It’s been a long, but exciting, week.  I’ve just realised that I haven’t done an update since before we had our egg retrieval.  Wow, time flies in some ways and stalls in others.

I had my egg retrieval on Thursday 26 August 2010.  It was day surgery and required me to be put under via twilight sedation, which is awesome because the needle they were using was MASSIVE!

The doctor ended up extracting 14 eggs, HUBBY did his thing and the Clinic did the rest.

After the surgery I went home to sleep it off.  Which was much needed because I was in a little bit of pain.  Thank goodness for pain medication!

On Friday I called the Embryologist to find out how the process was going.  I was amazed to hear that 14 out of 14 of the eggs had fertilised.  It took us both by complete shock.  By Saturday we still had 14 embryos, and on Sunday the Embryologist took great pleasure in telling us they were all still doing what they were supposed to.  On Monday they were still going strong but the Embryologist was indicating that we might only get five to the transfer stage.

My Embryo Transfer was scheduled for 1pm on Tuesday.  I scheduled the recommended acupuncture sessions for pre and post Embryo Transfer.  I didn’t know what to expect and apart from telling me to take pain medication an hour before the procedure they didn’t really tell me anything more.

HUBBY and I both attended the Embryo Transfer.  It was so clinical but it had it’s moments of humour.  The whole process took about twenty minutes.   The Embryologist confirmed that we had nine embryos get to the stage required for transfer or freezing.

With the transfer completed the only thing left to do is wait for a result and attend my acupuncture appointments.

Image source: Getty Images

The past few days have been an emotional rollercoaster.  I’m having problems focusing on anything for more than five minutes at a time.  I’m analyzing every twinge or cramp to see if it’s a ‘sign’ that the process has worked.  It’s getting really annoying and draining.

I had a blood test on Thursday to check my estrogen levels and the results came back as acceptable.  I have another blood test on Monday and then Wednesday to see how my hormone levels are traveling.

Patience has never been my strong suit so this week has been particularly trying, especially when you add control freak to the mix.  There’s nothing I can do at this point but wait.  HUBBY is being brilliant (as usual) and he’s taking really good care of me so I guess it’s just a matter of sitting back and enjoying the possibility while we still have it.

I am sick.  Really sick.  I haven’t been this ill in a long time.  Combined with all the hormones pumping through my system from the IVF I’m a mess of tears at the moment.  I am so homesick for my folks it’s not funny.

When I get homesick I listen to music that reminds me of home and how much I love my folks.  This song was dedicated to me by my Father one day when I was about twelve.  I listen to it whenever I’m homesick and pretend that we’re all together having a laugh and causing trouble.

Now I hope that one day we’ll be able to dedicate it to our daughter.

A few friends have asked recently about the process that we’re going through and the key dates around that, so I thought I would take the opportunity to put them all in print.  (Mainly so when my mind leaves me and HUBBY’s not around I have somewhere I can go to check to see what I should be doing!)

I’m doing a “Pill Cross Over Cycle”.  I’ve tried to find some online literature to link to about this, but ironically when I did a google search the top post on it was written by me.  As google has awarded me the world expert status I shall regale you with what I think one is.  Be warned, I’m not a doctor.  (Just for those of you wondering…)

The Pill Crossover involves taking the birth control pill for a period of time and then overlapping this with the nasal spray and then stopping the birth control pill.  At least that’s what I’ve taken it to mean from what they’ve had me do.  The goal is to get my hormone levels so low that my body doesn’t want to do anything remotely reproductive.  Once that occurs they then give me medication to send my body into hormone overdrive so that it’ll produce eggs which they can then harvest, fertilise and hopefully put back (one at a time).

To give you an idea of what’s involved I thought I would post my schedule so you can see for yourself.

That’s it in all it’s glory. It’s quite daunting when first confronted with it, but I’ve found tackling it one day at a time and focusing on the key milestones has made it a little easier not to get disheartened.

My focus is currently on 12 August.  This is the day where I’ll have my first blood test.  The test will check my hormone levels, and if they’re at the right levels I could possibly start on the injections the next day.

