Happy dog/Sad dog & Word of the Day

Yes, I am aware these two subjects have nothing in common.

Subject 1.
Belle, a happy dog who does not know she is about to get a bath:

Belle, a not-so-happy dog who is painfully aware that she has just had a bath:

 

Subject 2.
Our word of the day is:   Contumacious

con·tu·ma·cious

[kon-too-mey-shuhs, -tyoo-]

–adjective

stubbornly perverse or rebellious; willfully and obstinately disobedient.

 

(Definition courtesy of dictionary.com) 

 

 

 

Haircuts & Sheepies & Needles

Haircuts:
Ok, it's only one haircut.  But I think it looks cute.  Kept the length and added more layers.

Sheepies:
Allie the cheagle is seriously addicted to her sheepie.  This is actually Sheepie the third, and we've got Sheepie the fourth waiting in backup for when she is needed.  Sadly, it looks like there will be no Sheepie the fifth, since we couldn't find any more at the store.  This could mean trouble some day.

Needles:
So I'm taking 5 hours of classes this summer, and they both wrap up in the next three weeks.  One of them is Trial Advocacy, and in two weeks I'll be doing my fake trial for the final exam.  Should be interesting!!

I'm also working full time as a summer associate at a firm that does civil defense work.  The job is seriously fun, but I've got a lot on my plate for the next few weeks.

Now, that would be fine, except you have to add in the fact that I'm about to be cracked out on hormones.  That's where the needles come in.  IVF cycle #2 is in progress, and it will be really interesting to see how I cope with all the work, school work, and doctor's appointments.  Egg retrieval is technically a surgical procedure, so in addition to everything else, I'll be having surgery in a couple weeks.  Sigh.  I swear I don't make all this stuff happen at the same time on purpose.

Wish me luck!!

Pretty Things

Admittedly, some pretty things are much more trouble than they are worth.  But, even if they are a lot of work, sometimes they make everything worthwhile.

Take Belle here.  Boobelle, as we call her, has been with us for nine years.  We have no idea what kind of dog she is, because some horrible, horrible person dumped her and she was found by a coworker of mine when she was just a few weeks old.  She's gorgeous.  Absolutely gorgeous.  She has the best heart in the world and is loyal to a fault.  But, she sheds like you wouldn't believe.  And I wouldn't even want to think about how much we've had in vet bills for her, considering the major surgery she had a couple years ago, and the ligament she tore last year.  No matter what though, I wouldn't trade her for the world.  (I even forgive her for once chewing a hole in a wall when she was younger!)  She's beautiful, she's sweet, she's perfect.  She makes me very, very happy.

(Incidentally, how gorgeous is my yucca plant this year??)

Here's another good example.  My mimosa tree is the most amazingly beautiful thing this time of year.  It's gigantic, and smells heavenly, and puts a huge smile on my face every time I see it.  But lord is it a disgusting mess!  Seriously, all these flowers will fall on the yard, in the street, on the sidewalk, on the top of my car, in the driveway...  Get the idea?  (Note the flower molting process has already begun in the first picture of Belle.)  It sheds four times a year.  But I love love love love it.

Not sure that I really have a point here.  Other than to show you pretty pictures of two of my favorite pretty things.  :)  And to memorialize how the mimosa looks today, since in a week or so the hubster will be cursing it for the huge mess it will make...  

Oh yeah, and here's a gratuitous picture of my dogs.  Did I mention that I love them?  

Nerdy Sir Mix-a-Lot

I like big butts WORDS!!!

(My apologies to all the Sir Mix-a-Lot fans.  It was very wrong of me.)

But seriously, I adore words.  I think the English language is fascinating.  I think all language is fascinating, which is probably why I studied three different foreign languages in undergrad.  It makes me very sad that I have to consciously simplify my speech and writing so that I don't offend or alienate my audience.

I own eight dictionaries, I have a dictionary app on my iPhone, and I have a dictionary link in my bookmarks bar.  I wish we lived in a world where everyone else wanted to learn more words, rather than wanting me to use simpler words.  Yes, I do understand why I can't always speak as I will or write as I will.  But I don't have to like it, and daresay I never will.  (Lovely example, isn't it?  I would use the word daresay constantly if it wouldn't make people roll their eyes at me.)

So, instead of just ranting about it, I am going to use this blog to share some of my favorite words.  :)  As the first installment, I will share a single word that sums up very nicely why "big" words can be ideal.  How often is it that you have to use a number of "small" words in lieu of a single "big" word?  Laconic is one example.  Look at the options:

"He spoke laconically."
"He spoke using few words."

It's not only more laconic to use the word laconic, it's also more picturesque.  There is so much substance to that word.  Maybe it's just me, but I think laconic has a beautiful connotation that is lacking in any "plain English" version.  

Ok, ok.  Any readers I may have had quit reading this post ages ago.  I'm sorry.  I promise that any forthcoming vocab posts will be more fun and less rant.  But I do feel better now.  :)


Official definition of the word of the week courtesy of Dictionary.com:

la·con·ic

[luh-kon-ik]

–adjective

using few words; expressing much in few words; concise: a laconic reply.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/laconic

The Thing I Need to Talk About but Don't Want to Talk About

I'm impressed that I made 5 whole posts about fun stuff before I got around to this one.  This is the thing that my friends will know I talk about all the time, but it's because I need to talk about it rather than because I want to talk about it.  Some people have to spill their guts about things they are struggling with, just to make those things bearable, and I'm one of those people.  So it's not so much that I want everyone and their uncle to know about this, but it helps me to share.  Therefore, I share.

