe you leaked out some of the lazy ones

Wehrli - How are you?

[Newbian Mama]

Originally Posted by AmandaHope

Welcome, Korey. Good luck with your first (and hopefully only!) TWW!

Max I agree with AMom--with day 9 spotting, it is probably still too early for a reliable hpt response...and you weren't using FMU...so will you test with FMU tomorrow morning? (Or did you already this morning?) Great sign that AF hasn't shown up yet.

AFM, Here's the deal this morning. At 10pm last night, I had a definite test line on the OPK, but it was undoubtedly still lighter than the control line (ie, negative).
First thing this morning, I had an obviously positive OPK and a peak on the monitor. So apparently my LH surge happened over night.
My conclusion is that TODAY is the right day for a fresh insemination.
Alas, my KD is sending the swimmers today, and I can't get them until tomorrow morning.
Today's advice poll: Given that the insemination will occur over 24 hours after the LH surge, should I go ahead with the at-home insem or do an IUI? My past charts suggest that I probably don't O until 24-48 hours after the positive, so I might be ok. But with fresh, conception rates are definitely higher on the day before O, rather than O day itself. The IUI downside (besides $$$!) is that I don't know where I O in that 24-48 hour window, and Brill suggests that IUIs need to be really closely timed (6 hours). (Then again, Brill and others say that most women have the LH surge between 10am-2pm, which apparently isn't true for me...sigh.) Thoughts? Thanks so much!

Personally, I would do the at-home insems. Because you O 24-48 hours after a surge, the sperm should be there exactly at the right time to do the insem tomorrow night. I'm sure others will have more concrete advice. Good luck!

[seraf]

A few silly comments, because I'm obsessed and no one here wants to hear them...

I asked DS if he knew what came in the mail... he said "sperm?!" well, yeah, but also the movie you ordered from netflix?

I think I'm ovulating today, so I feel better about last night's insem. And I keep saying, only takes one!

On the cost of getting pregnant, think how much you've saved on birth control! I think it evens out.

Seraf

[lauren726]

Welcome, Korey! Good luck with the TWW!

Seraf: Your son sounds so cute and funny! I never really thought about it, but I've never spent a dime on birth control...maybe it does even out I think you still have a great chance this cycle if you inseminated last night and are ovulating today!

Newbian Mama: your mom does sound cool. It's great to have that kind of support. My mom was totally into looking at donor profiles with me and DP...she helped us pick out our donor.

AmandaHope: I think that you'd probably still have good timing for an at-home insem (but what do I know, I've been doing them for 9 months with no luck...). If you ovulate 24-48 hours after the +, you should be fine with the timing. I usually get my + in the evening, and I usually ovulate the next day, so doing an insem the night of the + seems better for me. I tend to have a slow temperature rise, so I thought I was ovulating 2 days after the + until I started using FF. This is my first time doing the insem the day of the +, so we'll see...

MaxK: 10DPO is still really early for a BFP! My fingers are crossed!

LibraryLady: Sizing Up Sperm was on the National Geographic Channel last night! It was really interesting to see sperm to human scale, and actually realize just how difficult it is for conception to occur. It definitely puts things in perspective. I fell asleep when the sperm were swimming in the fallopian tubes, though.

Wehrli: Congrats! Your success makes me think that I should move on to IUI.

AFM, I'm pretty sure that I ovulated yesterday. I had a temp spike of almost 1 degree this morning, and had some ovulation pains yesterday around noon. We did the first insem the night before O, and the second insem the day of O (actually evening, because I couldn't insem during the day...hope it wasn't too late). A good friend of mine and DP's just had a baby today...it would be pretty cool if we conceived ours the day hers was born!

[justrose13]

lauren, FX for you! that would be really cool if you conceived on the day he was born!! i conceived our little seedling on a good friends bday, and i love that!

seraf, good luck! i hope your timing was right on!!!

AHope, i think you should do fresh... G/L!

korey, i'm glad you decided to join us! WELCOME!! and good luck!

tigerlily, glad to see you are back in the game!

library, thinking of you... FX!

afm, i'm not feeling very good about my slow rising betas... after many searches on the web, i am trying to prepare myself for an ectopic pg or blighted ovum... still feeling pg, but apparently those sx can last for over a week after m/c....

[LibraryLady]

AmandaH~I'm going to agree with everyone else that you probably still have a good chance. Give it a try and we'll all cross our fingers (and get our AmandaMojo workin'!)

Lauren~ how fun that the show was on just last night! I really found it fascinating, all the science involved, and then seeing everything to scale, it really did put the difficulty in perspective. My favorite part was 'chased by leukocyte zombies until you find the tiny doorway to crawl through to the tubes' Wow. I hope your sperms manage to find the tiny doorway and swim all the way up that tube!

Newbian~ I'm sure your baby will be stunning, and I'm so glad you have family support. My parents are generally supportive, but I haven't told them about this project yet. If my mom knew I was trying to get pregnant she'd phone me every fifteen minutes to see if it'd happened yet. I'll save that particular amount of attention until there's really something to tell!

Seraf~ you're right about the expenses. Makes me think of that old song with the chorus "I spent my last ten dollars on birth control and beer/life was so much simpler when I was sober and queer!'

Fingers still crossed for all. I still can't believe it's only 6dpo. My drugs are seriously kicking in. I'm not queasy any more, but I'm cranky as a bear!

[burg]

drums fingers:: ::taps foot:: ::twiddles thumbs::

Crossing my fingers for everyone! Congrats to BFPs!

[LibraryLady]

I totally hear you, burg! I'm at 7 dpo today and it still feels like years until I can test. My drugs are still giving me morning sickness, which is just cruel, and last night my sweetie had a glass of wine and I just wanted to knock it out of her hands because 1) the drugs are making me cranky and 2) I WANTED A GLASS OF WINE!


What about everyone else? Who's close to testing? Who's insemenating? We need some exciting distractions!!

[justrose13]

i'll post test dates in the roll call if y'all add them...

[AmandaHope]

Insemination day

Good morning, folks.

Wehrli--how are you doing? You must be ready for that ultrasound and some reassuring information. A few more days, right?

Burg, Library: ah, the interminable TWW. Hang in there!

AFM, just waiting for FedEx to show up with my fresh swimmers. I got the cutest text from my KD yesterday evening. It had the FedEx confirmation number and also a sheepishly proud note: "great volume--filled up the vial!" He was all proud of himself . Sounds good to me! It felt a tiny bit like text flirting...kinda strange...but this *is* a rather intimate business we're conducting, even if we prefer not to think of it that way most of the time. My DP laughed when I told her.