If my levels aren’t in the range that they need to be I’ll continue taking the nasal spray and go for blood tests until they are where they need to be and then start the injections.

Once the injections start I’ll be going for regular blood tests and ultrasounds to track the progress of the follicle development.  Once the doctor is happy with where the development is and my hormones are doing what they’re supposed to I’ll be given an egg retrieval date.

An egg retrieval is done via day surgery and involves the doctor extracting the follicles from my ovaries.  I’m trying not to think too much about this stage as it seems like a long way off and makes it all a little too real.

Once the follicles are retrieved they’ll be able to tell us whether there’s any viable eggs (fingers crossed).  Any viable eggs will then be placed in  petrie dish along with some of HUBBY’s sperm and left to fertilise (fingers crossed).

We’re aiming for a 5 day blastocyst for transfer (fingers crossed). Here’s what a healthy 5 day blastocyst looks like:

Image source: Advancedfertility.com

Once the transfer occurs it’s just a pleasant two week wait to see if the embryo likes it’s new environment and decides to stick around for nine months and become the apple of my eye.  It’s all so simple really, what could possible go wrong? *insert manical laughter*

If ever there was a post voted most likely to lose me an audience, this is it. I’m not going to try and sugar coat it, this is hard going. The mind of a woman going through IVF is not a pretty place. It’s a place where logic has been abandoned for the comfort of emotional roulette. So in the interest of public safety, and to hopefully save someone from ending up filleted at the hands of an IVF sufferer, here’s my top five DON’TS:

1. Save the Horror Stories for Campfires.

I know that you know someone who went through IVF and ended up growing a tumour the size of a small truck from all the drugs, but I don’t want to hear it. I also know that there’s people out there that went through IVF twenty times and still didn’t end up with a healthy baby, but I don’t want to hear it. I know that there was a woman somewhere that gave birth to six kids at once after IVF, but I don’t want to hear.

I don’t know what it is about medical procedures that makes us all want to tell people about horror stories. I know that I’ve been guilty of doing it as well, but this is not the time for story telling.

The last thing I want to be thinking about as I go in for an egg retrieval is the friend of your cousin’s brother’s girlfriend that had the procedure and it ruptured her uterus. If it’s all the same to you I’d rather be imaging my life as a Johnson & Johnson Baby Wash commercial so please save the horror stories for someone else.

2. Complaining about the Children You Have is Not Cool.

Rationally I know that you love your children. I know that they are the apples of your eye and that you’re just having a brief moment of wanting to vent about something that they’ve done. But now is not the time. Any other time in my life sure, hit me with your tales of parenting. Just not now.

While you’re living the dream I’m still stuck in the starting gates and the whole time you’re talking to me about your little horrors I’m smiling, nodding and wishing that the Earth would open up and swallow you whole. It’s nothing personal it’s just that I’m a crazed walking hormonal cocktail that has lost all grasp on reality.

So if you love me, and I know you do, please don’t complain to me about your children while I’m in the process of bankrupting myself just so I can have a eating, pooping, crying machine to one day complain about myself.

3. Do Not Poke The Bear.

When I’m going off the handle about the fact that someone cut me off in traffic I know I sound like a lunatic. When I’m going on and on about how invasive all the procedures are, I know I’m being a whiner. Under NO circumstances are you to point out the obvious to me.

I don’t like being the nutcase. I don’t like being the unstable emotional cripple that I seem to have woken up as that morning. I do not need you telling me that I’m being a dickhead.

In fact, should I have a moment of self awareness and point out how much of a dickhead I’m being it’s your job as the supportive, loving, caring person I know you to be to tell me I’m not a dickhead.

4. Don’t Tell Me How Fertile You Are.

Your husband just has to look at you and you’re pregnant; good to know but not what I want to hear right now. Just found out your having your third child and it’s not planned and you’re not happy; again not something I need to know right now.

I’m sure that having to worry about the danger of getting pregnant without wanting to is a massive pain in the butt, but for those of us currently leveraging our entire fortune on just a wing and a prayer that we’ll be pregnant one day it’s not something we want to hear about.

