OPK | CYCLE DAY 14 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 3 {09.23.2015}

I am back for another glorious OPK update. To my surprise, things are progressing in the most amazing ways this cycle. This is the first cycle that I feel confident and surprised by my body. Clomid is usually harsh on my emotions and my body, but this cycle I am happy and I don't see the things happening the way they did in previous rounds. This is all great news and gives me hope that this may be our lucky round. This may be the cycle we finally get pregnant with our healthy rainbow baby. Take look at that progression and my Fertility Friend and Ovia cycle stats.

 

OPK | CYCLE DAY 14 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 3 

 

*top to bottom* 

CD11 (11am) - negative, very faint

CD11 (6 pm)- negative, extremely faint

CD12 (11am)- negative, line is getting darker but is still faint

CD12 (6 pm) - negative, very faint

CD13 (11 am)- negative, getting darker but still faint

CD13 (6 pm)- negative, very faint

CD14 (11am) - negative, darker than CD 13 but faint
*ovulation will likely take place CD15*

 

*side by side comparison of morning OPKs*

This is a much better photo to better show the progression of this cycle to ovulation. You can see that each morning, at 11am, the first line is getting darker. Ovulation can only be determined once the first line is as dark as, or darker, than the second line. Unlike pregnancy tests, a faint line means negative. I have a feeling ovulation will take place on CD 15 from looking at the OPK progression.

 

***********Cycle Update Below***********
 

Fertility Chart

Note that the day I have a darker OPK, CD 14, I am also experiencing EWCM! Ovulation will likely take place within the next 24 to 48 hours. Temp is slightly higher this morning but still lower than the rest. Ovulation can only be confirmed once three higher temps follow a low dip.

 

Ovia Fertility Monitor

Originally, the app stated that my "fertility score" was only a 3.5 but after I took notice of the EWCM, the app updated. Ovulation will likely take place within the next 24 to 48 hours.

 

Sperm Meets Egg Plan

•{Clomid}

Cycle days 2 thru 6:

9/11, 9/12, 9/13, 9/14, 9/15

•{Baby Dance}

Cycle days 9 thru 17:

9/23, 9/24, 9/25, and 9/27

updated - days remaining

•{OPKs}

 Cycle days 11 thru 17:

9/20 thru 9/26

twice a day (1) @ 11am & (2) @ 6pm

•{Two Week Wait}

Cycle days 18 thru 30

9/27 thru 10/09

•{HPT}

Cycle days 30 thru 35

10/09 thru 10/14

•{Progesterone}

Start on Cycle day 18

9/27

 

OPK | CYCLE DAY 12 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 3 {09.21.2015}

I'm thinking I may do updates on the OPKs every other day. So post on CD 12 to give an update on CD 11 and CD 12; post on CD 14 for an update on CD 13 and CD 14; post on CD 16 for an update on CD 15 and CD 16; last OPK post will be on CD 18 to give an update on CD 17. Does that make sense? If not, that's ok, just come back daily for updates and blog posts.

So E and I have bets going to see what day I will ovulate. I guessed CD 13 and E guessed CD 15. We will see who wins...winner gets a backrub!

OPK | CYCLE DAY 12 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 3 

 *top test* 
CD11 (11am) - negative, very faint

*middle test* 

CD11 (6pm)- negative, extremely faint

*bottom test* 

CD12 (11am)- negative, line is getting darker but is still very faint

 

 

***********Cycle Update Below***********

Fertility Chart

 I am pleasantly surprised to see that my temps are between 97.2 - 97.7. Very unusual for them to be that kind of "normal." (Round of applause for Clomid for helping with this.)

Ovia Fertility Monitor

This app is frustrating at times because I never feel it's right. I know the app is not familiar with Clomid and how it works, so hopefully it will update accordingly when I get my positive OPK.

