It's a GIRL!

My guess was right! (in India, you can't find out ahead of time)  Our newest niece was born yesterday, well actually today in India.  The name thing there is a long drawn out saga, so we are just celebrating that all are happy, healthy, and here (and on her due date no less!)  Still awaiting pictures...

Congrats to Vishal and Vrushali!

Babies!

They say that in America, our celebrities are our royalty, well I couldn't care less about celebrities. The palace has just confirmed that Kate is (finally) expecting! I can't even imagine this being my primary function in life and having so many people watching and waiting. It's already been almost two years (a new record for an heir apparently) since I and half the free world got up early to watch their wedding when I was on bedrest (the first time) just after our twins were transferred. We also just found out yesterday that DH's only brother and his new wife are also expecting their first child.

So excited for them!

I may be one of the only infertiles in the world who doesn't really sweat other people getting pg and having babies. I can honestly say that even as my elder sister was doing her Tori Spelling thing, four in five years including a whoops beginning after I got engaged, it didn't phase me, except that I worry for her children. We have very different life philosophies in general and she sees fit to try to rectify our crappy upbringing by living our parents' divergent dreams (mom: becoming an SLP and having four kids and staying home, and my dad: living on the land (at least 40 acres) with her own dose of crazy homeschooling and whatnot thrown in. A shrink for yourself is cheaper than messing up your kids. Anywho, I digress.

I'll admit it was really really tough for me were when I had three very close friends announce the arrival or pending in lousy ways while were in India for my FIL's funeral after our first IVF cycle got cancelled. Then I happened to have several friends who gave birth in the days after we lost our littlest girl two years ago and that shaded my ability to rejoice with them during that time (sorry ladies). Otherwise, IF is a long hard slog for so many and IMO made so much harder when we can't find a way to separate ourselves from what other people are doing. I guess I'm odd in that I don't spend a lot of time comparing my self to my peers. I have my own goals. I was mad I couldn't meet them and (enter cheeseball) "live the life I imagined". Theirs have little to do with mine. I like to think about it like waiting for DH to come into my life. I had to "kiss a lot of frogs", each of which taught me about myself and what I did and didn't want. I had SO many younger friends, cousins, and sisters get married before me (at nearly 30), some of them to the wrong guys, but despairing about that wouldn't have gotten me anywhere. It would however have made me miserable (a nice trait in a catch) and hurt our friendships, which I treasured.

I know it is so so hard to see the forest for the trees, but that is my infertility/life wisdom FWIW.

Speaking of trees, we ventured out in the super warm weather to get our Christmas tree over the weekend...

With no snow, which didn't allow us to use the twins' personal sleigh, we skipped the tree farm this year again and headed back to our local parish which sells really nice trees, so at least it is still going to a cause.  Last year, I picked our tree from them from the car.

The lovely gentlemen at the Knights of Columbus took several pictures of us with the tree after we picked it out, but of course for some reason there weren't actually pictures being taken. Boo hiss. Lesson learned.

A perfect baby girl...

I had a feeling the baby was a girl and just found out she had 46 perfect chromosomes. I can't begin to describe how sad this makes me.

Babymoon #1 booked

If you are not on Gilt Groupe's Jetsetter.com yet (Gilt login required), you should really check it out. Some of the stuff is out there (like the $5K package to see Coldplay and Jay-Z at the Cosmo in Vegas for NYE, I wish), but they also have some good deals.

I have been wanting to stay at The Peninsula Hotel in Chicago (one of the top hotels in the world) since they opened in 2001. I've been there over the years to visit their spa, their casual restaurant Pierrot Gourmet, and their great bar (many times ;)), and DH and I had my rescheduled birthday dinner there recently at Avenues (which was AMAZING!).

Now we are staying for the weekend. :) Valentine's Day weekend. It'll be our 7th V-day together and our last one alone. So I figured it was time. Let's call it Babymoon #1. This place is not cheap, and we usually like to stay at nice places when we travel or stay in the city (like 4 star) for really cheap (a la Hotwire or something of the like), but with The Pen, this just wasn't going to happen.

The deal on Jetsetter (a room @ ~the regular price) included a $100 food credit, $30 spa credit, and $100 gift certificate to the neighboring Saks, which made it a "good deal" IMO.

I can't wait!

Introducing...

Our seven week little lentil!



Baby is measuring perfectly on schedule (~1cm) and the heartbeat is pumping away! In case you can't tell, that's the head up top, the heart in the middle, and the yolk sack out front (on the right). It was the most amazing experience when it popped up on the screen. We have now officially graduated from the RE, and will have our first appt. with our new OB in exactly three weeks (@ 10 wks). We couldn't be happier and are just counting our blessings.

