Emma:
The end of summer came and went. Emma and I spent our last day of summer vacation at the Alligator Farm in St. Augustine. We had a great time. She was especially thrilled to be able to pet and hold a small gator.
Her un-prompted pose on this one cracks me up.
The school year began with a whirlwind. Bringing Emma's 1st day of Kindergarten...
--Emma seems to be adjusting mostly well. Though, DH and I will likely schedule a parent conference in the next month. (Her Open House is on 9/23, so we're waiting until after then.) We have some concerns that she is getting in trouble behaviorally because she is bored and already knows all of the curriculum. (No major trouble, just talking and sometimes not following instructions.)
I am NOT trying to be a snotty Mom. But I have concerns. Daily work has consisted of counting to 10. (Em can count to 100+ by 1's, 5's, and 10's.) Daily work has consisted of learning the letters and their sounds. (Em has been reading Level 1 beginner readers and some Level 2's since last school year.) We've worried about this for a while...due to her age (she'll be 6 this week, the oldest in her class) she seems to be ahead of many of the students. I don't think they do "grade promotion" at such a young age, but I need to insure that the teacher is differentiating to help Emma make learning gains, rather than having an idle year.
Work:
--I'm hanging in there. 6th grade has been WAY tougher than I anticipated. (I have one 7th/8th grade mixed class, and then teach 6th graders the rest of the day.) Thus far, I am missing full-time 8th grade! Many of the 6th graders are super whiny and tattle ALL the time. Seriously! I can't believe the trivial stuff these kids feel the need to "tattle" about. We'll be in the middle of a class discussion, and kids will raise their hand to tell me someone stole their pencil. Kiddo, you need to HANDLE IT! I am donning my frigging Super Girl cape every day...and am hating that I need it so much. LOL. (My 5 year old knows to keep her hands off property that doesn't belong to her. It kills me I have to remind these 11-12 year olds daily.)
--There are also some really great kids. I've slowly been making phone calls home trying to introduce myself to parents and compliment the kiddos who are working hard...but it can be really difficult to find "phone call" time. One perk though....TONS of hugs. Wow, these kiddos are huggers. I get hugs nearly everyday when the kids leave my class. Too cute. :)
DH:
--We celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary on the 5th. I continue to be ever grateful to have such a wonderful person to share my life (and Emma's upbringing) with!
--He is nearly finished with novel #3! WOWIE! Still crossing my fingers for him that he'll get agent representation to get published one of these days... He has been pretty unhappy with his job and would love it if he could write full-time someday.
Secondary Infertility:
--Went to re-scheduled OB appointment. I think I need to find a new OB. Which really bums me out.....
--I told OB that I feel like I'm in a never-ending cycle:
try to get pregnant--->not pregnant--->get depressed--->eat my woes away--->gain weight
start all over again...
I've been a plus size gal all of my adult life. However, I gained 12 pounds between my OB appointment in February and my appointment this summer. I have been depressed and eating myself silly. It's quite ridiculous. (And YES, I am disgusted with myself.)
OB's advice:
a. Semen analysis for DH (makes sense to "cover our bases")
b. I need to lose weight (I agree there is a definite need)
c. There is no C. A and B are it. Sighs.
--I am frustrated because I asked what OB thinks about anti-depressants. I have NEVER been on these nor admitted "need" for them before. This took A LOT for me to discuss. She does not recommend that I go on the anti-depressants since I'm still trying to get PG.
SERIOUSLY???????? HELLO....I haven't gotten PG in 4 years of "trying." And while a Baby's health would definitely be my #1 priority, I swear I've read things about "safe" medications to take while PG. Or I could go off depression meds once I became PG. Does anyone have feedback on this?
(EDIT: In re-reading this tonight I realized with a gulp that I did not include my miscarriage in January 2009 when I WAS pregnant.)
--My other issue is this...Being an overweight gal makes me at a high pregnancy risk. I understand this. However, correct me if I'm wrong---as an overweight woman I should NOT have issues GETTING pregnant. Weight can cause difficulty KEEPING a pregnancy, but NOT ACHIEVING it. This is a summary of what I've read and read. Thus, I was hoping for Clomid or something similar to help regulate my cycles. (And to help ensure that I ovulate regularly, as I had 2 months of the last 8 with no ovulation, and 1 month with a chemical pregnancy.) However, my OB doesn't want me to go on medication because my cycles are "mostly regular." I don't know what to think anymore.
Feedback anyone?
Books:
--Sighs, I still don't have the booklist on my sidebar updated. But I have been continuing to read. I finished (and liked very much) all 3 books of the Steig Larrson "Girl with a Dragon Tattoo" series. I'm currently reading a great book (recommended by some of my readers) called, "The Middle Place" by Kelly Corrigan. It's about a 30-something gal who finds out she has cancer and must cope with dealing with her "new" family (hubby and 2 kids) and "old" family (parents and siblings.) It's been a really great read...and has had me both laughing or crying out loud at different points.
Blog:
--My 2 year blogoversary came and went this summer. Despite my infrequent posts, I continue to be grateful for the support and advice of my blog buddies.
--I fear I've been a crappy blog-friend lately. One of my co-workers is in the hospital (taken by ambulance from 1st period last week with chest pain---yikes!) I've been pulling her lesson plan load with substitutes along with dealing with all of the beginning-of-the year and back-to-school stuff I always conquer each August/September....thus I haven't had a lot of free time lately.
I HAVE been lurking and reading blogs...without commenting much. Please know I am thinking of you. And I've been FLOORED by the HUGE amount of PG blog buds lately. CONGRATS to all of you...and may your good luck rub off! ;) (Special shout out to Marie! And Happy Bday 9/18 to Mrs. Gamgee!)
<3 <3 <3
