Queer Conceptions March 2012

[invitnconceptn]

WELCOME TO MARCH. May all of you have luck of the Irish  and get a BFP! GOOD LUCK ladies!

Waiting to O

* MrsandMrs

*Hopeful22 

* outdoorsy

* Amt1015

* nos reves

*AngelaM

* Allison Graham

Waiting to Know... Braving the 2WW

* bwilliamson94

*RS11

* Pokeycip

* esenbee2

* Wishin'&hopin'

*Sotohana

* lisedea

Working on IVF
 

* Gellybeangrl

Waiting for AF
 

* Cananny

MIA/Taking a Break/Figuring Things Out/Waiting to be Ready

* kgulbransen

* Carmen

* AnnaNotherThing

* TineyDreams

* NAMW
* RainbowValleyMama
* MaxK
* IrishBabies
* AmandaMom
* Glados
* Serepartera (February 2011)
* Miss Scarlett
* Milletpuff
* Chiquitayy
* Lyndzies1
* Want2bePapa
* MeghanC
* Yeledov
* Handerson
* BunnyLullabye
* cnmk14
* Maybeababy
* 2moms3kids
* OwlandTurtle
* jennytuck
* JennP85
* Habitat
* EmandJoHeil
* MrsPP

* Hoping2bemoms

*invitnconceptn

* CarpenterAnt

* Happycalm

* EmilyandCathy

* Alphahen & DP
* FiveGrandBaby

2012 Graduates! 

March ** SkyandTru *JuneBug

February *MidwifeStephPDX *SouthernBelle24

January * Planet *Dandylez

2011 Graduates!

December * DesertSunsets
November * Aljm41910
October * Vienna79 * KSDoulaMama *Pleasantlyfurious *SwtRainbowBrite * Go_Vegan
September * Smilingsara * Ad Astra * Mumquest
August *Prettyisa
July * Onemommyonemama * Southern Fried Karma
June * CrystalPerez * Qmama42
May * KellySF
April * want2bmumx2 * Indigoscot & DP
March * Graceie * Seraf * 2ezforyou *Mommy55
February * Escher 10/24/11 *SharriKitColorado* DAWNMP1
January * Starling&diesel 10/2/11

2010 Graduates!

November * Mizyellow 7/25/11 * AmyPDX 7/30/11 * AmandaHope 8/3/11 * Cejae 7/4/11
September * Solejean 5/19/11 * Painefaria 6/5/11
August * Bttrflygypsy 4/10/11 * 2happymamas 4/15/11 * LibraryLady 4/15/11
July * Beastie 3/21/11 * Gumshoegirl007 4/2/11 * Wehrli 4/1/11
June * Coco & DP 2/14/11
May * Burg 2/4/11 * Korey 2/1/11
April * Calimeow * Mtnlisa * Kimlyn32
February * Mistral * Quasar & smartycat * Monarchgrrl * Erthe_mama & DP
January * Lyndzies * FtMpapa

2009 Graduates!

December* Osker * Megan sacha * Mkpgoddess
October * JJNoho * Mommies 2 Be * Megincl & Ktcl
September * Elismum1908 * KSDoulaMama * Pleasantlyfurious
August * Chicagoml * Wishin'&hopin'
July * Hbog
May * Indigoscot's dp
April * Kelmendi * KJM * Whoabethy * Carmen
March * Scalpel * Katwomyn4
February * Deny_zoo29
January * Jodybird511

Edited by invitnconceptn - 3/26/12 at 8:15am

[invitnconceptn]

Please let me know if you you need to be moved on the list by writing in bold.  May we all have a growful month!!!!! Baby Dust to all!!!

[rs11]

Hey everyone,

I need to vent. I hope that's okay.

