Share Some Love

Contessa over at Writing, Yarn, Pucks & Diapers could use some love from some been there, done that ladies (and men too, I guess, if you're out there).

In summary, she's a few days post miscarriage of a 7/8 week pregnancy and dealing with the emotional fall out. There are some wonderful comments already, but more love is always better, right?

(I'd submit to LFCA but I just introduced her to Stirrup Queens, so it might be too much just yet.)

What to Do? Daybed Edition

I may have mentioned once or twice or more (perhaps) that our bedroom was home to an elliptical and recumbent bike? And expressed the hope that I could enjoy their benefits just by virtue of sharing a room with them for hours a night? Yes? No? One can hope?

Anyway, the plan has been once those were moved to an alternate location (ie: the basement), then a daybed which has been residing in the basement would take their place. Well, the elliptical is half-way to the basement. All the lightweight parts have been removed and all that remains is the back-breaking base. The bike is soon to follow.

Of course, this means that we are that much closer to being able to move the daybed into our room, hurray!

But, as you can see from the picture below, the daybed is in need of some serious TLC. Well, at least when it comes to the fabric and cushions, both of which are around 40 years old. My mother had it covered and the back put on a few years before she and my dad got hitched in '73, it was in their living room until I moved out in '99, it spent a few years in my living area before DH and I got married in '02, and somewhere between '02 and '04 it got put into storage and then into the basement once we moved into the house.

(don't you just love the shiny silver background?)

The current fabric is a light tan wide-wale corduroy which was actually quite cozy before it suffered all the ravages of time. From a stylistic perspective, DH and I are not terribly fond of the shaping of the back cushions, and the round side bolsters have had it! The piece was originally open on both sides but my mom had the back put on to be more useful - it's 2-3" lower than the tops of the side rails.

The picture below shows where it will go against the windows in our room. To the left you can see the top of a cream club chair: not a good color choice as it turns out when you have two yakking cats! But the predominant colors are dark green and red with white walls. We had talked about painting the walls a light coffee a while back, but nothing came of it before the valances went up and there's no way they're coming down now!

(I adore the fabric on our bed and the valance!)

What I'm thinking is some sort of stripe, maybe, if I can find one which doesn't add too much contrast or clash with the red patterned fabric (there was a coordinating stripe but both were discontinued and I could only get enough of the pattern when I had the duvet, shams and curtains made). I'm contemplating having the cushion covers all be slipcovers so they can be washed. Which might be a problem because then they could fade or change and be obvious against the fixed fabric along the front. If not slipcovers, then something which can be spot treated in place with your normal everyday cleaning spray like Resolve, and not run or discolor like the fabric on our family room sofa does. (Note to self: Test colorfastness before making a final decision on fabric which will see lots of use and wear!) Gah. See, this is why I need your input!

Ideally this will be an area where I can eventually go to get away and/or for Little One to sleep if she needs to be in our room after a scary dream so she doesn't end up in bed with us. Therefore, besides the cleaning issue, I'm hoping for comfortable fabric which (a) doesn't act like a magnet for cat fur (see both commentary on club chair and family room sofa) or show every piece of fur, and (b) won't fade or discolor in sunlight since the back will face the windows and the curtains will be open from time to time; but I'm pretty open right now to any and all suggestions.

I KNOW some of you out there are terrific at decorating...I've admired the pictures you've posted of your own homes, so fire away...fabric suggestions, cushion shapes (and how many?), ...other accessories I should consider?

Seriously guys, I need all the help I can get!

Prayers / Advice Please! (Edited)

My cousin and his wife were expecting fraternal boy/girl twins with a due date in June.

They recently found out that the boy has some level of Trisomy issues - I have received the information 3rd hand, so I was told it's not Down's Syndrome, it may be 18 - and had to make some hard decisions. Apparently they had an appointment today at which action was taken. After a couple days of bed rest they will go back to make sure their daughter is still doing well.

Their baby shower was scheduled for this coming Saturday.

I really feel for them. It stinks to learn that fertility and healthy babies are not things to be taken for granted.

Fashion Update?

The other day I went out to do some last minute Christmas shopping. And came home with two pairs of skinny jeans for me.

