tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-149176522024-03-19T00:31:18.603-04:00Adventures Beyond DiapersMaybe writting it all down with help me feel a little more sane...MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-17937295582534736552020-07-03T18:17:00.000-04:002020-07-03T18:10:48.325-04:00<div dir="auto" style="direction: ltr; margin: 0; padding: 0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; color: black; "> Meble https://j.mp/3dVwTI3?/nd/amount/ Mariaeble </div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-2812056364280861092014-01-09T12:06:00.000-05:002014-01-09T12:06:55.775-05:00Octonauts Cupcakes for Preschool - Because who doesn't love a cupcake at 9am!<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've been away so long I had to rename the blog, since diapers are *mostly* a thing of my past.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So the twins turned 4 last week - GASP - and they wanted an Octonauts theme party. I love a good theme, it makes all the party planning and prep so much easier. It helps me narrow down how everything will look, the invites, the favors, the crafts, the decorations, the cake, and if I'm feeling extra crazy, the food.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Well this post is just going to be about the party after the party, the school party. It seems nowadays (That makes me sound like such an old fart) having one party with your family and friends isn't enough, you need to have a party at school too. So since I like a good theme, and I like to drive myself crazy, and one set of Octonauts baked goods wasn't enough....</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Captain Barnacles</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peso</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm pretty proud of myself for winging these in the grocery story aisle. Oh that's right, that's how I used to make things before Pinterest - I used to use my brain!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">JP wanted "white" cupcakes so for him I bought a box of vanilla cake mix, because I admit, I'm not the right kind of crazy to make these guys from scratch! JR, wanted Chocolate, but a different brand then I got for JP, God forbid they make this easy...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For Captain Barnacles I used mini-marshmallows for the ears, and upside down chocolate chips for the eyes. The "hat" is a blue pretzel m&m. I bought 2 medium size bags and picked out all the blue ones, then gave my husband strict instructions to hide the remaining m&ms on me. The rest of the blue details on the Captain is writing icing and a black writing icing nose. I just wish I had blue baking cups to make him in, I think it would have really put the whole thing over the top.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For Peso, I picked a few yellow juju candies from the self-serve bins in the candy aisle and cut them up to make his nose. His eyes and hat are the same as Captain Barnacles and his black fur is writing icing. I had baking cups covered in Penguins that I just had to use here! </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peso's #PenguinePerfect Baking Cups</td></tr>
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I'm really happy with how they came out and my boys were also super impressed with Mommy when they saw the cupcakes this morning. I think they liked these better then the cakes I made for their real birthday party - which I will try to actually blog about now that J&J are in school all day for 3 days a week - Woo-Hoo!!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/IMG_20140108_221638_881.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/IMG_20140108_221638_881.jpg" height="225" title="MLRE8OctonautsCupcakes" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The kids at J&J's Preschool had a hard time deciding which to take, but they all ate most of their cupcake, and what 3 and 4 year old doesn't need a cupcake at 9:15 in the morning?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">=)</span>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0Oreland, PA, USA40.1184433 -75.17767570000000940.0941568 -75.218016200000008 40.142729800000005 -75.13733520000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-8348305651111165252011-02-15T21:24:00.000-05:002011-02-15T21:24:40.375-05:00It's okay, I can reach it now<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/TJStool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/TJStool.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It seems JR knows how to think outside of the box. He wanted to get a closer look at what was on top of the TV cabinet, and TJ happened to be in the right place at the right time. And what did his champion parents do as TJ was yelling, "He's standing on me! He's heavy!" We ran around looking for my camera. Don't worry, we found it, actually, that was one of the things JR was reaching for on the cabinet. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Let's not ignore JP climbing the tower of toys off to the side. Apparently he didn't learn his lesson after falling off this same tower yesterday and giving himself quite the nasty knot on his forehead. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Ah, evening chaos.</div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-44432022724923237022011-02-14T20:22:00.000-05:002011-02-14T20:22:54.506-05:00Happy Valentine's Day!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/HeartGuys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/HeartGuys.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I love to celebrate holidays, but I don't like to buy a ton of crap just for the sake of having something to open. I also have a small stuffed animal addiction. My Mom still has more than one garbage bag full of them in her attic. TJ's bed is inhabited by more then a few stuffed animals. I also think I have high standards in animals. They have to be cute and they can't be made out of that crappy fur that falls apart when you touch it. So one day I decided to <a href="http://diaperpal.blogspot.com/2009/01/now-we-play-waiting-game.html">make my own</a>. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">For Valentine's Day, I wanted to make something that would involve a heart, but not be too girly. So I sketched a heart and just stared at it for a little while. Something made me turn it upside-down, and I knew they just had to be little monsters, because what little boy doesn't like monsters?! I've made enough of these that I knew what I was doing and what little extras I wanted to add, like arms and spikes, plus I've got some new fabric paint that I wanted to give a whirl - since my machine free-hand embroidery isn't the best and I wanted these to look great and go together pretty easily.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I think they came out great! And so do they. =)</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/BoyWHearts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/BoyWHearts.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-79602424766964609452011-02-13T11:01:00.001-05:002011-02-14T19:53:13.959-05:00Library BagHere goes another Celebrate the BOY post. I have a <i>ton</i> of those free advertising bags, and I've never had an inkling to actually carry them but I certainly won't throw them away, that would be wasteful. My husband wishes I would be more "wasteful" but that's a whole nother post. I've seen those freezer paper stencils all over the blogosphere, and it's been filed away in the back of my head in my things-to-do list.<br />
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<a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/Bag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/Bag.jpg" width="400" /></a>Then I saw another awesome <a href="http://www.dana-made-it.com/">made</a> post on 1.19.2011 about <a href="http://www.dana-made-it.com/2011/01/simple-book-bags-tutorial.html">book bags</a>, and I was again motivated. What better way to get rid of those pesky bags and try out some of that cool freezer paper stencils? Once I got my freezer paper TJ and I went through some coloring book line drawings and picked out the perfect one, one he liked and one I thought I'd be able to cut out with an exact-o knife without too much trouble.<br />
Voila! What a great new use for a bag that's just been hanging out in the basement. Now we have a great way to transport our mass amount of library books.<br />
I am now addicted to freezer paper stencils. I have a few witty t-shirts in the works for the twins, because really is anything cuter then a baby in a The Dude Abides t-shirt? I have also made towel labels for everyone so I'm no longer trying to keep track of mine in our tiny bath room. I also plan on monogramming the boys' chenille blankets. I wonder what else I can make? I wish I had one of those <a href="http://www.silhouetteamerica.com/">Silhouette</a> machines...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He's so proud =)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-42347349365358189552011-02-12T13:05:00.000-05:002011-02-12T13:05:49.351-05:00Celebrate the BOYSo over on <a href="http://www.made-by-rae.com/2010/03/celebrate-boy-archives.html">Made By Rae</a> and <a href="http://www.dana-made-it.com/2011/02/30-days-of-boy-buttons-links-and-other.html">made</a>, they are celebrating an awesome thing, BOYS! They are bringing an excellent point to light, there aren't a whole lot of sewing projects for boys...but there are! You just have to think and their awesome site is putting out lots of fabolous ideas for <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/celebratetheboy/pool/">things to make for BOYS</a>!! Seeing as how I now have three, I had to do my part of showing some fantastic things that you can make for BOYS! I don't nearly have the artistic ability as many of these fine sewers, but I do manage to make some cute things just for my boys that they love, so I thought I'd start to share a few.<br />
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<a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/JPBlanket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/JPBlanket.jpg" width="400" /></a>I follow a lot of fantastic crafting blogs. They give me the inspiration I need to get out from in front of the TV and behind a sewing machine. <a href="http://www.dana-made-it.com/">made</a> is AMAZING! I wish I had her creativity and her photography skills!! On 11.30.2010 she posted a tutorial for a <a href="http://www.dana-made-it.com/2010/11/faux-chenille-baby-blanket-tutorial.html">faux chenille baby blanket</a> and it struck a chord with me. I have always wanted to quilt, but there have been many things holding me back. I cannot cut in a straight line, there's a lot of picking coordinating fabrics involved, I don't really have the space to lay it all out and I really can't even begin to look for someone to mail it out to "quilt" it for me. But then I saw the made post and I knew that that was a quilt that I could make and it would rock! I had yet to make anything for the twins - time and inspiration were holding me back. But I knew I wanted to make these for them ASAP. Right after Christmas, Joann gift card in one hand, coupons in the other, off I went and bought everything I would need for two chenille blankets. I had a lot of fun picking out boy-ish, and hopefully not to baby-ish, fabrics with the aim that I wanted them to get the long haul out of the blankets and since I bought 1 1/4 yard of fabric of each type I didn't have to worry about cutting straight lines!! <br />
<a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/JRBlanket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/JRBlanket.jpg" width="300" /></a>JP and JR are color coded. Any of you with twins probably understand, I needed something that didn't involve thought, that would allow me to tell them apart at 4am. Since it worked so well when they were itty-bitties, I've just kept it going. So JP uses the green clothes, bottles, toys, and now his new baby blanket. JR is my blue boy and if you've every seen his eyes there really wasn't any question that blue is his color. I figure it will work when they're older too, towels, backpacks, storage containers, they all can being in the assigned colors. <br />
They LOVE the blankets! Sometimes I catch JR playing with the cut side like he holds on to the tags of everything. I didn't think JP noticed it, until the other day I caught him stealing JRs too, I guess he likes it so much he wanted them both. They both came out so beautifully I already have the fabric bought for two more special little boys' blankets. I can't wait to get started!MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-82408212326672693732011-02-11T20:06:00.001-05:002011-02-11T20:08:24.253-05:00Bottles<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/BottleHolder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/BottleHolder.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Why am I still holding bottles? When TJ was 13-months old he was certainly holding his own bottle. <i>Neither</i>, of the twins are even making an attempt to hold their own. Remember, there are two of them and they no longer will wait patiently for the other to finish his bottle. So there I stand, at every meal, stretched out to one and hunched over the other holding bottles. The only way I was even able to get this shot was because JP didn't wake up when I came to get them for lunch.<br />
