Day 25--A favorite photo

I am doing a series of 3 pictures.  I took these of my niece after her bath right before bed.  She has been caught red handed in the cookies.

Hi Auntie

Cookies, I haven't seen any cookies.  I don't know what you are talking about.

Oh you were going to let me have the cookies?  You're not mad, whew!  What a relief!

Of course I am biased, but I think she is the cutest thing EVER!  I am not sure how she got all that on her face and none on her whit pajama top, but she did it!

Day 24--A travel story

I am sure everyone has had the kind of trip where everything has gone wrong.  I had gone to visit my aunt and uncle in Alabama, the same one mentioned in the funny story post.  My flight down was delayed by hours, completely cutting out my layover, I am now running through the Atlanta airport trying to make my connection!  I get down to Alabama and we have a fantastic time, that is until it is time for me to go home.  My flight home is  canceled, I had to be put on another one, which the airlines did not want to cooperate with.  I get on my flight, my luggage does not.  I get to my final destination and my friends, who were waiting on me, seriously tell me, you have 5 minutes to whine and that's it!  So I take all 5 and just let it rip!  On the way home, we get pulled over since my friend was exhausted from waiting on me to get home all friggin' day!  The officer thought he was drunk!  So we finally make it home about 12 hours later than originally should have.  My luggage finally makes an appearance about 2 days later!

A health update

I went to my gynecologist today as a follow up to my PCOS diagnosis and visit with the endocrinologist.  It went well overall.  She talked about all the options and discussed the possibility of seeing a Reproductive Specialist.  I declined that at this time since I have only  been on the metformin for a few months and my insurance does not cover any infertility treatments.  She looked at my charts and said they "looked" like I was ovulating before but she wasn't positive.  She liked the ones since metformin much better and feels for certain that I am ovulating (blood work confirmed it).  She also discussed an HSG, a procedure to see if my fallopian tubes are blocked, and D doing a semen analysis.  She also offered a prescription for clomid.  I discussed my concerns about that with her and since I am ovulating on my own and don't really want multiples, that is not an option right now.  I declined all other treatments right now since I want to give my body a chance to get used to the metformin and see what happens.  It will also give us a chance to save up some money for any future testing, if we need it.  Overall, I felt it was very positive and she was not pushing me into any kind of testing that I wasn't ready for.  She also went ahead and gave me the order for the SA, just so we would have it if we wanted it if/when we were ready for it.  As she said, all she is out is a piece of paper.  I don't really feel like I am any further along than I was, but I know she is supporting us in what we want.  At least now, I know what my options are.

Day 23--A video

During the zoo unit, I found this video on YouTube to show my preschool kiddos.  They laughed and laughed, but remember they are four and saying underwear makes them bust out into hysterical laughter!  It is cute, innocent and just for fun.  Enjoy the mama and baby panda.

Day 22--A favorite joke

Ok, seriously I am the lamest person alive.  I cannot think of one joke.  In my defense, I teach preschool and all I hear are lame knock, knock jokes that 4 year old kids make up!  They go something like this: 
them: knock, knock
me: who's there?
them: chicken
me: chicken who
them: chicken noodle soup (insert hysterical laughter from small children here)

Oh well, they keep life interesting!  If you have any good jokes, but sure to leave them in the comment section!

Day 21--A Favorite Recipe

I love food.  I don't particularly love to cook it!  I do have a recipe that is super easy for hashbrown casserole that is my weakness!  It is easy and can be mixed up the night before and baked the next day.

1 bag of southern style hashbrowns
1 can of cream of chicken soup
12 oz of sour cream
1 stick of butter melted
2 cups of shredded cheddar
1 Tbs of salt

2 cups of crushed corn flakes
1/2 stick of melted butter

Preheat the oven to 350.  Mix the soup, sour cream, salt, butter and cheese together.  Stir in hashbrowns.  Pour into a greased, 9x13 pan.  Mix the crushed corn flakes and melted butter, sprinkle on the top of the casserole.  Bake for 1 hour.

I like it this way, but it can be a tad salty for some, you can cut the salt down if you need to.  I hope you enjoy!  This is a HUGE hit at potlucks!

Day 20--A Hobby of mine

I like to do several different things so I am not really sure I have a "hobby" per say.  I do love shopping with all my being.  So I guess if I had to pick that would be it.  I love the thrill of finding a bargain.  I don't often buy things for myself, I love to buy things for everyone else.  I love all the little kids things that I can dig through for my nieces and nephews.  Target Dollar Bins are some of my favorite things in the world.  They make me happy.  I can always find good things for my treasure box for my preschool kiddos.  My nieces and nephews also love the cool things that I find for them.  I think shopping is the thrill of the chase.  You can scout and be stealthy to find that ever elusive "perfect catch".

