Smacked Upside the Head

Greetings!

I am Brainy Bud, and I wanted to tell you a little bit about myself and my TTC journey. I just turned 26 years old, and live in the South with my DH (dear husband), Mr. Brainy and our sweet furbaby yorkie "BrainyDog".

In November of 2008, I was smacked upside the head like a 2x4 by what is known as the baby bug. I felt like a windshield going though south Alabama. I never wanted kids growing up, I'm too much of a scaredy-cat when it comes to needles and pain. Why you must ask? To make a long story short: When I was very young, getting my vaccines, the nurse held the needle within an inch of my arm and then said "Now don't move or the needle will break off in you" WHO SAYS THAT TO A KID! SERIOUSLY!

Image Source

Anyways, back to our TTC journey. Mr. Brainy has always been ready to be a dad, but I never really wanted a child until I met him. He is terrific and willing to wait until I felt comfortable in life before really discussing the particulars of TTC. Well, as luck would have it, I would begin having desires to have our child during the middle of his college career. In my head, I say, “Brainy Bud, you know that you don’t have all your ducks in a row, what about this? What about that?” but my heart has been gradually over dominating the discussion with my college-educated brain saying, “You are both ready for a family, God’s calling you to begin, You are ready for the challenges and love.” At first, I kept fighting my heart by making a few small purchases telling myself that beginning to buy things now will make you feel better, financially, later. Yea, RIGHT! That Kate Spade Diaper Bag/Tote Bag and free baby wash (after coupon) just wasn’t cutting it! Time to Fly, I have the Need for Speed, or at least a baby to enhance our family.
So, as we have traveled the past 8 months,

• I’ve watched Mr. Brainy have a growing desire to hold newborns where he would not even hold his niece until we made him (even though neither of us would ever ask to hold someone else’s baby)


• The pain we both felt every time someone reminded us that yet ANOTHER family member was producing a spawn of their own and that we are the only grandchildren (on my side and his) that have yet to have a child. Yuk!


• The heartache of looking at our bank account after an emergency room visit and wonder, can we really do this?


• Seeing the parents with children in Disney World and thinking, “OMG! Next time we are here, that might be us!” and feeling the waves of emotions of terror screams for ice cream and precious family moments…

Seeing one pregnant woman in movies or seeing one more baby commercial makes me want to throw up thinking of our journey ahead and how many more hard decisions yet to come. We are so excited that we have finally decided to bite the bullet and start TTC this fall, no matter the obstacles, we leave them up to God to take care of them all.

Faith, Love, and Baby Flutters
Mrs. Brainy Bud

Hi from Worry Bud!

Hi everyone! Worry Bud here - I am the founder and co-admin of Bloomin' Babies & I am sooo happy we are finally able to bring our stories to all the readers that happen across our blog! As I mentioned in my welcome, it is my hope that each of the Buds' stories touches someone reading this. If you are TTC, I am willing to bet $$ that you will relate to at least one of the Bud's story in some way.

I am very much a beginner in this here TTC journey - but let's not get ahead of ourselves here, let me tell you a little about myself. I am a 20-something newlywed living in the DC Area & working in contracts for the federal government. MY DH - Mr. Worry Bud (WB) is also a 20-something & we are soo in love!

Mr. WB & I met thru a mutual friend in college back in November 2002...we quickly became an item in December 2002 & are about to celebrate 7 years as a couple soon! After getting a dog together, buying a house, joining our bank accounts, etc. we finally got married this past March - the day was a long time coming & all that we ever hoped for!

We always knew we wanted little ones, but were MAJOR flip-floppers on when we wanted to start TTC...first it was a year after tying the knot, then 6 months, then immediately & eventually we settled on 4 months - July 2009. Well we didn't really settle on it, one day I came home (after getting yet another notification from one of my friends that she was KU - we are all at THAT age) & I told Mr. WB that I didn't want to wait any longer...I wanted a baby & I wanted to get started right away. Much to my surprise...he agreed & after 12 years on & off (mostly on) the pill, I took my last BCP on my nephew's 1st bday - June 27th! Buh bye BCPs, woot!

