Of course all my venting before the trip was exaggerated. The first day was not so bad after all. We arrived at my BIL's house yesterday around 4:30 p.m. after sitting in traffic for what felt like a real long time. It actually took us about an hour to drive about 5 miles. The HOV lane didn't really help either. While we were overtaking a lot of cars first, cars started to pile up at the end of the HOV lane and of course it took forever.
We went to BIL's house and our nephew was cute as hell. He is not shy with his smiles. My MIL said to dh: "Give him to Yoka, so she can hold him. I can't wait until you get one of your own." This is the thing. She didn't realize how hurtful her comment was for me. She doesn't understand that we don't know when we'll have one of our own. It can take a freaking long time. And I know that she didn't want to hurt me. This is the thing about infertility. People make comments and don't even realize how much it hurts. And infertility makes you so sensitive to every single thing they say.
We went to my FIL's restaurant after that to say hi and ate a little something. We returned to my BIL's house after that and had a really nice evening. SIL made her famous macaroni and cheese and we had a nice conversation. They asked us about the adoption process and how long it was going to take. I wish I knew that. This is the thing: it is an equation with so many unknowns. I wish I knew when we will be done with our home study. I wish I knew when we will be done with our profile. I wish I knew if and when a birthmother might pick us.
The fingerprints are taken. the guardianship agreement is signed, notarized, and in the mail from our friends back to us. But of course it will arrive when we are not home. We'll have to wait until we come home to send it back to the agency.
My MIL brought the missing paperwork from NY for the home study. We mailed the rest of the paperwork on Friday night. When I went to pick up our mail, my driving record had arrived. I put that in the mail as well.
My driving recorded showed that I had a conviction for driving with an unlicensed vehicle. That happened in July. We had just gotten back from Europe and DH had to go down to Houston. I drove him to the airport in his car (it is technically his car because he bought it and my name is not on the title). On my way back home I was stopped by a cop. That was the first time that I was ever stopped in the US and I was pretty shocked. Virginia had just introduced the new law for reckless driving. I didn't think I had been going to fast, but who knows? The cop told me that he had stopped me because our license plates were expired. Great! I didn't even know that they do expire. Here I was, a foreigner sitting in hubbies car not knowing which papers I needed to hand to the cop. I only claim it is our car, if it is convenient. If the car has to go to the shop, it is usually his car. I tried crying. That didn't help. Being blond didn't help either. He was a mean, mean cop. He told me then it was just a paper offense and I shouldn't worry about it. He immediately gave me a court date. I was shocked. In Europe you don't have to go to court for a traffic ticket. The cop made me promise to take care of it the next day. He said if I could prove it to him in court, he would see that he could do for me. Needless to say that I had it all taken care of the next day (while my hubbie was in Houston, he never seems to be around for inconvenient business). I then thought, I will go to court and it will be alright. The cop will help me, he promised me.
I went to the court a couple of weeks later. It was kind of an interesting cultural experience. I had never been to a court in the U.S. before. I looked around for the officer and had asked other officers for him. He was not there. Great. When the judge called me, I went to the front. She asked me whether I was guilty of driving with expired license plates. I said "Yes. But I took care of it the next day." She reduced the fine to $10. I was really relieved. But when I went to pay, I had to pay the administrative fees as well and ended up with $75 less on our bank account. What do we learn from that experience? You can't even trust cops in this country.
DH plans to write his biography while we are down here. And tomorrow, we'll copy his driving record and mail it to the agency. Have I mentioned it was as white as a piece of paper?
Today we drove to the restaurant for breakfast and now it is 2:30 p.m. and we are still here. DH is playing darts with his dad. I know that he needs this time, but I am more or less bored here. I was doing a Soduko earlier and read blogs, but now I am starting to get really, really bored. It is always the same when we come here. We hang out at the restaurant all day and then we go out for dinner. But it is raining anyway, so who cares?
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Friday, December 21, 2007
More ramblings on Christmas
Before I head home from the office, I just wanted to give you a short update. The doctor's office actually managed to get all our paperwork ready and I picked it up this morning. Hubbie is getting his fingers printed right now. We might mail out the paperwork this afternoon. I am concerned it won't arrive there any time soon, but driving all the way to the agency in MD might be a little bit exaggerated.
I also send my application out today for the job of my dreams in Caracas. They are already negotiating with someone internally, but who knows. Maybe I'll still have a shot. I probably have an interview in February when I'm in Europe. I already talked to the personal chief.
So next week is Christmas and we will be heading down to North Carolina. We will stay with my FIL whom I love. We will be celebrating at my BIL's house. My MIL is coming there as well. I have mixed emotions how Christmas is going to be. My BIL's wife is very strange. I feel like she hates me. She is always friendly when we are down there, but after we leave it is like we don't exist. She never calls and doesn't seem to be interested in our lives at all. Until a couple of months ago, I used to call there once in a while. I stopped. She was screening my calls and didn't call back. I even deleted her phone number out of my cell phone. What is the point? She doesn't seem to care about my existence.
She knows about our struggles, but never, not even once, asked how I was doing. It is really weird. I was so happy to marry into this family, because I hoped to become friends with her. When I was growing up, there was no girl my age in our family. I always missed having a sister. I had so hoped we would be friends.
I also send my application out today for the job of my dreams in Caracas. They are already negotiating with someone internally, but who knows. Maybe I'll still have a shot. I probably have an interview in February when I'm in Europe. I already talked to the personal chief.
So next week is Christmas and we will be heading down to North Carolina. We will stay with my FIL whom I love. We will be celebrating at my BIL's house. My MIL is coming there as well. I have mixed emotions how Christmas is going to be. My BIL's wife is very strange. I feel like she hates me. She is always friendly when we are down there, but after we leave it is like we don't exist. She never calls and doesn't seem to be interested in our lives at all. Until a couple of months ago, I used to call there once in a while. I stopped. She was screening my calls and didn't call back. I even deleted her phone number out of my cell phone. What is the point? She doesn't seem to care about my existence.
She knows about our struggles, but never, not even once, asked how I was doing. It is really weird. I was so happy to marry into this family, because I hoped to become friends with her. When I was growing up, there was no girl my age in our family. I always missed having a sister. I had so hoped we would be friends.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Another thing to cross of the list
Yesterday morning we had the doctor's appointment with my RE for the adoption forms. Of course, they didn't have the test results from November from me, so I had to do it all over. We even did our TB test there. Tomorrow the results should be in and I will pick them up.
I also asked the doctor about my FSH level. He didn't seem too concerned as they are fluctuating. He told us the story of him being new in town many years ago. At that time most doctors wouldn't accept patients with high FSH levels. Because he was new, he had to accept them in order to generate some business. And he would see these patients get pregnant. I asked about the AMH test. AMH stands for Anti-Malaria-Hormone which is produced by the follicles. It is assumed that they would produce less if the ovarian reserve is limited. But what does it mean?
My RE doesn't think that all those levels indicate whether we can have children or not. But he was pretty sure that because I have had elevated FSH levels twice, I am more likely to start menopause earlier than the average woman. So instead of 51-53, it could be two years earlier or 10 years earlier. He doesn't know.