Day 19--A fun memory

When I read what today's post was supposed to be about, I laughed.  I knew immediately what I wanted to write about.  I am the type of person who has a good time, no matter what.  I just set my mind to it and it happens.  This story does have some bone chilling fear along with the fun.
I was visiting my aunt, who lived a plane ride away.  She had two grandkids who were her life so we did lots of things with them.  One thing they like to do is go to the park and feed the ducks.  Insert bone chilling fear here....I am TERRIFIED of birds.  Yes birds, I can't help it, don't judge!  So anyway, we have a loaf of bread, a thunderstorm in the making and about a million ducks.  Her grandson was four at the time and he was a tad bit leery of the ducks.  Have I mentioned that these were GIANT ducks?!  I was patiently hiding under the slide while they were feeding the ducks.  The grandson starts squealing and running towards me with this duck chasing him, nipping at his behind!  I am screaming, drop the bread, drop the bread!  I didn't want that duck ANYWHERE near me!  Finally, after much screaming and yelling from me, he drops the bread, jumps into my arms.  Cue the thunder and lightening here.  Thankfully the storm forced us to the car, however we didn't get there unscathed.  We were all walking back to the car and here comes a posse of ducks, this was a planned attack!  They circled us and started nipping at all of our backsides!  Thankfully I was in the middle of our huddle!  Who says the safety of children should come first!?  Finally we made it to the car where we just explode into hysterical laughter!  You know the laughter where you can't catch your breath and every time you think you are composed, you think about it and it starts all over again!  Thankfully no one got struck by lightening or eaten by a ravenous duck.  I think the innocence of the situation and just the simplicity of the day made it so great.

Day 18--A baby photo (or not)

Ok, just let me say that I live 4 hours away from my mom who has all of my baby pictures...so this one is a no go. So it is just going to be a random post.

D and I had a tough week last week. We have had a lot going on: sickness, busy with work, some family stuff, etc. Basically life has been happening to us and we didn't handle it the way I really wanted to. I was upset basically for a whole week. So finally we talked it out and everything is fine. In the midst of our talking it out, I begin to have this tremendous ovary pain, like doubling me over pain! I was chatting with some lovely ladies that told me I needed to take and OPK, so I did. Of course it is positive. Just let me say D and I were working out our disagreement, but I was not ready to "make-up" wink, wink, nudge, nudge. However, we are in our 10th cycle for trying for our miracle so I don't want to waste a perfectly +OPK. So we do what we need to do. This was our first experience with Pre-Seed, which we LOVED! We did get a little generous with it, a little goes a long way!

So as I was talking to D today on my way home from work today, he asks, "So when are we going to know if the other night worked or not?" How hysterical is that!? I explained that I was only 3 days past ovulation (DPO) and that I could test next week. He sounded a little disappointed that we had to wait that long. I go Monday to my gyno for a follow-up on my PCOS diagnosis and the meds they have put me on. So I am going to test even though I will only 9 DPO. This is really the first cycle that I have at least some hope. Before our timing really seemed to stink, you must have sex to make a baby, hahaha! So our (I really mean my) new motto is sex it up every other day from day 10 to whenever my body decides to ovulate, which varies from day 14-24. I might get tired of sex, but I know the end result is going to be worth it. This week with all sorts of people posting their pregnancy info on Facebook, The Bump, etc has made me really sad that I am not pregnant. I am really hoping it is my turn soon!

Day 17--A photo of my family

Since I am going for anonymity, I am not going to post a picture of my whole family. I am going to post a picture instead of my sweet grandpa. He passed away on the 23rd of December. He was 93 years old, a WWII veteran and just a great person! He was the kindest, gentlest soul, who deep down, was a prankster. He smiled all the time and was truly a joy to be around. He loved his family and worked very hard to provide for my grandma, my uncle and mother.

My grandparents truly had a wonderful love story. He was in Texas for boot camp at the beginning of the war. She was working on base. They met and got married in whirlwind! He was 25 and she was 14, not unusual for that time period. He moved her back to his family farm in the mid-west. They wrote letters the whole time he was away at war. There was a time he got separated from his group during a mission so that was scary for all of them. However, it turned out to be a blessing since the rest of his platoon was killed. He won a Bronze Star for one of his missions. My grandpa was not one to boast or brag or even talk about his war experience, it was just what he did for his country.

My favorite memory I have of my grandpa is not one in specific, but just of the time he spent with me. I remember sitting beside him in his recliner watching TV with his arm around me. He let me drive the tractor, just following him wherever he went. I couldn't have asked for a better grandpa. The following picture is one I took of him at the last Thanksgiving.

