Account HELP

as I sit here on bedrest, I wanted to upload my blog to a book using Blurb This -- and I got everything uploaded software wise. However, now it's telling me that this can only slurp blogs from new blogger accounts and I need to go to blogger to upgrade my blog in order to create my book.
Um, HELP?
I already use Gmail and assumed this was a google account.
What do I do??
HELP?

Home with 2 embryos inside me!

We had wonderful news!
18 eggs were retrieved, 16 fertilized and 11 are STILL growing strong!! OMG! We transferred 2 beautiful embryos inside me and now I'm on my back in bed on the laptop,barely able to keep my eyes open (thanks, Valium).
Blood tests are October 10 and 13!
Will write more later, but I've got my PJs on, my Sager by my side, I wolfed down my Arby's and I am also wearing the same warm socks as last IVF.

What is a 5day transfer?

Last time we did IVF with donor eggs, we did what was called a 3day transfer.
Here are a few links to explain a 5 day transfer:

Click here.

I found something here.


Here.

And an interesting look at what they should look like, Here.

Thank you!

Thank you for the love and support and prayers! I can feel the "calmness" washing over me.
Here's my regimen for this morning:

8AM: Empty bladder, start drinking 4-6 large glasses of water
Get progesterone shot in the butt from CJ, because now they start 2x a day.
8:30 AM: Take 3 Advil
9:30AM: Take Valium
9:45AM: Be at Clinic
10:30AM: Embryo transfer.

Then it's drive home with my music of peace and sound healing in my ears, stopping at Arby's for a big roast beef (because that's what we did with our first transfer!!!), and then home to flat on my back. Tomorrow is also bed rest, but I get to be more reclined, so I'll be online tomorrow!

Dig, Dig, Dig

For those of you interested in what K's latest book obsessions are, well, she is loving Dig, Dig, Digging. She has always loved trucks and tractors, but after seeing the tractors, bulldozers, diggers and cranes at a work site not far from our house (and on our daily walk path), well, I had to bring this home from work.

K loves it. She goes around saying "dig, dig, dig!", and whenever we see the tractors, she has to wave at them, and then wave goodbye to them as we round the corner towards home.

I love that it is a great, simple introduction to the many different types of machinery and has adorable pictures. And the labels and reading it to Keifer must be sinking in, because the other day on our way to Target, we passed another work site, and when she saw the cranes, she said "crane, crane!" Who knows, maybe she'll be a truck driver someday!

My status: anxiuos, excited, and optimisitc

What a day. I just got home from our Monday night Baby Ballroom class with Keifer. She was such a handful tonight. Oye. Lately, she has become so moody and wants to be SO independent, that I honestly get worried about HOW will we handle her in 15 years or so? My goodness, she is so loud and rowdy and runs around. Are other 17 month old girls this wild and crazy? And here I am, a teacher to three year olds, barely able to contain and handle my own daughter! What good am I?

We had a ball, though, ha ha, being at baby ballroom. Keifer tries her hardest to mimic the actions and dance moves, and although she fights me when I pick her up to dance these days, towards the end when she gets tired, she loves to let me lift her up and spin. Mama gets a kick butt workout, too, especially as we're learning the fox trot and the cha-cha- cha this time and it involves some quick feet. I break out in a sweat every week.

As for tomorrow's transfer, well, the butterflies have officially hatched and are flying around inside my stomach. I was talking to just about everybody at work today and at baby ballroom about our big day tomorrow. Part of me wonders if talking about it will jinx me into NOT turning out to be a BFP, but then again, I talked about it last time, and it was a BFP. Part of me also thinks that the more prayers and good vibes we have being sent our way can only HELP our situation - me being a huge believer in karma and the cosmic atmosphere of what will be will be. The woman who does Reiki on me is sending me reiki vibes at the designated time, and I know many people have been praying for weeks for us. It brings me to tears to even write about all the support and love and general well wishes we have in this journey for Soup baby #2. It literally makes my heart sing. And when I can feel my heart being lifted in gladness and happiness, I just *know* then, that this baby must be meant to be.

And, on the flip side, if the results are not as we desire, then I can only hope that the prayers of the people praying ofr us now will give us the strength and courage to pick ourselves up and get ready for another go-round, as we aren't done fighting the fight for a sibling for Keifer. She loves babies TOO much for me to give up on giving her a sibling! (or two, wouldn't that be a kick!).

