September

Every year, September is our busy month. Like, REALLY busy. For starters, there's P's birthday on the first, which often coincides with Labor Day weekend. The weekend after Labor Day is the local fair and demolition derby, which we always attend with my in-laws. Somewhere in there (the 12th) is my MIL's birthday as well. The third weekend in September is our little town's annual weekend fall festival, which is basically a mini fair. And last but not least, our anniversary is the 27th and my FIL's birthday is the 28th.

This year we also had 2 weddings to attend the first part of the month. A friend of mine from college got married over Labor Day weekend, which involved me flying to Virginia. Then this past weekend my office-mate got married in Iowa; we were at least able to drive to this one, but had to rush home Sunday in order to get to the fair in time for the derby.

And as if that weren't enough already, this year September also includes 1) N starting preschool, 2) me starting my final class for my Master's degree, and 3) our first FET cycle. That's pretty much the definition of insanity. Oh, AND we're still trying to finish the bathroom remodel that began in June but has stretched on for nearly 3 months now. Have I mentioned that it's basically impossible to potty train when the only toilet in the house is in the basement?

As I was reading through my treatment schedule for the FET, I came across the following instructions:

"Avoiding stress can only improve your cycle. The treatment you will be under is stressful enough. Do not start any big projects at this time­ at work or at home. Now is the time to be kind to yourselves."

Oops. Well... there's not much I can do about the timing of all of this (other than if we decided to just postpone the FET all together) so instead I'll be doing whatever I can to minimize/manage the stress as it comes. Transfer day is exactly 3 weeks from today, so between now and then my hope is to 1) eat as much of a whole foods diet as I can while 2) still allowing myself the occasional frozen custard treat, 3) schedule a weekly acupuncture session, 4) schedule a weekly massage, 5) go for at least one 20 minute walk per day, 6) do the yoga and pilates workouts from my exercise DVDs 3-4 times per week, and 7) get back on a sleep schedule.

I don't know how realistic all of that is, and even just typing it out I already feel like it's too much. But I do think it's helpful to have pre-identified ways to manage the stress. And I'm not going to beat myself up if I don't do ALL of the above. At the same time, I'm going to have to actually set aside time each day do accomplish any of it. Many of these are things I should be doing anyway, it's just that for the next few weeks, I need to make them a priority so I can be in good shape (mentally, physically, emotionally) for this FET.


On that note, time to put away the electronic devices so I can start winding down for bed...