Rant about a tv show

I just have to rant about a tv show I watched the other night. Sure, this tv show is fictional but shouldn't shows at least try to be somewhat realistic if they are based in the "real world" and not a fantasy type show like Star Trek or something?

Anyway, I was watching "Private Practice" - it was the last episode before the break - this episode reminded of how horrible that (thankfully) short-lived show "Inconceivable" was. It was that bad in its unrealistic take on infertility. In my opinion, if you're going to have a show centered on a fertility clinic, do you think it might be a good idea to get some kind of expertise in the area before writing about it? At least, "Private Practice" isn't centered just on infertility issues.

If you watch the show, but haven't watched this particular episode and you don't want spoilers, you should stop reading now...


Part of the episode had the storyline of a couple we've seen before (the couple that the woman couldn't seem to have sex). They came to the clinic this time because they've been trying for 2 months with no success and because the woman is no "spring chicken", as she put it, she wants to be checked for fertility issues. Dr. Montgomery said that they usually check after a year, but they went ahead and checked this couple anyway. It turns out the woman is fine - the guy has no sperm in his sample. So they decided to use a donor (his brother), and to do an IUI right then and there. Apparently, the woman was ovulating on that particular day. What a coincidence! They stopped the procedure at the last minute (because they hated the guy's brother) and asked if there was any other way to have their own biological child?

Well, it turns out, after some research, that there is this new procedure called testes sperm extraction (shouldn't an infertility expert know all about this already?), then they'll do ICSI. So they set the guy up for the procedure while at the same time setting up his wife for a retrieval...in the same room. So they're going to do an IVF without the woman taking any drugs or without any checking to see if she even has a mature egg to do ICSI with? Well, thankfully, she was coincidentally ovulating and the SINGLE egg was mature; they were also able to find one lonely viable sperm (do clinics even do IVF without some kind of egg stimulation? According to one of the comments to an article I linked below - only a few do a natural cycle IVF). They were able to do ICSI and the egg was fertilized! They then transferred the embryo into the woman and she left wondering if it was too early to feel pregnant. So they did the retrieval and the transfer the same day? No waiting for the embryo to further divide so that it had more of a chance to implant? Ugh! I would have felt better about this had they at least waited a couple days to the transfer.

Well, that ends my rant. Here's another take on it (it explains it a bit better than me).

Pictures!

Pictures of our Christmas, Benjamin & Ella's first taste of rice cereal and carrots, plus more are now up on my flickr site.

Question

I was talking to a coworker about the fact that I will be docked vacation and sick time due to my maternity leave. I normally get 3 weeks vacation and 6 sick days per year, but when my anniversary rolls around in February, I will only get 63 hours of vacation, 25 hours of sick time and 3 floaters (the floater time didn't change). This just sucks. On the one hand, it is wonderful that I got 3 months paid maternity leave, but on the other, it just sucks that it feels like they penalize you for taking that time off to be with your new family (or in the case of some coworkers, to take care of your broken leg or go through cancer treatments).

My coworker thinks that other businesses don't have such a policy about docking time like this, but I would think it probably is the case so I thought I would ask others. What is it like where you work?

Pictures

I forgot to mention that a friend has some new pictures of the babies on her flickr site - the pictures were taken at a friend's birthday/white elephant exchange party. The onesies were given to us by another friend at my baby shower back in April.

Christmas Weekend 2007

Our Christmas weekend started with going to a friend's party on Friday night. We met another couple there with a 7 month old baby, so we chatted with them for a bit. We didn't end up staying too long as the babies were getting cranky (they were sleepy), but we had a good time. Some lady offered to hold Ella so I could get something to eat - that was really nice of her. I forgot to have some puppy chow though. :-(

Saturday, Jon and I took turns doing some last minute shopping. I am not exactly sure how I made it through the shopping I did as I was in so much pain on my left side - I was nervous I was having another kidney stone because it felt like what it felt like before I when the kidney stone was just starting to bother me (not like it was toward the end when I thought I was dying). It just hurt to move, but I finished my shopping, came home, and when it was time to go to bed, I took some painkiller drugs left over from the c-section and went to bed (thanks Jon!). Thankfully, when I woke up the next morning, the pain was mostly gone. It was there a little bit, but not as bad as the day before. I'm not sure what the issue was.

