5 weeks, 2 days

Written on Thursday, May 3^rd, 2012

5 weeks, 2 days

This is all so surreal. We’ve wanted kids since the day we got married, and it is just crazy to think that in 8 months, we will have a precious little baby! <3

We planned for this. But when you see that second pink line on the stick, the feelings that run through your body are insane. Even when it’s planned, you are never fully prepared.

I thought I was pregnant and I went CRAZY testing and analyzing every symptom! Cody knew it was a possibility that I was pregnant. But he also knew that this was our first month trying to conceive, so that I could possibly be making up symptoms in my head. I thought this too, and I tried not to get my hopes up.

But I could not ignore my chart.

The chart was a perfect pregnancy chart. I even got one “question mark” of a test. The day after ovulation, I just had the weirdest cramps, and they continued for a week, along with nausea, and then my temperature dipped, signifying implantation. I tested two days later and got a second line, but it was facing the wrong way! So I disregarded it as a faulty test, which was annoying because those tests are obnoxiously expensive. I tested the next day and got a “positive” but it was so faint that I disregarded it as an evaporation line.

Oliver became very snuggly (even more so than usual). Instead of laying by my head as usual, he started laying by my side with his head and one paw on my lower stomach. I figured I was reading into things too much.

And then my symptoms stopped…and my temperature raised to a triphasic chart! I figured it was because of my head cold. I continued testing, which was entirely too early to test, and they were all negative, of course. I figured my worst fear had come true and that I had had a chemical pregnancy (a miscarriage that happens before miss your period- 25% of pregnancies end up being chemical pregnancies). I tested the day I was supposed to get my period, but it was still negative…so I happily went off to the wine festival with my hubby and two friends, excited for wine, but depressed by my fear of a miscarriage, all the while expecting my period to show up. I even cried on the way there because I was so terrified that I had a chemical pregnancy! One month of trying to conceive, and it was already a roller coaster ride!

And then…something weird happened. My period didn’t show up, which had never, ever happened. I tested the next day…and sure enough, it was positive! It was faint, but a line is a line! Cody still couldn’t believe it, so I took a digital test. I screamed and texted him a picture while he was at work, and he could not deny the word “pregnant” was the screen.

I was 4 weeks and 4 days when I officially found out. We told our family members and best friends over the next couple of days, and then decided to wait at least until the end of May to share with everyone else, since that chances of a miscarriage are SO much higher in the first trimester. Baby Soltow is due on January 1^st, 2013. <3

I guess that bottle of delicious chocolate white wine that we bought at the wine festival will be sitting on the shelf for a while. Maybe Baby Soltow will come a few days early so we can celebrate the New Year with it. ;)

I’m so nervous and excited! I found out literally the day after we conceived that I would be losing my job due to situations outside of my control. You can imagine how I felt knowing that I could very well be pregnant. Cody and I just feel like God has surrounded us and that we are totally in His will, because otherwise we wouldn’t have conceived on the first try! I feel so blessed right now. <3

Taking Charge of Your Fertility!

I think that every woman should read "Taking Charge of Your Fertility." Yes, it's a massive book, and the title is slightly scary, but I have learned more about my body from that book than from anywhere else. It's not just about getting pregnant- it's about understanding your body. After reading that book, I am in awe of the female body and just how perfectly God designed it! So many women are completely unaware of how their bodies work- all they know is that lovely little thing called a period, but often they don't even know their basic anatomy! Knowledge is power, and I think it is SO important to know how God designed your body and how it works!


I got made fun of last year when I read the book and started using charting as my means of birth control. I was told that it doesn't work, and that people are irresponsible to rely on charting as a means of birth control. Why do all that work when you can simply pop a pill everyday? I was on a birth control pill for a while, and it took me a while to find a pill that did not cause major side affects. I found one, but I still did not enjoy being a slave to my 4pm alarm every day, nor did I like injecting fake hormones into my body to trick it into being pregnant or the $35 monthly payment. There is also the question of the manner in which birth control works, which is threefold: 1. preventing ovulation, 2. thickening mucus so conception would be difficult, and 3. thinning the lining of the uterus so a fertilized egg cannot implant. Now, I won't go into the theology of birth control pills here, but #3 is something that everyone has to consider if they believe, like myself, that life begins at conception.


Any method of birth control can be labelled irresponsible if not used correctly, and charting is such a great method when used correctly!


When Cody and I first decided to try to get pregnant, I was discussing it with someone I knew who was also trying to get pregnant. She told me that "it was more difficult to get pregnant when you are charting." I'm living proof that that is simply not true, as Cody and I conceived on the very first try!

Update!

Hello friends! I can't believe two months has gone by since the last time I posted. This term of grad school has literally been insane. I'm putting my finishing touches on my last paper, and then I get a month of glorious Christmas break! Two years ago, I said that it was my last Christmas break ever...which was true, because it was my last Christmas break in undergrad. Last Christmas, Cody and I moved. Now this Christmas is OFFICIALLY my last Christmas break, as I don't intend to get anything beyond my Masters, but who knows, it could happen! ;)

I stopped working for the school, and I have a new job working for a surgeon, which is going great. I also started teaching Zumba, which I LOVE! Zumba <3

Oohh, AND we got another dog. Her name is Emma. Training her was a nightmare at first, but now both dogs are doing awesome! She just got spayed two days ago, so she's recovering from that...poor girl.

I miss my hubby. He's gone for the weekend. HOWEVER, my baby sister is coming over for a sleepover! :)

That's all, folks!
Yeah, it was pretty lame. ;)