It is written in the stars above

I had my baseline ultrasound and blood work yesterday morning. My appointment was moved because of the snow that came today. Nurse Grace said my lining looked good and she later called with the results of the blood work-my estrogen was 30- and that meant I could proceed with the F.ollistim tonight. M and I are going to watch a video on their website on how to administer the medicine with the pen.
We've had off the last two days from school because we got over a foot of snow. The neighborhood kids are loving it. We went sledding yesterday down behind our house where there are coal banks and we flew down the hill! I haven't been sledding in years and it was such a good time.
I finished painting our bedroom. The blue is a very pale and soothing color. I really like it. It goes well with our s.habby chic sheets and blankets.






E, a neighbor and myself built this snowwoman yesterday.









This is what she looked like today.









This is my Psyanky egg I made the weekend my Dad showed us how to do it. He had an old book that showed what different symbols and their meanings. I made an egg with chickens and hens because they symbolize fertility. I also drew wheat because it symbolizes good health.



Other eggs.









Eggs that my friend J and her mom and brother made. They chose more difficult patterns. J is a very talented artist. She can draw, paint and photograph extremely well. Their eggs were gorgeous!






My best friend Maggie. He's my buddy :-)

I was so excited to receive my socks! I've read about other bloggers participating in this sock exchange and so when it rolled around again I decided to jump right in.
My socks are awesome!!! Thank you Carolyn@No Different From Any Other!!!! My socks look like they were knitted. I couldn't find your email to ask you Carolyne so I'm asking you here--Did you knit them? They are beautiful and I can't wait to wear them to my egg retrieval and embryo transfer. I thought it would be a way to bring you all with me ;-) They are so soft and comfy. I love the ribbon around the top of the socks and there are sticky rubber circles (3rd picture) to keep me from sliding around.
The blogging community has been a great supportive source for me. Whether someone leaves me a comment, reading about someone's journey or reading for information I know I can count on my blogging sisters to listen to me, make me laugh or cry with me. I try to do my best to leave comments to other bloggers to give back the support that they have given me. As always you are all in my prayers too.
I look forward to seeing all the other socks as we rock our socks out--please check out I'm A Smart One to see all the cool socks.

The breakfast at the hose company was good. It's always nice to see and support the fellow firefighters M works with. After that it was E's first CCD class taught by a nun. The CCD coordinator suggested I explain to E what a nun is. I began my explanation and E interrupted me and told me that she knows what a nun is--they were black. I did explain to her that it's more than wearing black. I went to catholic school for 7 years and I didn't have a nun as my teacher. We did have one teaching 2nd grade but that was after me. We continued on and head home to have lunch before E's basketball game. After that I went looking for a new St. Patrick's Day flag at Michael's, but I couldn't find any I liked. I did find my parents there. My Dad picked up stencils for his Pysanky eggs and my Mom picked out icing for her cookies. Then I headed out to my favorite store--Weggie's . I would move in if they let me. I don't know if you have one by you so let me tell you all the goodness they have. I enjoy their Mediterranean Bar (hummus--yum!), lovely bunches of hydroponic romaine lettuce, chai tea, magazines, books, great smelling lotions and seasonal items (both our outdoor patio set and table came from there). I have some good friends that work there and they both agree it's one of the best places to work. They take good care of their employees. If you like to bake and cook it's a great go to place. It's the only place around my area that has vanilla beans. They have a great selection of pretty much everything.
I finished up my night by watching Undercover Boss. What a great show! The heads of companies go undercover for one week in their company doing various jobs. It's a great opportunity to get a good feel on how their employees are doing and how the customers like the store/product. The bosses have been great people. At the end of the week they introduce themselves to their employees they have worked with and help them out with their job/school/family. I always cry. It makes me feel good to know that the big guys do care. The employees are really great too (their was one bad apple from the Hooter show--but he has since straightened up). I joked with M that if the CEO of the big OG came in I wouldn't know what he looks like. I should google him--lol! Next week is White Castle.
It's time for me to hit the hay.