Hubbie is doing his fingerprints tomorrow. His employment letter arrived in the mail yesterday. Tomorrow afternoon we will mail all the paperwork we have collected so far to the agency.
And hubbie will work on his biography over Christmas. I can already see that won't be happening as we are going to North Carolina to see his family. We will spend our time with them and there won't be time to do the biography... We'll see. Hopefully before New Year's eve.
I called one adoption agency in Texas, but they haven't called me back yet. I also send them an email asking about how many families they have currently waiting and how many placements they do on average in a year. They wrote me back that I can find all their information on their homepage. I guess they don't want us as clients.
Because it was so much fun to do all this paperwork, I actually started to fill out the forms to apply for the U.S. citizenship.
On a different note: Homer is gone. I noticed that he wasn't at this usual bench for a couple of weeks now. His stuff was still there, so I wasn't too concerned first. I thought he must have just gone to get a coffee or something. When I didn't see him for a couple of days, I began to worry. Then one morning last week, I walked through the park and saw another homeless guy standing next to Homer's bench and stuff. I asked him whether he knew what had happened to Homer. And he told me was taking care of Homer's stuff and that he wasn't sure that Homer was still alive or not. He had been taken to the hospital because of the cold. I was shocked. I asked whether he knew his last name and of course, he didn't know it. And then I asked which hospital he should be in. He told me that he should be in George Washington Hospital a few blocks from here.
When I got to the office, I called GW Hospital to find out whether they could tell me something about Homer. Without a last name, there was no chance that he could be found they told me. I really wish I could visit him and see how he is doing. I am sure he doesn't have any visitors coming. I assume that being in the hospital, lying in a bed and getting served three meals a day is way better than to live in a park, especially when the weather is in the low 40ies. But I pray that he is doing alright. I miss him on my way to the Metro after work.
I also asked the doctor about my FSH level. He didn't seem too concerned as they are fluctuating. He told us the story of him being new in town many years ago. At that time most doctors wouldn't accept patients with high FSH levels. Because he was new, he had to accept them in order to generate some business. And he would see these patients get pregnant. I asked about the AMH test. AMH stands for Anti-Malaria-Hormone which is produced by the follicles. It is assumed that they would produce less if the ovarian reserve is limited. But what does it mean?
My RE doesn't think that all those levels indicate whether we can have children or not. But he was pretty sure that because I have had elevated FSH levels twice, I am more likely to start menopause earlier than the average woman. So instead of 51-53, it could be two years earlier or 10 years earlier. He doesn't know.
Hubbie is doing his fingerprints tomorrow. His employment letter arrived in the mail yesterday. Tomorrow afternoon we will mail all the paperwork we have collected so far to the agency.
And hubbie will work on his biography over Christmas. I can already see that won't be happening as we are going to North Carolina to see his family. We will spend our time with them and there won't be time to do the biography... We'll see. Hopefully before New Year's eve.
I called one adoption agency in Texas, but they haven't called me back yet. I also send them an email asking about how many families they have currently waiting and how many placements they do on average in a year. They wrote me back that I can find all their information on their homepage. I guess they don't want us as clients.
Because it was so much fun to do all this paperwork, I actually started to fill out the forms to apply for the U.S. citizenship.
On a different note: Homer is gone. I noticed that he wasn't at this usual bench for a couple of weeks now. His stuff was still there, so I wasn't too concerned first. I thought he must have just gone to get a coffee or something. When I didn't see him for a couple of days, I began to worry. Then one morning last week, I walked through the park and saw another homeless guy standing next to Homer's bench and stuff. I asked him whether he knew what had happened to Homer. And he told me was taking care of Homer's stuff and that he wasn't sure that Homer was still alive or not. He had been taken to the hospital because of the cold. I was shocked. I asked whether he knew his last name and of course, he didn't know it. And then I asked which hospital he should be in. He told me that he should be in George Washington Hospital a few blocks from here.
When I got to the office, I called GW Hospital to find out whether they could tell me something about Homer. Without a last name, there was no chance that he could be found they told me. I really wish I could visit him and see how he is doing. I am sure he doesn't have any visitors coming. I assume that being in the hospital, lying in a bed and getting served three meals a day is way better than to live in a park, especially when the weather is in the low 40ies. But I pray that he is doing alright. I miss him on my way to the Metro after work.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
My uncooperative cervix
Today I went to get my HSG. For all of those of you who don't know what it is, I found a nice definition online:
A hysterosalpingogram is an X-ray of the uterus and fallopian tubes which allows visualization of the inside of the uterus and tubes. The picture will reveal any abnormalities of the uterus as well as tubal problems such as blockage and dilation.
Most of my friends from infertile island know what it is anyway. It was very painful and my cervix not very cooperative. But when the dye was running through my tubes, I still had to smile through all the pain. Because my doctor told me that both tubes are clear. At least my tubes are cooperating. I wish the uterus would, too.
Tomorrow we have our doctor's exam. He will be able to do all our tests. Even the TB tests. That is a big relief as we won't have to schedule extra exams to get our medical exams for the adoption. It is a bit funny that we are doing the testing at my RE. But as long as we get it done quick...
We went to pick up our mail today to see whether my Virginia driving record has already arrived. Unfortunately it was not there, yet. Last night we went over my biography to correct all my English writing mistakes. Today I changed it. After I put in two line space mode, I had way too much. So I shortened it down to 9 pages. I wonder when hubbie, who read me his outline last night, is gonna write his...
The guardianship agreement that we gave our friends yesterday will be signed and notarized this week as well. And on Thursday or Friday hopefully hubbie will have the fingerprints as well, so that we can send them to the agency.
A hysterosalpingogram is an X-ray of the uterus and fallopian tubes which allows visualization of the inside of the uterus and tubes. The picture will reveal any abnormalities of the uterus as well as tubal problems such as blockage and dilation.
Most of my friends from infertile island know what it is anyway. It was very painful and my cervix not very cooperative. But when the dye was running through my tubes, I still had to smile through all the pain. Because my doctor told me that both tubes are clear. At least my tubes are cooperating. I wish the uterus would, too.
Tomorrow we have our doctor's exam. He will be able to do all our tests. Even the TB tests. That is a big relief as we won't have to schedule extra exams to get our medical exams for the adoption. It is a bit funny that we are doing the testing at my RE. But as long as we get it done quick...
We went to pick up our mail today to see whether my Virginia driving record has already arrived. Unfortunately it was not there, yet. Last night we went over my biography to correct all my English writing mistakes. Today I changed it. After I put in two line space mode, I had way too much. So I shortened it down to 9 pages. I wonder when hubbie, who read me his outline last night, is gonna write his...
The guardianship agreement that we gave our friends yesterday will be signed and notarized this week as well. And on Thursday or Friday hopefully hubbie will have the fingerprints as well, so that we can send them to the agency.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Three parties might be one too much...
We had a great week-end. On Friday night we worked on our basement and cleaned out more stuff we want to get rid off. Our friends had planned to do a yard-sale this week-end, but didn't do it. so we might have one ourselves once it gets a little warmer.
