"You bought a digital test?"

Pregnancy tests seem like they should be so easy. They are the exact opposite. When you're really trying to get pregnant and are frequently monitoring it, those little pink lines can look pretty vague. I do admit that I used to have (this was about one year ago) a middle schooler's level of knowledge when it came to reproduction---no, really. I just thought you could get pregnant, easily, whenever. I knew ovulation was a "big deal," but also assumed that every time of intimacy could be "the one time" that I got pregnant. I also just assumed that, bam, you had sex, and then could take a pregnancy test the next day. No, I REALLY thought that those things were true.

Once we started really trying, it became a drag to buy all of those pregnancy tests. Buying them individually gets pricey. I ended up "researching"  --which led to me obsessively using them. Sometimes, I'd take the pregnancy tests two or three times in a day. The lines were ridiculously faint and hard to read at times. You can Google and find photos of people's pregnancy strips 1 DPO through 28 DPO (days past ovulation).

I bought a pregnancy test that came with a 7 buck rebate. Hey, why not?

I also continued my "research" (ah, internet) and bought some tests from Dollar Tree. They get pretty good ratings, in terms of accuracy.

This test was from July 10 .... 10 DPO for the ovulation creepers out there. That dark line is the line that is always there; there does "seem" to be a faint second line, but it's crazy hard to tell.

This test was from July 20. Since it was about 20DPO, I classed it up and spent money on the digital test. I like the digital tests because there's no line cryptology skills needed. You just need to be literate.

John and I had been trying again (post- D&C) since April and we both got quickly frustrated with the nebulous lines. Getting pregnant for the first time in December was so exciting---seeing that line together. After going through the D&C, moments seemed to lose some of their luster. I just started taking the tests by myself, looking at the non-existent lines, and tossing them in the trash. Our bathroom trash could have been renamed HCG test disposal container.

When this test came out positive, I called John into the bathroom. I think his first words were, "Wait, you bought a digital test?!"

I'm frugal, but when the time comes for seriousness and legitimacy, I'm all in....