Quick Takes (42): Remember me?

I actually wrote these on Thursday night and then forgot to post them or schedule the post.  Oops!  I hope you don't mind me posting them late.

--- 1 ---

Oh my goodness!  Where does the time go?  I can't believe it's been close to 2 months since I last typed a few words.  Thanks to two lovely ladies for reaching out and checking in with me to make sure I was ok.  Seriously, how awesome is that?  Two total strangers that I've never met before email to see how my appointment went and how I'm doing.  Thanks for making me feel loved.

--- 2 ---

October was a hard month.  My appointment with the new Napro dr did not go well.  I've got to finish the blog post so you can hear what she had to say and give advice on how to proceed, but basically I don't think she and I will be a good fit long-term.  So that sort of put me into a bit of a depressed state.  I was so certain things were going to go well and that this was going to be the start of getting me back on track health and fertility wise.  I've gained 5 pounds since the appointment and have hardly been to the gym, so the opposite effect happened.

--- 3 ---

November was a long month.  R came down with a nasty cold that she passed onto me.  It lingered around for 9 days and then re-surfaced as a sinus infection in me.  Then R came down with another (or the same) cold.  Oh my goodness!  It was about 3 weeks of non-stop sickness in our house.  Not fun at all.  That really zapped my energy on top of the already down mood I was feeling.

--- 4 ---

Thankfully, we were all healthy by Thanksgiving time!  If you remember back to previous years, we have always hosted people at our home since we can't travel to be with family.  Usually, it was my international students experiencing the holiday and meal for the 1st time.  I loved sharing our traditions with them and interacting outside of the classroom.  Occasionally, we'd have some college students from church over if they couldn't travel home either.  DH and I have such a good time hosting.  We tried to find people to invite over this year and couldn't.  Either we didn't hear about those that needed a place to go or everyone truly did have plans, but it was just the 3 of us this year.  At first, I was sad and missing our previous connections with people, but then I decided a nice, low-key Thanksgiving was just fine for this year.  We didn't even get a whole turkey; we just settled for a turkey tenderloin (which R loved, by the way).

--- 5 ---

And then the rush hit after Thanksgiving...preparing for Advent and Christmas.  We did get our tree up and lights on it and our Advent calendar out, but otherwise we haven't finished decorating yet and I'm still working furiously to get our cards out since most people don't have our new address yet.  And I'm sort of nervous to continue unpacking everything because we haven't gone through those boxes thoroughly since we moved (Christmas last year we were still out West).  Sort of sad to think about.  I'm still missing my friends, the mountains, our church, and my colleagues.  Adjusting and change are so hard for me.

--- 6 ---

It probably doesn't help my adjustment factor since it's 70+ degrees today, rainy, and humid beyond all get out.  I was in a t-shirt today I was so warm.  This is not the December I am used to.  It should be cold and snowy during Advent.  How can I listen to Christmas songs about sleigh bells and snow and fireplaces when I have the a/c on in my car?!?  This weather is for the birds.  And seriously....we are still raking leaves we have so many trees.  It's really been a challenge for me to get into the Advent/Christmas spirit when this is so foreign to me.  I am so out of my element and comfort zone. And I realize as I type this many of you are covered under layers of snow or ice and cold.  One of my friends commented that we always want what we don't have.  Isn't that so true?  I guess I will know what to expect next Advent and can be better prepared, and I can start thinking now about the true meaning of the season that does not depend on the weather outside.

--- 7 ---

And finally, we have little Miss Escape Artist in our house.  One day shy of 19 months and she gets out of her crib on her own.  She woke up in the morning, we heard a thud, and then she shut off her monitor.  I go in to get her and she's standing at the door.  Oh boy, she is keeping us on our toes.  Thankfully, she was not harmed, but we knew she'd be trying that trick again before too long.  I think we've worked out a temporary solution by removing the springs and just setting the mattress on the floor inside the crib sides, but the act left me scrambling to try and track down the rails and kit to convert her crib to a toddler bed.  Wouldn't you know it, some of the pieces are no longer available (we bought the crib less than 2 years ago)?!?

The good news is she has been sleeping through the night now since we did sleep re-training (did I tell you we had to re-train overnight sleep things had gotten so bad after our FL trip?)  We are only a few weeks in again, but she's consistently sleeping through the night and napping well.  For this reason, we are not ready for a toddler bed yet!

And I've got a bunch more things I could add, but maybe I'll save that for a post for next week:-)  A happy and blessed Advent to you all as we await the birth of our Savior.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!