Sunday came around. We went to a party that a couple from our childbirth class was having. They are from England so they were serving mince pies and mulled wine. I didn't have a chance to try the wine, but the mince pie that I tried (they were little ones) was yummy! I had never had one before! At that party, we met another couple with twins - they had their twins at 6 months of pregnancy. I can't even imagine having them that early. They stayed in the NICU for 3 months. I was nervous about having them 2 1/2 months early when I entered the hospital, but thankfully, they stayed put for 5 weeks! I just cannot imagine having my babies that early nor having them at the hospital for 3 months. We were so lucky the way things turned out for us the way it did - so lucky - we were able to go home with our babies. The couple said that their twins are doing wonderfully now - I believe they said that they are almost 3.

After the party, we headed home and Jon's mom and sister came by shortly after that. I was supposed to have Christmas Eve off, but I ended up having to go into work for 3 hours to make up time (even if I am salaried, but that's a gripe for another time). I came into work later than I normally did though - and that gave me a chance to stop by Cos&tco on my way into work to pick up a few things that we needed (like formula, etc.). I think I forgot to mention that I'm not pumping anymore - I made it to 6 months and 2 days (sort of - there were a couple days there I didn't pump at all b/c I was sick - thankfully, it didn't hurt as much as I thought it would as my supply was dwindling anyway, but it did hurt a bit). I'm proud of myself for making it that long.

For Christmas Eve, we had chicken fajitas for dinner and just hung out listening to music, reading books, and playing with our cuties.

Christmas comes around and my sister-in-law made us breakfast (with Jon's assistance), then we just hung out until it was time for dinner and presents. What was great is that we got a white Christmas - it actually snowed pretty good in Seattle though it's all gone today. It was so pretty to watch coming down that when I went to go take a nap I kept waking up to look at the snow (and because I heard my babies - especially Benjamin - talking and playing). Jon's dad showed up while I was napping. We ended up having dinner between 5 and 6, then afterwards, we opened presents, then we had dessert. It turns out the reindeer sleeper that someone gave us as a hand-me-down is too small for Benjamin so no Christmas sleepers for them for the day AND Benjamin's blue Santa hat was too small for his head (I had bought those last spring at a multiples group sale when I was still pregnant). Too bad - I still got some pictures of his cute self with his hat kinda laying upon his head. Ella's pink Santa hat fit her just fine and she looked so incredibly cute in it. I also got some pictures of Ella trying to open her presents only so she could eat the wrapping paper.

We had a wonderful Christmas with our babies and Jon's family though I wonder if Jon's dad had a good time at all. He left late last night, but Jon's mom and sister stayed again tonight so Tanya can make dinner for us tonight and so the babies are at home with them today. They haven't been in day care for a while - I hope that they remember their DCPs! We'll find out tomorrow!

I'll try to upload pics tonight (though I thought I would get around to uploading some this past weekend, and I didn't).

Update on babies

Ella is getting very good with sitting on her own. She still needs some support behind her (we got the idea of using the Boppy (why didn't we think of that?) from the couple at the party), but she's getting better. Ella also likes to pull herself up with the use of your hands to sitting and then to a standing position. When you hold her toward you, she will push away. She wants to be held so she can look out and see the world. Another cute thing that Ella does is that she will flap both of her arms when she's excited - she will even do this in her sleep (we stopped swaddling at 6 months - though the other night we did swaddle her to see if that's why she wouldn't stay in her bed to sleep - that wasn't the reason - we're not sure what's going on with her).

Benjamin isn't so much interested in standing up (except in exercauser) or trying to sit on his own. He just wants to kick and to talk/sing. He's so cute when he gets going with his storytelling/singing. He is so excited about what he's saying. Speaking of Benjamin, I added a pic to flickr that a friend took when we were out shopping - he's so cute with that smile of his. Benjamin is much more enthusiastic eater than Ella. He is better at swallowing the food than Ella is - though she will get some down. Benjamin also started to roll over on a more frequent basis. Neither one of them are rolling from their back to their tummy - though they have gotten to their sides.

