I have had several emails asking whats the scoop. I had another ultrasound last week and it seems the hyper stimulation is still having it's ugly way with me. I've been put back on limited activity. The pain has gone away so it feels like I should be up and around and all that jazz so I am finding being lazy hard to do. Thankfully my hubby makes sure I don't over do it and keeps me on the couch while he preps dinner and helps out around the house. So lucky to have him.
As far as the $64,000 question... trying to be cautious about how much information we give out. I will say that things are looking good. We hope to give more clear answers in a couple of weeks. We are still waiting out the hyper stimulation and hoping that goes down and when it does we are sure we will have more concrete answers from the doctors.
It's hard to wait for answers but some things are worth waiting for...
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Free at last, free at last!
I have been released from prison. The prison of bed rest. I am not 100% but getting closer every day. Today I was able to take Darwin to the dog park and also picked up a few items at the grocery store. I know that doesn't seem like much but after a week of staying in your bed those events seemed HUGE. It also took a lot of energy to do just those two errands. I still feel a dull pain on my left side that seems to flare up every once in awhile. The medication I am on, progesterone, still makes me very sleepy. I pass out around 8pm and then the pain usually has a flare up around 4am so I have been getting up that ungodly hour for the past week and half.
But I won't let those early hours get me down, I am FREE from my bed..Free at last!!
But I won't let those early hours get me down, I am FREE from my bed..Free at last!!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Bed-rest has made me hate my bed.
Lets just start this blog out by saying bed-rest stinks! You would think being forced to lay down all day would be a blessing. You would be wrong, it is a punishment. There is a huge difference between being lazy and being held hostage by your bed. The only good thing about being confined to bed is you get to feel a lot of love and support from your loved ones.
The hubby has been amazing. Cooking every meal, vacuuming and basically canceling all his fun plans for the past 4 days. Poor guy had to miss his golf game, half day team building with his office at the bowling ally (he didn't seem too upset about missing that one) and then gave up snowboarding on fresh spring powder this Sunday. All just to be around the house in case I needed him. He is really making those 'for better or for worse' vows come to life. He really has been my Mr. Wonderful all weekend.
My Mom, sister and Dad have all had their cell phones close at hand and have accepted the 8 calls a day. They also sent over the most beautiful bouquet of daisies that sit on my mantel. My in-laws have also called to check in a lot, which is comforting to know how much they think of us.
The hubby has an great co-worker/friend that I adore. We join him and his wife for drinks every once in awhile and have the best time. Well, they surprised us this afternoon by bringing over the world's best meal. Not just one meal but also homemade chicken soup, cornbread and banana bread! How fantastic is that!?!
There has been one set back that I can't seem to make positive, my poor dog Darwin. I walk him everyday and on the weekends we also take him to a dog park or the beach. He just looks at me like I am the evil stepmother who won't let him play outside. It was okay this weekend since hubby was home and could walk him but come Monday around 11am he is going to be looking at me with those big brown eyes asking for a walk. Ohh, this is punishment!
So when you have watched everything on DVR, and netflicks, read all your books and magazines, what do you do?
The hubby has been amazing. Cooking every meal, vacuuming and basically canceling all his fun plans for the past 4 days. Poor guy had to miss his golf game, half day team building with his office at the bowling ally (he didn't seem too upset about missing that one) and then gave up snowboarding on fresh spring powder this Sunday. All just to be around the house in case I needed him. He is really making those 'for better or for worse' vows come to life. He really has been my Mr. Wonderful all weekend.
My Mom, sister and Dad have all had their cell phones close at hand and have accepted the 8 calls a day. They also sent over the most beautiful bouquet of daisies that sit on my mantel. My in-laws have also called to check in a lot, which is comforting to know how much they think of us.
The hubby has an great co-worker/friend that I adore. We join him and his wife for drinks every once in awhile and have the best time. Well, they surprised us this afternoon by bringing over the world's best meal. Not just one meal but also homemade chicken soup, cornbread and banana bread! How fantastic is that!?!
There has been one set back that I can't seem to make positive, my poor dog Darwin. I walk him everyday and on the weekends we also take him to a dog park or the beach. He just looks at me like I am the evil stepmother who won't let him play outside. It was okay this weekend since hubby was home and could walk him but come Monday around 11am he is going to be looking at me with those big brown eyes asking for a walk. Ohh, this is punishment!
So when you have watched everything on DVR, and netflicks, read all your books and magazines, what do you do?
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Hyper what?
So I haven't been blogging much during the last two weeks. One reason was adjusting back to the time change, I have been way to sleepy to write. The other reason is because I have been on strict bed rest that past week. Total bummer and I will tell you how this bed rest started:
On the flight back home I started to get some very minor cramps. Totally freaked me out but I had my Mom with me and just having her hold my hand made me feel a lot better. I also started to get some other symptoms that are very common with the medication I am taking and very common after putting your body through an IVF cycle. So I didn't worry to much about them. I talked to my coordinator and all the things I was talking about like being bloated, fatigue and minor cramping were all normal. Well, normal took a turn off the path about 4 days ago. I woke up with most painful feeling in my lower abdomen. It was like a cramp but a cramp has more of a twisty feel (if that makes sense) this pain was like a giant dull knife was stabbing me in the ovaries. The pain lasted about a half an hour and then stopped. In the morning I told my hubby and showed him that tummy had basically expanded overnight. And then right when we were walking down the stairs to start the day it started again. It's a crippling pain and I just had to ride it out right there on the stairs. We both decided that this wasn't normal and called my OB/GYN nurse and she basically told us that we needed to head to the ER. Oh, great!
I get to the ER and have to explain about 15 times that I had IVF done in Europe and I was experiencing severe cramping. It's amazing to me how little some nurses and doctors know about IVF. Some didn't even really know the abbreviation. You would have to say in-vitro before the light bulb would go off. Then you would have to explain the process. Hubby thinks this is because IVF is an elective procedure but I still find it odd.
As I am checking into the ER the administrating nurse begins to tell me her fertility struggle. How she was told she was infertile in the 70s and how there was nothing to be done back than. Then she told me how she accepted her fate as being a childless woman and went on with her life. So at this point in the story I am starting to get a little mad at her, like she is telling me to accept my fate kind of thing but then she drops this bombs on me. She told me she finally just relaxed and now two kids later she's over the moon happy. She literally told me to just relax and nature will take its course. Here I am in the ER getting checked in for complications due to IVF and she is telling me to just relax and it will happen naturally. OMG, I almost lost it. I understand people's good intentions when telling about their struggles and how they over came them but when someone is having IVF done there is no amount of relaxing they can do to get pregnant. IVF wasn't some choice made because we weren't getting pregnant in the time frame we wanted, it was because I have bad tubes!! I can relax the rest of my life and my tubes will remain the same lady! And you better believe I told her that.
So after that fun encounter I get put into a room but not just any room I get put into the psychiatric room where they put crazy people. The ER was out of beds at the moment and that was the only option for me. It was a bed and nothing else in the room, no sharp edges or windows. And the door locked when they closed it...so awful yet so fitting at the same time. After 45 minutes of 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest' they were able to get me a room.
One full body ultrasound and 8 pokes later looking for blood (damn my bad veins) they have figured out what is wrong with me. I have fluid leaking into my abdomen and around my kidneys and my ovaries are about the size of grapefruits. The fluid is leaking from my giant ovaries and the reason they are doing that is because they have a condition called Ovarian Hyper-Stimulation Syndrome. Yippee!! Basically about 10% of women who have IVF can get this condition. Since my condition is in the moderate range there is nothing to be done except wait it out. If it was a little more severe they would take a large needle and extract the fluid out. They basically put me on bed rest and told me to see my OB/GYN on Friday for a follow up blood work.