On a rational level I understand and I empathise, but rational left the building the day I agreed to mix medications and be harvested. Come back to me when it’s all done and I’ll be more than happy to commiserate with you, just not now.

5. Don’t Expect Me to Go to The Supermarket.

There is no greater hell on this Earth than the supermarket. Combine this with the overwhelming desire to kill that is currently pumping through my veins from all the hormones and I’m a ticking time bomb.

Add to this Molotov cocktail the fact that the hormones seemed to have blinkered me to all the great parents out there and not to all the horrible ones and it’s a recipe for disaster.

I cannot, and will not, go to the supermarket. Unless of course you do actually want me to end up in jail for pointing out someone’s short comings as a parent. Then by all means, wind me up and send me in there. Just be aware that I won’t have the money for bail as it’s all with the Fertility Clinic.

Image source: Getty

I told you it wasn’t going to be easy, and I’m proud of you for sticking through it and getting this far. To reward you I’m going to throw in a sixth, and the most important, don’t.

6. Don’t Hold Back On The Cement Pill.

As you can see from the above, sometimes it’s all I can do not to fall to the floor in a blubbering mess of self pity and self centered-ness . I’m human and I have moments in this hormone haze where I need someone to be brave enough to tell me to take a cement pill and harden the F up.

Don’t be too afraid to send me a reality check.

I don’t want to be the self obsessed cranky pants that thinks that her problems are the only ones out there worth caring about. I need to be reminded that all of us are going through something that to them is really big. And that just because I’m going through something doesn’t mean that I get to be stingy on the love and tolerance.

I need you to get me to repeat the following words: “I am not the center of the universe.  Everything does not revolve around me. There’s millions of people out there that have it worse than me.”

After all, what’s the point in bringing a child into this world if you can’t lead by example? And what kind of example is someone that’s only concerned with their problems and loses sight of the fact that we’re all in this together!

♦♦♦♦♦

Want to read the other posts in the series? Check out

• 5 Things to Do to Support a Loved One Going Through IVF
• 5 Things Not to Do When You’re on IVF
• 5 Things To Do When You’re on IVF

I wish everyone was as lucky as I am. I have had the outstandingly good fortune to marry a man so close to perfection it’s crazy. Luckily for me he’s a Collingwood AFL Supporter or he’d be completely perfect.

Of course I had to say all of that because he’s been living with an unstable banshee for the past couple of weeks and he deserves a reward.

When we were initially going through what the process would be I flagged with the Nurse my concern over my emotional state while taking the medication. I’m really lucky to be one of the select few that has a fairly strong emotional reaction to being on the pill. So strong in fact that I’ve been know to frivolously quit my job, tell someone my real opinion of their new haircut (it wasn’t positive) and cry uncontrollably at the latest Kleenex ad all while under the influence of the birth control pill.

Normally I can be a tad unpredictable but while on the pill I’m a weapon of mass emotional destruction. Knowing this about myself I asked if there was anyway I could not take the pill, but alas due to my Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) I was bound to take that small pill.

By the end of the first week of taking the pill I’d had a complete breakdown. One morning I was actually yelling and crying about something completely illogical only to stop midstream, hiccup, and declare that I had no idea why I was behaving like this. At that point the target of my emotional outburst, HUBBY, calmly walked up to me, wrapped his arms around me and said, “Don’t worry it’s the drugs talking, I love you.”

It sparked in me an idea to start compiling a list of the things that those who have a loved one going through IVF can do to support them. Here they are:

1. Listen.

Sometimes all we need is someone to vent to. Someone to nod and smile and say “I know.”, “They didn’t!” and “She’s such a bitch.” It doesn’t take much but it means the world.

The feelings of isolation in this process can be really overwhelming so it’s great to know that there’s someone there with you, ready to listen. It’s also great to know that there’s someone there who’s not busting at the seams to tell you how to fix everything.

2. Read the Information Booklets.

This one is really aimed at the partner, although if you’re interested and able it’s also great for close family and friends to do as well. I find it so frustrating to have to explain the process to the person I’m supposed to be going through this with. I have been known to declare, “If we’re in it together then read the bloody information books!”