Well, that's all I can think of - now to blog about our Christmas weekend!

Christmas & 6 month checkup!

The Friday before Christmas and I am not ready at all. Hopefully, I’ll be able to finish everything up tomorrow. Unfortunately, I need to come into work for a few hours on Monday to make up some time for last week when I stayed home sick when I didn’t have any sick time. At least, I don’t have to stay the whole day. Thankfully, my mother-in-law agreed to watch the babies for me for those few hours. The daycare is closed.

I’m so excited for the babies’ first Christmas! I got them presents and stockings. My boss made them stockings too and gave them presents. She made the stockings – so sweet of her! She is so crafty. She also made these wonderful scrapbooks for the babies that she gave to me at my baby shower back in April (that I need to get around to putting the photos into).

Ella so much wants to sit up. She’ll lay there and do some stomach crunches. I had read that to help her gain some strength to sit up to basically act as her trainer and hold on to her legs so she can lift herself up. I tried that – it didn’t work so well. She will pull herself up by using our hands though. Benjamin still isn’t quite interested in that yet. His thing is to talk and to kick. Ella talks too with her little gurgle talk. Last night, I was changing her diaper and she was cooing and I made a little noise and shook my hair in front of her and she thought that was hilarious! OMG – when the babies laugh, it is the most wonderful sound. I absolutely love it and she was laughing at something I was doing! The next thing I know, we had an audience of my mother-in-law and Jon videoing us. I’ll try to upload this weekend to share (I still need to upload those pictures of their first solid food tasting) – it really is cute. Speaking of solid food tasting, Benjamin is doing really well at it and seems to enjoy it quite a bit. Ella is slowly getting the hang of it.

Another cute thing that Ella has started to do lately is when she’s excited, she flap her arms up and down like she’s getting ready to take off. She has a huge smile on her face when she does this. Benjamin will flap one of his arms up and down when he’s excited about a story he’s telling. Have I told you how absolutely in love I am with my babies?

2007 was definitely a wonderful year for us. I look forward to seeing my children grow up.

Before I forget, the babies had their 6 month checkup on Tuesday and here is their info:

Benjamin
19 pounds 5 ounces (I thought for sure he would be over 20) (80th percentile)
28 inches long (93rd percentile)

Ella
16 pounds 2 ounces (55th percentile)25 or 26 inches long (I can’t remember – all the info is at home) (45th percentile)

Quick Question

So what do you give your daycare providers for Christmas? Some were talking in the chat rooms with a multiple group I'm in and they were talking of giving daycare persons anything from chocolates to a $200 bonus for each person watching your child. I have no idea what to do! Any ideas?

Sick, Solids, & More!

It's been a while since my last post.

I ended up getting sick on Wednesday missing my department's holiday party :-( 3 years in a row I miss out on bowling. I went to work on Thursday and Friday though I ended up leaving early both days - one of those days via cab as I mistakenly took the vanpool (I thought I was feeling better) (which reminds me - shouldn't cab drivers know how to get places? Especially if they have a navigational tool in their car? This driver kept asking me how to get to Northgate). I was supposed to go shopping this weekend for Christmas presents - yep, that didn't get done - though the only issue with me this weekend was I lost my voice. I went to the doctor this morning just to make sure it isn't something more serious since I haven't had a voice in 3 days, but thankfully, everything is fine. I decided to stay home from work today to help get some rest which meant I missed the company holiday luncheon. I'm always sad when I miss out on free food - thankfully, when I went into work on Friday, I got my free frozen turkey! Yep - that's my Christmas gift each year from the company - a turkey!

Anyway, we started given Benjamin and Ella solids on Thursday. They turned 6 months on Wednesday but because I wasn't feel so great, we started the next day (even though I still wasn't feeling all too great). Benjamin seemed to do really well with it - he got it into his mouth and swallowed. He even seemed like he was looking forward to the next bite since he kept opening his mouth for some. Ella - well, she spit it back out most of the time. I think we may have gotten a few swallows. We've been giving them solids at least once or twice a day this past weekend. We need to give some to the DCP so she can give some to them as well. I forgot to get another box when I was at the store. We are starting them out on rice cereal, but I'm hoping to try some veggies next, then we'll move onto the sweet stuff - the fruits!