So I was doing the bed rest thing to best of my ability. I did cook dinner and do a load of laundry but both things took me all day so I figured that was okay. Thursday night I lay down to go to sleep and I hear a lot of wheezing in my breath and could also hear crackly in my lungs. I knew that the liquid had spread to my lungs and should probably tell the nurses that in the morning when I am giving my follow up blood.
Friday morning I get my blood work done and then ask to see a nurse about my lungs. I tell the nurse the situation and she gets this real panic look on her face. She basically told me to go across the street and check myself back into the ER. Oh great! I call the hubby crying and then call my Mom crying. The nurse basically told me I was at a high risk for a blood clot and there were no second chances with a blood clot. The hubby meets me in the ER in seconds flat, thank goodness his office is only a block away. I get checked back into the ER and the tests start again. First with a chest x-ray, blood work and then an ultrasound of the blood vessels in my legs. I must say the ultrasound of the legs was very interesting. The doctor was able to do all the tests he wanted except one. The hubby and I agreed not to the one that had an extreme amount of radiation involved because if we are pregnant it would end up terminating that pregnancy. After the 3 test the doctor thought my risk was low and the fluid in my lungs was minor enough to just be monitored and that my bed rest needed to be a little more extreme. So, I am basically confined to my bed. I can walk to the bathroom and the couch. It's only been a day of this extreme bed rest and I am going crazy! I have to remember when the crippling pain comes and overwhelming boredom sets in it will all be worth it in the end. So for the next week you can find me here, master bedroom, king sized bed grumpy lady in the middle.
On the flight back home I started to get some very minor cramps. Totally freaked me out but I had my Mom with me and just having her hold my hand made me feel a lot better. I also started to get some other symptoms that are very common with the medication I am taking and very common after putting your body through an IVF cycle. So I didn't worry to much about them. I talked to my coordinator and all the things I was talking about like being bloated, fatigue and minor cramping were all normal. Well, normal took a turn off the path about 4 days ago. I woke up with most painful feeling in my lower abdomen. It was like a cramp but a cramp has more of a twisty feel (if that makes sense) this pain was like a giant dull knife was stabbing me in the ovaries. The pain lasted about a half an hour and then stopped. In the morning I told my hubby and showed him that tummy had basically expanded overnight. And then right when we were walking down the stairs to start the day it started again. It's a crippling pain and I just had to ride it out right there on the stairs. We both decided that this wasn't normal and called my OB/GYN nurse and she basically told us that we needed to head to the ER. Oh, great!
I get to the ER and have to explain about 15 times that I had IVF done in Europe and I was experiencing severe cramping. It's amazing to me how little some nurses and doctors know about IVF. Some didn't even really know the abbreviation. You would have to say in-vitro before the light bulb would go off. Then you would have to explain the process. Hubby thinks this is because IVF is an elective procedure but I still find it odd.
As I am checking into the ER the administrating nurse begins to tell me her fertility struggle. How she was told she was infertile in the 70s and how there was nothing to be done back than. Then she told me how she accepted her fate as being a childless woman and went on with her life. So at this point in the story I am starting to get a little mad at her, like she is telling me to accept my fate kind of thing but then she drops this bombs on me. She told me she finally just relaxed and now two kids later she's over the moon happy. She literally told me to just relax and nature will take its course. Here I am in the ER getting checked in for complications due to IVF and she is telling me to just relax and it will happen naturally. OMG, I almost lost it. I understand people's good intentions when telling about their struggles and how they over came them but when someone is having IVF done there is no amount of relaxing they can do to get pregnant. IVF wasn't some choice made because we weren't getting pregnant in the time frame we wanted, it was because I have bad tubes!! I can relax the rest of my life and my tubes will remain the same lady! And you better believe I told her that.
So after that fun encounter I get put into a room but not just any room I get put into the psychiatric room where they put crazy people. The ER was out of beds at the moment and that was the only option for me. It was a bed and nothing else in the room, no sharp edges or windows. And the door locked when they closed it...so awful yet so fitting at the same time. After 45 minutes of 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest' they were able to get me a room.
One full body ultrasound and 8 pokes later looking for blood (damn my bad veins) they have figured out what is wrong with me. I have fluid leaking into my abdomen and around my kidneys and my ovaries are about the size of grapefruits. The fluid is leaking from my giant ovaries and the reason they are doing that is because they have a condition called Ovarian Hyper-Stimulation Syndrome. Yippee!! Basically about 10% of women who have IVF can get this condition. Since my condition is in the moderate range there is nothing to be done except wait it out. If it was a little more severe they would take a large needle and extract the fluid out. They basically put me on bed rest and told me to see my OB/GYN on Friday for a follow up blood work.
So I was doing the bed rest thing to best of my ability. I did cook dinner and do a load of laundry but both things took me all day so I figured that was okay. Thursday night I lay down to go to sleep and I hear a lot of wheezing in my breath and could also hear crackly in my lungs. I knew that the liquid had spread to my lungs and should probably tell the nurses that in the morning when I am giving my follow up blood.
Friday morning I get my blood work done and then ask to see a nurse about my lungs. I tell the nurse the situation and she gets this real panic look on her face. She basically told me to go across the street and check myself back into the ER. Oh great! I call the hubby crying and then call my Mom crying. The nurse basically told me I was at a high risk for a blood clot and there were no second chances with a blood clot. The hubby meets me in the ER in seconds flat, thank goodness his office is only a block away. I get checked back into the ER and the tests start again. First with a chest x-ray, blood work and then an ultrasound of the blood vessels in my legs. I must say the ultrasound of the legs was very interesting. The doctor was able to do all the tests he wanted except one. The hubby and I agreed not to the one that had an extreme amount of radiation involved because if we are pregnant it would end up terminating that pregnancy. After the 3 test the doctor thought my risk was low and the fluid in my lungs was minor enough to just be monitored and that my bed rest needed to be a little more extreme. So, I am basically confined to my bed. I can walk to the bathroom and the couch. It's only been a day of this extreme bed rest and I am going crazy! I have to remember when the crippling pain comes and overwhelming boredom sets in it will all be worth it in the end. So for the next week you can find me here, master bedroom, king sized bed grumpy lady in the middle.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
The Waiting Room
Who would of thought that daily injections would be easier then the two week wait to get your blood work? I could inject myself all day if it meant I didn't have to wait another week to find out the results. Every tingle, cramp, mood swing has me googling. Googling questions like "is this normal" "IVF and cramping" only to get a mixed review of ladies telling their stories. One would say 'that's a good sign' then the next 'that happened to me and I got a negative result'. It truly is enough to drive you crazy.
I did read something that gave me a little comfort. A woman wrote about the two week wait saying 'you are pregnant until proven otherwise'. This brought the positive thoughts back to me. She's right, everything is going great.
I did read something that gave me a little comfort. A woman wrote about the two week wait saying 'you are pregnant until proven otherwise'. This brought the positive thoughts back to me. She's right, everything is going great.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
There's No Place Like Home
Dorothy was right, there really is no place like home. My own bed, my dog, my couch, my local hamburger joint. And most importantly the hubby. After the 10 hour flight from Paris to Seattle I could barely form sentences. My wonderful Mom didn't take her long flight remedy of Ambien since I can't take anything and stayed up with me for the whole flight. I did get to watch 3 movies which I had not seen and are up for Oscars this Sunday so I was thrilled about that. But after hour 7 I felt like I was going mad. Stared to get a headache and of course I can't take anything to help it.. it was miserable!!! By the time the plane landed in Seattle I looked just like I felt. Hair was sticking up everywhere, make up all smudged off, left eye starting to get lazy.. just all around attractiveness. I now know why celebrities wear over sized sunglasses in the airport, because they look like crap without them!