On Saturday morning I went to the Leesburg outlet with a friend from Europe who happened to be in town for business to do some Christmas shopping. We had a great time and it was a true pleasure to go shopping with her.
I am not amongst those people who are true shopoholics. I am not able to shop for a full day from morning to evening. I try on some stuff and after a while I get tired and only want to go home. It is hard if your friends do have different shopping habits than yourself. I prefer to go shopping with similar-minded shoppers. We went through the whole mall, but we didn't go into every store. So after about four hours of shopping, we drove back home.
We had invitations to three parties that night. I had told my husband before, that I didn't think we were able to make all three of them. But he was very positive that we would. One of my husbands former colleagues was hosting his traditional Christmas party. We went there, but ended up staying longer than anticipated. They had great food and we all exchanged presents. The second party was in the U-Street Corridor of D.C., a birthday party for a friend. We ended up arriving there around 12:30 a.m. and only stayed half an hour. Then we planned to go to the next party, but I called before and it turns out that they had just finished. So we made only two parties.
Yesterday we met friends for church and brunch and had a good time. In the afternoon I started to bake some Christmas cookies. But I still want to make at least one more batch.
We are still working on the paperwork for the home study. In my lunch break today I went to get my finger prints. You kind of feel like a criminal, but in the end it is all worth it.
Now we only need our medical forms done. My hubbie went this morning to our RE to do the blood work for the HIV test. I don't know whether they might be able to do the TB test there as well. Maybe we'll have to go to another doctor for that.
I copied our financial information, so that is done as well. The written evacuation plan is another thing on our To-Do-list for this week. Does anyone have any experience what needs to be in such a plan?
On Saturday morning I went to the Leesburg outlet with a friend from Europe who happened to be in town for business to do some Christmas shopping. We had a great time and it was a true pleasure to go shopping with her.
I am not amongst those people who are true shopoholics. I am not able to shop for a full day from morning to evening. I try on some stuff and after a while I get tired and only want to go home. It is hard if your friends do have different shopping habits than yourself. I prefer to go shopping with similar-minded shoppers. We went through the whole mall, but we didn't go into every store. So after about four hours of shopping, we drove back home.
We had invitations to three parties that night. I had told my husband before, that I didn't think we were able to make all three of them. But he was very positive that we would. One of my husbands former colleagues was hosting his traditional Christmas party. We went there, but ended up staying longer than anticipated. They had great food and we all exchanged presents. The second party was in the U-Street Corridor of D.C., a birthday party for a friend. We ended up arriving there around 12:30 a.m. and only stayed half an hour. Then we planned to go to the next party, but I called before and it turns out that they had just finished. So we made only two parties.
Yesterday we met friends for church and brunch and had a good time. In the afternoon I started to bake some Christmas cookies. But I still want to make at least one more batch.
We are still working on the paperwork for the home study. In my lunch break today I went to get my finger prints. You kind of feel like a criminal, but in the end it is all worth it.
Now we only need our medical forms done. My hubbie went this morning to our RE to do the blood work for the HIV test. I don't know whether they might be able to do the TB test there as well. Maybe we'll have to go to another doctor for that.
I copied our financial information, so that is done as well. The written evacuation plan is another thing on our To-Do-list for this week. Does anyone have any experience what needs to be in such a plan?
Friday, December 14, 2007
That was pretty easy
Sorry for not updating you guys before, but as you can imagine I was really busy today. The meeting at the adoption agency went very well. We talked to the Director of Domestic Programs. She was super nice and we spent over an hour with her. She asked about our motivation to adopt and about our families and jobs.
And then she gave us the checklist for the paperwork. I always thought it was tons of paperwork and took forever to accomplish. Was I wrong. Don't be scared of the paperwork, people out there. It is not that bad.
We need to finish the home study:
- Individual typed autobiography for each applicant (I have been working on mine last night and today, so done for me, hubby still needs to do his)
- Criminal Clearances (with fingerprints) - we'll do this next week as they only do them from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. (My suggestion to commit a small crime to get them done earlier didn't go so well with my husband)
- Sworn Disclosure Statement - done
- Child Abuse Clearances - done
- Guardianship agreement (this is a tough one. Whom would you give your child in case you die? We have identified some friends who would be perfect - they'll raise our children in a Christian faith and would be able to keep them connected to my family. We asked them, but haven't heard from them yet; they need to fill out the form and notarize it)
- Medical forms completed by physicians (I thought I had done mine already, but the doctor's office can't find anything. Great. Scheduled husband for Monday morning)
- Immunization Form (of course, we'll immunize our children, done)
- Copy of our most recently filed 1040 Federal Income Tax Return (done)
- Employment letter stating current salary, current position & start date on company letterhead (mine is done, waiting for husbands to arrive with mail, was sent out today)
- Financial Information (copy of mortgage, checkings/savings acct., IRA, etc., still to do)
- Copy of marriage certificate - done
- Copy of birth certificates - done
- Copy of certified "life-time" driving record from all states the applicant has resided in the last five years (ordered)
- Signed corporal punishment statement (no, we won't hit our children, done)
- Written plan of evacuation (still to do)
- Fire and Safety inspection self-survey form (done)
Not bad for 24 hours... The lady told us the fastest they ever had was two weeks. We probably won't be able to trump that, but I hope to have everything (except maybe the lifetime driving record that can take up to two weeks) ready by the end of next week, so that we can start with the home study interviews after Xmas. Because their comprehensive program is closed at this point she gave us some out of area agencies to consult. Because we are open to any race, open adoption, etc. she was pretty positive that we might be able to get a baby before we move overseas. Wow! That would be amazing. I am just sitting here and wondering whether our baby is maybe already in another woman's womb. Moving, growing and waiting to be born. I am starting to get excited.
Last night we decorated our Christmas tree. It was a really nice evening as we were listening to Christmas music and getting in the mood. We were both talking about how we had thought last Christmas, that that was the last Christmas we spent as an infertile couple. We had so high hopes that we would be a family by now. Will it still be just the two of us next year? Or will we be able to realize our dream to become a family by then?
And then she gave us the checklist for the paperwork. I always thought it was tons of paperwork and took forever to accomplish. Was I wrong. Don't be scared of the paperwork, people out there. It is not that bad.