They have their 6 month checkup tomorrow - too bad I couldn't stay home again tomorrow so I can go with them, but I have to take Wednesday off since the daycare will be closed (for a holiday that they celebrate) and Jon can't take that day off so he can go to his work holiday lunch - someone should be able to go to their holiday functions! Jon is taking off Thursday and Friday, so the babies will not be in daycare for a week!

I'm so excited to see their official weights and and heights! I hope Jon does well with the two of them while they get their next round of shots! Poor babies!

Oh, something cute that I should write down here so I can remember to write about it in their baby book later (as I'm really behind with that) - they've discovered their feet! Ella desperately wants to put them into her mouth, but she can't quite get them there. Benjamin thinks their fascinating. Both are talking up a storm - at least with us - and Benjamin talks LOUD. It's very cute. They didn't talk so much at the party we went to on Saturday until Benjamin was getting sleepy and needed to let us know he was starting to get cranky.

Well, this post is getting a bit long. Back to resting!

Rolling Over and More

Benjamin rolled over again last night!!! I, of course, squealed with delight, and he smiled really big up at me. Yay Benjamin!

Tomorrow, my sweet babies will be 6 months old. I can't believe they're already 6 months old! We're going to start giving them solids at that time - that should be interesting. We're starting with rice cereal, then after a little bit, move onto other flavors - probably start with veggies first then go to fruits. I'm excited to see how they will react. We are going to try to video them eating solids for the first time so we can share with everyone.

Ella is so funny when she wakes up - I heard her talking this morning to something - maybe her bear mobile - then when I came in to get her, she gave me a huge smile. She's so cute. Benjamin was still sleeping when I left this morning, so he didn't see me go. :-(

Our DCP (day care provider) was telling me yesterday and told Jon this morning that Ella wants to eat every 2 hours or so - I think they need to give her more food - and well, I think she's ready for solids. She also cries when Jon leaves - unless she doesn't see him go and is distracted by the DCP.

Well, that's all for today.

Party Weekend

This weekend was busy, but fun. We went to a party on Friday and on Saturday night thrown by people Jon works with. We ended up getting there late to both parties. We didn't stay too long to either party, especially the one on Saturday. We would have been on time to that one had my haircut appointment not been cancelled at 10 and rescheduled for 5:30. I thought about waiting 'til the next weekend, but I desperately needed a haircut. My last one was when I was in my 2nd trimester of pregnancy (I think). You can't tell I got a haircut - I wanted it shorter than it is, but since I felt I was in a time crunch, I didn't ask for her to cut it any shorter. (One of the guys at the salon looks exactly like my brother Chad in body type and in looks - I almost wondered why Chad didn't tell me he was back in Seattle and working as a hair sylist).

Anywho, it is so funny to see Ella at parties. She'll be sleepy, but she can't possibly fall asleep when there is so much socializing to do. Like my husband said on his blog, she'll perk right up when someone comes up to her and will smile and talk to them. It's really very cute. Benjamin will sleep anywhere. He's a mellow baby.

Yesterday, we went to a party with my support group. All of the babies have gotten so big! One of the babies is walking and another is getting close. Everyone was surprised at how much Benjamin weighs (~20 lbs), but it's true - that son of mine is a big boy! While at the support group party, Benjamin decided to tell everyone, very loudly, his stories. What a great storyteller! :-D Ella later joined in on the fun.

There is a picture of us at the party on my flickr site, as well as a picture of the babies in their holiday outfits they wore on Saturday night. I forgot our camera so I didn't take a picture of them on Friday night. :-(

It was wonderful to see everyone. Hopefully, we'll see each other again soon to share stories and secrets of raising children, especially twins!

1st snow!!!

1st snow!!!
Originally uploaded by heathercim

Benjamin and Ella enjoying their first snow last weekend. It snowed a little bit today and stuck to the ground for a while, but by the time we got back from our party today it was gone. :-(

More pics on flickr - including one of Ella & Benjamin in their holiday outfits!

Friday!