Being the big time planner that I am I started reading up on the best methods to get KTFU quick. To that end, I discovered a message board (on a website where I was already active on other message boards) all about getting pregnant! The ladies on the site were so knowledgeable & they all suggested that I start charting (to detect O & to best time intercourse for baby making!) & reading TCOYF. Well I did start charting & received my 1st set of CHs indicating O on FF (chart link in my profile on the top right column)...I was sooo excited! Well, 8 days later I started spotting so I figured there were 2 options, either A) I was pg & this was implantation spotting, or B) AF was about to show. Well this is where it gets all mucked up - she never did truly show...the spotting only lasted a few days & (TMI sorry) got progressively lighter - never dark & never red - more of a pinkish brown & I never needed a pad/tampon. By this time I was majorly stressing...I had taken 3 HPTs - all BFNs & still no "true" AF had showed. I called my Dr. and the nurse said to wait it out 60 days to see if she shows by then & if not then I can come in and get an Rx for Provera to get AF started back up again.

I have been off the pill before for various reasons & my cycles have always gone back to normal right away - give or take a week, but this is insane! Moral of the story - BCPs are the DEVIL - they totally messed up my cycles...I will never, ever take one ever again...and even after we have a baby I will use the Fertility Awareness Method (FAM) taught in TCOYF to TTA when necessary.

*BCPs*

Well D-Day (60 days) is right around the corner now and I have decided that if AF doesn't show & I don't get a BFP by August 31st that I will be calling to get in and see the Dr. I don't want to take a drug to start my period back up, but I also don't pro-long this journey anymore than necessary & my mom told me that she has had to take Provera before & after getting her period from Provera, her cycles went back to normal...and she conceived my little brother & sister after that!! For all those TTC & just starting out just know that I understand & feel your pain - we have all these worst-case scenario thoughts racing thru our minds all the time: What's wrong with me/my body? Am I or will I ever O? Will I be able to have a baby? What if I'm not..what then? If we have to use alternative methods to conceive what will my insurance cover? How much will it all cost? Will my husband still love me if I can't give him a child? But I have been praying for patience and faith that we will have a child one day soon & it has really calmed my heart.

So, that's me in a nutshell & I probably shouldn't be worrying about all this stuff so early in the game, but I'm such a planner/worrier (hence my name) that I can't help but think of all these things. I have never been so anxious to actually get my period, but at this point I just want it to come so I can move on to cycle 2/3 (still debating w/ myself as to whether CD 28-31 spotting was actually AF)?? Hoping (as I'm sure we all are) that my journey is not a long one & putting faith in God that He will make it happen for our family!!

TTA for Just a Little While

Hi, I'm Sugar Bud and I am from Alabama. I am 25 and Mr. Sugar Bud is 29, almost 30. We have been a couple since March 20, 2007 and got married on May 2nd of this year.

At the moment we are just trying to avoid and wait until October 2009 to begin TTC. However, there is a story to all of that.


Ok, so, when we first got engaged and started planning our lives together, we said that we would start trying to have a baby immediately after we got married. Of course, that all changed once the vows were said and the rings were on. Mr. Sugar Bud decided that we should wait a while and start saving money, get ready to buy a house and think about our future as a married couple instead of new parents. I will tell you that this was not something that I wanted to hear nor did I agree with. So what he wanted to do was to wait until we owned a house and we are stable; whereas, I wanted a baby NOW and buying a house would come with that. Like every married couple, this meant that we would have to come to some sort of compromise, and WE DID!!!

Here is how the compromise went - we would start looking for a house in August and close on one by November (got to get that first time home buyers credit, of course). Once we did that, then we would start TTC in December. I was ok with this at first, but as time went on, I was not happy. So, about mid-July, we agreed that we would let my birth control prescription run in October and that this is when we would try. So, I am on my last cycle of BCP and we will TTA for two months, then we start seriously TTC in October. I am on prenatal vitamins and a DHA supplement and Mr. Sugar Bud is watching what he eats, how much he drinks and starting to exercise regularly.


Although, Mr. Sugar Bud seems to still have some apprehension about the whole TTC thing, but I think he is starting to warm up to it. Just the other day, he bought me the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility without me even asking. Instead, I was talking about the book and how the girls on The GP Nest board say that I should read it and then he immediately looked it up and ordered it for me.