So, both DW and I are particularly devastated this month. You see, I didn't mention it, but we finally got DW back in to see the really good ob/gyn about her problems on Monday. She's got severe PCOS with heavy bleeding. She bled the entire month of January, the last part of December, and the first part of January. She didn't stop bleeding until they gave her some really strong drugs. By that point, she was severely anemic. At the doc's office on Monday they did an ultrasound and found out that her lining is still incredibly thick; about 20 mm. The cyst on her cervix has also grown. She has to go in next week for biopsies of both the cyst and her lining. The worst part is, our doctor, who is VERY good at what she does and just about the only ob/gyn we're willing to trust, sat us down and told us we've almost exhausted our options for dealing with this. She's recommending that DW have endometrial ablation, which will solve the problem, but render her completely unable to have children. We're not willing to go there yet, there's one or two other things we can try, but DW was pretty devastated.

Then yesterday, I got my period. DW is, if anything, more depressed than I am. We both cried lots last night.

We only have two tries left. Possibly one, if we do the injectables.I don't know that we can afford to do that. I've been reading up on them and they're quite expensive. If insurance doesn't cover them, depending on the dose and the drug, they could cost anywhere from $500 to $3000 -a month! We could afford the $500 (once), but nothing more!

If we try this last time or two and it doesn't work, what are we going to do? I suppose we could try again on our own for a few months if we could afford sperm and get a prescription for an ovulation induction drug, but we're not made of money. We both work really hard and we want this so bad. We don't have an extra $20k or more lying around for IVF. As for adoption -we live in Alabama; foster care would never accept us and we'd have to add another twenty thousand to our yearly income to even be considered for a private domestic or international adoption. I'll finish my Master's degree soon; maybe I can get a better job after that, but I don't know. My bachelor's, even though it was in a technical field, certainly didn't do me any good!

Ok, rant off. I'm sorry. This is just hard to deal with, and I have to go work with 2nd graders today.

Baby dust to everyone. I hope March brings lots of BFPs!

[lisedea]

Thanks for the support, all. Feeling okay about trying again...although I was super excited about not having to spend all of our tax money on another try---ah well...

And thanks for the clean slate, invitn!

rs11--This is the place to vent!!! First of all, I am so sorry to hear about your DW--I am glad you have some options to go over but what terrible news to hear. Thinking about you both!!! Why do you feel as though you need injectables? Is this something your RE says would be benefical for you? I really, really get the financial issues (I am a teacher/D is a paramedic student and training for a job as the EMS director--so getting paid very little for now). We started out with Midwest because we could afford them--even though I felt terribly guilty about them being unknown donors and they felt a bit sketchy. After they closed down, we got incredibly depressed looking at the costs of every other bank because they are SO HIGH!!! After researching (mostly looking into banks that other people on the board were using--thanks Seraf and Sara!) we figured out a plan that would work for us. Because of cost, we might not be able to try every single month but we just take everything step by step. We wait until we are able to afford a month before trying--and take months off to save up. We now have extra costs to deal with with plane flights and IUIs at the clinic...so it really is a balancing act. Sometimes it makes me completely panic but D calms me down (she might be a bit more rational than I..). I wish we had a KD option....but don't so we will just continue what we are doing!

[Hopeful22]

Krista, Esenbee and Allison- Thank you all so much for you advice about my friends pregnancy. All of your words really helped me. After I read your post, Krista my friend told me how sorry she was that this happened to her and not to me and I told her what you said about winning the baby lottery and I think it helped her too. I think she was feeling really guilty because she knows how much DW and I want this. I am sure it will be hard over the next few months as I watch someone close to me get to do all the things that I really want but for right now I am ok. I know the perfect little person is coming for us just waiting to join our family. We just have to be patient and wait until the timing is right and the right egg meets the right sperm and when they come we will have all the love in the world for them and they will know how badly we wanted them and how much they were loved before they were even here. (Thanks for that Allison)

Lise- I am so very sorry for what you and DP are going through. Maybe the surgery has actually made it easier for you to get pregnant and next time you will have a healthy little egg that will turn into a healthy little baby.