Now, considering that (a) I've been rocking straight and boot cut jeans for forever, or at least since I stopped pegging my pants in high school lo those many years ago, and (b) that I don't typically keep up with fashion trends as well as I should (see A), I now have these jeans that make my ass look hot (or so my husband claims) and many questions about what shoes I should/could wear with them. I'm guessing it's not the Sebago loafers I wore with white socks and the acid washed jeans, huh?*

Three things to keep in mind, please: (1) I'm not a big fan of having my toe crack exposed, I like flats that come up a bit higher on my foot, (2) I am carting around an almost 6 month old (how did that happen?) so would like to be steady on my feet, and (3) despite my best hopes, my feet did not grow during pregnancy, so I am still wearing a size 5, which is not a common size for many manufacturers.

You have been given your mission, should you choose to accept it, please leave suggestions - either shoes or links to examples...and thank you for participating.





*Don't worry, those were disposed of long ago. Both the shoes and acid jeans.

Elephants, 3,000 Pound Gorillas, and Yesterdays News

All 3 are hard to ignore, but I'm trying.

But it's especially hard because today I feel like I'm experiencing the Reader's Digest version of the 2 week wait.

Distract me?


UPDATE:
Today's Beta - A Whopping 153!

Scary News - Any Connections Who Can Help?

A couple who are very close to my parents were traveling in Israel when he developed a blood clot in his brain. Their travel group left on Sunday, and their daughter is now with them. He is in the neurological ICU at the teaching hospital in Jerusalem, she and their daughter (who is a couple years younger than I) are in a hotel near the hospital.

Do you know anyone in the area who would be willing to be local support during this trying time?

As for other support, please keep this couple in your thoughts or add them to your local prayer group.

I hate to imagine my parents being so sick in this country, much less so far away from home.

Strange Dreams

I've had some odd dreams in the past week - and I'm not sure why. It's not like I've started taking any new meds that would mess with my brain.

The first and second were on the same night, the third was just last night. In two of the three dreams I was single and making out with / getting involved with a man other than DH. In neither dream was the other person someone I actually know. In the third dream (actually the first of the three) DH and I were throwing a party, which we never do, and so our interactions were limited to party host transactions.

I just wish I understood what my subconscious was trying to get across.

An Additional Something To Try

Saturday I added a 81mg aspirin to my existing morning pill regimen of pre-natal vitamin, fish oil, and glucosamine/chondroiten. Compared to the others, it is minuscule.

Despite my fond memories of the chewable orange flavored St. Joseph's brand I decided it wasn't worth upwards of ten extra dollars to go brand name for the same amount of pills as in the generic bottle.