When we got back to my house things didn't improve much for my mood or beauty. Mom being the superwoman she is looked unfazed and poised. She answered emails and took calls about her move to Florida while I laid on the couch trying to regain some since of "normal". Hubby came home and saw the need for food and walked to the local hamburger joint and got us food. Giving Mom just enough time to eat and head back to the airport for her 7pm flight to Boise. She really is an amazing woman, able to juggle so many things at once. And each person she is talking to she makes feel like they are the only thing on her mind. She can make an anxiousness flier calm by just a touch on the arm, or fears of the unknown okay with just the running of her fingers threw the hair. She can make a joke just at the right moment and accept when sometimes all you need is silence. She is my best friend but most importantly she is my Mom. It was so special to have her with me for part of the journey.
Right when Mom left for the airport I walked to my bedroom brushed my teeth and headed to bed at 5pm! I don't even remember hubby turning off the lights. I awoke at 2am and have been up ever since. Oh, this is going to be a long weekend trying to get my sleep pattern right.. but at least I am home.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
From Paris with love.
Hello Paris, I missed you.
Paris fits like an old glove. You start to remember how wonderful the food really is, how beautiful everything seems to be and how easily it would be to fall in love with a city.
We got to the hotel in the evening. We (I mean Mom) dropped off the bags in the room and off to dinner we went. Our hotel is surrounded by restaurants it was hard to pick one. We asked our front desk clerk but he just moved to Paris from London and was no help. So we just walked into one. We were ushered over to a small table by the window. Mom and I agreed it would be very romantic is you were with your spouse. We order a 3 course meal, when in Paris eat, that's what I say! First, French onion soup. Oh those French can make onion soup! Second, I had duck. Traditional French cooked duck. It was last supper good. Mom had this amazing piece of steak with the most decadent bearnaise sauce. Dessert, portfolios. It came out in a huge soup bowl, 3 portfolios with huge scoops of homemade icecream in each one then on the side hot chocolate sauce! We needed wheelchairs to get home, we were stuffed. Happy but stuffed. Sleep came very easy for us, full bellies and dreams of our day in Paris.
We arose early and got dressed. Since I don't want to raise my heart rate we took the subway everywhere today. Mom and I are so good at the subway. Super proud of our skills, it all about teamwork. We started out at Norte Dame and to then Eiffel Tower. We sat for awhile at cafe near the Eiffel Tower and just soaked in the sun. It was fabulous! From there we headed to the Arc De Triomphe. We walked down a couple blocks of the Champs Elysees. Stopped again at cafe and had lunch. Went to the Galleria and headed back to the hotel.
Didn't sight see like crazy. Just keeping a slow pace and since both Mom and I have been here before just hanging out at cafes is perfectly fine with us.
Now, what to eat for dinner??
Leaving for home in the morning. Looking forward to seeing hubby and dog. Miss them both and miss our routine. I miss the cold nose of the dog waking me at 7am for his morning pee trip and smell of hubby's cologne in the morning.
Paris fits like an old glove. You start to remember how wonderful the food really is, how beautiful everything seems to be and how easily it would be to fall in love with a city.
We got to the hotel in the evening. We (I mean Mom) dropped off the bags in the room and off to dinner we went. Our hotel is surrounded by restaurants it was hard to pick one. We asked our front desk clerk but he just moved to Paris from London and was no help. So we just walked into one. We were ushered over to a small table by the window. Mom and I agreed it would be very romantic is you were with your spouse. We order a 3 course meal, when in Paris eat, that's what I say! First, French onion soup. Oh those French can make onion soup! Second, I had duck. Traditional French cooked duck. It was last supper good. Mom had this amazing piece of steak with the most decadent bearnaise sauce. Dessert, portfolios. It came out in a huge soup bowl, 3 portfolios with huge scoops of homemade icecream in each one then on the side hot chocolate sauce! We needed wheelchairs to get home, we were stuffed. Happy but stuffed. Sleep came very easy for us, full bellies and dreams of our day in Paris.
We arose early and got dressed. Since I don't want to raise my heart rate we took the subway everywhere today. Mom and I are so good at the subway. Super proud of our skills, it all about teamwork. We started out at Norte Dame and to then Eiffel Tower. We sat for awhile at cafe near the Eiffel Tower and just soaked in the sun. It was fabulous! From there we headed to the Arc De Triomphe. We walked down a couple blocks of the Champs Elysees. Stopped again at cafe and had lunch. Went to the Galleria and headed back to the hotel.
Didn't sight see like crazy. Just keeping a slow pace and since both Mom and I have been here before just hanging out at cafes is perfectly fine with us.
Now, what to eat for dinner??
Leaving for home in the morning. Looking forward to seeing hubby and dog. Miss them both and miss our routine. I miss the cold nose of the dog waking me at 7am for his morning pee trip and smell of hubby's cologne in the morning.
Goodbye Czech
We left the Czech Republic on Wednesday afternoon, with a little drama. There is always some type of drama with the girls in my family so it was only fitting that our trip had some. It went down like this:
We had a nice relaxing morning in Prague. Mom had a bath and I laid in bed for hours watching German MTV. Yes, the only English on the TV in the Czech Republic was the German MTV. It was all English with German subtitles. So odd. I watched the top music videos in Germany for 2009, those Germans have an odd taste for cheesy pop.
Since our flight was at 3 we just had a causal afternoon walking around the monastery which is the backyard of the hotel. After about 30 min of that we got cold and headed back to the hotel and sat in the sun room. We lost track of time and the next thing we knew the front desk staff was searching for us. Our prearranged car had arrived to take us to the airport. Frantically we head back to the room and get our bags. Poor Mom is doing all the leg work with the bags since I can't carry anything heavy. So hard to just stand there as she works with the luggage. So, after getting all our bags we get into the car and off to the airport we went. The airport was really nice and clean. We get past security and decided to have some lunch. At the sandwich shop we spot bacon flavored chips! We had seen commercials for this odd chip in Brno and now was our chance to try it. BAD IDEA! Smelled and tasted like dog food. But this bag of chips is what brought the drama. We wanted to take a picture of them, I mean its not everyday you eat bacon chips. Well Mom searched her bag, looked up and said she couldn't find her camera! We searched everything, panic sets it. She realizes she left it in the sun room at the hotel. Oh goodness! Many attempts to contact the hotel with the few coins we had left we finally got a hold of them. The camera was there. The thoughts of lost memories faded but then the realization that we were headed to Paris without a camera. Mine was broken so we had nothing to fall back on! This is where ideas are hatched, desperation. We ended up having the hotel put the camera in a taxi and having the taxi driver come to the airport. Genius! We got our camera, got to the plane with plenty of time and headed to Paris. *sigh of relief*
Goodbye Czech, you were good to me. I hope the next time I see you it is for pleasure only.
We had a nice relaxing morning in Prague. Mom had a bath and I laid in bed for hours watching German MTV. Yes, the only English on the TV in the Czech Republic was the German MTV. It was all English with German subtitles. So odd. I watched the top music videos in Germany for 2009, those Germans have an odd taste for cheesy pop.
