Hi everyone! I will start out by saying that I still think about that steak dinner and how good it was, but even after having that I don’t feel the need to cheat on the diet, which is (more…)
9 months . . . September 24, 2013
On September 8th Lil’ guy turned 37 weeks and 2 days. Not much of a milestone, but that was actually equal to the amount of time I was pregnant with him. Just a fun fact. But on September 21st he turned 9 months! I know I say this every month, but the time is just going by so fast. I actually starting thinking of his first birthday party. I am glad it falls on a Saturday so we can actually have the party on his birthday. I know we are going to keep it kind of small. But it is fun to think of what kind of decorations to get and if he will finally be crawling then or be walking and if he will finally have teeth by then.
Still no teeth, but I am not that concerned. Some babies are slow to get teeth. Just like some are slow to crawl or walk. I really think he is moments away from crawling as he gets on his hands and knees and rocks back and forth a lot and also propels himself forward.
He has started babbling more and says Ma Ma more. Just run-on’s like Da Da, but still fun to hear. I have gotten the hang of getting him in and out of the car seat more. When I am getting him out he actually starts to pull his way out.
Other than that not too much going on. The weather has been really nice lately and we have gone on a 2-mile walk several days in a row. It feels so good to be exercising again and I know the fresh air is good for everyone.
His sleep is still going well. He is usually asleep by 7:30-8pm. Some nights he cries some nights he doesn’t. He sleeps through until around 6-7am. If he does wake up crying before then I give it a few minutes and he usually falls back to sleep. Then once he gets up I feed him and am able to put him back down and he usually falls back to sleep and gets up for the day around 8:30-9am depending on when he first got up. Napping is still hit and miss. Some days he will only nap 30 minutes at a time. Other days, like yesterday, he did 35 minutes and then an almost 2 hour nap. If he does long naps I can get 2 out of him. If they are shorter I try for 3.
I introduced pureed chicken on September 13th. He likes it and I just made some pureed pears yesterday. I really do enjoy being able to make his food for him. I think it is much cheaper than buying baby food and I like that I know what is in it. 🙂 And most importantly he enjoys them.
My milk supply is not that great, but I am doing what I need to do for him. I introduced an additional bottle in the middle of the day. So he gets 6 ounces of formula then and an 8 ounce bottle at night. I pump in the evening after he is in bed and if I am lucky can get about 2.5 ounces (2-3 pumps over and hour or 2). Yesterday I took about 3 bottles that I had pumped the last few nights and gave him breast milk instead of formula in the afternoon. Not sure if it was that or the fact that he hadn’t napped well the day before but after that is when he napped for almost 2 hours. I will say it was my milk that did it. 🙂
I set up a little play area in his room and put him in there with some of this toys each day so that he has time to play by himself. I have the free camera we got set up so I can watch him. He is getting into that clingy stage a bit. If he is in a position to see me if I walk down the hall he will start to cry but then will stop after a minute. Then if he sees me again he will cry again for about a minute then be ok. I have to fight the urge sometimes to go “rescue” him, as I know he is ok. Besides, I am usually trying to get some house work done, so it is good for both of us.
The times I take him out to run errands he is such a good boy. I took him with me to get my flu shot and he did so well. The other day I had to run to CVS and then to Walgreens (CVS didn’t have what I needed) and each time someone talked to him and he just smiled at them in response. One time he started to babble. I am glad that he doesn’t act shy around other people. I don’t know if he ever will or not. But a few people commented that he was such a good boy and so sweet. I have to agree. I just love this little guy so much!
Thanks for reading!
10,000 steps . . . February 7, 2012
So I purchased a pedometer a couple of weeks ago. And because I am scatter-brained some times, I tend to forget to put it on, especially those days when I actually go for a walk. Today I remembered!!! I have actually been wearing it all day. Well, I didn’t put it on 1st thing in the morning, but that was probably only about 50 steps or so.
