After the reunion on Sunday, we (including some of the cousins, second cousins, and an aunt and uncle) all went back to the hotel and went swimming in the pool. The kids (and most of the adults, too) stayed in the water until pooped, then we went our own ways for dinner, depending on what sounded good. My parents retired rather early that night, and then Blaise/Nicole, Phil/Abbi, and Drew/me stayed up outside of Blaise and Nicole's room (where the boys were sleeping) talking.

Monday morning was Drew's 30th Birthday. We said good-bye to Phil and Abbi that day, as they weren't accompanying us to Colorado, then after breakfast and checking out of the hotel, the rest of us got back on the road. We stopped about an hour into the drive in Kearney, Nebraska, where we lived for three years before moving to Earlville, Illinois. I went to 6th, 7th, and 8th grades in Kearney. We drive by our old house, schools, and church before splitting up. Dad and Mom wanted to take the back roads from there to my Grandma's grave site. Drew and I decided to continue to caravan with Blaise and Nicole and the boys, saying that we'd visit the grave on our trip home from Colorado a couple days later.

It was another pretty long day in the car, but once we were a ways into Colorado, it was pretty cool to see the mountains off in the distance. We checked into our hotel rooms in Brighton, Colorado (right outside of Denver), then waited for my parents to show up before going to dinner. The boys swam in the hotel pool again that night before we all retired.


The sky after dinner that night

We met for breakfast the next morning, then said our good-byes to my parents and brother's family. They were heading further west into Colorado to see some of my Dad's side of the family that day after stopping in Breckenridge. Drew and I decided we wanted to spend the rest of the brief time we had in that area, heading up to Estes Park and seeing a bit more of the Rocky Mountains. It was sad to say good-bye to everyone.

After going our separate ways, we took the scenic drive up to Estes Park, a touristy town near the foot of Rocky Mountain National Park. Here are a few pictures from that day:


The Rocky Mountains


A statue on the road leading to Estes Park


From the car, heading toward the mountains (obviously )


On the windy mountain road


Just outside Estes Park


Mmmm...our very own cupful of roasted garlic for lunch in Estes Park. Potent!

After spending the day being tourists, we headed back to our hotel room in Brighton and had a low-key evening. We had a sushi dinner and fell asleep watching re-runs of NCIS.

The next morning we started the two day drive back home. We stopped in Haxtun, Colorado that morning at my Grandma Sullivan's grave site, and my Grandpa Sullivan (who died before I was born) and their only daughter Lorraine Jodell (who was born on my birthday 48 years before me and died at only six months old) are buried there, too. It was very emotional to re-visit the grave site, which I hadn't been to since my Grandma's funeral when I was nine years old. I introduced them to Drew, and even he couldn't hold back his tears. We thanked them for looking after our precious angel babies there in heaven. It was a beautifully clear, sunny day, and I felt an overwhelming sense of peace just being there, talking to my Grandma especially, who I was very close to. Another "coincidence" I didn't notice until just recently: Lorraine Jodell...LJ. Both my Grandma and I lost babies with the same initials.

After saying our good-byes at the cemetery, we drove all the way through Nebraska and as far as Des Moines, Iowa, before stopping for the night. I was mesmerized by the hundreds of wind turbines an hour or so outside of Des Moines.



After checking into our hotel, we went to the restaurant attached to it for dinner, and we saw a classic car show taking place outside. After eating, we went and took a look at all of the restored cars. I didn't take any pictures, but it was really cool. There were more Corvettes represented there than any other vehicle, so Drew wasn't one bit disappointed.

The next day we finished the drive through the rest of Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, and home to Michigan. We picked up the girls at the vet's office (where we board them), and both Molly and Sammy earned excellent "report cards" during their stay. Despite winning over their caretakers in our absence, I think they were both pretty happy to see us...that is, until we got them home and they realized it was bath time!

-Em

Saturday morning (the 4th of July), we all met for breakfast at the hotel in KC, then checked out and got back on the road to pay a visit to my Grandma and Grandpa in Concordia, KS. During our drive, we stopped in Salina, KS, the first place my family lived that I actually have memories of, and while we were there, we took a peek at our old house. When we moved from KS to NY, my parents sold our house there to people who planned to turn it into a daycare center, and it's still a daycare to this day. I was five years old when we moved away. The house seemed much bigger to me back then; it was interesting to see it now, from an adult's perspective. Blaise and I joked about how the walk with Mom down to the gas station on the corner for candy used to seem like quite a long trek when we were just tots. Really, it was just a couple houses down from us!

