Women Connect '12

Today I'm linking up with Becky for her Women Connect 2012 blog link-up. The linkup allows women to really open up, tell their whole story, and maybe find a friend or two that are going through similar issues or times in their lives. 

So, about me. Let's see, I was born in Canada, moved to Missouri when I was just under a year old and then moved to Mississippi in May of 2011 because my husband (then boyfriend,) Keegan got a job. Currently we're living in Mississippi which has definitely been a learning experience! I work in a small art gallery (was a fine-arts major in college) and my husband is an engineer at a steel mill. 

Keegan and I met in college and lived 1.5 hours away for the the approximately 2 years we were dating. Two days after my college graduation, he and I packed up all of our stuff in a U-Haul and moved to Mississippi. When we moved to Mississippi, it was the first time we had ever lived in the same city!  

I started blogging in July of 2011 as a way to document and express my feelings about moving 9 hours away from all of my friends, family and everything I had known. Quickly my blog turned into all things wedding when Keegan proposed in October 2011. I soon started a blog specifically for our wedding planning which includes many DIY projects and money saving tips. I DIY'd everything I could for the wedding (including our invitations.) Anything I couldn't DIY, I purchased at discount ($2 groomsmen ties, holla!) It was our goal to have the wedding we wanted, as cheaply as we could.  

We decided to make the move to Mississippi a bit more permanent when we bought our own house in February. 

 We got married on August 4 in Missouri surrounded by our friends and families. The ceremony was held in a local park and my dad was our officiant. Our reception was basically a big party filled with pasta, glowsticks, and a keg. 

We honeymooned in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We stayed in our own cabin (with a heart shaped tub!) and pretty much relaxed the entire week we were there. We did a bit of exploring in Cade's Cove and white water rafted on our last day, but we spent the most time in the hot tub and watching the Olympics. 

On September 4, exactly one month after our wedding, I was diagnosed with PCOS and insulin resistance. Our dream of having children quickly came to a screeching halt when we learned that my PCOS would make it difficult for us to conceive "naturally" (without the help of medications or fertility treatments.) Since September, I have been on medications to help straighten out my insulin levels as well as birth control to force my body to cycle. I have been documenting our struggles with trying to conceive at my other blog, Baby Makin'. Many people have asked why I've decided to put such personal details on the internet. I do it because I hope that one day, another young woman who has just found out that she will struggle with infertility will stumble across my blog and I can somehow help her just as many other blogs have helped me.

I'm a huge nerd and many of my nights are spent with my husband on our computers. He's a big gammer and sometimes I join him. We both love to read and I'm a huge Harry Potter fan. Did you know that Daniel Radcliffe and I have the same birthday, down to the same year? I thought I was the coolest kid in school when I found out I have the same birthday as Harry Potter (see, I told you I was a huge nerd!)

My husband is a huge car geek and purchased a 1971 Corvette Stingray a few weeks after we got engaged. It's his baby and he loves to drive it.

He has gotten me more interested in the world of cars, so for his wedding present, I booked us a hotel room for Crusin' the Coast 2012 on the Mississippi gulf coast. I'm pretty sure Keegan was in heaven.

(I really wanted to purchase this one, but the $89,000 price tag was a bit steep.) 

I guess you should say that I blog (and have blogged) for a variety of reasons. I blog about regular life, my relationship with my husband, learning how to live in the South and more recently, our journey with trying to conceive. I would love to meet other women who have had, or are currently having trouble trying to conceive. It can be a lonely world and having a network of other women with similar stories would be an amazing help.


Thanks for stopping by!

Fab Fridays 11.2.12

Today I'm linking up with Laura at Between the Lines for Fab Fridays

+ Halloween. I thought we weren't going to do anything (our neighborhood consists of our house and one other for the time being so we weren't expecting any kids,) but one of Keegan's co-workers invited us over to their house. It was a lot of fun hanging out with them, getting to know them better and passing out candy to all of the monsters and princesses that came to visit. I honestly can't wait to trick-or-treat with our future kiddos.

+ Friends. Lately we've been Skyping with some old friends from college. It's been really nice to catch up with everyone now that we're all over the country. It's also nice to have a conversation with people our age.

+ Babies/health. You can read the trouble I've had since my last appointment here. I'm feeling loads better, but cheese still makes me dry heave. One step at a time, right? Also, I've been able to hold/play/babysit a few adorable kids under the age of a year a few times this week which has made my heart happy.

+ Feelings. I had a mini freak-out last night about everything that's been going on. After some quiet reflection at a local lake, I went home and told Keegan all of the worries and emotions I've been feeling. He reassured me that he will be with me no matter what, even if I'm never able to give him a child of his own. I didn't realize how much I needed to hear that from him until he said it. I'm so lucky to have someone so strong and loving by my side.

 + Holidays. This time last year, I wasn't looking forward to the holidays at all. It was our first holiday season away from our families and I was feeling unbelievably home sick. This time around I'm excited! There's a possibility of friends coming down for Thanksgiving and the current plan is to have our families down here for Christmas (since neither one of us have many vacation days left because of the wedding.) I'm excited to decorate our house, show my family around our new town and not driving 9+ hours. Neither one of our families have seen our new house so I can't wait to show them!

I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend! Ours will be spent doing some shopping and enjoying the 80 degree weather. I'm still not used to the warm temperatures this late in the year!