A big thank you to you all. We appreciate all the wishes more than you know. We'll be transferring the embryo (ies?) at 10:30 CST tomorrow. Hopefully I'll be more relaxed than I am now.

Now I"m off to curl up with Breaking Dawn, as I got it off of hold at the library, and I'm going to try to focus on something other than tomorrow morning.

Doing what she does best: pushing our buttons!

Yeah, our little, um, STINKER, yeah, that's the safe way to put it, is pushing CJ and I to our limits these days. Her favorite thing to do is climb up on things and stand up, then turn around and SMIRK at us with that poop-eating grin. Ahh, Keifer. What is the future going to hold with you and your smarts? And notice her love continues for the South Beach Diet book. We're not sure WHY she loves this darn book so much, but she loves to flip through it and study it closely. She's got years ahead of her before she has to worry about her weight! LOL
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You are my shining star

Our girl loves this puppy that sings when she pushes the button. Disregard mama's awful singing voice. K is trying really hard to sing with everything now, including the radio. It's so sweet. You can somewhat hear her saying "shining star" in her garbled way when she passes the table here. Last week on our way to Baby Ballroom, sitting with Nana Di in the back seat, our girl sang most of the song "Twinkle Little Star" to us! Seriously! It's somewhat garbled, but she can hit every other word pretty clearly! It nearly made me choke up. Of course, I think she's a genius for being able to do this! Seventeen months old and singing!! Whoa, are we headed for America Idol someday?
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5 day transfer: here we come!!!

Just checked my medvoice mail system: they told me to check after 2PM, but silly me, I can't wait.
I received instructions for our 5 day transfer!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG! The embies must be pretty good! Please continue your prayers! I'm beyond excited right now!! Will post more later, but all I know is that things are feeling good for me!!

Anyone know the odds of BFPs with 5 day transfers vs. 3 day transfers?

BUT: what is going on with our IVF cycle? (UPDATED AS WE GO)

I know, I know: you're here to find out the status of our cycle.
I'll chart it out for you, and in hopes that you understand it. If not, email me with any questions, and please, if you have a spare moment, could you say a little prayer for us? Thank you.

August 6 - take a break off Birth Control Pills (DONE)

August 13 - restart pills (DONE)

take last pill September 3 - I should bleed/spot after this. (LAST PILL TAKEN!)

August 26 - start subcutaneous Lupron shots daily in the AM

at a certain dosage (to shut my ovaries down, to prevent them from ovulating) (STARTED!)

September 9 - reduce Lupron dosage. I also will start taking Estrace (estrogen) orally 3 x a day (I did my mock cycle and found out I need this 3x a day versus 2 to get my lining to where it needs to be for embryo transfer).

CJ and I will both start antibiotics on this day as well. (STARTED!!!)

I stay on all these meds until....

September 17 - lining check (ultrasound)

We'll find out more at my lining check and most likely start in with the progesterone (that big ol' thick needle) in my butt on a daily basis as well (*sarcasm here: "oh, joy").

Ultrasound COMPLETE! My lining is around a 7.2 and things are going the way they should. I rec'ed my instructions handout on when to expect all our meds to change, etc., and next Wednesday (the 24th) is the estimated ER! Keep your prayers coming! We appreciate them!

And, through all of this, there is another woman somewhere out there who is also starting HER meds cycle protocol, all because she is an angel on earth who is doing this to help us - and she doesn't even know us. Please say a prayer for her, too? Please pray for a healthy cycle for her, and some nice quality eggies!

Egg Retrieval was scheduled for this AM. CJ visited and left some swimmers with them. I called to see how many eggs were retrieved,but our clinic won't tell me *booo, hissss*. My nerves are shot. My stomach is literally in a knot and I feel like throwing up. I hate not knowing. The nurse told me that the embryologist will go over our information of eggs, etc., when we have our transfer, either Sunday or Tuesday. So now we wait until Saturday to find out what our next step is. AHHHH! And....I start my progesterone shots in my butt tonight. Ahh, can it get any more fun? LOL

Round 2: Egg Retrieval: TODAY!

I'm on pins and needles this AM, as if I was having my own eggs taken today. Please pray for our anonymous egg angel; that all goes smoothly and safely and she has some wonderful eggs that want to get along with CJ's swimmers. He left awhile ago: his appointment was t 6:40 AM. Oye, that 's an early deposit time, but he can do it.
Here's a recap of the egg retrieval that we did with our first egg angel, Mooshie. Ahh, memories. It almost makes me tear up.
We'll make the call on Saturday to find out what the rest of our plans are. Will we do a 3day transfer or a 5day transfer? Will I be able to remain calm until then? This not knowing business is VERY difficult for me; typically I'm the planner extraordinaire.

