Absent Blogger...

My apologies for not being around to blog over the last two months.

Since finding out that we were not pregnant as a result of our first IVF cycle, I decided to take a break from everything that reminded me of pregnancies in general, and unfortunately this included my blog.

I have since had a break, relaxed a lot and am now back on board.

So here is a summary of what has been happening over the last two months:

My future sister-in-laws Hen's Night!

Started with drinks & dinner at her place, followed by Pole Diva's, (pole dancing lessons), a 1 hour ride in a pink stretch hummer limo which ended at Crown Casino where the rest of the girls all went clubbing til the wee hours of the morning!

"D-I-Y Skin Care Products" Course

I enrolled myself in a 1 day course to learn how to make my own skin care products!

It was awesome!!

It is insane how easy it is to make quality products, with very few ingredients, (ours were all natural, pure & organic), that have NO toxic ingredient in them at all.

We made: a soothing eye gel, lip balm, body scrub and a light face cream.

I am also enrolled to take part in another version of this course for "D-I-Y Baby Skin Care Products" on June 26th. I cant wait as this is Step1. of my plan to gain knowledge in order to be able to run a business from home.

Cycle 2 of our IVF Journey

We are in the middle of our second IVF cycle and I'm not really paying it much attention other than to go through the motions of my injections and other daily medication!

I'm finding that I am less "obsessed" with falling pregnant compared to last time and I am hoping that this will be beneficial to our final outcome in three weeks time.

Tomorrow I am booked in for a blood test and an internal ultra sound to see how my follicles are growing this cycle. Last time we had quite a few with 10 eggs successfully collected.

Fingers crossed we will have a similar result this time around.

My brother & sister-in-laws wedding

We woke to a beautiful sunny day, yes it was a cold day in June, but it wasnt raining and that was the main thing that we were all concerned about!

The ceremony was held at the local church, (OLGC), where Anthony had gone to primary school and where Julie had been baptized as a Catholic in order to marry him.

We had photos taken with immediate family surrounding the church, then the brial party headed to Crown Casino, where the newly wed's checked into their room. We had photos up on the roof top in the garden of Cafe Breezes, (where my darling husband had proposed to me), a freaky coincedence!

My IVF Journey Day 31

Today is THE day we find out if we are pregnant or NOT!

I know we are NOT as last week I started spotting which honestly at the time I wasnt too concerned about but when this turned into consistant bleeding on Friday I began to freak out. It was bright red blood, (new blood = bad), not old blood which is brown!  I know that sounds SO gross and way too much information, but perhaps someone reading this might be having a similar experience that turned out ok. Which is why I'm inclined to share such things with you all.

So here I am waiting for time to fly by and for the results to be called through, my stomach is in knots, my tummy is cramping like there is no tomorrow AND yes I AM still bleeding.

Not a great start to my first IVF cycle!

I dont expect a positive result today and IF I did get one I'd probably fall down in shock.

I am a firm believer that everything happend for a reason but I still dont understand why I cannot fall pregnant naturally. I'm fit and healthy and it just seems so unfair!

My IVF Journey Day 26

Today is day 26 of our IVF Cycle.

I've started spotting... Some brown and some red blood.

I spoke to my nurse this morning and she isn't concerned as this can happen and can be attributed to "implantation bleeding".

I have cancelled Sara's swimming lesson for today, (fourth week in a row!), and am doing NOTHING at all today. I'm not even going to cook dinner! I'm going to order take out or call Rob's mum to make me her amazing chicken soup!

Just quietly I'm freaking out as I I had a strange feeling last night that I wasn't pregnant, but I really don't want to believe that this could be true, and nor can I believe that I have even let this thought out of my head to share with you.

I want to have faith that this pregnancy WILL WORK.

I HAVE to have faith that this one will work.

Click here for more reading

Implantation bleeding is just one of several typical pregnancy symptoms and it usually happens around 6-12 days after ovulation and fertilization, within 1-2 days after arrival of the blastocyst in the uterus, usually around 9 days after ovulation (dpo), with a range of 6-12 days. At the time of implantation bleeding, the blastocyst is barely visible to the naked eye, probably smaller than the dot above the letter "i". Once implantation happens the blastocyst becomes the embryo.

My IVF Journey Day's 13 - 25

So Friday came and went without a hitch and NINE eggs were able to be collected!

Personally I thought that this was fantastic, but kept it real telling myself that not all would survive and grow into embryo's once fertilized. Which is true and how right I was.

