Infertility

When Meric and I first got married we discussed having kids. We both knew we wanted them and decided that after a year of marriage we should start a family. After trying for a couple of months I was shocked I wasn't pregnant. I had ALWAYS had a very consistent menstrual cycle. We did a little research and learned that it is normal for it to take 6 months to a year to first conceive.

So I tried to be patient. The longer it took the harder it got. Everyone would ask us when we were going to have kids. We wanted them but every month like clockwork my period would start. And every month I was more and more devastated. I wanted kids so bad it was hard to be around people who had them and I started to dread Mother's Day. I hated when people with kids would try and relate to my situation. "Oh I understand, it took me 3 months to conceive" really wasn't comforting when I was into my second year.

We tried all of the text book remedies to help us conceive. We had Meric tested and everything was fine with him. We checked my temperature, tried different positions, made a detailed calender of my menstrual cycle and checked to make sure I was ovulating. Nothing helped. When Meric and I moved to San Antonio, TX we discussed seeing an infertility specialist. After my first appointment I was hopeful. They had found nothing wrong with me and gave me a prescription for Clomid. I felt confident that soon I would be pregnant. I took the Clomid for a week and was an emotional wreck! Anyone who has taken Clomid knows what I mean. Also after I took the drug I threw up every afternoon for a week. I knew that wasn't the route I wanted to take.

Shortly after that we moved to Fayetteville, NC. We decided to keep trying to have kids but started looking into adoption. Adoption is expensive and unless we travelled outside the U.S. a lot of adoptions nowadays are open which makes me nervous. I just think of the sad stories where a baby is placed for adoption and then years later somehow the birth parents are allowed to take them back. I couldn't have handled that. So Meric and I decided that maybe we should try foster parenting. The children wouldn't be ours but at least we could give them a good home for a while. We took a 10 week course and started the paperwork to become foster parents. Unfortunately due to budget cuts and being short staffed the process took too long. Meric and I were scheduled to move again.

By this point Meric and I had been married for 7 years and trying to have kids for 6 long years. We discussed our situation and decided that maybe we should just be happy with the dogs as our kids. We loved our lifestyle and the freedom having no kids gave us. We moved into a 5th wheel trailer, moved to Kentucky and decided to just be happy.

It was a long and hard road dealing with infertility. So many times I cried and felt so inferior. It was hard to deal with the looks people would give us when they found out we had been married for years and didn't have kids. It was hard to have always wanted to be a mom and know that it wasn't going to happen.

But you know what? We were happy. Meric and I loved each other and as soon as we decided to not have kids it was like a weight had been lifted off our shoulders. We started to live for the day and not just for the someday. We made plans that didn't include having kids. I can honestly say we love NOT having kids. Somehow through all the years of waiting and heartbreak we found happiness.

That being said a new chapter is about to start in our lives. A chapter that like the last has brought a lot of tears and I am sure will bring several more. After completely giving up and learning to be truly happy with life, Meric and I have discovered I am pregnant. It has come as a shock and most days we really aren't sure what to think of our situation. Some days we are happy and other days we question why this is happening to us now.

But either way we are expecting a baby girl on January 28th.

Warrior Dash

On Saturday Meric and I competed in the Warrior Dash . It is a 3.5 mile race course with 12 obstacles scattered throughout. Having never done anything like this before I was a little nervous about how I would do.

The Warrior Dash race is started in waves and our start time was 11:00. It was actually a great start time because that gave us plenty of time to eat, take the dogs out, and get things together before we started the hour drive to Versailles, KY where the race was being held. (In KY you pronounce it Vair-Sales)

When we got there we had to park in a field. We were very glad we had brought the truck because it had rained quite a bit in the days leading up to the race and the field was very muddy in some places. Very muddy turned out to be a theme for the day. We got to there with just enough time to pick up our race packets, t-shirts and check all of our stuff and head to the starting line.

