Friday Quick Takes #2

Happy Friday!

1. I've only had my blog public for the last week or so, and it's already been a very enriching experience. Thank you! Full confession: I've been a "lurker" of many blogs for a while now, and it's very exciting to get to know some of you a little better. I've so appreciated everyone's blogs - your thoughts and reflections, especially on subfertility, have helped me so much. So thanks! I only wish that we could all meet in person =) Maybe someday!

2. Guess what? Mr. M and I won a vacation! Way back in the summertime, we filled out one of those contest forms at an air show. And just this past week we got a call saying that we were selected as finalists. Here's the "catch": we have to pick up our award (yet to be determined) at a resort in the countryside near us. But it's not really a catch because they're paying for us to stay at the resort for 2 nights. (I think the real catch is, based on what we've googled, they put a lot of pressure on you to buy a time share at their resort - seeing how we completely cannot afford that now, it won't be too difficult to say no. But apparently they can be pretty pushy.) Anyway, we're going on our free getaway in February. We never really do things like this (accept prizes that may have strings attached) but they caught us at such a perfect time. January has been so blah and I am really in need of a vacation with just the two of us! So I hope it's fun and relaxing and we're not snookered out of our life savings...

3. In other happy news, a long-lost friend returned, one that I was missing very much...Mr. Sun! Seriously, it seemed like the sun didn't come out for 2 years! Or maybe 3 days - but still, I'm awfully affected by weather, I guess, but the dismal, gray, blah-ness outside was making me want to curl up in a ball and sniffle. I was so happy to see the sun this morning! I even turned my desk at work around so I'm now facing my window and can see the glorious, glorious blue sky.

4. I used some Christmas money to buy the book Nourishing Traditions. Has anyone read it and/or used any of the recipes? It's teaching me a lot about food and food preparation, and I'm rather alarmed at how much (it seems) our culture sacrifices nutrition and quality on the altar of convenience. I find the book a bit overwhelming, though. Some of her suggestions are radical: drink only raw milk, soak all your grains, cut out sugar, etc. I'm ready to try some of the radical stuff in an effort to get as healthy as possible - but I'm going to take baby steps. (And I'd be so appreciative of any advice from people who have read/used her book.)

5. Update on the SA, since I mentioned that last week: this cycle was a fail. We found a hotel near the hospital where we have to take the "sample," but all the rooms were either booked or way over-priced because of the Inaguaration (which gives you a hint as to where we live if you'd like to come visit!). So us cheapos decided to wait until next cycle. Oh well. I'm not going to say we were completely crushed to not have to do it, but I am anxious to move on to other things.

6. We have a fig tree in our living room. It's a cutting from Grandpa M's fig tree that he keeps in his garage during the winter. We have it sitting next to a south-facing window, near a heater, and not surprisingly, it thinks it's spring time! It has lovely big leaves and just this morning I saw little baby figs on it! I'm not sure whether to be excited about this or concerned that it's interior sense of seasons is way off.

7. And to conclude: I really enjoy the little "Friday Funnies" that people sometimes put on these, so I'll share something that I think is funny: joke Amazon reviews. Maybe you've seen these already. For example, reviews of the BIC pen "for her" say things like:

"Someone has answered my gentle prayers and FINALLY designed a pen that I can use all month long! I use it when I'm swimming, riding a horse, walking on the beach and doing yoga. It's comfortable, leak-proof, non-slip and it makes me feel so feminine and pretty! Since I've begun using these pens, men have found me more attractive and approchable."

Or: "I love the pretty colors and skinniness, but I'm only giving two stars because they're annoying. For one thing, they dot every "i" with a little heart. They also won't make periods at the ends of sentences; it's a question mark or exclamation point every time, also dotted with hearts--SUPER annoying."

I don't know why, but these crack me up. (Warning: some are a little crude. But most aren't.) If you need a chuckle, I recommend reading them! The reviews on the 3 wolf moon t-shirt are pretty funny too.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

+EcceFiat+