Is hoping for just one of them to start holding a bottle really asking that much?!MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-32640373576583097082011-02-09T20:05:00.002-05:002011-02-09T20:17:09.529-05:00Bon Jovi<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/JBFMgV6o5LU?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I like to think that I have excellent taste in music. A trait that I seem to have passed down to my children. When TJ was little(er) his favorite song to walk around singing was Ring Of Fire by Johnny Cash. Of course, in the beginning, the only part he could remember was, "Burn, Burn, Burn," and if you aren't a Johnny Cash fan it would remind you of a scene out of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treehouse_of_Horror_V">The Shinning</a>. J&J are displaying their love of fine music already. This morning during breakfast they started to "Rock Out." Thankfully, I've realized that they perform amusing stunts without warning and am always prepared with my camera to capture said stunt. </span></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Mealtimes are always amusing with the twins. This afternoon I had my act together enough to actually sit down with them and eat my own lunch, I even had a magazine out, and was reading it! And there lies my mistake. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/Farfalle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/Farfalle.jpg" width="320" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I thought I was paying attention to them; I surely would have noticed if, God forbid, one of them started choking, but I was still missing their favorite, silent game, "How much food can I drop on the floor without Mom noticing." The rules of this game are simple, drop food, one item at a time, onto the floor, if you get caught, game over. I'm sure when my Mother sees that I have posted a picture of farfalle all over my gross kitchen floor for all the inter-web to see, she is going to be aghast. But this photo illustrates my very important point - I need a dog! We used to have a dog, a beautiful, lovable, separation anxiety, seizure having, mutt, named Fiona. When she was demonstrating her wonderful traits I could not have loved her more, but it has only been since her passing that I realize what her best trail of all was - She ate everything. Never did I have to sweep when TJ was in his high chair, heck, she even kept the chair itself clean! The twins' highchairs could not be grosser and with all this freezing weather I can't drag them outside and hose them off, so I'm left chipping dried banana and who knows what out of the crevices of the chairs whenever I can spare the time to be grossed out. (Or when I catch one of the twins eating highchair leavins that I can't remember serving this week) So in summation, I need a dog, and TL thinks I'm kidding when I keep saying some spring day he's going to come home from work and we're going to have one.</span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-65165680038819602052011-02-08T21:40:00.001-05:002011-02-08T21:42:37.690-05:00Feet<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">JR was a big help today. We were heading out the door to the grocery store and JR was kind enough to hold each of his feet up for me to put his socks on. This, however, was his idea of a joke. The twins' favorite thing to do is to rip their socks off and shake them at me. It's their way of saying, "Look what I did, Mommy!" But I'm the one that ends up looking like the terrible Mom who takes their babies out in the cold with no socks on! It doesn't matter how big their socks are, I can put them in socks that go up to their knees, and I do, and they'll just keep working at that sock until it finally comes off in their hand and they are elated! </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/JJ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/JJ.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Babies with pants still on</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">TL doesn't help. He's made </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">JP's</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> favorite game "shake the sock in my face" and it's a tried-and-true way to make JP crack up! I must admit, there are other things that they like to take off, so I guess I should be happy that, so far, socks are the only things they take off in public. Today, after their alleged nap-time, I came into their room to see two, pant-less, 13-month </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">olds</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, and boy were they excited about it!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In other news, JR has mastered his "Up" sign. Ironic, I would have thought his first sign would about involved food like TJ's did.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/luvbug.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g257/MRowitt/blogger/luvbug.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The "Love Bug"</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Speaking of TJ, I was a big sap today and bought a Hallmark Love Bug. I figured, what better way to celebrate TJ's reading his first book then this little treat. I did, however, have to explain to him that the bug was merely a holder for the goodies and that he would eventually be traveling to other family members to pass on treats to them for special things that they do.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Later, I was asking TJ about his day and he was telling me that he and his "buddies" play this game, "It doesn't really have a name...but there are these girls....and they chase us...and we like it." He further went on to say, "They hate me the most because they all want to catch me." I did explain, as tactfully as I good, that I don't think they would play with him is they hated him. Oh, to be 5 again. =)</span>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-10220747754977721392011-02-07T15:26:00.007-05:002011-02-07T16:24:43.160-05:00The Runaway Bunny<span class="Apple-style-span"><a href="http://www.betterlivingthroughbeowulf.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/bunny.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.betterlivingthroughbeowulf.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/bunny.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 300px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 300px;" /></a></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Today 5-year old TJ read <b>ALL</b> of The Runaway Bunny to JP and JR while I was putting away laundry!! They were really upset since lunch was late and they were overtired, so every though their bellys were full, they were in no mood for me being in there and preventing their snoozing, so I asked TJ to read to them.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"But Mom, I can't read."</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"Fine, just pick a book out a tell them about it."</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Next thing I knew he was actually reading! He needed my help on maybe 5 words for the whole thing! He even stopped to turn the book and show JP and JR the big color pictures. What a good big brother!!</span>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-81561859146794926432009-05-28T22:52:00.003-04:002011-02-07T16:04:45.504-05:00Graduation<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc33cc;">I had another blood test today. For me, just as important as the last one. Charleen told me that my level should go up by at least half. 1495 - what happened to up by half?! My levels are so high that I graduate to the upstairs office. Bye bye </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc33cc;">Charlene</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc33cc;">, TJ and I was both miss you terribly!!</span></span></span></div><div><br />
</div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-50875138172049866172009-05-26T22:35:00.003-04:002011-02-07T16:08:37.277-05:00Miracles Do Happen!<div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We're pregnant!!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">They think it's twins!!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Whew!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So much has happened since my last post, and much of it was held back because I don't think I could have handled posting about another failure.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So I'm going to do my best to now sum up the last cycle.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So I finally ovulated on April 24.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Excitement of all excitement!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Even my nurse was excited when she called to tell me the good news.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So that night I started my drug trial of Ganirelix Acetate.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In my past cycles and attempts, I had a lot of problems with uneven growth of my follicles.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I'd have a couple of gigantic ones and then some iddy biddies which is not good for the process.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So the idea here was that Ganirelix would replace the Lupron that did NOTHING for me (other than make me mad as a hatter), and it would also be used after the stimulation begins to keep the follicles under control.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So my ganirelix starts and after 5 days on it I get my period - let the stimulation begin.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So normal "Day 1" process, I call to report my period to the doctor, because really, doesn't everyone want to know?! They set my appointment up for the next day.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I'm assured that the Ganirelix really did its job because they cannot find my left ovary.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I was assured that this was good, but to me, since I'm already missing some important parts, I was a tad nervous.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">After this appointment I was unstructured to begin my stimulation.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Since it's a drug trial, not only are all my drugs free, I have to use the specific ones they want me to use.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So for this go-around I used Follistim, replacing my Gonal-F.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Side note:</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Follistim was cool since it came with a great carrying pouch; I preferred the ease of the Gonal-F being all pre-loaded.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Since it held more, pushing down my dose was much easier that the 5000 clicks it took Follistim to put out my dose.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">On May 1st, I also start my low dose HcG.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So I've got two shots in my belly a day, it's great! =)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Monday, May 4th is the big day.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The day I learn how my follicles are looking, and for the first time every, I'M TEXT BOOK!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I've been in this process since before Thanksgiving last year and this is the first time I'm text book!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It was a good day.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">All my follicles are the same size and there are a bunch of them.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Things are going so well I don't have my next appointment till Wednesday - a big change from my going to the office 5 out of 7 days for my last cycle.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Wednesday’s appointment also when shockingly well, they didn't want to see me till Friday - amazing!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">After that appointment I was instructed to start my Ganirelix again.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Something you have to understand about all these drugs, they are time sensitive.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So when you take something, it usually has to be at the same time every day.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Well, when I got the call to start my Ganirelix, I had to take the drug immediately, except that I was in </span></span><st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hunting</span></span></st1:placename><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><st1:placetype st="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Park</span></span></st1:placetype></st1:place><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> in Philly (apparently the ghetto) getting my hair cut.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So what did I do?</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I shot up in the bathroom.