 

Sperm Meets Egg Plan
•{Clomid}
Cycle days 2 thru 6:
9/11, 9/12, 9/13, 9/14, 9/15

•{Baby Dance}
Cycle days 9 thru 17:
9/16, 9/18, 9/20, 9/22, 9/24, 9/26
updated

•{OPKs}
 Cycle days 11 thru 17:
9/20 thru 9/26
updated - twice a day (1) @ 11am & (2) @ 6pm

•{Two Week Wait}
Cycle days 18 thru 30
9/27 thru 10/09

•{HPT}
Cycle days 30 thru 35
10/09 thru 10/14

•{Progesterone}
Start on Cycle day 18
9/27

 

WHAT WE DID DIFFERENT YEAR 2 ROUND 1 THAT WORKED!!! {04.15.2015}

I wanted to share our "changes" that took place last cycle and helped us get pregnant so quickly. Let me just say that I have absolutely no idea which of these helped boost our chances, but I can tell you that God was the main source, the rest of the things were just a little "assistance," or so I like to say. It's so important to both E and I, to acknowledge God plays and played a HUGE part in our fertility journey. Do I think God wanted or planned for us to have miscarriages? ABSOLUTELY NOT! I believe God wants us to do as we are told, "go forth, be fruitful, and multiple," and that is why He continues to bless us with babies. So, without further ado, here is our TTC year 2 round 1 list of things we did to succeed.

1. I tracked everything!!! I'm so serious y'all. I tracked my temperature on two different fertility apps.
• a) Fertility Friend
• b) Ovia Fertility
2. I took daily OPKs starting on CD 8. I did use off-brand OPKs because I couldn't find the ClearBlue Digital sticks.
3. I attended weekly acupuncture appointments. I attended one appointment before starting Provera, one after Provera ended while still taking Clomid, one after Clomid ended near Ovulation, and one final appointment after Ovulation was registered.
4. I took prenatal vitamins. I have heard countless times that prenatal vitamins are sooo important, but I never really thought about it until after our first miscarriage in 2013. After taking the break during all of 2014, I decided that I would start taking prenatal vitamins at the start of my cycles. So for my year 2 round 2, I have decided to start taking those pills two days before the start of Provera (vitamins started on Monday, April 13).
5. Clomid was moved from CDs 3-7 to CDs 2-6. I don't really think this made a HUGE difference since I did get pregnant the first time taking Clomid on CDs 3-7. I will admit that I appreciate the change, I just seem to like the CD 2-6 better.
6. Pre-seed was used every time we BD. I've talked about it before, but pre-seed is amazing! Mostly because it is the ONLY sperm-friendly lubricant that I would trust.
7. I tracked my CM daily. Sure, it may not be the most amazing thing in the world, but I learned so much about my cycle just by paying attention to my body's signals.
8. We followed the SMEP, with a few adjustments to work with our schedules. Click to see the full SMEP!
9. Last but not least, I lost weight!!! I believe this was a real help in our TTC journey. I lost close to 30lbs at the start of the year and at my appointment on January 5, my doctor said that he was impressed and just knew that getting pregnant would be easier now...he was right!!! We got pregnant immediately! Obviously, I know this is not easy for everyone, but even just a weight adjustment of 5-10lbs can drastically increase chances of pregnancy.

My goal for this upcoming cycle is to follow the same pattern. I do want to try to eat Chia Seeds regularly throughout this upcoming cycle so that my body is healthy and for all of the health benefits. Click to read all about the health benefits of Chia Seeds. I have faith that we will have no problem getting pregnant this cycle, and with my doctor now considering us "high risk," I believe we will have a much better chance at keeping the next baby.

As always, thank you so much for reading and keeping up with our journey.

God Bless and Baby Dust!!!

TTC JOURNEY THE HIGH RISK CHRONICLES PART 2: THE RESULTS ARE IN {04.09.2015}

I was so anxious last night, constantly checking my emails and calls to see if my doctor had an update. I tried to be good all day, but finally, around lunch time I decided to email my doctor. He responded within minutes! Watch the video to find out what our results were!

Thank you for your continued love and support. We are looking forward to my blood test results with our heads held high and hearts full of anticipation for good news! Here's to great news which will hopefully come around Monday.

Blessings and Baby Dust

OPK | CYCLE DAY 15 {01.27.2015}

Today I "reconfigured" my cycle!!!

According to my Drs papers, I should ovulate around cycle days 15 through 18. That got me to thinking..."what if the OPK on CD 12 was not a true positive?" 

Then I started thinking about everything that goes into calculating and pinpointing ovulation...

