TTC Cycle 1 - Failed

I'm so disheartened. We really, really thought that our workup with Dra. Tananggonan is successful. I'm supposed to have my period on CD (cycle day) 32. That day came and went without the red visitor. CD 33 came, no period. CD 34 came, no period, until night came. There was very minimal spotting. Hubby and I hoped that it was just that. But, before I went to bed, my period made sure that it was ever present and not just some spotting.

Hubby reminds me to take it easy and not to stress thinking about it. I want to think of something else besides baby-making. But it keeps on popping on my mind! Huhuhu.

Why is it that the things which your heart desires are the things which are hard to get?

Preggy Sites

In my search for holistic pregnancy and child rearing, I came across The Green Doula site. A doula, according to Dictionary.com, is a "woman who assists women during labor and after childbirth".

The site writes about everything eco-friendly, holistic and "green" about pregnancy and life. There are products, ideas and suggestions that can help an expectant mom. The writer is based in the US so there are some articles which are locally-centered.

Another site which I visit is the Offbeat Mama with the tag line, "Parenting against the grain." Nice huh? The author of the blog, Ariel, is also the author of Offbeat Bride. She went from bride-to-be to a mom. The site features write-ups of other "offbeat mamas" which celebrates the miracle of pregnancy and childbirth. I'm not a tattoed-wife but it didn't sway me from reading these articles. Motherhood is a gift and women should embrace it in whichever way is comfortable to us.

Eventhough Hubby and I haven't yet confirmed if I'm pregnant, I still can't help myself in browsing sites and blogs about pregnancy and buying books about it. Yesterday, I bought a book about holistic pregnancy and one about nursing. I know that I will be pregnant and will have children in the future, might as well buy these books so I can learn about things beforehand. Also, these books are on sale. I'll have them in another post.

It's nice to think about the possibility of actually carrying another life within you. I hope we are successful this time.

Rambutans

It's Rambutan season! The rich red and "hairy" fruits are a nice contrast on the tree's green leaves. It seems it is telling you to pick them up already!

Rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum) is considered as an exotic fruit in Southeast Asia. But this fruit is so ordinary in our community that almost every backyard has a rambutan tree. Most of the trees are planted in the front yard, where it can get lots of sun. Inay says she thinks rambutan trees wanted all the sun it can get. She noticed rambutan tree started "flowering" when the trees in our neighborhood are already bearing fruits. Our tree doesn't get much sunlight because there is a big santol tree blocking the rays.

August-September is the time to gather the rambutans. I love rambutan but not as much as Hubby. I think he can finish a kilo all by himself, although he's modest and didn't do it at home.
We were able to give bags and bags of these fruits to neighbors, friends and my in-laws.

After gobbling up the fleshy fruit and sipping its liquid, we are now out of supply. Till next year!

Plant Seedlings

Hubby and I visualized our home to be relaxing and shady. A place where we could unwind, prop our feet on a chair while drinking a cool glass of juice.

Over the weekend, we went to a nearby nursery to buy plant seedlings. We have been planning to buy fruit and shade trees that will surround our future home. There are rows and rows of different plants in black plastic "pot". A green thumb's paradise indeed.

We bought 3 seedlings of rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum) at P40 each, 2 calamansi (Citrus ×microcarpa) and 1 chico (Sapodilla) for P50 each. We chose rambutan because it's one of our favorite fruits and the calamansi is a basic cooking ingredient and condiment. We bought the chico seedling because this bears fruit that is brown, not the usual guava-apple types of fruits. I want our future children to be familiar with all sorts of plants and fruits.

We also saw a pomelo tree (Citrus maxima) already bearing fruits. The tree is a bit taller than us with low branches. You can easily grab a fruit for your salad or you can eat it as is. Hubby likes pomelo and wants to have this tree in our backyard. Sadly, the nursery has sold out all their pomelo seedlings. Many are now planting pomelos. We'll be returning to check if these seedlings are available.

The seedlings we bought are now in Inay's garden waiting to be planted. I'm excited to bring them to our lot and plant them.

Tip: Bring a big bag or plastic when buying seedlings and you don't have a private vehicle with you to take you and your seddlings home.

September Goals

Today is the first day of September. I think today is the start of the Christmas season in the Philippines since it is also the start of the "BER" months (months ending in "ber") leading to Christmas. I already heard carols on TV and the radio.

I made a list of things to do for this month. Since Hubby returned, our days are filled with eating out, cooking, travelling, Facebooking (if there is such a term) and watching TV. Now is the time to be a little bit productive and make proper use of time.

Here are the things I want to accomplish this month:

1. clean my closet and remove clothes which I haven't used and will not use in the future

2. recycle the jars/bottles and use them as container for salt, garlic powder, paprika and other seasonings

3. plant the seedlings which we purchased over the weekend to our lot

4. update the layout of the collection of German and Russian recipes I searched on the Internet. This is for the Hubby, by the way.

5. try to cross-stitch at least 2 hours on weekdays. My cross-stitch project has been left undone for several months now.

Hopefully I can stick to these assignments so I can be proud of myself by the end of the month.