Day 16--A Favorite Food

I am very big into "comfort food". I have very fond memories of growing up and watching my mom or grandmother in the kitchen just cooking away. The smell of a chicken simmering on the stove, the smell of fresh bread in the oven or the smell of a warm pie just coming out of the oven always brings a smile to my face! My favorite meal is homemade chicken and noodles with mashed potatoes and peas. It's nothing but carbs but it makes me all warm inside. I guess it is not even as much the food as it is the feelings and memories that it evokes for me. I think that food is such an important part of social functions, especially in my family, that I can relate most of my memories to food! I guess I am going to end here before I get so hungry I have to go cook something!

Day 15--My Celebrity Crush

I do not lust over many people, but I do love, love, love Matthew McConaughey!

Day 14--An old photo

I am the one in pink.  How hot am I?!  This was one of my 8th grade dances.  This is almost too much awesomeness, I just can't stand it! 

Day 13--Something I want to buy

I am seriously a shopaholic, or at least used to be before a budget...lol!  I am have lived in my house for about 5 years now so it is time to do some upgrading.  So this is what I want my next big purchase to be:
http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/739175/7391753467817lg.jpg
I want to replace the carpet in our living room and foyer.  I think it will help with allergies and dust.  I am not sure if we should do it ourselves or pay to have it done.  The dilemma.  

Day 12--Something I bought recently

I have not bought too much recently.  I have been trying to live on a budget.  It doesn't always prove to be successful though!  :)
I bought this dress for my niece for her 8th grade graduation.  I feel so old.....
http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/womens/dresses/littleblackdresses/PRD~745487/daisy+fuentes+Smocked+Empire+Dress.jsp

Day 11--A Recent Photo of Me

I am going for some anonymity so I am not going to post a picture of my face. The picture I am posting is from Christmas with my family.  We had tons of fun sledding in the snow!  I am making a serious fashion statement in the camo.  I do not own anything camo....all of his belongs to my mom who is an avid hunter.  However, the purple hat with the heart on the front is mine!  :)  I had not taken anything warm enough so she was kind enough to let me borrow something!

Day 10--A photo older than 10 years

This is from my sophomore year, which yes was way more than 10 years ago.  Let's talk about the glasses, could they be any bigger?  Next let's talk about the the dyed to match shoes...wow!  There is no need to mention the awful hair.  I was going through my short hair is cool phase.  Obviously, I was wrong.  I honestly just got rid of this dress about 2 years ago.  I held on to it for sentimental reasons I suppose.  I went to this dance with my first "real boyfriend".  I went with him knowing I was going to break up with him after, don't judge, he was a terrible kisser and I already had the dress!  Enjoy this monstrosity!

Spring

I love spring!  I think the trees stand up a little taller showing off their bright green leaves, the grass is a little greener, the sky is a brighter blue, the clouds are a little puffier.  I drove home from my mom's yesterday (a four hour drive) and I took the time to really enjoy the scenery.  I noticed the dogwoods and redbuds scattered throughout the woods, just a splash of color.  I almost felt like I was in a cartoon and everywhere I traveled the glitter came out from behind my car, leaving the beautiful colors in my wake...ok, that might be a stretch,  but I really do love spring!

Day 9--A pet peeve

Oh my goodness, I have so many!  I think my biggest pet peeve is the "one-upper".  We all know them...you caught one fish, they caught 10 and they were THIIIIIISSSSSSS big!  OMG!  It makes me friggin' crazy!  Seriously, people is your life so pitiful that you can't let someone have their moment?!  Ok, vent over.

Day 8--Something I crave

I can live without meat, I can live without vegetables, I can live without fruit, but please, please, please do not make me live without donuts!  I love donuts.  I like them cream filled, jelly-filled, iced, glazed, powdered, cake, yeast....and the list goes on!  So needless to say, I crave donuts!

Day 7--A favorite photo

I love pictures.  I try to photograph every aspect of our life.  I guess I just want to hold onto the memories.  I don't print out a lot of them, but I do post most of them on Facebook to share with my family since I live about 4 hours away from them.

I love this picture.  He still holds my hand this tight all the time!

Day 6--A fun fact about me

Ok, I was traveling last night and missed my blog so I am doing 2 tonight.
My fun fact:
I love to sing karaoke!  I am not the world's best singer but it is fun.  It is a great way to get to know a person's style.  I love to sing old, hokey country songs.  That is the kind of music I grew up on.  My mom sings in a country band and I basically grew up in a dance hall.  So I guess I choose karaoke songs based on my past experiences. I do not like to sing by myself, I prefer a group. 

Day 5--A Favorite Quote

Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.
Robert Louis Stevenson

I chose this quote mainly because I am a preschool teacher.  I try to live each day as a positive influence on the lives I touch.  I am not going to lie, there are some days it is harder than others.  I do hug my students every day.  I also tell them I love them every day.  I think if I am a positive influence at this early stage of their education that maybe their love of school will continue through the latter grades.