1) positive OPK 

2) EWCM 

3) rise in temps for 3 days

Well, maybe, just maybe, I haven't actually ovulated yet. Let's take a look at my 7 days of OPKs as well as my Fertility Friend chart and Ovia Fertility Monitor.

OPK | CYCLE DAY 15 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 1

Here are CDs 9 through 11, you can see on CD 9 it is very faint and negative, CDs 10 & 11 are slightly darker but still negative. 

Next, you see CDs 12 through 15. CD 12 looked as dark as the control like but after further investigation it turned out to still be slightly lighter which would make it negative. CD 13 was definitely a negative, and it was followed by CDs 14 & 15 which are both negatives. 

Park of the reason I believe that I have not quite yet ovulated is the fact that my OPKs are getting darker again, AND I have yet to see a rise in temps which means ovulation could not have occurred yet. The only thing that I find strange, is that on CD 12, when I thought I ovulated, my temp rose. However, it was not followed by three rising temps. 

As of right now, I'm not sure what this means. I was very certain that I ovulated on CD 12 but I'm starting to believe that maybe I will ovulate soon and that is why my temps are dipping.

********Cycle Update {01.26.2015}*******

Fertility Friend

My chart yesterday shows the rise on CD 12 but then two preceding days of dropped temps.

Ovia Fertility Monitor

Before I "reconfigured" my cycle, this is what Ovia was telling me. Keep in mind this was with the CD 12 OPK being saved as positive.

***********Cycle Updated Below************

Fertility Friend

Focus only on the temps and notice how they have continued to drop. Again, this lets me know that I have, in fact, not ovulated at this time.

Ovia Fertility Monitor

And you can see that after I "reconfigured" my cycle and removed the positive OPK, Ovia updated the cycle information dashboard. 

I believe that ovulation will take place within the next two to three days. I will no longer take OPKs and instead will only be relying on my temps from here on out.

Also, the SMEP will be drastically changed. For now our plan is to BD every other night until shift in temp. Once the first raised temp has been seen, we will begin following the SMEP BD days suggested for OPK day until cycle end.

Thanks for sticking around and keeping up with our crazy cycle! Baby dust and God Bless!

THE GREAT DEBATE {01.26.2015}

So, that's it! It's over. Can't you believe this cycle has ended just like that? Now, we wait. FOR TWO WEEKS!!! I'm pulling my hair out already. But seriously, this cycle has ended and now the waiting game has begun. My temps still have not budged. Looks like they are just going to drive me nuts. I don't know what's going on and maybe my doctor will have a little insight when he receives my chart, but to me, it doesn't look like much. I'm just praying, that regardless of those stupid temps, what matters is 1) timing and 2) the OPKs. I feel like we did our best to time it perfectly and I pray that this is our cycle...finally!!!

Aside from all the baby making fun that's been going down this last week, E and I have been discussing traveling. 2014 was our travel year and we had such a blast! Right now, we are in the midst of what I like to call "The Great Debate".

"What's the great debate" you ask? Well! Basically, it's the debate between which will happen first. Right now, being in the TWW, we have no idea what's going to happen when we reach HPT test day. It could be positive and all our prayers will be answers. Or, it could be negative.

If it's positive, we will be so incredibly happy and blessed and thrilled and excited, and elated, and surprised, and full of wonderment.

If it's negative, we will be so sad but we get to go on a cruise.

It's a catch twenty-two. On one hand, a cruise would be MAGNIFICENT! But having a baby and starting our family means so much more to us then any cruise or trip or vacation or money!!! A family is truly the greatest gift anyone can receive. But, I guess we will just have to wait and see what happens. Wait and see if it is in God's plans for us to conceive this month or if He feels like it's still not our time.

For some encouragement...

Oh, and I do plan on doing one last OPK update which will feature today and tomorrow's OPKs and stats, and that will be posted tomorrow. If you are in your TWW, I want to send you lots of baby dust and well wishes and PLEASE, keep me updated!

Sweet dreams and God Bless!

OPK | CYCLE DAY 13 {01.25.2015}

Today was a truly beautiful and amazing day. You know the drill with the temps in the morning so let's fast forward. Around 8:00am we got out of bed and rushed to get ready. We headed to church and stopped in the bookstore for some early morning treats and while there, I got to see an old co-worker. The service today was so inspiring and just what we needed to give us that little *humph* to get through this cycle with positivity and faith. 

