This T-Shirt is Pretty Much Awesome Thursday

At least I was blessed with a liver that can function properly. I wonder if it could grow a baby? I bet that would make for a cute baby bump...

Attack of the Shitty Luck Fairy

I am so irritated and about to reach my breaking point in....3....2....1....

I'm going to go ahead and warn you that I'm angry, negative, in a very bad place right now, and need to vent. And...I will use CAPS because it's annoying and makes me feel better. k.
 
Long story short, we started the process of refinancing our house back in July shortly after we found out that we'd have to do egg donor. Our rate when we originally bought our house 4 years ago is nearly double what the current rate is. We also sold Andy's car which was already paid off in order to make a big chunk of fast cash. Our lower mortgage would allow us more money every month to buy another car, and then we wouldn't have far to go before having the moolah for donor. Good idea, right?

WRONG.

We have to remember that we are dealing with Jessica and Andy luck...nothing ever comes easy and rarely works out the way it is supposed to.

Our house didn't appraise for as much as we hoped because some DIPWAD in our neighborhood practically gave away their house earlier this year, which lowered the value of EVERY house in our subdivision. We're waiting on our loan officer to crunch numbers with some other loans, so we're not really sure what's going to happen. From the looks of it, we're not going to save that much money by refinancing. Then we get to add on another car payment after we sold a car that was already paid off.
Brilliant idea. Should have known.

I just don't know what to do anymore. Is this God telling us AGAIN that we shouldn't have children? I'm just not getting His message here. I told myself back in July that I was not going to stress over it and that I was going to put it in God's hands. That's exactly what I did. I finally put my faith gave my fears entirely to God for the FIRST time in my life. This is what he hands me. WHAT ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO WITH IT???

Of course, we could sell our house and buy a cheaper one. We could stop going on vacations. We can stop going out to eat. We can cut off our cable, internet, home phone, and cell phones. We can stop going to football games.

So, let me get this straight. We are supposed to deal with infertility AND sacrifice every facet of our lives to have a chance at being parents. Going out of town on our random road trips has kept me sane through all of this. But, you know, we need to give that up. We need to rent a studio apartment, stare at each other all night because we have no cable or internet, and take a bus to work every morning. All the while, normal people get to keep their house, all amenities, and can save money for retirement because they don't have to drop 80k to "maybe" have a child.

I'm just about to the point of emptying out the savings, paying everyone back that has helped us (out of the goodness of their hearts) and saying screw this. I'm just lost. I don't know what God is trying to tell us. I have tried so hard to be positive about egg donor, but I'm so sick of getting knocked down with our shitty luck. About 90% of the girls I originally met when I started blogging have either had a baby or are now pregnant...don't get me wrong, I am very happy for you all. It just makes me question our path and discourages me even more.

On the other hand, I will be headed to see my Gamecocks play tomorrow night and then headed to the mountains with Andy's family to celebrate our niece's 1st birthday! We can't wait!

Maybe I should cherish the next few months of football games and travel, because it's obvious that God wants us to learn to live without, while we sit on the sidelines and watch everyone else bask in their blessings. But, what if we sacrifice EVERYTHING and still don't become parents? What if, what if, what if.
 
Grrrrrr. What's next? I just wish God would give us a clearer picture. I'm just so sick of being left out of a life that everyone else gets to live because we can't have children.

It's A Boy!

Here's our long awaited surprise!!! Instead of bringing home a baby this past weekend, we decided to bring home a very hairy bundle of joy.

Introducing...

Griswold Uguyses!

He's an 11 week old American Bulldog who is playful and loves to chillax...just what we need. We're getting him accustomed to our house and his big sister, Ellie May. She's a blind Maltipoo and very territorial, but not taking the new addition too hard. Griswold really wants to play with her, but she's NOT having it. Guess we'll be making a bunch of trips to the doggie park so that he can make some friends!

He's already a Gamecock fan!

We had a great vacation at the beach last week. Just what we needed! Now, back to the real world and training our newest family member! Please comment if you have any training tips for American Bulldogs...we would be much obliged!

August 14, 2010

Oh little Giblet...we love you and wish that we could have met you today. You are special, for you taught us to be grateful for what so many others take for granted. You were only here for the blink of an eye, but it was your brief life that made us the happiest we've ever been as a couple. May God rest your soul. You will forever hold a place in our hearts!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

This T-Shirt Isn't Funny Tuesday

And now ladies, I present to you another edition featuring T-Shirts that your average woman who is having trouble getting pregnant would want to rip off of someone, cut into little pieces, and put a match to!

YES,
I'm not pregnant.
NO,
You can't touch my beer belly. Because I can drink beer and you can't. Betch.



We just got back from an awesome weekend vacation with my sister and her hubby! They were so nice to let us tag along. We went to where Car.rie Under.wood was just married...it was beautiful!

August 14th was our due date and it is closing in quickly. I can't believe that I would almost be 39 weeks preggo right now...it went by so fast. We decided to head to the beach next week. I would rather be there than at work dwelling on it.

Soooo, instead of a baby, we'll be bringing home a special something after our beach trip! I can't wait to show it off!

