I didn't intend to, but I took the summer off from blogging. I can't believe its been so long. So much has happened. Since school started back this week at Ft. Campbell, I feel I need to get back to blogging. I would like to give you a recap though of some of the summer highlights in Proulxville.
In actuality, I spent almost the entire summer away from home. Its been both good and ...difficult (its hard to maintain a household when no one is there to maintain.) So here is the week by week breakdown....
This week was pretty normal at home minus the packing. The 8th was Mike's final day at work before Block Leave (civi-talk: block leave is what the Army refers to as a pre-deployment vacation time) and
...again. I also had another visit with Dr. Lisa that day. She doubled my dosage of Clomid (100mg now.) That made for an interesting month... On Saturday the 9th, we loaded the car down and climbed in with the dogs for our vacation. We headed to Mike's parents house in Knoxville.
On Sunday, our good friend, Joe, joined us in Knoxville.
He's in love with my little sister. He likes spending time with our family. This week was really fun. Sunday night we visited some friends we hadn't seen in over a year. They just moved back to Knoxville, and we are so happy that we can see them more often again. Monday, we went to Pigeon Forge to have lunch with my dad, brother, and sister. I also, might have done some speed shopping at the outlets. Tuesday, Mike's grandmother (Memére) and his Aunt Patti came through town. It was also his parents anniversary so Memére (because Pepére's ghost told her to) took us all to Ruth's Chris - YUM! Joe had never been there before so it was a special treat for him. Wednesday was lake day! Another first for Joe - tubing. We had a lot of fun at my grandparents cabin as usual. Thursday we packed up again. Joe headed home, and we headed to Destin! Memére graciously gave us a key to her house and allowed us to stay there while she and Aunt Patti continued their summer vaca in New England.
On the Lake!
Joe Tubing - Tucker rides on the back of the boat so he's in the shot too.
The only downer about the Knoxville portion of our trip was my mood. It only bares mentioning because it relates to our infertility journey. My hormones were going crazy. I could feel these huge changes going on, and I was in the worst mood ever. I snapped at Mike, yelled at Joe, and just about got in a fight with my sister. I immediately apologized for everything. I just didn't have control. I hated it. Its hard to be Christ-like when your hormones are out of control. Doubling my dosage of Clomid will be a hard decision to make in the future. I don't want to be the kind of person I was this week. I would also like to add that I gained 10 pounds in 3 months on the Clomid. It has since come back off, but it wasn't cool at the peak of bathing suit season. The only plus to the dosage was my clear skin. I only wore tinted moisturizer and mascara this month.
Friday, we relaxed and did some early birthday shopping for Mike in Destin. He would be in Ranger school for his birthday. We also drove down to Sand Destin, got ice cream per my insistence, and walked on the beach. Saturday was beach day! We packed a cooler and headed to the beach for the day. The weather was perfect and the breeze coming off the ocean was amazing. I wish we could go once a week. So relaxing. After, the beach Mike wanted to go to the outlets. I didn't type that wrong. MIKE WANTED TO SHOP. I wanted to stay on the beach, but we went shopping. I can't even remember if we bought anything, but it was nice to walk around holding hands.
Toes in the sand
June 17th - 23rd
Sunday was our day of rest. We stayed at home and let the dogs play in the backyard all day. They loved Memére's house. This was their first trip there with us. Usually, there are way to many dogs so we leave them at home, but they may hate us in the future for that. They chased squirrels and laid in the shade and just all around loved it. They were so happy to go to Destin, and they never left the backyard (dogs aren't allowed on the beach.)
Monday was super fun. We went kayaking on the
Blackwater River! We have a kayak at home (my gift to Mike for commissioning - civitalk: becoming an officer in the Army), but we don't get it out much. Now I want my own so we can go together. Tuesday, we recovered from our all day excursion and planned to go to dinner and see the sunset on the beach. Mike also wanted to drive around a little bit to see what other attractions Destin had to offer. We go to Destin a lot to visit family and sometimes don't even cross the bay so we really didn't know how much there was to do. We changed our plans and went on a sailboat ride to see dolphins and watch the sunset. We saw both and I was ecstatic. I love seeing dolphins! I talked the entire trip about seeing them, and my wish came true our last night. We also enjoyed the sailboat and remembering our missions trip to the Bahamas when we lived on the sailboats. Mike even talked about us taking up sailing. It sounded expensive to me, but I made him promise that we could go on the sailboat every time we visit Destin in the future.
Wednesday we cleaned house and headed home. Thursday and Friday was spent unpacking and repacking Mike for Ranger school. We had to do some last minute shopping for his packing list. Saturday morning we said our goodbyes, and Mike left for Ft. Benning. It was sad, and then I had to mow the yard. Life doesn't stop when your soldier leaves. We were able to talk Saturday night when he settled into his hotel room on post and again Sunday morning before he reported in.
June 24th - July 7th
I stayed in Clarksville for a few days. Long enough to see some friends and go by Dr. Lisa's for my day 21 blood work. The following week they would call and tell me my levels were 32....32! I could believe it with how much I felt. I knew my hormones had to be threw the roof high.