Since our flight was at 3 we just had a causal afternoon walking around the monastery which is the backyard of the hotel. After about 30 min of that we got cold and headed back to the hotel and sat in the sun room. We lost track of time and the next thing we knew the front desk staff was searching for us. Our prearranged car had arrived to take us to the airport. Frantically we head back to the room and get our bags. Poor Mom is doing all the leg work with the bags since I can't carry anything heavy. So hard to just stand there as she works with the luggage. So, after getting all our bags we get into the car and off to the airport we went. The airport was really nice and clean. We get past security and decided to have some lunch. At the sandwich shop we spot bacon flavored chips! We had seen commercials for this odd chip in Brno and now was our chance to try it. BAD IDEA! Smelled and tasted like dog food. But this bag of chips is what brought the drama. We wanted to take a picture of them, I mean its not everyday you eat bacon chips. Well Mom searched her bag, looked up and said she couldn't find her camera! We searched everything, panic sets it. She realizes she left it in the sun room at the hotel. Oh goodness! Many attempts to contact the hotel with the few coins we had left we finally got a hold of them. The camera was there. The thoughts of lost memories faded but then the realization that we were headed to Paris without a camera. Mine was broken so we had nothing to fall back on! This is where ideas are hatched, desperation. We ended up having the hotel put the camera in a taxi and having the taxi driver come to the airport. Genius! We got our camera, got to the plane with plenty of time and headed to Paris. *sigh of relief*
Goodbye Czech, you were good to me. I hope the next time I see you it is for pleasure only.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Mom and Prague, a very good combo.
So back in Prague, this time with Mom. And this time to head home. We got here around noon and took a cab to our amazing hotel. One of the many perks of having a travel agent mother is her great connections to amazing hotels at amazing prices. We are staying at the Crowne Plaza at the Prague Castle. Best location for me since we are on top of the hill and can easily walk down without any physical excursion to all the major sites. And when we were done we just took a cab back to the top. I am trying to stay very mellow for the next couple of weeks. No lifting of heavy objects, no walking up long flights of stairs, just trying to keep my heart rate normal and attitude positive. Staying positive in Prague is so easy for me to do. I love this city, this may be my favorite European city. Everywhere you turn there is something unique to look at. The buildings, churches and food are so different and wonderful. Plus the exchange rate is very nice! It reminds me of Paris without the pretentiousness.
I took Mom across the Charles Bridge and into old town. There were a lot of highschool tour groups from Italy around this afternoon, which made Mom and I laugh at some of the outfits. It was freezing today, and the highschool girls were in skirts and tights with knee high boots...so silly! Oh to look good at 16 is very important, so much more important then body temperature.
My favorite part of the day was going to the top of the astronomical clock in old town. We learned they had an elevator to the top so up we went. I am huge baby when it comes to heights so it freaked me out. We got some great pictures but I can't show them on the blog yet until Mom gets home, darn broken camera! Here's a picture from the internet of the clock. We were at the top!
Something out of Disney!
After our walk around old town back to the hotel we went. Our hotel is next to a monastery which has a restaurant attached. The lady at the front deck of the hotel said the monks made the food but I think she was pulling our legs because the guys serving us didn't look like monks but then again we saw a nun on the train today with a cell phone and travel backpack on. The times they are a changing.
Off to an early bed time. I am taking medicine three times a day that is helping my body accept the embryos. Almost like tricking your body to thinking it was already pregnant. Well, the side affects are symptoms of early pregnancy. I am so sleepy!! I need naps during the day! Mom has her ambien and I have my baby pills and together it's a musical symphony of snoring.
Hopefully we will have an internet connection in our Paris hotel so I can blog tomorrow. To get ready for Paris, Mom and I watched French Kiss. Great movie with Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline. My Mom, sister and I quote this movie ALL the time.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Dr. McDreamy
There have been requests for a picture of McDreamy. I was to chicken to let Mom take my picture with him on Sunday so we found a picture of him on the internet. It's not the best picture and doesn't really capture his sweetness.
Best doctor EVER!
The big day!! Transfer Day!!
So we woke up early and got ready for the big day, TRANSFER DAY! How do dress for being implanted with your babies? Formal wear, it's a big deal, you want the kids to know how serious this is. Casual wear, you want your kids to know your a casual kinda girl. I decided for sweats, since I was just heading to bed right afterward. I think the kids will understand, their mom is practical. So after practical wear was decided off we went.
Dr. McDreamy was there and was ready to start. He showed us a report of the embryos, almost like a report card. My embryos were A+ students, gold stars for them! He was very happy with their progress and was very optimistic about the procedure and the implantation. So we were taken into the operation room, Mom got to come too. There was a TV in the room and we got to see the embryos. It was truly amazing. There they were, everything that we have been trying so hard to get. On that TV screen was a part or me and a part of my husband. If I wasn't so uncomfortable on that table I would of cried more. After the transfer we got to see the embryos again via ultrasound. It was so amazing, the little things on the screen were now inside, in their little home. We put in two embryos, don't worry I don't want a reality show. The doctor was so funny during the transfer he said "okay, I put in one blue one and pink one" of course he was joking you can't tell the gender at a day 3 transfer. I also said "oh that hurts" and then he would say "it doesn't hurt me". Most Europeans say my name without the A sound at the beginning. They really over pronounce the E. ME-lissa. So the doctor would say "Relax, MEEE-lissa" Always makes me laugh.
So after the transfer we went back to the apartment and had a day of bed rest. We got a little stir crazy laying there all day but we managed, it was for a good cause! We will take it easy today and tomorrow. Trying not to disturb the little ones as they are trying to attach. There are a lot of rules after the transfer. No heavy lifting, no bath tubs, no aerobatic exercise. They want you to wait tell after you hear a heart beat before you start living "normally" again.
Gee no vacuuming or heavy lifting for 2 months, I can handle that! Kids and only light housekeeping, my vacation just keeps getting better and better!
Dr. McDreamy was there and was ready to start. He showed us a report of the embryos, almost like a report card. My embryos were A+ students, gold stars for them! He was very happy with their progress and was very optimistic about the procedure and the implantation. So we were taken into the operation room, Mom got to come too. There was a TV in the room and we got to see the embryos. It was truly amazing. There they were, everything that we have been trying so hard to get. On that TV screen was a part or me and a part of my husband. If I wasn't so uncomfortable on that table I would of cried more. After the transfer we got to see the embryos again via ultrasound. It was so amazing, the little things on the screen were now inside, in their little home. We put in two embryos, don't worry I don't want a reality show. The doctor was so funny during the transfer he said "okay, I put in one blue one and pink one" of course he was joking you can't tell the gender at a day 3 transfer. I also said "oh that hurts" and then he would say "it doesn't hurt me". Most Europeans say my name without the A sound at the beginning. They really over pronounce the E. ME-lissa. So the doctor would say "Relax, MEEE-lissa" Always makes me laugh.
So after the transfer we went back to the apartment and had a day of bed rest. We got a little stir crazy laying there all day but we managed, it was for a good cause! We will take it easy today and tomorrow. Trying not to disturb the little ones as they are trying to attach. There are a lot of rules after the transfer. No heavy lifting, no bath tubs, no aerobatic exercise. They want you to wait tell after you hear a heart beat before you start living "normally" again.
Gee no vacuuming or heavy lifting for 2 months, I can handle that! Kids and only light housekeeping, my vacation just keeps getting better and better!
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Wienerschnitzel and apple strudel
On Saturday Mom and I got on the early morning train to Vienna! It's about an hour and 45 minutes away from Brno. It was an easy train ride and the train itself was really nice. We went through the country side of southern Czech and the northern part of Austria and I have to say it looks like the farms lands of Parma, Idaho. Just a lot of acres being used for farming. So it was easy to take a cat nap when you have seen Parma before.
When we got off the train we got onto Vienna's above ground city railway system. Vienna has both underground and above ground tracks. The city has so many options for public transportation and Mom and I bought a day pass to use all of them. It was a little confusing at first but we managed to get where we needed to be. By the time we made it to the city center we were very hungry for lunch. I really wanted a traditional Vienna meal, wienerschnitzel! We found a place not far from the truly overwhelming church in the middle of the square. I ordered wienerschitzel (which is a piece of veil pounded down into a thin circle and then breaded and cooked) When it came out it was overflowing the plate, which I think is common place for the restaurants to do. It was so good! I mean, really good! And the restaurant had a salad bar so I was able to get a salad! Hard to find salad in Brno, every side dish is potato, never thought I would say this being from Idaho, but I am sick of potato!! Mom had a piece of roasted chicken with veggies cooked in bacon, so good!