The RE office called: ER is set for Thursday!

My heart! My heart! Our anonymous egg donor's egg retrieval is set for Thursday: CJ has to be at the clinic at 6:40 AM. Oye, hope he is able do to his job that early in the morning! Hee hee. We're to call our medvoice hotline on Saturday to check and see if we'll be doing a day 3 transfer *(Sunday)* or a day 5 transfer *(Tuesday)*. I'm thinking most likely it'll be a day 3, as our clinic is tacking on enormous charges just to do a day 5 transfer (as if we aren't already paying enough to them).

Ugg, I am so beyond thrilled and rile up. I have Reiki after work, so hopefully that will be helpful in calming me down for what's to come very soon. I need to start visualizing the sticky, fluffy lining that is going to be home to another baby! Hoping and praying!

Heart beat status: rapid

My heart has been hammering out of it's chest the past few days. This is THE WEEK. The week that our anonymous donor is supposed to have her eggs retrieved and I am supposed to be a waiting vessel; waiting for the embryos that are created with her eggs and my CJ's swimmers. My heartbeat has sped up this week. I've been snappy and on edge for no reason. I have my cramps in my ovarian area, headaches that don't quit, and my back is starting to ache from hauling around my 30 pound Elmo-lover.
I had a dream last night that our donor had 20 eggs retrieved.
CALL, clinic! CALL, dammit!! I need to know what is going on! AHHHHH!

We have a monster addiction in our house

Elmo. The big, red, furry Sesame Street monster with that annoying high-pitched giggle is the best thing in the world to Keifer right now. She loves her Elmo. She loves him so much, that the first thing she'll say to us in the AM these days is "Elmo?". She's referring to the few episodes of Sesame Street that we have DVRed for her. It used to be, she'd watch much of the episode and get excited when she saw Elmo appear. Now, she'll point at the remote up high on the counter, and bark orders at us: "Elmo! Elmo!". She does not like watching any other parts of the episodes; oh no. We must fast forward until we get to her red furry crush. Then she'll visibly relax, smile broadly and start giggling herself. We've created a MONSTER! An Elmo Monster! *snicker*
Luckily, we've discovered this love of watching all things red and furry: when we go on our Christmas holiday this year, we now know what will be keeping our little girl occupied on our long plane ride to Mexico: Elmo videos! *whew*

DA*M Amazon: no shoes for me

Damn Amazon. I just received an email stating that the shoes I was raving about the other day that were on sale, well, they are no longer able to provide them .What the heck? I was so excited about our score and the cute new shoes K was going to have in a few months. *sigh*. Don't offer something you can't provide! Poo!

We popped our ER cherry: Poor K

Sassy Sager got me up around 4AM today to go outside to do her business. As I was coming back into the house, I heard K start to cry and it didn't sound like her usual half asleep cry that she has sometimes. I went into her room, and could hear that she seemed to have trouble catching/getting her breath. I sat her up in the rocking chair against me, and as she cried, she obviously was laboring for breath. I woke up CJ and we quickly dressed and packed up to head to the Emergency Room.

When we arrived, we were ushered in to a room with the triage nurse. She had us lift K's shirt as she monitored her oxygen levels with a thumb monitor. Her oxygen intake was 97%. She then pointed out that a spot below K's ribcage was going in and out very quickly in her attempts to breathe. She said these were called retractions. It was scary, but apparently K was able to get oxygen. The nurse also had to take our girl's temp rectally, which always bothers me than it does K, and she had a slight fever.

We were then shown to a room in the main ER, and a young *handsome, sorry CJ*, Doctor came in to check out K, and had a nebulizer started on her. Keifer didn't like this, and fought like a dickens, as me and CJ held her arms, legs, and head down. Afterwards, it seemed a bit easier for her to breathe.

Then, we had to wait. Wait until we were able to get chest Xrays, which K did beautifully in her posing with CJ helping. The chest Xrays appeared to be OK. The doctor concluded that it was something to do with "maybe" the allergies in the air (it's been awful right now in MN), and maybe just some fluids going into her lungs. Either way, he gave us prescriptions for an antibiotic, a steroid (Prednisone), and we got to take a brand new Nebulizer machine home.