We need to finish the home study:
- Individual typed autobiography for each applicant (I have been working on mine last night and today, so done for me, hubby still needs to do his)
- Criminal Clearances (with fingerprints) - we'll do this next week as they only do them from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. (My suggestion to commit a small crime to get them done earlier didn't go so well with my husband)
- Sworn Disclosure Statement - done
- Child Abuse Clearances - done
- Guardianship agreement (this is a tough one. Whom would you give your child in case you die? We have identified some friends who would be perfect - they'll raise our children in a Christian faith and would be able to keep them connected to my family. We asked them, but haven't heard from them yet; they need to fill out the form and notarize it)
- Medical forms completed by physicians (I thought I had done mine already, but the doctor's office can't find anything. Great. Scheduled husband for Monday morning)
- Immunization Form (of course, we'll immunize our children, done)
- Copy of our most recently filed 1040 Federal Income Tax Return (done)
- Employment letter stating current salary, current position & start date on company letterhead (mine is done, waiting for husbands to arrive with mail, was sent out today)
- Financial Information (copy of mortgage, checkings/savings acct., IRA, etc., still to do)
- Copy of marriage certificate - done
- Copy of birth certificates - done
- Copy of certified "life-time" driving record from all states the applicant has resided in the last five years (ordered)
- Signed corporal punishment statement (no, we won't hit our children, done)
- Written plan of evacuation (still to do)
- Fire and Safety inspection self-survey form (done)
Not bad for 24 hours... The lady told us the fastest they ever had was two weeks. We probably won't be able to trump that, but I hope to have everything (except maybe the lifetime driving record that can take up to two weeks) ready by the end of next week, so that we can start with the home study interviews after Xmas. Because their comprehensive program is closed at this point she gave us some out of area agencies to consult. Because we are open to any race, open adoption, etc. she was pretty positive that we might be able to get a baby before we move overseas. Wow! That would be amazing. I am just sitting here and wondering whether our baby is maybe already in another woman's womb. Moving, growing and waiting to be born. I am starting to get excited.
Last night we decorated our Christmas tree. It was a really nice evening as we were listening to Christmas music and getting in the mood. We were both talking about how we had thought last Christmas, that that was the last Christmas we spent as an infertile couple. We had so high hopes that we would be a family by now. Will it still be just the two of us next year? Or will we be able to realize our dream to become a family by then?
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Seven random things about me...
I am so excited because Hoping for a child tagged me. If I understand this correctly, I'm supposed to list seven random or unusual things about myself and then tag seven others...
Anyway, here goes.
1. I grew up on a farm with dairy cows.
2. My parents, my brother and me took our first vacation as a family in 2003 when I was 29 years old.
3. I love to watch "The Unit", "Tyra Banks Show", "Desperate Housewives", and "24"
4. I love to play Minigolf.
5. If I could choose my last supper before I die, it would be my Mom's duck with potato dumplings.
6. I love to sleep and hibernate in the winter. I can spend a whole week-end on the couch.
7. My order at Starbucks is a grande Caramel Macchiato (winter) and an iced grande Caramel Macchiato (summer).
I would like to tag Mary Ellen, Lori, Lindsay, Katie, Serenity Cam, and Yodasmistress.
This morning I had a great and long telephone conversation with my best friend. She has already two kids and they were screaming in the background. One of them is my god-child and I feel so blessed to have her and her family in my life. She is wonderful and I miss her every day and am sad that she lives so far away. We met at a party convention party and had so much fun that night and many nights after that. We have been best friends since then and spent lots of time together. We share a lot of beautiful memories of a time when we were both young and single. She wants me to move back to Europe, but that ain't happening any time soon...
Today I went in to see my acupuncturist. She is a Chinese doctor and I always feel great and relaxed after the acupuncture. Very often I fall asleep during the treatment. My husband calls her the "witch doctor" because she has given me all kinds of herbs: something to strengthen my kidneys, something when I had the first miscarriage (unfortunately too late), and a couple of months ago, she has given me the best thing ever; a Chinese medicine with which I can keep my endometriosis under control. I haven't had any problems since and am very happy about it. There was a time in my life in the last year and parts of this year where I felt there was nothing I could do to live a life free of pain. She has given me a cure that allows me to live pain-free without having to go on the pill. I can't emphasize enough how blessed I feel to have her. I told her about my FSH level of 26.6 from Monday and she said that my ovaries are overstressed and I should wait. It will regulate itself again, but I should just try naturally. Well, at this point, we don't really have a choice, do we? It sounded like she still believes that we might be able to conceive naturally - one day.
The lady from the agency called me finally back yesterday afternoon. I told her the situation and managed to squeeze us in for today at 5:30 p.m. I am very excited that we finally get to find out which information we have to get together for our home study.
Anyway, here goes.
1. I grew up on a farm with dairy cows.
2. My parents, my brother and me took our first vacation as a family in 2003 when I was 29 years old.
3. I love to watch "The Unit", "Tyra Banks Show", "Desperate Housewives", and "24"
4. I love to play Minigolf.
5. If I could choose my last supper before I die, it would be my Mom's duck with potato dumplings.
6. I love to sleep and hibernate in the winter. I can spend a whole week-end on the couch.
7. My order at Starbucks is a grande Caramel Macchiato (winter) and an iced grande Caramel Macchiato (summer).
I would like to tag Mary Ellen, Lori, Lindsay, Katie, Serenity Cam, and Yodasmistress.
This morning I had a great and long telephone conversation with my best friend. She has already two kids and they were screaming in the background. One of them is my god-child and I feel so blessed to have her and her family in my life. She is wonderful and I miss her every day and am sad that she lives so far away. We met at a party convention party and had so much fun that night and many nights after that. We have been best friends since then and spent lots of time together. We share a lot of beautiful memories of a time when we were both young and single. She wants me to move back to Europe, but that ain't happening any time soon...
Today I went in to see my acupuncturist. She is a Chinese doctor and I always feel great and relaxed after the acupuncture. Very often I fall asleep during the treatment. My husband calls her the "witch doctor" because she has given me all kinds of herbs: something to strengthen my kidneys, something when I had the first miscarriage (unfortunately too late), and a couple of months ago, she has given me the best thing ever; a Chinese medicine with which I can keep my endometriosis under control. I haven't had any problems since and am very happy about it. There was a time in my life in the last year and parts of this year where I felt there was nothing I could do to live a life free of pain. She has given me a cure that allows me to live pain-free without having to go on the pill. I can't emphasize enough how blessed I feel to have her. I told her about my FSH level of 26.6 from Monday and she said that my ovaries are overstressed and I should wait. It will regulate itself again, but I should just try naturally. Well, at this point, we don't really have a choice, do we? It sounded like she still believes that we might be able to conceive naturally - one day.
The lady from the agency called me finally back yesterday afternoon. I told her the situation and managed to squeeze us in for today at 5:30 p.m. I am very excited that we finally get to find out which information we have to get together for our home study.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Phone Tag
Yesterday morning I told my Dad about our adoption plans. He asked me whether I couldn't have children so I told him the whole story. I had always tried to protect him because of my health, but I feel like he needs to know. He said that he fully supports us in this case and that he is very happy and looking forward to meeting his first grandchild. I was really surprise how well he took it. I told him it was our little secret and he shouldn't share it with the rest of the world, yet. And he asked whether he could tell my Mom. He seems really excited about it. How sweet. I told him that my Mom already knows and that she has not been very helpful so far.
Yesterday the lady from the adoption agency finally called back and left a message on my voice-mail after I left her two messages on her voice-mail. I wanted to do the intake meeting on Thursday afternoon because that is the day where my hubby could make it best, but she isn't available that day she said. Instead she offered us Friday morning or next week. I really would like to do it this week, but my husband and I both have to work on Friday morning. I might be able to take some time off, but my hubby won't because he is currently in a training class. But fortunately she left me her cell phone number, so I will hopefully be able to reach her. I just tried it, but it was just her voice-mail. Will I ever be able to set up that meeting?
