Olga has arrived in the Biggest Little City of Reno!

Thanks just plane love for sending her my way with a box of goodies.

When Olga arrived, she had to vent a little about not being on the blog very much recently.  She said that times had been tough but she's excited to get back in the swing of things.  After her vent and a glass of wine, Dave and I took her out to sushi to celebrate her arrival. She had never tried it before and wanted to order everything on the menu.

She said that she really wanted to get out to experience things outside a doctor's office so I decided that she was going to tag along with me on every errand that I had to make this week.  She settled into my bag and we were off.

I took her with me to work on a house I'm decorating for a holiday home tour to benefit a charity.  She loved all the sparkles and bling--a girl after my own heart!  If you look closely in the picture, you can see some of the 12 days of Christmas plates that I painted too.

I'm so excited to have her here and Dave has been very helpful in deciding where she should go and who she should see while she's visiting.  Can't wait to share more of her adventures in Reno!  

Olga's visit to Oklahoma

Thank you Durham1008 for all the goodies you packed with Olga! In true fashion, she got into plenty of mischief & tried to escape the box. The nice people taped the box back up & put a note on it that they repacked her! I wonder what they thought when they saw her! Haha!

I introduced Olga to Piston who in turn introduced her to his dragon.  They got along, but Piston really didn't want Olga to play with his dragon. You can tell he is an only dog!

Olga said she needed to catch up on TB after being in the box for a couple days!

Olga toured our home & she thought the Jacuzzi tub looked nice & relaxing. I told her  I didn't think it was a good idea for her, but you know how stubborn she can be sometimes.

She of course wanted to know where my "stash" was. I showed her what was leftover from my IVF cycle. She was disappointed that she couldn't stab me! I think she has an issue!

Olga helped me pack some Lovenox for the OOPmeds program.  She checked the box to make sure  everything was in order before taking it to UPS. She was glad it was being put to good use.

Olga tried to help me with our ongoing game of chess. Needless to say,  she got confused as I was trying to explain what all the pieces are & how they move. She said she would just stick to fertility drugs!

Olga in Jersey with angel3082

(no, it's not like the Jersey Shore)

I'm sorry it took me so long to update on Olga's visit with me. She kept me pretty busy while she was here, and then I started back to work for the new school year!

Olga arrived smelling delightful and all sugared up from the awesome treats chrissyandpaul packed her up with. Thanks for the 'healthy' granola bars ;)

 I think she was a bit stir crazy from the journey, because she was all over the house as soon as I let her loose. She met our cats, Dizzy and Buster, who were very attracted to her pretty tube. Then, she came across our dog Emmy, who was in the midst of grooming her nether-parts.

I was pretty tired that day, and wanted some sleep, but Olga wanted to know where I kept my med stash. So, I took her to the linen closet and let her poke around for a bit. She was very interested in the needles and asked what cycle day I was. I explained that I was CD2 and waiting for my baseline before starting my next IVF cycle. You would think she'd be an expert on the whole menstrual cycle thing, but she kept insisting I let her help with my PIO injections. Brat!

I finally got some sleep that night and had big plans for Olga on Sunday. We got up early and she really wanted some of my coffee, but I wasn't sure what kind of effect it would have on her.

We spent the morning relaxing with my hubby before he had to go in to work for the closing shift. When he left we headed out for a girls day at a local vineyard that has Sangria Sundays! I tucked her in my purse for easy transport, but she was not pleased...

and ended up trying to help me drive. It seems Miss Olga has some pretty intense road rage.

I will say, she got us there quicker than it usually takes me ;) My mom and friends weren't there yet, so I took Olga on a tour of the vines. She got all up in the netting to check out the grapes, but seemed nervous when she realized that she was a similar shape and color.

On our way back to the patio, we came across a huge circle of mushrooms. I told Olga that when mushrooms grow like that, people call it a 'fairy circle'. She took that very literally and went searching for any little creatures living among the fungi.

I reeled her back in with promises of delicious wine, and a nice spread of cheeses and other snacks to pair with it. She ended up hanging with my mom because she was sharing the 'good stuff' (straight up wine), and not the 'froo froo' sangria I was drinking.

On the way home we took a detour, to a little beach on the Delaware Bay, in hopes of watching the sunset. I'm a nature lover and pointed out some of the coastal birds living in the wetlands, but Olga was a bit tipsy and was too worried about slipping down into the marsh grasses.

