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.

Generic your DD is amazingly cute!!!

solars lovely photos, is that one of your wedding? You both look gorgeous. 39? Seriously?

:o

Maybe I used to have three dogs (!) and they were all a bit bitey as pups - I think it is like when a baby is teething and they need to chew on something. I used those rope toys that they can chew - they love gnawing on those. The training will be great though and is worth persevering with. Thanks re cutie DD!

Cupcakes I am South Manchester and work in Cheshire so our paths may not cross much, although me and DH are out on the town tonight!

Solars you will get there and have your baby, I just know it.

Thank you Imps!

I started writing this ages ago, but work kept getting in the way. Sorry if I've missed off people...

Thanks for the commiserations everyone. I'm surprisingly ok with AF turning up, at least on the surface. I think I've pretty much convinced myself it's never going to happen, so when AF turns up it just meets expectations. I found the first few months of hoping so much more painful.

My phone tells me this was a 10 day LP, so I must have counted wrong (FF stopped showing it on my chart until I pay them..). Seems like it should be easy to work out, but I obviously failed. So that makes my last few LPs 10, 11, 13, 11, 12, 12, 9. I thought they were meant to be the same every month? Oh well, here starts cycle 17.

We'll do DH's SA on Monday, and I've got an unrelated nurse appointment then too, so I'll ask them to tell me the numbers from my CD3/21 bloods. Hopefully then by the beginning of the week after we'll know if there's a problem, or if we're just super unlucky. Annoying I have to wait until Jan for consultant, but I think we'll just have to try and relax over Christmas.

I like the idea of making a Christmas cake - but no one in my family likes fruitcake. I'd like to have a nice organised Christmas this year, every year since I was at uni I've hosted Christmas. This year I think it's just my Dad and 2 (adult) brothers, though last year we also had my sister, nephew and his dad staying. In our little 2 bed house?

Real of course you're pg!

Generic we have the Delia "Complete how to cook" book. DH loves it - being a techie, he likes knowing what the right way to do something is. As soon as I bought it for him he refused to do anything without first checking how Delia does it! Including boiling an egg!

Far have a wonderful holiday, I'm just a little jealous of you :)

Maybe perhaps your bosses wife has started ttc and is being a little over-zealous with him? Benefit of the doubt and all that.

Smegs so sorry your AF turned up too, we can be cycle buddies, and chocolate/wine buddies. I really want some answers now too, but with our NHS appointment getting closer I'm just going to be patient. I'm getting more and more worried that there is something wrong though, it can't just be bad luck for this long can it?

Raspberry hope you fee better soon, have a nice calm weekend of being waited on hand and foot.

Beedle I like to just take a note of symptoms like that, then tell myself I can stop stressing and have to wait and see. If it is a BFP, you can point to your notes and know you were right!

Loving all the photos from people. Nice to get some faces to names, makes everyone feel more like real friends than imaginary ones, iykwim. Also, everyone looks so young and gorgeous!

Seconds Generic you will be getting that baby Solars

I'm working until midnight again tonight so am very jealous of your night out. I'm naively hoping that it will be quite at work as all the kids will be at home watching children in need!

Maybe it's totally normal for dogs to mouth & nip at that stage. I think my dog stopped when she got to about 1 year (she had already massively improved by then!)

What you need to do (sorry if you already know this!) is everytime he nips you completely stop giving him any attention. If you need to walk away or turn your back to him. When he sits down quietly then you can resume giving him attention. You can also try saying a phrase like stop or leave everytime. I used stop with Sadie, it worked really well. Now if I say stop she freezes and waits for direction from me.

Thanks for the advice everyone! That's exactly what we have been trying Cupcake, thanks for confirming it is the right thing to do Sometimes he gets it, sometimes as soon as you turn away he will bite the backs of your legs! I think perseverance will be the key

I am glad you have a plan of action Stasi, definitely have a word to the nurse when you go see her. I always find that the nurses are more willing to spend a but of time with you and talk things through than the GP.

You are so sweet re my boss. Unfortunately though, he really is not a nice man. long story that I explained on the older threads, but he is a very sexist opinionated man who looks down on women, especially if they are starting families (even though he has a DD himself). You should def have a go at making a Christmas cake (I still haven't made mine ). If not many people like fruit, how about a sponge that still has all the spices in? I have a nice recipe if interested.

Sounds like you know what you are doing Maybe we were quite clueless with our dog and kept getting advice from random dog walkers!

Right I've put some photos of me and DH on our wedding day up. It was 2 years ago but I don't think we have changed much from then!

Sweetie I've finally seen your pics! I love your wedding dress, it's stunning. Gorgeous doggy too!

Ah, Cupcakes, beautiful!! Oh, I love weddings. I would get married tomorrow if I could afford it

And I certainly don't feel like I know what I'm doing

Lovely pics Cupcakes!

Cupcakes wow you look beautiful and what a lovely location for your wedding - I love weddings too!

Popcorn thank you, yes that was our wedding day a couple of years ago.

Stasi it will happen and good luck to your DH for monday, brooking no argument for good blood results too!

Thanks everyone
Right I'm off to get ready for work. Happy Friday everyone!!!
I'll check in again tomorrow

Please slap me with a wet fish! I keep thinking about testing but I really do want to wait and not pee on a fiver until I'm pretty sure of getting a BFP.