As of 7:30pm (when I am starting this post) I am at 7,023 steps. Of that, about 4,400 was from our walk this morning, the rest has been at home and the couple of errands I have run. I feel pretty good about that. The “experts” want you to walk 10,000 steps each day, which is equivalent to 5 miles (2000 steps = 1 mile). I think if I still worked in the office environment that would be totally doable as long as I still carved out actual exercise each day. But working at home, I would have to do another workout. But it seems like a catch-22.
According to the Mayo Clinic, you should get at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week (such as brisk walking). Lets say that is 25 minutes 6 days a week. And more health benefits are achieved at 300 minutes per week (50 minutes 6 days a week). Walking 2 miles takes us about 35-40 minutes. So we are getting a pretty good workout. But now there are others who say you need to walk 10,000 steps each day. I also don’t think they mean those steps to include walking to the bathroom, or to the kitchen to fix lunch. But let’s look at today. I have already walked briskly for about 40 minutes. So I am right where the Mayo Clinic tells me I need to be. But to make up the 3,000 steps I am lacking I would have to probably walk another 25-30 minutes. So if I did this everyday for 6 days I would be at about 360-420 minutes per week. The pounds should be dropping off! Right? Who knows? I think the point is to get off your butt and exercise. And I don’t think walking to the snack machine counts. LOL.
Will I ever walk the 10,000 steps? Maybe. I think I feel more inclined to try now that I have this pedometer clipped to my waistband. It almost feels like a challenge. Maybe tomorrow I will try to see if I can get there. May mean I have to hop on the treadmill later in the day. But that isn’t a bad thing is it? 🙂
Oh and today is Day 2 of no soda! I tried to stop cold turkey last week. Didn’t do that great. Although I did not have a soda every day. So I am getting there. Craved some today, but resisted the urge. I did drink diet which I don’t think is as bad as regular, but I want to be off it completely. That is the goal! We may go to a movie this week and I usually get one there. May still get one, but we haven’t been going that often so I don’t think it would hurt. As long as I can stay off it most days I am happy! 🙂
Thanks for reading!
appointment and day 30 . . . January 30, 2012
So today was our long-awaited appointment with the RE. I came prepared with a list of questions and also ready to listen. As we suspected, the doc aid that it was most likely a chromosomal issue as to why I miscarried. No surprise there. Hubby asked questions about statistics and so forth. Then we talked about our next plan. And I felt very prepared to ask questions about different protocols thanks to the ladies on the BBC forum. If not for them, and me asking questions about those different protocols, I am not 100% sure we would be doing this cycle differently, but we are.
So basically, if AF cooperates and gets here by the 9th of February or thereabouts, we will be able to do IVF #3 in March, if not, then for sure in April. This time we will be doing a micro-dose Lupron protocol. For stims we will still use Follistim but this time we will also be adding in Menopur. The doc said that they sometimes go this route for women who have not produced as many eggs as they had hoped. So I am feeling pretty good about this. I basically told her that I would do 20 shots a day if necessary, but I won’t have to. 🙂
I also shared my concern about the possibility of return polyps. If you remember, we started IVF #2 and had to freeze the embryos to have a hysteroscopy to clean out the uterus. So she said they could do a saline sonogram in Feb, before we begin, to check for anything in there. That made me happy and also relieved. My gut was telling me that if we didn’t and they could not see anything on ultrasound, that there might still be something there to prevent implantation. AND she said she would try to see if insurance would cover that. Bonus! And praying that they do.
So I should be getting a call from the nurse sometime, probably within the next week or so and then if AF shows up, we can start our journey once again. And I do believe this will be the one. Third times’ the charm!
DAY 30: After a month of infertility talk, we need a distraction. Give us a link to one of your favorite non-infertility-sites, or tell us about your favorite distraction activity/book/feel-good movie.
Well, I don’t spend a lot of time just browsing different sites online. If I am shopping for something, I usually check out Amazon first. They almost always have what I need at a cheaper price than most places. I have also gotten into Pinterest. I usually browse that before going to bed.