Yesterday the lady from the adoption agency finally called back and left a message on my voice-mail after I left her two messages on her voice-mail. I wanted to do the intake meeting on Thursday afternoon because that is the day where my hubby could make it best, but she isn't available that day she said. Instead she offered us Friday morning or next week. I really would like to do it this week, but my husband and I both have to work on Friday morning. I might be able to take some time off, but my hubby won't because he is currently in a training class. But fortunately she left me her cell phone number, so I will hopefully be able to reach her. I just tried it, but it was just her voice-mail. Will I ever be able to set up that meeting?
Monday, December 10, 2007
Faster than expected...
... came the end of our second IUI. I don't even know where to begin. AF arrived on Saturday and I went in for a day three blood test this morning. I just called the nurse. My FSH level is 26,6 (which is post menopausal according to her). So stimulation wouldn't work and we can't do anything this month. Which means our infertility journey has come to an end for now. Next month we don't have an insurance that would cover IUI and we haven't fulfilled our deductible, so we'll have to pause. I don't understand. My eggs seem to be broken. Why? I am only 33 years old.
The doctor wants me to come in for a consultation meeting next week. I will ask him about the AMH level which seems to be more realistic. I had had a higher FSH level once before, but it went down again in the month to follow. But that doesn't really help us in our quest to do one more IUI before the end of the year. So I guess, we have to accept that we are at a point where we have to build our family through another way. Time to call the lady from the agency and schedule the intake meeting.
The pre-adoption group on Saturday went well. It was great to talk to other couples that are going through the same struggles. We focused on attachment, trans-racial adoption, etc. They also had a birth mother, a teenage adoptee and adoptive parents speak. Especially the birth mother left a lasting impression. It was incredible how much love and thought she put into the whole process. She really wants kids with her boy-friend, but they just weren't in a place where they could provide for the baby. The boy-friend came with her for support and we were impressed how brave they were to come and talk to us about their adoption. She was adopted herself and didn't have a good experience growing up. Her adoptive family wanted her to do an abortion. They told her that they wanted her to move out when she made the decision to keep the baby.
On the way home I realized how terrified I am that my parents will have a hard time to realize that it will be the end of their genealogical line. I haven't talked to my dad about the adoption yet, because I don't want him to worry about me. His health is not very good and I thought, I would tell him once we are further in the process, but I believe I can't protect him by this. I guess I have to share our infertility struggles with him.
My Mom knows about our struggle. But I wouldn't call her super-supportive. She knows how much I hurt, but all she says about adoption is that she can't give us any advice. I wish she would just say, it is o.k. to build your family through adoption. I wish she would just say how much she is looking forward to meeting her adopted grandchild. I told her about the pre adoption group and that we had covered trans-racial adoption. And she answered: "So, you want a black baby?". I told her that we would take any baby we could get. It wouldn't matter whether it is black, white, yellow or green. We are already a bi-racial and bi-cultural couple so why not add more diversity to our family? The only thing she said was that I shouldn't believe that it is going to be easy with an adopted child. Thank you Mom. Great support! I think she is overwhelmed and doesn't know how to handle the situation. Welcome to the club, Mom!!!
The doctor wants me to come in for a consultation meeting next week. I will ask him about the AMH level which seems to be more realistic. I had had a higher FSH level once before, but it went down again in the month to follow. But that doesn't really help us in our quest to do one more IUI before the end of the year. So I guess, we have to accept that we are at a point where we have to build our family through another way. Time to call the lady from the agency and schedule the intake meeting.
The pre-adoption group on Saturday went well. It was great to talk to other couples that are going through the same struggles. We focused on attachment, trans-racial adoption, etc. They also had a birth mother, a teenage adoptee and adoptive parents speak. Especially the birth mother left a lasting impression. It was incredible how much love and thought she put into the whole process. She really wants kids with her boy-friend, but they just weren't in a place where they could provide for the baby. The boy-friend came with her for support and we were impressed how brave they were to come and talk to us about their adoption. She was adopted herself and didn't have a good experience growing up. Her adoptive family wanted her to do an abortion. They told her that they wanted her to move out when she made the decision to keep the baby.
On the way home I realized how terrified I am that my parents will have a hard time to realize that it will be the end of their genealogical line. I haven't talked to my dad about the adoption yet, because I don't want him to worry about me. His health is not very good and I thought, I would tell him once we are further in the process, but I believe I can't protect him by this. I guess I have to share our infertility struggles with him.
My Mom knows about our struggle. But I wouldn't call her super-supportive. She knows how much I hurt, but all she says about adoption is that she can't give us any advice. I wish she would just say, it is o.k. to build your family through adoption. I wish she would just say how much she is looking forward to meeting her adopted grandchild. I told her about the pre adoption group and that we had covered trans-racial adoption. And she answered: "So, you want a black baby?". I told her that we would take any baby we could get. It wouldn't matter whether it is black, white, yellow or green. We are already a bi-racial and bi-cultural couple so why not add more diversity to our family? The only thing she said was that I shouldn't believe that it is going to be easy with an adopted child. Thank you Mom. Great support! I think she is overwhelmed and doesn't know how to handle the situation. Welcome to the club, Mom!!!
Friday, December 7, 2007
Negative
I just called the nurse. The result is negative. Now I have to wait until AF arrives and call in there. They will schedule the HSG for me. I want to do one before the next IUI.
I didn't expect anything else than a negative outcome from this IUI really. I would probably have freaked out if it would have been positive. But the negative is yet again another disappointment. I just want to crawl under a rock and not come out before our adoption is through.
I didn't expect anything else than a negative outcome from this IUI really. I would probably have freaked out if it would have been positive. But the negative is yet again another disappointment. I just want to crawl under a rock and not come out before our adoption is through.
Doomsday
Today is doomsday for us. I just went in for my blood test. This time I even talked to another lady in the waiting room. Everybody is always so quiet and nobody talks to each other. I am on a mission to change this.
I am pretty sure it hasn't worked because I think I saw something on the TP this morning (sorry for TMI). I will get the results this afternoon and hope to be able to update you on the outcome this afternoon.
Yesterday we had a friend from Europe in town who stayed with us last night. The poor guy had applied for a job in D.C. and booked his flight after they invited him for an interview. He had to fill out in his application whether he has a visa for the U.S. or not and he put "No" there. They still invited him for the job interview. Well, when he had the interview, they asked him again "Do you have a visa?". He answered "No." Then the woman said that she couldn't continue the interview then because they couldn't sponsor anyone at this point. Are they crazy. I mean, he paid his flight to come to the freaking interview, he gave them the right information ahead that he didn't have a visa and they still invited him to come. He talked with them twice before. Couldn't they ask the visa question on the phone before they have him come over? I organized him a job interview with a friend and I hope that something is gonna work out for him.
