The Sisterhood of the Blue Stilettos

[meg12]

Isn't it weird how we go through lulls where no one feels like posting! You know, they say women who are around each other alot menstrate at the same time (stick with me here, I do have a point) so maybe we've just been chatting together so long we all have the same "don't want to talk" cycles! Or maybe everyone else is just busy and I'm the only grump in the bunch!

Nothing new here. Have a drs appt Friday which should be fairly routine--just getting weighed (my favorite part I assure you!) blood pressure taken and that's about it. I'm getting fat and it's sooooo hot here--like over 100 degrees with heat index. Blah. What I wouldn't give for some of your t-storm, Jenn!

[sassynlv]

Hi ladies. Sorry I have been MIA, but just kind of needed a break, I guess. more about that below....

Mego: How was MD appt today? I am also thinking that being VERY pregnant in the summer here in Vegas would be miserable. I hear the heat is much harder to handle. I'm hoping the scale was nice to you today. What is this 10 days in a row working schedule thing???

Jenn: I'm hoping you get the spring back in your step soon. So does that mean you have NEVER been camping? Wow. I grew up camping during the summers, so I am always fascinated when people have never been before.

Patie: enjoy your trip! We saw Transformers a few weeks ago (for nephews bday). It was quite entertaining.

Mel: hope your conference went well and you got some play time in there somewhere. Nice to have a break from the Bellini-alarm, huh? How did dh do with her?

Angie: Holy cow! They drained your blood! Glad to hear they are doing all the testing. As for the herbs. Good on ya' for choking that down every night. I've got this green powdery stuff that is just a basic supplement Hippie Chick wants me taking and it is horrid... but at least I get to mix mine in juice... btw... if you don't mind sharing... what areas in the US will you be visiting? That book is great, btw. I have been reading it slowly, I just got to the mindfulness part.

Amy: hoping the mountains were fab. Were you campin' it or cabin'ing it? How is the shooting up going?

Fee: falling off the bed, huh? Clearly secretary has some issues. Ah, but then again, don't we all *sigh*. Glad to hear this story will continue to supply us with drama. As for bil... he actually took a low-paying "sobriety" job, and the courts are drug testing him 3 times a week. We'll see what happens... no breath holding going on here.

So, Sassy is totally zen. Yep, I know, hard to believe. So zen that I don't have anything snarkey to say. I think it is the 5 times a week yoga that has ruined me . Everything just has seemed to fall into place and I feel really good about things. Did I tell you guys that I made an adoption consultation appt? Yep, we go in a few days after I start stims. I just wanted to get the paperwork and get an idea of the process and timeline. Even if IVF does work, we may adopt in addition so that we have 2-3 kids. It just makes me feel better knowing there will be an option for us (yes, dh is on board!) if these cycles fail. It makes it easier for me to be excited about the IVF and have hope that it will work. That may sound odd, but somehow in my twisted mind it all makes sense.

So yes, I do feel a bit like a first timer as I am all excited, and I have tons of hope that I will come out of this with a biological child. I start stims in 2 1/2 weeks. So I have been truly enjoying hanging out with dh and generally just "being in the moment". Dh settled a case yesterday that was set for trial in a few weeks. I don't have to work on Monday, so we have decided to run away for a long weekend (again, enjoying one of the benefits of not having children yet ). We are going to head to Yosemite and Mammoth Lakes tomorrow. Just drive around a lot and do some hiking for a few days.

Not sure whether or not I will have access... but if I do, will check in with you all.

Hope you are all well.

[Angie65]

Hi Sistas - hope you are all going well. Just dropping by to say hello.

Sorry I am so bad at personals - I just seem to remember the last post which this time is Sassy!

Sassy - you are sounding great. I am so glad you are enjoying the book - I read a chapter each night on the 2ww and it really helped me . Have a great time hiking and enjoying each other's company with DH.

We are also going away on Sun to Tues - ski-ing - yay! I am very excited - haven't been for 3 years so probably have forgotten how to - but there has been lots of snow recently. (unusual for Oz!) It is our little reward trip for surviving the last cycle!

Other than that busy busy busy working on the new house. Today was spent stripping wall paper and then we had a man round to give us a quote for the built in robe.

