Long read: I'm 34 and TTC #2

This is my first cycle after stopping breastfeeding. My first month with a period since before having my son (14 mo old).

Once I got my period, I excitedly dug out all the old (literally expired) OPKs, my thermometer, preseed, etc from a box in the garage from back before getting pregnant with baby #1, so that we can start trying again.

Since I haven't had a full cycle tracking, I wasn't sure when to expect my fertile window. So we just had sex like rabbits around- what used to be- my fertile window (CD 10-14), but CM wasn't getting fertile, LH wasn't getting dark, and hubby was running out of steam. I usually have a super fast surge, and if you blink, you miss it. Hubby couldn't do another sex session, so we stopped since I still wasnt getting positive lines.

CD 17 - I finally got a positive OPK. "ITS GO TIME BABY" I said to my husband, but he was working (shift work) that day and we didn't end up having have sex. That's okay... we will do it the next day!

Next day rolls around and - and for the first time ever - hubby couldn't perform. That was totally new to us. He felt a bit embarrassed. But I told him not to be embarrassed- and that I bet it is because he just worked 14 hrs and is exhausted from work. So he said he would set an alarm for 4:15am the next day to get up a bit earlier for work to have morning sex instead.

4:15am rolls around, I take my BBT and noticed the temp had spiked- so I ovulated already. I tell him not to worry about sex. It's month 1 TTC (baby #2) and we don't need to make this a chore or pressure too much (and knowing I just had my thermal shift, it wasn'tas much of a chance considering by the time you see the thermal shift, your chances are rapidly decreasing. Gotta catch it before the thermal shift for best chances). But he was "up" for the task (gotta love "morning wood"). So we had a quickie and he left for work. 👌

The next day after ovulation, I woke up feeling like complete garbage. Like a bag of smashes assholes; fever (temp jumped way up even more), aches, chills, extreme pain swallowing... I was sick as a dog. I got swabbed for covid (neg) and got some antibiotics from the doc to treat my throat for strep. I knew this cycle was a 'bust' because everything seemed stacked against us. But I didn't get upset. Just laughed and said "what a week". (I also got in a car accident during the week before O, which has resulted in whiplash 2, so weekly chiro and acupuncture appointments to deal with the neck/back).

I continued to test my LH after ovulation just because I wanted to get a feel for what my postpartum hormones were doing (and, I have hundreds of expired OPKs I wanted to burn through before cracking open my brand new Pregmates next cycle. So I'd dip 2 or 3 at once just for fun to use them up - and to see how accurate expired OPKs are).

7DPO rolls around and I grab 2 opks to dip. Not paying attention, 1 turns out to be HCG. I dip both in my cup of urine. One LH is darker than yesterday (still negative), and one was barely even visible. Like a squinter. Must be defective since it's expired and basically stark white)....but then I noticed that that one test was actually HCG. I laughed 😅 and was like, "oh you sneaky little indent! I see you! Nice try!"

8 DPO - LH getting a bit darker again. Still not positive, but getting close. So I evaluate my BBT chart again and- decided that it's entirely possible that the jump in temp that I had when I thought was ovulation, could have been my fever and sickness making me think I ovulated when I actually hadn't! So maybe I'm now trying to ovulate since the first time was failed... so ill keep testing to catch my 2nd surge and plan to have sex as my lines darken.

9 DPO - Blindly grabbed 2 more LH tests from my stash. Ripped both packs open at the same time. Pulled one LH test out, dipped it, put it down. Pulled the 2nd test out, and I did it again - HCG. 🤦‍♀️ Oh well. I have about 75 of them so I'll dip it for fun anyway.

5 min later I look down at the tests. LH just about positive (as I suspected since I assumed my surge was coming), but then the HCG = faint line. Wtf??? No, there's no way! Probably another indent. These tests are old. I grabbed another HCG- checked expiry, and this one doesn't expire until April. Ok let's dip this to prove expired HCG tests gives indents! So I dip. I wait.... another faint line! Ummm...... no... can't be.... there's clearly a faint line. Huh?! OK... let's see what tomorrow's test shows then.

So CD 10 - that's today - I dip HCG with FMU. Now the line is clearly there and pink. I'm pregnant?!!! Shut the front door!!!! I'm in complete shock that I haven't even told hubby yet.

I have my annual pap scheduled for tomorrow morning 10am (good timing haha), so my plan is to go to the doc as usual and get them to do a urine test as well, and - assuming it too is positive- when I get home, I'm going to ask my husband what his plans are for Nov 13 - and hand him the positive pregnancy test! 😜

This is the most unexpected, yet wicked shock! Baby #2 due Nov 13, 2021! Wowza! I'll have 2 kids both under 2 years old!

If you've read this far, thanks for listening and good luck to all you lovely ladies!!!