After lunch in Salina, we finished the drive to my grandparents' apartment. The 10 of us all squeezed into their tiny place and visited for about an hour. I was pretty impressed that my Grandpa Leo remembered Drew's name after only having met him once three or four years ago. Unfortunately, my Grandma (who has Alzheimer's) didn't seem to know who any of us were. We were all prepared for this, but it is still difficult to witness. My Mom sat next to her the whole time holding her hand as she interjected bits of conversation that had nothing to do with the actual conversation taking place. Her only moments of clarity seem to be centered on their little dog, Angel, and when Alex and Conor would do something that caught her attention. She seemed tickled by the "one in yellow" (Conor) who started getting a little feisty with his brother toward the end of the visit. She would just chuckle and make comments about his antics. That was kinda cute.

After our short visit, we hopped back into the cars and completed the drive to Grand Island, NE (the town my Mom grew up in, parents met in, and the majority of my Mom's side of the family still lives in). The reunion with them was scheduled for the next day, so once we arrived at the hotel, we had the rest of the night to relax. We had dinner at the hotel restaurant and ventured outside eventually as it appeared that pretty much all of the guests at the hotel had brought along an impressive array of fireworks to set off. We watched the amateur show, caught a good portion of the professional show above the treetops, and watched Conor do his "fireworks dance."

The next morning, several of us went to breakfast with my parents, then I came back to the hotel to fit in a work-out with Nicole. It was great spending a little one-on-one time with Nicole, and it reminded me how much I miss having a work-out partner. I also wish we lived closer to Blaise and Nicole. As far as sisters in law go, she's pretty darn cool.

After showering and getting ready, we all caravaned over to the family reunion further into town. I saw aunts, uncles, cousins, and second cousins I haven't seen in many, many years. My Grandma and Grandpa also made the trip up from Kansas for the day, so we were able to spend a bit more time with them. I sat next to Grandma and held her hand this time, and though I know she probably still didn't realize who I am, I sensed her becoming comfortable with my presence next to to her, and she started telling me "secrets" as they popped into her head.

Here are a few pictures from the reunion (we also celebrated my Grandma and Grandpa's 25th Wedding Anniversary...for those of you who don't know, my Grandpa Leo isn't my biological Grandpa--he and my Mom's Mom were married when I was 5--but he is the only grandpa I've ever known).


My Mom and Grandma


Mom, Grandma, and Grandpa Leo


My Cousin Amy, Mom, and Grandma


Sister-in-law Nicole, Phil's girlfriend Abbi, and Brother Phil


Drew


All the second cousins


The cousins (I think only my sister Becky was missing)

The third and final installment of our trip will be coming soon...

-Em

Right before the 4th of July, we left for a week-long vacation to Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado. As you already know, we had to pack up all of my injections to take with us, so I must admit I was a little nervous about how I'd feel during our trip. Luckily, the injections away from home went smoothly, and I felt mostly fine for the trip. Phew!

On Thursday, after work, we drove part-way to Kansas City, Missouri. Friday, we completed the trip to KC, and checked into our hotel there about an hour before my Dad and Mom; Blaise, Nicole, Alex, and Conor; and Phil and Abbi arrived in their caravan from North Dakota. Then, we all drove the few miles down the road to Kauffman Stadium for a KC Royals vs. White Sox baseball game. Unfortunately, the Royals lost that night, but I think we all enjoyed the game, walking around the stadium, and the fireworks afterward. Dollar hotdogs and pop didn't hurt, either.






Alex and Drew


Conor swinging his souvenir bat


Alex and Conor (Conor sat next to a couple Sox fans and kept calling their team the "Stinky Sox" ha!)


The fam: Phil (didn't make it in the pic), Abbi, Mom, Dad, Alex, Nicole, Blaise, and Conor. We were
definitely in the "nose-bleed" section, but at least we got our exercise going up and down the stairs!


Abbi and Nicole


Blaise and Conor


Alex and Conor playing "Ring Around Uncle Drew"


Fountains lit up at night


Fireworks after the game

Stayed tuned for more about the rest of the trip...

