Icing...

I never want to see cake icing again....

What a long day. I got up early to go with my aunt to the Lakeside Rummage Sale and Jan (the other Spanish teacher) had invited herself along too since we were going to spend the day together anyway. So I picked her up at 7:30 am...craziness for a Saturday...

We went to the sale and I managed to leave with only one bag of books this time...and over half were for my classroom. :)

After, I was ready to fall over I was so weak from fasting for my blood tests. Oh yeah, I emailed my other doctor (not the OB/GYN) and she called in some blood tests, just the regulars like cholesterol, CBC, fasting glucose and the like...So we went to Group Health and immediately after stopped at IHOP to get me some breakfast and Jan some lunch. It was funny, our server was a former student and she kept calling me Miss Johnson...felt weird. :)

Anyway, then we came home and made icing for almost 5 hours...we used 20 pounds of icing sugar....try to envision how much icing this is...it is insane....

The things we teachers put ourselves through for these kids...I tell ya.

Road rage

So, Thursday I was driving home and am approaching a strange merge thing to get onto the highway...it is like there are 3 different lanes that are merging into one and then merge to join the freeway. Anyway, I see no cars to my left and I pull into this lane but some guy comes zooming up and I end up cutting him off, but I really didn't see him. Honestly.

Well, he does a lot of honking and beeping and flicking his lights at me, and I figure he has a right to be angry, and in my car I apologize to him. Of course, he can't hear this though.

I merge onto the freeway which is going INCREDIBLY slow. He does as well and eventually maneuvers himself behind me to beep and flick his lights at me constantly some more....

So, I pull over to the next lane to get away from him, and once again he does the same.

I pull over to another lane, and the same.

I pull back into the middle lane...and you guessed it, the same.

I am starting to get quite worried...

I pull back into the far right lane, the slowest of them all, and this time he pulls up in the lane to the left of mine and goes equally slow despite the current speed of his lane and honks his horn constantly yelling obscenities trying to get my attention and does this for at least 5 minutes before he finally speeds up and goes the same speed as his lane...

Seriously, if I had had a cell phone I would have called 911. I thought he was going to shoot me, I really did...and it was all a very honest mistake, due to HIS speeding...

I did it!

Short post right now. I know you are all shocked that I am posting mid-week.

I made an initial appointment with one of the fertility clinics here in Seattle. It is in two weeks from today. Woohoo!

Dumb doctors

Well, it has been another long week here filled with dentist appointments, doctor appointments, staff meetings, report cards and never forget work-school and school-school.

Sorry that it has taken so long to finally get an update out.

Anyway, I went to the doctor on Tuesday for my physical. You may recall that I was very excited to go and was hoping that I would get some answers and some blood work going. No such luck. In fact, I was so unimpressed with my doctor's visit, I decided it was not worth driving to Seattle to see him anymore and I am going to look for an OB/GYN at the Everett Group Health. I literally know nothing more than I did when I walked in. That's not true, the nurse took my blood pressure, so I suppose that was something I didn't know on my own. I told my doctor I wanted to start donor insemination and he told me I needed to go to a fertility clinic and they would have to put me on Clomid. No surprise there...

The pap test was the longest I have EVER had. He put in the speculum and then did who knows what for a couple of minutes at his desk before he came back and actually took the swab...HEELLLOO??? He asked if I had had an ultrasound at his clinic, I said yes, he then asked if it had shown any fibroids or polyps (shouldn't HE know this???). I told him yes, you removed two polyps when you performed the D&C!!!! He did NOT take a new ultrasound which surprised me given the fact that I told him a) I wanted to begin DI, and b) I had just had an unmedicated period for the first time in years...

He also did not do ANY blood tests...This didn't even occur to me until after he had left as I was just so shocked at how little was done. None at all. They usually run blood tests every 6 months or so to check my liver functioning due to the Metformin, and they test my blood sugar just about every time I see a doctor...so...what the HELL??????

So yeah, this doctor appointment did not leave me in a good mood....However, I realized I need to get the ball rolling here for contacting fertility clinics since I don't know how long it will take to get in and get ready to start... So, I found a site online called locateadoc or something like that and filled out the "more information" form for all the doctors listed under fertility in the Seattle area and we will see if any respond. If not, I will start calling sometime soon (like sometime before I go home for Christmas...)

So confused...