We were called on Saturday morning by our IVF Nurse who informed us that 5 out of the 9 eggs had fertilized that morning. They were going to wait and see how things progressed but at this stage they were aiming to be able to transfer a 5 day old embryo, (called a blastocyst), on Wednesday. They would call me on Tuesday to confirm all the details!

On Wednesday the 16th March, we were impregnated with a tiny ball of cells that will hopefully grow into a beautiful healthy baby for us!

We also found out on Friday 19th March that out of the 5 embryos that had fertilized on Saturday only 2 survived until the 5 day or blastocyst stage, the others had all stopped growing at various stages in the last 4 days. The one remaining blastocyst is being grown until a 6 day stage and if it survives it will be frozen for us in case our current transfer doesn't work. It didnt survive!
 Whats next?
I am instructed to take it easy, get lots of rest do very little and above all RELAX! I also have a blood test scheduled for the 28th of March which will confirm whether my hormone levels are increasing, if they are then it looks promising. However, Monash then schedule you in for another blood test 2 weeks down the track to check these levels again. At this stage if they are still increasing then its going to be a viable pregnancy, if not then it looks as though it may not work!

Monash IVF
The blastocyst is an early preimplantation embryo, which by day 5 has begun to differentiate and consists of a sphere of cells with an inner and outer layer surrounding a fluid filled cavity. The outer layer of cells, the trophectoderm, give rise to the placenta and extra-cellular tissues, and the inner group of cells, the inner cell mass, give rise to the foetus.

Today I'm grateful for..

My beautiful baby girl!

She turns two today and I cannot imagine life without her, she is the sunshine that lights up my life!

I am eternally grateful for the joy you bring me and the mere fact that I have you in my life seems more and more like a miracle each day!

xox

My IVF Journey - Day's 2 - 12

Our IVF journey to date, (it's now day 12), has been a whirlwind event and as I havent been an emotional wreck like I imagined I would with all the hormone injections and other drugs I've had to take, I feel there really isnt anything to blog about. 

I just feel like a pin cushion.. That's all!

The scan from Monday indicated we have 7-8 follicles that are of a good size, so we have our egg collection now scheduled for Friday. There is no guarantee that any of these follicles will contain eggs and if they do they who knows if they are going to be of a high enough quality and mature enough?

We wont know this until after the egg collection!!

So we wait with baited breath, day by day until then....

Cross all your fingers and toes for us!!

My IVF Journey - Day 1

Phase 1, started at 8:30am on Sunday the 27th February, with my first dose of Syneral. A nasal spray that stops my ovaries from functioning.

It was simple, insert into nostril, push down on the nozzle and breath in, I have to do this on the left side in the morning and right side at night.

At first it was like any other nasal spray, but as the morning went on and time passed, a dull headache began to develop.

All the while my husband sat on the couch watching the morning news, while I soldiered on with my normal daily routine. I made him breakfast, fed, talked to, played with and entertained Sara.

Finally after cleaning up after both of them I had time to sit and eat my own breakfast. A whole pink grapefruit followed by a bowl of muesli.. Yum!

Phase 2, was another single dose of the Syneral nasal spray but this time into the right nostril. Plus my first injection of Puregon (450iu), which Rob injected into my tummy.

Surprisingly it didn't hurt as much as I'd expected!  I felt so silly after it was done as I'd been quietly freaking out that I would faint!

Syneral:

Synarel assists in decreasing the amount of oestrogen produced by the ovaries. This provides a more controlled situation for subsequent stimulation of the ovaries to produce eggs.
Puregon:
Puregon solution for injection contains follitropin beta, a hormone known as follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). FSH belongs to the group of gonadotrophins, which play an important role in human fertility and reproduction. FSH is needed in women for the growth and development of follicles in the ovaries. Follicles are small round sacs that contain the eggs.

Today I'm grateful for..

Today I'm grateful good girl friends!

Not just any old girl friend but a girl friend that you can talk to and see once in a blue moon and still pick up where you left off. The kind of friend that doesn't require you calling them every day or week.

I had brunch with two of these such girl friends today at an amazing cafe called APTE in Alphington.

Three hours of good old girly gossip, (child free, bar the divine bubba Ayla), good food, GREAT coffee, what a perfect way to spend a morning! 

Thanks girls you know who you are!  

Fitness Friday - Product Review

So today I purchased a new product to try from my favourite store GNC LiveWell.

