This is exactly how I feel - I can’t believe I’m one step closer to naming a real baby!!!
Thanks for the suggestions northernlights!
DH and i talked a little today and decided to definitley start next [name_f]September[/name_f]. Ideally id like to conceive a within a few month radius of december. That would put [name_u]Jem[/name_u] close to 2 1/2 upon the new babies arrival.
@babylove14 Sounds like you found the perfect solution!
I’ve been wondering, is anyone doing anything to prepare for TTC yet? [name_f]Do[/name_f] you have a plan about how you’re going to go about it (are you planning on using OPKs, tracking BBT, anything else)?
@northernlights- I started taking a prenatal vitamin and I use OPK’s as we’ll to pin point ovulation. This cycle I started tracking BBT too and record it into fertility friend. I guess since this is our 3/4th cycle trying I am not as relaxed and want to ensure we are doing everything possible. More of a planner here! We also decided to go about it differently this month by starting as soon as AF ends since my cycles range from 24-30 days. I think we are missing the window by waiting for a positive opk. But that is how we are going about it! Hopefully we will have success this time around.
We arent doing anything yet, as we are a ways away from trying, but i definitley plan on taking the prenatal vitamins. With [name_u]Jem[/name_u] they made me feel nauseous so it didnt last long. With this baby id like to get it started early so that i can have it going as long as possible! Probably start next summer. A friend of mine uses prenatals as her daily vitamin- they are so good for you!
What is a BBT? Since this is our first time ‘trying’ i am not quite sure how it works. I mean i can usually guesa when im ovulating by my mood/drive. Im usually super baby crazed when i ovulate (natures way i suppose!)
Is there a way to go about TTC that is best? [name_f]Do[/name_f] you DTD just whenever and as much as possible all month or are you not supposed to do that? Im clueless!
I think we will be pretty relaxed about it the first few months, and then after december hit it hard and get into technicalities.
I’m joining this thread too. I’m 25 years old and my husband and I have been married for a year and a half. We have been “sort of” trying for 3 months now. By “sort of” trying, I mean we haven’t been trying to time everything. We just do it when we feel like it. If I don’t get pregnant this next cycle, I will start using OPKs. Before we started, I began taking prenatal vitamins, although I do forget to take it everyday. Hopefully I get better at taking a daily vitamin before I get pregnant 
@babylove14 BBT stands for basil body temperature. You take your temperature at the same time every morning and track it. I’m not really sure how it works though. I’m sure someone else can explain it better.
I suppose I should have answered my own question too! I started taking a prenatal about a month ago. I’ve noticed my nails growing like crazy since I started–must have been missing something in my diet! 
And I think DH and I are going to “wing it” for a few months like some of you. I’ve always had pretty regular cycles so I think we’ll just BD every few days close to mid-cycle in hopes of catching ovulation. If we aren’t pregnant in 3-4 months I’ll probably get more serious about OPKs or BBT tracking.
@babylove14 Like sweetpeacelove said, BBT is basically tracking your resting body temperature. I haven’t actually done this so hopefully I’m explaining this correctly: every morning at the same time, you take your temperature and record it. Around the time of ovulation, your temperature will go up slightly. So after a few months of tracking you should see a pattern and will be able to predict when you ovulate.
I’m finding it so interesting/helpful to be reading all of your various tips/strategies. This is all so new to me!
I’m considering using OPKs this cycle. [name_m]Even[/name_m] though we’ve only been TTC for two cycles so far, I’m anxious to get this show on the road! I have somewhat irregular cycles, so hopefully using OPKs will help me pinpoint thing a little better. If we don’t have luck soon, I might start tracking my BBT too.
It’s lovely to have a place to discuss all of this.
Since we’re going to start TTC near the beginning of the year, I have already started prenatal vitamins. I had the hardest time with them-- I tried 3 or 4 different varieties, and all of them made me really sick, very painful cramps, lightheaded, irregular heart rate, etc. I figured out that it was the iron, and switched to an iron-free prenatal. Now I don’t even notice it. I really hope that I can keep my iron level up with my diet during pregnancy so that I don’t have to go through that again! Maybe it won’t be so bad when my body actually NEEDS the iron…but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
Also, like most of you, DH and I are not really planning on tracking anything until after a few months in. I’m still unfamiliar with most of the acronyms/abbreviations. Sometimes when I look at the other threads, it’s like a different language!
Another step I took was getting more serious about fitness. I’ve never been overweight–just kind of on the high side of a normal weight range–but I was in terrible shape anyway because I did pretty much no physical activity other than walking my dogs. Now I’m probably in the best shape of my life, which isn’t saying whole lot 
But I’m still proud.
Anyone else go to the gym/fitness classes to prep for pregnancy? Maybe it’s a little silly, but I just thought being in better shape would decrease my chances of things like high blood pressure during pregnancy, unhealthy weight gain, difficult labor, etc.
