And So It Begins...

as 2008 ends.

I am officially in my IVF cycle. I started shooting up (ha!) Sunday. So far okay. Some headaches, a little burning. I'm doing better with the needles then I thought.

I am in the middle of my first vacation over the holidays in ages.

I have been a slug and enjoyed it.

I have been knitting and finishing stuff.

I might even post pictures of the finished stuff next year.

2008 has been a year of ups and downs.

We got our Foster Parent license, but cannot get a child placed in our home to save our life.

Hubby's mom came to visit for her longest visit ever, but then we lost her unexpectedly in September.

We want to adopt but cannot even start the paperwork till we finish with the medical procedures.

Work has been crazy, stressful, busy, but I wouldn't trade most of the people I work with for a ten foot pole.

My son turned 18 but I'm afraid to contact him.

We are happy, healthy, have a lovely home, healthy neurotic playful animals, toys to play with, friends to share them with and jobs that don't appear to be going anywhere any time soon.

We had some health scares with me and some friends, but we all came through them.

I've met a ton of people online this year that I am happy to have as friends. In 2009 I hope to meet actually meet a few more of them in person. Cookie, Nancy, Karin W, CV, Kate J - I'm looking at you.

I am not making resolutions this year. We are focused on the IVF. We should know if it worked by the end of the first week of February. Keep your fingers crossed for us. If it does work I expect hand knits galore from all my friends that knit. :-) I might even let you make something for the baby. ;-)

I do know that if it does not work it will not be the end of the world, just maybe the end of a dream. There is only so much you can do before you have to let go. Adoption will always be an option.

May whatever dreams you are holding dear for the New Year come true.

A New Tradition

Wake up at 11 and see that all the kitties are snug on your lap (you're sick so you're sleeping in the recliner in the living room).

Turn on the TV and start finishing the Buck Rogers DVD set you borrowed over a year ago so you can give it back.

Hubby wakes up and joins you (he's sick too and hacking up a storm at night).

You open presents around noon and love all the yarn you've been given:

2 skeins of Sport Weight Blue Sky Alpaca - a pretty cornflower blue
1 skein of Melange Blue Sky Alpaca - a pretty blue green
3 skeins of Suri Merino Blue Sky Alpaca in Natural
The Blue Sky Alpaca Arm Warmer pattern to go with the first two yarns.

Hubby got a book and a video game (Left 4 Dead) and a board game.

Continue watching Buck Rogers for the rest of the entire day while Hubby vegs on the couch playing his game and you knit.

Try to find your RE doc since you are spotting and have to start the IVF drugs on Sunday.

Call your mother.

Wish you had family closer.

Say hi to your friends online.

Blog.

Go back in and spend rest of evening with hubby.

Merry Christmas Everyone.

Merry Christmas

Just want to wish all my friends, Real and Virtual, a very Merry Christmas.

MMM.... Softness....

A good friend of Hubster and I happens to really likes my knitting.

She has a daughter. She's a tiny little thing that is almost always cold.

So this friend asked me if I'd make something for the daughter to help her out this winter.

So I hit the stash and the web. This is what I can up with:

That would be Misti Alpaca Chunky in color 1321 (that would be cornflower blue in my mind maybe).

The pattern would be a take on Envy over at Yarn Ball Boogie.

I screwed up the seed stitch in the first 6 rows, so it's ribbed. So I carried that over to the end of it.

I did 20 cable crosses for the length of it, because I only had one skein to work with since the other was allocated. I used size 13 needles.

No button holes. The buttons I chose and the give of the openness of my knitting mean the buttons go through just fine.

There are two on either end place opposite of the other end diagonally. So she can button it either way she decides to wrap it.

I hope she likes it. It's super soft. I'm tempted to put it in the dryer for about 2 minutes (ONLY) to fluff it up a little bit.

****Ignore the model. She doesn't photograph well. Neither does she wear makeup on a regular basis (ok ever).

I Smell Bacon!!!!!!

Simply Kind Tuesday

I managed to take part in perpstu's SKT this week without even having given it forethought.

Last night on my way home I had to hit Petco to get food for the furbabies.

