We are all jolly well going to smack the rat this month and grow a baby and we'll brook no argument. And probably eat some cake too.

[Imps7]

Ladies....begin.

Welcome back Stasi! Glad you had a lovely honeymoon, and well done you on turning your missing clothes to your advantage! Thank goodness your sister was able to help out too, would have been an interesting breakfast.

Nice saving, Biscuits! I'm very impressed. Are you a moneysavingexpert addict too?

Imps I am sending to your rubbish bosses. For people who specialise in employment law, they really aren't very bright. Can't believe you're having to wait so long to find out.

DD is still a little whingey but a lot better now. May risk nursery tomorrow. I feel incredibly tired but luckily nothing volcanic in the stomach yet. Night, rat-smackers! x

Morning all :)
Imps-is this thread really that fertile?! I know there will be no mini me's as no Swi has taken place over ovulation having both been Ill but I'm kinda hoping I ov over Christmas so I can say Santa put it there sorry to hear about your work too, is shut and people can behave appallingly in such situations so really feel for you, hope it's sorted soon xx

Bean - I hope you made flapjacks! They are my favourite although i refuse to eat a whole batch on my new healthy living thingy they call a diet

Stasi good work on the wedding night. Our wedding finished at a respectable midnight but the bed at the hotel was sooooo comfy and had a flat screen tv to the side so I lost DH within 15 minutes to a tango & cash film so went to sleep.

Popcorn - and all ladies actually, when I had my first appointment with my GP we went through the cycle and optimum times to DTD and he also said to abstain for a few days before too so now I'm all confused, I've only just got DH to promise we can SWI every other day from the last day of my AF so now what do I do? My cycles are also a little erratic so anything between 28-35 generally so thinking next month we will start SWI from day 10 through to day 25 and see how it goes.

Of course I am trying to take the positive from not being knocked up and that is that my dad makes the most AMAZING mulled wine on Christmas day, it is awesome and strong enough to blow your head off so on the brightside I can neck a fair bit of that. On the crappy side I cried myself to sleep in DH arms on Christmas night last year after watching Gavin and Stacy and their 'fertility' problem which disappeared after about 3 episodes although I'm not sure that each episode doesn't have a time-lapse within it as in, we watch each week but in their time 4 or so months has passed? Anyway, it upset me.

Right, better go to work :( did think about calling in sick today cus still feel rough but if I do that it means I miss zumba tonight. I might just go in and do a few bits then come home, really feel quite grim :(

Have a fabulous day all

P.s can I ask what the rat smacking is all about? If it's DH dinkle that's supposed to be a rat I don't think he'd be too pleased if I smacked although if it's a tried and tested method for getting pg the he'll just have to and bear it won't he :)

Raspberry no need to be brutal to DH's dinkle!! On the original thread, someone said that TTC is like that fair ground game Smack the Rat (where you have to hit the rat as it falls down a tube) - getting preggo is all down to precision timing! This thread has proven to be incredibly fertile - wish we had kept a log of successes. We had 5 BFPs in 2 weeks once!

How confusing that your GP said to abstain for a few days beforehand too . Are you on Fertility Friend? If you look at the charts, there are loads of ladies who got pregnant with just one shag during the fertile time, but there are also loads who got pregnant shagging every day (more than once sometimes) in the run up to ovulation - so who knows!

Who was the Pee Stick Endorsed Pregnant Person (PSEPP) who shagged 5 times on OV day?? My mind still boggles at that achievement!

Hope you feel better today Raspberry - get what you need to get done and then come home - work is no place for sick people!

Oooh crap am running late.

Hello all

Imps - wallow in the fact that you are a perfect example of how to work effectively at a solicitor firm specialising in employment law (as per previous post) and give them the biggest gobfull of venom when they either make you redundant or lose you because they've been so crap. I sincerely hope you get a massive redundancy deal, however.