As far as distractions . . . a few shows I enjoy watching are, “Once Upon a Time”, “Pan Am”, “The Office” (I do miss Michael Scott), “Criminal Minds”, “Amazing Race” (new season starts soon), and “The Good Wife”. Books…well, I have several as I mentioned last night that I can start reading any time. Feel-good movie: Love the old hollywood musicals. How can you not feel good after watching those?
So that was the end of my 30-day challenge. I had fun. I hope you had fun getting to know a little bit more about me. I think I would like to do another 30-challenge, I just have to find one that is interesting. If anyone has any ideas, please pass them along.
Thanks for reading!
before the appointment and day 29 January 29, 2012
Well, tomorrow is our follow-up appointment with the doctor (after IVF#2 failed). It seems like it has been so long since it happened. Almost, what is the point? I am sure that she will say it was a chromosomal thing that caused the miscarriage. We aren’t going to be able to start another round right away unless they decide we are the 1-millionth customer and give it to us for free. (wishful thinking) So I just don’t know what to expect.
I will prepare a list of questions. They will have more to do with our next cycle. It is helpful to chat with other women who have gone through IVF. To see what protocol their doctor’s used. I know every woman, and for that matter every doctor is different. But at least it makes me seem somewhat educated when I can ask the doctor about a certain drug that someone else took and why I didn’t. Will this protocol work better for me? Or that one?
I know the goal is to get as many eggs as we can possibly get. The first cycle was pretty good…the 2nd one not as many. They used the same dosage of the same drug. So it tells me we need to do something different the next time. I am at the point that I would tell her I would take 20 shots a day if it meant that this time would work. I know it will not be that, but this will truly be our last time, unless we win the lottery or the state of Illinois decides to start covering IVF for self-insured people.
So I will probably talk about our appointment in tomorrow night’s blog. And it is the last day of my 30-day challenge. I have enjoyed the challenge of blogging every day for 30 days. So much so, I am thinking of trying to find another 30-day challenge somewhere.
Day 29: What is your favorite book?
Can’t say that I have a favorite book. When I was younger in my teens, I started reading Stephen King books. Loved them. Of course I would read them right before I went to bed. Big mistake! LOL I do still like Stephen King, I actually have a couple of books of his sitting on the shelf that I haven’t started yet.
I have also enjoyed reading all the Christmas books by Donna VanLiere; such as “The Christmas Shoes,” “The Christmas Blessing”, etc. Very heartwarming and easy reads. You can read one of those books over a weekend. 🙂 I am interested in reading her story “Finding Grace.” In it she talks about miscarriage and her difficulty with infertility. I will read it someday, just have to be in the right frame of mind.
One book I am looking forward to reading is “Fairy Tale Interrupted: A Memoir of Life, Love, and Loss”, written by John Kennedy Jr.’s assistant. I read excerpts in People Magazine and it sounds like it will be good. Oh and I am a sucker for books about animals, or more specifically dogs. My hubby got me “Rescuing Sprite” by Mark Levin when we were dating and I loved it. Have lots of kleenex handy. Along those lines there is a book in my Amazon shopping cart, “A Big Little Life” by Deane Koontz that I will read eventually. Also on my list are the memoirs of Julie Andrews and Katherine Hepburn. Dang there are a lot of books I want to read…I better get started! 🙂
Thanks for reading!
and day 27 . . . January 27, 2012
No though provoking post today. Feeling worse and heading to bed. Hope to be back to “normal” within the next couple of days. Thanks for hanging in there with me.
DAY 27: What do you use the “nursery” for right now?
Well, it is a spare bedroom/sewing room. Which, when it becomes a nursery, will probably still be used as a spare bedroom. There are days when I am in there and I think of how the furniture will be rearranged with the baby furniture. It makes me happy to envision that and sad that we haven’t been able to do it yet. It will happen! And I can’t wait to decorate it!!!