Although not new on the shelves at GNC, Carnithin is a product  haven't seen or tried before, so I thought, before I get pregnant again I'd try it to see how it works.

GNC Carnithin GNC (Carnitine Supplement)

This product claims to be a non stimulant thermogenic and fat transporter to be used by men and women who wants to shed more body fat.

Now I realise I am not one that needs to shed a great deal of body fat as I'm only 3kg away from my ideal body weight but I am a real sucker for these products and love to try them out.

OK, so my first impression is that the bottle is quite hard for something that contains a powder, and on opening it I am not surprised as it is moisture sensitive and some of the powder has hardened, BUT does break up easily with a teaspoon.

Secondly; it dissolves very easily in water and although it boasts to have a lovely Berry-flavour, its actually not something that's overly drinkable!! (I'd much prefer a glass of wine!)

Stay tuned to see if this actually works ...

Over Reacting - MUCH!

Yes so I'm a little sensitive and perhaps I over reacted just a tad about the things I saw at the local Child Care Centre. But I was only anxious because I really am not sure that I'm doing the right thing leaving Sara there for two days when I return to work three days a week.

I'm going to miss her terribly and it means that I will only have her to myself one full day a week... And I'm sure that spot will get filled each week with play dates and catch ups ....

Looking seriously at Sara's timetable, I really really don't think I'm ready for this yet!

Have you got your children in care and how do you find it??

Childcare or Not?

My little treasure Sara has been attending Occasional Care in a local suburb with some children that she knows. Its a half day once a week and she loves it. The staff adore her and she is a well behaved little girl for them at all times.

Today I took her to the local Childcare Center for a half day trial. This is where she will be going twice a week when I return to work, in 7 weeks time... (dread yuck blah).... I am blown away by the difference in standards and equipment, toys, books and routine.

I stayed and observed the staff and the room today for three hours while Sara played.

Afterwards I had to send the following email to the Manager Jenny:

Hmm... Do you think I was perhaps a bit too straight forward with her?

But then again, I don't want to have to suffer the consequences of a child that's been handled roughly or a child that's constantly getting sick from being in childcare either!

If this is going to be acceptable behaviour to her then Sara will not be attending this centre at all.

What are your thoughts on and experiences with Childcare?

Today I'm grateful for..

My daughter Sara!

She is the single most entertaining and charismatic little girl of her age that I have met.

Why am I so confident in saying this?

We went to a 30th birthday yesterday of a very close family friend and his new fiance. They were having a combined celebration at his parents house as they are out from London for a few weeks.

Sara was the only little person at the party yesterday and as she is such social butterfly this posed no issue at all. She wandered from group to group making new adult friends at every turn.

She danced and jumped and squealed with glee. She picked flowers from the garden and handed them out to her favorites!

By the end of the 6 hour party she had two new best friends... Kim & Joe.

But this didn't stop her kissing almost every single guest at the party goodbye as we left to take her home to bed!

I love you very much my little munchkin, we are very blessed to have you in our lives !

Fitness Friday - My Favorite Products

Todays blog is about my favorite Health & Fitness Products.

I shop for all my supplements at GNC LiveWell, its possibly the best supplement store in Australia and across the world.

"GNC LiveWell is the world's largest retailer specializing in vitamins, herbs, weight management and sports nutrition. Established in Pittsburgh, USA by David Shakarian in 1935, GNC now has over 6000 stores in 49 countries. In Australia, GNC opened its first store in 2000 and now have 39 stores in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and the ACT" *

My products of the day are: 

GNC Protein Powder: Myocell-SR GNC Chocolate 908g

GNC Weight Loss/Dietary Supplement: Optibolic - GNC Optidrene 180C

I use both of these products daily. The GNC Protein Powder Myocell-SR is the best tasting Chocolate Protein Powder that I have found after many years of using similar products; the GNC Dietary Supplement Optidrene is the most effective metabolic enhancer that I have tried and believe me I have tried hundreds!

Micellar Casein which is found in the Myocell-SR is great if you're trying a low calorie diet as it helps maintain satiety (feelings of fullness) for longer periods of time than whey or soy protein.

Optidrene is mainy used to retain or increase your lean muscle mass whilst increasing your energy outputs during exercise.

* All information is respectfully taken from the GNC LiveWell Website

Fitness Freak..