Overall, we spent 2 hours in the ER, but things moved along smoothly, and K did a wonderful job, considering she was tired and sick. Thank goodness CJ just got his beloved new Iphone last weekend, and he had JUST uploaded a classic Sesame Street DVD onto it. K and I spent some time reclining on the bed in our room, watching Big Bird and Snuffy teach us about letters.

This afternoon, we nebbed her again, and she did beautifully: it's amazing what Elmo singing and dancing can do in a time of need for parents!

Yay! More ballroom dancing to come....

The teacher of K's Baby Ballroom class has reorganized her schedule and switched Baby Ballroom Two back to Monday nights, so K and I are all signed up and ready to start next week! YAY! I know Keifer is going to be over-the-moon happy when we get there! I hope Mama is able to stay awake after teaching all day, killing time until 6PM , and then dancing with our girl til 7. It's going to make for a long day for both of us, but I know we're both going to enjoy it again so very much.

Owie!

Keifer is not a fan of facial hair on men. She has always been very curious about men with beards or facial hair, including her Uncle Darren. He has always had a goatee for as long as I can remember. Lately, she hasn't wanted to come near Uncle Darren when we've visited, for fear of his facial hair (that's what I figure).

Last week, K was cuddling her daddy, when she reached out and touched his stubble on his unshaven jaw, and she said "ow". We laughed and agreed: "ow".
Then: last night, I was playing with K on the ground, and as we were rolling around, she touched my unshaven legs, with the slight stubble, and out of nowhere, she said "ow", and looked at me as if to ask "what the heck, mama?" Geesh, I guess I better continue shaving every day, for fear of the 17 month old!

More milestones: 17 1/2 months

Keifer is now saying "please" at the table when we're eating; it's so very sweet to hear. It sounds more like "piece" in all reality, but she's trying. She also says "Amen" at the end of her Thank You Prayer" book that we read every night as we tuck her into her crib (sans bottle (baa)) YAY!. She also says "excuse me" when trying to get by us or the dogs, although we're probably the only ones that can translate her language, and she often tells us "bless you" in her own language when we sneeze. I love that she's learning manners.

K has been a dickens lately at Elaine's: biting the top off of a marker, and getting the marks all over her body, clothes, the floor, her shoes, and her pal, Alex. Elaine has had to remind her many times to stop her whining and use her inside voice, which we also have been working on. Our girl loves to test the limits with her screeching, and sometimes when I'm driving with her in the backseat, she'll start screaming and then stop and smile when I look back at her. Of course, I tell her that hurts my ears, it's too loud, and I model quiet or whispering voices to her, while reminding her to use an "inside voice". However, this morning while I was showering, I wondered suddenly, does she really know what "inside" means? Hmmm. I know she knows "outside" - she begs to go outside on the deck on a nightly basis. I think we're going to have to start narrating "we go INSIDE the house now", to let her know her concepts of places.

I think that K is too smart for her own good, and all her whining and fussing is because she is just so damn curious about how things work and she so desperately wants to be independent, so of course she doesn't want us ruining her fun. I can imagine this age is a hard one to be: your little brain is working overtime learning new things, and suddenly you have all these big people putting restrictions on your fun!

Another past time of K's lately is climbing up our stairs at home to the second or third stair, and then turning around to smirk at us. We remind her to sit down or hold on to the railing and mommy or daddy with her other hand, but we get a lot of resistance with this activity. I just have visions of her tumbling down the stairs and cracking her head or breaking her neck. *sigh*.

Brushing teeth has been getting better. For some reason, our girl will let her daddy brush her teeth to no end, but mama has to struggle with her to get all her teeth. Is this as sign of our relationship to come? LOL.

K has also been much better about using her fork and spoon while eating. She is so obviously proud of herself when she's successful in spearing a piece of meat or veggies. We often tell her "good girl", so now she'll beam like the sun when she's got the food inside her mouth and then say "good girl" about herself. She hears us tell Sager that sometimes, so she is now familiar enough with the phrase to say it herself. Come to think of it, K has been more and more like a parrot these days. We have to start monitoring our language (giggle). I've caught myself slipping a swear word in here or there, and then hoping our girl hadn't heard me. Mama needs to watch out!

Dancing Queen

Mooshie had me peeing in my pants after she left me a comment on my dropshots account. She said Keifer's gonna be an evangelical preacher someday!Keep that thought in mind as you watch the end of this video: seriously, pee. I was peeing.
I love that Mooshie.
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Wordless Wednesday: Just me and my shadow

Ultrasound update: things are on their way

I was on the road at 6:30 AM this AM, driving up to our clinic, cracking open a Coke Classic, something I hate doing, but needed to (as we were up late watching Dexter: Season 2). My lining is at about a 7.2 or so, and Courtney told me that things are looking good, they are "on their way" to being what we want. I asked if things were "layering up nicely", like I was told back in July 2006 for my first IVF, and she said "yes".

