up to this point...

I started noticing about a week and a half ago that it felt like I had knives in my nipples. This, along with the lack of a period, concerned me. However, I'm 37 and I've never had a pregnancy "scare" in my life, even when I wasn't terribly careful. About six months ago, I went off the pill because I didn't like the way it made me feel. We'd talked briefly, and nervously I might add, about breeding but then sort of shelved it. I've never been fond of the notion of trying--it just seems so inorganic. I figured we'd leave it to Fate and that most likely meant we'd continue our eccentric existence with two dogs, five cats and any other animals I could drag home and introduce to G before he could say, "No!"

Surprise.

I think I realized the likelihood I was pregnant while I was visiting my friend M on the East Coast. I know I was supposed to start my period on that vacation (and I was really grumpy about it) and I didn't. I also went to New York City for a day and absolutely loved it. I returned home wondering what I was doing living on a farm not 35 miles from where I grew up.

I really started to wonder by Friday, Oct. 15. That evening, while G cut greens after dark wearing a headlamp, I mentioned the possibility. He was shocked, not unpleasantly so, but surprised nonetheless. He thought we should both be there for me to take the test. So, after the market on Saturday, I stopped at the pharmacy and picked up a home test. I snoozed that afternoon while he went to a meeting, then, after I awoke, I took the test. Positive, a faint line in the "Congratulations, you're knocked up," window, but still a pink line.

We have this running joke, kind of a cartoonish gulp, the kind you see when the character is very nervous or scared. We looked at each other, gulped and went back to our evening. Those tests are 99% accurate.

On Monday, I called the doctor's office and they said the same thing--positive is a pretty good indicator. I did a little online research, bought another test based on what I learned, went home that evening and...well, it's obvious. Pink line in the heart-shaped window that indicates pregnancy.

We figure I probably conceived around my birthday and our anniversary Sept. 12/13 time frame. Kind of romantic, eh?