So, goodbye Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo, hello Natural Family Planning!

Hello Bloomin' Babies Readers!

In my group of friends, I was the girl that we all thought would never be ready for a baby. My perception was that babies come in and change everything…your relationship with your husband and your friends would never be the same, there would be no me time, and life just wouldn’t be as fun. And now here I am, wanting more than anything else in the world for this cycle to be THE cycle that I am pregnant. I’ve come a long way, baby!

July 31st was the 5th anniversary of when I re-met my husband. We knew each other casually in college. He was the partying frat boy and I was the studious sorority girl with a boyfriend back home. Fast forward to three years after graduation, his good friend and fraternity brother was marrying my good friend and sorority sister. The bride and groom totally set us up, and paired Mr. Chef Bud and I to walk down the aisle together. I was given strict instructions by the bride to keep my eye on him and make sure he was where he was supposed to be and doing what he was supposed to do, which is easier said than done! We had a great weekend together, which included a romantic post-wedding first kiss in the elevator, and started a long-distance relationship. Two years later I moved to Tampa, he proposed and we were married July 14th, 2007. It really was the best day of our lives.

Just Married!

For the first year and a half, we enjoyed being married and getting settled in our new lives as Mr. and Mrs. Then the baby wave hit. It seemed like all of my friends were announcing their pregnancies. Two of my best friends got their BFP’s within two weeks of each other, and while I was so happy for them, I cried after I found out. I was worried they, along with my other friends, would get wrapped up in babyland and our friendships would never be the same. No more spontaneous girl weekends at the beach, no more wild nights out downtown, no time for their best friend. I was irrational in my thinking, and selfish. It was my mom who finally talked some sense in to me and made me realize how crazy I was acting. She helped me to realize that while life will be different, it will be better. That bringing a baby in to this world is the greatest thing a woman can do. That Mr. Chef Bud and I will be amazing parents, and will have all the support of our family and friends. And most important, that I won’t be losing myself, I’ll be expanding myself because when I do have a baby it will be the best part of me and Mr. Chef Bud combining together to be OUR child.

The new babies in my life...Avery, Kennedi, Caera

So here I am now, in the middle of cycle 6, hoping and praying that in the next few weeks I will be able to call my family and friends and tell them the best news of our life. And I will cry, but they will be happy tears, and life will be different, but in a way that is better than I can even imagine.

Knocked Up Abroad

Disclaimer: This post was written on August 11th. I am now 6 weeks 1 day pregnant and will follow up soon!

Today I am 4 weeks and 5 days pregnant (based on my ovulation date) and I go in to my general doctor for confirmation of my pregnancy. I am still in a state of shock that everything has happened so quickly! Allow me to introduce myself and fill you in on my conception story…

My husband and I (who I will refer to as Mr. Expat Bud) got married on the rainiest day of the year in 2008, September 13. Since that day our life has been a whirlwind in the best way possible! Two weeks after we recited our vows we made a big move across the Atlantic to Dublin, Ireland.

Dublin, Ireland - City Centre

Mr. Expat Bud has dreams of completing his PhD in Irish History and what better place to do so than where it all happened? Fast forward several months and we’re still in Dublin, loving life. I was fortunate to get a job in my field (marketing) and Mr. Expat Bud has about 8 months (conveniently!) left of his program. We decided about 6 months ago that I would get my Mirena IUD removed in May and begin trying for Baby Expat Bud! I didn’t get my first visit from AF for about 5 or 6 weeks (which seemed like forever!) But after I did I had a nice, short, 27 day cycle – not pregnant yet, though! The following month (July) I decided to chart, and used OPKs and Pre-seed. Something must have worked because after returning from a weekend away in Cork I got a very faint line on a Target brand HPT (I was 10 DPO)! Mr. Expat Bud and I tried to remain calm as the line was indeed very faint and I’ve read some bad reviews on Target brand tests showing false positives. The next morning we got the confirmation we needed in the form of a digital Clearblue Easy test. Time to celebrate!!

Since then we’ve been marking the days off the calendar, waiting patiently to get out of “the danger zone” first tri. There are days I am so incredibly ecstatic and day-dreamy about the little one growing inside me, and there are days I freak myself out with statistics and horror stories; though I try to snap myself out of the latter mindset as soon as I find myself going there.