Thanks for reading!
still sick and day 26 . . . January 26, 2012
OK, well I am getting it full force now. The sore throat started and I got very little sleep last night. I sure hope it doesn’t last long.
Not a lot happening today. Worked on a few projects. We did not walk but played with the dog outside a little. Not sure if any of you noticed my ticker, but I have officially lost 2 pounds. Only took 3 weeks! UGH! I think if I can be better about exercising I will see better results. I do not expect to see the pounds drop off quickly. I didn’t gain the weight quickly. And I prefer slow and steady so that I am more inclined to keep it off.
I think too many times people want a quick fix. Give me a pill, so I don’t have to change anything that I do. Or surgery. I am not saying that surgery is wrong. I think for some people, that is what they need. And for a lot of those people they work their butts off after the surgery to learn to live a healthier life. But unfortunately there are those who think of it a quick fix and then refuse to change the way they eat or refuse to exercise and therefore the weight comes right back on.
It is a constant struggle for most, especially as you age. I certainly thought by my 40th year I would be in better shape…well that is what I wanted at least. But I make excuses and say, so much has been going on with TTC and just life in general that I just couldn’t get there. What I should have told myself is “if it is that important to you, make it happen…make time for it!”
So with that being said, tomorrow I am going to walk. It will either be for 20 minutes on the treadmill or a walk around the block. But I am going to get off my butt and do it, because that is the only way I can drop the weight I want to and still remain healthy (and eat better too).
I am also motivated to lose the weight because when I become pregnant I am going to put about 20-25 pounds on, so if I can drop that amount pre-baby, I will feel much better about things.
DAY 26: Post a picture of something that makes you happy.
I love this photo of my hubby with Buddy our dog. My two favorite fellas. Pure joy!
Thanks for reading!
sick and day 25 . . . January 25, 2012
Ok everyone I think I am getting what my hubby has. Been extremely exhausted all day and just really did nothing. So not too much to write about. Will write more tomorrow. On to the challenge.
DAY 25: What was your first baby or pregnancy-related purchase you ever made? Was it before or after you started trying to conceive? Or was it after you were already pregnant? Why did you choose that particular item to buy first? If you haven’t purchased anything yet, why not?
When we first started TTC obviously I thought it would happen right away. I did not purchase anything, but I did a lot of looking online. I bookmarked a lot of sites that had items I was interested in, etc. I just didn’t want to “jinx” anything. I guess I compare it to buying a wedding dress when you aren’t even dating anyone. Hey, if that works for you, great. It doesn’t work for me.
So now that it will be coming up to 3 years of trying, I am glad I did not purchase anything. I am still remaining positive because I know it will happen, but I just don’t want to buy something to have around as a constant reminder that it hasn’t yet. That doesn’t mean I don’t look at sales ads I get in the mail, or look online at things that I think would be neat to have for a baby.
When I found out I was pregnant in December, I seriously thought of getting something like a cute onesie. I was trying to remain positive, even though my numbers did not look good. I am really glad I did not get one. I just know it would have been too hard to see that….as a reminder of the miscarriage.
So for now, I browse online. I see things my friends post on Facebook, and make mental notes. I will get to start shopping for something soon….I just know it.
Thanks for reading.
hubby getting sick and day 24 . . . January 24, 2012
So hubby is starting to come down with a cold. His business takes him to a lot of different places and so he comes into contact with a lot of people, therefore, a lot of germs. So today he started feeling crappy and I am just hoping that I don’t get it. He did a lot of tossing and turning last night and I am a light sleeper so I woke up every time he rolled over. And I started feeling the tiredness around lunch.
I asked him if he wanted to walk this morning and he said he would later. So I opted to hop in the treadmill for a bit to see if it could help me get some energy. I walked a mile and it helped a little bit. I also got the dog to walk 1/10th of a mile. He enjoyed it. 🙂 Then after lunch I got hubby to go for a walk with me. So we did 2 miles. Now darn it, if I don’t see something different on the scale tomorrow I am going to scream! But I hope for the best! Now on to the challenge question.