I received my instruction sheet on our dates and instructions on how to proceed with the anonymous donor and it's all becoming really REAL at this point! AHH! One week from today is the estimated Egg Retrieval (ER). It doesn't seem real!

On my way to work, I stopped and treated myself(well, CJ treated me, HA, thanks love bug) to my Chai Tea Latte, Soy milk, and then popped into Elaine's to say hello and good morning to my angel girl. She was sleeping when I left this AM, and my heart was already hurting at the thought of not seeing her all day without saying good morning. She was eating her banana and toasted bagel and smiled at me, but was more interested in the kids around her. Man,I love that girl. Let's hope and pray that we are successful in making another soup baby for her to love on.

Ultrasound tomorrow!

Ultrasound tomorrow at 7 AM sharp- *gulp*- you guys, I'm getting SO nervous! Ahhhhh! Please calm me down- send some good vibes, please? Thanks!

Shoes on sale!

My friend Wieb just HAD to alert me that See Kai Run shoes are on sale dirt cheap on Amazon right now. Oye. I just HAD to purchase this green pair for K , but I bought it in a size 9, in hopes of her wearing them next year. She has enough shoes right now and her foot is growing SO damn fast, I just hope she can get some wear out of the two pair of size 6 she currently has! If you like shoes, they have some darn cute ones! And the leather is soooooo supple and soft....and the sole is approved for tiny feet of new walkers.

Infertility doesn't make sense to a 7 year old

Friday night, we babysat our niece and nephew overnight, while Uncle and Auntie had a wedding. It was so much fun. Abby is turning into an even more beautiful and smart 7 year old. Friday night, I mentioned something to CJ about my shots of Lupron in the upcoming morning. Abby overheard, and when she heard "shots" she immediately perked up and said shots? Auntie, are you trying to have another baby?. She ran and gave me a hug and was visibly so excited for us.

Saturday morning, she requested that she watch Uncle give me my Lupron shot. Yes, CJ gives me the shots, because the feeling of giving myself the shot, well, it makes me very queasy. Eww. Cannot even think about this right now. Anyhoo.....Abby remembered a few years ago when Uncle had to give me shots, because a few times, we had to do the progesterone shots in my butt at their house, and she loved watching. Nothing like having an audience of children as you get your ass shot up with a 10 inch needle. Ha. Anyhoo. The kids watched Saturday AM as Uncle (CJ) quickly shot the Lupron in me, and that was that. Abby remained quiet for a few minutes, and then, as she sat on the stairs where Keifer so loves to pose, she asked me, Auntie, do all girls have to have babies?
I answered her: no, honey, not all girls have to have babies, that's a choice you get to make when you're older.
Good, because I don't ever want to have shots to have a baby, I don't like shots.

Of course, I quickly corrected her. I reminded her that Auntie has eggs that didn't want to work the right way, so to help her get a baby, Auntie had to get shots. And, did Abby remember Auntie Mooshie, whom she had met that summer we conceived Keifer, and did she remember how Auntie Mooshie helped us get a baby in my tummy? She did, and she remembered the book I had shared with her. I explained as gently as I could that there was another nice lady out there who was sharing HER Eggs with us this time, so we could try to have another cousin for her to play with. She seemed to understand this. I also reassured her that most likely, she won't have to do shots to have babies if she wants them someday

As I write this, the emotion of her saying this, so vehemently and honest and true, it hits my heart like a ton of bricks. In her mind, her beautiful, intelligent maturing mind, to her: because her Auntie has to get shots to have a baby, then all women must have to get shots to have babies. The look of confusion and fear (of the shots!) was plain as day on her face, and you could see the wheels were turning in her mind as she contemplated the idea of taking injections in order to "make" a baby. It makes me cry typing this out, and my heart is crumbling into small pieces that Abby thinks this way that is the norm. But I suppose, to a 7 year old who doesn't quite "get" the birds and the bees yet, this must be how you achieve a pregnancy?

Later, as I thought about this, I reflected on what I had told her. Whose to say she won't need any assistance when getting PG if she wants to someday? It's not like I ever thought I would need help achieving a pregnancy to make the family I so desired my whole life. Whose to say that she might not have issues with her fertility? I pray to God that she doesn't have any problems, because I wouldn't wish the pain and heartbreak of this journey we've had on anyone.