BEFORE

We started the race running on a path that wound through a field and trees. In many places the course was too hard to run on because it was very muddy and slippery. Then came the obstacles. #1 was three rows of giant hay bales that you had to run and climb over. Meric would run up them first and then stand at the top so that he could help pull me up when I needed it. Shortly after that came #2. This one was an angled board that you had to run and climb over. It wouldn't have been much of a challenge but the board was pretty muddy which made it slippery. Meric made it over no problem but I slipped a little. Once over the first wall there were three more 4ft walls to go over. Luckily these ones weren't angled so I could easily push myself up and over. Obstacle #3 was a called Two by Fall. That is because you had to balance across a pit on a two by six board. Honestly it was an easy obstacle.

#4 had a bit of a line behind it waiting to start. When we finally reached the obstacle we understood why. It was mud mounds. You started by climbing up a pile of dirt and then jumping down into a pit of mud. Not too hard except you would get stuck in the thick mud. Every step I took was difficult because I had to pry my foot up. That made it difficult to climb up the next mound of dirt which was a tall as me. Once you got to the top of that pile you had to jump down into thigh high thick muddy water to get to the next mound of mud. And once you accomplished that you got to do it one more time to complete the obstacle. It was difficult but really a lot of fun and Meric's favorite obstacle of the day.

After that we slipped and slid along the muddy course to reach obstacle #5. This was the scariest obstacle for me. A 20ft wall that you had to climb over. There were slats to step on and a rope to help you but they were all muddy and a little slippery. Meric made it up first and stayed at the top to encourage me on. I was glad he was there to help me stay focused and not think about falling. I was pretty proud of myself for conquering my fear and accomplishing the obstacle.

The next obstacle was fairly easy. #6 was a low net that you needed to crouch down and walk under. Walking up the muddy hill to get to it was more difficult than the obstacle itself. #7 was low trenches that you had to crawl through. #8 was a tall angled cargo net that you had to climb up one side and down the other.

#9 was a giant angled board that you had to climb up one side and down the other. There were a few slats and a rope to help. Most people were trying to grab the ropes and use them to pull themselves up. Both Meric and I found it easier to use the slats to push ourselves up and over. Going down the other side I did use the rope to ease myself down so that I wouldn't just slide down the slippery board.

Obstacle #10 was another cargo net. This one was straight up and down and you had to work your way across it sideways. #11 was jumping over fire. This one really wasn't too bad your feet just felt a little warm afterward.

The last obstacle, #12, was the dirtiest. You had to crawl through thick muddy water. It was very messy and as you reached the end the mud got thicker and more difficult to move through. Then there was a mound of mud you had to climb over in the end to reach the finish line. At the finish line they were handing out medals for finishing the race.

AFTER

We were so thickly covered with mud it was insane. They had a wash station but they had run out of water. That was the only negative to the entire race. We rinsed off as best we could in the dirty pond near by and then made our way back to the truck. I am so glad we brought a change of clothes and that the truck doors were big enough to change behind.

Waiting for water

All in all it was a fun day and I would totally do something like this again. I was really proud of myself for finishing all of the obstacles. I wish I could have gotten more pictures of the obstacles so that everyone could see what fun we had.

Happy Birthday to me!

For my birthday Meric and I went to a bed and breakfast and hiking. We left on Tuesday and got home on Thursday. Friday (my actual birthday) we went to Louisville to Red Robin (free birthday burger) and Costco. That night we hung out by the fire chatting with everyone. Nothing special ON my birthday but I was okay with that.

Whenever Meric would ask what I wanted for my birthday I would tell him that the trip was my present. I really meant it too. Of course he didn't listen. On Saturday morning Meric went out to breakfast with some of the guys like he does most Saturday mornings. This Saturday morning though he let me know he was going to be later because he was going with the guys to check out a gun one of them wanted to purchase. He ended up being gone until afternoon. Later that day he had planned to go shooting with some of the people at the campground. I wasn't planning on going because I need to get some stuff done around the house. Just before they were set to leave one of the guys called us over so that I could see the gun he purchased. When I opened the case there was a shotgun and a hand gun and a note from Meric that said happy birthday. The guns were my presents.