Rs- I am also sorry fo you for what you and DW are going through. I think Lise made some good points about taking some months off to save up and try again if need be. Im sorry I dont know anything about injectibles so I cant really help you there. Besides helping with timing, what else do injectibles do? (Sorry for my naive question)

MrsandMrs, Cananny, esenbee2, invitnconceptn, outdoorsy, bwilliamson94 and Amt1015- Good luck to you all in your TWWs. I hope you all have a stress free two weeks that brings lots of BFPs to March!

bwilliamson- I dont know if I ever welcomed you so Welcome! How is the TWW treating you?

Allison- I didnt realize our cycles were so close. We are inseminating on Friday so it looks like you and I are cycle buddies! Good luck to you and DW.

AFM- Like I said above, it looks like Friday will be O day so we are getting all ready again. Last night, I had my first acupuncture experience and it was great! I found a really wonderful place and the woman happens to be queer! Her and her DP went through all this and now have a really beautiful 8 month old boy! She recommended that I come back the day before O so I am going back tomorrow. I am hoping that at the very least it will help with reducing stress around TTC, which has been my main focus this cycle.

[Amt1015]

Rs11-Oh no! I am soo sorry about DW and AF! I can feel your pain just a lil bit. My DW was told when she was younger that she will not be able to get pregnant and if she were to that she wouldn't be able to carry it to term and live. They also told her that she will most likely be begging for a hysterectomy by the time she turns 30. She is now about 6 months from 30 and refusing to have a hysterectomy, she just deals with all the pain and AF every 2 wks for 10 days at a time.

Invitn- Thank you for the shiney new thread! May the thread keepers luck strike you! Lets hope this donor is the answer to both of our prayers and bring us donor siblings

[nosreves]

thanks for the shiny new thread, invitn!  i'm sorry that i don't have the energy for personals right now..... i slept about 2 hours last night and then got up at 4:45am for our drive to the land of waffles and pissing statues.  my cervix was very open last night for the KD insem and again today for the IUI, and i had really strong O pains from about 2 hours before the IUI until about 4 hours after.  i think we finally nailed the timing.  invitin: could you move me to Waiting to Know?

bisous to all of you gals and personals tomorrow. 

[Amt1015]

Nos-WOW! Here is to perfect timing! May your TWW fly by with a BFP at the end!! This also makes us cycle buddies

[KnittingTigers]

Hi everyone!

Now that there's a shiny new thread, I thought I'd step in and join. I used to hang out alot here, but have pretty absent the past year or so- new job, active child, very busy life.

My DP is trans (FTM), and we have a 3 and a half year old, who I carried. We are about to start trying for another child- our sperm arrives on Saturday from TSBC! When I was TTC before, I did IUIs at home, and had a friend who was a nursing student do them. This time, we were set to work with a doctor, but found out last week that the clinic we were set up to work with doesn't take our insurance. We are very lucky to have some other coverage options (though I don't know how queer friendly any of them are), but it's too late to get in for this cycle. So, I think we're going to try an IUI at home this time, and then switch over to the new clinic if it doesn't work out. I'm 35, and am open to a little bit of medical intervention, though I'd prefer to conceive without meds (which I did before). I really loved the experience of making a baby at home, so I'm hopeful that it will work out for us this time too.

Anyway, that's me. Could I please be added to waiting to O? Thanks!

Looking forward to journeying with you all.

Angela

[rs11]

Lise: I am so sorry about your m/c and I'm so glad you're trying again. I hope this next round works for you!

Hopeful: Good luck on Friday! I hope this is it for you.

Nosreves: It seems like you did the nail the timing. I really hope it works for you this month. The land of waffles sounds awesome, lol.

Angela: Welcome!

AFM: I'll try to answer the questions. Hopeful, injectables are ovulation-induction drugs that are much more powerful than the pills like clomid, tamoxifen, etc. Some of them are stronger than others; the strongest are used for IVF. Lise, yes, the RE wants me to use them this month to see if we'll get a better response. I'm ovulating right now on the tamoxifen, but with the PCOS I may not be ovulating good eggs. The more follicles I make, the better the chance I'll make a good egg, and the injectables will make me produce more follicles. We might take a few months off to save up after we run out of money, but I don't ovulate on my own very often and the chances are higher if we try back to back as many times as possible. Also, our RE will only do 6 IUIs (barring extenuating circumstances) on any one patient.