And 5 times in one day - I was thinking that maybe every other day was knackering in the spermies and we should try 4-5 days apart for a change. Since every other day hasn't made much difference over the last year I'm not too concerned about trying a different approach. Luckily I get the LH surge on d12 every single month so it's easy for me to time.

Raspberry - oh dear, totally understand your reaction to the fertility episode of GnS. Poor you - what a way to feel at Christmas. I was trying to console my OH last night saying I'm determined not to let my baby-gurning feelings creep into the Christmas period but the chat ended up with him complaining how hard-going Christmas is and unsettling for us all (at his mum's in N Wales rather than at home - she doesn't like to get up off the sofa, is a nice way of putting it). Still - hopefully she will babysit one night and we will escape.

Stasi am thinking of having breakfast every day in a wedding dress. I wonder if OH will get the hint?

Yes - that's true - where is Maybe?

Ok - 6dpo here. BOOOORING.

But surely we're due for some BFPs on this thread? What time of year was the famous fortnight of BFPs? We should all be shagging like buggery at 40 weeks before this time of year bt sounds of it. I bet there were full moons involved. HOWL.

ps Am making an Ottolenghi apple cake for you all - bit fiddly but well worth it in the end.

Ooh and am trying exciting Pukka tea - roiboos, honeybush and red ginseng. Bound to get a BFP eh?

Hello stasi welcome home, and well done for wedding night action! I think I started joining in just as you went off on your matrimonials.

bean I put on my wedding dress at the weekend to play with my kids. They thought I looked silly (although it had an 'enlivening' effect on my husband). 8 years in the cupboard and it still fitted. Phew.

Imps I was made redundant from a charity whilst on ML with DS2. They did 3 rounds of redundancies while I was still working, and it was so grim. You'd think these charity and legal types might be a bit better at dealing with it than evil industry, wouldn't you. Maybe for your next job you could go to a brewery that's struggling with its piss ups? Stick with the moral high ground.

Best crack on. Cheerio.

Imps they sound awful. Is the other girl taking is at well as you are? It must be an incredibly stressful situation :(

bean 5 times in 1 day? Dear lord, I do hope she got her BFP

smegs I'm really glad your LO is feeling a bit better, they recover so quickly don't they! I hope you can cart her off send her to nursery today so you can get a bit of rest :)

My temps back up. No idea what it's doing. I did read in another thread though that not only can you get EWCM but not ovulate, you can also get temp changes and not actually ovulate too. But I am not thinking about it until January :o

Well done Pop - that's the spirit. The 5x ini 1d was a ref in Imps post I think. And she did get her BFP. BBFP, I'd say (bloody big...).

Don't recommend that pukka tea. Yuk.

MUST do some work.

I really wanted to like pukka tea (such pretty boxes!) but have yet to find a decent one.

Have you tried Celestial Seasonings Bengal Spice? It's got a tiger on. DH and i have to bulk order it from the health food shop we get through so much.

Ooh - thanks Whimsi, sounds like a winner. And your DH likes it too! Mine is only really into builders... though is quite adventurous with white tea. I think you're right - I fell for the pukka box. Quite enjoy a liquorice tea from time to time. For Yogis .

www.celestialseasonings.com/products/herbal-teas/bengal-spice

And please note girls - cinnamon is good for your reproductive bits.

Sorry Bengal Spice

Morning Rat Smackers

Hello Raspberry I think I've seen you on the first time frolickers thread, is that right?! I was contemplating joining them but ended up here instead. Im 29 (30 in a few weeks yikes!) and have been ttc for 13 months. We have just had our first lot of tests at GP's & are waiting for the results.

I've always been told to dtd every 2-3 days and you should start from day 8 and go on till 4 days post ovulation. As my cycle can be fairly long I've sometimes not started till day10 or 12. This month I've started on day 8 and am gonna try to keep going until day 22!!! I will be walking like John Wayne

Welcome back Mrs Stasi sounds like you had a wonderful time. What a perfect time for ovulation! Can't wait for you to confirm your BFP

Pop sorry you've been having such a rough time ttc. Definitely go to the docs in jan. Its a great idea to just forget about things until then but I know it's easier said than done! I wish I could do it as I'm totally crazy and ordered DH to give me some sperm last night or else!

