Preparing for TTC

Up until now, I’ve spent my whole life trying NOT to get pregnant. It is terrifying to think that when you finally WANT to get pregnant, that it might not happen. I have been on birth control – first Depo Provera injections for about 6 years and then Alesse birth control pills (“bcp”) for another 6 – for almost 12 years. We knew we would want to start TTC around the time we hit the 30 year old mark so, after a once in a lifetime trip to south America, I stopped taking my bcp in November. Although we didn’t want to start TTC right away, I wanted some time to let my body take over and get back into a normal cycle, since after 12 years on birth control, I had no idea what normal would be for me. I figured a bit of a wait would also give me some time to get healthy. Not to mention, after reading Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Outliers”, DH didn’t want to have a baby born in the late part of the year which meant we had to wait until at least April to start trying.

Generally speaking, I would say we are pretty healthy people. While I haven’t been as diligent in getting to the gym or out for a run as often as I would have liked, we spend a lot of time working on our home and are fairly active. Our eating habits are pretty good as well, but that’s not to say that I don’t love dessert (I have a serious sweet tooth) and it would be shameful to admit just how much wine gets drunk in our household. So, starting in March (January-February was a bit of a lost cause – I work about 16 hrs/day during that time and so we order in food at work) I have been focusing on eating nutrient rich meals, eating a lot more plants than I have in the past, drinking litres of water and I *gasp* gave up both coffee and wine (well, all alcohol) cold turkey. I will admit I’ve had a couple of slips with the wine – at dinner with friends when I wasn’t yet prepared to field questions about why I wasn’t drinking, but otherwise I have been sticking with it and feel great. Oh and of course, I started a prenatal vitamin!

Aside from that, I’ve been trying to be less stressed on the whole. My job can be pretty intense but I have been working on spending more time on me, for me.

I would love to hear about what you did to get ready for TTC and/or what one thing you felt helped prepare you most for your pregnancy.

How we got here

I met my husband (who may be referred to on this blog as hubs, DH (dear husband), hubby) over 10 years ago in a pub. I arrived fashionably late at which time the pub was absolutely packed and there was nowhere to sit. DH got up and immediately offered me his chair and then somehow snagged an extra chair and moved in right beside me. I don’t remember what we talked about that night, but when we spoke he looked me straight in the eyes… and his smile! It still melts me from the inside out when he smiles like that. The rest, as they say, is history. Since that time he has been my absolute rock through some very challenging years, family illness, going back to school and renovating two homes (well almost – we’re still working on number 2!). I think it’s safe to say we make a pretty awesome team and I am thrilled to be working on our latest project together – building a family of our own.  

Welcome!

I've been reading blogs for about 3 years now, since I started planning my wedding in 2009. Since then, my blog reading has evolved based on what's going on in my life; from weddings, to marriage, to do-it-yourself home renovations, to travel, to healthy eating and fitness and most recently, to making babies. To me, the appeal of reading blogs is that they are all about life unedited. I don't have a clear direction for the content of this blog, rather it will be dictated by what is going on in my life. While I want to share it all, I'm still warming up to the idea of putting myself out there for all to see. So, at least for now, I will be anonymously Elizabeth.

Welcome!