[pokeyAC]

Wow, it's only leap day and March is already jumping!  This is my birthday month, so it is my favorite, and a birthday baby would be a great gift. We took a break this month, but it is almost over and I am eager to get started for the next month.

rs11-I'm sorry you've had such a rough week!  Having to deal with health issues and money issues is very stressful.  I hope you and DW can do a little relaxing to ease the stress as you continue on your journey.

Invitn-Thank you for being the captain of this ship for March.

lisedea- Sorry again, but I hope your positive attitude makes this month go smoothly as you get back on the roller coaster.

Hopeful- Good luck this week!  Enjoy your acupuncture.  I love going.  It's so relaxing.  And I have seen improvements in my lining and CM.  I totally understand about being kind of upset with your friend.  I'm glad she realized you might be bummed.  After a particularly disappointing cycle when I really thought it had worked, I found out acquaintances of ours had had their baby, someone else I know had a baby (I didn't know she was pregnant), and another couple we know is pregnant.  I'm happy for them all, but it's hard to see other people doing what we want so much to do.

nosreves- Your timing does sound great!  Good luck!  I hope the wait goes by quickly and smoothly.

Angela- Welcome back and good luck!

[AmandaAnn]

Hi there! I'm excited to see a shiny new thread and one that I could actually be a part of! This month is the official beginning of our TTC journey!! My first RE appointment is March 8th and hopefully we'll be able to insem this month!!! *fingers crossed* :-)

[outdoorsy]

Evening, everyone. Thanks for the new thread, invitn! Looks like I might be here in time to get on the first page, unless my post kicks me over to page 2.

rs11 -- I'm so sorry for what you and DW are going through. I can't imagine how difficult it must be, between the financial pressure, the meds, and everything that is happening to DW. I hope your luck turns around, and soon!  Group hug.

Hopeful - I didn't get to chime in earlier about your situation with your friend, but I liked what Krista said about the baby lottery. The only thing I can add is that you and your friend actually have something very much in common -- that your fertility isn't going how you wanted it to, and that's a painful thing in anyone's life. I hope your de-stressing goes well.

Nos - Hooray for a great set of insems! If you get pregnant, are you going to wonder which sperm did the trick? (since KD and the IUI are not the same guy, right?)

Angela and AmandaAnn - welcome!

AFM - Still near the start of my TWW. I had another temp rise this morning of several tenths -- high enough that I can't imagine it being higher tomorrow, but hopefully it will be the same or only drop a hair. Today was my third temp rise since suspected O day, so I'm happy about that. Meanwhile, I'm trying to keep my expectations low. That's pretty much all to report. Good wishes to everyone else in the TWW.

[invitnconceptn]

Nos: how exciting that your timing was perfect!!!That is the best feeling. I hope you are able to get some rest tonight and have sweet dreams about the potential of miracle happening right now in your womb. 

RS: So sorry to hear about what you and DW are going through. My heart goes out to your DW and what she (and you) must of been going through when she heard the recommendation from a doctor you both respect. It is interesting that your doctor will only do 6 IUIs, if you did two in a cycle that would be only 3 cycles of trying. Is there medical research that your doctor is citing to justify limiting it to 6 IUIs. I don't mean to question a doctor that you and DW both like. I have simply learned I have needed to educate myself when it has come to questioning my RE's beliefs and policies. 

Random thought: Have you ever talked with a naturapath about CoQ10 to help with egg quality? I know some people swear by it.

Amt: I hope the tww is being too torturous for you. I know that our mutual donor has had lots of success with donating. He let me know that he just got a couple pregnant at the beginning of Feb...so  wishing you good lots of good vibes for a union between your egg and his sperm. 