And The Winner Is....

The winner of my Blogiversary Giveaway is....

A. From Remember All The Way!!!

Congrats girlie:) Send your contact info to: jhnorrell@hotmail.com and I will ship it out Monday!

I'm doing this from my phone, so I hope it works. Thanks to everyone who entered!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Awards and my Blogiversary Giveaway!

My sweet friends, Jen from What Would Jen Do, R. from One Egg Please, Christa from Fearlessly Infertile, and Tiffany from All Aboard the IF Train! nominated me for this award! Thanks so much ladies! Go on over and check out their blogs!

For this award, here’s what you do:

1. Thank whoever gave you the award.

2. Tell 7 things about yourself that readers may not know.

3. Pay it forward by nominating 7 bloggers for this award.

Hmmmm...7 things. I think I've done this before and I embarrassed myself, so let me see if I can have a little more tact...lol. Yeah right. Who am I fooling?

1. My dream job would be to work as a Disney Princess. I like to sing and dance around the house (and my job) like I'm Tinkerbell or something. Loser.

2. I LOVE to take pictures...my sisters call me the paparazzi. They're going to thank me in 30 years when we have pictures to reminisce over and laugh about! There are, however, quite a few that have been locked in "The Vault of Forbidden Eyeballs". Nuff' said.

3. I am the oldest of four children...I have two sisters and one brother. We are all very close and get along well for the most part.

4. I have two baby nieces born last year that I love more than anything in the world. One is my sister's baby who is 8 months old, and the other is Andy's sister's baby who is 11 months old. They make me smile!

5. Let's play the concerts I have been to game. Hmmmm. New Kids on the Block, Nelson, AC/DC, Lollapalooza '95 (Courtney Love, Cypress Hill, Sonic Youth, Beck, Coolio), Dave Matthews Band. Oh yeah, I saw Jordan Knight (NKOTB) play at a dinky bar in Auburn a few years ago when I lived there. He thought he was cool and was playing all of the old NKOTB songs on his electronic keyboard. There were only, like, 50 girls there and we were screaming the entire time...I got to touch his butt and hold his hand. I tried to get his autograph before he left, but he snuck out of the back door and drove off in a Geo Metro. I was scarred for life. I knew there was a reason that I always loved Joey Joe because Jordan SUCKS!

6. Andy stood me up on our first couple of dates. 12 years later and look who has the magic whip. Whooopachhh!

7. I've always wanted to write a children's book. I'm just having a hard time coming up with a character...and then there's that whole illustration thing. One day!

And now, 7 bloggers that I highly recommend you get to know! I would really like to nominate ALL of the blogs I follow...such an awesome IF community!

1. Julia from Adam and Julia
2. Michelle from No, I'm Not Pregnant, Just Fat
3. Kakunaa from Spermination Station
4. Waiting for a Baby Bump

5. T from Inconceivable Journey
6. Lisa from WANTED: One Good Embryo
7. Katie from from If to When

Don't forget to enter my Blogiversary Giveaway! Only 2 days left!!!

This T-Shirt Isn't Funny Tuesday

And now ladies, I present to you another edition featuring T-Shirts that your average woman who is having trouble getting pregnant would want to rip off of someone, cut into little pieces, and put a match to!

Listen cankle woman...you're going to know the true meaning of crabby after I show you what an ass kickin' feels like. You can either have childlessness and a plethora of medical bills, or SHUT IT and enjoy every second of your blessing!

Only 3 days left to enter my Blogiversary Giveaway!!! Hurry! Hurry!

This T-Shirt is Pretty Much Awesome Thursday

1. Hold on...I'm in my yoga pilates tranquil zen pose...............whew! I think that miraculously healed by endometriosis and fixed our egg and sperm quality! Let me go pee on a stick real quick. OMG!!!! IT'S......negative.

2. Well shit, I thought that standing on my head before we had relations was good enough. Why didn't we think of that?

3. Yes, unfortunately it is. We had him tested and he has spermosarcoidmalarianismitis. It's just so tragic.

4. Wow. Just....wow. You must have not relaxed enough.

5. Your kids are ugly. Why didn't you "just adopt"?

 Don't forget to enter my Blogiversary GIVEAWAY!

Blogiversary Giveaway!

I am so excited to be hosting my very first giveaway! In honor of my one year Blogiversary, I am giving away this very cute Willow Tree Figurine named "Hope". It is brand new and in the original packaging. As you can see from the picture below, it is of a small child holding onto a balloon with the word "hope" inside of it. I thought that it was perfect for most of the situations in our lil' blogging community! There is HOPE and we WILL be parents one day!

 These are the cutest, hand carved/painted figurines, and there is an inspirational piece for almost every situation. You can check out the website by clicking here.