Well, after I lost those 2 pounds last week to get me down to -20, I decided I needed a reward. Carrie kept raving about the Sims 2 and since I really enjoyed the Sims, I decided, that would be a good reward. So, I ordered the Sims 2 online. Now, today, I was up at 7 and worked hard and finished all my assignments for this week's modules. I have two papers (one page each) to write for Monday night, a lesson plan for a presentation for Monday night, and all of next week's modules to work on, but I worked so hard this morning, I deserve a break right? AND, my copy of the Sims 2 just arrived.....so.........I think my school work is going to have to wait. :)

Spotting!!!

OK boys, you likely do not care and do not want to read further. :) I warned you. :) My hopes is that at some point next year, this will be a true fertility blog...but for now, there are just little bits and pieces of it here and there as I get other things in order.

I am SOOOO excited! I am spotting today. No drugs, nothing to bring it on. Oh, please, tell me that I may have actually ovulated this cycle!!! This is doubly exciting since I had ordered the meds to start a period after my doctor's appointment a week from this coming Tuesday..but if I ovulate now, it will be perfect as the doctor should be able to check with the dildocam if I am producing follicles for the next cycle. WOOHOO!!!!:)

Please let me be ovulating on my own, please, please please!!

For those of you who made it this far and can not understand why a woman would be so excited about impending cramping and bloatiness and everything else associated with the glories of being a woman, let me explain PCOS to you: PCOS can be different for every woman who has it, but mine has been a long history (since I was about 17) of either no cycles for indeterminate amounts of time (meaning I am not ovulating) and so I had to take progesterone to cause a period, or bleeding for unbearable amounts of time like 1 and a half years. Yes, you read that right..it was almost two years when I finally got a D&C to stop it. I have been in the no period category for about 10 months (I force a cycle every 2-3 months). So, it is possible that this spotting will be a true cycle, or it is possible that it will be the start of a long cycle....please please, let it be a real cycle!! (I have some hope as I did notice some EWCM about a week and a half ago....)

And the winner is...

OK. I know I said I was going grocery shopping on Friday, but what happened was this:

Friday started out so productive. I slept in late because there were no kids at school, it was a professional development day. Not only was it a professional development day, but it was the only day in the year that we get the entire day to ourselves with no meetings to attend!!!!

Anyway, so yeah. I slept in super late, and still managed to get to school only about 10 minutes later than usual?! I got there before the custodian so the gate to get to my little parking area was still locked...that is how early I was.

I went in my room and got right to work..I had a stack of papers to mark as well as a short test. I started around 6:30 and was done all the marking by 9:30 woohoo!! I made my long weekly parent address. hahaha. Seriously though, I email the parents once a week and tell them what is going on in class, when tests are coming up and any other relevant information. Then I finished up some paperwork for the office, and by 10:30 I was finished all my immediate school related duties. So, I worked on some things for my professional certification (don't get my started on how much I loathe this....) since I have an "N" grade and must complete it by mid-November or start over again (God forbid!!!!!!!!).

Then, I decided to go get some lunch from Subway. When I got to my car, it was raining outside, AND INSIDE my car. Yes, that is right. It was raining on me INSIDE my car. So, I got my lunch, went back to school, ate my lunch, and by 1, I decided to leave early and see if I could get my car to the dealer. The dealer said they contract out that kind of work and that the first time they could get me in was Tuesday morning (I need my car during the week!), so I went home. I didn't want to keep my car outside in the rain any longer. I played the Sims game because Carrie is an evil influence;) hahaha

Anyway, so now, I did get up early this morning (6:30 am for no apparent reason..). Made a big breakfast, watched a bit of TV, and went grocery shopping. I loved all your ideas and will probably make them at some point or another as my aunt and I trade off making fun dinners. However, they have all made it into this big "Canadian Thanksgiving" thing as if Canada is on some other planet, and they do not hear me when I tell them it is the same as American Thanksgiving only earlier...so, I defaulted back turkey. I know, how unoriginal. But, since they all think they are getting some fantastic "ethnic" meal, LOL, I figure I should give them a true Canadian Thanksgiving. Again, I loved all your ideas. I made cornish game hens for myself before and they were delicious...I will make them for aunt/uncle one day as well. I still don't know where I will find a duck...but I may try that one day too. And please Mandy, email me the recipe for your stuffed pork loins...they sound scrumptious! Rack of lamb...I have considered that a couple times for dinner, it is already high on my list of possible dinners to make (my uncle doesn't like lamb is why I haven't....but my aunt and I both do, so I could just make some small meat dish for him..)