Hopeful: here is a link my friend sent me after I had a very startling call from someone who I thought was my friend but had never told me that she and DW had been trying and she was 2 months pregnant. Because of her sneakiness and absolute unsympathetic attitude towards me for not being so much thru the roof for her and her DW , it was the last straw for an already disintegrating friendship. Overall, I've learned alot about myself and about my friendships when friends have gotten pregnant. Another friend, who sounds like your friend, has been so incredibly sensitive about sharing info about her pregnancy with me bc she doesn't want to trigger me. Since I see her kindness, I'm so much more relaxed about her being pregnant than I ever thought I would be. This friend who has been so kind actually sent me the following link while she was still trying a few months back:  http://www.bustedplumbing.com/2009/10/how-to-avoid-punching-your-pregnant.html . I love this blogger, she is hilarious and touches on some of the thoughts that Krista shared. 

I loved the photo my friend sent me too. I think it is helpful reminder for all of us. Because it is so true...

Angela: I don't think we have met. Welcome back. Good luck to you and your DP for baby #2. 

AFM: So I think I might be a week past ovulation. I'm day 20. And I haven't had really any symptoms besides a crampy twinges every now and then. I'm so busy at work this week. It is not hard to get distracted through my tww. I am experiencing one thing that is strange. For the first time ever during the tww, I'm breaking out with acne. I typically have a little acne around my period but this is ridiculous. I'm getting haunting images of myself at age 13 when I look in the mirror...perhaps the acne is a side effect of progesterone. I have been on progesterone now for 4 cycles and I have never gotten acne. Hmm...Anyway time for bed.

Have a great thursday everyone! 

[invitnconceptn]

AmandaAnn: Hello and welcome. Let me know when you are ready and I will put you in the waiting to O category. 

[KnittingTigers]

Thanks for the welcome, everyone. I don't think I've "met" most of you, though I "know" lots of folks on the pregnant/parenting thread. We seem to have taken a bit longer to get to #2 than everyone who was ttc and pregnant with us the first time- they've all moved on already!

Nos, I will join the crowd and say that timing sounds great! Congratulations, and fingers crossed.

Hopeful, I'm really sorry that you're dealing with a painful situation. When I was ttc-ing the first time, had miscarried once, and felt like I'd never get pregnant, it was really hard for me to deal with straight acquaintances who accidentally got knocked up. After I finally did get pregnant, one of my friends (also queer, who had started ttc at the same time) continued to struggle with infertility. I remember, after she had a negative IVF cycle, getting an email from her about not being able to attend my baby shower. It was helpful for me to have experienced some of those emotions and feelings myself- I understood some of what she was going through, and was able to give her space and support without taking it personally. I guess all of this is to say that if there is a bright side to pain, it's that it gives us compassion later on. I know, not really a substitute for a baby, but...

We're busy gathering the materials to do our IUI at home. It's fun- sort of like planning for a science project.:)

Question: is anyone else not temping? I did it for almost a year my first go round, and it made me CRAZY. I decided to try not doing it this time around, though I'm still checking other fertility signs and using OPKs. I'm trying to find a balance between being observant, gathering information, trusting my body...and not getting obsessive. Am I crazy for NOT temping?

Happy Thursday to everyone!

[outdoorsy]

Angela - If you have very regular cycles and are certain you're ovulating, opks may be enough. I ditched temping for a while at the midwife's suggestion, relying on opks, but when it became clear that my cycle was questionable, I had to start temping again to get that extra layer of information.

AFM - Temp was down two tenths today, but still well above coverline. I'm calling this 4 "DPI" (that's days post insem, in recognition of the fact that there's some question about whether I ovulated this month).

Nos, how goes the early part of your TWW?

[rs11]

Hopeful: I'm really sorry about the troubles your having with your friend's pregnancy. We've been there several times lately; I understand the feelings you're having! I like the idea of it not being the "baby lottery."

Amanda: Good luck with the RE. I hope he or she is queer-friendly and that you get to insem this month.

Outdoorsy: Some variation in temp is normal; unless it goes below the coverline, I wouldn't worry about it.

Angela: I'm one of the rare birds who doesn't temp on a regular basis. I used to, but it never seemed to help that much with my crazy cycles. Also, remember that your temp will only rise after you ovulate, so it's not very good for confirming ovulation.