I'm not exactly sure what the aspirin is supposed to do exactly, (I'm thinking it has to do with blood flow? I haven't checked Dr. Google yet, so if you know, feel free to impart your knowledge.) but it certainly can't hurt and will possibly help the next transferred embryo stick around for longer.

~~~~

I read another bloggers post last week about the decision that IVF was not for them. It really pushed my buttons; and in my comment, in addition to a reasonable statement, I said so using those words. That portion of my comment really inflamed some of the other commenter's which really surprised me. Apparently by saying that her words had pushed my buttons meant that I didn't respect her decisions and that I was speaking for the rest of the IVF readers. When what I meant was that what she had to say affected me negatively and rather than explode my issues all over her comments section I was refraining. Maybe not the smartest thing to write, but not a reflection or judgment on her decisions but my own reactions to how she wrote about them. It wasn't until I read those following comments that I realized that the loss of two weeks ago is probably still coloring some of my reactions as well as my own continuing love/hate feelings towards IVF.

I do enjoy her posts, so I will keep reading, but I don't think I'm going to comment again anytime soon. What would you think, if some one had written that you post pushed their buttons, in either your comments section or in the comments section of another blog? Was I out of line?

I've got a question for you...

Has anyone else out developed a serious case of chest and/or back-ne after taking tetracycline?

Or after a retrieval if your doctor has prescribed a different antibiotic?

It's got to be one or the other.

Who needs Geeks-R-Us?

Yesterday afternoon I mentioned to DH that I was trying to see if I could burn CD's through my laptop but store them on his computer/backup drive by using our home wi-fi network. I couldn't at the time.

Less than an hour later he figured out how to do it! How awesome is that?

Okay, for those who are more tech savvy than I it was probably nothing...but I thought it was pretty cool.

We're probably the last ones on the earth who haven't burned all of our CD's to computer, so now I can do that on my laptop while he's doing something on the other computer and not have to worry about transferring the music between the computers. I'm really looking forward to figuring out which songs I don't have so I can narrow down the options to take advantage of that e-gift cert I was given at Amazon.

For those of you who listen to their MP3 player through the car speakers, and don't have a USB port, what have you found gives the best sound quality? FM modulator? Tape-deck style? Or tearing apart the dash to jack into the back of the tuner?

Stat-Counter Question

Can anyone out there give me instructions to install a stat-counter?

Hint: The instructions need to be "for dummy's".

Thanks!

The Weekend of September 27th

DH will be in Chicago for work related reasons for the 2-weeks surrounding the weekend above.*

There's a chance his company will cough up the $ for a plane ticket so I can join him for the weekend. I'm not sure what the odds are, but it sure appeals to me.

Any suggestions of activities or restaurants we should explore, or DH should explore on his down-time?




*I need to start repeating to myself: I will not panic at DH spending two weeks away and leaving me responsible for all of the household responsibilities.

In Search Of: Magazine Files / Butlers / Storage

One of the things I did this past weekend was move my cookbooks out of the very useful, but small and overflowing bookcase they had been residing in for the past few years and into a larger china cabinet which came out of DH's grandmother's effects.

I also took advantage of an extra shelf to unbox our liquor collection (otherwise known as a bar) from the ABC store provided boxes they had been living in since we moved into the house (ahem, that would be over 4 years of cardboard boxes hiding in my breakfast area).

One thing I realized is I have many torn out recipes that I have not tried for one reason or another (usually the right occasion hasn't arrived, or I don't have all the ingredients at the time the recipe appealed to me) and quite a few cooking magazines from which I don't want to tear the recipes. So, I'm looking for two things: (1) cute magazine files in which I can store the full magazines for future reference (Fine Cooking and Cook's Illustrated), and (2) coordinating storage for my piles of torn out recipes.*

The problem is that I can't find any magazine holders I like that aren't way out of budget, or plastic, or metal. I've looked online at the usual suspects (Target - also in person, Office Depot, Staples, Ikea, Etsy...) Ideally I'd like either red or orange solids or some sort of cute pattern (which could include blues and greens, I just don't want those as the primary color facing out) in either fabric or paper(to minimize damage to the wood shelves in the cabinet). So far, I've found two I can live with but both are on the high end of what I'd like to pay (even before tax and shipping is considered).

What makes this especially frustrating is that I remember seeing patterns and colors I liked - when I wasn't looking for them!

Have you seen any magazine holders recently, and where?


*If you want to toss in any suggestions for organizing said recipes, I'm all ears! They are currently either: a. exploding out of a file pocket, b. waiting to be forced into said file pocket
, or c. in the kitchen on top of the china cabinet from when I pulled them out of the bookcase.

Cat & Mouse

In reality, while the cat's away, the mouse will play.
Cat = my boss