She really wanted to go for a swim, but I had to put my foot down since I wasn't sure she'd be able to use her tube as an effective rudder. So, instead she got to snuggle into the sand for a bit while I hoped the clouds would break...

They didn't, so we packed it up and went home. (much slower, since she fell asleep & wasn't trying to drive)

The next day was Labor Day, and my last day of summer break before heading back to work. So, I spent the day doing laundry and then remembered I wanted to dye my hair. Of course, Olga wanted to be included in this and got all prepped, but had second thoughts since the glove didn't really fit on her tube.

She ended up being quite the color expert and helped me find any spots I missed.
After the color was rinsed, I wanted to just veg out for the evening. Since my hubs was working, I decided I'd play my online computer game (which shall remain nameless) & Olga proceeded to endlessly mock me.

Olga came to work with me the next day, and was overwhelmed with all of the unpacking and organizing I had to do in my office and all of the new supplies and games I had ordered. (I'm a speech therapist in a public school) By the end of the day, she was ready for some peace and quiet!

While she wasn't much help (and I caught her running with that huge pair of scissors), I'm glad she was there because I got a call from my RE, cancelling my cycle because of a mistake the receptionist made. I was pretty bummed, but I was so glad I had a little piece of my 3T girls with me :)

Olga should already be with Durham1008 & I can't wait to hear what they got into down in South Carolina!

Olga's Adventures with chrissyandpaul

Olga arrived in style from Katib and came with some awesome goodies as well.

 There is a huge bag of skittles in the bottom of the box.....Olga and her turtle friend broke the bag open and they spilled everywhere.

Once Olga was settled in it was time for dinner, I decided after she ate all those skittles she should have a healthy dinner. Olga arrived just in time for us to enjoy our ONLY tomato of the season.

On August 22 we took Olga to her first Phillies game....unfortunately she didn't make it into the ballpark with us but she did get to see it when we were leaving. (I really did feel bad that she didn't get the full experience)

Next up was my RE appointment on August 23. I was hoping she would bring me lots of luck, but that wasn't the case. :( That pesty Olga revealed a cyst at the appointment.

August 23 was also me and DH's 4th anniversary so we decided to go to dinner. Of course Olga came along, we were heading to the Melting Pot and she was quite estatic. Her tube got a little too close to the fondue pot a few times. She was eager to eat all my food and drink my glasses of wine.

This concludes the end of Olga's stay with me. She will be heading to see Angel3082 next in NJ. I had a ton of fun with her and wish I was able to do more.

Olga Around the House & Goodbye Katib77

So Sunday Olga didn't have much of anything to do since I was off at work all day and DH came home so I left her to her own devices.  Surprisingly, she didn't get into much trouble.  Come Monday (::Insert Jimmy Buffett Song:::) we had the house to clean.  She was not very excited at the pile of dishes that had accumulated but someone has to do it!

No Olga, I'm not mocking you.  We just happened to have had spaghetti and I need to get bottles and cans cleaned out and ready to recycle.  Since my Stay-Puff Marshmellow man (in far upper right corner) usually watches  over the dishes, he was surprised to have company.  We folded laundry and did two more loads and dusted.  After all that cleaning and having worked the weekend....Olga was sweet enough while I was putting away the clothes to draw me a bubble bath complete with a lit candle!

She wants us all to remember that now and then we need a little me time.  Get a pedicure, do a little retail therapy, or take a long hot bath - whatever helps you relax!  TTC with IF is hard enough, don't ignore that you need down time.

And speaking of down time, she decided if I was going to spend an hour soaking in the bath that she would take a nap.  

I'm sure I look just as silly in the froggie sleep mask but with shift work sometimes it's just too bright out!

Well that's the end of my adventures with Olga.  We're heading out today to shop for ChrissyandPaul and back into the box she goes.  Hope to hit the post office by this afternoon (Tues. Aug. 14).  She's excited to see all Pennsylvania has to offer in her travels.   

Bye Everyone!  ~ Katib77

Ladies Night In

So Saturday night I took Olga out for a quick run to grab our dinner and a movie.  But first, since she had asked about Lake in the Hills, we made a stop at the top of the hill looking down at the lake.  I told her about how the chair at the bottom was where I spent a lot of time when I was a teen as this spot is one of two public beaches on the lake where I lifeguarded.  And see all those stairs going down? There are 64 of them.  I used to run up and down them for exercise when no one was swimming.  15 years later, I get tired just looking at them!  Olga agreed I should try to get back into shape.