I should get to the point, right?

Infertility.

Did you know that one in eight American couples struggle with infertility?  And please, don't kid yourself into thinking it's because they all waited until they were 45 to start trying to have kids.  Sure, there are many who struggle who are older.  And there are also many, many, many who are in their 20s and early 30s.

(WARNING - if you are needle-phobic, don't scroll down to the pics at the bottom.)

Also, before you tell me to relax or that it's stress related, do some research.  Infertility causes stress, stress doesn't cause infertility.  In our case, we have a very specific defined medical problem that has absolutely, positively nothing to do with stress.  It was there before we even knew that we had a reason to worry.

I'm 33 years old.  I'm in law school.  I previously had a successful career with an amazing company.  I've spoken in front of hundreds of people.  I lived in four different cities in three different states in the first five years of marriage.  And infertility is by far the most difficult thing I have ever dealt with in my life.  Nothing else comes anywhere close.

In some ways, it's what defines me now.  I can say all kinds of things about myself, about who I am, but in the back of my mind there is this little voice that is telling me that I am the girl who's never been pregnant, but not by choice.

In a few weeks I'll start stabbing myself with needles and making myself a regular presence at my doctor's office as we go through another round of IVF.  I don't want to, but I'm going to do it.  I don't like all the hormones.  I hate that this is the only way we can have a child.  And yes, we will consider adoption, but I'm not quite ready to give up the dream of carrying a child, of breast feeding, of all the amazing things that go along with giving birth.  For me, it's less the issue of biology, and more the issue of that connection with another living being.  But yes, adoption is an option.  Just not quite yet.

I promise this entire blog won't be about infertility.  But some of it will be.  How can it not, when IVF looks like this?

 

And by the way, I didn't include individual pics of the big needles.  :(  Also, the needles are the easiest part of the whole process.  It's the waiting, and wondering, and worrying that it might just be throwing money out the window that gets to you.  If it works, it is totally worth it.  It's the fear that it won't work that is so devastating.  

But we'll do it again in about a month, and hope that this is the time that makes everything up until now all worthwhile.  

As a final note, infertility is one of the most taboo of all medical issues.  Most people won't ever tell you that they've dealt with it.  There's a stigma attached to infertility.  I talk about it not just because it helps me, but because I hope that it helps others, helps them to know they aren't alone.  

Anniversary Mini-Trip

The hubster and I had an excellent little mini-trip for our anniversary last week.  Unfortunately, we couldn't go out of town right now thanks in part to the all day Trial Advocacy boot camp that I had on Saturday.  (For my non-law school friends, Trial Ad is one of the summer classes I am taking, and there are two "boot camps" where we are in lecture all day.)  But, we had a great anniversary nonetheless!  The day was just the way we like it.  At our own leisurely pace, no hurry to be anywhere and enjoying every moment.

The day started out with cinnamon rolls for breakfast, which is always a good thing!  Then we took our two rascally pups to my parents' house.  On the way back into town, we stopped at a gun store so the hubster could do a little browsing.  Also looked at a couple possible handguns for me, but it will probably be some time before that purchase is made.

Then we had lunch at Lafayette Fire Company No 1.  The food was quite tasty, but not so much that we'll be headed back there soon.  It's not a bad place at all, just not one that we want to add to our list of faves.  I should mention that it rained ALL day on our anniversary, which spoiled most of our outdoor plans for the day.  So, we headed to the City Museum instead and spent some time exploring the World Aquarium, which was pretty awesome.

How can you not love faces like these?  (And yes, I am intentionally including the one with the hubster...)

Then we headed to the Four Seasons, where we had the Heart's Delight package.  The package included valet parking, champagne and chocolate delivered to the room, and a gigantic, delicious in-room breakfast in the morning.  

It was freaking good chocolate.  We had dinner at Cielo, and the food was excellent!  Sadly, the atmosphere was really lacking.  If we ever stay at the hotel again, I think we'll opt for room service instead.  Because the room itself was fantastic.

I seriously want one of these chair thingies, it was so comfortable.

The bathroom had a tub that was almost two feet deep, and there was a TV in the mirror.

See, it's really a mirror!

Can you imagine what one of the good rooms with the good view would be like?  This is essentially the worst option you can get, but it's hard to attach a word like worst to it.

Checkout time was at noon and we checked out at about 11:59.  I didn't want to leave!  But we had to pick up the pups and I had to do the reading for my Saturday class, so alas, we had to come back to reality.  But it was a lovely day, and a lovely way to celebrate our first 10 years together.  

10 Year Wedding Anniversary

I am blessed and humbled to be able to say that 10 years ago today, I married an incredibly amazing man.  The hubster is kind, considerate, handsome, fun, and always puts a smile on my face.  I would be hard pressed to find anyone who is a better match for me, and I certainly don't ever want to try.  I would also be hard pressed to put into words how much the past 10 years have meant to me.  I love you Mister!

Since most of my current friends have met me in the past 10 years, you wouldn't have been at our wedding.  So I've picked some of my favorite pictures for this post.  I am proud to say that I was the florist and decorator for our wedding, and I think for someone who had no experience working with silk flowers, I did ok!  It was a beautiful day, and an amazing experience all around.  After the wedding, our guests released butterflies as we walked out of the church.  The hubster and I also released a butterfly together, which you can just see at the top of that pic.  I hope you enjoy the images of all of us from 10 years ago.  I know I loved poring over the album once again.

  

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3