After a very disappointing start to fertility treatments (my body just wasn't doing what it should) we got some good news today. My body is starting to respond! No this isn't code for "we're pregnant" it just means that my lady bits are starting to do things they are supposed to be doing.
One of the most frustrating things is taking medications; going to office visits with every exam under the sun and then hearing, "I'm sorry, it's just not doing what we want it to be doing". Well...how do we make that happen?
Crossing our fingers that my body continues on this path of positive response.
~~
Join Us for the Walk of Hope: http://familybuilding.resolve.org/goto/gardiners
Friday, August 15, 2014
Saturday, August 9, 2014
I'm Just Trying to Help
We know that most people mean well, but if you've never been in our shoes, we can't expect you to always know what is okay to say and what is not.
Some days are easy, some days are hard and some days you don't want to do anything but yell and be angry. We've learned, this is all normal and okay. We've also learned that some days we want to talk about it and are okay sharing our process, and other days, we don't even want someone to mention the word baby. It's a tricky situation, but trust me, we'll never bite your head off over it, we totally understand.
We recently saw this article online and while I didn't think some of the comments bothered us, I realized, afterwards, that yes, yes I do agree with this. Redbook magazine published the article "Four Things to Never Say to a Friend Who's Been Trying"
Support the Walk of Hope, visit our donation page: CLICK HERE
Some days are easy, some days are hard and some days you don't want to do anything but yell and be angry. We've learned, this is all normal and okay. We've also learned that some days we want to talk about it and are okay sharing our process, and other days, we don't even want someone to mention the word baby. It's a tricky situation, but trust me, we'll never bite your head off over it, we totally understand.
We recently saw this article online and while I didn't think some of the comments bothered us, I realized, afterwards, that yes, yes I do agree with this. Redbook magazine published the article "Four Things to Never Say to a Friend Who's Been Trying"
Support the Walk of Hope, visit our donation page: CLICK HERE
Friday, August 8, 2014
Green Drinks
So a couple of days ago I posted my "attempt" at a green drink, it was kale, cucumber, banana, strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. All my berries made my drink brown/purple. So I posted on Facebook and asked friends for their favorite. I've decided to put that collection here for everyone.
Lori's Green Drink
Kale, cucumber, celery, orange, green apple
Jacqueline's Green Drink
Water- 1 1/2-2 cups
Celery stalk- 3-4
Romain- head
Spinach- 1/2 head (large bunch) 3/4 (small bunch)
Apple - 1 cored
Pear -1 cored
Banana - 1
Lemon - 1/2
Optional:
1 bunch parsley
1 bunch cilantro (both w/stems)
Makes about 7 1/2 cups
Jennifer's Green Drink
handful or 2 of spinach, a banana, a few ice cubes and a cup of almond milk. You can add your protein powder to it too if you want. And the older the banana the better. It's sweeter
Tamara's Green Drink
a few handfuls of spinach, kale, frozen strawberries, some frozen pineapple, 1/2 coconut water and 1/2 light lemonade (15 cals!) it gives it a tangy taste like jamba juice.
Patricia's (non green) Drink:
Frozen blueberries, raspberries, peaches, some yogurt and almond milk.
Valerie's Green Drink (post wine drinking cure):
Green Grapes, 1/2 Green Apple, 1/2 Orange (remember to remove the outer peel otherwise it will be bitter), 1 banana, handful of kale, spinach & chard, few ice cubes (unless you use use a frozen banana), blend it up and that drink will be green. You can throw strawberries in as well and use a red apple but those two red items will make it more brown.
Karina's Green Drink that even a Dr. Pepper Lover Will Drink:
Ice
Almond Milk
Spinach
Pineapple
Parsley
Mint
Lemon
Raw Honey
best way to eat spinach ever....
Jim's Green Drink:
- Fill cup halfway with kale (spinach tastes better. Isn't as bitter)
- half of a pear
- half of a lemon (no peel, but keep white part)
- 1 small apple or half of a large apple
- cut about 2 inches off a cucumber and throw that in
- 1 or 2 strawberries (frozen preferred)
- tablespoon or so of chia seeds
- tablespoon or so of flaxseeds
- a few goji berries (if you have them. Not necessary)
- coconut water
- a few ice cubes
- If i want it sweeter, I use half a package of Stevia
Helena's Green and Purple/Brown Drinks:
Swiss chard and dandelion greens as a combo in my green shakes. I also use about a cup of fruit to 12oz of unsweetened coconut milk. Add half of an avocado, 2 big tablespoons of chia seeds and a tablespoon of unflavored veggie-based protein powder. Sometimes I'll swap the avo for 2 tablespoons of almond butter. I find if I use berries, it gives me purple/brown, if I use tropical type fruit, I get a nice vibrant green.
And some helpful tips from Nicole:
Adding a lemon cuts the "green" taste and definitely makes it easier to drink. I prefer to juice my greens rather then blend them in a smoothie because it ends up so grainy. But definitely adding citrus helps cut the grass taste. I also do apples and celery.
Don't forget to rotate your greens! Eating kale everyday is not a great idea. All greens contain micro toxins to protect them from birds-if you are eating greens from the same family everyday there's a good chance your getting enough of the toxins to affect your thyroid.
Lori's Green Drink
Kale, cucumber, celery, orange, green apple
Jacqueline's Green Drink
Water- 1 1/2-2 cups
Celery stalk- 3-4
Romain- head
Spinach- 1/2 head (large bunch) 3/4 (small bunch)
Apple - 1 cored
Pear -1 cored
Banana - 1
Lemon - 1/2
Optional:
1 bunch parsley
1 bunch cilantro (both w/stems)
Makes about 7 1/2 cups
Jennifer's Green Drink
handful or 2 of spinach, a banana, a few ice cubes and a cup of almond milk. You can add your protein powder to it too if you want. And the older the banana the better. It's sweeter
Tamara's Green Drink
a few handfuls of spinach, kale, frozen strawberries, some frozen pineapple, 1/2 coconut water and 1/2 light lemonade (15 cals!) it gives it a tangy taste like jamba juice.