I used to be the biggest fitness freak out of any of my friends or people that I'd meet out. I would obsessively run 5-7km each morning, then head to the gym for an hour before heading home to shower and off to work for the day. I'd kick started my morning and I felt on top of the world. 

After work I'd head straight home and change immediately into my gym gear and head back to the gym! I'd either do a class or a weights session with a trainer, or both! 

I was single, footloose and fancy free and had nothing else to do with my time after work so I dedicated my nights to working out and getting fit. 

 

I was so involved in the world of fitness, I began to attend an annual conference called FILEX. Its insane! Over ten thousand fitness freaks just like me attending classes and doing short information sessions on nutrition, sports science and much more. It's aims is to provide a comprehensive range of fitness and health products available in the fitness and health industry to all the attendees! I would organise my 3 day weekend so that it was mainly full of actual classes, sometimes doing up to 4 sessions a day! I WAS MAD ABOUT FITNESS! 

I was so passionate about the Health & Fitness industry I decided to become a Personal Trainer, (PT). A friend of mine and his wife were opening up a gym and he had gotten wind of my qualifications and although I was very new to working in the industry, he offered me a job working as a PT in the gym. 

I was up at 5am to start by 6am. My clients were scattered sporadically throughout the day but mainly between 6-9am and 5-9pm. My life had changed. I no longer had the time to dedicate to my fitness. I wasn't getting the direction or encouragement I needed as a newbie in the industry and I began to HATE it! After 6 months I resigned and went back to my old job! I got MY life back! 

Then I met Rob.... (who is now my best friend and husband).

A total NON fitness orientated person I could not have dreamed that I would fall in love with someone so completely my polar opposite! For example:

• I love the outdoors - he love the indoors
• I love hot summer days and sandy beaches - he loves cold winter nights and the ski fields
• I love to exercise - he loves to watch TV

The list goes on, but I won’t bore you...

My days and nights had changed. I moved in with Rob and I no longer ran in the morning, opting to snuggle in bed that little bit longer before heading to work. I'd excitedly race home to cook a lovely meal and open a bottle of wine for us for dinner.

Rob and I have since had a baby, well she is a toddler now and almost 2. We took her to Hawaii last year when she was 15 months old and that's where I think I found my long lost friend - my fitness Mojo! 

I would do a few laps around the Lagoon at The Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort and then walk along the boardwalk everyday before breakfast, pushing Sara in her stroller. I lost about 3kg's and I felt amazing! 

It was hard coming home to Melbourne's winter and keeping up the fantastic routine I had developed. I managed for a while on the treadmill but its so boring and monotonous that I slowly let the habit slide.

Last week I decided enough was enough. My favorite three pairs of size 27 jeans were just too tight and I was refusing to give in and wear the bigger sizes I have in my wardrobe. I got up and put on my gym gear, hat and sunscreen. Loaded Sara into her stroller with a drink and a packet of sultana's, (as a distraction), while I pounded the pavement, up and down the hills of my suburb for 4km... It took me 45 minutes. 

I was so bloody exhausted! I hadn't realised just how unfit I'd become! 

I have done this 4 times this week and have already noticed that my fitness is increasing. The hardest hill on the way home isn't as hard and I wasn't as puffed today. Oh and as a side note, my size 27 jeans slipped on with ease this morning! 

TIP: Set a realistic goal, keep at it and the results might just surprise you! 

As I am still so very keen on fitness, I thought I'd include a special Fitness Tip section in my blog. An exercise or simple fitness routine that I have found to be successful for me, that might work for you too?

Look out for:

• Getting In Shape With Little Or No Equipment,
• My Favourite Products

Resources:

FILEX
Fitness Network
GNC LiveWell Australia

Recipe of the week

I love Indian food. Its one of my most favourite cuisines to eat. Tonight's meal is a simple yet tasty Tandoori Chicken skewers with raita and wholemeal wraps.

Tandoori chicken skewers with raita

Equipment:  

You will need 12 pre-soaked skewers

Ingredients: (serves 4)

• 1/3 cup tandoori paste
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1/3 cup thick, plain yogurt
• 900g chicken breast fillets, trimmed, cut into 2cm pieces
• olive oil cooking spray
• naan bread and mango chutney, to serve

Raita

• 1 cup thick, plain yogurt
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 Lebanese cucumber, grated
• 1/4 cup mint leaves, finely chopped

Recipe kindly taken from: Taste

I'm adding shaved lettuce and diced tomatoes into our wholemeal wraps, (which we are using instead of naan bread), as a point of difference and to add a summer "salad" feel to our meal!