Introducing the latest addition to the Soupy family:

Meet DEXTER!! He's a 9 or 10 week old rescued mutt..............and he is NOT ours!! He is Corey and Jill and Abby and Mason's new puppy!

Friday night, CJ and I babysat the cousins, which sent Keifer into hog heaven. She loves Abby more than life itself, I think, and having Abby here was wonderful. Mason could take her or leave her. LOL. Abby was a great help, and the cousins did fine staying at our house overnight. Saturday AM, Corey and Jill went to pick the puppy up and surprised the kids at our house with him.

He is a DOLL! A tiny little ball or fur. His body underneath literally is almost as small as a squirrel (maybe?) and he's light as a feather. He was a bit nervous, but did great. Keifer was ecstatic to meet him, and chased him around, saying "puppy, puppy!" about a 100 million times. Treble was scared poopless that we were keeping him and visibly relieved when he left. Sager wanted to get him revved up but he got a bit spooked. Thanksgiving should be interesting this year at Nana Marge and Papa Jim's with 3 dogs and 3 kids!

Initially Dexter's name was going to be Baxter (Anchorman, anyone?), but Abby kept mistakenly calling him Dexter. So Dex it is: Dexter Baxter Sparky. The Sparky is Mason's add-on. Keifer and I visited them tonight and we loved on him some more. I hope Sage and Tboy don't get mad at me for sharing my love. He totally gave me puppy fever, but I'm hoping to channel that desire into another baby. Please?

Jilly is an excited new puppy mommy
K was in love immediately
trying to give kisses
our sweet angel girl, posing as usual
hugging her big cousin, with so much love

cousins: the line-up

OWIE!! Bite me

K has started biting herself. Last week, she was chomping on her fist while in the back seat and eventually she learned how to gag herself. I did not want that to become a habit, so I was very firm and loud with my "no" to her, loud enough to make her cry. So far, she hasn't done the gagging anymore *knock on wood* I know it's a common thing for toddlers to do because it is such an intense reaction. Ewww. Yesterday, we were at the grosh (grocery store) waiting to check out and she started chomping on her own forearm. Ouch. I am talking BIG ol' bite marks: in the perfect shape of her mouth. Two of them as plain as day on her arm. Nice. She looks like she was attacked by another child her age. Then she would hold her arm out to me, whine and say "owwww". Crazy kid.

K also likes to drink her milk or water and then let it run out over her chin, onto her chest and clothes. Me: I'm not digging that so much. We take the cup away right away. Oye.

Night #1 of going to bed with NO BAA (bottle) and it was a success. No crying! YAHOO! I found the tip in a book about weaning her baa every night: start with 8 ounces, and eventually fill it only to 2 ounces on the last night. Then, no more baa. Every night we've done this, and we've showed her her 4 different Nuks that she has to choose from to chomp on, suck on, whatever she wants, just to self-soother herself. She has never been a thumbsucker or a Nuk sucker, but she has caught on to the Nuk now instead of her beloved "baa baa" (imagine that "baa" in a heartsick little toddler voice, crying to you). Ouch, it hurt, but she's done now! Cross your fingers we have said goodbye to the baa once and for all. When I was backing out of the room tonight, she requested "baa?" again, and I said "bye bye, baa" and that seemed to satisfy her. So far, no peeps, and I think we should be OK from now on. Whew. We made it to our 18 month appointment next month Baa-free! LOL.

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First day of school...and Fall is in the air!

Our girl is 17 months old,as of Wednesday, and is loving the cooler weather just as much as Mama and Daddy. She got a new hat from Nana Di last weekend, and seems to love wearing it! Isn't it cute?

Here she is telling me to stop with the camera: enough! (see, she does get cranky, too!)
CJ and I started an Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) Drop-In class with our girl on Wednesday evening, from 6:00-7:30. She loved it. She especially loved the sensory table and pushing different types of "push" toys around the big gym. Our girl is definitely a toddler: she made sure whatever she had touched was off limits to everybody else!

Here she posed with mama upon request: I asked her if she was ready for school, and she said "cool" (school), and then said "Cheese" so we could take the picture. She is obviously used to the camera (ha ha).

Where did our baby girl go? She's so big *(sniff)*
K enjoys watching mama get ready for work in the AM, and loves to sit "up, up" on the toilet. Can you tell she's a hambone?