When we got home late last night, we found out that he and his girl-friend are also TTC. He already has a teenage son with his Ex-Wife and didn't think anything was wrong with him. But obviously due to his and his girl-friends age that hasn't been so easy either. They started in May and got pregnant, but had a miscarriage two weeks ago in the eighth week of pregnancy. They had already seen the heartbeat of the baby so it must have been very hard for them. We ended up talking for a long time over the pain of infertility. It is surprising how many people are going through this. He was quite glad to be able to talk about it with us, because he doesn't know any other people who are struggling with infertility as well.
I am pretty sure it hasn't worked because I think I saw something on the TP this morning (sorry for TMI). I will get the results this afternoon and hope to be able to update you on the outcome this afternoon.
Yesterday we had a friend from Europe in town who stayed with us last night. The poor guy had applied for a job in D.C. and booked his flight after they invited him for an interview. He had to fill out in his application whether he has a visa for the U.S. or not and he put "No" there. They still invited him for the job interview. Well, when he had the interview, they asked him again "Do you have a visa?". He answered "No." Then the woman said that she couldn't continue the interview then because they couldn't sponsor anyone at this point. Are they crazy. I mean, he paid his flight to come to the freaking interview, he gave them the right information ahead that he didn't have a visa and they still invited him to come. He talked with them twice before. Couldn't they ask the visa question on the phone before they have him come over? I organized him a job interview with a friend and I hope that something is gonna work out for him.
When we got home late last night, we found out that he and his girl-friend are also TTC. He already has a teenage son with his Ex-Wife and didn't think anything was wrong with him. But obviously due to his and his girl-friends age that hasn't been so easy either. They started in May and got pregnant, but had a miscarriage two weeks ago in the eighth week of pregnancy. They had already seen the heartbeat of the baby so it must have been very hard for them. We ended up talking for a long time over the pain of infertility. It is surprising how many people are going through this. He was quite glad to be able to talk about it with us, because he doesn't know any other people who are struggling with infertility as well.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
12dpiui - one more day
Another day down. I just called the doctor's office and I can come in for the blood test tomorrow. The last day I didn't really fell anything except some stomach pain and several times a shooting pain. After all IUI has just a 15% chance to work anyway. So I am preparing myself for another negative. I still haven't POAS.
Yesterday we had mail from the adoption agency. They sent us our homework for Saturday, including several articles to read and a questionnaire to fill out. The questions were on the articles and most were pretty easy, just the last two I didn't understand. I'll have to ask my hubby about it... I didn't think we had to do homework for the agency, but I just see it as another step that brings us hopefully closer to our dream of enlarging our family.
Last night we sat down and decided on our future health insurance. We both had a gut feeling that we wanted to change back to Blue Cross/Blue Shield and after some plan comparison this is exactly what we did. They don't pay any infertility treatment, but we won't need that next year as we are focusing primarily on adoption.
The other thing we did last night, was to get our X-mas decoration down from the attic and spread it all over the house. And hopefully this week-end we will go out and buy a Christmas Tree. I am not used to having a tree up weeks before Christmas. In my family we didn't put the tree up before the 24th of December which is also the evening when we celebrated Christ's birth. Most of the time, it was my dad bringing in the tree from outside and my mom decorating it. I didn't really like decorating the tree, but got dragged into it several times. Since my dad had his stroke that tradition has changed and Christmas at home will never be the same. I am scared to go home for Christmas because it used to be such a great night when I was growing up. It was really special. But now it is just another night and not that special any more. I guess I have to realize that I am an adult now and Christmas with my parents will never be the same.
And Christmas is the time of the year when infertility hurts like crazy. Christmas is supposed the feast of the family. For me it is not any more the symbol of joy and life. For me it is symbolized by grief. I have my family far away from me. And everything that is so special about it, is a constant reminder of our infertility. I just want it to be over with so that we can transit to the next year.
What will 2008 bring for us? Apart from another move overseas? Will we have a child to love next Christmas?
I still remember that my RE told me last year: "We gonna make 2007 a great year for you!" And I believed it. And a year later, here we are: more than 15.000 dollars poorer and even after two miscarriages and three IVFs not one step closer to having a baby in our arms.
Yesterday we had mail from the adoption agency. They sent us our homework for Saturday, including several articles to read and a questionnaire to fill out. The questions were on the articles and most were pretty easy, just the last two I didn't understand. I'll have to ask my hubby about it... I didn't think we had to do homework for the agency, but I just see it as another step that brings us hopefully closer to our dream of enlarging our family.
Last night we sat down and decided on our future health insurance. We both had a gut feeling that we wanted to change back to Blue Cross/Blue Shield and after some plan comparison this is exactly what we did. They don't pay any infertility treatment, but we won't need that next year as we are focusing primarily on adoption.
The other thing we did last night, was to get our X-mas decoration down from the attic and spread it all over the house. And hopefully this week-end we will go out and buy a Christmas Tree. I am not used to having a tree up weeks before Christmas. In my family we didn't put the tree up before the 24th of December which is also the evening when we celebrated Christ's birth. Most of the time, it was my dad bringing in the tree from outside and my mom decorating it. I didn't really like decorating the tree, but got dragged into it several times. Since my dad had his stroke that tradition has changed and Christmas at home will never be the same. I am scared to go home for Christmas because it used to be such a great night when I was growing up. It was really special. But now it is just another night and not that special any more. I guess I have to realize that I am an adult now and Christmas with my parents will never be the same.
And Christmas is the time of the year when infertility hurts like crazy. Christmas is supposed the feast of the family. For me it is not any more the symbol of joy and life. For me it is symbolized by grief. I have my family far away from me. And everything that is so special about it, is a constant reminder of our infertility. I just want it to be over with so that we can transit to the next year.
What will 2008 bring for us? Apart from another move overseas? Will we have a child to love next Christmas?
I still remember that my RE told me last year: "We gonna make 2007 a great year for you!" And I believed it. And a year later, here we are: more than 15.000 dollars poorer and even after two miscarriages and three IVFs not one step closer to having a baby in our arms.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Honey, let's adopt those four...
I should not have complained about not having any symptoms at all. Yesterday I started to get some cramping (like AF is on her way) and have occasional twinges here and there today. Tomorrow I might call the doctor to find out when I can come in for a blood test. Or should I just wait until AF is here? But the progesterone is probably keeping her away for now...
Yesterday night I had a little meltdown. My husband told me about an email from a friend of us. He and his wife just got married last June, but they were separated because of their jobs for a whole year (with occasional visits). They are expecting as well.
I also got an email from another friend with ultrasound pictures to announce their pregnancy. While I am happy for every single one of them, it hurts so much to have to face the fact that so many people don't seem to have any problems.
Oh, and have I mentioned already that I have a cousin who is two years older than me who just had his fifth child last year? I can't keep track any more with the names and ages of all his children and wouldn't be surprised if they had another one soon. His wife is a doctor and they are very catholic.
It is like the whole wide world around us is pregnant, while we have to wait another months until we can finally start the home study process. The agency called yesterday. They have received the check that I mailed them and they'll mail us information on our mandatory pre-adoption class that we have to take. It will be this Saturday. So at least we will be able to get ahead a little bit.
