A Controversial Word on Sex

Since Lilly was born, Nathan and I have been practicing Natural Family Planning. Well, ok, we were technically practicing it when we got pregnant with Ella, and with Lilly. But the former was a case of "fudging" on the rules a bit. The latter was throwing caution to the wind in a moment of passion - knowing that I was fertile and the very real possibility was there. Plus, I was open to the possibility of a new baby because I was ready to be pregnant again by the time Ella was three months old.
All of that, and I was reading a terribly written book on the subject and I found it all very hard and complicated. It's not hard or complicated. Natural Family Planning is about charting - charting waking temperature (basal body temp) and ovulation signs. I am reading another book, called Taking Charge of your Fertility, and it is written very well. We enjoy this method of birth control - it is natural, safe, and totally reliable if all of the rules are followed.
It relies on us abstaining for about 7-10 days, during my fertile period (*note: women are only actually fertile for 24 hours when the egg is released; if it is not fertilized within those 24 hours it dies. Sperm on the other hand can live up to five days; hence, if intercourse occurs a few days before the egg is released, it is possible to conceive since the sperm can survive).
It's kind of neat because it makes me learn about my body, and it's amazing to watch what the female body does every month to prepare for conception. This method asks me to work with my fertility, and to acknowledge it. In other words, God made the woman's body to do this every month, so I respond to the fertile time by avoiding intercourse - I am interacting with the very tools that God has given in order to pursue or avoid pregnancy. I like it too because it puts me in a position to trust, because I'm putting "myself" out there, with out any other aids to prevent conception.