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Yes, nothing makes you feel like you're doing something illegal than sneaking off to a tiny bathroom to shoot up your meds, but I digress.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Now by Friday's appointment things started to get a little hairy.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Not medically, but calendar wise.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">You see, since everything was going to great there was a chance that my retrieval would be on Sunday, Mother's day.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Now, in theory, that would be great.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">TL is home from work, and so is anyone else that could watch TJ while I get put out for them to do some egg pickin'.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Except that I had like a million and one things planned for Sunday!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I'm not saying that I wouldn't have cancelled all my plans and been happy to do so, but one of my million things planned for that day was brunch with my mother-in-law.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">You may be thinking, what's the big deal; well this cycle was a secret.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">No one knew when/if anything was going on, because if it didn't work again we did not want to go through the heart breaking procedure of not only ourselves having to deal with that it didn't work, but telling everyone it didn't.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So what outrageous lie was I going to tell her and everyone else I was eating with to get out of it?!?</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Of course, true to my usual style, I made a mountain out of a mole hill before I needed to.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Friday's appoint when great, they actually dialed back my Follistim dose - another first! My retrieval was set for Monday.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I was instructed to take 1/2 cc of HcG at 8 pm on Saturday night.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The dosage was less than I took last time, so in order to make sure my body absorbed it, they played a very cruel joke on me.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I had to take a pregnancy test at 7am and it was supposed to come back positive.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Are you kidding me?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I haven't seen a positive pregnancy test since Oct 2004, and you want me to do what?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">To ease my freak out I was informed that I could purchase my pregnancy test at the dollar store.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Yes, Ladies and gentlemen, you can buy pregnancy tests at the dollar store!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Do you have any idea how much money that fact could have saved me over the last two years?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So I sent TL to buy me a pregnancy test at the dollar store, and sure enough found one.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sunday morning I wake up at 6:55am and blindly stumble into the bathroom to pee.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Before I sit down, thankfully, it was before I sat down; I opened the dollar store pregnancy test.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Have I mentioned that I was not a big fan of chemistry in HS?</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Apparently, the $7-8 price tag most pregnancy tests have, stems from the amazing technology of peeing on the stick.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">You see, the dollar store version came with a dropper.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">What?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It's almost 7, what the hell am I supposed to do with that?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I read the directions and I'm instructed to pee in a cup, and use the dropper to extract some of said pee.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I am then supposed to drop 3 drops of pee into the little circle on the test.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">God help me!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So I follow the instructions and wait.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Well I don't actually wait.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I've seen tons of negative pregnancy tests, you can watch the pee spread through the test and once the "test" line turns and nothing else has turned, you're not pregnant.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">And low and behold I wasn't pregnant.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Oh shit!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">What the hell does that mean?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">At this point I'm thinking the dollar store pregnancy test is faulty - because, hello, it came from the dollar store.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So I retrieve the "good" pregnancy test that I have been saving to take when I knew I was pregnant.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">That one has the pee on stick technology and yet another negative.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I taught my son a whole lot of bad words that morning.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The paperwork said that I was supposed to call the office and leave a message as to my result.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">If the test came back negative, they would call me back and have me in to the office.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I was supposed to leave for the zoo for my big behind the scenes preview at 8:30 and I have to leave there at 11:15 to hopefully not me too late for my 11:30 brunch.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I have and hour and a half and I'm not wasting it by waiting for a phone call.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I call and leave my message, but rather than waiting for my call back I just head to the office.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I head right upstairs to where I usually have my blood tested and the door is locked - well isn't this just ducky!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I go downstairs and the weekend nurse, whom I don't really know well, sees me right away and asks what's wrong.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">There are so many things going through my head at this point - How could a cycle that had gone PERFECTLY not end in a transfer?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I tell her the test was negative, between tears, and she sits me down so she can make some phone calls.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">She soon hears back from a doctor who informs us that I need to take another pee test and have my blood drawn.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Then there were going to just give me more HcG and the transfer would still be Monday, whew!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So I pee for the extremely nice nurse and she sets up my test - the EXACT same one that TL bought at the dollar store, btw!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">While we're waiting for the result she starts to wrap my arm so she can draw blood.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">She's about to stick the needle in when she leans over to look at the pregnancy test, "It's positive."</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">WHAT?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">What do you mean it's positive!?!?</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I immediately call TL and tell him to dig through the bathroom garbage for my tests.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sure enough the fancy pee on kind was positive, albeit with a very faint pink line, and the dollar store one, if you looked at it in the right light, was also positive.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Fourteen of the gray hairs on the left side of my head are from that morning.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">My sister-in-law was kind enough to sleep over Sunday night, to stay with TJ for my procedure Monday morning.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We get to the office by 7, TL with his donation, and the retrieval is started at 8.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Everything goes well and I get to spend the napping.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We had decided to attempt to fertilize 3, just like last time.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Tuesday they call bright and early to tell me that 2 of the 3 fertilized and of the other eggs, which the number escape me, 4 were frozen.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">They monitor them for a couple of days, one was 4 cells by Wednesday the other 2, and my transfer was set for Thursday at 9:30.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">My Mom came down Wednesday night to watch TJ- and take him to zoo school, but that's a WHOLE nother story.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">TL and I got there at 9:15 and I had drank most of my liter of water by that point.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">(Could someone please invent an ultrasound where you don't have to have a full bladder, please!!!)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The doctor didn't think I had enough of a full bladder and my transfer was a little delayed so I could chug, fun, let me tell you!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Not that this whole process isn't awesomely, technologically advanced, but they really flaunt it during the transfer.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This time, TL and I could to watch the whole thing on this huge flat panel over my head.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">First the embryologist shows up the dish with our name in huge letters and then she pans down to our babies!!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Our actual babies! Yes, I have the picture.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Then we were shown the catheter suck up the babies.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">On the ultrasound, we could see the catheter and where the deposit was made.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Then just to check that everything worked as planned, we are again directed to the flat screen to watch them flush the catheter so we know the babies were transferred.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">All in all, very cool.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This transfer felt very different from my first.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I had no cramping and barely any discharge at all, I was hopeful, but I still have to wait until the Monday after Memorial Day to find out.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Let the time drag on...</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I’m very close to the wonderful nurse that walked me though this entire process.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">And over my time with the office I had learned that when it was bad news and doctor would call and when it was good news you'd get a nurse.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I knew that when I got my phone call that Tuesday afternoon all I would have to hear is the voice to know if I was pregnant or not.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">My nurse, Charlene, didn't even get through saying all of my name before I started crying.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It was her so I must be pregnant, I was really pregnant!!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Normal HcG levels for a woman in the point of pregnancy that I was are anything over 50.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I was at 684.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">What?!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Wait is that ectopic high? "No."</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Twins?</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Charlene proceeds to tell me that she could pussy foot around and tell me that they need to wait for the ultra sound, but yes, twins!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">My god!</span></span></div></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-29590852920102046252009-05-01T12:31:00.003-04:002009-06-10T23:35:50.491-04:00One Insightful Little Boy<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">The other day my son asked me, "Mommy, when I was with the angels before I was born, was I dead?" </span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Side notes: </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family:verdana;"> Months ago he wanted to know where he was before he was born. Since it's not something I can really wrap my head around, I told him that the angels were watching him until his Daddy and I were ready to take care of him. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> I also recently had a relative pass away, and we've never been the type of parents to dumb things down for the boy, and he's not really the kind of kid that will take the dumbed down version anyway. So when my Aunt passed away - I hope when I'm 96 I have all my faculties till the end! - we explained him that she had died and it was time for her to go to be with Jesus. He had a ton of questions and we talked about it a lot. <br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family:verdana;">So getting back to the other day, I explained to him again that they were only watching him until it was time for him to come to us. Then he asked, "But what if you never had me?" Holding back tears, I responded, "...I would have done anything to have you!"</span><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">...and that's when I realized that IVF was just my method of "anything" to get the rest of my babies from the angels. It's amazing the things your little one can make appear so clearly. </span></span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-77595063203738261452009-04-15T21:57:00.003-04:002011-02-07T16:10:27.999-05:00The Transfer That Wasn't<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">So February 12, I started the drug from hell, Lupron. I've been on this before, the doctors actually said it went through me like water and didn't do what it was supposed to do. However, since I was doing a cryo-cycle they said the drug was supposed to serve a different purpose. I was on the drug till around the 13th of March. That's a whole month on the worse drug I've ever been on. Why, you ask? Well the worst part of it is that you don't realize how bad you are while you're on it. I felt like I was losing my mind. I was so moody and sad and I couldn't stand to be around anyone. But since the doctors said that the drug had no effect on me I never really put two and two together. It wasn't until a week off the drug that I started feeling better, and happier that I realized that it was the drug making me loopy.</span></span><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">So why the hell drug? On March 9th they were going to defrost my frozen eggs and fertilize them using ICIS. However, my appointment on the 2nd didn't go well, so they pushed everything back a week. (Just once I'd love to be on the schedule they put me on to start!) So, March 16th they defrosted 3 of my eggs and tried to fertilize them with ICIS. I've only had two attempted fertilizations before and I didn't sleep a wink the night my babies were being created; That night, I slept fine. You see, the embryologist had called me earlier that day and told me that upon defrosting those first three eggs that he saw that they, "didn't look good." He asked my permission to defrosting the other 2 eggs and try and ICIS them all. I hesitatingly told him no, that we would continue as per our plan; defrost 3, try to fertilize them and if 1 or less fertilized, try again with the other two. Whatever fertilized they would transfer to me, so we were a little leery to try and fertilize five and possibly have to transfer five; hence our plan. My hopes were not hight. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Well, all our planning was for naught. The first three didn't fertilize and when they defrosted the other 2 the didn't survive so the didn't even bother to ICIS them. A month of not being myself for nothing.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">So here I am, waiting to start cycle, what are we up to, 1 complete and 2 almosts, so 2.1? The good news is that this time I'm taking part in a drug trial, so part of my cost, for all the drugs, will be deferred. But, as usual I'm not "typical". I was supposed to start my new drug on March 10 to start the next cycle, but here I sit, waiting to ovulate. The excitement of it all, right? Seriously, just once, can't I be normal?!? My doctor claims that all the drugs I've been on have really wrecked my cycle, and that there is no reason for me to worry. Easy for them to say, right? TJ will be 4 this July and I have the clock tick tick ticking away in my head. My brother and I are 5 years apart, and I've always thought that we could have been closer it we were closer in age. Not that we aren't close, but we were never in school together, and when he got interesting I went away to college. UGH! I just don't want my little boy to be 10 with a baby in the house!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Well I guess I'll let you all know when I ovulate, and maybe later this week I'll post about something happier, like all the cool stuff I've made later. </span></span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-10382540619798049292009-02-11T23:24:00.005-05:002009-02-11T23:47:43.906-05:00Irritation<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">It's late and I really shouldn't be doing this right now. But I really needed to get something off my chest. When people think of IVF now, </span></span><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Health/ReproductiveHealth/story?id=6847020&page=1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">this</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"> is what they are going to think of. </span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><br /></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">I have reached the point now where I am OK with doing IVF. I was a result of fertility drug. Never once have I every questioned <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">whether</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0); "> or not I should be here. My Mother did what she needed to do, albeit not as drastic as what I'm having to do, but still necessary. For this women to cause other people to now look at me differently because of my choice, makes me sick. Before, people were just uninformed by what was entailed in the process. Now they are still uninformed, but they have this wacko's story to back-up their own misconceptions. </span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">I start the drugs tomorrow to begin my second IVF cycle. We are using my own frozen </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="white-space: pre; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">oocytes</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"> this time, so the process will be a little easier on me, but we have less of a chance of it working. I'm trying to take it one day at a time, but stories like this are making it almost impossible.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0); "> </span><br /></div></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-44701508364799106612009-01-30T19:26:00.001-05:002009-01-30T19:29:24.745-05:00CPSIA Delayed!At least there was some good news this week!<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">From the <a href="http://www.etsy.com/storque/craftivism/breaking-news-the-cpsia-mandatory-testing-certification-prop-3347/">Etsy Blog</a>:</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; "><div class="article_title" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 21px; padding-top: 5px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 0px; ">Breaking News: The CPSIA Mandatory Testing & Certification Proposed 1 Year Suspension</div><table style="border-collapse: collapse; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><tbody style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><tr style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><td colspan="2" style="border-collapse: collapse; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: top; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "></td></tr><tr style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><td class="article_footer" style="border-collapse: collapse; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: rgb(170, 170, 170); font-size: 11px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; height: 15px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; "><br /><br /></td><td class="article_footer" style="text-align: right; border-collapse: collapse; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: rgb(170, 170, 170); font-size: 11px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; height: 15px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; "><span style="color: black; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; font-size: 12px; ">We are so excited to announce that the Commission has voted for a "Stay of Enforcement of Certain Testing and Certification Requirements of CPSIA" — which means that they are proposing a 1 year suspension of the burden of lead testing and certification while they take more time to review the rules and plan enforcement! All of your hard work is paying off (for the time being at least!). You wouldn't have to pay to do the certification and testing, though you are still liable if your products are found to have lead. We are so pleased that artisans and vintage sellers got their voices heard. Your hard work is not over; we must continue to play a role in advocating for small business people throughout the coming year.</span></p></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="big_article_text" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; "><p align="center" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">"The action taken today provides breathing space to get in place some of the rules needed for implementation, but it should not be viewed as a full solution to the many problems that have been raised." —U.S. Consumer product Safety Commission</p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; "><em style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; ">You'll find the press release below:</em></p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; ">CPSC Grants One Year Stay of Testing and Certification Requirements for Certain Products</strong></p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission voted unanimously (2-0) to issue a one year stay of enforcement for certain testing and certification requirements for manufacturers and importers of regulated products, including products intended for children 12 years old and younger. These requirements are part of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), which added certification and testing requirements for all products subject to CPSC standards or bans.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Significant to makers of children’s products, the vote by the Commission provides limited relief from the testing and certification requirements which go into effect on February 10, 2009 for new total lead content limits (600 ppm), phthalates limits for certain products (1000 ppm), and mandatory toy standards, among other things. Manufacturers and importers – large and small – of children’s products will not need to test or certify to these new requirements, but will need to meet the lead and phthalates limits, mandatory toy standards and other requirements.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The decision by the Commission gives the staff more time to finalize four proposed rules which could relieve certain materials and products from lead testing and to issue more guidance on when testing is required and how it is to be conducted.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The stay will remain in effect until February 10, 2010, at which time a Commission vote will be taken to terminate the stay.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The stay does not apply to:</p><ul><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Four requirements for third-party testing and certification of certain children’s products subject to:</p><ul><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The ban on lead in paint and other surface coatings effective for products made after December 21, 2008;</p></li><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The standards for full-size and non full-size cribs and pacifiers effective for products made after January 20, 2009;</p></li><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The ban on small parts effective for products made after February 15, 2009; and</p></li><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The limits on lead content of metal components of children’s jewelry effective for products made after March 23, 2009.</p></li></ul></li><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Certification requirements applicable to ATV’s manufactured after April 13, 2009.</p></li><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Pre-CPSIA testing and certification requirements, including for: automatic residential garage door openers, bike helmets, candles with metal core wicks, lawnmowers, lighters, mattresses, and swimming pool slides; and</p></li><li><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Pool drain cover requirements of the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act.