After lunch we toured the church:
look at the roof top, so odd and great:
Since we only had a few hours in Vienna before we had to catch the train back to Brno we decided to maximize our time. We got on a hop on, hop off buss and toured the city. What an interesting city, full of musical history and art. It's also a very clean city.
Here are some pictures:
So Vienna loves their coffee shops. The Viennese people believe the coffee shop is an extension to their living room, I would need a belt extension if I lived in Vienna, the candies they sell at these coffee shops are almost to hard resist!
So I had wienerschnitzel for lunch now I needed to end my trip to Vienna with their famous desert, apple strudel. And oh my goodness it didn't disappoint! Just look at the picture!! Mom got a creamed filled pastry that melted in your mouth.
After all that sugar it was time to go back to Brno. We took the underground subway and then found the right train to get us back home. I was so proud of us and how well we figured the train lines out. We got to the apartment around 9pm did the round of Skype calls and then went to bed. We had a big morning: transfer day!!
*side note* camera broke so no more pictures of the blog tell I get back to Seattle. Mom's camera does not hook up to my lap top :(
When we got off the train we got onto Vienna's above ground city railway system. Vienna has both underground and above ground tracks. The city has so many options for public transportation and Mom and I bought a day pass to use all of them. It was a little confusing at first but we managed to get where we needed to be. By the time we made it to the city center we were very hungry for lunch. I really wanted a traditional Vienna meal, wienerschnitzel! We found a place not far from the truly overwhelming church in the middle of the square. I ordered wienerschitzel (which is a piece of veil pounded down into a thin circle and then breaded and cooked) When it came out it was overflowing the plate, which I think is common place for the restaurants to do. It was so good! I mean, really good! And the restaurant had a salad bar so I was able to get a salad! Hard to find salad in Brno, every side dish is potato, never thought I would say this being from Idaho, but I am sick of potato!! Mom had a piece of roasted chicken with veggies cooked in bacon, so good!
After lunch we toured the church:
look at the roof top, so odd and great:
Since we only had a few hours in Vienna before we had to catch the train back to Brno we decided to maximize our time. We got on a hop on, hop off buss and toured the city. What an interesting city, full of musical history and art. It's also a very clean city.
Here are some pictures:
So Vienna loves their coffee shops. The Viennese people believe the coffee shop is an extension to their living room, I would need a belt extension if I lived in Vienna, the candies they sell at these coffee shops are almost to hard resist!
So I had wienerschnitzel for lunch now I needed to end my trip to Vienna with their famous desert, apple strudel. And oh my goodness it didn't disappoint! Just look at the picture!! Mom got a creamed filled pastry that melted in your mouth.
After all that sugar it was time to go back to Brno. We took the underground subway and then found the right train to get us back home. I was so proud of us and how well we figured the train lines out. We got to the apartment around 9pm did the round of Skype calls and then went to bed. We had a big morning: transfer day!!
*side note* camera broke so no more pictures of the blog tell I get back to Seattle. Mom's camera does not hook up to my lap top :(
Friday, February 26, 2010
The bat phone.
So My IVF Alternative gave me a cell phone when we arrived. It has all the numbers we need. Like my coordinator Barbora, the clinic and a very special number call "Embrya". After the transfer this is the magic number you call to check in on your embryos. I find this very humorous, like someone is babysitting my embryos and I am calling to check in on them. You call everyday between the hours of 1pm - 2pm until your implantation day which mine will be on Sunday morning. Well I called today from the Brno mall to check in. I gave the lady my name and she told me how many survived fertilization, 75% in my case. She also told me they look good and that everything was fine. Mom and I did our little happy dance and the positivity just pours out of us now. We were walking home from our errands and I said to my Mom how odd it was that just blocks away from our apartment my little embryos are being kept safe. Like they are at the babysitters or something. When you wrap your brain around it, if you can, it's so wonderfully odd. I jumped on the computer and called the hubby, you could hear how excited he was and how happy the number made him. It's just such a joyous moment to know that all that pain and suffering and all the waiting there's finally such good news. I made the round of calls to the sister, Dad, Mom-in-law, sister-in-law and spread the news like it was wildfire. Like in my favorite movie, The Wizard of Oz, right after Dorothy kills the witch with her house.. the little munchkins proclaim:
"Let the joyous news be spread the wicked witch at last is dead" in my case I proclaim: "Let the joyous news be spread the infertility witch at last is dead"
( and that in a nutshell is how much brain works )
I know the journey isn't over now, but wow good news feels amazing!
Internet cafes and no torture dungeons
While Mom is in the bath I thought I would blog about the first day she was here. I was so sleepy after that day I couldn't even form sentences so I will try now.
It started with having lunch with hubby and then sending him off to go home (which by the way I talked to him last night and he made it safe and sound). From lunch we needed to find an internet cafe. We have internet in the apartment but no printer or scanner. My parents are moving to Florida and are buying a new house so there is a lot of paperwork that my Mom needs to sign and then scan and send back to Dad. Took us 2 hours to find a internet cafe!!! Every coffee shop, McDonalds, hotel has WiFi access but again no printer or scanner. Finally, we found one in the middle of the city inside the mall. A 2 hour adventure for about 5 minutes of work. Oh well, we got it done which is all that matters. We have to go find that cafe again today because there is more paperwork for her to sign and resend back to the states.
I really wanted to go the castle on top of the hill that over looks the city. Only way to get to the top is walk the really steep hill.
Here's a picture of Mom at the top:
Here's a picture of the castle:
The castle itself is closed for the winter but the dungeon/prison was open. Of course I wanted to do that. We got our handout and off we went. The prison was in use the in 17th century and crammed a lot of people into the small caves below. There would of been no natural light inside and some of the rooms are so terrible that the average life span of someone inside was mere months.
Here's a freaky picture of Mom, she moved as was taking the picture and it made her appear double.
Half way through the self guided tour Mom and I started to laugh at the handout they gave us. It was so politically correct it was humorous. The handout would never admit that torture took place in the prison, everything was made up stories. Nothing terrible EVER happened there. So they use dummies to model some the prisoners to give you and idea and stuff. Well below is a picture of a what the handout calls a "recreation room".
Mom asked if by recreation they meant tanning bed room?
There were also caves that had the blots they used to tie up prisoners, the kitchen that only cooked only 3 hot meals a week, the lack of sun and sanitation.. your right that's not torture. There was also a room where "legend" has it adulterous women were tied and slow dripping water would land on there head driving them mad. Like a gothic early 17th century version of water boarding. Yep, no torture at that prison!
After the nicest dungeon in recorded history Mom and headed over to the huge gothic cathedral in the middle of the city. The same one hubby and I went too but now it was Mom's turn. There was hardly any other tourist around and so the lady that works at the church gave us an impromptu tour. It was so crazy, she took us to the top of the alter where the priest stands and into the private dressing room of the priest. If you are Catholic you know how crazy that would be to have that kind of access to the church. Mom and I think she was really bored and wanted to practice her english on us. She told us EVERYTHING about the church, no statue unexplained no picture left out. It was really an amazing experience.
Here's Mom at the stairs leading away from the church into the main square.
After all that walking and sightseeing we went to the grocery store and got the stuff we needed for Mom to make a nice pasta dinner.
oh looks, like she's ready now.. off we go to find that internet cafe again.