Luck needed

Well, we need to get some good news tomorrow at our ultrasound numero uno. We should definitely be able to hear a heartbeat at 7 weeks and will also
(hopefully) know how many kiddos we have in there, which will obviously set about all other sorts of plans.

S is leaving on Wednesday for 2 1/2 weeks in India. Unfortunately, he is flying through Heathrow (and Bahrain too in order to get what passes for a decent fare at this time of year, i.e. wedding season), but Heathrow has been closed for days due to extreme winter weather. This is what it looks like there now...




He needs to get to India before the end of the year to take care of family business (settling life insurance, closing on the flats that his dad bought when we were there in '06, but are just now being finished before next year's property taxes shoot up again, etc., etc.)

Thinking positive thoughts and hoping all goes well...

My first big post-BFP baby purchase

I really debated (I promise), and I don't believe in jinxing (whatever will be, will be) but on Mamabargains, you can't wait. And since I've been loving this Cariboo bassinet for years, now it will finally be mine. Baby will be spending nights in our room for the first several months (since the nursery is downstairs and MIL will be in the guest room), and the PNP is too big. Then we can save it for #2, use as a toy box, or sell it for close to cost.

Now I have reason to buy the activity set, which they sometimes have at the Land of Nod outlet. I love it because it has all the characters from the Cloud B line. So cute.




Amazing deal on Mamabargains.com. If you have kids or are pg (or shop for someone who does/is), you should definitely be checking out this site (if you don't already).

Baby books

We've had this one for years, it's good for TTC too, but now, of course, it's the real deal.

Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating During Pregnancy

DH also picked this one up years ago, and it's an interesting book on handling the changes that come with pregnancy and baby.
Mother Nurture

This one is on it's way (it's been in my Amazon cart for ages), as I just can't wait until I go home for Christmas to peruse what is probably a library of books my sister is offering me. I'm a little partial to the Mayo Clinic since they saved my niece, and have also treated other various family members over the years.

Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy

I'll admit that I just can't put a lot of stock in books written by people whose main qualification is having been pregnant. While that's fine, it doesn't cut it for me. So no thanks to top-seller WTEWYE. And don't even get me started on Miss McCarthy...

On a fun note, I've also had this for several years too...

A World of Baby Names

With all the online resources out there, I'm trying not to overdo it on the books, even though I'm a paper book gal.

But I'm curious what you pregnant ladies out there are reading?

Busy busy

So it's been quite the whirlwind in the two weeks since Thanksgiving, with me going back to work, our betas, school finishing up, holiday parties, getting ready for Christmas, and S getting ready to go back to India. Our first u/s is next Tuesday (@ 7w1d) and then S leaves on Wednesday for 2 1/2 weeks, which is completely nuts.

Even though I'll be home with family and DH will be on the other side of the world with his, I still wanted to keep up our (five years running) Christmas tradition of going to Marmion Abbey to find the perfect tree. Somehow this always manages to be on a really wet cold day, so we made it quick. It always makes me feel good to support a good cause, and since I read what they spray on those parking lots trees (not to mention how far they often truck them from), it'll be the only way we go (as long as I have the choice).







I finally found an OB/gyne who can deliver our baby at Prentice. I've wanted to deliver here forever, even before they built the new women's hospital, or even before DH came along. ;) We did hospital tours years ago now, looking at a few hospitals which are closer to us, and while they are fine, we are going for the best. My gyne of over ten years is affiliated with NW, but she no longer delivers babies. I could have stayed in her practice, but I figured it would be a little inconvenient to have to go downtown for regular appts. My new dr. is part of a group of eight female OB/gynes who thankfully have an office on the North Shore, which is much more convenient. Our first appt. is on Jan. 11th, just after DH returns, when I'll be 10 weeks and we'll have an u/s and a consult with Dr. Levin.

I'm already looking into all the fun classes we'll be taking. The main one is Great Expectations, but others I'm thinking about include: CPR, newborn care, ped care, breast feeding, etc.

I also came across another great resource, The Bump Club Chicago(which is not affiliated with THE Bump and was started by yet another ad girl) for fun events when I get a little further along.

