..Allow me to explain, heh. It was mid-afternoon, and we thought that all three kids (Alyssa, Ryan, and my brother) were all occupied in their bedrooms doing various cold Saturday afternoon activities. Dan and I went into our bedroom to make our bed together (seriously, that’s what we really went in there to do!), and next thing I know I’m on my back with my pants down, and Dan is, er, lavishing plenty of attention on me. Out of nowhere, Alyssa pops up like a jack-in-the-box next to the other side of the bed and says, “Hi!” The look on Dan’s face was priceless… I don’t think I’ve ever seen him turn as red as he was yesterday! Anyway, we booted her out (but not before she spotted one of my toys and asked what it was¹), and continued where we left off.

Last night I went to bed around 1:30am, after finishing up laundry, making some no-bake cake pops, doing my nails (multi-colored flecks of glitter of various sizes in a creamy pink base, yes, it is as awesome as it sounds!), and finishing up some blogging work. I’m definitely blogging and social mediaing way too much these days – last night I dreamed that I was appraising our homes and the surrounding homes based on their Google PageRank. What the eff?!

Today I’m trying out a new set of kegel balls (before you scoff, allow me to assure you that they are quite awesome, and not only assisting with toning/pelvic floor strengthening, but their weightedness can definitely increase sexual desire, which is always a nice thing when you’re running around blazing through everyday life like a chicken with its head cut off and trying very hard not to spazz out over stressful stuff!). These are pretty high-end ones that provide feedback via vibrations of various strengths/types based on the type of muscle “reflexes” it “detects”. Did you know that you use your vaginal muscles to blow your nose? No? Me neither. But I found that out this morning. ;)

Right now I’m at a local bounce place, watching Ryan bounce himself silly while we kill time waiting for a birthday party Alyssa is attending (at a local laser tag/game place) to wrap up. I don’t mind sitting here, because not only is Ryan enjoying himself and I’m getting some mostly uninterrupted blog/work time in, it’s warm! Warm is good, especially since my car’s driver-side window decided to fall all the way down into the door this morning. I am assuming the cable or motor is messed up, because it won’t come back up. And of course this happens in the dead of winter, when I’m 8 miles away from home, have 15 more miles to go, and then have to drive those 23 miles back. At mostly highway speeds. As soon as I get home I’m going to hit up the magic skills of Dan and Auto Mechanic Google to hopefully fix it, even if by “fixing” we’re really just putting it back up and holding it in place with wads of cardboard (stuffed between the window and the frame) and duct tape.

So, that’s my Sunday so far. How is yours?

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The DivaCup, for those of you who are not at least familiar with the product, the DivaCup is a non-absorbent, soft, pliable cup that is made out of “healthcare-grade” silicone. It’s designed to be inserted into the vagina and worn during your period. While a tampon absorbs menstrual blood, the DivaCup collects it.

To insert the DivaCup, you simply fold the top portion of the cup in half, then use your thumb to push in the “middle” of the fold, if that makes sense, so the entire top portion of the cup is folded into a “U”. Hold that position with your thumb, and insert the cup into your vagina, with the solid curved portion of the cup pointed downwards, and the two folds upwards (more instructions can be found here). During insertion the DivaCup should be aimed towards the tailbone, and not upwards, and then rotated halfway, in order to get it seated properly and to create a proper seal/prevent leakage (I won’t lie – even after several periods I still have issues with this, which is evident by the fact that I do have some leakage!).

To remove the DivaCup, you grasp the bottom “tip” of the cup, push in a bit to help break the seal, then pull out (I wiggle it a little as I do, as it puts up more resistance if I tug straight down). I’ve gotten very adept at doing this without making a mess on my hands, and I generally take care of the emptying while I’m using the bathroom. I prefer to rinse, wash with soap, then rinse again, before putting the DivaCup back in, but of course this isn’t always possible in public restrooms, in which case I’ll use toilet paper to, er, dry things off, which makes re-insertion easier.

I think I like using my DivaCup best during the very beginning and tail end of my periods, when my flow isn’t nearly as heavy as it is after things pick up after the first few hours, and during the middle of my period. As I mentioned earlier in this blog entry, I do have some issues with leakage, but it’s minor — though I like to be clean and keep my underwear in good condition, so I’ll use a cloth pantyliner in conjunction with the DivaCup.

The DivaCup is so much more comfortable than tampons, especially during the insertion and removal process. I like knowing that I’ve greatly reduced the risk for Toxic Shock Syndrome, and I won’t lie, it’s interesting to see just how much I “produce” during a period (there are measurement markings on the inside of the cup). While I’m wearing it, so long as I have it angled properly, the DivaCup is extremely comfortable – I don’t notice it at all! I’ve worn it to the movies, while grocery shopping, and even to an amusement park (twice). Here’s just how comfortable it is: I recently forgot it was in while Dan and I were getting frisky. It wasn’t until the last minute (I won’t go into more detail, but let’s just say Dan almost risked a urethra stabbing from the tip of the DivaCup!) that I remembered it was there and put things on hold while I removed it.