Imps god your work are driving me crazy, they need to let you two know as soon as possible. I can't believe how long it is taking

Hello Beans and Scrambled hope the little ones are better.

I'm a bit stressed as have got my first uni assignment due in a week. Also I don't know if I've mentioned it before but the department I work in is closing in 12 weeks. We have all been guaranteed jobs but it will be in one of 4 places (2 of which are a lot further than were I live now). We have had interviews about this over 2 years ago! And I still don't know where I'm going to be working. I'm getting quite annoyed now as the stress of not knowing is getting me down. Each of the 4 places are very different jobs as well with different hours so I don't feel I can plan for anything until I know.

Right sorry for such a long post but I feel better for getting that off my chest!!

Morning all, hope everyone had a nice evening last night. DH and I watched the x-files movie, snuggled on the sofa under a blanket and two cats. Seems like a very 'married' thing to do, though tbh, we did that quite a lot before!

I'm on CD24, and 10DPO with a bit of a temp drop. However, I didn't take my temp over the last 2 days (as I'd not unpacked my thermometer), and my temp taking over honeymoon was at erratic timings whenever I woke up. I didn't track CM this cycle, as I seemed to be getting EWCM from CD9 onwards - I think this had more to do with the regular SWI though. FF says AF tomorrow, my phone app says AF in 4 days. Generally the phone app is more accurate, so we'll go with that.

Imps I hope work stuff improves soon. We had a round of redundancies last year, but our company handled it very quickly over the space of just a couple of days. It was the Monday morning we were told, and by Wednesday those who were leaving knew they'd been chosen. We were bought by another larger company shortly afterwards, but morale has been awful since then. We lost 4 people shortly after, now 6 months later 2 more are thinking of resigning. That only leaves 6 of us. My aim was to go on maternity leave, then quit afterwards - however getting pg for the maternity has taken much longer than expected... just hope they don't shut down the office before I get there!

Hope you're feeling better today raspberry - I found out on returning to work yesterday that our wedding made everyone ill with a bad cold. Spread all round the office, but luckily dried up over the weekend before I came in.. Feeling v.guilty but v.lucky to have missed it!

I'm a big tea drinker, generally only decaff Tetley. I used to drink lots of caffeinated tea, but I had to stop after the surgery, and I think it's just generally better for me not to have so much caffeine in my system. I drink about 10-12 cups a day, so it adds up! I occasionally go on a fruit tea binge, and have to drink peppermint tea whenever we're out, as nowhere has decaff as an option. I find though, if I'm wanting a cup of tea, then it has to be 'real' tea. Fruit tea or rooibos or whatever just doesn't fulfil that need. True addict.

I should get on with work. Probably.

:o @ cupcakes walking like John Wayne!

12 weeks, that's not long at all - especially not in the context of 2 years!
Upheaval is stressful, but it is good that you have another job - even if you don't know the details yet. Who knows, you might even like it better? :)

afternon all

imps hope the job gets sorted out soon, one way or the other, but you seem to be handling it well.

On the subject of tea, we have some rather lovely rooibos chai, its really rather nice, and extra warming from all the spices - it was very chilly here this morning definately below 0. I had to move up to my thicker winter coat

I think I've ovulated now, yesterday or Sunday, but we had some rat smacking this morning just to be sure - well DP offered and it would have been rude to say no!!

You guys are all having some work issues. Time to leave and have a conceptionmoon (yuk to that neologism, whoever coined it)? My friend of 45 with the prem twins was made redundant and then got IVF-diffed after 4 years of trying (via IVF)...

Anyway - sounds harsh and hope that times improve for all of you.