It started with having lunch with hubby and then sending him off to go home (which by the way I talked to him last night and he made it safe and sound). From lunch we needed to find an internet cafe. We have internet in the apartment but no printer or scanner. My parents are moving to Florida and are buying a new house so there is a lot of paperwork that my Mom needs to sign and then scan and send back to Dad. Took us 2 hours to find a internet cafe!!! Every coffee shop, McDonalds, hotel has WiFi access but again no printer or scanner. Finally, we found one in the middle of the city inside the mall. A 2 hour adventure for about 5 minutes of work. Oh well, we got it done which is all that matters. We have to go find that cafe again today because there is more paperwork for her to sign and resend back to the states.
I really wanted to go the castle on top of the hill that over looks the city. Only way to get to the top is walk the really steep hill.
Here's a picture of Mom at the top:
Here's a picture of the castle:
The castle itself is closed for the winter but the dungeon/prison was open. Of course I wanted to do that. We got our handout and off we went. The prison was in use the in 17th century and crammed a lot of people into the small caves below. There would of been no natural light inside and some of the rooms are so terrible that the average life span of someone inside was mere months.
Here's a freaky picture of Mom, she moved as was taking the picture and it made her appear double.
Half way through the self guided tour Mom and I started to laugh at the handout they gave us. It was so politically correct it was humorous. The handout would never admit that torture took place in the prison, everything was made up stories. Nothing terrible EVER happened there. So they use dummies to model some the prisoners to give you and idea and stuff. Well below is a picture of a what the handout calls a "recreation room".
Mom asked if by recreation they meant tanning bed room?
There were also caves that had the blots they used to tie up prisoners, the kitchen that only cooked only 3 hot meals a week, the lack of sun and sanitation.. your right that's not torture. There was also a room where "legend" has it adulterous women were tied and slow dripping water would land on there head driving them mad. Like a gothic early 17th century version of water boarding. Yep, no torture at that prison!
After the nicest dungeon in recorded history Mom and headed over to the huge gothic cathedral in the middle of the city. The same one hubby and I went too but now it was Mom's turn. There was hardly any other tourist around and so the lady that works at the church gave us an impromptu tour. It was so crazy, she took us to the top of the alter where the priest stands and into the private dressing room of the priest. If you are Catholic you know how crazy that would be to have that kind of access to the church. Mom and I think she was really bored and wanted to practice her english on us. She told us EVERYTHING about the church, no statue unexplained no picture left out. It was really an amazing experience.
Here's Mom at the stairs leading away from the church into the main square.
After all that walking and sightseeing we went to the grocery store and got the stuff we needed for Mom to make a nice pasta dinner.
oh looks, like she's ready now.. off we go to find that internet cafe again.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Momma Hen meets Golden Retrieval Day!
Today was the day I sat on some straw and like a good momma hen I laid my eggs. No not really..but seriously there were moments this past week I would of given ALL my Czech money to lay the eggs. But instead I let Dr. McDreamy help out. I didn't think he was that McDreamy but Mom did so, that's his new blog name. Dr. McDreamy was so nice and so reassuring about everything. He spoke perfect english as did all the nurses. I couldn't of asked for better treatment. In fact the whole procedure from the moment I was taken out of our private room was all of 10 minutes!
Here is a picture of the room. Such a big room, with two chairs to the side and huge bathroom with shower ( not pictured )
When they walked me to the examining room everything was set just like my past fertility surgeries in the states. I laid on the bed and next to me was Peter, my anesthesiologist. I told Peter I had bad veins and good luck, before I could even finish the word luck he was done...I immediately felt the drugs, my face started to tingle and I looked at Dr. McDreamy and said I was not enjoying this feeling. He told me to just relax and have a good dreams.
And I did... two of the them, one was of Vienna and the other of the hubby. Felt like I was out for hours. But Mom said I was gone for only 10 minutes! I was laid on the bed in our room and I started to feel a lot of cramping that took about 10 minutes to pass. After the cramping had passed I felt amazing. It was so odd! Mom didn't really believe me at first, so odd to have the drugs wear off so fast and to feel so good after surgery. I think it was the after procedure snack they leave at your bedside, chocolate and cranberry tea makes anyone feel better!
The only issue happened when the nurse came wanting some blood to test for infection. Well, my bad veins proved themselves again. 5 pokes and tries on one arm and 1 poke in another they had their blood. The nurse was so funny, she said something like, 'a woman with no blood, amazing'
Mom and I went to lunch and had a really rich traditional Czech lunch. Ate WAY too much and half way through the meal my 'I feel great' attitude slowly went down hill. Walking back to the apartment from the restaurant was a challenge, slow and steady. We took about an hour nap and that's when the 'I feel great' attitude totally died, I was in misery! Looking back I think I was slowly coming off the medication and my body was not having a very good time doing it. Everything seemed so sore and stiff, nausea and all around misery. And that huge lunch wasn't making anything better. Mom called the doctor to ask if I could take pain medication and he said Ibuprofen would help. My amazing Mom went off to the nearest pharmacist and got me tablets. They call pills tablets here. Took the tablets, called my sister for distraction and about an hour later I was back to normal. Still a little sore but no more stiffness or nausea. YAY! It's nice to have your Mom around when your sick, there's something special about her that makes being sick almost easier.
I think the rest of the evening will be just lounging around eating paprika chips and watching chick flicks!
*fingers are crossed* that the eggs are hatching well and that they survive the long and hard process of becoming embryos. The call to check in one them tomorrow will be nerve racking. But I am really positive and happy, everything will be okay.
Here is a picture of the room. Such a big room, with two chairs to the side and huge bathroom with shower ( not pictured )
When they walked me to the examining room everything was set just like my past fertility surgeries in the states. I laid on the bed and next to me was Peter, my anesthesiologist. I told Peter I had bad veins and good luck, before I could even finish the word luck he was done...I immediately felt the drugs, my face started to tingle and I looked at Dr. McDreamy and said I was not enjoying this feeling. He told me to just relax and have a good dreams.
And I did... two of the them, one was of Vienna and the other of the hubby. Felt like I was out for hours. But Mom said I was gone for only 10 minutes! I was laid on the bed in our room and I started to feel a lot of cramping that took about 10 minutes to pass. After the cramping had passed I felt amazing. It was so odd! Mom didn't really believe me at first, so odd to have the drugs wear off so fast and to feel so good after surgery. I think it was the after procedure snack they leave at your bedside, chocolate and cranberry tea makes anyone feel better!
The only issue happened when the nurse came wanting some blood to test for infection. Well, my bad veins proved themselves again. 5 pokes and tries on one arm and 1 poke in another they had their blood. The nurse was so funny, she said something like, 'a woman with no blood, amazing'
Mom and I went to lunch and had a really rich traditional Czech lunch. Ate WAY too much and half way through the meal my 'I feel great' attitude slowly went down hill. Walking back to the apartment from the restaurant was a challenge, slow and steady. We took about an hour nap and that's when the 'I feel great' attitude totally died, I was in misery! Looking back I think I was slowly coming off the medication and my body was not having a very good time doing it. Everything seemed so sore and stiff, nausea and all around misery. And that huge lunch wasn't making anything better. Mom called the doctor to ask if I could take pain medication and he said Ibuprofen would help. My amazing Mom went off to the nearest pharmacist and got me tablets. They call pills tablets here. Took the tablets, called my sister for distraction and about an hour later I was back to normal. Still a little sore but no more stiffness or nausea. YAY! It's nice to have your Mom around when your sick, there's something special about her that makes being sick almost easier.
I think the rest of the evening will be just lounging around eating paprika chips and watching chick flicks!