Mouse = me

Here's to an easy week while they are on vacation!

It's probably going to be quiet enough that I can read in between dealing with any issues.
(I hope I'm not jinxing myself.)

I plan to swing the library either this weekend or Monday at lunch to stock up on books. Any suggestions? There's one series which seems to be taking the blogging world by storm, but I can't remember the title (I think it's young adult fiction?). I'm a big fan of finding series for which all the books are already written. I'm such a fast reader that it's frustrating to wait a year (or months) for the next book to come out and then read it in a day or two.

Heck, I like most anything except books that make me cry or put me to sleep (dry factual histories, I'm looking at you!) or which have no satisfactory resolution by the end and just sort of fizzle out leaving the reader hanging.

I'm currently working my way through a paper grocery bag full of books my Mom picked up on the 75%-off day of her local library book sale. She just grabbed piles of books off the romance table and didn't look too closely, so it's a real surprise as to what's in there. The thing is, I'd rather save those for the beach and weekends away when I might damage or lose a book, and read library books at home or at work.

With out any suggestions, I'll probably wander the aisles of the library deciding which books to get based on the spine font and color. Whatever works, right?

A Hair Off

About 8-9 months ago I switched hair dressers. My hair seems to need a change of cut/style on a regular basis to keep looking its best. Don't get me wrong, I loved the vibe at my old salon, but I knew a little too much about my hair dresser and yet I wasn't close enough to say "you brought this on yourself." I got tired of biting my tongue when he complained about the issues in his life.

So I followed one of DH's then coworkers to her salon and hair dresser. And so far I have no complaints. (Any issues I've brought on myself...for future reference, never go to an unknown hair dresser, even if they are at the same salon, right before an important event if you want your hair to look good for more than the night. Trust me on this.) In fact, I would say the woman I'm going to now is pretty fabulous. Listens to my hair, listens to me, but puts more weight on the hair. I trust her to not cut my hair in a style that's not going to work for my hair or lifestyle, even if I really love the look.

Yesterday evening she did it again. Took my hair from limp and pathetic layers (she cut them, but they didn't work the way she & I thought) to a tres chic blunt cut bob which should grow out clean.

Of course, now that my hair looks really good, I'm noticing that my eyebrows could stand some shaping. I've always gone for the more natural/thicker Brooke Shields look, but I'm thinking it's time to go a little sleeker/more polished. Now I just need to find someone I trust to help with the transformation, because if left to my own plucking, there's no telling how bad it could get.

So, let me pick your brains... How did you transform your brows from full to sleek? Go to a salon? Trust a friend? DIY? Help a not-so-girly-girl out here!

Questions...

Is anyone else as bored by this infertility/pregnancy focus as I am? Because to me it feels like it's been going on forever (And ever. Amen.) with no forward progress. *

I wish I could flip a switch and turn off the mean voice in my head that says things like: "You're not getting any younger, why did you wait so long to start trying?" "Are you sure you timed everything properly?" "(Day 32) You're pregnant. (Day 33/1) Just kidding!" "Why didn't you do more research on the Depo?" "It's never going to happen."

I'd even like to silence the more hopeful one that sneaks in little thoughts like: "You could be." "Maybe this will be the month." (there aren't so many of these, and they are quickly silenced by the mean voice)

It would help to have something else to focus on, I hope.

So, do you have any questions I could answer for you? About me, or anything on which you happen to desire an answer (though I must admit the realm of nuclear physics is a bit beyond my grasp). I can be your very own personal Magic Eight Ball. But better.





*And by forward progress I mean either pregnancy or some plan of action that actually includes action and not just waiting to see if things happen naturally now that I appear to be ovulating on my own again.

Don't Clothes Me In!

The wonderful 70+ degree weather we've been experiencing has put me in the mood for some serious spring cleaning of my portion of the closet.

I know there are clothes in there I haven't worn for a year or 2 (or 5 or 8). But I've been holding onto them, Just In Case. And a certain amount of that is acceptable, given the size of our closet. [When we built our house we sacrificed a "homework" station in the hall and some of the hall bath to expand our closet. I have no complaints, and it's not crammed full as it is.]

But it is again time to take a good look at what I'm holding onto Just In Case and decide if it's something:
(a) That fits and that I will wear again on an irregular basis because it's a classic that will never go out of style,
(b) That fits but I'm not going to wear because it is so dated (that it's almost fashionable again),
(d) That is left over from my post-college weight days and is too large (and probably out of style even if it fit - which by the way would be really depressing),
(e) That is left over from my really skinny days and is too small (beyond the limits of what I could lose if I wanted to),
(f) That falls into the categories (b) - (e) but has sentimental value which overrides my urge to clean out the closet.