It’s such a small thing that can make a massive difference. There’s nothing better than being able to go to an appointment and know that your partner is across everything and able to participate in the conversations happening. It’s also handy to know that there’s someone else who can remind you what medication combination you’re supposed to be doing on any given day.

3. Bring Home Chocolate.

If chocolate doesn’t float your loved ones boat, bring home hand picked flowers, or a new book, or some music, whatever your loved one would consider a treat bring it home. It doesn’t have to cost and arm and leg. (Which is good considering you’ve most likely just given both of those to the Fertility Clinic as payment for the procedures.)

At the end of the day the IVF process is crappy. It can be all consuming and make us question our fundamental worthiness, so a little positive re-enforcement goes a long way.

4. Be Generous with the Cuddles

Now is not the time to hold back on the affection. I’m not talking about trying to rock it out in the bedroom, I’m talking about being loving towards your partner. After a long day of trying not to lose your cool at your boss being able to come home to a hug from your partner can make the world spin on it’s axis.

5. Tell Me You Love Me.

It’s so simple, and really it’s the most important of all of them. At the end of the day all I need to hear is that you love me. Because believe it or not under that emotional hurricane is someone worried that they’re driving away the only people that care about them.

Image source: Getty

That’s my current list of things to do to help support an IVF sufferer.  I’m sure there is a list as long as Santa’s for ways you can make the person going through this process feel loved and supported.  Maybe you’ve been the person supporting the nut case, if so I would love to hear any tips or tricks for making it through this stressful time.

Tomorrow I’m going to cover the very controversial Five Things Not to Do to Support A Loved One Going Through IVF. You might just be surprised at how unhinged I really am!

♦♦♦♦♦

Want to read the other posts in the series? Check out

• 5 Things Not to Do to Support a Loved One Going Through IVF
• 5 Things Not to Do When You’re on IVF
• 5 Things To Do When You’re on IVF

Yesterday I talked about the “Five Things to Do When You’re On IVF” and today I’m covering the things to avoid. Like yesterday the list is not exhaustive, nor am I proclaiming myself an expert on the process. It’s just five things I wish someone had told me when we got started.

1. Avoid Dr Google.

If you’re like me I only ever go to the Doctor for a second opinion. The moment I think something is wrong I hit Google and see what I’m dying of. I do the same when I go through a medical procedure.

Googling your medical situation is a mixed bag. Sometimes it’s great to be armed with all the added knowledge so you’re not worried at any stage of the process, but nine times out of ten it usually convinces you of all the things that can go wrong. Instead of putting my mind at ease Dr Google usually convinces me to get my will in order and say my goodbyes.

It’s no different with IVF. Sure, if you’re curious have a look but take all the information with a grain of salt. If you really see something that panics you call your Clinic and talk to your Nurse or Doctor. Once they’ve calmed you down and reassured you that you’re not going to grow a third nipple from all the medication you’re taking walk away from your search engine. In this instance, it’s not your friend!

2. Don’t listen to Old Wives’ Tales.

When you announce to the world that you’re undergoing IVF you suddenly find yourself inundated with Old Wives’ Tales. Everything from existing on a diet of only prunes to rubbing yak semen on your belly. Smile, nod and then ignore it.

If it was medically sound advice it would be covered in the information pamphlets they provided you with at the clinic. Just because it “worked” for someone’s third cousin doesn’t mean it’ll work for you. Nor does it actually mean it was the reason they conceived in the first place.

Trust in your Doctor and Nurses. If you don’t trust them, find a medical practice that you do trust. Just like buying a car there’s no harm in shopping around.

3. Take Only the Advice you Want To.

This is closely related to Number 2, but it needs to be said. Everyone is going to have an opinion, cloaked as advice, on what you’re going through. It’s human nature to want to dispense advice, it makes us all feel like we’re helping and sometimes we are. There’s other times however when it can be like pouring gasoline on an open fire.

As the person going through it it’s your prerogative to listen to the advice being given and choose what you’ll listen to and what you’ll ignore. Be polite, thank them for their wisdom and then do with it what you will.