What are you having for dinner tonight? 

RSPCA QLD is calling for donations...

I'm haunted by the images coming out of flood ravaged QLD. The devastation will be felt for a long while to come.

Please spare a thought and some cash if you can afford it to help the beautiful domestic pets, livestock and wildlife that too are suffering.

RSPCA QLD is calling fordonations:

• $2000 can rent a helicopter to support rescue efforts.
• $1500 can rent a semi trailer to transport feed and animals through affected areas.
• $1000 can purchase a large animal rescue sling.
• $500 can purchase a field medication kit.
• $300 can help to purchase equipment to rescue, transport and house wildlife stranded in the floods.
• $250 can purchase a domestic animal transport crate.
• $150 can help to get a rehabilitation kit to a carer to assist wildlife who have lost their homes.
• $100 can help with Veterinary Treatments for multiple animals.
• $70 can help with equipment to assist with rescue efforts.
• $60 can provide special dietary requirements, a pouch or a perch for wildlife.
• $50 can purchase a pet care pack for stranded domestic pets.
• $40 can buy a bale of hay to feed stranded livestock.
• $25 can buy a pet food pack for stranded domestic pets

You can choose to donate in a way that suits you best. Post, Phone or Online.

To post your donation, send a cheque or money order (payable to RSPCA Queensland Inc) to: RSPCA Queensland Inc, PO Box 6177, Fairfield Gardens Qld 4103, Australia.

Telephone our donation line on (07) 3426 9972 -- have your credit card details ready! US or Canadian residents can call tollfree on 1866 539 6589.

Direct Debit, please call our donation line on (07) 3426 9972 for RSPCA Queensland Inc account details. Please indicate "Flood Appeal" when depositing. 

(respectively lifted from the RSPCA NSW blog)

please-give-to-rspca-qld-flood-appeal 

Disappointed is an understatement

He didn't come to our first IVF appointment!

Tears.....

Wishing upon a star..

Sometimes I wish that things were so different....

I love my husband and we have a very very good life, barely ever wanting for anything. In fact at times I think we are able to buy what we want, when we want it, way too easily. So when it comes to something that's not materialistic.. like a baby, which I WANT desperately, it has thrown a spanner in the works being so hard to conceive our second child. 

There is nothing on this earth that I enjoy doing more than spending hours playing make believe or dress ups with my little girl, or even reading her favourite book 27 times because it makes her giggle and smile. 

Then I watch her father with his short fuse and hot temper get frustrated at all the "daddy" demands for attention and I wonder if I really did pick the right man for the job? Recently he seems preoccupied with relaxing on the couch after his stressful week and would rather immerse himself in xBox games and crime shows or out on boys nights, than running around the house with his beautiful daughter. 

We have being trying to conceive now for over a year, with no luck. Tomorrow we have our first IVF consultation and so I'm worried that he doesn't want this to work either! Why do I feel this way? Because he has been making excuses to not complete some of the initial and very vital paperwork which has to be done and approved before we can begin.

Well finally we have the signed and witness documents.. Yippee!!

Now if only they didn't take 10 days to be processed we could get the ball rolling a hell of a lot sooner.... 

Stay turned for updates on our progress...

Natural Disaster in Queensland

Despite our better judgement ... I don't think anyone really expected this to end up the way it did!! 

Queensland on the Eastern coast of Australia, has been rocked by its worst natural disaster since the floods in 1974.  Seventy five percent of Queensland has now been declared a disaster area as some residents prepare to evacuate their homes for the second time in weeks.

To view the extend of the damage click on the link below:

Photo Slideshow: Floods-ravage-queensland.slideshow

How can you help? 

Donate to the Premier's flood relief appeal by calling 1800 219 028 or by visiting the web site:

www.qld.gov.au/floods. 

OR Donate by Internet banking 

 

The account details for donations are:

Account Name: Premiers Disaster Relief Appeal
BSB: 064 013
Account number: 1000 6800 

SWIFT code for international donations: CTBAAU2S

Great Find..

Yesterday while meandering through the St. Kilda Esplanade Market, (toddler free), I found a stall that sells some very cute clothes for kids.

Although not cheap by any means, I picked out this cute little dress for Sara. 

You can view more designs at: www.wyldtimeunlimited.com.au

or 

Contact the designer directly: Maria Sokratis 0425 785 102