In the IF world...

Nothing. Nada. Just playing the waiting game here. Waiting on every cycle to try & self-analyze if there's any chance of ovulation. When we first started TTC... I was eagerly anticipating the possibilities with each cycle & invested in too-many-to-count preg. tests. I've lost that. I need to get back to positive thinking & that same anticipation as 36 months ago. In my job, I deal with children (never thought that would be ironic) every day. I deal with some children who are angry & who have (usually) acted out or not handled their anger appropriately. One child didn't like my advice about how he was in control of his actions... so he drew a picture of me on a sticky note & stuck it on me. "This is you right now" were his exact words. I politely told him that was a very detailed picture & he should focus some of his anger on art and gave him some colored paper & crayons:] (FYI- he drew a "fish party"). So, I will now tribute this self-portrait to my feelings about the IF world!!! Thanks to a 5 year old.

Nature & Nurture

Nature- PC and I enjoyed some time outdoors this weekend. There is a hint of fall in the air and we took advantage of it. We walked/climbed (I trudged) up 1000+ steps to see the view below, standing on a scary bridge. It was worth it to enjoy something so beautiful. Along the way I realized that one thing I love about PC is his attention to details when it comes to anything nature... "look at how that rock wall is formed" "look this way & you can see --- mountains" "this is where the old railroad used to be" "parts of --- movie was filmed here." I'm so out of shape that I'm thinking about "how much longer is it until we're back" but really it's an especially charming quality:]

Nurture- What is UP? AF finally went away, after 18 long days on Wednesday. Friday afternoon- shows up again!!! On & off now all weekend. I have an acupuncture appt. this week... & I'm going to tell him I'm in desperate need of ying/yang... chi... or whatever can bring some balance to this body! While we're not going to an RE, I would like to have the chance to try naturally... but the whole ovulation/egg release is not working out! I can't eat at a Chi.nese restaurant without seeing "Egg D.rop S.oup" and thinking... if only it were that easy!

More Ramblings

Stray puppy has found a home... we'll send him on his way tomorrow...bittersweet.
Lately I've been wondering about how a job change could have an effect on my hormones/cycles. Right now, I'm in a position that allows me to be a servant leader (which I love) but it comes with a really high stress level & little time for family/friends/blogging etc.... When I was in a different position, I didn't feel as challenged or as able to help as many people, but it was not near the stress level or time commitment. That's one thing on my mind. AF... when is it ever going to end? I could call the dr. and get some meds to help, but I've found that IF meds solve some problems and create others! Well, time here to call it a night! Oh, one funny from today. A friend of mine visited and said that someone at her work was selling apparel/misc. items with the work logo and made a brochure to advertise everything. Well, it had already been printed and given out when someone noticed that one description of a shirt read... "orange sh*t with blue logo" So much for spellcheck when it comes to shirt & sh*t. :]

Yuck & Luck

What a week! YUCK- that I'm still dealing with AF on day 15! - that it was a long, challenging work week. -that I've gained weight & nothing fits. -that we've now been TTC for 3 years. LUCK- that at least AF starts without meds. -that I have a job. -that I have taken in a stray puppy off the streets until we can find it a home. -that it's Friday! How could someone abandon this face?

Update on summer to-do list

A few weeks ago, I posted my list of goals this summer. Here's an update.
Summer Home Vacation To-Do's
1. Have one yardsale/clean out- Most of the things that didn't sell went to charity so it was good to clean out and give away. But- where I live there's usually yard-sale "regulars" and they were not out that day!
2. Take care of mini- garden This is a first... my mini-garden did TOO good! I planted them a little close and everything grew together! But I had peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers all summer:] I'll try to post a pic.
3. Teach C a new trick I really did try. I made him sit/stay, then walked over a few feet & held up a broomstick for him to jump over... (which he does over logs and tree stumps) but he preferred to run around the broom & wait on his treat. Work in progress...
4. Go to a drive-in movie w/ PC Can check this off the list too... went for a double feature & we didn't like the first one so PC had a good nap, but the second was really good. We're wondering how C would do at the drive in... other people bring their dogs... but they're usually behaving! That might be the next adventure!
5. Go for several country Jeep drives Uh, well- these ended up being more like 4-5 miles around the house drives to save some gas, but nevertheless we had fun!
6. Keep organizing stuff Does one closet count?
7. Make a cookbook from recipes from PC's granny (passed away last year) Made a little progress, but set another goal to have it done by Thanksgiving... yes, I'm going to stick to that deadline!
8. Sleep late Had no problems with this one... except for getting back to normal.
9. Finish 2 grad. classes One week left to finish class #2- whoo-hoo!!! It might be time to start writing the final paper!?
10. Earn x-tra $$$ Sigh. Not really... but I did spend time thinking about how I could spend it!

Right now my goal is just to get rid of AF... STILL here. Oh, the joys of anovulation. My birthday is coming up next month... I would love to have just one normal cycle... too much to ask for???

Ramblings

I have been consumed with work related stuff for the past two weeks. AF showed up last Friday & is still lingering- yuck! I wanted to post about petite size clothes... I'm going to get a pic with my cell the next time I shop in a petite section-- ugh! Why do "they" assume that someone who's shorter must wear pastel polka dots or stripes with matching elastic waist pants?! I was really frustrated this weekend looking for something dressy but still trendy. It didn't happen! For some good news-- PC is filling in for someone at his work for a couple of weeks & will get bonus pay for doing it-- that's a nice surprise. Guess we'll be adding any extra income to the IF fund over the next several months!