</p></li></ul><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The stay of enforcement provides some temporary, limited relief to the crafters, children’s garment manufacturers and toy makers who had been subject to the testing and certification required under the CPSIA. These businesses will not need to issue certificates based on testing of their products until additional decisions are issued by the Commission. However, all businesses, including, but not limited to, handmade toy and apparel makers, crafters and home-based small businesses, must still be sure that their products conform to all safety standards and similar requirements, including the lead and phthalates provisions of the CPSIA.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Handmade garment makers are cautioned to know whether the zippers, buttons and other fasteners they are using contain lead. Likewise, handmade toy manufacturers need to know whether their products, if using plastic or soft flexible vinyl, contain phthalates.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The stay of enforcement on testing and certification does not address thrift and second hand stores and small retailers because they are not required to test and certify products under the CPSIA. The products they sell, including those in inventory on February 10, 2009, must not contain more than 600 ppm lead in any accessible part. The Commission is aware that it is difficult to know whether a product meets the lead standard without testing and has issued guidance for these companies that can be found on our Web site.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">The Commission trusts that State Attorneys General will respect the Commission's judgment that it is necessary to stay certain testing and certification requirements and will focus their own enforcement efforts on other provisions of the law, e.g. the sale of recalled products.</p><p class="western" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 12px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 12px; margin-left: 0px; ">Please visit the CPSC Web site at <a href="http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/cpsia.html" style="color: rgb(1, 146, 181); text-decoration: none; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; ">www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/cpsia.html</a> for more information on all of the efforts being made to successfully implement the CPSIA.</p></div></span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-2526914066700158892009-01-26T13:04:00.001-05:002009-01-26T13:05:50.747-05:00Negative - I don't know if I can go through it all again. What if it's not meant to be?MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-4185478567540490252009-01-22T21:59:00.023-05:002009-01-23T11:04:01.756-05:00Now We Play The Waiting Game...<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Eh, the waiting game sucks, lets play Hungry Hungry </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Plow"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Hippos</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">. </span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">My transfer was last </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Wednesday an</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">d I don't get to take my office pregnancy until this Monday, so needless to say, anythin</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">g I ca</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">n do t</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">o keep my brain busy is a blessing. Ever since I became a Mom I've been making things. T</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">h</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">ere's a cute Winnie the Pooh rug outside my son's room that I started years earlier, but I didn't finish until shortly after he was born, I guess you could say I had some free time on my hands. It's evolved so</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">me since then. I think since I don't work anymore my making things is my own way to contribute to the family in a way that's just for them. I've made both my husban</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">d and son cross stitch Christmas stockings and have been in the process of making a tree skir</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">t sin</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">ce la</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">st year that I'm </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">hoping</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> will be done by next Christmas. I've also been making my famil</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">y's Halloween </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">costumes since we moved to Pa. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">With my new search for things too keep my brain busy, I've been on blogger.com a bunch thanks to all my blog feeds being her</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">e. I got to re</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">a</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">d</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> all that </span><a href="http://www.threadbanger.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Threadbanger.com</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> and </span><a href="http://www.burdastyle.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">BurdaStyle.com</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> had to offer. Those two fantastic </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">website hav</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">e led me to crafty bloggers by the tons. [Not to ignore my two great friends whos </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">blogs I also get to read, but we're talking about crafting here =) ] </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">So I've been led to some great blogs like, </span><a href="http://indietutes.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Just Tutes</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, </span><a href="http://www.purlbee.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">The Purl Bee</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, </span><a href="http://beckykaydesigns.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">purse-onality</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, </span><a href="http://hippiekender.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Kender Crafts</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, and </span><a href="http://cottonmonster.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Cotton Monster News</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">.</span><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">All of these sites have really got my juicing flowing! So although I've been making stuff for awhile, it's time to start blogging about it. I've already blogged a little bit about the only </span><a href="http://diaperpal.blogspot.com/2009/01/save-handmade.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Christmas presents</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> I sewed this year. I'm happy to report that not only did they fit the girls pretty good, but they loved them!</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">So with the Winter strongly with us, I've been pushing fleece to the max! I don't know if you've ever tried to buy gloves or mittens for a three year old, but it's virtually impossible to find ones that actually fit. So thanks to Just Tutes I made my son some </span><a href="http://indietutes.blogspot.com/2008/11/quick-quick-mittens.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">awesome mittens</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, that I can actually get on him and he likes to wear! But I just couldn't stop there. For sometime I now I've been making my son monsters. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghsBjMiUeHw0ckhUVEs7m3ak0L4ih6ISmZPingfBIm3EXJsR5ni7BCvbQPBNsb9NcKyJIzlsNSopYvT5hHAj1BVe9sF6S755eM2fUk4PHtT31CBrvLZo1-PVA_yZc8sd2sh-xuqg/s320/IMG_7482.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294335906129221506" /> '</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCzfHa_yMBudgFtgYWnGpW_efYV8L3bjeuP_4O6YtQwdL0-ZqjMyzuF1j6e1Fnu_bxDPhsmG52R0pfo0Ks5Jc-Q40gIeL7btBf8HTZpIH1sBCplv6mPY7zt5O7Yup3xlq4hyiAhg/s320/IMG_7483.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294335475307006818" /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">There really is no better toy than one that comes from your own sewing matching. Well, he loves them so much it got me thinking, how about Monster mittens? So on BurdaStyle I found a pattern for </span><a href="http://www.burdastyle.com/patterns/show/3876"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">mittens</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, and me being me, I had to make test mittens first. And as a semi first, I made them for me.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha_plkC04tKL38SUDI60tSAJjQ05RVJuBSEptvEpu4MbpfaWaM6RdtujyMU739r365V_6JaoOA2dgo1ITmZPc8TBs74GyUgpRHVbRq39GMWSi3jao6vSaM81ua_SvmrmjBDh7VTw/s320/IMG_7477.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294338039819162898" /><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Good thing too, since they boys were a pain since they were so much smaller. Unfortunately, the pictures don't do them any justice, and they look a little ragged at this point since my son has been enjoying wearing them so much, but he's constantly getting compliments on them, and if there's one thing my son likes, it having a reason to talk to people.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynZ2mTttFGJC1ymLtFGdAfGk8EmJtJGOwwQaDxCZjqgwEaEG64NpIeVapBWt2ba98beKzUodNKiXksmiKdFJJV0dL_B3piKcH9zIuNzZbFK39_MQ_flDCMdOjTUN1r6UI7v3yPw/s320/IMG_7492.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294339252883727778" /> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg37VNRi5oYX1jhyf88d4ADfJJj8LBa9aOc6dSIJvTyiQLS9gFAR8ZD27-IWwJtjb7ahxmrwr1uTc2tLmv_BP63FgmxVAG4l6goueD-53iff6qxWCNHZCtC0D6HdBQXAe3A4s32g/s320/IMG_7493.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294339542967265890" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_EfFESST4vVxuwSRx55wdBD_h7T7OeFTs-JBUzBjIK8tr3i2na4tfjzFrcEcGILf2ecpm7cEFCUTjx3qkJCVucp0OaGy6jvj479GAiPZlqy1OT971JVit8TRdg6ISweGZaCHTFA/s320/IMG_7494.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294339775315613826" /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">I should never have made myself the cammo mittens, because I started a, "what can I make for myself next?" kick. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Christmas three years ago, I made my husband and two of his brothers, fleece pj pants. Then I edited the pattern a little and made myself awesome Trix flannel pj pants. So I knew the pattern was usable for me, and with the Eagles game coming up, I knocked these out in an evening.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDdezrPXRMxtbcHlC2g1fYrWTWL1qIFQ5CMIftJjTzAukh8-mEl78-QfAyJhou0PBhcDBcAd1zP61T39DFiq0sePdLzTmrLbT4rKOSZlnDggYu7Z5-vrpDG0BMFQYsTQEZ8AmMcQ/s320/IMG_7485.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294512998066463266" /><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Too bad the Eagles lost, but we won't talk about that.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">And lastly, well most recent I guess, I found this great tutorial for </span><a href="http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=276577.0"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">glittens</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">. I luckily found some cool fleece at Jo-Ann's, and my new glittens were born.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2eycNGRenUMz0OLUtjXVuJr9HSgTAQsv4ycediAdXubjxKKt2fWsWyTLR8U_sbvWae5XzKmYkR5FkdLPOv0M3z3qInQKmBiW7kMDvlYmNo-Vx6kkVZnmfQAQ9OzwZ94MqMGhhjA/s320/IMG_7474.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294515367705958386" /> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit9O2VcUbnYZecy8pPiyNbfiM06cF5qqopyrRSeXRdJV5JHJPxbmWFsZrBZHJopEavXEaIELlFnkBrtW7uWZMOJsDdZv1wQ4byKAkL7uD6-BODavE01VNgxVKp05Gzt8somDR-jg/s320/IMG_7475.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294516434077925154" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2M6tUfIKLT0eAiY7D-uvw99LbcWRE3SKkyqgagG3qwBjD0_cn9H34g0dYmKWCziI9DtPvM6-pfKzsLRbjiP8yDWPOhDvwB7zNgXe3UZFvyYtOaP5vNVY0LtxKYIVbNnPLjq5jMQ/s320/IMG_7476.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294517201275998802" /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> <br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">I did things a little different than she did. I made my thumb slits in the side seams so there would be more seam allowance to sew the thumbs back on with, and I handstiched my top piece to the bottom piece rather can cutting a slit in the mitten. I also haven't really decided on my closure for keeping the top up, but I'm sure it'll come to me one of the days I'm wearing them.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Oh, I almost forgot. I added a new monster to my son's posse! I can't go making so much for myself without giving a little love to the boy.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh62nrPIfbVXGQdxLcjzu3M-sWyyj9TZcn-3ehe-TnJ6gNTfDZzcTGUlQ4Tugp20-ZWTNPpGD13lvIVlzQ4tbDrjOzILIjxoAQSLYSYGdfOX_xX6ws02lDSU5pnQZYBtVDegBAJGA/s320/IMG_7479.