And as mentioned previously, she loves to brush with her Elmo Toothbrush (although mama helping does not go over well)
Here, our girl sat on her favorite bottom step, and looked right at CJ and said "Cheese!". He said, "oh, you want your picture taken?", so got out the camera. Is she going to be a model someday?
I call this "monkey girl reading" because she uses her feet so often to help prop up books. LOL.
And, after a hard day, and relaxing on the couch with a good book, there's nothing as satisfying as biting it with your sore teething gums!

It's a good thing she entertains herself!

Here's our wild and crazy girl the other night- just doing what she does best: being a ham!
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And the winner is...Presley!

Yes, I've been watching the show on CBS for 11 weeks, The Greatest American Dog. Cheesy? Well, a bit, but as a dog fanatic, I've been enjoying it (and so has Keifer: "puppy!"). Last night was the big finale, and Travis and his Boxer, Presley, took home the winning money and trophy. I'll admit, I had tears in my eyes (drugs or no drugs, I'm a sucker for anything with dogs and people who love 'em). Presley was truly a gorgeous and intelligent dog and it was fun to watch him compete. I enjoyed all the pup pups on the show, and whenever I watched it, I made sure I had my Tboy curled up next to me, so I could give him all the love that I was feeling inside.

Ugg, my aching head

The past 2 days and nights, I've had the most intense headaches. The kind that make it hard to concentrate, but they are not yet a migraine (which I also get on occasion). Damn meds. Damn Estrogen. Ahh, but I hope it'll all be worth it. *sigh*

Wordless Wednesday: I love little toes

Here we go again.....pills are a-poppin'

I'm popping pills again. More pills. Pills in the form of ESTROGEN to build my lining up nice and thick for future Soup babies to implant (hee hee), and antibiotics. CJ gets to join me (again) and take his own antibiotics as well. We have to make sure his swimmers aren't infected with any illnesses when they are introduced to our anonymous donor's eggies. We also reduced the amount of Lupron we're jabbing into my stomach in the AM; we're down to .05 units and it doesn't faze me any more. (HA). I hate shots. Hate them. I am NOT looking forward to starting the Progesterone shots again in the butt. The needles are thick and about 10 inches long, I swear. Owie.

Pray for a good lining. I have my ultrasound on Wednesday, the 17th at 7AM to make sure we're where we want to be, and I'll get more info then. So stay tuned.

In other IVF prepping news, I just sat down this AM and set up some pre-ET (embryo transfer) Reiki, chiropractic, and acupuncture appointments, as well as post-ET Reiki sessions. We have to make sure my body is all aligned and the energy is positively flowing throughout all the proper channels.

Yes, my heart is fluttering in it's chest just typing this out.

End of summer field trips

I know I've been absolutely awful with my blogging lately, and especially with publishing pictures of our angel girl - I know her fans are disappointed in me. Fret no more, people, here is your Princess in all her glory. Mama has been a very busy mama at work and at home now, so blogging has taken a back seat, although know that I've had many posts written in my head to update you all.

CJ and I spent our last day of my vacation at the MN Children's Museum: here is our Princess sitting on top of a flower.

And here she is learning how to interact in public with water tables and bubbles: she looks such a BIG girl here, yet still tiny Bubbles, bubbles, bubbles
Up in Duluth, sitting on the fireplace at Nana & Papa's with cousin Aubrie, one of her greatest admirers! What's crazy to me is that Keifer is half Aubrie's age, yet is almost as big as her!

So proud of her monkey climbing skills Posing for the first time with more cousins, Destiny and MacKinzee!
Uncle Danny's new puppy, Jay - um, yeah, mama wants to take him home: he's a Yorkie pup, and mama had a Yorke for 15 years, so it was pulling on some heartstrings..... K was a bit flabbergasted at Jay's energy levels! LOL
Posing with Papa & Nana in Duluth's infamous Canal Park. It's amazing how I grew up here without a second thought as to how beautiful it is down in the Canal, and now, I've become very proud of having grown up on the tip of this gorgeous Lake Superior, and love to share it's beauty with others
Our girl was beyond excited on the rock beach: rocks are another passion Dipping our toes in frigid Lake Superior
K decided she wanted to splash, splash, splash in the Lake..... ...and didn't care how cold it was! A man actually came up and requested to take her picture sitting in the Lake to prove to his wife that people actually DO swim in the frigid waters! LOL. K was LIVID with us when we took her out.
Can you spy Papa & Nana walking the boardwalk with Duluth's skyline up ahead?
Tuckered out after a fun day of rocks and swimming, on our way back to see Daddy

16 months going on 12 years

Keifer is riot lately. She's been pushing CJ and I's buttons like a mad woman. She is becoming so independent and sassy with her chatter and I swear the terrible 2's have begun already. It's insane how fast she is growing, each and every day. I 've made myself a list of things to blog about because everyday I marvel at the fact that she is a GENIUS and I'm in awe that she came out of me!! LOL.

