Week 1-4: The faint purple line

My husband has never been keen on babies. With 3 younger brothers, his childhood is traumatised by the stench of nappies and baby poo.

And you can't exactly travel around with a baby, can you?

But a number of factors made us think seriously about settling down. My dad having a stroke for instance made us realise how important families are. Husband suffering chronic neck/back pain made us think about our long term health. Me hitting 35 this year is also a timebomb ticking...

We thought we'd have a go, see how it went. I didn't expect to get pregnant in our second month of trying though!! Husband was a bit disappointed at that :) Mind you, he was on enough painkiller / muscle relaxants to open his own pharmacy. This baby will probably have 3 heads.

I confess, I did use a bit of temperature charting to see when I'd be ovulating. Mum gave me these sheets and a thermometer and I just plotted some readings down. It was quite interesting in the first month to see how my temperature dropped when my period came. Even more astonishing to see my temperature maintain a highish 36.8 degrees Celsius past my due date in the second month and no sign of my period.

Anyhow, on 17th February 2007, I took a pregnancy test, and the faint purple line - like the man from Del Monte - said 'yes!'. Husband and I didn't know quite how to react. I was suddenly raiding the internet for information:
- 20% or pregnancies end in miscarriage: shit, don't get too excited yet.
- the probability of a Down's syndrome birth increases very much if the mum is over 35: what would we do?
- shouldn't eat raw fish: there goes my sushi.
- I'd be due 23 October 2007. I'm a premature baby, husband was 2 weeks late - reckon that's about right.

Subdued excitement. That's what we feel.