AFM: First, I'll answer invitin's question. The RE does 6 cycles of IUI, not 6 insems. I should have been more clear. And yes, there are reasons for it. That count resets of course if you get pregnant and miscarry or come back to have a second child. First, it's not good for you to take the medications for longer than six months without taking a break. Second, and more importantly, your chances of success are almost non-existent after so many rounds. IUI's have a success rate of 77% over four cycles for women under 35; by the time you've gone through six cycles, the success rate rises to about 90%. Each additional cycle beyond six has something like a 2% chance of success. Some RE's will let women do 10 or 12 or even more IUIs as long as the patient is able and willing to pay for it. That's unethical, at best. By the time most women have been through 6 IUI's, they've invested about as much as a single round of IVF, and if IUIs haven't worked, that's where they need to go.

We went to see our RE this morning. I love our doctor and the nurses. They are very supporting and compassionate. The RE himself is very thorough and systematic. They did say that the mid-cycle spotting may have been implantation bleeding and it may have failed to implant properly. They also said that it will probably show up in my bloodwork, so we'll see. I was back at baseline, so we should be ready to stat trying again. The plan for this month is combo injectables with pills instead of just injectables. The RE doesn't like to switch patients over entirely at once; as I said, he's very systematic. He also knows just how much these drugs cost. Try $290 for 5 doses at 75 IUs each. Luckily, I only need 5 doses -and we didn't have to pay for them! They had samples in-house, and the nurse gave them to us! She also gave us a pamphlet for a pharmacy we can order from next month if we need to. So, for the next 5 nights I'm going to be taking pills plus a shot every night. Fingers crossed that this month is the one!

[carmen358]

hopeful: I'm glad you liked acupuncture. I started it while TTC DD and I have been going ever since. I love it and it helps heaps with reducing stress and just keeping everything balanced. Are you insem'ing as I type or will you wait until tomorrow?

Hi Angela :) Nice to see you officially in the TTC sphere again! I am still a temping machine. I also got a CBFM digital fancy thing this time around and it's amazing at taking even more guess work out of when I'll O. I'm very regular in terms of O'ing but I still like seeing the temperature rise to confirm it. It makes me feel in control some how...even though I know I'm not anywhere close to being in control of this ;) I hope beginner's luck finds you.
 

Welcome Amanda!
 

outdoorsy: Yay for high temps.
 

invitn: Thanks for new thread. And your symptoms sound promising. Crampy twinges are definitely a first symptom for me!
 

rs: It sounds like you have care providers you really trust and that's so important. I hope this is your month too. I was sorry to read what your DP is going through. Hugs to her. I know you've probably exhausted all treatments but has she ever tried acupuncture or chinese medicine or any other alternative treatments? I know it's not everyone's cup of tea but if she's into trying and hasn't already, acupuncture and TCM can really help with PCOS.

Afm: I'm home sick today because my lower back completely went out last night :( It's not a new problem but it doesn't happen to this extent very often at all. I couldn't walk on my own last night and could barely move around this morning. *sigh* However, I rested all morning with ice and heat (DP was off work and took DD to daycare thank goodness) and it's a bit better now. I managed to get out with DP to buy a cleanse kit, some new vitamins and some herbs to make a red clover/stinging nettle infusion. I'm excited to start the cleanse. I was going to start today but then a friend reminded me that I'm going out on Saturday night with some friends for dinner and drinks and a cleanse would put a huge damper on the festivities lol So, I'll start Sunday. I'm getting pumped about trying in April now!!

