Better

I’m feeling better today. I was pretty emotional on Tuesday, which is out of the norm for me, and then you know what happened? I ovulated on Wednesday. Huh! Didn’t see that coming.

But you know what? I DID see that coming! Because I’ve been charting! Who knew this stuff actually works? Take a look for yourself:

Check that out! I’ll admit that the first half of the cycle looks pretty cra-cray but I’ll cut myself some slack on account of a cold, a sunburn, and a flu shot, which all caused my temp to go nuts. But there it is over the past few days – evened out, dropped, and then rose. Wow! I woke up several times last night and noticed that I felt hot, then saw that my temp rose this morning. This is. So cool!

The one odd thing I’ve noticed (and perhaps the reason just tracking CM hasn’t worked for me in the past?) is that I have two days of EW but actually ovulate on the first day rather than on the second. Previously I would just note it on the first day and then try on day two. Learned something new!

So now I have more information available than ever before: I ovulated on cycle day 22, the first day of EW. If this both halves of the cycle are even, my period should start on day 44 putting me at a 6.5-week cycle. Let’s watch!

I also *may* have gone completely off my rocker last weekend and purchased the OPKs for at-home insemination. This was, of course, before everything went south and I agreed to stop talking about babies for the foreseeable future. But a girl can dream and, believe me, I do and will – dream, that is. I figure I’ll chart this entire cycle and probably the next, then chart and OPK the third cycle with the hope of actually trying on the fourth cycle. (If R agrees, which, let’s face it, is unlikely.) I’ve also started saving to pay for one round of home insemination and should have all of the funds in place by January. See above for disclaimer...

In non-baby-making news, BSF is going great. R, Little K, and I are all doing the study and it’s great to sit down at the dinner table each night to talk about what we’ve learned. We are doing the weekly Bible memory verses with Little K this year, too, and she already has her verse for the week memorized. Big girl!

“I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect Your word.” Psalms 119:16 (NIV)

We worked with Little K to understand what these words mean, finally landing on our family’s paraphrase:

“I’m excited to learn about the Bible and I won’t ignore what I learn.”

Pretty cool! The Message gives us a translation in context:

How can a young person live a clean life?    By carefully reading the map of your Word. I’m single-minded in pursuit of you;    don’t let me miss the road signs you’ve posted. I’ve banked your promises in the vault of my heart    so I won’t sin myself bankrupt. Be blessed, God;    train me in your ways of wise living. I’ll transfer to my lips    all the counsel that comes from your mouth; I delight far more in what you tell me about living    than in gathering a pile of riches. I ponder every morsel of wisdom from you,    I attentively watch how you’ve done it. I relish everything you’ve told me of life,    I won’t forget a word of it.

This is what I want for Little K, for R, for myself, and for any other children we have – to love God with intensity and to be filled with the desire to grow closer to Him.

Lord, thank You for providing Your word in a language that we understand. Thank You that Your word is alive and applicable today. Thank You for giving our family a desire to learn more about You. Continue to knit our family closer together as we study Your word this year. Amen.