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294518483729414994" /> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib4u4h4C3SuaKfLfIYka1ZdUFvh6yFrFOVCDFJXITDCMeN2JpTNSi_WMCVyM33c3JUwOzr8Wg6d-R1xsc-aaiSA2NIpj-INAHM2rBFMt_Qa3suiYrkFqIwtA9geurG2mnO1dpExw/s320/IMG_7480.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294518748972593394" /><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Well I hope you enjoyed looking at all the stuff I've been making to keep myself busy as heck. There's more to come, I promise! =)</span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-6323009812939859032009-01-13T18:03:00.004-05:002009-01-13T18:30:48.756-05:00Retrieval DaySo yesterday was my retrieval day and it went really well. They were able to get 13 eggs from me!!! We got to the office at 7, with me packing Tom's contribution inside my coat - gotta keep it warm. The whole thing is such a surreal experience - Thomas coming into existence didn't involve nearly as many people. We barely had to wait at all before I was brought into the suite where the retrieval was being done. They asked me the usual <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">pre</span>-surgery questions and I finally got to meet head of the Lab - a very nice man - who walked me through the process again and we firmed up exactly how many eggs we would try and fertilize, 3. Then the anesthesiologist came in. Now we were trying to be as grown up as possible, but as soon as he left I mouthed to Tom, "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Moleman">Hans <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Moleman</span></a>." We both almost completely lost it. I guess Tom and I were among the more talkative people that go through this process. The nurse kept going on about how nuts we are, and all we were doing was talking about names. Of course Tom's favorites are names like, Donovan, Brian, Quintin Michael, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Joselio</span>, picking up a <a href="http://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/team/Roster.asp">theme</a>? Then it was one more bathroom trip for me, I got to kiss Tom goodbye, and off to the room with the fancy stir-ups. This was my 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">th</span> surgery where I needed to be put out and every time they do it they make you count down or up or something, I got nothing. All of a sudden I saw this opaque white stuff go into my IV, and moments later I utter, "I guess I'm going out now, huh?" Next thing I knew I was waking up and it was all over. The nurse was surprise by how well I was doing after I woke up, but honestly after they told me they got 13 eggs I could have jogged home.<div>Later in the afternoon they called to tell me, of the three eggs they didn't try to fertilize, how many were mature and they were going to freeze. Turns out 5 of them were mature and are being frozen. This number actually made me a little nervous since we were told that none of the little ones might be good which is why we did three to try and fertilize - but all we could do now was wait and see. I don't think I slept at all last night. I had the most vivid dreams of all the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">possible</span> outcomes of the ones they were trying to fertilize. We knew it took about 14 hours for fertilization to take place and they would call us before 8am this morning to tell us how many of the three fertilized. 7:45 this morning the phone rang and I think I gave myself whiplash getting up to answer it. Two of our eggs fertilized!!!! </div><div>Now there are only a couple of more things to pray for - one, that the two eggs that fertilized continue to divide and grow properly and that at least one of them implants after tomorrow mornings transfer. Then the waiting game really starts. I'm pumped up with so many pregnancy hormones at the moment, I can't take my pregnancy test until 2 weeks after the transfer. I feel a very clean house and a lot of sewing being done over the next two weeks to make time fly.</div><div>I keep reminding myself, God never gives a cross to bear larger than we can carry.</div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-35191249943340410432009-01-10T20:48:00.003-05:002009-01-13T18:01:50.723-05:00IVF 1.1<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">So it seems that try 1.1 was a semi-success and Monday morning is my retrieval! What a long road it was to get her though. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">I mentioned in an </span><a href="http://diaperpal.blogspot.com/2008/11/ivf.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">earlier post</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">, what I went through for attempt number 1. Well, now it's January 2009, and as promised, we've started again. </span></span></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">Late in December, I had my first appointment and they checked to make sure that all the cysts were gone so we could start again with a clean slate. Thankfully, everything was all clear and I got my instructions to stop the pill in a few days and come in for my first of many sets of blood work and ultrasound. January 2 they took my baseline blood and ultrasound and the next day I finally started the stimulation phase. I should probably take a step back here and explain the new method they were trying since my body didn't react to </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Lupron</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "> at all the way it was supposed to. Usually they shut everything down with </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Lupron</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">, then start your stimulation and then they do the retrieval. However, in my case, they started the stimulation first. During stimulation you get the wonderful pleasure of spending every day or every other day, going to the doctor to have blood work and ultrasound done. So, after my second day of two injections a day, Low dose </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">HCG</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "> in the morning, and </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Gonal</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">-F in the evening, I go for my first check-up. Low and behold, the drugs are working! I was so afraid that something was horribly wrong with me, and none of these hormone altering drugs were going to have any effect on me. About those wonderful drugs - I have never felt worse in my entire life, then I did the first 24 hours on those drugs. Here I was worrying about the menopausal effects that the </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Lupron</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "> would have Those were NOTHING compared to thee hell of the </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">HCG</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "> and </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Gonal</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "> F. Also, I was supposed to behave as if I was pregnant. That meant none of the drugs I usually take, especially my migraine medicine, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Imitrex</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">. Well the problem with that is that one of the main side effects of both those medicines is migraines and by 5 o'clock the first day on them, I had one of the worse migraines of my life! I tried all my old drug-free migraine remedies and none of them worked. Crying hysterically in a hot shower, I finally broke down and gave myself an </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">imitriex</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "> injection. The doctor had said that I would "do what you have to do" and honestly I would not have survived the last week without my </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); "><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">imitrex</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); ">. I couldn't, in good conscience, torture one child with his mom strapped to the sofa, trying to make another one. Thankfully, as the week when on I did feel much better, headache wise anyway. I feel like someone strapped a spare tire to my belly, but that's what yoga pants were made for.</span></span></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">So, I go in for my first check-up and the drugs </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">are</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> working, but already, one of the follicles in my right ovary had pulled ahead of the pack. My nurse said we'd watch it, but worse case, we wouldn't be able to use that ovary. I had my next appointment on Wednesday, and that's when things started to head down hill. During Wednesday's ultra sound, the big follicle in the right was bigger and now there was a pack leader in the left one too. After checking my blood work and checking with the doctor they decided to keep me day-to-day but to add in my new "</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">lupron</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">" called </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">ganarelix</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">. (for you playing at home, we're now up to three injections a day) And, to add insult to injury, I now have to go to the doctor every morning. Have you ever tried to wake up a thee year-old at 7 for 4 days in a row to go to the doctor with you? It's not pretty. Thursday's appointment Tom decides to come with me, since we're no longer in the </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">routine</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> check-ups that we thought we'd be having at this point. Usually, I only see a nurse in these check-ups, but Thursday my doctor walked in, so I knew I was in trouble. After looking at the day's ultra sounds, we </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">discussed</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> our options. Since I had a giant follicle in each ovary I could stop and start all over again, which would then mean we'd have to pay again for some of the process, which, by no </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">stretch</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> of the </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">imagination</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> would be cheap, or we could continue with the possibility of only retrieving 2 eggs. We </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">collectively</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> decided to continue since we have no intention of freezing any embryos and all the eggs that we get to fertilize will be </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">transferred</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">. But, we're still playing it day-to-day. If the big guys get too big, we won't be able to use them either, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">because</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> they would be over mature. By Thursday night my husband and I are both a disaster. This whole process has been so trying on us both, which has made us irritable and moody and not a whole lot of fun for our angel of a little boy to have to deal with. Thankfully, by Friday things were looking up. During Friday's ultrasound, our doctor said, "I </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">amend</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> yesterday's number, I think we'll be able to get at least 6." The big ones weren't any bigger and the little ones were starting to catch up! Go </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Ganarerlix</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">!! We now, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">tentatively,</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> had a retrieval day of Monday! Here's where my side of the story will differ from my husbands. I had a different nurse and doctor this morning then I have had all week. This is a doctor whom I have a little history with and it's not good. Compared to the AMAZING doctors in my practice, she is </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">mediocre</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">. Her bedside manner is harsh and she doesn't seem to care that having to be at an </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">infertility</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> doctor is one of the worst places people want to have to be, but I digress. In talking with my Mom about </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">today's</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> events I do feel a little better about the whole thing, but </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">basically</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);"> the doctor I saw today said that she thinks we're only going to be able to get three. So which is it, I ask? I'm trying not to freak out until after the </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">retrieval</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">, but she told me some other upsetting news. They will not be able to tell if an egg is mature until after they try to fertilize it. But we were only planning on trying to fertilize 2, which could very easily mean that there could be no embryos to transfer. