One of THOSE stories

A friend recently said to me that I would be one of THOSE stories when I said I was having a break from IVF for a while.

You know the ones where you hear that people have been on fertility treatments for years and then they have a break and BAM! they get pregnant. 

And the confession is I would LOVE to be one of THOSE stories.

I think mine should have a bit of a chick lit flavour to it (happy ever after ending including lots of babies with the man I love), a smattering of fantasy (good vs evil with good winning of course), a dollop of family drama (a la Jodi Picoult) and a good bit of travel adventure (Eat, Pray, Love style - without the love angst and finding a new husband side of things - just the travel).

Who knows...stranger things have happened...

 Image source: thelittlefox on Etsy. Am LOVING her art so much.

Clowning around

I've just read an article headlining - Humour clowns linked to IVF success.  Apparently in a study done by a team of Israeli doctors it was found that the odds of success were greater among women who were entertained by a professional "medical clown" just after the embryos were transferred to their wombs. 

This is hilarious! I'm sitting here imagining Bobo in all his clowning, red nosed, big footed glory jumping around the clinic room popping out a joke or two while I'm sitting there with my legs in the air. (Too bad if you're one of those people who have a phobia of clowns...that would send stress levels sky high!)

However, I'm not that surprised to hear that a bit of a comedy routine could be beneficial in terms of lowering stress levels. And I fully believe that low stress levels could have an impact on success. That being said I swear I was super cool the last three rounds...maybe I need to watch more comedy?

So if we ever end up doing IVF again, I'm definitely going to put in a special request for clowns. Or at the very least, spend the afternoon watching reruns of Friends...

 

Image source: lulisplanet on Etsy When I was looking for clown artwork, I came across so many scary clowns it was a little freaky!  Why can't people draw innocent happy clowns?? I liked this picture because of the sparkly balloons and the clown looked so happy :)

No predictions for 2011

Yesterday, while sipping a glass of cleanskin chardonnay (not a bad drop actually), I cleaned up the Christmas tree packing all the decorations away in their special box. And all the while I was thinking that I'd just put everything up.  Where did December disappear to?  No wait...where did the whole of 2010 go?

It's funny how the start of a new year feels so full of possibility and promise. What is it about the month of January that makes it so different from December? Is it holidays? Is it trying to reverse the effects of the Christmas/new year food binge? (Raise your hand if you fit into this boat *hand raised*)

I'm wondering what 2011 holds for us? The last couple of years I've tried to make predictions about what the year will hold (particularly in relation to the baby side of things...) but this year I have no idea and I'm certainly not making any type of predictions (as I've been so wrong in the  past)!!

I think for me, this year is about making the most of every opportunity and looking for open windows where doors have seemingly closed.  Come on 2011 - let's see what you've got!

Image source: thedreamygiraffe on Etsy

A weary yet faithful heart

Well our little snow people melted away over Christmas and my heart has become a little wearier. 

It's been a big year with a lot of effort and we are quite exhausted from it all so I think we've well earned a break (as has our bank account!).  Time to just be us for a while, not 'us doing IVF'.

Maybe the Christmas miracle is that I had a lovely day with family, ate huge amounts of food (i.e.chocolate) and drank expensive french champagne (I highly recommend the real stuff - it's amazing).

Maybe the Christmas miracle is that we are both healthy and well and best of friends.

Maybe the Christmas miracle is that we still have faith that we will get there in the end...

Image source: JCSpock on Etsy

Gingerbread people!

I just have to show you the gingerbread people I made today (I made other shapes too like hearts, a donut and a guitar for my brother).

I can't say I was the neatest artist ever with the icing and some of them have quite scary expressions...but I had a lot of fun.  The recipe I used was from taste.com.au

The self gee up that worked

I was in danger of falling into a 'blue funk' earlier this week (which is ok to do every now and then by the way regardless of your reasons!) and giving everything up before we even knew the outcome of round 5.

And then I was reminded that love never gives up and always hopes and if we are truly doing this whole IVF process out of love I shouldn't stop hoping or give up on these little snow people too early. In fact we shouldn't give up on any future kids...regardless of what happens in the immediate future.

Surprisingly, this little self gee up worked and rather than being a nervous wreck, prostrated on the couch, unable to do little else but eat copious quantities of chocolate and watch dodgy Christmas movies and Glee reruns, I've been getting into the pre-Christmas spirit quite nicely.

I've wrapped presents, made chocolate balls, apricot balls and gingerbread men are even on the cards (I'm so proud of my baking alter ego right now - although where's a Kitchenaid standing mixer when I need one!).

This is not to say that I won't be quietly heartbroken if this round doesn't work, but I guess I'm beginning to hold tighter to the fact that love will always come through one way or the other. 

Image source: Shirae Etsy shop

I really want one of these...

At the risk of sounding all domestic like, I really want a Kitchenaid standing mixer.

And I love this pink one!

I'm feeling curiously relaxed three days post transfer which is why I'm probably looking at kitchen devices with such excitement.

Or am I looking to bury any week before you know jitters in a mountain of baking (although I do have Christmas goodies to get stuck into making)?

Or is it just because this is my third transfer in a row and after two failed rounds my expectations are much lower (although my hope is as high as ever)?

Or is it that my acupuncture this round has made me super relaxed and zen?

Or do I just really really want this super cool piece of kitchen gadgetry regardless of where I'm at in life!?

Welcome to another round of mental badminton!

Image source: www.kitchenaid.com