Do try to remember that the person dispensing the advice is only trying to be helpful, they’re not just telling you this to make your head explode. It has always been my experience that if someone is taking the time to provide you with their insight it’s because they want the best for you. At least this is what I tell myself as I take deep breaths and try to focus on smiling.

There’s one exception to this rule; if someone has the audacity to tell you to “relax and it will happen” you have the right to bop them one. Then smile, thank them for their wisdom and walk away.

4. Ignore the Statistics.

All the information you’re going to be provided with is going to come with statistics. After all, it’s the statistics that Clinics use to sell hope to their customers. The better a Clinic’s statistics look the more likely we are to spend our money with them.

I know that’s a cold way to look at it, but at the end of the day they’re not toiling away to knock women up because they think there’s a population problem with the world they’re in it to make money. Before you all yell at the computer screen, I do acknowledge that there will be a large portion of the workers at the Clinic that work there to help people realise their dreams, they’re just usually not on the Board of Directors.

The other reason to ignore the statistics is if you’re a glass half empty when it comes to success. I like to think I’m pretty positive in most aspects of my life, but when it comes to this aspect of my life I’m convinced I’m going to die a dried up barren old woman. Instead of looking at the statistics and seeing that conception through IVF is nearly beating the chance of conceiving naturally I see that there’s an 80% chance for me that this won’t work.

It can be hard to remain focused on the end goal when you look at it like that. So I’m ignoring the statistic, both the positive and the negative, and I’m taking it one day at a time. If it’s meant to be, it’ll happen, if not I’m still going to have a happy and full life regardless of what those numbers say.

5. Silence Your Inner Doubting Thomas.

There’s so many stages that go in to making up a complete cycle of IVF. There’s the regime, the pill popping, the nasal sprays, the injections, the egg pick up, the fertilisation and then the embryo transfer. At every stage there’s a handful of things that can go wrong and mean that the cycle is ended.

It’s a miracle that anyone actually ends up with a healthy baby at the end of all those hurdles!

At every point in the process there’s your inner voice to deal with. It throws up questions like, “What if I miss a pill?”, “Can I play Roller Derby?”, “Should I have time off work?”, and “Should I spend those two weeks waiting on my back?”.

Or worse still it tells you that you’ve ruined your chances. “You didn’t take your nasal spray at exactly the twelve hour mark so it’s not going to work.” “You’re too stressed so it’s not going to work.” “You didn’t have acupuncture so it’s not going to work.”

Sometimes my head is so full of my inner voice pointing out all the things I’m not doing or should be doing that I’m amazed I’m still able to walk and breathe at the same time.

I have ended up adopting the approach, “Will I regret this action if it doesn’t work.” For example, I struggled with trying to decide whether to undergo acupuncture as part of the treatment process. Our Clinic advised us that people had had success with a complimentary treatment of acupuncture, but others had also had success without it. In fact, our Clinic is currently undertaking research to see if they can prove a link between the two. So really it’s up to me whether I have it or not.

The only way I could decide what I was going to do was to apply the “Will I regret this action if it doesn’t work” approach. I know myself well enough to know what things I will focus on when having my Negative Nancy moments should it not work and for me not trying acupuncture will be one of them. On the other hand, going back to work after having the embryo transfer will not be.

It’s about listening to your head and heart and making the decisions based on who you are as a person. Once you’ve made a considered decision it’s a lot easier to silence your inner doubting Thomas.

Image source: Getty

This is just my list of things not to do while on IVF, for those of you that are going through it or about to go through it take from it what you will. If you have other positive contributions to the list that you would like to add I would love to hear from you so please add a comment.

If you have any advice on how to traverse the minefield that is IVF I would love to hear from you! There’s not enough sharing of positive information out there for my liking, so anything we can do to increase that I think is wonderful.

Tomorrow I’m going to cover Five Things to Do to Support A Loved One Going Through IVF.