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">Today left me feeling less than excited that this whole ordeal is ever going to work. Hopefully, they get three good eggs from me, hopefully, 2 of those eggs fertilize, hopefully 1 of those eggs implants in me and we get a healthy little baby. The math teacher in me is rolling the numbers around in my head, and they don't feel good. I can only hope that a few months from now, when I'm nice a pregnant and eating ice cream for breakfast, that I'll laugh about how I was freaking out about my odds, as I'm carrying twins....is that too much to hope for?</span></span></div></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-46278337523568301232009-01-06T12:08:00.006-05:002009-01-22T22:50:52.168-05:00SAVE HANDMADE<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Since I've become a stay-at-home Mom I've rediscovered my love of sewing. My Mom taught me how when I was about 12 and she was sick of making me my Halloween costumes. After making that first Halloween costume with her, a dog costume, my need for sewing waned. I became an obnoxious teenager and making an animal costume wasn't really the in thing. Back then, without the Internet, I didn't realize all the cool things that people make for themselves. If I knew then when I know now, I would have spent a lot of time sewing in my teens! Thankfully now, my little boy allows be to have some precious time in my sewing room, while he plays in his room. And since his birth not only have I made things for him and my family, from elephant and clown costumes, to hats and pants, but I've also made things for a few of my friends as gifts. I make a mean baby bib, cute layette and adorable hats and mittens. But soon, I will be breaking the law. </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"></span><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Due to all the problems with lead and other horrendous things put in children's toys </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act has been established and takes effect at the end of this month. Now, it's all in legal-ease but to the best of my understanding it </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); line-height: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys and require</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">s toy makers to permanently label each toy with a date and batch number. Which is beyond fine and understandable for all the mass marketed toys that are made in China, which is most of them. I was one of those Moms checking all of her sons toys against the list of recalled toys last year, and he has 40 Pixar Cars!! (Thank goodness I never allowed any Thomas The Train crap in my house!) It was scary and the fact that it became such an epidemic is insane! The act covers more than just toys too, it </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); line-height: normal; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">regulates </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">all</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> products for children under 12. Clothing, school supplies, cloth diapers, car seats, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">--everything. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); line-height: 13px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">But what the CPSIA has ignored, is all the individuals out there that make wonderful things for children with their hands. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); line-height: normal; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">The irresponsibility of mass-market toy makers is being solved with a one-size-fits-all solution for dozens of industries totally unrelated to toys. I really don't even mean myself here, there are thousands</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> of people out there who help to support themselves and their family by making things for children. I know what joy I get from making things for my son, friends and family, and this one blanket of an act should not be fixing the huge and incompetent by effecting the small and heartfelt. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">If you're better at reading legal-ease </span><a href="http://www.cpsc.gov/ABOUT/Cpsia/cpsia.HTML"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">here's the CPSIA's</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> website, and here's the </span><a href="http://www.handmadetoyalliance.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Handmade Toy Alliance</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">. And </span><a href="http://www.change.org/ideas/view/save_handmade_toys_from_the_cpsia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">here</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> is were you can Vote for a change!!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">So it's a good thing I'm all done with these </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(83, 71, 65); -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">because if I was giving them to the girls any later, they're be black market night gowns! </span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8_sVOzAz4TUSUC_juON-D_II7-4ciebJ_hligAAMougQ5Xs03jYWlQXLzU7SWZoZJ-KHM124EjhO7KbsbNVVCEzVT0rvMR8IxnTO998MDGKvxnW5NwA6lxNu2JPOpB6YuHnmH7w/s320/IMG_7299.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288240156492108930" /><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Thanks for listening to my rant. I'm not even sure if I made any sense, but the whole thing just gets my nerve up!</span></div></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-75243121124805354622008-12-02T22:51:00.006-05:002008-12-04T21:10:13.715-05:00A Christmas "Getting to Know You" Questionnaire<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know your friends. Okay, here’s what you’re supposed to do, and try not to be a SCROOGE!!! Just copy this and paste onto your blog.Change all the answers so that they apply to you. Then tag other bloggers, and then comment here and tell me you did it so I can learn something new about you……Tis the Season to be NICE!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Wrapping paper, but I'm forced to use both because every gift my son has gotten for his entire life came in freaking bags and I just can't throw away perfectly good bags!! (Do I sound bitter?) </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">2. Real tree or Artificial?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> Real or else I'd have to find some place to store it</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">3. When do you put up the tree? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Next weekend, if I'm lucky - How do you have yours up already?!?</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">4. When do you take the tree down? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Our record is 3 weeks after - I don't recommend it</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">5. Do you like eggnog? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Sure</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">6. Favorite gift received as a child? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">my Lego monorail - I can't wait till Thomas is old enough for Legos!!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">7. Hardest person to buy for? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">My husband</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">8. Easiest person to buy for? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">My Son</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">9. Do you have a nativity scene? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Yupper, got a beautiful one from my Mother-in-law for a wedding gift - bonus of getting married 4 days before Christmas, I've got Christmas stuff coming out of my ears!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">10. Mail or email Christmas cards? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Mail...newsletter, I should probably write it at some point soon! </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">jewelry, but I don't want to say from whom in case they stumble upon my blog ;)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">12. Favorite Christmas Movie? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">They Year Without a Santa Clause, but really love them all, especially anything Rankin & Bass!!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Thanks to Christmas stuff going up right after Halloween, I've got a good chunk done. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Hell Yes!! I used to be a teacher after all.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">My Mom's cheese cake!!!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">16. Lights on the tree? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Yup</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">17. Favorite Christmas song? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Angels We Have Heard on High - even had them play it during out wedding mass. See #9</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> Traveling to NY, as usual.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer’s? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">I'm just going to use Izzysmom's answer here Dasher, Dancer, Donner, Blitzen, Comet, Cupid, Prancer and Vixen? And of course Rudolph =)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">20. Angel on the tree top or a star? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Star</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Christmas morning</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">22. Most annoying part about this time of year? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Since I've moved to PA the whole mall situation is much easier, so I rather enjoy it all, except, of course, for the Christmas music starting Nov 1!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">23. Favorite ornament theme or color? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">I love this ornament that my mother has, it spins when you put it over one of the Christmas tree lights. When my grandmother passed away I learned that she had the same ornament and my Mother gave it to me. Thanks Bub</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">The Baileys Irish Cream!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">25. What do you want for Christmas this year? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Just time with my Toms</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">26. 5 Bloggers I am tagging to pass along the Christmas spirit? </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Well since I got this from Izzysmom and she passed it to LadySarene already, I'm going to have to live vicariously (How do you tag people anyway?) </span></span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-76337221411754471282008-11-30T20:22:00.004-05:002008-12-02T16:40:43.953-05:00Success??