Aww, Friday again. How I love Fridays. More time to spend with my hubby and my babies. Time away from work. The babies seem to be feeling better - they still have a bit of a runny nose and Benjamin still has the cough, but we seem to be settling back down to our normal routine. Ella almost made it the whole night before waking up demanding a pacifier or cuddle time! Yay! Benjamin woke up with his cough though, but quickly went back to sleep once given his pacifier or some cuddle time.

Something cute that my husband told me about - the babies were talking with each other this morning when my husband was getting ready. That had to be so cute to hear - I've seen them do that before and I love seeing it. :-D


I'm looking forward to this weekend - 3 parties in 3 days. It will be a busy one. At some point, I really should start some Christmas shopping.

Tonight, we've been invited to a cocktail party but I doubt we'll stay long because it starts close to bed time for Benjamin & Ella. Tomorrow night is Jon's work party - we probably won't stay long there either for the same reason. The party on Sunday is in the morning though so we can stay a bit longer at that party. The one on Sunday is with my support group and their husbands and children. I'm so excited to see everyone and to see how big all of the kids have got!

Only 3 1/2 hours to go!

Doctor Visit & News Stories

The twins went to the doctor on Monday, and they have colds and nothing more. That doesn't mean though that they aren't miserable. The doctor gave us nasal drops to give to the babies, then we need to use the bulb syringe to get out all the snot. I think Ella has gotten used to it. Benjamin has not. This reminds me that the other day, I must have used the bulb syringe a bit too much and Ella had a bit of a bloody nose – not much thankfully. A friend of mine who has kids said that she's done it before with her kids. I have to admit that I did freak out when I saw blood coming out of her nose, so I'm glad my friend was there to reassure me. The doctor also gave us drops to put in Benjamin's ears as he has a bit of fluid in them, but he doesn't have an ear infection. The drops are to prevent one from occurring. Hopefully, they get better soon. My poor little babies!

Some good news for Dennis Quaid's babies - they're at home and are doing o.k. Thank goodness! He's suing the makers of the drug now.

I saw an interesting article about a study that found there is a higher risk of anorexia in boys who have a twin sister. They say it is because the boy is "exposed to female sex hormones in the womb." Aren't boys always exposed to female hormones in the womb - that come from the mother? I guess this study says they are exposed to even more than they already are because they have a female twin.

First December Weekend

Parts of this weekend were good and parts were bad. Benjamin and Ella have colds - poor babies!!! :-(

Since Jon has a lot of sick time and I'm not allowed to take time off until mid-December (and I don't have any sick time to use until Feb.), he stayed at home with the babies and was taking them to the doctor to make sure it isn't more than a cold. I haven't heard from him yet - I hope everything went o.k. Hopefully, it is just a cold and they'll be alright with some humidifier time and some Tylenol. We took the babies into the bathroom while the hot water was running to get it all steamed up in there - that seemed to help them. A couple times over the weekend, Jon brought in Ella (Benjamin was sleeping both times) while I was taking a shower and she apparently thinks it's funny to see me without my glasses and with wet hair as she just kept cracking up each time she saw me peek around the curtains. Such an adorable laugh!

The weather in WA hasn't been the best - we had snow on Saturday and part of Sunday, then the snow melted, and now we have flooding from the melted snow and a lot of rain plus supposedly high winds though that doesn't seem to happening here...at least not yet. The pond by my office is flooded, but it does this every fall/winter. Oh, with it snowing, we quickly took a few pictures of the babies outside in the snow as it was their first snow - they had looks on their faces as if they were trying to figure out what was going on. We were out there for maybe 2 minutes, if that. I haven't uploaded the pictures yet. Maybe tonight.

As for the good parts, a few of us went to go see a friend perform at a concert on Saturday night. It was really nice to go to a holiday concert while it was snowing outside - the snow set the mood, I guess. It was a good concert - I'm looking forward to her next concert! On Sunday, I joined a couple friends to do some shopping for Toys for Tots. A friend of ours does this every year - he pools together money, we shop, the Marines come pick up the toys, and we go to his place to enjoy his homemade pizza. I love doing this every year!

Well, that's about it for the happenings of this weekend. Looking forward to this next weekend when we are going to two different parties (one for Jon's work and one with my support group). Hopefully, the babies will feel better by then!