An Ode to my Underwear

Today my laundry is done.  Dozens of pairs of underwear hang from my drying rack.  I retrieved two pairs from my lawn where my puppy had taken them.  I am excited to get dressed today and put on a great pair of underwear! 

Am I alone in my excitement here?  You see I don't do laundry very often (like once a month or slightly less than that often) and so the last week before laundry is when I break out all of the old too loose or too tight undies.  And my day never seems to go as smoothly when I'm wearing an ill-fitting old pair of underwear.

And by undies, I mean thongs.  I only wear "granny panties" when I work out or play soccer.

My favorite thongs are the Hanky Panky style lace thongs (low rise).

I bought my first Hanky Panky Low Rise thong a couple of years ago.  I was shocked paying $20 for one pair of underwear, but I figured a splurge makes sense every now and then.  My wedding undies were also Hanky Panky with tiny little blue bows in the back.

I buy most of my undies at Victoria's Secret so when I saw their lace thongs, I immediately bought 3 or 5 or whatever amount they made me buy that day in order to not pay full price.

And then I happened to need to go to Frederick's of Hollywood to return a bridal shower gift and saw more lace thong panties.  I definitely bought 5 there. 

My reviews: 

• Hanky Panky - B+ - the only detractor is the price
• Victoria's Secret - C - they get loose and literally almost fall down
• Frederick's - A+ - nice and stretchy (therefore perfectly fitted), lots of bright pretty colors, cheap!

I know that I could just do my laundry more often.  Or buy all lace thong underwear, but I don't see this character trait changing anytime soon.

So for at least the next two weeks, you can be assured that I will be perfectly comfy!

**Just had to chase Stella down in the backyard with the very same blank pair pictured above in her mouth.  Guess I better go put the laundry away now...**

(9 dpiui today...hoping for twinges and cramping, but not quite feeling anything...jury still out)

BBT Charting

I have been charting my basal body temperature (BBT) for 7 months now and it has literally changed my life.  (For you "Parks and Recs" watchers, please read that line in Chris' voice : )

Let me give a super-basic run-down of charting for the newbees: (most material from Taking Charge of Your Fertility (TCOYF) by Toni Weschler, MPH)

The goal of charting is to figure out when you ovulate.  The only problem is that charting only tells you after.  So you need to BD plenty before ovulation occurs...

First, you need a BBT thermometer.  Mine is the pink one from Target.  Make sure it is a basal thermometer.  My thermometer beeps when it's done and saves the temp, so I can take it with my eyes still closed and go back to sleep.

I've heard mixed reviews about this thermometer, but it's worked well for me!

Take your temperature at the same time every day, before you have gotten up in the morning.  It's important that you've had at least 3 hours of uninterrupted sleep for your temperature to be accurate.  Checking your email first, or going to the bathroom will raise your temp.  I take my temp at 5:30 a.m. because that is the earliest time I get up.  On the weekend and in the summer I still take my temp at this time.  It's early enough that I can still fall back asleep.

Product Review: Clearblue Easy Fertility Monitor

In month 5 or 6 I bought the Clearblue Easy Fertility Monitor after hearing stories about how many people it had helped get pregnant.  I had a suspicion that Mr. GG and I had been mis-timing things for potentially all of the first few months. (It's hard to time right when one month is 33 days and the next is 40!)

I was really excited to start using the monitor and eagerly awaited my egg each month, BUT I'm not sure I would recommend it.

Cost for Monitor: $115 (ebay)

Cost for 90 test sticks: $150 (wow...never added that one up before!)

Overall Grade: B-