I started Lupron on Wednesday, February 17. I had to do my first shot myself because M was at a fire. I am so glad I payed attention to the nurse. I admit it went well even though I was very nervous ;-) M did my shots yesterday and today. I have had some slight headaches, insomnia and my right arm feels tingly. I have stopped my ibuprofen. I'm doing okay so far but I am a little scared that my back pain will come back. Following Dr. G's instructions I've also given up caffeine. Not too hard with tea but chocolate has caffeine and I so love chocolate!
I'm waiting for the mail order pharmacy to call me back so my med delivery can be scheduled. I think I have to clean out a shelf in the fridge with all the meds coming.
We painted our bedroom a pale blue-polar ice. A second coat has to be done on the walls with the windows and closet. I have work tomorrow at the big OG and Sunday is packed with a hose company breakfast fundraiser, church, CCD class for E and E's basketball game.
I will take pictures of my bedroom and post later. Enjoy your weekend ;-)

Happy Valentine's Day to you my bloggy friends! I hope you had a great day! We painted our bedroom today and went to E's basketball game. That's why I'm late with the post. M and I went to one of our all time favorite places to eat--Roadies. Today was a good day ;-)

Our visit today went well. My uterus looked great! Dr. G took lots of pictures of my uterus and ovaries. She was very happy with my blood work. She is going to up my thyroid meds from 75 mcg to 100 mcg. This is good because I think it will help me feel less sluggish and I will be in the lower range of numbers. Next we had our teaching visit with nurse Grace. She went over ivf, why people do it, the statistics of it. Then we received our protocol. I start Lupron on Feb 17 in the am for ten days. On day ten I go in for blood work and an ultrasound at 8 am. I will then start Follistim (it's pen form that comes in a pretty case) in the pm. I wrote down everything in a calendar. Egg retrieval is slated for March 10 and embryo transfer is March 13. I know I will have questions. Nurse Grace said to call her or Dr. G anytime. They are both very nice and I know I would not hesitate to call if I had any questions or concerns. It is so much information that I'm a bit overwhelmed.
I'm glad M was there for the visit. He's a nurse (how handy--I know!) and he's very good at taking in information. I know I will be in good hands with him ;-) We're both very excited to be at this point--to begin the process of trying to have a baby together. I still am having a hard time believing that after all these years of trying that we are beginning our first cycle of i.vf. It completely blows my mind. I am thinking positive thoughts and I will try to do so throughout our cycle.
I am a bit crampy from the saline solution from the sonohystegram and I did not sleep well at all last night so I'm going to finish watching the movie 21. .
We came with most of our meds. We are going to use a mail order for the rest. I just kind of threw them in the fridge on top of the eggs. I'll have to make a special spot for them.

another day off from school!! Yahoooo! We've never had two days off in a row before. The snow isn't that bad in our area. I know other areas got hammered.
Our appointment is tomorrow at 9:45 a.m. I hope we hear good news. I'll post about the appointment later in the day.

School is canceled for tomorrow! Hurray!! I had to reschedule my appointment with Dr. G for Thursday--boo! Eh what are you going to do?
Still no sign of snow. I just took the puppies out for the last time before bed and it's not that cold out. Everyone, including universities, are canceling.
If the snow is the right kind we are going to make a snowman. I'll post pictures if we do.

While shopping for M at Barnes and Nobles I found two metal water bottles. I've been meaning to upgrade for a while and today I did. I had a gift card from my best friend C. One is red with koi fish and the other I saw in Acorn magazine. "Designed by a now-forgotten British civil servant in 1939, this message was meant to buck up the public if the Nazis crossed the Channel. Thankfully, they never did, and the poster was forgotten. Rediscovered decades later, it is now found in pubs, homes, and government offices throughout Europe, inspiration for our own challenging times. The image is the crown of King George." How I love the British. I'm taking the "Keep Calm" with me tonight to bartend at the big OG. I do think it's quite appropriate on a Saturday night, don't you?

Today we are going shopping for M's birthday and yellow cake ingredients. I have really good recipes for chocolate cake and red velvet cake but this is uncharted territory for me. I found one on epicurious and the reviews were really good. I like a moist, dense and flavorful cake. Maybe I should buy a funfetti mix as a backup?
I have work at 4 p.m. So I better get a move on.

Not too much going on here this week. I'm excited for next Wednesday which is our teaching/mock transfer/sonohystergram. I am very curious to see my uterine lining. Hopefully there aren't any fibroid tumors growing. My results for my blood work are normal. I have to look up some of the tests because I don't know what they are. There is only one nurse, Grace, that is in the office. She is very nice from my dealings with her so far. I've read horror stories about mean nurses in ivf clinics and I so don't want to go down that road.
Today was an ok day. The other teachers were getting ready for parent teacher conferences next week. I helped out where I could. I look forward to the day when I have my own class room and am getting ready for conferences.
We went out to dinner because it's M's birthday on Sunday. Dinner was a at the sister restaurant of the big OG where they have lobsters in a tank. I felt kind of queasy and mostly drank lemon lime soda. I have no idea where it came from. I did feel better to have a turtle sundae at dq. Now I'm ready to put on some pj's and get ready for Project Runway. I do love Tim Gunn.