Thursday, July 28, 2011

Ronald McDonald House

As I lay in bed yesterday after temporarily fixing my bed from the cats (another story, another time) I started thinking about the time we spent at Ronald McDonald House of Ann Arbor. While it was not home it was pretty darn close. We knew with Liberty being so fragile and in the NICU that we would not be able to comfortably commute from home which was an hour away from the hospital but we also couldn't sleep in the NICU for what we originally thought would be 15 weeks. At the Ronald McDonald house we had our own bedroom with two twin beds that we pushed together to make a "bigger" bed and we shared a bathroom with one other room. Also while staying at Ronald McDonald someone came in every night to make dinner and/or leave treats and as parents busy with sick children the dinner and treats were always appreciated. We also all had a chore each day but if it was not possible to get the chore done then that was okay as well. There were a few times we stayed at the hospital late or didn't go back to the house for 24 hours when our chores were not done and while I always felt bad I knew it was more important to be with our little girl.

In the end when we lost Liberty, we were grateful that we were able to stay so close to her for as long as she was here on Earth with us. The day we lost Libby the Social worker at the hospital called Ronald McDonald to first get my baby blanket from the house to hold Libby with and then when we had to leave Ann Arbor the house was great about letting us get our stuff and leave, they understood how hard it was for us. In leaving we left food that I hope others were able to enjoy.

My hopes are that we will never have to go through a situation like this again but I know if we do we will stay at the Ronald McDonald House again. I also feel that I owe Ronald McDonald House more than the money we gave them for staying there; without them I would not have been able to be close to my baby for those beautiful 3 weeks she was here. So with that in mind I am asking all my followers (all 4 of you) to start saving your pop (or beer) tabs. They really do amount to something for the Ronald McDonald House and the families that stay there. Once you have a pile let me know and I will come collect them from you and take them to the House.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Quentin Tarantino

In my husband's world Quentin should be revered as a god or at least a film genius. He made me watch Pulp Fiction tonight which was a good movie but not really my type of movie; I am more of the romantic comedy kind of girl. But anyways back to Pulp Fiction, I can respect it for the art of it. It was well written, it was mildly entertaining and yes, Quentin did a good job directing, writing, being the Hollywood god that he is but still I only found the movie good. You also have to understand that for 7 YEARS my husband has been complaining about the fact that I have not previously watched Pulp Fiction and therefore the movie has somewhat been the bane of my existence and until tonight I have avoided it, not because I thought I wouldn't like the movie but because I didn't want to give into him.

When the movie was finished and my darling husband with stars in his eyes asks me what I thought, I answer it was good. He then launches into a diatribe about how awesome Quentin Tarantino is and how he has done things others in Hollywood have not and yadda yadda yadda. Quite frankly I tuned him out at some point during his diatribe so I am not sure what all he said but I know he was trying to sell me on Quentin’s godliness.  Now it is 2 am and he is trying to sell me on watching Reservoir Dogs…suddenly I am feeling very tired and need to take myself to bed.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Watching the Pounds Fall Off

I wish the pounds would just fall off but amazingly enough they don't, I actually have to WORK to get them to come off. I joined Weight Watchers in May and so far I am doing fairly well; I've lost 20 lbs. I work out about 5 times a week, watch what I eat, track my points; I am a good little dieter. As my mother would say I am the diet nazi. I comment on everything I eat and tell her the points of everything she is eating, which makes her oh so happy with me. My hopes is to lose about 75-84 lbs. by my 5 year anniversary, which means continuing to work out, drinking 8 glasses of water, and being dilligent with the tracking. I know it is possible and I can do it, but thinking about it feels huge.

With that said I have 11 points left for the day and I think I am going to go get myself an ice cream cone. Oh the joys of WW, I get to eat ice cream and not feel bad about it.

Monday, July 25, 2011

So Many Pieces

When my husband and I met 7 years ago I had no idea life would be what it has become. We have had our ups, our downs, and our bottom of the barrel life doesn't get any harder than this moments. When we said our wedding vows 4 years ago and the deacon said "for better or for worse..." he wasn't kidding. We have lived with family to save money, we own our own home after living in 3 different apartments, we have found out about medical difficulties that I have, we have had 2 stillborn babies and given birth and lost our beautiful daughter Liberty. Through this blog I am hoping to write about my life and what I am going through in the hopes that someone else will gain some comfort, inspiration or hope from my experiences. This blog is not only about the loss of my angel babies (Ziggy, Frank, and Liberty) but also my husband, my weight loss, our path to pregnancy and the everyday joys in life.