I am looking so forward to sharing my journey with all of you. It will no doubt be an interesting ride. It’s one thing being pregnant for the first time, but a whole ‘nother story when I’m going through the ordeal in a foreign country!

Cheers!

Expat Bud

P.S. For those that don't know what an expat is (I didn't before I became one!), here is the definition, courtesy of Wikipedia:

An expatriate (in abbreviated form, expat) is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing or legal residence. The word comes from the Latin ex (out of) and patria (country, fatherland).

That Girl...

I never thought I’d be the girl who’d WANT to have a kid. You can tell by the way that my 1^st sentence came out; had I been that girl, my opening sentence would have been something like: I always thought I’d be that woman that would someday want to start a family. Bleh… puke…

Ask my mom, growing up and far into my 20’s I couldn’t even stomach the idea. I was a self proclaimed baby hater. This might sound horrible but I dread other people’s kids and usually avoid them at all costs. I quit babysitting long before I got my driver’s license, I never would take a second glance at a baby bump let alone want to touch one to feel it move, and no thank you, I do NOT want to hold your newborn!

It helps that I got married before most of my friends so none of them are at the baby making stage yet, minus the few who got KU, not that there’s anything wrong with that… but that’s a whole other blog. Because we got married first however this also puts us first in line for the only question you hear after your wedding day: When are you going to have kids? Ugh.

I am Glow Bud, I am 28 years old and I describe myself as a reformed baby hater. Mr. Glow Bud and I started dating in 2001 and finally got married 3 years ago in July of 2006. We knew we’d get married from very early on however believe it or not we’d never really had a conversation about having kids. Our dogs on the other hand are our babies – we now have 4, yes 4!!! (Save this little piece of information as it may become very interesting at a later date!)

About a year ago a good friend of ours started dating a girl who had an 18 month old. Since then this girl has become one of my very favorite people, we take her daughter to the park and I even babysit for her in a pinch! Now I have to tell you that before this little girl came along the last 18 month old I have had in my presence let alone held or babysat was my cousin… who is now 17. Slow down we are entering the baby zone… are we finally, at the ripe old age of 28, growing up?

Skip ahead 6 months to April, where I come to the realization that I possibly have a small case of what they call “the baby bug”.

With our last “big woo rah” of a vacation to Mexico out of the way I finally bring up the “idea” to Mr. Glow Bud. A little less than pleased and admitted not completely ready to have kids he still agrees that I can go off my BCP to TTC later this year, later being November/December. No rush right?

So I quit my BCP and started popping the PNV’s. What possessed me that April would be a good month to stop taking them but not try till later in the year god only knows! After 10 solid years of trying to prevent getting KU you’d think I’d have a little more common sense than to think it wouldn’t happen right away.

Well, it happened pretty much right away… its August and ready or not here Baby comes! Already in the three and a half weeks since I saw the two double lines (3 times) and the digital flash pregnant (2 times) I find myself very excited. Mr. Glow Bud is too! Despite the fact that I’ve had heartburn for a 2 weeks straight, I can’t get enough sleep to save my life, and I’ve blown up at Mr. Glow Bud a handful of times, I think I’m doing pretty well. I’ve invested in What to Expect When You are Expecting and I’m already on Chapter 7. Am I becoming that girl? Stay tuned…

How hard can it possibly be to grow a dandelion?

It’s practically uncanny that dandelions have the ability to reproduce without pollinating.

I mean, think about it… they’re everywhere… and all they have to do is dry out and turn into little puff balls the next time they open. Waiting. Some unsuspecting child comes along, makes a wish and blows all of those little seeds into the wind. They land and grow. Everywhere.


I was one of those unsuspecting children once. Picking a dandelion… feeling the sticky milk on my fingers, closing my eyes and making a wish… blowing that wish across the grass and watching as the wind took it to where wishes got granted.

Here I am, 33 years old, and still waiting for that wish to come true.