♦♦♦♦♦

Want to read the other posts in the series? Check out

• 5 Things Not to Do to Support a Loved One Going Through IVF
• 5 Things to Do to Support a Loved One Going Through IVF
• 5 Things To Do When You’re on IVF

After five years of trying to conceive our first child we’ve ended up at the IVF stage of assisted reproduction. Who knew that all those years I worried about birth control I’d end up not being able to conceive naturally? Not me!

This is our first attempt at IVF and we’re currently about a third of the way through the cycle. No one in our inner circle has been through the experience so I’ve found I’ve relied heavily on the internet for information. I don’t know how people managed before the internet, I truly don’t!

In an attempt to help share some of the pearls of wisdom I’ve gleamed so far I’ve come up with my Five Things To Do When You’re On IVF. I’m positive that there are more, but these are just my five at the moment. It’s not an exhaustive list (nor am I an expert), but it’s a start.

Without further ado, here they are:

1. Water.

I cannot stress this one enough. When the Nurse handed over all of the medication and went through the strict regime of pill popping, nasal sprays and injections she said to me, “Drink a lot of water. The medication will take water from your body to help with the process and you’ll end up constipated if you don’t drink enough water. Drink at least two litres a day.”

I smiled and nodded at her, and then disregarded the advice. I know on a logical level that we should all drink at least two litres of water a day, but on a practical level I struggle to drink a litre of water a day. Even as I write this I’m eyeing off my arch nemesis the water bottle.

I started to take the medication as instructed and about five days into it I was struck by the thought that hadn’t had a bowel movement in at least two days. Not unusual for me, but it still gave me pause for thought. Two days after having that thought I realised something was not right in the state of the bowels.

I heard the voice of the Nurse in my head warning me of the dangers of not drinking enough water and I knew I was in trouble. Sure enough when there finally was movement at the station it wasn’t very fast nor was it very pleasant. So, please learn from my mistake DRINK AT LEAST TWO LITRES OF WATER A DAY or you’ll split your bottom!

2. Sleep.

Another piece of advise from the sage Nurse at our Clinic. She told me to get my sleep because the medication will take it’s toll and I’d need all the rest I could get to prepare for the upcoming procedures.

I know myself well enough to know that without the appropriate amount of sleep I’m a little “emotionally unpredictable”. Couple this unpredictability with the cocktail of hormones now pumping through my body and I’ve become a right firecracker.

Sometimes you need to just make yourself get the sleep time you need. Which is easier read then done. I’m still struggling.

3. Listen to Your Body.

Every man and his dog is going to have an opinion on what’s going on. Trust me. People you never knew had “medical degrees” will step forward from your circle of family and friends and start telling you all about what’s going on in your body, what’s going to happen and what you should be doing. Nod and smile and then IGNORE THEM. It’s your body and only you can really know what you’re feeling.

Pay attention to what’s going on with you physically and mentally and talk to the Nursing staff. That’s what they’re there for.

4. Follow the Instructions.

I believe myself to be a fairly competent person of the world, so I tend to trust my own intuition over reading instructions. So when I had to start using the Nasal Spray for the first time I thought, “How hard can it be?” and so I didn’t read the instructions.

This resulted in me not applying the spray correctly the first time I used it. Who knew that you should lean forward when spraying and then put your head back after spraying. Not me! Which is why most of the spray ran out of my nose and down my face. It also ended up running down the back of my throat. Not pleasant, nor attractive!

Now I read the instructions for everything! Sure, it might take a little longer and I might not feel as mentally superior but at least I’m not wasting my money by only doing a half arsed job of taking the medication.

On the positive side in the long term my new found instruction reading skills are going to really come in to there own, because if all goes according to plan I see a lot of flat pack nursery furniture assembly in my future!

5. Embrace your Loved Ones.

While at times it feels like you’re the only one going through this process remember you’re not alone. There’s often a partner, family member or friend in the wings feeling out of control, lost for ways to support you properly and worrying that they’re not being the perfect support person.

It’s more important than ever to talk to your partner, family and friends about what’s going on with you and how you’re coping. You don’t have to tell everyone what’s going on, but you should talk openly and frankly with your closest family and friends. It helps sometimes to be able to just vent about what’s going on and to see things from others perspectives.