August is going to be v busy for me, have 2 lots of visitors, heaps going on at work, another w/e away and then it will be sept and my trip to the US of A! Hooray. Utah and NY for the holiday part with DH and then he goes home and I go onto Toronto and Virginia. It's very exciting!

Don't know when we'll ever get to actually move into the new house - hopefully October when I get back (otherwise we'll be bankrupt paying rent and the mortgage)

So I hope all the other sisters are doing well - Meggo - do you realise you have the honour of being the first sister to have a baby? It will be a very exciting time for us all on this thread and we will want lots of updates. Hope it's all going well and it's not too hot for you.

Bye for now all.

[meg12]

Sassy--Yes, the heat really does take it out of me. Thank God for air conditioning. I guess you get used to it. My poor dog has gotten used to not walking until right at dusk--I wait until the last minute possible to try to get it to be as cool as possible. The visit went great yesterday. Everything's on track. I did gain 4 pounds (In 2 weeks!!!!!!) but since I had lost 2 the two weeks before I figure technically I only gained two lbs this month and that's not bad! So I'm trying not to sweat it. I'm working so much because the other full time girl here in the office is on vacation. I try to keep reminding myself that I only have less than 2 months left here anyway (I'm not coming back after the baby is born) but that doesn't seem to help! Oh well. I'm actually taking a mini-vacation next week. Going home to stay with my mom for a few days...they're throwing me a baby shower in the town I grew up in so that will be fun. My husband is on Ragbrai, which is the bike ride across Iowa. He'll be gone the whole week, so that's going to be weird. It was nice to have the whole bed to myself last night, but I'm sure I'll start to miss him soon! (maybe )
Well, enough about me. I think your hiking sounds like fun. I also was surprised that Angie had never camped---we go all the time. I'm really not much of an outdoorsy girl (much prefer a hotel room!) but I like a weekend camping now and then. As long as there are restrooms--just can't go outside!!!!! I'm glad you're so Zen right now. Isn't weird how fast feelings change? I'm excited for the super cycle to start....I feel like we're all part of something big!

Angie--Skiing! I can't even fathom snow right now. What I wouldn't give for some....oh well. That will be fun, I'm sure. Are you moved into the new house now, or just fixing it up? Stripping wallpaper is the worst!!!!! After the last room I stripped, I vowed never ever to hang any ever again. I am a little nervous about being the first Sister to have a baby...I will try to do the sisters proud but have a feeling I'm going to be a big, blubbering mess. Plus, I get mean when I'm in pain so I'll probably be such a b!tch that I'll end up a divorce mom. Oh well, I'll definitely make sure my toe nails are painted nice and blue. At least I can represent that way!


So, where's everyone else? It seems this post has slowed down a little! Well, I'm at work (again....) so I suppose I'd better go. Everyone better check in soon---I need entertainment, darnit!

[sassynlv]

First, real quick... Patie... I got your info and will add you on facebook once I get back in town so I can see your pictures!

Hmmm... what could I do to entertain Mego while she is in the sweat shop working her nails down to nubbins on the weekend? Hmmmm. No tap dancing, or cheerleading as you wouldn't be able to see me through the computer (although, I can tell you, I was a d*mn good cheerleader ). And nope, not in a snarkey mood, so no good rants. So this will have to do...

**************************************
BLONDE COOKBOOK!
>
> MONDAY
> It's fun to cook for Bill. Today I made angel
> food cake. The recipe said beat 12 eggs separately.
> The neighbors were nice enough to loan me some
> extra bowls.
>
> TUESDAY
> Bill wanted fruit salad for supper. The recipe
> said serve without dressing. So I didn't dress. What
> a surprise when Bill brought a friend home for
> supper.
>
> WEDNESDAY
> A good day for rice. The recipe said wash thoroughly
> before steaming the rice. It seemed kind of silly but
> I took a bath anyway. I can't say it improved the
> rice any.
>
> THURSDAY
> Today Bill asked for salad again. I tried a new
> recipe. It said prepare ingredients, lay on a bed of
> lettuce one hour before serving. Bill asked me why
> I was rolling around in the garden.
>
> FRIDAY
> I found an easy recipe for cookies. It said put the
> ingredients in a bowl and beat it. There must
> have been something wrong with this recipe. When
> I got back, everything was the same as when I left! .
>
> SATURDAY
> Bill did the shopping today and brought home a
> chicken. He asked me to dress it for Sunday (oh boy).
> For some reason Bill keeps counting to ten.
>
> SUNDAY
> Bill's folks came to dinner. I wanted to serve
> roast but all I had was hamburger. Suddenly I had a
> flash of genius. I put the hamburger in the oven and
> set the controls for roast. It still came out
> hamburger, much to my disappointment.
>
> GOOD NIGHT DEAR DIARY. This has been a very
> exciting week. I am eager for tomorrow to come so
> I can try out a new recipe on Bill. If I can talk Bill
> into buying a bigger oven, I would like to surprise
> him with chocolate moose.