The other insanity looming on the horizon is my big sales campaign for work. I've been working on this project since I started @ Z 14 months ago, and it's almost show time. We'll be going to all seven regions, probably about 20 cities, in 7-8 weeks. All in my second trimester. I made the mistake of doing some research, and am trying not to think of all the cosmic radiation I will be exposed to. But rather the fact that I'll be that much closer to leaving (for a min. 1 yr. sabbatical, I will leave and work somewhere else (w/IF coverage) later) and that we'll likely to be able to work in a partially subsidized babymoon in a warmer locale.

Class dismissed!

Last night was my last class, final and oral presentation. I'm 99.9% sure I got an A. (Update: class grade: A/95%, not too shabby...) Sadly, this will be it for me for now, as my work travel schedule next semester will make it impossible for me to hold down even one class. But it was fun and I learned a lot. Stay tuned for my sustainably designed nursery... ;)

Beta #2 and my slippery pulse

Beta #2 is 490! This is a good rise, with a doubling rate of 32 hours. We are done with betas now. We have to wait until Dec. 21st for our first u/s, as they like to make sure that it's late enough to hear the heartbeat. Then S will be likely be leaving for India. This is still a little surreal, I just can't believe how lucky we are. We are so incredibly grateful, and worried that we make it look too easy. ;)

I went back to my acu last night for the first time since my post-ET visit. She was so excited! She was pleased that I'm already having nausea, headaches, backaches, fatigue, extreme hunger, and not sleeping all that well. She's going to help me out. She loved my "pregnant pulse" which she described as being "slippery". I'd never heard that before, but I trust her that it's good. She also lit up when I said that I feel like I'm plugged in and being charged. She explained that according to Chinese medicine, where yin is the cool and calm, and yang is the hot and hyper, babies are 100% yang. I think I might be 100% yin, maybe that's why I feel so wild.

Worth the wait...

I have always loved this set, even before we were TTC or dx w/IF. The funny thing is, I think it's probably referring to the nine months fertile people "wait" to meet their LO. Puleeze...



This is a fun site for unique gifts. I got my sister these four years ago when she was expecting her first. When she found out she was having a boy (we are an all girl family), she thought/said "what do we do with one of those?" This is what you do... ;)



Now in organic too. :)

Digital on 9dp3dt

DH didn't want me to take it yesterday (boo on him, right?), but today here it is...


As Shakira says, the sticks don't lie, but Tuesday seems so far away...

FRER looks about the same, but I got new faint line on cheapie. My boobs continue to be insane, mild backache, and headache, but I actually feel fairly good.

After three and a half weeks off, tomorrow I go back to work. Lord help me.

It may be the lightest line ever...

But it's there, it's my first second line EVER, and I'm already in love (and so excited!). Please, please, please be a sticky baby(-ies).

8dpt...Placenta cells begin to secrete HCG in the blood (right on time ;) )

Still nothing on the cheapie this morning, this is a FRER. I had completely psyched myself out that I wouldn't be seeing anything like this (my defense mechanism, I guess). Way too many bad dreams and feeling nothing at all for several days. I had all kinds of weird ute "lightning" the first few days after ET, then complete radio silence. Just feeling really tired and hungry and started feeling nauseous today on the drive home. All I can say is BRING IT ON! :)

My first mommie moment

For the first time in quite awhile, I got up in the middle of the night wracked with worry. I couldn't stop thinking about my embies... How many of them are there? How are they doing? Who's looking after them? Are they taking good care of them?

I'm probably completely certifiable, but I guess I should get used to worrying about them for the next 20+ years...

Because I'm a sucker...

for cute baby animals... (these pics were just sitting on my desktop)




and cute baby stuff (and anything Indian...)

the Taj blanket is on its way from OKL... (yes, I've succumbed to buying baby stuff again, even though my "babies" are just follies on a TV screen. Hell, it's progress.)

Like these...


How did I not know Rikshaw Design existed before now? I am in love with all of it. It's the company I would start, if it didn't already exist. Love.love.love.

Bombay


Udaipur


I wonder if the owner of Rikshaw (Catherine Fitzsimmons) is the one who was doing baby kurtas @ PBK a few years back? Hmmm...

It takes an amazing amount of will power...

...not to buy this stroller.



Uppa Baby Vista Special Edition "Maya"

I've been researching strollers for what, over three years now. In my defence, my sister's and some of my friends' firsts were born at this time. And this was already my pick, but now in the golden yellow, I like to think of it as marigold, is divine. Special note, our last name means "gold" and my girl name is "Marielle" or "star of the sea", since S's name means "sea". Good thing I haven't put any thought into any of this... ;) But don't want to put the stroller before the baby, if you know what I mean. Hopefully sometime soon...