It also helps provide some insight to them about why one minute you can be screaming, crying and cursing the world and the next minute laughing like a maniac and talking about how wonderful humanity is.

Image source: Getty

That’s my five recommendations for anyone embarking on the journey or maybe looking for more support while going through the process. I would LOVE to hear from anyone else that has positive recommendations for how to deal with the unnatural process that is IVF. I’m always looking for more information and I’m sure I’m not alone. So if you have some, just add a comment.

In fact, if you have any advice on how to deal with stressful situations, medical processes or how not to go insane I would greatly appreciate them!

Tomorrow I’m going to share with you my Five Things Not To Do When You’re On IVF. Some of them might surprise you…

♦♦♦♦♦

Want to read the other posts in the series? Check out

• 5 Things Not to Do to Support a Loved One Going Through IVF
• 5 Things to Do to Support a Loved One Going Through IVF
• 5 Things Not to Do When You’re on IVF

We’ve just spent the past weekend in Melbourne visiting family, seeing Mumford & Sons, shopping, being dazzled by Stephen Fry and generally running around like chooks with our heads cut off.  During all the excitement I did manage to get a few happy snaps.

The day after seeing Mumford & Sons we jumped in the car and took a day trip out to Daylesford.  Neither of us had every been to Daylesford and I really wanted to stop in and  see The Lark.

It was such an amazing drive from Melbourne to Daylesford.  The countryside is just so vibrant and green.  I couldn’t get enough of looking out the window.  I love watching the scenery go by.  It’s always so interesting.

When we got to Daylesford it was so beautiful.  The mix of architectural styles coupled with the artistic feel of the community was really appealing.

After being lead around Daylesford by Google Maps we eventually found The Lark and went in for a look.  It’s just like it is on the website only better because you can touch and feel everything.  It’s just got such a great feel to the store.  HUBBY and I wandered around the store for about thirty minutes.  Just bliss!

Afterwards we went for a little walk around the lake and checked out some of the mineral springs that Daylesford is famous for.  It was beautiful, but cold.  We were both freezing by the end of it and happy to get into the warmth of the car.

On Saturday morning we headed into Fitzroy so I could hand in my envelope for The Envelope Project.  I made it in to the store just in time to get the envelope handed in.  Mr Pip was working in the store and graciously allowed me to put my envelope in the window.  I was stoked to be in the Meet Me At Mikes window.

There were so many wonderful envelopes.  I could have stood in that window all day looking at the amazing contributions that had been submitted.  My self consciousness got to me in the end and I left the window.

It’s been so cool to see two of the settings that feature heavily in the blogs that I love to read.  It’s like being close to a little piece of internet royalty.

After spending time at Meet Me At Mikes we wandered around Fitzroy checking out other stores and soaking in all the amazing people and sights.  I’m convinced if I lived in Melbourne I would spend a large chunk of my weekends just wandering the streets taking photos of all the street art.

We had an amazing long weekend, despite me being tired, cranky and under the weather.  I always love being in Melbourne, but I also enjoy being back home and I’m looking forward to getting a good nights sleep tonight.

This image has captured Mount Isa beautifully, and I’m not just saying that because it was taken by my Dad.  I love night time photography.  It just seems to add a certain sense of magic to scenes.

I think there’s also a level of beauty that night time affords man made objects.  I personally think that the Mount Isa Mines site looks a lot nicer, dare I even say prettier, at night when it’s lit up.

I’m having a proud daughter moment and I can’t wait to see what other images he produces.  He’s certainly in a stunningly beautiful part of the Australian countryside so he should have no end of landscapes waiting to be captured.

I just had to share.  I was happily working away on my school work in the dining room turned study and I could hear someone snoring.  I assumed it was one of the dogs.  However when I got up to investigate how HUBBY could be watching television with the loud rumble of dog snore I found this.

Turns out it was HUBBY who was snoring and he’d fallen asleep on the beagle.  She really is man’s best friend; laying still and supporting his sleeping head.  It’s just so cute.