I’m Dandelion Bud. I’ve been waiting my entire life for my chance to be a mom. When I finally met the future Mr. Dandelion Bud, I knew that this was it. Before we got engaged, I told him that I planned on having my first child before I was 35, and if he planned on having any involvement in that proposal, then he had better get a ring on my finger, and soon. Apparently, he wanted that child as badly as I did, because a few months later, I had a ring and a wedding was in the works. Five months before that wedding, we ditched the birth control and had at it.

We had been trying for 5 months, when I started getting a feeling in my gut that something was wrong. I KNOW it can take a year. I KNOW I’m older than 30. But I also KNOW that my instincts are rarely wrong. Especially those about myself. My OBGyn blew me off. She practically told me I was crazy. And then she told me the words that she should learn to NEVER tell a woman who isn’t getting pregnant.

She said to relax.

What she actually said was, “You’ve only been trying for 5 months. Relax. You just got married. Enjoy being a newlywed.”

What business of hers was it how we enjoyed being newlyweds? We decided ages ago that we wanted a baby. The timing was none of her business. But with that attitude, I started OBGyn shopping, to find someone who would care about the same things I did – or at least to pretend to, even if they didn’t. We also called our primary medical doctor (PMD) to see if he would write the prescription that changed our world.

And Mr. Dandelion Bud had his first semen analysis (SA).

The first SA brought us to the urologist – who recommended I get checked out also. Didn’t make sense to get all of these tests done on him, only to find out later that I had issues too. Enter our awesome reproductive endocrinologist (RE). The first thing he said to us was, “I can get you pregnant”. I like him.

To make a very long story short – and maybe I’ll touch upon more of it sometime later on – Mr. Dandelion Bud has been tested up, down and sideways. The tests haven’t always been pleasant. I have been tested up, down and sideways… those tests have DEFINITELY not always been pleasant. But our official diagnosis is unexplained Male Factor Infertility (MFI). Unexplained = no diagnosable explanation.

Our RE gave us a hypothesis that the MFI is related to a hernia repair surgery Mr. DB had as a child. I think it’s f-d up to all h-e-double hockey sticks that we’re going to have to pay tens of thousands of dollars to get pregnant because of his surgeon’s mistake. (The “out of pocket, no fertility coverage through insurance” story will have to be its own story.) Our only option is IVF (in vitro fertilization) with ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection).


I owe my old OBGyn a lot. I owe her for opening up my eyes to her true colors. Can you imagine if I had waited another 7 months, banging my head against the wall with each perfectly timed negative home pregnancy test, rather than getting tested when I knew something was wrong. By trusting my instincts, we’ll get to our IVF miracle a little bit sooner. And maybe I’ll still get that baby before I turn 35.

A long time ago, when I was going through a really hard time, I found a poem that helped me a lot… the meaning of the poem has changed a little bit for me now. But the general significance remained the same. “I hold your hand. You are more than ‘OK’, Bright singing yellow green life. Spring. Deep roots push you into light. Light.” (poem “Dandelion Children” written by Marie Cartier)
I am a Dandelion Child. I am strong. I will survive. I will get pregnant with my IVF miracle (or as Mr. DB calls it: our “statistical improbability” – he’s analytical).

I AM a Dandelion Bud. And I think infertility sucks rocks.

Introduction from Sunshine Bud

Hello! It’s me, Sunshine Bud!

I am so excited to be a part of the Bloomin’ Babies Blog! Before I start blogging, I thought I’d provide a few stats:

Sunshine Bud is 36 years old

Mr. Sunshine Bud is 36 years old too. (Side note: We are born 25 days apart, same year, same hospital, and the same doctor delivered us!)

TTC since 10/2008 (we we’re hoping for a honeymoon baby, but no such luck L )

Current cycle number: 9

Cycles Charted: 5 (only three using FF; the other two have been loaded onto FF but were paper charts)

Supplements: We have both been taking FertilAid for the past three and a half months. We have also recently started on various vitamins, minerals and supplements but that is for another post.

Monitor: This will be the second cycle using the Clear Blue Easy Fertility Monitor. I love this little gadget.

What’s next: Who knows; we will probably visit an RE come October IF and only IF no BFP.

Now I sit here on CD 12 and looking forward to the next few days; Only 2-3 days or so until my fertile window.

Mr. Sunshine Bud and I have been married for just over a year and we live in Arvada, Colorado.