********************************
Off to the wilds (and crowds) of Yosemite...

[meg12]

Thanks, Sassy--I needed that! Have fun on your trip!

[FionaA]

Hellloooo

Well we have been a quiet bunch lately! I am partly to blame. Had a touch of flu and bunked off work late last week.

Tomorrow I will be having 26 week appt with OB, I always get nervous before these things so wish me luck girls!

Sass you lucky thing! Yosemite is like a paradise, I loved it there, wish I could go back and spend some more time! Glad to hear that you are zen....if you are running low on the snarkey levels I guess I will just have to wait for the next gripping BIL installment! Thrice weekly drug testing that is serious! He will have a hard time using with that regime (unless he substitutes the sample gets up to other tricks that the seasoned campaighers do...And yay on the adoption appointment, that must relieve an awful lot of pressure for you. Glad you can "enjoy" your upcoming cycle now..

Mel, Bellini sounds so cute, and as demanding as a baby! Excellent training for you. Hope you aren't working too hard and that you find a better internet connection. BTW the partner has gone on leave for the next few weeks so the Office Romance Saga will be on hiatus for a while. I'll have to find some other gossip around here for you...

Patie, not sure on the current movie situation but I have heard that Transformer is surprisingly good. There was another one that I can't remember the name of that I wanted to see... I'll let you know if I remember it. Shall we all boycott "Knocked Up". Apparently it's quite funny but who needs to see a movie about a person who gets preg after having sex ONCE!!! Dammit.

Jenn how is it going, are you still exhausted??? that will pass soon I'm pretty sure! Weather sounds interesting over there, we've also been having storms and my gutters are overflowing and my walls and some ceilings have developed big damp patches! YAY!!!

You know we haven't heard from Wanna in an awfully long time, hope you are OK Wanna.

And also Vicky, hope you are OK too..

Robbo??? Coco??? Nickster (another MIA For a long time) Come out come out wherever you are!!!

Fee

Mego, your dog is lucky to be getting walks at all! My dog is so big I can't walk him any more, and poor old DH with all the running around to do with MIL doesn't get out with the dog much either. Poor doggy! He is a simple soul though and doesn't seem to mind too much. As far as pain goes, I can be quite mean too. Whenever I hurt myself DH runs for cover because I tend to slap him if I'm in pain. He may need to wear some sort of sumo wrestler suit to the labour ward to protect himself. Either that or I will be joining you in the single mother's brigade...

Angie, by now you should be swooshing down the slopes??? where are you skiing. I was in Mount Buller last year for my lame attempt at skiing...I definatley need more practice. geez sounds like your house will be a palace when you move in. I always make the mistake of moving in prior to renovations and then getting used to the dump and not doing anything to it...gross

[Melissa112]

Well I guess I am partly to blame for the quietness, because I was too impatient to deal with the ridiculously slow internet at our hotel!

I promise to do some personals today! PROMISE!

But I had to let you know that Cincinasti, was a great time! Work and all, it was fun! A overall good trip and I got some shopping in too! SO yay!

Tonight, DH and I have a date to a dinner and wine pairing - it's supposed to be fancy schmancy, so I'll be sure to give you an update on the food! He said that since I worked so hard this week (well past week now) that I deserved it He's being so sweet!

Bellini had her vet check up today, and she is 7.2 lbs. so still a munch-kin, but definately a cutie patotie! They wanted to do a re-check on her UTI, but all is well in the land of Bellini, I told them that I think she'll be fine - and if she's still UTI'ish, I'll bring her back. I think the vet just tries to get $$$$ out of you every chance they can get.