Anything in categories (b) - (e) really needs to be redistributed - probably to the local Amvets, or other thrift store which fund raises for a good cause. The rack of clothes in the basement from a prior clean-out(in my defense at one time I thought we could sell them, hah!), and the bag in DH's study of clothes we've discarded over this winter also need to be moved along. And the pile of shirts DH has discarded that I need to wash before donating them. DH has a habit of wearing a shirt once and then putting it back. This really skeezes me out but I haven't been able to break him of the habit, and it also means that I'm never sure if something he puts on the donate pile is clean.

There are also some clothes in the closet that need to be replaced due to wear (or because my ass has grown astronomically over this winter and there is no way I'll fit in them). This category includes the basics I wear at least once a week to work in the spring/summer/early fall, and casual clothes I wear on weekends/at the beach/etc.

I'm tired of walking into my closet and feeling like I have nothing to wear despite the amount of clothing in the closet. (Stacy and Clinton need to take on some cases where people have nice and appropriate clothing, but need an extra nudge to perk things up a bit.)

Here's the thing though. At the same time that I really want to get some new clothes, I don't really want to put a lot of money into some new clothes if I'm not going to be able to wear them for one reason or another (and then have to buy more). Bloat as part of fertility treatments or pregnancy come to mind; though it would be equally nice to change some of my fat weight for muscle weight. But that requires actually getting on the elliptical instead of sleeping next to it. When is someone going to discover the way to lose weight by osmosis?!

But I digress. I won't be doing any purchasing of new or replacement clothing until I get around to going through my closet (this weekend is already spoken for with mucho amounts of post-winter yard cleanup, and perhaps a birthday party for DH's ailing grandmother), so until then, what I really want to know is:

(1) What clothing do you wear week in and week out in the spring/summer/early fall? IE: What do you buy every year or two because you can't live without it?
(2) What has caught your eye this spring as something you want to get (or have already bought) to wear this spring/summer/early fall? This could be a trendy accessory or piece of clothing that will be dated by the end of the summer...

Hope you have a great weekend!

What to wear?

We are flying to Atlanta on Friday for the wedding of one of DH's cousins.

It's a 2pm wedding on Saturday, outside in a garden, and the current weather forecast is for low 70's and sun. But that could change. The reception is indoors at a different location.

Has anyone seen an outfit (dress, or separate top and skirt, or top and pants) which you would wear to an occasion like the above mentioned? Since we are flying, and planning to take public transportation from the airport to the hotel, I'd like to take just one outfit, plus accessories for warmer / cooler temperatures. Otherwise, I'd be all over the multiple outfits and decide when we get there option. (It's seriously too bad the wedding wasn't this summer because I have a strapless sun dress which would have been perfect. But I digress.)

One big condition: I don't like to wear black to a wedding even though I know it's now acceptable to do so. And a second important condition: I'd prefer something I could also wear to parties over the holidays. Third and final condition: Due to time constraints I'd like it to be at a local store, not out of a catalogue or only on-line.

Jeez. I don't ask for much, do I? Regardless, can you help a girl out?

The only outfit I own which meets those conditions is one I wore to the groom's sister's wedding last year. I think it would be a little much to wear the same outfit to both weddings, don't you?

If it helps, I'm petite with dark blond hair, and the only color other than black I won't consider is purple!

Umm, I forgot...

Where I left a comment last week on someone's blog about makeup counter vampires.

I thought it was one of the "usual" - but I've searched and searched and can't find it.

Is it you, or do you know who it was?

I know, I need to sign up for a feed so things like this don't happen.

But first I need to set up the new printer (for pictures only!) that I got for my birthday. Certain things really must take priority.

Come out, come out, where ever you are!

So, I've wandered around this morning and seen some wonderful posts asking questions about the readers, or reflecting on what it means to have readers, and am intimidated. I don't track any statistics or have a site counter, and I'm still learning about this, so bear with me.

I'd like to respond to every comment because I heart comments, and I heart you for taking the time to leave a comment, even when it's not an official "delurk" day, but I don't always get an email address with a comment - maybe that's just the way I've set up Blogger or the way Blogger is by itself? If any one has any suggestions for that (or statistics trackers, or site counters), I'd love to know. And if you can't leave me a comment for some reason, please send me an email to let me know, it's in my "About Me" profile, over there to the right.

If you don't have any knowledge about the technical aspects, how about we have a discussion about your and my favorite things about fall (and cooler weather)? I'll go first, 'k? I really am happy to have cooler weather coming because I get to wear different clothes - I'm tired of wearing my spring/summer clothing and sandals, and very ready to wear sweaters and cords, and jeans and boots.

Now back to that thing that helps pay my bills...