This may be a little bit out there for some of you, but I wanted to give the rest of you the link for angel cards.

I was first introduced to Angel Cards during massage school. I know, it is pretty woo woo, but I went to school with a lot of woo woo people. I was actually on the normal end of the spectrum if you can believe that! And I also don't want to turn anyone off of massage either, we really did balance the woo woo with the medical. It was a full range education.

Anyhow, whenever we would first come in to class, we were asked to draw an Angel Card to help see what our direction as an individual would be that evening. After we drew our card, we could share it with... more

Yesterday, I listed some of the benefits of journal keeping. Today I will be listing some ways to start keeping your journal and also some helpful hints about approaching your journal time.

I have a lot of different journals going at one time. I have a desk top journal that helps as a calendar, list maker and general place for all of my scattered thoughts while I am working. There are quotes that I love, angel cards that I have drawn for a certain day, and random order numbers and tracking numbers from the internet. This has also served as my dream journal, as it is the most accessible of my journals and ready to be written in in the early morning hours.

I also keep an... more

I took a journaling workshop at our local cancer care center while my dad was sick and getting chemo. Last night I came across one of the handouts from the instructor, who is also a close friend. It has some great info in it and I thought that I would share it with you all. Journaling through the stress of his illness, and the grief of his death has been helpful to keep my head on straight. Any type of infertility stress can also benifit from journaling.

Journaling In earlier generations it was common to keep a diary or a personal journal. However, today few people do it and very few recognize the value and astonishing power of keeping a journal.

A... more

I'm wondering if I'm in the majority on this? Before I knew that I wanted kids, I used to be addicted to the TLC show "A Baby Story". It was so precious and fairy tale like that I would get sucked in and spend so much time watching and enjoying it. I even remember taping episodes as well. The feel good aspect of the show was addictive.

Enter infertility. And pregnancy. And new mommyhood.

I despised this show with such a vengance while I couldn't conceive and miscarried. I would try to watch from time to time and was so upset with watching... more

This weekend Chris and I were driving somewhere and I mentioned that I thought that I had heard that an average person spends about 80 kcals per hour watching tv. He thought that there was no way that that number could be right. He estimated that there were a lot less kcals spend doing nothing.

Not one to really back off from something that I was pretty sure was true, I went to trusty google to see what I could find. And boy, did I find a treasure. I felt so much better about myself just reading through the list that I found. And no wonder why I was in such great shape when I was going out all of the time. Although, I wasn't dancing to "rock and roll" (who says that anymore?).

... more

From www.lifescrip.com I've been searching for fertility related news bytes. There are many subjects that are important for women's health, yet, I'm unsure how directly related they are to having a baby. The following byte is related to delivery, so I think that I'm safe with that! For all of you that are pregnant at this time and planning your birth plan, as per Coley's posts last week, this may be of interest to you!

Now, this really seems like common sense. I would think that gravity would have something to do with the pain relief, but then, I wonder why the timeframe for both types of deliveries was so similar? The kneeling births were... more

As we are now in the swing of the holiday and party season for our family, I thought that I would like to share some tips that I received from my health insurance to help stave off the additional 5 to 10 pounds that many people gain from Thanksgiving and New Years. For us, party season starts a lot earlier because we have a ton of birthdays in the fall, starting in mid September, going all the way through late January. Some of the tip lists that I have read seem unrealistic, but I found most of these hints to be helpful. Especially since a healthy weight... more

"Whose Egg Is It Anyway?" by Louise Farr

I have had the September 2006 issue of More magazine on my desk since August. A close friend of mine gave me her magazine because there was a fertility article in it that she thought I could use for the blog. Well, I've read the article. And read it again and again. And honestly, I still don't know what to say about it. Talk about conflicted.

The article is about the legal battles of Augusta and Randy Roman over embryos that the couple created, yet didn't implant. And now the question is created, whose eggs, or... more

As you all know, I've been on the pro side of the Madonna adoption, partially because I think that I've stayed away from a lot of the gory back and forth accusations and partially because I'm a fan of Madonna in the first place. And a huge fan of her parenting, mixing and blending family members to the benefit of her children.

But this story has had a personal effect on me. And on my family, as far as my mom and my sister are concerned. People have been pretty closed mouthed when it has come around to Becken's adoption. I have mentioned in an earlier post that I have been surprised at the small amount of reaction that we have gotten in public, which we dreaded at home while filling... more

3. Select a clinician who offers the latest techniques in dental care, including conscious sedation. Conscious sedation can help reduce your dental anxiety, fear, and apprehension. This new technique will allow you to sleep through the most complex of dental procedures.

4. Make an appointment, and keep it. Before making an appointment decide that you will follow through, because the doctor has set aside that time just for you. Write down the issues you have concerns about, as well as any questions you need to get answered and resolved. It really doesn’t matter if you have all the desire in the world if you don’t follow through.

5. Call a friend or other... more