But back to my meltdown. I did some internet research about waiting children and found those four adorable Asian siblings ages 2 years 9 months to age 7 years that are waiting for a forever family.
I took the computer and showed them to my husband and told him, we should adopt them. He was a bit surprised, because I had told him all the time I want a baby. I still want a baby. But I mean, who is going to adopt four children at once? I understand that it might be a bit hard to go from zero to four children in a couple of weeks. We don't have enough bedrooms for four children. And I don't know whether we could managed financially with four children (clothes, school, daycare) and only one income at this point. But I really feel like I would like to adopt a sibling group. Maybe later. I definitely will keep on checking on them. Maybe if they are still available next summer... We might have more room in our new apartment...
But my dh just took me in his arms and listened to me crying about how much the pain of infertility hurts. He is definitely the best husband in the whole wide world because he can stand me!!!
Yesterday night I had a little meltdown. My husband told me about an email from a friend of us. He and his wife just got married last June, but they were separated because of their jobs for a whole year (with occasional visits). They are expecting as well.
I also got an email from another friend with ultrasound pictures to announce their pregnancy. While I am happy for every single one of them, it hurts so much to have to face the fact that so many people don't seem to have any problems.
Oh, and have I mentioned already that I have a cousin who is two years older than me who just had his fifth child last year? I can't keep track any more with the names and ages of all his children and wouldn't be surprised if they had another one soon. His wife is a doctor and they are very catholic.
It is like the whole wide world around us is pregnant, while we have to wait another months until we can finally start the home study process. The agency called yesterday. They have received the check that I mailed them and they'll mail us information on our mandatory pre-adoption class that we have to take. It will be this Saturday. So at least we will be able to get ahead a little bit.
But back to my meltdown. I did some internet research about waiting children and found those four adorable Asian siblings ages 2 years 9 months to age 7 years that are waiting for a forever family.
I took the computer and showed them to my husband and told him, we should adopt them. He was a bit surprised, because I had told him all the time I want a baby. I still want a baby. But I mean, who is going to adopt four children at once? I understand that it might be a bit hard to go from zero to four children in a couple of weeks. We don't have enough bedrooms for four children. And I don't know whether we could managed financially with four children (clothes, school, daycare) and only one income at this point. But I really feel like I would like to adopt a sibling group. Maybe later. I definitely will keep on checking on them. Maybe if they are still available next summer... We might have more room in our new apartment...
But my dh just took me in his arms and listened to me crying about how much the pain of infertility hurts. He is definitely the best husband in the whole wide world because he can stand me!!!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
10 dpiui
Today I officially reached 10 dpiui. Meghan from A Little Sweetness who is two days ahead of me, tested that day. I won't. The last times when we did IVF I tested ahead of the blood test, I ended up starting to bleed the moment I was doing the test. That day I swore to myself to never do another early test again.
When I talked to my doctor's office last week, they didn't even tell me when I needed to come in for my blood work. So I'll just wait it out. I have no symptoms what so ever even the occasional twinge and the sore boobs are gone. Therefore I already lost hope that it might actually have worked. I also have the wet feeling I have right before AF shows up. My temperature is still up but I know that it comes from the progesterone. So I guess I just wait two more days and then I'll call the doctor's office and ask when I should come in. But I am pretty sure AF is on her way. I hope we will be able to do another IUI before the end of the year.
I don't think I mentioned it, but last week I called the friend that I met for lunch a couple of weeks ago. She has already a kid, but she had two miscarriages this year (who happened to be around the same time as mine). I hadn't heard from her in a while and wanted to see how she is doing. She just found out that she is actually pregnant again! What a joy for her. I pray and hope that everything will go fine this time.
I was tagged by Lindsay from Looking for 2 Lines.
Rules are: list a word that describes you for every letter of the alphabet. offer as much or as little explanation as you wish. please keep the words positive (for example, don’t use “fat” for F or “lame” for L), and feel free to get creative. tag as many or as few people as you wish. Link back to your tagger and forward to your taggees.
I have cheated a little, because I felt like I needed more words for some things.
A - Adopting - we have started the process on our third wedding anniversary
B - Baby - I really want one. Asap. See I
C - Clumsy - I am left handed and left handed people are supposedly clumsy. I definitely am.
D - Development work. My heart is in development work and I've worked in that field for a couple of years.
E - Extrovert. Absolutely.
F - Friends - they are super important to me.
G - God - I am still working on my relationship with him, but have made a little progress
H - Husband - My best decision ever to marry this awesome man
I - Impatient - I am the most impatient person in this world. I want everything now.
- Infertility - has definitely changed my life
- IVF - we tried that 3 times already
- IUI - we are currently trying that
J - Jokes - I love to laugh, and my dh is a great jokester. So we are a perfect match.
K - Kitchen - I love to cook
L - Loving
M - Matchmaking - I love to introduce people to each other and I can't count how many people met through me or have fallen in love after I introduced them, gotten married, and had babies
Mosquitoes - I hate mosquitoes and we have a whole battery of tools to drive them away from our nice little deck
N - Networking - I love to network and bring people together.
- Neighbors - we have great neighbors and are friends with several of them.
O - Organize - I love to organize Happy Hours or Networking Events.
P - Parents - We definitely want to become parents. Soon, see I.
Q - Quadruplets? - Bring it on.
R - Rollercoaster - I don't like the emotional rollercoaster, but infertility takes you along the ride.
S - Sudoku - I am addicted, but just to the Samuraiversion in the Sunday edition of the Washington Post
T - TiVo - I love my TiVo.
U - Umbilical cord - will my dh ever get to cut one of those?
V - Vacation - I could need one right now.
Venezuela - we'll move there next summer.
W - Washington D.C. - a great town with lots of interesting people
X - Xing - one of my favorite internet networking sites
Y - Yoka - my blogger name
Z - Zebra - I saw them in Africa.
Please consider yourself tagged.
When I talked to my doctor's office last week, they didn't even tell me when I needed to come in for my blood work. So I'll just wait it out. I have no symptoms what so ever even the occasional twinge and the sore boobs are gone. Therefore I already lost hope that it might actually have worked. I also have the wet feeling I have right before AF shows up. My temperature is still up but I know that it comes from the progesterone. So I guess I just wait two more days and then I'll call the doctor's office and ask when I should come in. But I am pretty sure AF is on her way. I hope we will be able to do another IUI before the end of the year.
I don't think I mentioned it, but last week I called the friend that I met for lunch a couple of weeks ago. She has already a kid, but she had two miscarriages this year (who happened to be around the same time as mine). I hadn't heard from her in a while and wanted to see how she is doing. She just found out that she is actually pregnant again! What a joy for her. I pray and hope that everything will go fine this time.
I was tagged by Lindsay from Looking for 2 Lines.
Rules are: list a word that describes you for every letter of the alphabet. offer as much or as little explanation as you wish. please keep the words positive (for example, don’t use “fat” for F or “lame” for L), and feel free to get creative. tag as many or as few people as you wish. Link back to your tagger and forward to your taggees.