On Wednesday the 27th I headed to Pigeon Forge. I stayed with my family through Mike's birthday. It was great. We shopped and crafted and laughed and hiked and picnicked. We celebrated the 4th of July. I made peach cobbler and my dad made homemade ice cream. My dad must be getting older because he accidently poured green food coloring in the cream instead of vanilla extract. So our ice cream was green. He was wearing his glasses, but to his defense the bottles look exactly the same. I also visited with some friends and Mike's parents too. On Friday the 29th, Mike called. "Oh no," I said when I heard the voicemail. When I actually spoke to him, he explained that he had recycled because he injured his back. He was on profile (civi-talk: limited or no PT -physical training- due to sickness or injury) for a week so his back could heal. He was going to be allowed to stay though it meant him sitting in the barracks for a month for the new class to start.
July 8th - 15th
The 8th was his birthday, and I got to talk to him quite a bit that day. I was glad, but I felt bad that he was alone. I had wanted to go visit, but he wasn't sure he would get a pass, and I couldn't drive down without knowing. On Wednesday, I went back to Clarksville. I had another doctors appointment with Dr. Lisa on Thursday.
The appointment was not the best. There was no blood taken or exams done, we just talked. Its hard when you get to the point with a doctor that there is nothing left to do but talk. She did tell me that my level of progesterone being 32 meant that I most certainly produced 2-3 eggs, but I still wasn't pregnant. Mike was gone so I could take a break from the Clomid. Although I expressed my hatred for the drug she went on to explain that it is the best option. Other drugs that might seem like more natural approaches had nastier side effects. She explained that it was okay if I didn't want to do the Clomid anymore because I could possibly get pregnant naturally. The problem is it could possibly never happen because I may or may not ovulate. We talked about the time factor and Mike's lingering deployment. She recommended IUI to be done while Mike is deployed and a referral to a reproductive specialist (RS), but I declined. Mike and I already made the decision not to go that route and there was no need for a RS unless we wanted to pursue other options. She then said we can give Clomid another try whenever we want and of course Mike is available. Her last recommendation was a hysterosalpingogram. This is a test where they force dye through your uterus and fallopian tubes and do x-rays to check for any blockages or other issues. I agreed to the procedure. I drove away in tears and wanted so bad to talk to Mike.
Mike called that night asking me to visit him. Goodness, I just got home. Friday morning I packed a bag, made arrangements with my neighbor for the dogs, booked a hotel, and headed to Columbus, GA. Mike called briefly Friday night to see if I had come, and I told him I'd be there to pick him up in the early morning. The visit was nice. We had a lot to discuss, and I helped him get his packing list restocked for the next class. Although, we moved away from Ft. Benning over a year ago, it just feels like our second home. We can't escape that place, and we'll be moving back there before we know it.
July 16th - 22nd
I got back home late Sunday night. Monday, I was visiting with my neighbor when my mom called and asked if I would still go to Cleveland, OH with her. We had already planned on doing just that for a doctor appointment that she had. Then, they told her that her appointment slot had been given to someone else, and they would need to schedule an appointment at a later date. Monday they called back and gave her a different appointment time on the original day, the 19th. So Tuesday, I loaded the car again and headed back to Pigeon Forge. Wednesday morning my mom and I headed to Ohio. The drive was easy although I was a little tired of being in my car. Thursday we had my mom's appointment at The Cleveland Clinic. I just have to say this place was unreal. Not a hospital, more like a little city complete with diversity of cultures and great shopping. Thursday night, we went to Lake Erie and looked for Canada for fun. It was quite beautiful...almost made me like Ohio just a little. Could we just transport that cute neighborhood down in the south for some warmer weather? Friday we headed back to Pigeon Forge, but we had one little pit stop to make. IKEA! It was only 20 minutes out of the way so how could we pass it?
Sunday was my baby brother's 18th birthday. My sister came in, and we had a family day. My entire family went in on a Nikon D3200 for him. He is really getting into photography. Of course, we had a cake and homemade ice cream again...this time it was chocolate, not green.
July 23rd - Present
I went home on Monday. I was really happy to be home. There were cobwebs gathering on my staircase, and my house was in desperate need of an all over cleaning. On Thursday Mike started back in Ranger school at Day 4.
On Thursday, August 9th I had my dreaded procedure.
The hysterosalpingogram was one of the most painful experiences, but thankfully the pain only lasted a couple of minutes. I was able to view the images as they were being taken and everything looked good to me. I know I'm not a doctor, but you want the dye to flow all the through and then empty into the abdomen. That is exactly what happened. I will have the official results next week so pray that my conclusion is correct.
Mike called Friday the 10th to tell me he has passed phase 1! I was so happy I danced. I'm so proud of him for persevering, and I'm so thankful for answered prayers. His back is doing better, and he feels pretty good. Today he started Mountain Phase. I will keep praying for him and hopefully he'll call in a few weeks and be headed to Florida. At minimum, it will be 6 more weeks until I see him. Its getting hard knowing that the deployment is nearing everyday, and he isn't here to spend time together.
Yesterday, I threw a baby shower for my dear friend,
the Army wife. It was a beautifully girly celebration. She is getting ready now for her first daughter's arrival and her husbands return from Afghanistan
This weekend has been full of joy and calls for praise. I spent half the summer away from home, and I'll be preparing to leave again tomorrow. I'm headed back to Pigeon Forge....again. It should be fun, and I'll be sure to share all the details from this trip.
Stay tuned. You won't want to miss what's coming to Proulxville.
