So Lil’ sis wrote a pretty touching post on her blog recently and I was asked whether it’s true that having a baby completes the puzzle coz that’s something you often hear people with kids say. All I could answer was, “I don’t know...I guess so if that’s what they’re saying” (yeah, I’m eloquent like that).
I know I used to say that I won't plan and will just go with the flow and if it happens...then hey, congratulations to me! But now that I’m actually married, it’s a whole different story what with Mi Amor being away (and who knows if he might extend his contract in Vevey) and me still on probation at work (I still have another 2 week course that I need to attend...but they only conduct the course twice yearly and I’m on the waiting list). There are days when I think I wanna plan it and there are days when I think I’d like to just throw all caution to the wind.
Anyway, I get annoyed at the fact that some people assume that just cause you don’t get pregnant within the first few months of your marriage (if not immediately after you marriage) then you must be infertile! Unfortunately Mi Madre is one of those people. She doesn’t believe in family planning, etc. The other day when we were out grocery shopping, I went to the pharmacy to check out the condoms (actually I did it on purpose to test out a theory) and Voila! True to what I expected, she came over to see what I was up to and she went, ”Why are you even looking at this? You don’t need this...don’t waste your money...let’s go!”....hahaha
It’s not that I don’t realize that I’m no spring chicken and that the older you get, the higher the risk of pregnancy/birth complications. And I understand that she’s extra worried about me since I have those awful period pains (which I know can sometimes be a sign of endometriosis)...but I do not like to be nagged and forced into making a decision like this. Sure we want kids eventually (I say 4, he says 2....we’ll see) but I wish she’s understand that I want to be a bit more selfish and have Mi Amor to myself for a while longer coz once you have kids in the picture, it changes the dynamics of a marriage. And at the moment I have yet to fully enjoy the part of the marriage where it’s just the two of us living together, travelling together, etc. Anyway, Mi Madre signed up for some online thingy that sends reports on tips on how to improve your fertility and she’s been forwarding them to me. At first I got annoyed and wanted to delete em’ (as it is I get more than enough junk mail to keep me busy.....apparently I seem to be a very lucky person...I’ve lost count of the millions I’ve won in various lotteries!) especially since the first line of the email went :
Since you're here, I imagine that you may be feeling frustrated at not being pregnant yet. I know exactly how you feel, as I was in the same position myself some years back.
(ermmmm.....me thinks it’s Mi Madre’s who’s the frustrated one :P) but then I thought what the heck, I might as well keep em’ for future reference (u never know...touch wood!).
So here’s what I’ve learnt so far:
· Avoid over the counter lubricants because they could be harmful to sperm and therefore could prevent you from getting pregnant
(they recommend using egg whites as a substitute....ewww, I’ll never look at baking the same way again)
· Avoid eating fish that are high in mercury because Mercury can get stored up in your bloodstream from too much consumption, and then passed on to the developing baby. Too much mercury can affect the nervous system of an unborn baby. So fishes to avoid are : tuna (dammit...I like my tuna sandwiches!), shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and tile fish (also called golden or white snapper), tuna steaks (fresh or frozen), orange roughy, Spanish mackerel, marlin, and grouper
(I gotta admit, I don’t know how most of these fishes even look like!)
· One of the best ways to improve your chance of getting pregnant is to increase your natural lubrication. This can be achieved by introducing more foreplay into your "baby-making activities" which will increase your arousal and therefore you will have more natural lubrication to help the sperm to stay alive
(ok got it, no more quickies...hahaha)
· When you are trying to conceive, it is best to avoid oral sex on the days that you are fertile. The reason is that saliva has bacteria in it that are harmful and damaging to the sperm. Therefore you do not want any saliva in any area where sperm might be present (women everywhere who are trying to conceive are prolly rejoicing at this!)
As for me, I’ll just wait for Mi Madre to forward more emails to me. I did however email her today asking “What makes you think I’m infertile? Oh, and what is oral sex?”
Have yet to receive a reply from her :D
p/s.....I have started making a list of baby names...so I guess that’s a start, no?
