2 Years ..

[thevindicator]

Hello preppers, new member here but I've stalked it for a while. My S.O.(31M) and I (24F) have agreed to start trying in 2 years and I CAN'T WAIT. He even told me the other day, '' Can't you hardly stand it? ".

Any tips on how to make a 2 year wait more bearable, anything I can start prepping with? Especially interested in learning all I can about motherhood/childhood development as early as I can, any recommendations?

 

[sjh22]

@thevindicator I've been married about five years and waiting to try for most of it. I made a decision early on to accomplish as much as I could prior to TTC and really make use of the time. These were my goals prior to trying:

-get to a healthy BMI and maintain it successfully

-figure out a exercise routine that works for me and can be easily done with a baby

-improve my credit score and have 6 months income set aside in savings

-catch up on all doctor's appointments and medical procedures

-buy a new car

-travel internationally/any trips that are not kid friendly I wanted to do

-get better about taking vitamins

-stick to routines in my daily life- I was always forgetting to do things like take my vitamins and water my plants

-assorted home renovation projects that would be difficult with a baby, like painting the living room and new flooring

-figure out a good skincare/curly hair routine so I can be as wash and go as possible once I have a baby (my hair has always been a struggle!)

-get where I want to be, career wise

-get another cat (didn't want to worry about introducing a new cat while we had a newborn)

I had no specific goals in terms of learning about child development etc because I'm already very comfortable with babies/children but as we get closer to TTC (next month! finally!) I've borrowed the odd book here and there from the library. I'm planning to wait to purchase pregnancy/first year books til I get a positive test .

I have completed all these and it feels SO good. Being healthy was my number on goal because I want a healthy pregnancy. I wouldn't have been upset if I'd ended up accidentally getting pregnant prior to any of this, but having accomplished all my goals prior makes me really happy/proud! Especially with weight loss/health goals, it was REALLY motivating to have getting pregnant be my end goal so when I REALLY didn't want to go to the gym that day I would end up going, etc.

 

[joebo]

@sjh22 Oh my goodness, you've done so much! I really need to make a clear list like this to get motivated and get my ducks in a row. Well done!

 

[sjh22]

@joebo Thank you! It definitely made the wait so much easier! Abd just a big motivator in general. TTC starting next month and I'm so happy!

 

[thevindicator]

@sjh22 Woooow good for you, you've rocked it! My S.O. believes in epicenter genetics so we're definitely using this time to get in better shape, I'm pretty good at hydrating just gotta work on eating better.

It's crazy like every little thing I do now is completely focused on the future because I have this major life-altering event to look forward to now. Wanting to save money, be stable financially/emotionally, like my entire outlook has changed.

 

[godzreal]

@thevindicator I am in the same boat!!! I’ve been reading TCOYF, and Expecting Better to learn about some things just to kind of inform myself early. When I’m working or have some down time during the work day I’ll put on a “what’s in my hospital bag” video, or something funny but informative (loving Mama Doctor Jones on YouTube). Recently I decided I wanted to learn more about the Montessori method so I’m looking into books, blogs, podcasts, etc. this is all to help me feel like I’m slowly learning before I get super involved and start taking notes and hardcore planning. I feel like that kind of helps scratch my baby itch just enough to keep me from buying baby stuff at target... which I may have almost done today but avoided successfully, albeit disheartened). I also just began tracking my cycle this month with temping as I have an IUD and want to examine the data to see what my cycles are like.

Like the previous poster I want to get some routines down better which is different because Covid moved my work to home, but I want to make it a point to do more exercises, walking (finally somewhat livable outside now in the Southern US!), taking supplements and drinking more water. I’ve also started throwing myself back at crafting and am going to try my hand at a macrame tapestry to keep busy!

 

[thevindicator]

@godzreal Yeeeesss I love Mama Dr. Jones! Thanks for the reading recommendations, I'll definitely check those out. I also have an IUD and dabbled in cycle tracking when I was off of BC. Loving the IUD so far even though I've only had it for a month, just hope my period gets better with time!!

 

[godzreal]

@thevindicator I’m almost 2 years into my second IUD but I will say that with my first, I went from pills to IUD and my body went through an awful transition for the first 3 months or so. I’m talking HEAVY bleeding (multiple thick pads or tampons per day) for weeks, horrible cycstic acne, and oilier hair/skin. Once it adjusted, it was great and I think during the 5 years of that first IUD I had light slpotting for a period

 

[doz777]

@thevindicator We're getting pretty close to TTC. I've been excited about this for over a year, but I kept busy with grad school. That made it really easy. I think early on I just casually browsed tips about child development like you mention and made sure to make note of any sort of parenting tips that were useful to me.

This summer, though, I spent a lot of my spare time researching things like prenantal vitamins, nutrition and health, TTC and pregnancy timelines (like when to start taking prenatals), the best lube for conception (nothing can boost it, but some can inhibit sperm, so there's that), the best pregnancy tests, comparing a midwife to an OBGYN, the costs of baby products, how to set up a nursery in our small apartment, how to get cats to welcome a baby etc. Then there was HIS health (that seems to be conveniently left out of many TTC blogs) like vitamin intake, reduction in laptop use, exercise etc.

We also got a different car because our old one was a fiat 500 and there was no way for a car seat to fit in there comfortably, especially since twins run in my family so who knows how many we'll have. I've switched my Flo app from tracking period to TTC just to see would change.