Of course after seeing that shotgun I had to go skeet shooting with them. It is a beautiful shotgun and I had a lot of fun shooting. I have the bruise on my shoulder to prove it!

After shooting we came home we made dinner and watched some tv. Then we took the dogs out for a walk. When we got home from our walk I had a text message from our neighbor. It told me to head over to the office so I could see how she had painted her nails. I said okay and we headed over. We walked into the office and headed to the back room. Inside was half the campground. It was a surprise party and I was very surprised.

Almost burned down the office with all those candles!
 

We had cake and ice cream. (One thing I should mention is the cake said Happy 44th Birthday Mandy on it and I had a 44th birthday balloon. Some of the campers like to tease me and say I am much older that I actually am.)

I really had no idea and since it was the day after my birthday I wasn't expecting anything. Meric really did a great job of making my birthday a special one.

Natural Bridge State Park

After Meric and I left Snug Hollow we headed over to Natural Bridge State Park to do some hiking. I have heard about this area from a few people but had never been. It is just over two hours away from our house.

We pulled up to a parking lot which marked the start of a few trails and a ski lift. You have the option to ride up to natural bridge by ski lift or hike up. Meric and I were there for the hiking but I have never ridden on a ski lift before. We opted to ride up and hike down.

I am a little scared of heights and being on a slow moving ski lift made me nervous but the view was beautiful and it was nice to ride. At the end of the ski lift you have only 600ft until you are on the natural bridge. Yes I said on. I thought we were just hiking to where we had a good view but you actually end up on top on it.

Again I was a little nervous because there is no guard rail or fence along the edge. You are up high and there is a bit of a drop down. But again the views were breath taking and I was so glad we decided to go.

View from below

 

From the top you can take a little path down to beneath the bridge and then you have a few options of trails to take back down.


Did I say "little" path? I should have said narrow.

 

The entire area was so beautiful and the rock formations were very cool. Meric was drooling and really wanted to go rock climbing.

Just a couple of examples of the unique rock formations

The trail back down was fairly easy but had a few more difficult spots.

Definitely not a path for tall people

In some places there were stairs carved into the rock. One spot was fairly steep with small winding stairs. It reminded me of the stairs of Cirith Ungol. (Yes I am a nerd but so are you if you know what I mean.)

It is really hard to see the stairs in these pictures

 

After the hike we pulled off at Miguel's Pizza for lunch. When we left Snug Hollow the owner drew us a map to the State Park. On the map she made note of this pizza place and recommended we try it. I am glad she mentioned it or we probably would have missed it. It is a little building next to a gravel parking lot. It isn't much to look at and the inside seemed a little worn. We went to the counter and ordered our pizza and then sat down in a booth. Not two minutes later the line at the counter was huge and we could tell that this pizza place was definitely a landmark and part of the Natural Bridge experience. Meric loved that it was a climbing store as well. From the ceiling hung every piece of equipment you would need to go rock climbing.

When we were done with our pizza we drove to another spot marked on our map. This one was called Nada Tunnel. We had no idea what it was but it wasn't too far and since she took the time to mark it on our map we figured it was worth checking out. We drove along the road until we reached the tunnel and it was definitely worth seeing. The tunnel is a one lane tunnel carved out of the rock. Only one car at a time can fit through, it is very tight and very dark. It was so cool to see.

Two motorcycles heading into the tunnel

We really fell in love with this whole area of Kentucky. None of these pictures do it justice. Meric and I can't wait to come back and explore it some more.