<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">It may have finally happened. I've been battling with Thomas over the whole potty training issue for what feels like forever! If you put him on the potty he will pee, and recently, even though I vowed against it, he'll pee standing up. It's hysterical to watch with him not quite being tall enough, but it makes peeing easier for him and he doesn't have to strip naked, which he usually does anyway. The real battle with him has been over #2. In the beginning we'd just follow a routine. we'd put him on the potty when he woke up in the morning, before and after nap time, and before bath time. We weren't concerned with weather or not he went in his diaper in the in between time, just about making him understand that going to the bathroom is just a regular part of the day. Sometime he was really good and the diaper would be seemingly dry, other times I'd wonder how such a little kid could pee so much in one little diaper! But he would never poop in the potty and we've been putting him on it for months. There was that one time, but that was an accident and he was more surprised than anyone. A couple of weeks ago we, however, we had a real breakthrough. For an entire weekend, Thomas pooped on the potty. Tom would see that he needed to go, put him on the toilet and there was great success. So I thought we had finally turned a corner, how silly of me. Come Monday morning, when Daddy was at work and just me was trying to get him on the toilet for #2 all hell broke loose!!! That's when Thomas started to devise he newest trick, other than hiding from me when he was off pooping in his diaper. He would fight, kick and scream and you would finally get him to sit on the toilet, rather than just stand there to pee. He would make a tiny deposit and gleefully accept all his accolades and his special bag of m&m' he gets for not pooping in his diaper, then my little cherub would go off and finish the job in his diaper. Oh what fun that was! And that's how things went for awhile so I stopped fighting with him to get him to use the potty. But when he did poop I wouldn't just up right away to change him, so maybe he'd start to see that using the toilet is a much better alternative than his pants. </span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">I slowly started to make some more little changes. We live in a very small house with only one bathroom (we don't count the free standing toilet in the basement), so I moved his little potty seat out of the bathroom and put in down in the kitchen, just so he'd see that it didn't have to be a production when he had to go. Around the same time Thomas stumbled upon an Elmo game online that when on about something like, when you got to go, go, and you can continue what you were doing when you're done. Thomas loved it and starting talking about it all the time. Keep in mind we have a whole bunch of potty books and videos that he could care less about, but Elmo apparently has the magic touch. Since he was talking about it so much I decided to focus on peeing and teaching him to hold it until he was on, or in front of, the potty. I had bought him Cars pull-ups months ago, another lame attempt to get him to use the toilet more, right up there with is camo and Spider-man underwear that also had no effect. I decided it was time to try them again, but this time I made a game out of it. The front of the diapers have either a Piston Cup or a helicopter on it that when you pee would disappear, and Thomas LOVED to make them disappear. But I told him that if there were there whenever I checked he'd get a sticker, and low and behold, it worked!! He even started showing me the front of his diaper and say, "See Mommy, there's still there!" Through all this I also told him not to poop in the pull-up because honestly they're even more expensive than diapers. He was doing a good job with all this, he even reached the point that after he'd pee on the potty he'd ask for a regular diaper afterwards since I guess he knew another deposit was coming. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">Over Thanksgiving(s) I had decided that I was just going to have to lie come time to sign Thomas up for preschool in </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">February</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">! I was ready to tell them his was potty trained and when the first day of school rolled around I'd pray that he actually was potty trained or I'd lie though my teeth the first day he had an "accident". I know, I'm a terrible mother =)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">That was all until today, however. This morning, Thomas asked where his potty was because, "I feel like I have to go potty." So he he got himself set up and made a deposit!!! Later in the afternoon he started to go in his pull up, but he feverishly ran to his toilet to finish up! And just earlier, during his bath, he told his Daddy he felt like he had to go. Thomas got out of the bathtub, waited for Tom to run downstairs and get his seat, and he pooped again!!! </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">Looks like I might have to change the name of my blog soon =)</span></span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-60700921569542702152008-11-28T22:07:00.004-05:002008-11-28T23:10:19.571-05:00IVF<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">I have officially been in the IVF process for a little over a month today. When Tom and I first found out that IVF was our only option left to try and have more children, I was devastated. My greatest fear for a very large part of my life was that I would be unable to have children. I had an idiotic doctor once who told me I'd have problems just based on my Mother's difficulties to have me. Then, along came Thomas. I thought what fools doctors are while I cradled my beautiful like boy in my arms. Fast forward two years, to when I'm "ready" to have another one and I have my </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ectopic_pregnancy"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">ectopic</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">. My ectopic was by no means fun, and I know that Ectopic pregnancy remains the leading cause of pregnancy-related death in the first trimester of </span><a href="http://www.medicinenet.com/ectopic_pregnancy/article.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">pregnancy</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">. However, my doctor led Tom and I to believe that there would be no issues with my remaining tube and getting pregnant. Oh how wrong he was. Without going into too much horrid details here, without major surgery that would put me in bed for six weeks, with a colostomy bag for my healing time, and the possibility of needing one for the rest of my life, and the whole thing not even necessarily working, </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IVF"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">IVF</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"> is our only option. Cost aside, it took me a long time after finding out that it was our option to determine if it was an option for me. My deciding factor was one afternoon a few weeks after we found out, Thomas woke up from his nap and opened the gate at the top of the steps all by himself. In the course of six seconds my brain went through the following thoughts, "I guess we can take the gate down, since Thomas obviously can get down here without it. Oh, I'll just leave it up for the next kid. Oh wait, I can't have anymore kids." Then I started to cry. It was at that moment I realized the thought of not having any more children upset me much more then IVF made me uncomfortable. After my decision I had to wait a month before I could start my monitoring month. The month leading up, I was a mess. When I was in a good mode, I was okay with my decision. When I was upset, about anything, and that was pretty often, I would start to doubt and worry and make myself even more of a mess. Surprisingly, once the monitoring month started I was OK. I figured the day I started I'd have a panic attack and spend the day curled up on my bathroom floor, but I was OK. I guess the fear of the unknown was making the waiting hard, not what I was waiting for. My monitoring month was pretty easy, I guess they can monitor from afar. I took birth control for a couple of weeks, to make me more regular, and then I started my lupron ejections, to put me into medical menopause. I was told by one of my nurses that lupron is the "evil" drug. It causes all the things that make menopause fun, acne, weight gain, hot flashes and the mecca of side effects, mood swings. I was very worried about what the lupron would do to my mood. Tom and I even came up with a safety word he could yell at me if I really started to loose it. So every morning I would wake up and give myself 10 units of Lupron in my upper thigh. Well, the first few days Tom gave me the actually shot. I had set everything up but was too afraid to stick it in. Tom did an excellent job, and within a couple of days I was able to do the whole thing myself. After a few days I was impressed by how well I was holding together. I had a couple of hot flashes, but I was actually feeling like I was in better control of my mood, I felt more even. After a week on the drug I had my first doctor appointment and I did not get good news. I had developed 10 cysts and they had to double my dose. So much for my monitoring month being over and simulation starting the next day. My daily routine continued for another week, only now I'm was taking 20 units. Still my mood was okay, and I realized that my hot flashes were less if I didn't get aggravated. A week later I had another appointment and the news was even worse. Most of the cysts had gone away but one got gigantic. Apparently, this was all normal-ish. It has happened to women before and both the nurse and doctor assured me that this by no means means I can't do IVF it just means they have to switch things up. It turns out that the Lupron was just passing right though me and not reducing my estrogen level like it's supposed to, hence the lack of insanity. However, they need to get rid of all the cysts before they can continue the process. Since my estrogen levels were still too high they decided to take the route where I have to go back on birth control and basically start from scratch. But by the time I'd be ready to try a new menopause causing drug we'll be in the middle of December and that's when the office shuts down for two weeks for the holidays and there can be no embryo transfers during that time. So what does that mean for me? It means that IVF won't be starting for me until January of 2009, 2 1/2 months after the process has officially started and more than 3 months after I decided to do this in the first place. I was hoping to be six weeks pregnant by then. </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">If the waiting wasn't hard enough, my husbands entire family treating me with kid gloves just pushes me over the edge! Guess what people, it I wasn't strong enough to get though all this I wouldn't have chosen this option. Just because you aren't strong enough, doesn't mean I'm not. My biggest problem with this is you all treating me like I can't handle anything, and time.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">I keep telling myself I'll be okay once I'm pregnant...</span></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14917652.post-8289324415955532632008-11-25T09:41:00.006-05:002008-11-25T10:58:14.143-05:00I'm so proud of him!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Last night, when I went to check on Thomas before going to bed myself, I found one of his smurfs books under his head and his little book light on his nightstand. When I left him after his story at bedtime, the book was on the nightstand and his book light was in the drawer. I'd never have guesses that my three year-old would be staying up late to read, but he's obviously trying. </span></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I know he wants to be able to read and spell so bad. Whenever we're out he reads out letters he sees and guess what they say. I'm trying to help him as much as I can. Yesterday, we went to Michael's and Thomas asked what store we were going into. I said, "The one with the 'M'" to which he correctly pointed to, "that one?" </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I guess instead of pushing him so much with socialization and athletics, I should focus my efforts more on teaching him to read - the others will come eventually, at his own pace. After all, during gym and swim class he can do what is asked of him but he's usually too busy checking out everyone and everything else to hear the request in the first place. </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">He's allegedly good in his zoo class - allegedly because it's a "mommy free" class and his teachers always tell me he's so good. But in this class he does what he loves - sucking in the entire world around him and the </span></span></span><a href="http://www2.philadelphiazoo.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">zoo</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> is an amazing place for that! </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Now, the real question - How does a mom with a math background, who can barely read or spell herself (spell check is one of my best friends!), start to teach her son to read? </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTE-8mGwhC-xB8veFG4XHoots08Wy9LqHrmhPmOxeiJP-93O-v98uj17N6tznls8AHm4bOvG4fbFWKDN6ChiQLm-Gi4cxHnqoBxFDmUfDH2TJ1fYPoHXR7Gvy0di_41DMNEI6gJQ/s320/IMG_7018.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272619873017259682" /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This past week he thought he wrote his name on our chalkboard. H-O-T. "Look Mommy, Thomas" (he can't quite write the M, A, or S without help yet.) I explained to him that he actually wrote 'hot' and then I wrote his own name out so he could see what it was supposed to look like. Well later that week while having lunch with Daddy, Thomas says, "Look, hot!" Tom and I searched the walls of the chotchkie restaurant we were in and there it was, a big, flaming sign that said HOT. Since he took that one board experience so well, yesterday I broke out some old flashcards we used to use when he was learning to talk. They have pictures and the word of the picture right under it. i.e., a picture of a kite and then K-I-T-E under it. We went though some and he sounded like quite the little spelling bee champ. "Bird, B-I-R-D, Bird" But what do I do other than that and read to him all the time like we already do?</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(102, 51, 255);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Note: Apparently, when Tom got home tonight and he went to check on Thomas, the book light was on at the foot of Thomas bed and Tom put it on the night stand. My story still holds, he's just not old enough to turn the light off yet. =)</span></span></span></div></div>MLRE8http://www.blogger.com/profile/02562870542911954009noreply@blogger.com1