I have cheated a little, because I felt like I needed more words for some things.
A - Adopting - we have started the process on our third wedding anniversary
B - Baby - I really want one. Asap. See I
C - Clumsy - I am left handed and left handed people are supposedly clumsy. I definitely am.
D - Development work. My heart is in development work and I've worked in that field for a couple of years.
E - Extrovert. Absolutely.
F - Friends - they are super important to me.
G - God - I am still working on my relationship with him, but have made a little progress
H - Husband - My best decision ever to marry this awesome man
I - Impatient - I am the most impatient person in this world. I want everything now.
- Infertility - has definitely changed my life
- IVF - we tried that 3 times already
- IUI - we are currently trying that
J - Jokes - I love to laugh, and my dh is a great jokester. So we are a perfect match.
K - Kitchen - I love to cook
L - Loving
M - Matchmaking - I love to introduce people to each other and I can't count how many people met through me or have fallen in love after I introduced them, gotten married, and had babies
Mosquitoes - I hate mosquitoes and we have a whole battery of tools to drive them away from our nice little deck
N - Networking - I love to network and bring people together.
- Neighbors - we have great neighbors and are friends with several of them.
O - Organize - I love to organize Happy Hours or Networking Events.
P - Parents - We definitely want to become parents. Soon, see I.
Q - Quadruplets? - Bring it on.
R - Rollercoaster - I don't like the emotional rollercoaster, but infertility takes you along the ride.
S - Sudoku - I am addicted, but just to the Samuraiversion in the Sunday edition of the Washington Post
T - TiVo - I love my TiVo.
U - Umbilical cord - will my dh ever get to cut one of those?
V - Vacation - I could need one right now.
Venezuela - we'll move there next summer.
W - Washington D.C. - a great town with lots of interesting people
X - Xing - one of my favorite internet networking sites
Y - Yoka - my blogger name
Z - Zebra - I saw them in Africa.
Please consider yourself tagged.
Monday, December 3, 2007
An adoption conference and a football game
So the last week-end was filled with lots to do.
We are dog sitting which is always a great pleasure for us because we don't have a dog ourselves. The dog is amazing in character and if we ever get a dog, I want a yellow or black lab.
On Saturday we went to an adoption conference in D.C. There were so many people there. It was amazing. We actually gathered some information from different agencies. Our agency was there as well. We didn't really find it to productive because we already started the process. But I guess for people that haven't started yet, it was quite interesting. They also had a photo exhibition of older children from the Wednesdays Child initiative which we looked at as well. They had little cards with more information on the children as well. Afterwards we went to have lunch at a nearby restaurant. There my husband put one of the cards on the table it was Deon (who is also on their homepage) who is 17 years old. Next year he will be graduating out of the foster care system without a permanent family like 30.000 other children each year. My husband told me that it is close to his heart and he wants to adopt a teenager in our family. While I don't have any major concerns about adopting an older child, I still feel a little young to parent a 17 year old. But if this is heavy on his heart we will definitely do it later.
And yesterday we saw the Redskins play the Buffalo Bills. It was my husband's birthday present from me. He is a big Buffalo Bills fan. I don't really understand the rules, but I went anyway. The weather was really cold, so we put on all our gear to stay warm. They handed out little towels with the number 21 on them for Sean Taylor when we went inside. They also did a tribute ceremony where 90 people were waving the little white towels which was an amazing view. We were sitting in the nosebleed section, nearly in the last row. The game itself was really tight and it looked for a long time as if the Redskins were gonna win. I asked my husband about the rules all the time. There was one annoying guy a few rows in front of us that had to stand up all the time, so that nobody could see anything. He was completely trashed and was talking shit the whole time. At the last few seconds the Buffalo Bills got a one point lead and won 17:16 only with field goals and safety while the Redskins had a touchdown. My husband was one happy camper.
Then we tried to get on a shuttle bus to get back to our parking lot. There were so many people in a line, but some people just passed us as if they didn't see the line. When we finally got on the shuttle, we weren't really moving a lot at all. For a long time. It was about 5:40 p.m. (the game had ended about 4:15 p.m.) when we finally got to our car. I had encouraged my dh to put on the wheel lock before we left. When we got back, we noticed that he had left the key for the wheel lock at home. Great!!! What do do now? We ended up calling a neighbor and friend, who broke into our house to get the key and drove all the way to Fedex Field to give it to us. Our Saviour!!!
Normally in these kind of situations we easily start fighting, but we both remained calm and spend a nice time playing the 20 question game. Needless to say that I lost big time...
We are dog sitting which is always a great pleasure for us because we don't have a dog ourselves. The dog is amazing in character and if we ever get a dog, I want a yellow or black lab.
On Saturday we went to an adoption conference in D.C. There were so many people there. It was amazing. We actually gathered some information from different agencies. Our agency was there as well. We didn't really find it to productive because we already started the process. But I guess for people that haven't started yet, it was quite interesting. They also had a photo exhibition of older children from the Wednesdays Child initiative which we looked at as well. They had little cards with more information on the children as well. Afterwards we went to have lunch at a nearby restaurant. There my husband put one of the cards on the table it was Deon (who is also on their homepage) who is 17 years old. Next year he will be graduating out of the foster care system without a permanent family like 30.000 other children each year. My husband told me that it is close to his heart and he wants to adopt a teenager in our family. While I don't have any major concerns about adopting an older child, I still feel a little young to parent a 17 year old. But if this is heavy on his heart we will definitely do it later.
And yesterday we saw the Redskins play the Buffalo Bills. It was my husband's birthday present from me. He is a big Buffalo Bills fan. I don't really understand the rules, but I went anyway. The weather was really cold, so we put on all our gear to stay warm. They handed out little towels with the number 21 on them for Sean Taylor when we went inside. They also did a tribute ceremony where 90 people were waving the little white towels which was an amazing view. We were sitting in the nosebleed section, nearly in the last row. The game itself was really tight and it looked for a long time as if the Redskins were gonna win. I asked my husband about the rules all the time. There was one annoying guy a few rows in front of us that had to stand up all the time, so that nobody could see anything. He was completely trashed and was talking shit the whole time. At the last few seconds the Buffalo Bills got a one point lead and won 17:16 only with field goals and safety while the Redskins had a touchdown. My husband was one happy camper.
Then we tried to get on a shuttle bus to get back to our parking lot. There were so many people in a line, but some people just passed us as if they didn't see the line. When we finally got on the shuttle, we weren't really moving a lot at all. For a long time. It was about 5:40 p.m. (the game had ended about 4:15 p.m.) when we finally got to our car. I had encouraged my dh to put on the wheel lock before we left. When we got back, we noticed that he had left the key for the wheel lock at home. Great!!! What do do now? We ended up calling a neighbor and friend, who broke into our house to get the key and drove all the way to Fedex Field to give it to us. Our Saviour!!!
Normally in these kind of situations we easily start fighting, but we both remained calm and spend a nice time playing the 20 question game. Needless to say that I lost big time...
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