Pic of Arvada, Colorado

Now, onto our history and TTC journey – Mr. Sunshine Bud and I met in August 2006. We both knew immediately that we were meant to be together. We were inseparable and during the next year, continued to talk about our future together! Neither of us had been married before and we both had a strong desire to have children. So we started planning our wedding and in January 2008, Mr. Sunshine Bud was seriously stung with baby fever. I didn’t want to disappoint any family and convinced Mr. Sunshine Bud that waiting to start a family was best for both of us. After all, I wouldn’t enjoy a honeymoon and do all that we wanted to do, if I was pregnant, so we waited.

In August of 2008, I look my last BCP and came off several other meds that I had been taking for various reasons. Since I have hypothyroidism, I must take my Levothyroxine and Cytomel and I will never be off of these meds, even during a pregnancy. In October, we were given the thumbs up from my doctors (due to the meds) to start actively TTC. Our honeymoon came and went without a BFP, so in November I started charting but on paper. Oh, if I had only known about FertilityFriend.com back then!

In January 2009, I stopped charting due to stress with home buying and the months of February and March were plain crazy with preparing our new home and moving. When May rolled around, I got serious about TTC again. Although I wasn’t temping, I was using OPK’s and documenting my symptoms. The chart for June was like the Rocky Mountains that we live in and the month of July looking so promising but after some careful review, I think our timing has been off.

So here we are, Cycle 9! This is the second month using the CBEFM and we are gearing up for this cycle to be the ONE! I’ve purchased PreSeed lubricant, we’re using some conception hypnotherapy CDs and I’m charting. Overall, we are just preparing to make this cycle the MAGIC CYCLE! Needless to say, we are excited to know that cycle #9 could actually be a possible BFP for us. We are ready to be knocked up!

Well, enough about me. I’m looking forward to posting on here and let’s hope a BFP comes soon! I promised to keep everyone updated on my chart and all the emotions we all know are tied to this exciting and frustrating journey.

Until then, it’s nice to meet you all!

Until next time,

Sunshine Bud

Bloomin' Babies is officially up & running!!!

::waves hello & shrieks in excitement::

Hi everyone! I am sooo excited to finally do this post & welcome you to Bloomin' Babies - we are a group of women at different points in the TTC journey and came together to document our different experiences all in one place. I want to thank all of the Buds for being patient as we worked hard to get this all ready & especially the amazingly talented, steadfast, most awesome, amazing co-admin EVER (seriously) - Sunshine Bud who can pmb (pretty.much.basically) take full credit for the look of this lovely blog!

And last, but certainly not least I would like to thank our readers - that's you :o) - without you there would be no reason for us to do what we do. I think that you will find that there is a good mix of women here and hopefully one will be able to shed light on or help you understand the things you are going thru in your own TTC journey. It is my sincere hope that you enjoy Bloomin' Babies as much as we all enjoy letting you in on one of the most important things we will ever do - become mommies! I hope that you will follow each of our journeys - and join us as we laugh, cry, ache, and (especially in my case) worry along the way! So, sit back, relax and enjoy the ride as we bloom some babies!

Former Buds

Sometimes Buds stop posting on Bloomin' Babies due to personal reasons or because they have delivered their little one(s) & are busy being mommies! We wish you all the best!

Bloomin' Mamas:
Listed below are the ladies who documented their whole journey from TTC through pregnancy on Bloomin' Babies. Congrats on your precious little one(s) & we will miss you:

Brainy Bud

Buttercup Bud

Cactus Bud

Cherry Bud

 Dandelion Bud

 Flora Bud


Glow Bud

Makeup Bud

Nature Bud

Obsessive Bud

Sassy Bud

Worry Bud








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Former Buds:
Blessed Bud, Blueberry Bud, Book Bud, Chef Bud, Daffodil Bud, Daisy Bud, Expat Bud, Faith Bud, Fitness Bud, Golden Bud, Hopeful Bud, June Bud, Love Bud, Nerdy Bud, Rose Bud, Snow Bud, 
Sugar Bud, Sunshine Bud, Travel Bud

You may view the archive posts from the Buds listed above by clicking on any of the links above or by looking under the "Topics" section of the homepage for the Bud's name.