[name_m]Hi[/name_m] everybody, I’m happy to join this thread even if it is a little early. I’m 26, my husband is 28, and we’re planning on TTC this year, too, but not until the fall. I’ll start prenatal vitamins in the summer, around [name_u]June[/name_u]. It’s good to know that it may take time to get acclimated to it! I’m in the same boat as you are with fitness. I’ve never been overweight, but I absolutely do need to get in better shape, eat better, be on a better sleep schedule, and drink more water. I do think it’s very important to get your body ready for pregnancy. This will be my first one. It’s daunting but exciting.
Good luck!
I haven’t enrolled in any gym classes or anything, though I probably should! I’m a normal, healthy weight but so out of shape; the only exercise I really get is running after a bunch of toddlers at work all day (certainly not to be underestimated, but still not enough). I could also stand to eat better. We’ve been pretty lazy with dinners lately and our vegetable intake, which was never great, has really declined.
If I can’t find something that suits me before I get pregnant, I do plan on enrolling in a pregnancy yoga class or something similar after. I had a look around and there are a few in my area. I think it would be fun to do, plus a great opportunity to meet other mothers-to-be.
@ccomp - which kind of vitamin are you taking? I did hear that the main cause of nausea associated with the vitamins is from the iron. I tool the one a day brand, and it made me so miserable (especially if i didnt take it with a huge meal) that i didnt even look for another kind out of fear it would be the same. Besides major food aversions, they were the only thing that made me sick my entire pregnancy! I may try the gummies this time around. I dont think those have iron. Better to get all the rest of the nutrients than none at all.
I didnt join a gym the last go round, but did inprove my eating habits and included a daily walk into my routine. Now that i have jameson i dont need a gym- we walk all over the place to get out of the house. I [name_m]WILL[/name_m] say that healthy eating habits (especially drinking enough water) and exercise is a huge help during pregnant and PP. It helps your mood, energy levels, and i am a firm believer that it helps with labor too.
@addie- looks like we are on the same time line with TTC! Yay! Im so excited, and even though its a good 9 months away, i feel like i need that much time to prepare! Although i just had a baby, so a big part of that is just that id like to enjoy some time with my first, enjoy not being pregnant, and to give myself (and my body) some time to regulate and get back to normal again.
Babylove-- I take GNC prenatals without iron. I really wanted to stay plant-based, but was unable to find anything that didn’t make me completely miserable.
Northernlights-- I have to work on my diet, too. I probably don’t drink enough water, and I definitely eat too much sugar and too many frozen meals.
I’ll probably also have to find some kind of yoga class or something for expecting mothers. I currently get quite a bit of exercise from riding/jumping horses, which I will pretty much have to stop entirely after 6 weeks or so because of all the associated risks. 
I’ll have to find some kind of replacement.
@babylove and @addie, I’m right there with you, we’re thinking about starting to try in [name_u]August[/name_u]/[name_f]September[/name_f] as well. I haven’t done or taken anything yet. I pretty recently stopped nursing DS, so I still have pre-natals that I can start taking again. I am pretty active and work a couple times a week and ever since I got pg with DS I have been trying to eat better. Key word is TRYING. I’ve kind of fallen off the wagon on that lately, but am slowly but surely eating better.
Hey all! My suggestion would just be trying to relax and have fun! I have be ttc my first since [name_f]May[/name_f] 2013 my journey has been long one for my husband and I. We weren’t anticipating that we would have trouble ttc. However, I noticed problems when I didn’t have a menstrual cycle for nearly a year after coming off birth control. My friends kept re-insuring me that my body was just adjusting. Come to find out once I was recommended to see an RE that I have PCOS. We have done 4 rounds of clomid with no success. I am taking some a break from ttc during the holidays and starting injections in [name_u]January[/name_u]. I really feel like this is going to work and 2015 will be the year for all of us!!! Good luck to you all, and once again try not to stress!!!
@shannon, I love your positivity!
I would like to try to have a third, starting in mid-2015 or so. I will officially be of Advanced Maternal Age and so even though I would prefer a larger gap between [name_f]Cassia[/name_f] and [name_u]Lucky[/name_u] #3, I think biologically I’ll be up against time. And I were to be so lucky as to have a third, I know that that baby will be the last as I absolutely don’t want to gamble and attempt pregnancy in my late 30s.
I became pregnant basically instantaneously the first two times, but I have zero illusions that my luck will hold. I don’t take anything for granted, medically-speaking.
A big difference this time, now that I have a son and a daughter, is that I would like the next baby to be a gender surprise.
Nice to have you blade, and all the others who have joined!
[name_m]How[/name_m] do you like having an older boy and younger girl? For some reason everyone i know has it flip flopped (older girl and younger boy) or childreb of the sane sex.
Id love a little girl, but i am afraid that they wouldnt get along as well as if we had a second boy!
@meyera @babylove I’m very excited! Although I am most assuredly baby crazy, I am also trying to take my time to enjoy life without the HUGE changes that will come with a child, my husband and I are enjoying our time together as a married couple before our lives are taken over by being parents. 2015 is going to be an interesting year of yes, TRYING to be on the wagon with good health habits and also a time to get our finances as decent as possible. I look forward to hearing all about your journeys.