Here are the rules:

1. You must be a follower of my blog. Leave me a comment telling me you are either a current follower or that you are a new follower. (Mandatory...1 entry)

Extra Entries: 

  1. Follow me on Twitter. Already following? That's fine! Just leave a comment if you want to enter. (1 entry)

2. Tweet about this giveaway and leave a comment with tweet link. (1 entry per tweet/1 tweet per day)

3. Blog about this giveaway and leave the link in the comment. (2 entries...please leave two comments.)

4. In a comment, tell me what your favorite blog post was of mine, and why you liked it! (1 entry)

Giveaway will end Friday, July 23rd @ 11:59 p.m. (EST), and will be announced Saturday July 24th!

(I will be using Random.org to pick the winner)

Good Luck!!!

Legal Disclaimer: I am not being financially compensated for having this giveaway. I purchased the above mentioned product myself. Winner must live in the USA not including Hawaii or Alaska due to shipping charges. Winner must contact me by e-mail within 48 hours of being announced or I will announce a new winner.

 

Bye Moonpie!

Our poor little Moonpie...we gave birth to her in 2003 and she has taken us on our adventures to NYC, Miami, and the Florida Keys...as well as our Wild West Roadtrip to Colorado, Vegas, and the Grand Canyon.

Yesterday, we said goodbye:( It was really sad! She will now be selflessly carting around a recent high school grad as he begins his college career.  I know that she will be good to him.

She knew what was best for us, because this sell gets us that much closer to EGG DONOR! Woot Woot!

We will miss her pretty little tires...her sunny complexion...and the way she let me plug my Ipod into her auxiliary port so that I could annoy the hell out of Andy on roadtrips. We will also remember all of the fun trips to the beach, mountains, camping, and the way she let us sit on her for endless hours whilst tailgating at football games.

In case you were wondering, we named her Moonpie because the dealership we bought her from gave you a Moonpie if you stopped by. Also, Andy has always called me that as a nickname because of my big forehead. Term of endearment? No?

And now, a photo montage of our baby who will help us to get a baby...


 

Moonpie

About to leave for our cross country road trip!

Flat tire on our road trip...she bounced back!

On top of Chimney Rock...see her waaaayyyy down there?

In the mountains right after we got her...Andy was so excited! Random stove, p.s.

It's My Blogiversary!

Can I get a whoot whoot?

Last Friday was my one year Blogiversary!!! I can't believe it has already been a year since I started blogging. It really has been therapeutic for me to get on here and pour my heart out. I think this was exactly what I needed to keep what is left of my sanity. It has led me to some awesome friendships, and it is comforting to know that I can come here and all of you ladies know exactly where I'm coming from. Plus, it has helped me to communicate better to the family and IRL (in real life) friends who read this blog. I feel like a huge load has been lifted off my chest since I have decided to open about our infertility! Everyone has been so supportive and I wouldn't have gotten through the last year without you guys.

So, here is a huge THANK YOU! We love you all!

Click here if you want to read my very first post!

In honor of my Blogiversary, I will be doing a giveaway soon...so stay tuned! First, I have to figure out what in the heck I'm going to give away...would anyone like my uterus? Eggs? No?

Let me go eat some chocolate and sleep on it. Holla!

This T-Shirt Isn't Funny Tuesday

And now ladies, I present to you another edition featuring T-Shirts that your average woman who is having trouble getting pregnant would want to rip off of someone, cut into little pieces, and put a match to!

Wha...wha...what? Nuff' said.

Stop and Eat Here...Now

Next time you are hungry, please go over and grab a recipe from my mother-in-law's blog, Sage Trifle. She has taken the time to give step-by-step and foolproof instructions, complete with awesome photographs of her creations.

Andy comes from a family of amazing cooks, and none of her recipes have let me down. As a matter of fact, the talent was passed down to Andy and he feeds me well.

Please note this picture of her homemade apple butter. Oh yeah, she gave me a jar. Score!

Finger lickin' good!

I'm Here I'm Here!

Sorry I have been MIA...it's been a crazy couple of weeks. I haven't had time to get on here and update, nor have I been able to really leave comments. I apologize! A coworker of mine passed away unexpectedly last weekend, and we've been moving to a new office where I work. Needless to say, it has been very sad and stressful around here lately.

We had the best time in Arizona! I was able to finally meet my blog friend in person, and we really clicked. It was like we had been friends our entire lives! We spent the majority of the time hanging out around her pool and exploring the Phoenix area. Her hubby is awesome too...he and Andy really got along well. It was a bittersweet visit because her hubby left for basic training the day after we left. She will be without him for five months, but they are planning a visit here when he graduates in November because he is stationed a few hours away from us in Georgia. Can't wait!

We have also been able to visit our new nieces who both live out of town. They're both doing good...one is almost crawling and the other is pulling up and almost walking. I think this past weekend was the first weekend that we haven't had plans or had to go out of town since March...whew!

I wish that I had more to say, but I don't! Everything is the same ole' same ole' around here. Wake up, work, go to the gym, come home, eat, drown my sorrows, and go to sleep so that I can do it again the next day! We did put one of our cars in the classifieds last week so that we could get a big chunk of cash to put towards egg donor. Still waiting for someone to bite!

I did start taking Zumba this past weekend...it was SO MUCH FUN! I highly recommend it.

I will try to catch up on all of your blogs this week. Once again, I'm so sorry for the lack of commenting. I hope all of you are well!