DH went to Orlando with a friend of his on Saturday, and they partied like they were 12 years old, well at least 21, he came home yesterday SICK as a dog!!! So we watched the Food Network, The Next Food Network Star Marathon... Hee hee! It was fun!

So personals when I could get caught up on my work just a bit...

XXOO!!

[sassynlv]

Hey girls...
Yosemite was fab and dh and I had some good quality time just the two of us.

Angie: how were the slopes (sounds so strange to talk of skiing when we are roasting here in Vegas!). And you are stopping in Utah? I lived there for 5 years (did undergraduate there) and still have lots of family there. Are you going down to Zions and so forth? If you need ideas or recommendations, let me know. Good luck on all the home improvement stuff. Stripping wallpaper... yuck!

Fee: how was the 26 wk appt? (so hard to believe you are THAT preg ) Chances are that BIL will be an ongoing source of drama (drama, drama drama). I am avoiding all info on him at the moment, as it threatens to seriously derail my zen-ness .

Mel: how was the fancy schmancy dinner?? huh, huh? Glad to hear Bellini (all 7 lb of her!) is doing well.

Is Amy back?? I want to know how the shooting up is going!

Has Mego been let out of her leg irons?

Got my IVF schedule today! Yipee! (I'm such a nerd ... I used to get similarly excited when I got a new syllabus in school)

Hope you are all well

[Melissa112]

What a liar I am, huh! I didn’t get to personals yesterday, but I have a great excuse! Two, count them, one, two of our employees gave notice!!! I was gutted, heart broken, just gut wrenching!!! One of them I sort of had an idea, she’s the one that got pregnant on her honeymoon, and she’s barely over 21, she’s very immature, but thinks she’s super sophisticated and mature. She can’t handle any stress or multi-tasking, it just hasn’t been a great fit, but the other one, gosh, that came out of left field, she’s fantastic, we love her! So this is tough!!! Really tough, and DH’s company is small enough so loosing one person is hard because that’s an entire department, but two people it that’s like 1/3 of his company! YIKES!

But dinner last night was delectable! IT was our reprieve from the stress of the day! We arrive, and they have a glass of Pinot Blanco for us and some tomato basic bruchetta just as a quick bite….

Course 1:
Calamari Salad with grilled calamari, grilled greens and a lemon herb reduction dressing, served with the Pinot Blanco

Course 2:
Lobster Ravioli’s topped with truffle cream sauce and fresh basil – served with a light and crisp Chardonnay, but it was unlike any Chardonnay I’ve ever had, so crisp and almost passion fruit like!

Course 3:
Quail over a vegetable risotto- which was creamy and amazing – served with a light Valpolomchello (so spelled wrong- but so deliciously right)

Course 4:
Filet over braised argula with a goat cheese sun dried tomato jam served with the most amazing red wine the world has ever seen!

Course 5:
Tiramisu parfait with a Tawny Port – YUM-O!

Delicious!!!! All of it yummmmmooooo!!!!

So we got home last night close to midnight, and Bellini-Ball-of-Fun had decided to take her first ever poo in the cage, well this was so nice, because DH and I were about to get some practice in (wink wink, nudge nudge) and then to come home to a house that smells of poo, and she’s apparently decided it would be great fun to roll around in it while we were gone! SO DH gives her a widdle bath, and I clean out the poo infested cage – so no fun for us…. We played with her until well after midnight when she started to get tired, and then put her in her cage to sleep, she whined and whined and then at 2AM woke me up to let her out, there is a HUGE puddle of wee-wee in the cage… at this point I am thinking… UGH! So I dried and cleaned out the cage…put her back in and she proceeded to wake me up at 4AM, 4:45AM, 5:30AM and 6:30AM NICE HUH! Practice for having a baby, I think this is worse!!! But she is a cute stinker!

So DH and I had a really deep conversation over dinner, REALLY DEEP about IVF and babies… it’s long and where physiological… so I’ll get to that later. PROMISE! But DH said to me in a very sweet voice, almost like he was really listening and hearing what I was saying “I honestly didn’t realize you were so all encompassed by this” it was in a great context, so that means a lot of things, that I promise I’ll get to later, when it hasn’t taken me over 8 hours to type all this out.