As most of you know I have a plethora of four legged animals in my house. 3 doggies: Cliff the Mutt, Oscar the Dog and Scrat the Brat. 4 cats: Rasta Pasta, Nemo, Kaji cutie and Smokey Cat.

I'll be the first to tell you that animals are not cheap. Between the vet and food and grooming (if needed - and boy is it needed for Cliff and Oscar) and replacing things they destroy (angels they aren't) it can all add up.

So I went into Petco to get food and set up a grooming appointment for Cliff and Oscar. I saw that the Assistance Dog Institute has their annual dog bone tree up again. Some years I check it out, and some years I don't.

The thing I love best about this tree is that they have little colored wooden dog bones with items they would like to receive on each bone like:

• Greenies - large
• Dog toothbrush
• Dog tooth paste
• Dog nylabone the big ones
• Dog bed
• Dog collar and leash
• Bath wipes
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• Kong toy
• Retrieve toy
  

You know things they will use and actually need. Not just another mailing asking for money like everyone else this year. All the stuff will be put to use for the animals they are training to help someone in need.

So this year I decided to grab three bones. One for each dog. On the back of the bones they ask for your address so they can thank you. Well I just put one boy's name and Merry "woof'mas on each one. I'm already on their mailing list.

So we got them the Greenies - Large ( a bag of 8), a toothbrush/toothpaste kit, and a BIG box of bath wipes.

Go help make someone's Christmas a little brighter this year. Yes things are tight everywhere. I'm happy to give up something to help someone or something have an easier time right now, because I have a good home, a partner that loves me, a job that isn't going anywhere, animals that are healthy. Sure we saving up for our IVF, but this is chump change compared to that. But that little bit will go a long way.

Sigh...

or rather how to suck the joy out of Christmas with one easy phrase.

An email went out at work this morning asking if anyone wanted to contribute towards the purchase of a Christmas tree.

I assumed they meant fake.

Then I went to get some tea - I'm sick (and yes going home but had a meeting I couldn't move) - and saw the tree stand.

So I asked if they intended to get a real tree, to which they said yes and I said sh*t.

Christmas tree = major allergies in Jenn = Jenn about to do IVF and not able to take drugs outside of protocol especially antihistamines = no real Christmas Tree in office.

Granted with my allergies that I could argue for never having a real one in the office, at least not within 15' of where I have to travel within in the building (if I can smell it I'm pretty much screwed), I happen to like breathing. Problem is I love Christmas and I just managed to make it way less pleasurable for the rest of my coworkers.

Cannot wait to go home today and go back to bed.

BTW - tomorrow is teach me how to become a pincushion day in prep for IVF. Fun times. Let me tell you.

Can You Hear Me Now?

Maybe not so much, but boy can I hear you.

I am in love with my new hearing aid.

I remembered to grab my camera this morning. Not so much the battery I charged last night. Doh!

But the Streamer works. I can hear phone calls DIRECTLY IN MY HEARING AID. The mic on the streamer is not so great, or my neck isn't thick enough to keep the Streamer in my 'Body Area Network', but I can hold it closer to my mouth and hubby can hear me.

Will have to see if the skin that came with it might be interfering with the microphone a little bit.

When a call comes in on my cell it sounds like a phone ringing right in my ear. It is just so cool. And if my phone is set to silent I still get the cute little phone sound in my hearing aid.

Now let's ignore the fact that I am currently running about with over $5000 worth of electronics hanging from my ears. Yeah they are insured. (the aids and me - hehe)

Yup the Synchro is in the right ear till after the first of year when I can order a matching (though it will be red) Epoq XW for the right ear and my health insurance will pay for $2500 of the cost. Surround sound here I come!

Now we get to go to a movie and see how I do and maybe a show of some sort. Lots of playing to do with the new aid.

Granted with all the new sounds (my keyboard is stupid loud) I'll have a headache by the end of the day, but it will be worth it and I'll get used to it.

Gotta go find someone else to call.

Dragons

Okay fine.

I'm in.

I'm a lemming.

I love dragons.

Now go click on mine so they will hatch.