Snug Hollow Bed & Breakfast

With Meric taking most of the week off for my birthday we figured it would be the perfect time to take a little vacation. We looked up several places and decided to give Snug Hollow Bed and Breakfast in Irvine, KY a visit. Something about it seemed so relaxed and peaceful. It was a bed and breakfast located on 300 acres. Also in researching the place I couldn't find a single negative review which made me even more curious.

View of the back porches

The main house

We started out Tuesday afternoon and put the address into our GPS. Oh the places that GPS will take us! We wound through every little town along the way. Very scenic and nice but we both figured it was not the most direct route. When we reached the road Snug hollow was on we were definitely far into the country. The road was a one lane dirt road that wound back one mile to the bed and breakfast.

One of the two cabins

The main cabin/house was very pretty and rustic. There was no "main" entrance that we could see so we went in through the screened porch and into a cute little kitchen.

A staff member was showing another couple around so she had Meric and I sit on the porch until she was done. With several rocking chairs and a porch swing to choose from we were quite comfortable while we waited. When it was our turn to "check-in" we were given a tour of the main house and shown to our room.

View from the porch

Our room was on the second floor and had two rooms and a bathroom. One of the rooms had two twin beds and then the main room had a queen bed. The room opened on to a sitting room full of books, magazines and games. Across a little walk way was another bedroom that opened onto a private porch. Since no one had booked the other room, Meric and I had the entire upstairs and porch to ourselves.

After checking in Meric and I took advantage of the sitting and looked through different books and magazines until dinner time. At Snug Hollow breakfast is definitely included but they also give you the option to eat dinner there as well. Some of the reviews mentioned that all of the cooking is vegetarian but they also raved about how good everything was. I figured it wouldn't be a bad idea to try it for ourselves.

A fruit tart they gave us for an afternoon snack

At dinner we were joined by the other couple that had checked in before us and another couple that had just come for dinner. The first dish brought out had a bowl of white bean soup, a piece of corn bread and a salad on it. Everything looked delicious and was such large portions I thought that was it but she soon brought out another plate. This plate had cheese grits topped with kale and a tomato. I am not a fan of grits but I think these people could make anything taste good. Dinner was wonderful! Everything had such good flavor and was so fresh. For dessert we had ice cream with peaches and homemade shortbread. I was very glad we had decided to do dinner there.

I haven't seen this many butterflies since I went to a butterfly exhibit

 After dinner we sat on the porch until it got dark and then turned in for the night. It was the perfect summer night to open windows and listen to all the nature sounds while we slept. In the morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast of pancakes and eggs. We then decided to explore the 300 acre property. One of the first things you see as you start along the path is the garden.

Snug Hollow's owner, Barbara, has a beautiful organic garden. Continuing along the path you head toward some hiking trails. It was a beautiful, sometimes difficult, hike that eventually wound back toward the house and stopped at a lake.

Lakeside there was a hammock that Meric and I relaxed in for a while. It was so quiet and peaceful we didn't want to leave.

Eventually our stomachs prompted us to head into Irvine for lunch. After lunch we decided to Take the advice of Barbara and check out a local pottery shop called Tater Knob Pottery and Farm. Personally I wasn't too excited to go look at pottery. I like it but usually it is a little expensive and really I don't have room for too much "stuff".  When we got to the shop one of the potters came out to greet us. She said she would let us look around a bit but then she would give us a demonstration and answer any questions we had. The demonstration was really neat. She made four bowls, put a handle on a pitcher, and painted a couple of items. She also showed us the kiln and discussed the process and all the stages of making a pot. I really learned a lot and I also understand a little better why this kind of pottery is a little more expensive. Meric and I ended up buying some homemade jam, a clay spoon rest and a citronella candle. The candle was really cool and the item we didn't realize we really needed. It wick is fiberglass and last forever and is held in a clay ball.

Then all we needed to do was fill it with citronella oil and we have a beautiful table decoration that will help keep the bugs away while sitting outside. Visiting the pottery shop really added to our trip.