I have to leave for PT in 10 minutes, so how much personals can I get done:

Angie- I love that you were skiing while we are all sweltering in over 100* temps! How’s the wall paper stripping and the house junk coming? And two visitors, gosh, I don’t envy you in the least!!!

Fee- I am so excited for you and Noggin!!! IT sounds like things are so coming along fabulously!!! Keep up the drama storylines I love it!!! Although I am fine with the commercial break for now, because we have enough drama in our office for a couple of weeks! YIKES!

Sassy- I love your zen’ness!!! We actually talked about at dinner last night! It was all good, I promise, I was just trying to give DH a real life example of what I was feeling, and you came to mind. I hope you don’t mind! I am so excited about your IVF schedule!! I hope you remain focused and remember to enjoy and take in every step of this cycle, don’t get caught up in the numbers, what they mean, etc. etc – just take in all of it! And if you start to faulter, I’ll be there to slap you back into shape!

Patie – I don’t know if I had mentioned it but DH had closed the office early one Monday for all of us to go and see Transformers, it was really cute – not my favorite style of movie, but cute none the less.

Jenn- I hope you are doing well!!! Almost in the Second trimester right?

Mego- Our pooches would be so jealous, Whiskey doesn’t get walked, and Bellini, well she needs something to wear her out! She has the energy of some pink battery bunny!

Vicky, Wanna, Robbo, Coco and Nicki, come out, come out wherever you are!!!!

Okay, gotta run!

Hugs and Kisses!!

XXOO!!

[Melissa112]

Officially, I killed the thread... Great, just what I needed.

[FionaA]

"M" is for Mel and "M" is for Murderer! (thread murderer that is...)

Actually I think these boards are generally a bit slow. Maybe there is just a general IF slump going on...

Luckily I have nothing better to do than to drop in.

So how are we all?

Sass, yeah 26 weeks, on one hand it seems to have gone fast and on the other hand it has been agonisingly slow.. Nogs' aqppointment went well, had a scan and my placenta seems to be marching upwards so maybe no need for a compulsory C section after all....on the scan Nogs looks like a real baby as opposed to a space alien, it's pretty awesome....

On the down side had sugar in my wee again so am now very worried about gestational diabetes and am watching my carbs closely (as of today). Oh well I have the proper diabetes test in a couple of weeks so I guess I'll have to wait and see...

Mel, that menu sounds amazing, my mouth is watering....man I wish I could eat what I want at the moment! I really really love food, u sound the same as me...sorry to hear about the employees, sucks losing the good ones...and good ones are hard to find. At my office we have a very significant disproportion in our wierdo/OK staffing ratios...

Well I'd better get on and do some work. my last performance review was hardly glowing.

fee

[sassynlv]

Hi girls--

Mel-- Oh, I don't mind if you mention me to your dh... just don't give out my address, phone #, social security #, etc (turns out someone has stolen my identity-- trying not to suspect bil-- but I am not succeeding ) . Your dh doesn't have a clue who I am, so add whatever details will benefit you! As for Bellini. Wow. I am glad I haven't gotten a puppy. I don't think I would be so patient. Bummer on at least one of the employees leaving (sounds like one of them will be good riddance). LOVED the menu. Sounded fab!

Fee: a human-looking nogs is a bonus . Glad to hear placenta making its way up the uterus, here's hoping you can avoid the C-section. So do you get to do that funky 3 hour glucose tolerance test? I hear that stuff you have to drink is horridly sweet.

Hope everyone else is well.

I don't have much to add myself... now under 2 weeks to stims (but who's counting ). Working tons of hours (although currently my work entails being at the office in case I am needed--- ummm. Not very stressful to say the least. But I have gotten a lot of reading done!).