Also enjoying John Wayne impressions but cupcakes I think you and I are going opposite approach for next month IF AF arrives, which of course she daren't.

No hot drinks for you Popcorn? So I can't tempt you with a big friendly mug of hot choc covered in real clotted cream and possibly, maybe some marshmellows

Gawd terriers are useless - just saw a mouse in the kitchen (tiny, granted) - dog barely moved. Now chaos everywhere as moved furniture and crockery crashed. And I did the classic housewife jump and scream (which is surprising, as I am v far from a classic housewife)...

Bean I am a sucker for Options coconut hot chocolate (especially stirred into porridge, yum yum yum) and I also have a nespresso machine which I seriously could not live without. Even the decaf is to die for. I drink tea (and coffee) black, and do actually like it, but it makes me feel horribly sick afterwards and I've no idea why :(

Very quick post from me........

Ooooooooh do I have to give up coffee as well, but I love coffee

Snaffles a bit of bean's ottolenghi apple cake

stasi, wedding night action eh? Very impressed, we did not manage it until the morning after, which is very common apparently!

Morning cupcakes and popcorn, nice to have a couple of posts to distract me from that 5 minutes of work I did! I really don't like my job any more, and have been holding out for a pg and ML forever. My DH has a good job and really wants me to be a stay at home mum, and I have to say I'm looking forward to it! I've been sticking with working to get as much savings as possible before we cut down our income and up the expenses, however the wedding cost a small fortune, so it's probably for the best I'm still at work.

Since starting to ttc I've tried really hard not to stress about the process. I do get down every month when AF turns up, but try and keep it all limited to just a couple of days. We plan nice dinners, rom coms, and wine on those evenings. DH just gets me to eat healthy and exercise as much as possible while trying, and that's the only real 'pressure'. We're both quite low sex drive people though, so tend to do a bit of SWI around ovulation, then take a break for the rest of the cycle. I like the every 2 days method, we both know when it's coming, and if it stretches to 3 days it's not the end of the world. I'm really glad this month worked out so well with timing, but am kind of afraid to get my hopes up too much. Just seems too perfect to be true.

I did my bloods yesterday, but the nurse didn't tell me what would happen with results. No idea if I should just phone, or make another appointment. DH still has his SA pot at home, going to try and get that done this week. He told me yesterday he's kind of looking forward to it - and that I can do the aiming!

I remember reading somewhere that sperm take quite a long time to mature, and if you DTD too often you'll get immature spermies who are unable to reach or fertilise the egg, and less overall volume, err, delivered. However, if you wait too long then you have the other problem. The 2 days rule is an average, just like the ovulation on CD14. I guess if there's a problem with the swimmers it could be good to wait till you have a good batch ready. I found the SA form interesting, as it says you must have ejaculated at least 7 days ago, and not within the last 3 days. That gives you a fairly good idea of when the best stuff can be found.

Took me so long to write that post I missed interim ones. Morning Beedle, Bean and Far.

Bean we had mice in our house growing up, one of the downsides of council housing. So I'm fairly relaxed about the thought of them. I remember putting on my shoe and feeling a funny lump under my toes = baby mouse.

However, as a student we found a very well toasted mouse in our toaster... no idea how long we'd been making toast with a hint of mouse. Only found it because a flat mate toasted a live one while in the kitchen and freaked, while the others calmed her down, it was my job to see if the mouse was still alive. Have you checked your toaster?

OMG!!! I am totally petrified of mice/rats. I nearly threw up my breakfast after reading about the mouse flavoured toast!

When I was a student in a shared house I was on the phone to my DH (just a boyfriend back then) when a rat ran across the room. I stayed with my friend for a few days while pest control came in. They gave it the all clear & I moved back in. A few hours later was lying on my bed watching tv when a rat ran across my stomach!!!! Anyway I ran out (shoeless and coatless) never to return!! My brother moved all my stuff out for me and found a dead rat in my clothes

Ever since then if I see a mouse/rat I feel like I'm going to pass out.