-Em

This morning we had a follow-up ultrasound to Monday's.On Monday, my largest (dominant) follicle was at 10 mm; today, after three days of increased dosages of my Follistim injections, that same follicle was at 12 mm (and the other ones that were seen were small enough for the nurse to speculate that there isn't much of a chance for any of them to fully develop). I have to admit, I was a little disappointed with the dominant follicle's growth since Monday. A follicle is considered "mature" once it's reached a minimum of 15-16 mm, so this one little egg has a bit to go before we'll be ready for our Ovidrel "trigger" shot to help it release. The nurse who performed the ultrasound told me not to be too discouraged, however, because, oftentimes, slow-growing eggs are of higher quality. So, I'm putting a lot of hope into this one little egg (trying to remember that it only takes one!) and hoping that slow and steady wins the race!

The nurse and doctor know we'll be on vacation next week, so they're going to call me this afternoon with our plan of attack for the next several days. Obviously, since we'll be out of town, we won't be able to go in for another ultrasound to monitor our progress (in some ways, though, that is a relief, as we've already spent $500 on ultrasounds ALONE this week...that's not including the cost of meds). So, the doctor is going to recommend the dosage of Follistim for the next few days and when (his guesstimate) we need to inject the Ovidrel trigger shot. We have all of the shots packed up in a cooler, with alcohol wipes and our sharps container for needle disposal, along with us for the trip "out west." You really have to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all, us traveling with all these needles, otherwise you'll just cry at how pathetic it seems!

Again, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We're still hoping that we have a chance for this cycle, but I'm trying to remember that if this one doesn't work out, we'll be better prepared for dosages, etc. next time around. It'll all be okay one way or another, right?

Now, we're just a few hours away from getting on the road to head out to Kansas. Tomorrow, we meet my parents, Blaise/Nicole/Alex/Conor, and Phil and Abbi in Kansas City for a KC Royals vs. Chicago White Sox baseball game that night. It's been years since I've been to Kauffman Stadium, so that should be fun. I'm mostly just really excited to see my family, since a year (or more) can easily go by without seeing one another (one of the drawbacks of all of us being spread out around the country). Saturday, the 4th, we drive up through Kansas to visit my Grandma and Grandpa, then continue on to Grand Island, NE for a family reunion with my Mom's side on Sunday. Monday is Drew's 30th birthday, and (gasp!) we haven't quite decided what we're doing with the rest of our week from there. I am a planner by nature, so I have to admit, the uncertainty is driving me nuts! We had originally planned to go on to Colorado to visit Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park, at least, but we'll have to see. With the recent medical expenses, our vacation fund as dwindled a little. Still, I'm hoping to convince Drew to go for at least a couple of days. I'm dying to make good use of the 70-300mm lens for my Nikon D50 that Becky sold to me a few weeks ago!

Hope everyone has a great 4th of July and fun holiday weekend,

-Em

Last weekend, we flew to Wisconsin to meet Keaton, the first child of our good friends, Kate and Collin. It was his baptism weekend, so we were able to be there and offer a helping hand for those festivities as well. Drew and I were both more than smitten with little Keaton. He is an absolute doll, and we both eagerly held him often over the few days that Kate and Collin put up with us us up.

Kate and Collin are already wonderful, caring, and doting parents to Keaton. It was so fun to watch them with him, and to see him respond to his Mommy and Daddy. Even at only eight weeks old, the little peanut certainly knows the difference and responds preciously when he hears their voices, sees their faces, or feels their touch. It brought me to near-tears several times to witness these two, who so desperately wanted a child, interacting with their perfectly sweet little one.

Here are a few pictures of this weekend (mostly from the baptism). I wanted to take more pictures around the house of all of us (including Amanda, who we also enjoyed seeing...hi, Amanda!) with the baby, but wouldn't you know it? My camera battery was dead almost immediately after I took my first picture. Luckily, before the baptism on Sunday, Kate and I figured out we basically have the exact same Canon point-and-shoot, so I was able to use her battery charger. (Phew!)

Thank you for letting us come meet our pseudo-nephew, you guys. We enjoyed every minute of it, and we can't wait until we get to see all of you again! We miss you!

-Em and Drew