The main change is that I am eating super healthy. I'm talking tons of fruits and veggies with only lean protein. Ok, ok... small bits of chocolate to placate the junk food lover in me. On the weekend I have one day where I eat whatever I want. I even have started having a smoothie for breakfast every morning-- frozen blueberries, a banana, unsweetened applesauce, a bit of protein powder, ice and... a big handful of spinach. I know. It sounds gross. But the berries totally cover the taste of the spinach. And... I get a serving of dark leafy greens in by breakfast... bonus. It tastes really good! I started this a few weeks ago in order to be real healthy for this cycle... but also 'cuz I was determined to lose 5 lb before cycling again. Despite moderate exercise 5-6 days a week... I have only lost 1 lb . BUT... as my (.)(.)s are sore, and my stomach is big, I'm thinking I am bloated-- I'm hoping with the arrival of AF (postponed through BCP until next wk), some of that will go away. Dh just keeps telling me that a few lbs won't make much of a difference, but the important thing is to be healthy for the cycle. I mean... he's right... but d*mn (!) I want to lose these 5 lbs

Blah blah blah.

[meg12]

Hi guys! I'm here. I'm just finally on vacation after my long work stretch so I'm being somewhat lazy. I'm at my mom's house now. She lives about 3 hours away from me...I'm going to spend about 5 days here just being a bum. She lives on a lake, so I'm trying to get some sun today. Usually, I'm a really tan summer person (horrible for me, I know but I just love being tan!) but this summer I just can't stand to get hot. The baby just is not cooperating with me here. So not only am I round like a beach ball, but I'm so white I'm almost transparent. (okay, maybe it's not that bad, but still...) So, today I've been going out back and trying to get some sun but I have to keep coming in every 15 minutes to cool down. It could take me a while at this rate! Oh well, I am happy to say I don't have anything else to do! We're having a small baby shower at the neighbor's house here tomorrow. It's only going to be about 6 guests but it should be fun.

Mel--Great food menu. I heart food. (A little too much at the moment!) so I aways love to hear what others are eating. Hmmm, maybe I'll go make some lunch (even though I just had breakfast an hour ago!) Bellini sounds like a handful. I don't miss that part of puppyhood. My dog is 7 now and definetly sleeps through the night! (And if he doesn't, I just pretend that I'm asleep when he cries so that my dh has to get up and let him out. It works everytime. Think it'll work for when the baby comes?)

Fee--Glad to hear all is going well with Nogs. Hopefully the C-section is an option that stays far away from you. Although there are so many women out there that fight for a C-section. I just don't understand it. I know that there is going to be some, ahem, "stretching" down there, but honestly why would that make you want to have your belly sliced open? Hope the diabetes stays away. The stuff you have to drink for that test is hideous---Make sure that you drink it cold, that does help a little! What's your actual due date? Do you have a name picked out? We're keeping ours a secret, so I'll understand if you don't want to share!

Sassy--Identity theft, eh? That's just a load of fun. Good for you on the healthy eating. The breakfast shake actually does sound pretty yummy, even with the spinach. I am one of those weird people that really likes spinach. I also like liver and onions, so there you go. I'm a freak and now you all know it! Only 2 weeks until the super cycle, huh? That's awesome. I'm very excited for you. My advice, and take it or leave it, is not to worry too much about losing the weight. I have a theory that one of the reasons I finally got pregnant is that I gained some weight during the ivf process. I've battled my weight for years and over the last three years had lost almost 80 lbs. I did it in a helathy way---no crash dieting or anything just exercise and calorie control. But one of the first things my doctor said to me was to gain some weight. She said she likes to have a little bit of belly for the "babies" to grab onto when she implants them. So, yes, I think you should focus on healthy eating so that your body is at it's peak for when you start shooting it full of drugs, but don't worry about the weight part of it. You can deal with that later. Hope this didn't sound preachy, it's just one of the topics I feel passionate about because I do really think it helped me get to where I am now. (But who knows, it could just be that I laid in the right position or was drunk enough not to care the night we conceived!!!!)

Well, I'm cooled down now so I think I'll go back out for another jaunt in the sunshine. Hope everyone is doing well. Everybody check in soon so I don't worry about you!

[Angie65]

Hi ladies - I expect you were wondering if I'd fallen off the mountain. Not quite! Did get stranded on an icey slope (DH left me behind!) and had to be rescued by a passing ski-er but luckily no serious injury. (Yes it was Mt Buller, Fee)

Sorry not posted much but I'm keeping an eye on you all and glad all is well.

have to dash - have cousins and 2 small boys coming to stay - OMG children in the house - quite a novelty so I have heaps to do in preparation for their visit - plus have to strip wall paper at the new house (DH is such a slave driver!)

Have great weekends everyone - will write more next week.