I'm just going to list things in random order, because to sit and talk about them would go on forever. Yes, I've said it before, but I've become "that mom" who gushes about their kid 24/7, and it literally kills me to go places without her little body in my backseat.
Lately, K will:

• follow one-step directions, sometimes 2-step. Example, "Keifer, pick up your keys (there) and bring them to Papa".
• Plays like a fiend with every type of car/truck/digger imaginable. She loves cars. She loves cars in books, cars on the road, and diggers/semi-trucks that are doing construction near our house. She will make the "vroom" sounds with her blubbery lips, and pushes them appropriately. Her cousin Mason gave her some little matchbox cars, and now when we get home, they are the first thing she gets out to play with. Crazy.
• Daddy taught her what "geese' are the other day, and now when she hears them honking outside our house or sees them flying overhead, she'll automatically say "seese, seese!". I don't know who is prouder, mama and daddy or Keifer Lynn!
• She has a new stroller that she loves to push around the house. She has her routine pattern of where she pushes it, and Treble usually gets the brunt end of K's pushing. Poor guy, he puts up with a lot. But, do not assume that because she is pushing her stroller a doll baby or animal goes in the seat. Oh, no! The stroller remains empty (for now!).
• K is now sitting in a booster seat at daycare at Elaine's house. Again, she is one proud as punch girl about this. Despite the fact that she tosses most of her food and still isn't able to eat off plates for fear of dumping the food, she is doing pretty well. *(sigh on the plates and utensils not working out yet)*
• K now knows how to turn many of her toys off and on. Interesting, very interesting. The other day she was intently studying me turning the radio stations by pushing the buttons on the dash. It's not too far off that she'll be trying this herself. We already know TV remotes are a favorite of hers.
• K loves keys. Papa Dale gave her a new keyring of every type and size of key chains and keys made. She loves them, her "eys!".
• K loves the book The Owl and the Pussycat, not for the story. It's one of her 'car books', that she only sees in the car when mama drives. She loves this book illustrated by Jan Brett because of the pictures, of the fish and the turtles! Oh, so pretty.
• K enjoys her Little People zoo and lately, her favorite is the kangaroo "hop hop hop". She also will pretend to whistle when the bird sings. Funny, because neither CJ nor I can remember pretending to whistle to the bird's song.
• When you talk to Keifer, she will nod back at you. You can ask her a question, and she'll nod "yes" be it "are you hungry" or "do you want to move to Alaska?". She loves to nod. LOL.
• She loves to eat and say "soup" and she has recently started saying "apple" and "later" clear as a bell. It makes my heart tingle when she says these last two words in her sweet little, clear voice; the voice that isn't a baby voice anymore, it's now a "big girl" voice, and it makes me want to cry. Next week she's going to be 17 months, and pretty soon, the 2 year birthday will be looming, and I don't know how I"m going to react to that. Oye.

Mini-vacation for CJ & I: booked!

In mid-October, I'll have 2 days off for Minnesota's education seminars, and this year, CJ and I have decided to go away for a night/2 days for mini-vacation. We haven't gone away together since, well, April to Mexico, and although it was not that long ago, I crave my time with main man, CJ. The timing is perfect, too: I'll either have found out I'm Pregnant due to IVF with donor eggs, or I'll have found out I'm NOT pregnant. Either way, it will be much needed for CJ and I to connect.

I'm really excited because we'll be traveling to the St. James Hotel in Red Wing, which is a beautiful small city in southern Minnesota, full of many outdoor activities and kitschy little shops. It sits right on the Mississippi River, and when I booked our room, I nabbed us the one room in our price range that has the river view. This time of year in Minnesota is especially beautiful, as the leaves on all the trees will be changing colors, and it's a breathtaking view on our drive South. YAY for a fun time in October to look forward to.

Wordless Wednesday: Go, Go, Go in Duluth's Canal Park

We played tourist on Sunday with Papa & Nana in Duluth's Canal Park with Keifer. She loved it.