[nosreves]

rs -- i am so, so sorry to hear about all the crap you have had to deal with this week.  AF showing up really sucks, and what your DP is going through sounds just horrible.  i hope her biopsies come back completely negative.  i also think that carmen's suggestion about TCM and acupuncture are really good ones.  with age and experience, i've lost a lot of my faith in western medicine.  it's definitely worth it to explore other options before taking any drastic steps.  whatever happens, please keep us updated.  you know we'll all be sending your DP and you positive vibes next week.  i've read a lot of positive things about combined cycles, and i myself did one last month because we couldn't get the follistim until five days after i was supposed to have started it.  is that what you're taking with the tamoxifen?  when i did clomid and two days of follistim together, i had two big, juicy follicles when i triggered (unfortunately, one was on the side where i have a blocked tube).  in any case, yay for free samples and low-price pharmacies.  i hope it happens for you this month!

pokeycip -- glad to see you're back on the rollercoaster with us!  i hope you get that birthday BFP!

lise -- *hugs*

hopeful -- i didn't get to respond before about your friend's pregnancy, but i'm glad the other gals chimed in with their wisdom.  i think a lot of us have been there and understand how sh*tty it is to have someone close to us who doesn't even want kids get pregnant accidentally.  for me it was my younger brother and his horrible gf, and i found out on my birthday last year... it made me feel sick at the time, and it took me a long time to get over.  my DP still has a hard time with co-workers and friends who have their "oops" pregnancies, but i keep repeating what krista says about it not being a baby lottery.  anyway, i hope you find some peace with it all.  good luck with the insem tomorrow, btw!!  it looks like we'll be going through this tww(t) together!

amt -- thanks, cycle buddy!  wouldn't it be so cool if we got our BFPs at the same time?  what dpo are you at now and when do you plan on testing?  with all the health stuff she's gone through, i really feel for your DP, but damn is she a strong woman.  *hugs* to both of you, and here's to  in two weeks!

angelam -- welcome back!  i've seen you around the forums before and was suprised and pleased to see your name in this room.  here's hoping that it's a very short stay!  i don't think you're crazy to not temp if you know your body and cycles well.  before i got put on all these super fun meds (/sarcasm), i was checking CM and cervical position/texture, temping and using the CBFM like carmen.  now the drugs make those things unreliable and unnecessary, and i can't say that i miss waking up early every day to pee in a cup and take my temp.  you've already won this crazy game once before, so i imagine you know what you're doing.  besides, i think temping sometimes adds more unneeded stress to the process. are you using the same donor this time around?

amanda --  and bienvenue.  i hope your RE appointment goes well next thursday. are you going to be doing IUIs? tell us more about yourself and your DP!

outdoorsy --  we are totally going to wonder if it was the KD or the FUD (frozen unknown donor), but we both think we'll be able to tell if it's our lovely KD.  if the kid is tall, blond, has light eyes and looks vaguegly viking-esque, we'll assume it was the FUD. i'd love for it to work with KD, but as i've said before, at this point, we just want a LO.  how far into the tww(t) are you?  it definitely sounds like you O'd if your temp has been up for three days.  are you on FF by any chance so that we could chart stalk you?  how's the waterbed treating you these days?  

invitn -- thanks for the good wishes.  i slept like a rock for about 11 hours, and boy did i need it.  the crampy twinges sound promising, as does the acne (even if it's not a very fun symptom).  you mentioned being on progesterone.  what's your dose and how often do you take it?   that you have the luck o' the threadkeeper!

carmen --  you sound so well and so positive....  that surely bodes well for april.  i'm so happy that you're joining us again instead of giving up.  

afm...  belgium was wonderful, as always.  for the first time, one of the other two docs did the insem, and if anything, she was even nicer than lovely doc #1.  i convinced her to start DP on clomid this month and to give me vaginal progesterone instead of an hcg booster.  she seemed so surprised that i didn't have a problem with putting the capsules up my hoo-hoo/woo-woo.  as i mentioned before, the insemination itself was much easier than the last time and (i think) very well-timed.  afterwards, we went and had our vegetarian fast food...which in belgium means fresh-baked, whole grain buns, a massive salad with homemade dressing and a choice of veggie "burgers".  everything there is  fresh, organic and fair trade and the utensils and dishes are either reusable or biodegradable.... i wish the french were as evolved as their neighbors (in more ways than one).  dessert was, of course, hot waffles.  we've decided that if we have to travel 8-9 hours twice a month, we're going to enjoy the hell out of the experience.