Starting Stims

I did my first stimulation shots this morning. We had a swim meet this morning so we had to do it while there. I think this kept me from freaking out a little more than I would have at home. :) My good friend helped me mix the medication and gave me moral support to do my first shot myself. Up to this point, Chris has been giving me the Lupron shots at night. Due to timing and the fact that I will be heading to Denver myself, I have to get used to giving myself the shots. It wasn't too bad.

I am worried that the dose that they are starting me on is too low. We want to be aggressive as this is our last IVF. However, I know there is something to be said about QUALITY eggs over quantity. I am trying to have faith. We haven't talked with the RE about this, but the nurse conveyed my conerns to him and she explained that he wants to start slow due to the risk of hyperstimulation due to my PCOS. He is out of the office until I get to Denver, so I am hoping to get an appt with him that day. Hopefully it won't be too late. I am torn between trusting the RE and knowing my body.

So the dose for the next several days is the same..... 2 units of Menopur in the morning, 150 iu Gonal F & 5 units of Lupron at night. I am also still on the Dexamethasone. I have not been on that before and need to get more information about what that is for.

On another note, we went to a wedding for a friend and coworker last night. It included a traditional Korean tea ceremony. We enjoyed spending the time with Chris' best friend and his wife. We got into a laughing fit during the speeches and just couldn't stop. I was sad that I couldn't enjoy a glass of wine in celebration. But it will all be worth it.... it will all be worth it.... :)

Here we are at the wedding:

On yet another note, I have now been curly girl for several months. I couldn't be happier! My hair is healtier and my curls look good most of the time. I think I have found a product routine that is working for me. Chris just laughs when people ask me about my hair and tells them about the product that lines my shower.

Now I need to get some grad school work done and start thinking about lesson plans for the coming two weeks. Trying hard NOT to get overwhelmed.....

Summer Fun!

Thanks to the construction at my school, I have a few extra weeks of summer this year. I am trying hard to enjoy every last stolen moment.  We've been busy the past few weeks trying to do as much as we can before the hectic school year starts.

This weekend we had four parties to attend.  Each one was important to us, so we made it work.  We started Saturday at Chris' godson's birthday party.  We knew it was being held at a bowling alley in the city, so we plugged the address into the gps and off we went.  Boy were we surprised to discover that the party was in the basement of a church!  It seems that the church has a bowling alley in their basement.  Can't say I have seen that before!  I didn't get any photos of the actual bowling, but here is the bulletin board outside the alley:

 

Love the title on the board!  :)  We don't get to see Gregory or his mom very often since they live in the city.  Chris and Kathie worked together at Leaning Tower YMCA many years ago.  We spent lots of time in the city back then with Kathie and other friends from the Y.  We also became close friends with Anita who served as a mentor to Chris when he first started working at the Y.  She has since moved back home to Ohio, and sadly we only see her once or twice a year.  It was nice to spend some time catching up with her during the party.  She is Greg's godmother and always comes in for his party.  Here are the two of them with the birthday boy:

 

Our next party was for our good friends' boy's birthday.  We have known Louis since high school and he was the best man at our wedding.  He and his wife have been our close friends for many years.  They have two boys who simply adore Chris since he is just a big kid himself!  At one point during the party, I wasn't sure where he was.  Someone quickly pointed out that he was on the trampoline bouncing with the kids.  They all sat and waited for him to bounce them up.  I blurred out the kids, since many of them are just friends of the boys and I was not comfortable posting pictures, but I wanted to share Chris in his "element"

Our last party of the night was with some friends from work.  I don't have any photos, but I am hoping to get some from a friend.  There was a bouncy house at the party, and let's just say that I somehow ended up bouncing with Ella in the bounce house.  Ella is Steve and Sarah's little girl.  She somehow even convinced me to go down the slide.  It was fun!  One of Chris' coaches was actually at the party as well since she is going to grad school with Steve.  Small world for sure!  It was nice to hang out with my coworkers and catch up from the summer.  We still have two weeks until we start school so we are all still very relaxed!

On a final note, I have officially been "Curly Girl" for two weeks now.  I had more compliments on my hair yesterday than I have ever had.  My hair is much more curly now and seems to be loving my new low chemical routine.  Here is a photo at the END of the day.  Now remember, at this point I had been to three parties and even spent time in a bounce house!  :)

 

I am set to get a color on Wednesday and now I am debating.  Not sure if I want to add chemicals to the mix right now.  My color actually still looks pretty good.  I haven't decided just yet. 

Swim team party this afternoon.  Sadly it is supposed to be cool again and the kids are supposed to get time in the pool playing on the slides that they never get to play on during practice.  I am sure the kids will still get in, but it is going to be CHILLY!  Many of the kids start school tomorrow as well, so I am sure there won't be too many that stay until the end.  Hope to get some good photos today for sure.

Have a great day!

I'm obsessed ...

I have become 110% obsessed with my hair. With all of the things going on in my life, why am I so very obsessed with my hair? Who knows. Maybe it is the fact that it is unruly and wild and I am determined to find a way to tame it. Maybe it is a metaphor for my life. Ok, not really going that deep!

So I have now been sulfate/silicone free for 3 days.... three days that have been humid and hot. Nice time to start a new hair routine, huh? And I have to be honest, I miss my beloved Curl Amplifier. I miss it BAD. But I am dealing, and I know I will find something just as good that is much more healthy for my hair. I have to find something. And cutting my hair short right before undergoing this change, that was brilliant. I am not loving the cut right now. My curls are changing with the new routine and cut all at once. I am thankful that I scheduled a hair appointment to color at the end of the month. Might need to get the cut tweaked a little bit.

Since decided to go Curly Girl, I have purchased more products than I care to admit! I am trying different combinations as I go. Here is what I am trying now:

• Giovanni Triple Tea Treat Shampoo (low poo, no sulfate)
• Giovanni Triple Tea Treat Conditioner (Using as a co-wash right now to help with scalp)
• L'Oreal Vive Pro Nutri Gloss Conditioner (silicone free conditioner)
• Deva Curls Line: No Poo, One Conditioner, AnGel, Set it Free (love the scent of this!)
• BioSilk Rock Hard Gelee (loving this gel for hold right now)
• Aubrey Organics Conditioner
• Flaxseed Gel

I even tried making my own gel from flax seeds. Need to keep working on that I think. It was rather messy. I haven't tried the batch I made in my hair yet.

Still dealing with lots of frizz by afternoon. I have also stopped using a towel to dry my hair and am using one of Chris' old T-shirts now. I am trying to "clip" the top of my hair in the hopes that it won't be flat on top. The hardest part for me is NOT to touch my hair after I have styled it!

Ok, I need to write a paper now... but thought I would post something here about this new obsession!