DAY 24: Does your religion (or lack of) help/hurt/affect your infertility journey? Have you found religion? Lost it? Does it affect what treatments you do?
Let me tell you….early on it was really tough to stay positive about it all and to stop myself from wondering if I was being punished. Afterall, I had thought I did everything right in my life. I waited until I found the right guy. It wasn’t my fault that I didn’t meet him until I was 35! But there came a point when I had to stop being so negative about my journey.
I did that when I was single. I could not understand why it was taking me so long to find someone. Then I finally just accepted the fact that I might never find that someone and that I would be single. I was at peace with it. I would not stop looking, but I would be ok if I didn’t. Then of course I met my hubby.
But unlike that, I do not want to accept the fact that I may never have a child. I can’t! And one of those reasons is my religion. The priest asks us during the ceremony if we are open to having children. They don’t ask, would you be ok if you never had children! So I can’t believe that we won’t. I have to believe that His plan is for us to be parents. Call it the power of positive thinking or just having faith. It is what we must do to survive this whole process.
Now of course, being Catholic, how we get pregnant can be a sticky issue. I never thought in a million years that I would have to have medical intervention to have a baby. Who does? That is not natural. And unfortunately not accepted by the Catholic church. But, I have said this about many things, the decisions you make are between you and God. No one can judge you but God. And after going over this in my mind a lot, I have accepted that if IVF is what it takes then it is ok. God will be ok with it. Some may disagree, but it is a private and personal decision that no one can make for us.
So choosing to do IVF was never an easy decision, money aside. And I certainly would never tell the priest at our church how we finally got pregnant. Maybe I am scared at what he would say, maybe I do have some little feeling of guilt, just because it is against “the rules.” But that is what I have to live with and no one else. And if that is how we get pregnant, I will live with it and even though it wasn’t done the “natural” way, I will thank God each and every day for that baby. Because I will know it was Him that gave it to us. Faith will get us through this. I know it will. 
Thanks for reading.
french dip and Day 23 . . . January 23, 2012
Today I experimented with something I found on Pinterest, French Dip sandwiches. It was a slow cooker recipe and I have to say it was quite yummy. Hubby wanted seconds but I told him no. He could have leftovers for lunch tomorrow. It was not mean, just trying to help him be good about eating. 🙂 Love the slow cooker recipes and I am really enjoying Pinterest. Found some cute ideas for cupcakes, Valentine gifts for hubby and of course food!
Here is the recipe I used (I used a different cut of meat – but still good): (click photo for link)
Ok, I know I said yesterday that I was going to get back on track. Eating I did pretty well. However, I did not exercise. It was VERY windy this morning and actually snowing some. Last night we had thunderstorms…crazy weather. Tomorrow I am either going to walk outside in the morning or at the very least on the treadmill! I promise!
Note: The challenge question for today is a bit “heavy” so I am going to do that one tomorrow and do tomorrow’s today to keep the mood light!
DAY 23: Put your iPod on shuffle. List the first 10 songs that play.
1. “Let Me Go Lover” – Dean Martin (Love Dino, Frank and all those guys.)
2. “Nature Boy” – Celine Dion
3. “The Downeaster “Alexa”” – Billy Joel
4. “Yes I Do” – Rascal Flatts (I like them but I have this for hubby’s work.)
5. “I Want to Hold Your Hand” – The Beatles
6. “Hungry Like the Wolf” – Duran Duran (They never go out of style.)
7. “Summertime” – Ella Fitzgerald
8. “What I Like About You” – The Romantics
9. “Angelina” – Il Divo
10. “I Will Survive” – Gloria Gaynor (I used to sing along to this on the way home every night during tax season. Helped me stay awake and was my own personal anthem during that time of my life. 🙂 )
Thanks for reading!
now and ever more 