Anyway, in other news, I am officially down 20 pounds! WOOHOO! I was so excited. I SOOOO wished I would be down 30 by now, but 20 is better than none. If you remember, my real goal was 150 lost...so I still have quite a ways to go...but at least I am going in the right direction!

I have been really thinking about getting started on the TTC journey lately. I have my annual exam in a week and a half. Funny that I still call it the annual. In Canada, that is what we call it (or at least that is what most women I know call it) because it truly is once a year. Here, I tried to go in last year, and they told me I couldn't. They only do it every 2-3 years, sometimes 4! Because of my insulin resistance and high blood pressure, they let me come in every 2 years...how generous of them.

Anyway...I made my appointment with the doctor I have seen the most, even though I have never officially marked him down as my "primary care physician". I only saw my primary care physician once...two years ago for my first Well Care Visit (that is what they call the "annual" here). After that, she referred me to an OB/GYN because of my PCOS related problems (pretty serious at the time...). Since then, I always see him since that has been my main cause for concern (the insulin resistance (IR) is usually connected with PCOS).

I am excited to see him because I am going to discuss what, besides losing weight, I can be doing now to prepare to begin TTC in the new year. I am also going to see if there are any tests he can do, like for an ultrasound with the infamous "dildocam" as so many TTCers call it or blood tests for hormone levels. Finally, I want to know if he can do any of the IUI(intrauterine insemination) or if I will need to find a clinic/RE (reproductive endocrinologist). It would be great if he could do any/all, because I just might be able to slip an ultrasound or blood test or medication past my insurance if I am there...With a separate clinic there is no way since I have an HMO.

Anyway, this has become a super long post, and I have tons of school work that must be done today so that I will have time to cook all day tomorrow. Have a great weekend, and happy Thanksgiving to any Canadians out there!

Online Education

This is mostly a reply to Carrie since I am not sure she would find my response if I respond to her comment a couple posts down. :)

There are lots of schools that have online programs. I am not sure what kind of program you are looking/thinking about, but I would bet there is a university somewhere in the States that has that in an online program.

My M.Ed. that I am working on right now is completely online. I read my text, listen to the lecture, participate in discussions, work on group projects, submit assignments, everything online. It's great! I can do my assignments when I want to and when I have the time. My most common time to really get down to work is Friday late at night (after I have had a nap) and very early Sunday mornings. I work at various times throughout the week as well...but those are my two most productive time slots. :)

Opinions, please

Well, next Monday is Thanksgiving in Canada. I still feel rather Canadian, and I have invited my aunt, uncle and cousin over for a Thanksgiving dinner...

Here is my dilemma:

A week ago, I was invited to a huge dinner at my aunt's with a family from the Republic of Georgia (where my cousin just came back from the Peace Corps). My aunt made a turkey for this dinner.....

My question to you: Do I:

a) make a turkey anyway
b) make a ham
c) ??? give me other suggestions...

Voting is open until Friday night when I will go grocery shopping. (I am serving dinner on Sunday since Monday is not a holiday here in the States)

Loooooong Week

What a VERY long week...

It is the beginning of the new quarter for my Master's degree, and for my classes for ESL certification...that means that Monday I am at school from 6 am to 3 and then head over to my ESL class from 4-8:30..and get home a little after 9....what an incredibly long day...

Then on Tuesday, we had Open House from 7-9 pm...Some of the other teachers invited me to dinner with them, so I stayed at school...I will never do that again. I need to get out of the school for a little while...6am - 9 pm in my mouldy smelly classroom is way too long...

Wednesday I tried to catch up on my online classes (I am taking three online grad classes this quarter).

Thursday, we had staff meeting after school, and I called my mom who sounded like she was on her death bed....Then I talked to my aunt briefly as she invited me over for Friday. She called back five minutes later having called my mom and worried sick about her...

Friday, I gave a test in my classes which means that I have 150 tests to grade this weekend..woohoo! Then I met my aunt for dinner...that was nice..Oh, and Mount St. Helen's erupted...

So yeah, today I have been trying to finish this week's grad school lessons, and start on next weeks...and I called my mom who FINALLY went to a doctor who X-rayed her neck/arm, gave her some pain killers and sent her to the physiotherapist (she has a pinched nerve and can't do anything...)

LONG, LOOOOONG week...

Next week isn't looking too bad right now, maybe I will be able to stay on top of things better. :)