Following church, we visited with E's parents and had a delicious lunch made by E's dad. We decided that since The Katy Home and Garden Festival was in town we'd stop by and take a walk. E's parents joined us and both of us ended up buying a totally adorable, affordable, and outstanding little vacuum. It's amazing! So glad we got it! We also grabbed some Scentsy bars since we've been needing some new smells. Oh, we even stopped by the dog training booth and watched them, they were so well behaved!!! 

I mean really though? He stood there for 10 minutes as the trainer explained things and showed other demonstrations with the other dog. I was impressed! 

Today, to my surprise, my OPK was GONE!!! It was literally sooo faint, but my temps are so low and I was hoping they would go up. Although I have read that it doesn't matter about temps because every person is different. I guess that means ovulation took place yesterday. 

OPK | CYCLE DAY 13 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 1

*test one* 

CD9 - negative, extremely faint

*test two* 

CD10 - negative, strong faint

*test three* 

CD11 - negative, strong faint

*test four*

CD 12 - positive, as dark as control line

*test five*

CD 13 - negative, extremely faint 

***********Cycle Update Below***********

Fertility Chart

Ovia Fertility Monitor

Sperm Meets Egg Plan (Baby Dance Days Only)

•{Baby Dance}
OPK day, the following 2 days, skip a day & next day:
1/24, 1/25, 1/26, & 1/28

*SMEP Full Version*

OPK | CYCLE DAY 12 {01.24.2015}

Today was a {GLORIOUS} day! First thing, like every day, I awoke at 6:30am to take my temp. To my surprise, it went up! Well ok, not really a "surprise" considering yesterday I was Crampy McGee! I'm so thankful though because we've been, well you know, BDing as we were told. 

After waking up to take my temps, I spent most of the day messing around, watching tv and being bored, just waiting for E to get home. When he FINALLY got home from work, we both got dressed and headed out for a nice dinner and movie date. 

We stopped at Olive Garden and filled up on breadsticks and salad, then split the Chicken Marsala. E got Angry Orchard and I got the Strawberry Limonata...YUM! 

Once dinner was over, we headed to City Centre for a movie. We ended up choosing "Into The Woods"! I am in love! What a wonderful movie! I cannot wait to see the play. 

Don't worry, I also kept up with my OPK today. I am always a little weiry when it comes to my OPKs because with Clomid, it can be tricky. Also, I never really know what a positive should look like since every person's is different. The only way I will know 100% is by monitoring my temps. So, today marks day 1 of a raised temp. If it stays up for 2 more days, then that means ovulation took place yesterday. Here's to tomorrow, and let's take a look at my CD 12 update.

OPK | CYCLE DAY 12 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 1

*top test* 

CD9 - negative, extremely faint

*middle#1 test* 

CD10 - negative, strong faint

*middle#2 test* 

CD11 - negative, strong faint

*bottom test*

CD12 - positive, as dark as control line 

***********Cycle Update Below***********

Fertility Chart

Ovia Fertility Monitor

Sperm Meets Egg Plan (Baby Dance Days Only)

•{Baby Dance}
Cycle days 9 through 17:
1/24, 1/26, & 1/28

*SMEP Full Version*

OPK | CYCLE DAY 9 {01.21.2015}

This morning, I had every intention on taking an OPK but after reading multiple sites and fact checking, turns out it's best to take OPKs around 2pm. So I took mine at 11am. Looks like every day, until I get a positive, I will be taking them at 11am. Talk about AWKWARD!! Because I'm at work at 11am. That's right! I went into the bathroom, POAS, and then raced to put it back in my purse. Luckily my office knows my "deal" and was just going right along with it. 

I took the test and let it sit in my purse for 5 minutes before reading it. To my surprise, it was a pretty strong, but still negative, OPK. I thought for sure it would be super negative. which actually lead me to investigate. I read online that some women have a "fertile window" that starts around cycle day 9 and ends around cycle day 15. To be honest, I was starting to think that I might have actually ovulated already. My temps sky-rocketed this morning, yesterday I had watery CM, and a faint but strong-ish positive...I will continue to test as well as take the OPKs until a strong positve is seen. 