No, Olga.  I'm too tired for a swim now.  But I do miss it.  Watching all the Olympics makes me want to get back into a pool or the lake.  But right now I'm very hungry!  So off we went to nearby Pan.da Ex.press.

OK, OK Olga.  Hope you like Orange Chicken because we're going to share. 

And then a stop at a Red Box.

I almost never see movies anymore so we had tons of choices. 

 We settled on "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" and "The Vow".  

So back to the house for our night in.

I admit, I ate most all of the orange chicken and steamed veggies.  She was all about the fried rice and Rangoon I got.  But she was good about reminding me to take my Metformin with dinner.  So I popped in "Extremely Loud" and OMG I have never cried so much while watching a movie in my life!  It was very good, but trust me - if you are going to watch it, get a new box of tissues.

 

I sat on the couch and she was on the ottoman.  I think between the two of us we went through 15 tissues.  And we still have "The Vow" to get through! So we agreed we'd go watch that in bed in case one of us fell asleep.  Halfway through the movie we heard a loud bang below the bedroom in the garage and got scared!  I lived alone for 8 years before living with DH but after these last four years I found it a bit silly that I got freaked out being alone.  I gathered my courage and went to investigate and make sure all the doors were locked.  Wimpy Olga just hid in a basket of unfolded laundry!

 Finally we finished the movie and went to sleep.  Learned the next morning that for the first time ever, our garage got egged.  Really? Why of all nights did kids pick the one night my husband is not here? Oh well, Olga and I made it through the scare, because we are strong women!  She even agreed to guard the house while I went to work on Sunday.  

Olga's Day of work at Tar.get

So I had to work today from 8-3pm...and I decided to put Olga to work as a Team Member.  While I was busy managing the teenage cashiers at the check lanes, I sent her over to Star.bucks to help with the long line of people needing their morning cup of Joe.  Big Mistake!

So a Barista, she is not.  I decided it had gotten busy enough to send her out in the sunshine to help with bringing in the carts.  

Once the cart attendant told me Olga was slacking off by sunbathing in the grassy knoll I decided to put her to work in the clothing department.  But they complained that she wouldn't go to other departments in clothing. She was obsessed with the socks.  I guess since they are her traveling companions between the 3T ladies I shouldn't be surprised.  

So finally I decided to have her do paperwork in the office.  She's become comfortable around all 3T's furbabies that she's visited that she was sad to hear we don't have any.  But she did seem to like hanging out gossiping with the Tar.get See-Spot dogs at my bosses desk.

At the end of the shift, we headed home.  But her reward before we left?  A grande iced coffee!  

Since DH is out of town in Wisconsin golfing with the boys, she's excited for our evening plans of getting Chinese food and a movie from Red Box.  I'll share our adventures after that.  

(Can you tell I'm home alone and have tons time to myself?)

Arrived to Katib77's in Lake in the Hills

Olga arrived today at my house (Katib77)!  She's happy she had a shorter trip inside Illinois, but insists she was in my mailbox a day in the dark with no hands to open the Starburst candy to eat.  Thankfully that means they are all mine ::::bwahaha!::::::

Big thanks to Jschwind22 for a big HUGE bag of one of my favorite candies and a sweet new pair of socks for the up coming colder fall & winter months in Chicagoland.  Since my favorite color is blue; I have a ton I can wear these with.

My DH is going OOT on a golf trip this weekend with "the boys" so me and my girl Olga will be kickin' it ladies style.  I have to work during the day but I'm sure I can find something for her to do at Target while I'm busy with work.  More to come soon....

Just editted the MAP of Olga's Travels.  Think I got everyone in the general area.  Wow Olga, you've put some miles on!

Back!

Sorry it's been a few days since I've updated on my visit with Olga!  Work and life got busy and time slipped away from me!

We had a couple extra days while we waited for some info from Katib to make sure that Olga got to her safely.  Here's what we did together:

Olga help me sew!  She was scared at first of the needle, but she got over it.  She helped me make a nursing cover for my friend who recently had a baby.  Olga said it turned out pretty cute!

  

Then we had to say goodbye's to Olga's furry friends, since I was heading out of town.  I just knew they would be BFF before Olga's visit was over.  Spencer and Toto didn't want Olga to leave!

Olga finally got in the mail yesterday to Katib!  Sorry, I was out of town all weekend.  Olga was really excited to be having a shorter trip in the box, just to the other side of the state.  We had tons of fun!