Patricia's (non green) Drink:
Frozen blueberries, raspberries, peaches, some yogurt and almond milk.
Valerie's Green Drink (post wine drinking cure):
Green Grapes, 1/2 Green Apple, 1/2 Orange (remember to remove the outer peel otherwise it will be bitter), 1 banana, handful of kale, spinach & chard, few ice cubes (unless you use use a frozen banana), blend it up and that drink will be green. You can throw strawberries in as well and use a red apple but those two red items will make it more brown.
Karina's Green Drink that even a Dr. Pepper Lover Will Drink:
Ice
Almond Milk
Spinach
Pineapple
Parsley
Mint
Lemon
Raw Honey
best way to eat spinach ever....
Jim's Green Drink:
- Fill cup halfway with kale (spinach tastes better. Isn't as bitter)
- half of a pear
- half of a lemon (no peel, but keep white part)
- 1 small apple or half of a large apple
- cut about 2 inches off a cucumber and throw that in
- 1 or 2 strawberries (frozen preferred)
- tablespoon or so of chia seeds
- tablespoon or so of flaxseeds
- a few goji berries (if you have them. Not necessary)
- coconut water
- a few ice cubes
- If i want it sweeter, I use half a package of Stevia
Helena's Green and Purple/Brown Drinks:
Swiss chard and dandelion greens as a combo in my green shakes. I also use about a cup of fruit to 12oz of unsweetened coconut milk. Add half of an avocado, 2 big tablespoons of chia seeds and a tablespoon of unflavored veggie-based protein powder. Sometimes I'll swap the avo for 2 tablespoons of almond butter. I find if I use berries, it gives me purple/brown, if I use tropical type fruit, I get a nice vibrant green.
And some helpful tips from Nicole:
Adding a lemon cuts the "green" taste and definitely makes it easier to drink. I prefer to juice my greens rather then blend them in a smoothie because it ends up so grainy. But definitely adding citrus helps cut the grass taste. I also do apples and celery.
Don't forget to rotate your greens! Eating kale everyday is not a great idea. All greens contain micro toxins to protect them from birds-if you are eating greens from the same family everyday there's a good chance your getting enough of the toxins to affect your thyroid.
The Walk of Hope
We're not like everyone else; we're like 1 in 6 or 1 in 8 (depending on the research) couples. We are struggling with infertility. Having a baby seemed like a pretty easy task right, not so much for us.
After a year of trying to conceive on our own, with random suggestions of try it this way, eat this, drink that, take this, we decided to seek out a professional (sorry friends, you're all professionals in your own right, but unfortunately not with out fertility). We went to Huntington Fertility Center (HRC) in Pasadena to meet with the incredible Dr. Nelson and his team of wonderful nurses.
We'll be doing a walk in September called the Walk of Hope. Below is my page for the walk
After a year of trying to conceive on our own, with random suggestions of try it this way, eat this, drink that, take this, we decided to seek out a professional (sorry friends, you're all professionals in your own right, but unfortunately not with out fertility). We went to Huntington Fertility Center (HRC) in Pasadena to meet with the incredible Dr. Nelson and his team of wonderful nurses.
We'll be doing a walk in September called the Walk of Hope. Below is my page for the walk
The Southern California Walk of Hope is an event put on by Resolve: The National Infertility Association.
RESOLVE’s Walk of Hope is a 1-mile walk that recognizes the many ways in which families are built, supports local support and programs for the 7.3 million women and men living with infertility and raises public understanding of how the disease of infertility impacts families nationwide.
The Walk of Hope is being held in several locations across the country. Funds raised from the Walk support local RESOLVE programming which includes support groups and educational events, public awareness initiatives, and advocacy efforts to ensure family building options are available to all!
The name "Walk of Hope" embodies the emotion that most people living with infertility feel. They are hopeful their dreams of family come true. Some hope to simply find a peaceful resolution to their infertility journey. A Walk of Hope is an event that represents the infertility journey—a series of small steps, each one filled with hope and a reminder that no one should walk on this journey alone.
Infertility affects 1 in 8 or 1 in 6 (depending which study you read) couples. That number is amazing to me. Wouldn't I know someone that had infertility issues? Wouldn't I know that people worked really hard to get their little bundle of joy? The answer is no. What I've realized is that there is a lot of shame, self deprecation and anxiety that usually engulfs individuals with infertility struggles. I know this, because I'm one of them. You find yourself saying things like "well if I would have just ate better, or worked out sooner, or..." and the list goes on. But the fact of the matter is, there probably isn't anything that could have been done differently. We've learned this and continue to make progress with our acceptance of this as the days go on. We also know that being childless is not permanent. We will be parents one day, no matter how we get there. As we've opened up to people, we've found we are certainly not alone and guess what WE do know people who are currently or have struggled with infertility issues in the past. It's comforting to share stories with each other. The wonderful part for us is that most of these people now have one or more children in their lives. That is extremely encouraging.
While the journey and process have been painful at times, we know there is a light at the end of the tunnel and we'll continue towards that light to the arms of a child that's waiting for us to be it's parents.
Many thanks for your support.
If you'd like to join us for the walk on September 21, 2014 please let me know, we'd love to have you there. Or, if you'd like to donate, we have a page for that too. CLICK HERE or copy and paste http://familybuilding.resolve.org/goto/gardiners in to your browser.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)