I did want to share a quick photo as well as a cycle update for my fellow TTC Sisters.

OPK | CYCLE DAY 9 : CLOMID YEAR 2 • ROUND 1

***********Cycle Update Below***********

Fertility Chart

Ovia Fertility Monitor

Sperm Meets Egg Plan (Baby Dance Days Only)

•{Baby Dance}
Cycle days 9 through 17:
1/21, 1/23, 1/25, 1/27, & 1/29

*SMEP Full Version*

A Tribute to Miscarriage and Pregnancy Loss {10.15.2014}

Hello Ladies and Happy Hump Day!

In honor of today, Miscarriage and Pregnancy Loss Awareness Day, I wanted to share with you a tribute to Miscarriage and Pregnancy Loss. If you have suffered a miscarriage, I want you to know you are not alone! I hope this video will inspire you to keep going on your journey. Be sure to light a candle with us tonight in honor of those who have suffered a Miscarriage or Pregnancy Loss.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38Am3QD0hUU

I hope you enjoyed the video.

Tomorrow I will be doing a post all about Pre-Seed! I will also have a new Vlog on our channel that will be the "unboxing" of Pre-Seed. If you are interested in finding out whether or not Pre-Seed is worth the money, be sure to stay tuned for Friday's Vlog where I will do a review on Pre-Seed. Also, in conjunction with Friday's Vlog, I will also be doing an update for you! You won't want to miss this!!! This is probably one of the greatest updates, and best part, I didn't even expect it to happen.

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten, I will be doing a 2&3 Week PCOS Diet and TTC Update for you ladies that details out everything that has taken place.

Be sure to Subscribe to our Blog and YouTube channel so you can stay up-to-date with our TTC Journey, Vlogs are posted daily Monday through Sunday!

Our Channel "Pickles & Icecream": https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSHuPHdd4MumSf76evJllOQ

Well Wishes and Baby Dust

TTC Essentials {10.09.2014}

Hello Ladies!!!

Today, the focus is going to be all about TTC Essentials! I’m not going to spend time typing up a story…instead, I have added the video for your viewing pleasure. This is obviously just a few of the things that I suggest. The PCOS Diet is a MAJOR part of this TTC journey, these are just “boosters” to help push that little sperm and egg to meet and stick. So enjoy the video!

I will be posting a video using my first OPK (digital style-whoop whoop!) on CD 8 which is October 12, this Sunday! Keep in mind that the box does have 10 tests so I will be using those until October 21. I will keep you posted on as details come up but for the most part, this is what I’ve got for you. I hope that you are trying a few of these things! If so, let me know how it is going and definitely let me know if you get your BFP.

Well Wishes and Baby Dust

Sperm Meets Egg {10.04.2014}

I wanted to go over "our plan" for getting the much awaited meeting between sperm and egg! Below you will see all the details of this plan, maybe you can try it and see if you get success. If you do, or if you have had success with this plan, please message me. I would love to hear your success story! So here it goes...

Sperm Meets Egg Plan

Cycle Days 1 - 7:

CD1=1st full flow

*Stock up on OPKs & HPTs

Mark on calendar...

~CD 8=

Baby Dance every other night until OPK

~CD 10=

Daily OPK testing

OPK day:

*Baby Dance today, tomorrow, and next day 

*Skip a day, and then Baby Dance one more day

Mark on calendar...

~Pregnancy test day=

OPK day + 15

***If no OPK, Baby Dance every other day until period or cycle day 35***

Cute little Sperm & Egg photo to get you smiling during this crazy journey to success with a healthy baby!

**************************************************

I truly hope this helps you get pregnant. Please keep in mind it will not work for everyone. It's best to track your cycles with a BBT (basal body thermometer) so that you can pin-point the day(s) you need to Baby Dance. I have only tried this plan one time before, however I was on Clomid at the time and my OBGYN had me change a few dates. If you need to, bring this plan to your OBGYN so they can fix it to suit your journey and increase your chances of getting pregnant.

That's all folks! I'll be catching up with you later this weekend to do a PCOS Diet Day 6 Update as well as a Meal Planning, Prepping, and Organizating post. 

Well Wishes & Baby Dust