I felt very periody this morning, but was surprised she wasn't there and is still not there. I'm going madder than usual today, having been very calm in the 2ww up until now - argh!

Save yourself a fiver lovely and use it to buy yourself a treat. When is AF not due?

Oh Imps I needed that! AF due any day really, I'm 12 dpo and my last 4 LPs have been 12 / 9 / 12 / 14. If AF not here on Sunday I will be very excited, but will try to hold out until Wednesday.

Generic If you really are going to wait until Wednesday I might have to post you some cheapies to test asap! I think I bought myself 30 of them...

Well you busy, beautiful owners of a soon-to-be-had BFP. I have been getting behind on all your news....

AF is an evil slug-rubbing, wart-bestrewn hagbag. She has taken no prisoners recently. There is only one solution - I crochet voodoo AF dolls and distribute kit to all Brookers (kit to include numerous long, sharp needles) for systematic use. Any suggestions for the design, ladies?

Bring back something lovely for all of us, baked or not, Far.

Generic - pissing on a fiver - how about this for warped logic? I tested 14 dpo last month convinced I was preggers. Only a cheapie so serves me right (BFN obviously). Then I bought CB - much more spenny - on the basis that this. would. stop. me. testing. too. early... and get me a BFP..!

I mentioned adoption - but Stasi wrote about it in her profile. It's something I would like to do and greatly admire those who do it. I am told regularly that it's a cruel, invasive system (not just in your own life, but anyone who might be involved, your parents etc). They want to know everything about you and let's just say you don't have to open a cupboard door to feast your eyes on my skeletons. Cadavers liberally and randomly strewn about the place during my years on this planet... Still I like a fight and am stubborn as a mule (for a Woolly, liberal, left type anyway.)

We go to playgroup with a foster carer and his charge (whom I adore) - the carer is a feller and soooo loving and proud (never shuts up about his FC). But I get a sense of how tough the system is and how the child has suffered and he's only 3.

Fishpie (a la Delia) Maybe?

Whoever's DH brought home icecream and GnT - he's a genuis. Thank goodness indeed.

Sorry for everything else I've missed. Loved the new photos - Generic's happiness at Gretna, Solar's stunningness and very nice looking DH indeed.

Hurrah Brookers. Keep up the good work.

I actually wrote about adoption in another post - maybe you read it, or linked from my 'recent talk' on my profile page?

However I've thought about adoption since I was a child, I remember how certain I was that I would have children, one way or another. I think it was my sister probably being 'mean' that put the idea of maybe not ever having a husband to have kids with. Well, my very logical conclusion then was that I would adopt.

I've talked to my DH about adoption and fostering a few times, it's something I would love to do even if we do have our own DC (which of course we will). DH is adamant we will only have 2 children, he doesn't want to add to the world population gain! So I'm hoping we'll be able to adopt DC 3 and 4 :)

We've got lots of options open to us before going down the adoption route. DH really would like a child that is genetically his, but my sister has offered to do both egg donation and surrogacy for us if we need it. That gives me a pretty good insurance policy if the problem is on my side. We've also not even started looking into all the various forms of assisted conception. Long way to go yet, and very little of the road actually travelled. We walk slowly :)

Yes - Stasi - you have many years to grow your big family. xxx

Stasi and Bean I used up all my internet cheapies over the last few cycles and swore I wouldn't buy any more because testing all the time was doing me no good. So I have done like Bean and bought a two-pack of Superdrug tests. Actually, I did it last cycle to keep me from peeing on anything until I was late. Somehow knowing I've spent £5 on the tests enables me to hold back!

Stasi you're very philosophical and I admire that. I'm sure you will be a great mother when the time comes.

Stasi what lovely words. I don't think we should close any doors. I would be very open to adoption, we have discussed it too but DH wants to progress further just us for now.

2 colleagues have both adopted, one fairly recently. the other adopted her DS a few years ago and since has adopted two siblings of her first as they have come along. She has a lovely brood who she loves to bits.

sweetie we are wedding day twins! I got married on 26th August too. It rained on us nearly all bloody day but was lovely all the same. Elvis was officially not in the building at ours either :) But I did have three very drunk friends pretend to be destiny's child if that counts.

Interesting to see so many who have given thought to adopting. I have discussed it briefly with DH a few times. My aunty and uncle were foster parents and we were one huge foster family really, as soon as a child arrived they had ready made cousins, aunties/uncles/nan & grandad, brothers and sisters and by and large many of them stay in touch now as they remember their time with us as being the nicest they had before adoption. I'd love to adopt but it's a long old invasive process that I just don't think I could deal with at this point in my life. That makes me sound selfish but I dont mean it too. Adopted children have already had so many issues in their life, whoever they go to has to be 100% A Ok and able to cope which is why the process is so gruelling. Some adoptions fail and the impact of that on the child is just simply awful. So, long term it's something we would like to do but at the moment I just don't think we are right. Only 28 though so many years ahead of us yet!

I've decided to start looking at acupuncture.. Reading another thread has inspired me to try it. That an people on here, and the 10+ month thread mentioning their successes with fixing issues such as light AF, heavy AF, short LP etc.

There's one site I've found looks good, they also have a recommended reading list here. Wondering if any of you also recommend some of the books?