*fingers are crossed* that the eggs are hatching well and that they survive the long and hard process of becoming embryos. The call to check in one them tomorrow will be nerve racking. But I am really positive and happy, everything will be okay.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
the heart continues to grow
I am surprised at how much a heart can love. How much of your being can be wrapped around the love you have with someone else. I know you can experience this love in many different ways. The love of a spouse or partner, the love of parent to child, child to parent, siblings, friendships and even pets. Tonight I am surprised at how much I miss hubby. It's not a normal miss, like 'see you soon' miss. It's a 'I am not a whole person in this journey', miss. And this miss started last night when we were laying in bed and I could feel his energy and how worried he was for me and how much he longed to stay with me. Giving me travel pointers "Melissa, keep your head up", "don't put your money in the same place as your credit card", "relax, don't forget to breathe".
When I was around 20 I remember talking to my Mom about marriage. I can't remember what brought the conversation to this statement but I have never forgot her words. She told me that couples that have had times of struggle together, stay together. To struggle with your spouse, to be a team and work together to either make the rent, loss of family, or just have hard times seems to make the bond between spouses stronger.
I saw her logic in this and agreed but I never really understood it until this week. I feel so connected to hubby during this process and I feel so bonded by our struggle to have a baby. It makes his leaving that much harder...
In 45 minutes it will be midnight in Brno. No food or drink for me until after the procedure. ( I never eat this late, but because there is a time frame my tummy is making noses ) The time is so close now. I felt no stress until now, because the real process starts. Now it's out of my control. There is nothing more I can do. I have to wait and wait and wait. It's up to the eggs now.. I am told to expect only 40% to survive the first 2 days of 'hatching'. Again I hear my hubby's voice "Melissa, you only need one" I am going to trying to relax, know it's out of my hands now. Know that I am on the path that is right for me and my husband and remember what will be will be and I am okay.
When I was around 20 I remember talking to my Mom about marriage. I can't remember what brought the conversation to this statement but I have never forgot her words. She told me that couples that have had times of struggle together, stay together. To struggle with your spouse, to be a team and work together to either make the rent, loss of family, or just have hard times seems to make the bond between spouses stronger.
I saw her logic in this and agreed but I never really understood it until this week. I feel so connected to hubby during this process and I feel so bonded by our struggle to have a baby. It makes his leaving that much harder...
In 45 minutes it will be midnight in Brno. No food or drink for me until after the procedure. ( I never eat this late, but because there is a time frame my tummy is making noses ) The time is so close now. I felt no stress until now, because the real process starts. Now it's out of my control. There is nothing more I can do. I have to wait and wait and wait. It's up to the eggs now.. I am told to expect only 40% to survive the first 2 days of 'hatching'. Again I hear my hubby's voice "Melissa, you only need one" I am going to trying to relax, know it's out of my hands now. Know that I am on the path that is right for me and my husband and remember what will be will be and I am okay.
The hubby left but Mom is here!
The tears did come this afternoon when saying good bye to the hubby. Just so hard to say goodbye to him. I really can't even blog about it right now, don't want to go there. Trying to stay positive for my retrieval tomorrow. 8am!!!
Mom got here safe and sound yesterday. Having her here is like a breath of fresh air. We walked around the city after saying our goodbyes to hubby. We both think we got some sun on our checks after all that walking. I know I am super sleepy right now and think I will have to tell you tomorrow about the politically correct dungeon we went too.
Mom told me about all the people she knows who are reading the blog and it made me feel happy people are interested in our journey. Just wanted to say that I can feel all the well wishes being sent my way and I thank everyone for their support and positive thoughts!
Mom got here safe and sound yesterday. Having her here is like a breath of fresh air. We walked around the city after saying our goodbyes to hubby. We both think we got some sun on our checks after all that walking. I know I am super sleepy right now and think I will have to tell you tomorrow about the politically correct dungeon we went too.
Mom told me about all the people she knows who are reading the blog and it made me feel happy people are interested in our journey. Just wanted to say that I can feel all the well wishes being sent my way and I thank everyone for their support and positive thoughts!
Monday, February 22, 2010
Waddling to the supermarket.
There was a shortage of beer and salad in our apartment. So we put on our shoes and walked to the supermarket. So on the way there I found a comfortable walking position, a waddle. Almost like a woman who's about 6 months pregnant. It's an odd feeling and I described this to the hubby. He asked me how I was going to handle pregnancy if I found this so uncomfortable. I thought about this for a minute and realized that when you become pregnant it's a slow process, 9 months. You slowly start to grow out, yes it gets uncomfortable but it doesn't happen over night. Well, with IVF it happens over night literally. In the morning your able to tie your shoes and then 5 hours later your asking your husband to help because you can't bend over without sharp pain. So looking forward to the retrieval and be able to save my waddling days for the months ahead.
I took some pictures of the supermarket:
Look at the price of beer, the conversion is about 50 Czech crown = $3
All the beautiful bread, costs almost less then a US penny:
check out, beer, coke and salad. So American.
Walking back to our apartment, the view of our street.
Third floor is us!
In Czech when someone tells you they are on the 2nd floor of a building they are really on the 3rd floor. They consider what we call the 1st floor the ground floor. So when we first arrived and Barbora showed us the apartment she said we were on the 2nd floor. While walking up the stairs with her I noticed we keep walking and then one flight later we arrived, it's the little things like this that keep me so entertained. I love all the little differences between us. It's just different enough to be amusing and fun to figure out. I am just really enjoying myself, everything is fun and interesting to me.
I took some pictures of the supermarket:
Look at the price of beer, the conversion is about 50 Czech crown = $3
All the beautiful bread, costs almost less then a US penny:
check out, beer, coke and salad. So American.
Walking back to our apartment, the view of our street.
Third floor is us!
In Czech when someone tells you they are on the 2nd floor of a building they are really on the 3rd floor. They consider what we call the 1st floor the ground floor. So when we first arrived and Barbora showed us the apartment she said we were on the 2nd floor. While walking up the stairs with her I noticed we keep walking and then one flight later we arrived, it's the little things like this that keep me so entertained. I love all the little differences between us. It's just different enough to be amusing and fun to figure out. I am just really enjoying myself, everything is fun and interesting to me.
A day with Barbora.
What a great day we had! Our appointment at the clinic went well and we are all ready for the egg retrieval at 8 am on the 25th!! Wow, it's getting so close.
After our appointment our local coordinator Barbora gave us a small driving tour of Brno and then took us out to a real Czech lunch. We had such a great time talking to her and ended up having an almost 3 hour lunch. She is so fantastic and funny. She is from a small town outside of Brno and just moved back after spending 5 years in London. We got along so well with her and after lunch she said she wished we lived here so we could be friends. She also answered a lot of the questions the hubby and I had about Czech life and culture. And then we answered all the questions she had about America. It will be a highlight of my adventure here in Brno.
Here us after lunch with Barbora, I made the bartender take our picture, which made both Barbora and the hubby laugh. I just want to remember her and how fantastic lunch had been!
Tomorrow my mom gets here!! It's so bittersweet. I am so excited to have my mom here and share this adventure with her but at the same time it means it's time for the hubby to return home. I can't think about that yet, it really makes me sad. I have such a fantastic hubby who has been so supportive through this whole process to see him leave half way through the journey makes it hard. But, I understand to have kids you need a job and he needs to get back to that job!
After our appointment our local coordinator Barbora gave us a small driving tour of Brno and then took us out to a real Czech lunch. We had such a great time talking to her and ended up having an almost 3 hour lunch. She is so fantastic and funny. She is from a small town outside of Brno and just moved back after spending 5 years in London. We got along so well with her and after lunch she said she wished we lived here so we could be friends. She also answered a lot of the questions the hubby and I had about Czech life and culture. And then we answered all the questions she had about America. It will be a highlight of my adventure here in Brno.