We then headed back to Snug Hollow for dinner. This time it was just Meric and I. They served us a large salad with melon, summer squash topped with spaghetti and fresh made bread. It was to die for! I felt bad about not being able to finish dinner because it was so good but they gave us so much. It was also hard to stop eating when I got super full because dinner was so delicious.

For dessert we had a blackberry tart. After dinner we took our over stuffed bellies out to the porch and enjoyed relaxing until it got dark. Then we played a game in the sitting room before heading to bed.

In the morning we enjoyed a breakfast of oatmeal, eggs and potatoes, fresh melon and a biscuit. It is a good thing the owner made a cookbook because everything was so good I wanted the recipes. After breakfast we got ready to leave Snug Hollow. It was hard to want to leave the peaceful feeling. Everything was so laid back and comfortable. There was no cell phone service or wifi. It was great to be "unplugged".

Meric and I really enjoyed our first bed and breakfast experience. We really felt like we were just visiting a grandma or great aunt. Everyone was so warm and friendly. We loved it and plan to try and go back sometime. Snug Hollow Bed and Breakfast definitely earns their good reviews.

*If you want to check out the websites here are the links:
www.snughollow.com
www.taterknob.com

 

Fireworks and Fun

Last year the 4th of July holiday was hot and dry. They had to cancel fireworks due to a drought. This year was very different. We had rain and cool temperatures. Fireworks had the possibility of being cancelled again but due to rain this time. Despite of the rain we still enjoyed our four day weekend and had plenty of activities and fun at the campground. 

On Thursday it rained lightly all day. Meric and I watched 1776 and listened to the rain on the roof. That evening we enjoyed some night bowling which due to the rain had been relocated inside. The ball was a soccer ball and the pins were 2 liter bottles with water and glow sticks inside. They lighted the "alley" with a string of lights and then shut off the room lights so that everything glowed. It was a lot of fun to watch.

On Friday it rained off and on. A couple of the outdoor activities had to be postponed or cancelled. When it wasn't raining Meric and I helped with a couple of activities. There was an egg toss and a water balloon fight. That night despite the rain we made grilled cheese and pies over the campfire.

On Saturday the rain continued through the morning but finally cleared up in the afternoon. Which was good because Saturday was the busiest day. In the morning we made tie-dyed t-shirts.

I have never actually tie-dyed before but I think it turned out pretty good for my first time. Then we had a birthday party for one of the little campers. (Her family are seasonals and she is one of the kids who loves to play with the dogs.) Then they had a greased  pig chase. It was really funny to watch everyone chase after the pig.

After that they had a golf cart derby. They would blindfold the driver and have the passenger navigate them through an obstacle course. That too was really funny to watch. Then came the pots and pans parade where all the kids followed a fire engine through the campground while banging pots and pans.

After that was a giant slip and slide in red, white and blue pudding. Very messy but the kids had fun. Once it got dark it was time for fireworks. I was really glad they didn't have to cancel them. I love the fireworks show they but on at the campground. After that Meric and I had a few fireworks that we set off too.

Campground girls with their holiday crowns and pots for the parade

I love holiday weekends at the campground. There is always so much going on and we always have so much fun.

Painting the Pool

Last year I learned how to swim and loved it. I have been looking forward to the pool opening for the season since it closed. I was so excited I eagerly volunteered to help get the pool ready. First the pool must be drained and cleaned out of all the debris that accumulated over the winter.

Once cleaned it is ready to be painted. The paint is very thick and almost rubbery. Weather conditions must be just right in order to paint. It needs to be warm enough and dry for several days so that the paint can dry.

When the painting is all done it is time to fill the pool. Using a regular garden hose the pool is filled using well water. It takes several days to completely fill the pool.

The progress after three days

This year the local fire department helped fill the pool. It was a win win situation. The pool was filled faster and the fire department was able to do hose and pump drills.

Now the pool is all ready and I am excited to start swimming. We just need the weather to warm up a little now so that I don't freeze while I am doing it.