You can purchase the DivaCup online, and many pharmacies and retailers are also carrying it in store, so you may not have to be patient enough to wait for an online order to arrive.

Thank you for subscribing to Jenn.nu's RSS feed! ♥ Jenn | Flickr: kiss-my-kitty | Twitter: @kissmykitty

I’ve been trying to take it easy lately. 2011 has been hard on me in terms of abdominal issues (I’m calling my surgeon the week of the 16th to schedule surgery) and now menstrual issues. Over the past nine months each period has gotten increasingly heavier, increasingly painful. The icing on the cake? I just finished a six day long period on December 20th, and I started another one yesterday, just seven days later. My cycle is typically 29-31 days (this is the average from the last five years worth of tracking cycles), so it’s definitely weird to be kicking off a full-blown period on the day I should be ovulating, not menstruating. Way to go, uterus. I did have an appointment with my gynocologist last Friday, but had to reschedule last minute. I think the scheduler just put me in for a regular check-up, as opposed to an appointment for a “problem”, because my new appointment isn’t until the end of January. When I initially called in to make the appointment for the 23rd, the scheduler I spoke to then said that I would be seen much sooner for a “problem” versus a routine checkup (admission time: I haven’t been to a gynocologist or had any type of reproductive-oriented checkup since my six week postpartum checkup after Ryan was born!). I’m going to call back today — after I finish this blog entry, heh — to see about getting in sooner. If not, I’ll just stock up on Midol Complete (the non-NSAID formula) and detergent (I use cloth menstrual pads), and stick it out for the month and hope that after this period is over, I’ll be done for another 29-31 days.

Anyway, back to taking it easy. Since the kids have off from school this entire week (every morning Ryan reminds me that he, Alyssa, and my brother don’t go back to school until Monday, “Januwawy” 2nd), I’ve boycotted my alarm clock. The kids are a bit worn out from Christmas too, I think. Yesterday the kids, Ryan especially, were incredibly mellow the entire day. My brother is a little wound up, but that’s because my other brother, who turns 14 tomorrow, is here.

Speaking of Ryan, out of nowhere he is insisting on wearing his cloth diapers (he has been potty-trained since March of 2010, but I held onto a few cloth diapers and prefolds in case he regresses, gets really sick, etc.). He’s not going to the bathroom in them, but he wants to wear them, which is weird. I’m kind of at a loss as to what to do – I don’t want to encourage him to revert to baby-like behaviors, but I don’t want to quash any “normal” development. Alyssa never did this, so I never expected it. For now, I’m letting him wear them, but I remind him that he’s a big boy who uses the potty, and it’s more fun to be a big boy than a little baby because of all of the fun, exciting stuff that goes along with being a big boy (watching cartoons, reading books with Mommy, writing letters to family, playing with Legos, playing games on his iPad, sleeping on a top bunk, etc.).

Right now I’m re-reading Philippa Gregory’s “The Other Boleyn Girl”. I must have read this book at least three times in the past four years, but I never tire of it. I love the other books she’s written about the Tudors/King Henry the 8th as well. But I’m looking for new reading material. I’d love to load up my Nook in anticipation of the new year and one of my “minor” resolutions – to read more this year. So please, let me know what’s on your reading (or have-read or will-read) list, and why!

Thank you for subscribing to Jenn.nu's RSS feed! ♥ Jenn | Flickr: kiss-my-kitty | Twitter: @kissmykitty

My period should start any day now, which’ll be a relief because that means I’ll no longer be verbally ripping everyone around me into shreds and alternating between feeling numb and weepy, though in its place will be hardcore back, girly parts, and upper thigh pain, so that’s not much of a trade-off.

Now I’m off to do some work, and hopefully not kill anyone. ;)

Thank you for subscribing to Jenn.nu's RSS feed! ♥ Jenn | Flickr: kiss-my-kitty | Twitter: @kissmykitty

Dan just suggested that I should ask my surgeon to take a peek at my internal girly parts (uterus, ovaries, etc.) to see if she notices anything out of place, while she’s checking out my stomach pouch and intestines (six days until surgery, erghhh… nerves, shut up).

You know what’s weird? Most women report more regulated, tolerable menstrual cycles after losing weight. I’m having the opposite problem. My periods are almost as regular as they were when I was a lot heavier, but since dropping 165 lbs my PMS symptoms have gotten increasingly more pronounced with each coming period (especially breast tenderness), my periods themselves are heavier, and the cramping/general pain that I have during the first few days of my period has gotten worse and worse.

At this rate I’ll be adding a gynecologist to my list of medical professionals I need to touch base with. First my bariatric surgeon for this upcoming exploratory laparoscopic surgery, then an orthopedist to figure out why my stress fracture is still just as stressed and fractured, and then a gyno to figure out my menstrual woes. Man, my insurance company is going to loveeeeeeeeeeee me!

Thank you for subscribing to Jenn.nu's RSS feed! ♥ Jenn | Flickr: kiss-my-kitty | Twitter: @kissmykitty