Here us after lunch with Barbora, I made the bartender take our picture, which made both Barbora and the hubby laugh. I just want to remember her and how fantastic lunch had been!
Tomorrow my mom gets here!! It's so bittersweet. I am so excited to have my mom here and share this adventure with her but at the same time it means it's time for the hubby to return home. I can't think about that yet, it really makes me sad. I have such a fantastic hubby who has been so supportive through this whole process to see him leave half way through the journey makes it hard. But, I understand to have kids you need a job and he needs to get back to that job!
Sunday, February 21, 2010
I was a Disney princess for a day.
Just got back from our overnight trip from Prague. I really wish that I could take everyone I ever knew to Prague. What an amazing city, what an unexpected surprise. When your a little girl you play make believe and your the princess. There is an evil queen, a great land and a handsome prince. Prague is the backdrop to all those fantasies. I was walking into the real life version of Disney. The opening scene in Cinderella, the clock tower awakes her, that clock tower and castle in that movie is the every day apartment in Prague. Yesterday I was a grown up princess touring the city of dreams with my handsome prince.
* I am going to put the pictures in small font and if you want to see a larger version just click the picture and it will open a new tab with a larger version on the picture*
Traveling by train from Brno to Prague is about 3 hours. The trains offer private rooms and general seating areas. They also had a dinning car.Below is a picture of our morning breakfast on the train. In the Czech, beer is cheaper then water. When you sit down at a restaurant or bar tap water costs money and it costs more then a beer. They also serve a lot of Fanta, which I LOVE!
When we got to Prague we went straight to our hotel. Our hotel was on a quite street away from most of the high traffic tourist areas. We also got a HUGE deal on the room. 4 star hotel room for a 2 star price. I mean, come on, look at the bed!!
As I mentioned in an earlier post I am starting to feel very uncomfortable and walking on cobble stone streets just isn't the best thing ever for my pain tolerance. Luckily I married a travel master who could figure out the Czech subway system and we managed to get from one point of interest to the next without much confusion. The first thing we did was head straight to the Prague castle. It sits on top of a huge hill over looking the entire city. Took FOREVER to walk up since we were going at Melissa's super slow uncomfortable pace. The hubby would keep reminding me that it would be well worth the effort of the stairs and when we got to the top he was right. The view, the castle, the church inside the caste, the changing of the guard, the everything was amazing!
Steps leading up to the castle:
View from top of stairs before entering the castle square:
Me underneath an arch that leads to the church:
The church: (they still have mass every Sunday at this church)
From the church we walked down to Charles Bridge. Which is a very famous bridge. It was once the only bridge connecting Prague from one side to the other. Now the bridge is for pedestrians only and there are statues every where you turn. Each statue has its own meaning and history. There is a statue that you rub and make a wish, can you guess what I wished for? There are also street charts selling art and jewelry. When we were walking across I think I heard every language in world. The bridge is such a melting pot of tourist, locals, and hippies. I LOVED IT!
This is us at the end of the bridge with the castle and church behind us:
The bridge lead us into old town, which was my favorite part of Prague. It was a large square with two gothic style churches mirroring each other. Restaurants, pubs and street vendors line the rest of the square. We got there around dusk and had dinner, which was fantastic, because Czech food is fantastic! Do like pork and potatoes? You like Czech food. A fan of beer, you'll be a fan of Czech!
When we came out of dinner it was night and at night they light up the square. So beautiful.
After that we went back to the hotel and had good nights sleep. I think I passed out around 8pm. In the morning we had a nice breakfast visited the Jewish square and headed back to Brno. On the train back to Brno I was reminded again how small the world really is...we went to the dinning car and order a round of drinks. A couple next to us heard our American accents and asked where we where from. We said Seattle.. they said Boise!! Turns out the guy went to St. Mark's school too (years ahead of me) and is the cousin of one of Charlie's good friends from highschool! If you are from Boise and went to the Catholics schools in the area you can play the 'do you know this family' game forever, which we did. How odd to be on a train in the middle of the Czech Republic and run into someone from Boise?!?! This world is so small!
Now we are back in our apartment. Going to skype (call for free) the family which has been such a fun thing to be able to do while so far away. Tomorrow is our second appointment at the clinic. My thoughts are positive and I know everything will be great. Tomorrow will decide all the timing for the next two weeks. My heart is so ready for this and I feel a glow with the hope of it all. I can't believe that each day brings us closer and closer to having our baby.
* I am going to put the pictures in small font and if you want to see a larger version just click the picture and it will open a new tab with a larger version on the picture*
Traveling by train from Brno to Prague is about 3 hours. The trains offer private rooms and general seating areas. They also had a dinning car.Below is a picture of our morning breakfast on the train. In the Czech, beer is cheaper then water. When you sit down at a restaurant or bar tap water costs money and it costs more then a beer. They also serve a lot of Fanta, which I LOVE!
When we got to Prague we went straight to our hotel. Our hotel was on a quite street away from most of the high traffic tourist areas. We also got a HUGE deal on the room. 4 star hotel room for a 2 star price. I mean, come on, look at the bed!!
As I mentioned in an earlier post I am starting to feel very uncomfortable and walking on cobble stone streets just isn't the best thing ever for my pain tolerance. Luckily I married a travel master who could figure out the Czech subway system and we managed to get from one point of interest to the next without much confusion. The first thing we did was head straight to the Prague castle. It sits on top of a huge hill over looking the entire city. Took FOREVER to walk up since we were going at Melissa's super slow uncomfortable pace. The hubby would keep reminding me that it would be well worth the effort of the stairs and when we got to the top he was right. The view, the castle, the church inside the caste, the changing of the guard, the everything was amazing!
Steps leading up to the castle:
View from top of stairs before entering the castle square:
Me underneath an arch that leads to the church:
The church: (they still have mass every Sunday at this church)
From the church we walked down to Charles Bridge. Which is a very famous bridge. It was once the only bridge connecting Prague from one side to the other. Now the bridge is for pedestrians only and there are statues every where you turn. Each statue has its own meaning and history. There is a statue that you rub and make a wish, can you guess what I wished for? There are also street charts selling art and jewelry. When we were walking across I think I heard every language in world. The bridge is such a melting pot of tourist, locals, and hippies. I LOVED IT!
This is us at the end of the bridge with the castle and church behind us:
The bridge lead us into old town, which was my favorite part of Prague. It was a large square with two gothic style churches mirroring each other. Restaurants, pubs and street vendors line the rest of the square. We got there around dusk and had dinner, which was fantastic, because Czech food is fantastic! Do like pork and potatoes? You like Czech food. A fan of beer, you'll be a fan of Czech!
When we came out of dinner it was night and at night they light up the square. So beautiful.
After that we went back to the hotel and had good nights sleep. I think I passed out around 8pm. In the morning we had a nice breakfast visited the Jewish square and headed back to Brno. On the train back to Brno I was reminded again how small the world really is...we went to the dinning car and order a round of drinks. A couple next to us heard our American accents and asked where we where from. We said Seattle.. they said Boise!! Turns out the guy went to St. Mark's school too (years ahead of me) and is the cousin of one of Charlie's good friends from highschool! If you are from Boise and went to the Catholics schools in the area you can play the 'do you know this family' game forever, which we did. How odd to be on a train in the middle of the Czech Republic and run into someone from Boise?!?! This world is so small!
Now we are back in our apartment. Going to skype (call for free) the family which has been such a fun thing to be able to do while so far away. Tomorrow is our second appointment at the clinic. My thoughts are positive and I know everything will be great. Tomorrow will decide all the timing for the next two weeks. My heart is so ready for this and I feel a glow with the hope of it all. I can't believe that each day brings us closer and closer to having our baby.
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