Names and tests

I was going stir crazy yesterday - just waiting for my period, or for Friday-ish to test if I didn't get my period. today I caved, and did another test - waiting for it now, but I'm still sure it'll be negative (again!).

Yesterday though, I went through a baby names site, and wrote down all I could possibly see myself calling a baby of mine... some of the names I put down ended up surprising me! Those being Malcolm and Lillian - those two aren't my favourites by any means, but they're not bad names, and ones I'd consider - but MALCOLM! lol :) I'd have never thought I'd ever consider Malcolm.

There are some boys names I know Jonathan won't like... he's told me before he doesn't like Brandon. So he probably won't like Brendon. Or Braden. Or Maxwell.

But there are some names I really do quite like at the moment: For a boy: Owen, Robert, Thomas, Elliot, Ethan, Christopher, Aaron.

For a girl: Chloe, Kerryn, Kristen, Leah, Megan, Shannon, Amber.

As for middle names.... well there've been a few instances where middle names were the parent's name - for example, my middle name is my mum's name, my brother's middle name is my dad's name, my mum's middle name is my nan's name.. but my name SUCKS as a middle name... nothing goes well with "Nicola" tagged on the end. Jonathan also is a bit of a mouthful for a middle name. But we were thinking of using names common to both families. There's a boy's name I would really like to use as a middle name, and I think Jonathan agrees would be nice, which is Stephen - which is my brother's name AND Jonathan's dad's name. So it will be a special middle name for both families. And will be a nice surprise hopefully! However, there's no such name like that on the female side, so we'd probably just pick a name we both like to go with it... which is a shame.

Just looked at my test - and negative again... :( Wish my self control was better - I guess I'll just be waiting again for a few more days - I have to expect my period to come this week.. if it's not here by Monday (which would give a 32 week cycle) then I'll test again. Which means only tomorrow to get through since Jonathan will be here for the weekend.

Period due tomorrow

I took a second test yesterday morning, which showed up negative too. I'm still hopeful though - the tests I have apparently don't show up positive until the day you first miss your period. And I'm due for my period tomorrow or within a few days from then... But I've only really been keeping track of my periods for about 3 months or so, so I don't know how realistic the estimate is.

I keep imagining every little ache as possible pregnancy symptoms... Although I guess it COULD be PMS. I know that it's not very likely for us to have conceived this month since we only started trying on about the 19th day of my cycle this month... But part of me just FEELS... like it's maybe it IS the month...

I hope it is the month... because Jonathan and I are going to see my brother in a couple of weeks and it'll just be so much easier to be around a newborn if I know that I'm pregnant.. Which of course makes me sound horrid and jealous blabla.. but I think maybe the fact that we are trying is a little better for me, unlike when my nephew was born and we hadn't even got round to finding a house yet and the whole TTC thing was sooooo far in the future and just in my mind never going to happen.

I'm finding it hard to wait until Friday/Saturday... but I didn't test this morning, since I read that it only showed from when the period is due. I feel like I'm itching for the weekend to get here, and also crossing my fingers that my period doesn't come.

First entry, background info

Well, the time has finally come to make myself my very own TTC (trying to conceive) journal. Hopefully, soon, this will become my pregnancy journal.

My name is Nicola, I live in England with my husband Jonathan, and our cat Hazel. Currently we live in Buckinghamshire, in a 1 bedroom flat, but in the last week we've put an offer in on a house in Northamptonshire, and our solicitor is hopefully busy sorting out all the stuff needed so that within the next month or two we can move into the 3 bedroom semi detached house we've found. :)

Jonathan and I have been married 3 years (well, 3 years in May), and we have just started TTC our first child. I was on the pill for 9 years or so, until I stopped last June. My periods are now hopefully fairly regular, I've begun to document when they start and end each month so I can spot patterns which may help us when we are trying to time intercourse. Now, we have technically done our first month of trying, although we only officially started trying part way through my cycle, so I am concerned as to whether we started "too late" to have conceived this first month.

I am three days from when I think my period will come this month if I am not pregnant. I did test today, with some cheap pregnancy tests I found from a link via Alice's diary, and it came out negative (although I did squint for about half an hour trying to find even a tiny hint of a line). I don't know whether it is simply too soon to tell, or if I'm simply not pregnant. Either way, my period is due on Thursday (it's monday today), so if it hasn't appeared by Saturday, I'll test again (although I will probably find it hard to restrain myself from testing on Thursday or Friday).

I've not done any charts as such, but I have been keeping an eye on cervical fluid - 2 days ago I got quite a large amount of cervical fluid, which was tinted brown, and also spotting along with it - just under a week before my period was due. I looked it up on the internet, and found that spotting a week before your period is due can be a sign of implantation bleeding. Well, there's nothing much I can update with now for a while, until I see what happens later in on the week. Until then!