Sweet 16

The official anniversary of Scott & Stace just came around... 16 years. Yup, you read that correctly- 16 years! That's half of Scott's life and more than half of mine. February 7, 1999 was the start of it all... 16 years of US, Scott & Stace, #TeamRicci. 

How did I get so lucky??! Not everyone finds their soul mate in the 10th grade. I'm constantly reminded of how lucky and blessed we are to have found each other and to have created a ridiculously strong bond based on friendship and love. In honor of our 16 year date-iversary, here are some cute highlights from Friday and a slew of pics from our photoshoot in November with my friend Lindsay. 

Friday was February 6, so even though it wasn't our dating anniversary, it's the date that started it all. We were sophomores in high school and had been friends at this point in 1999. We were both on the JV basketball teams and had back-to-back basketball practices for our teams, so we always made small talk in classes and before/after practices. The upcoming winter formal on 2/6/99 was definitely a good excuse to be a little flirty and we didn't go together but hung out at the dance for most of the night and danced together at 11:11. The next night, Scott called to ask me out, and the rest is history. 

16 years of friendship and love. I'm extremely thankful, blessed, and lucky to be able to say that. I love you so much, Scoot. We've been through a lot in 16 years and have learned so much along the way~ about ourselves, each other, and us as a team. I love you to the moon and back and I constantly thank my lucky stars for you. You are my strength, my sanity, my voice of reason, my other half, the yin to my yang, and the peanut butter to my jelly. I love you so much and can't wait to see what the next adventure brings us. Here's to hoping 2015 is our year to pregnancy and parenthood... and here's to a lifetime of many more anniversaries and milestones! 

So, not expecting anything until Saturday (if anything at all, honestly), I was surprised when I got a call during lunch Friday that there was a delivery for me in the office...flowers and a super cute note! :) Later, keeping up our Friday night date night ritual (new thing for us as of the last few months- and I love it), we celebrated at one of our fav local restaurants. 

Back in November, we did a photoshoot with my friend Lindsay. She lives in Texas but was home for the holidays and I've been wanting pics with her. We're lucky that 2 of our close friends are photographers (Manny, you're next! When it's finally nice in the spring, please do one of us too! I love you both & you're both so incredibly talented with cameras in hand). It's important to note that Scott often hates pictures. He usually needs some liquid encouragement to not care how many pics I take, so the fact that he agreed to this was a happy shocker. It's also important to note that he only agreed because Lindsay brought her daughter along (she'll be 2 in a few months). Scott being the Baby Whisperer, he needed a happy distraction and only agreed if her daughter came along so that he could hang out with a tot in between pics. It worked and Sky was smitten with Scott almost instantly. It could have been the fact that it was a cold, windy day, and he's a warm teddy bear... but I'll go with the Baby Whisperer theory. Whatever it was, Scott was happy, and that makes for some cute pics! There are a whole bunch in this post but I wanted a place to share them all, so here we go. :) 

Scott & Stace (#TeamRicci) Photoshoot~ November 2014, Bear Mountain State Park, NY

And now, the mastermind behind the lens... a close friend of mine, Lindsay Lamy. Anyone in the Killeen, TX area, or here in the Hudson Valley (she has family here and will do local shoots when in the area), check out her work on her site. I don't think our shoot is on there, but it's here so that's what counts. She's got a web site of her own and a Facebook site... Check her out, she's on the rise! 

http://lamylensphotography.webs.com/

https://www.facebook.com/LamyLensPhotography

Team Ricci Halftime Show

Today's theme/inspiration is the Super Bowl 2015 Halftime show. 

I originally had this idea last week, just before watching the Super Bowl, and almost posted that day, but I got caught up in enjoying the day off with Scott. It was the first time we've been able to have the whole day off together and watch the entire show live in many many years. I was all hyped up to watch the game (I mean the halftime show, hehe).... typically the Super Bowl is the ONLY football game I will be caught watching all year, other than the occasional Gators game for college ball. Mostly I was excited that Katy Perry was headlining the halftime show because I am def a fan of her & her music. 

Thinking about the halftime show got me thinking about our current break from fertility treatments. It's kind of like Scott & I are in our own halftime show- the Super Bowl of Infertility halftime show. 2014 was 4 rounds of IUI with a balance of ups and downs, highs and lows, stress and calm. Let's call it the first half of our game. The Baby Games, the Fertility Games, The Super Bowl of Infertility, whatever you wanna call it. The first half of the game was mostly upsets. We became the underdog that a lot of people are cheering for. This is our first time making it to the championship game and we came out a little rusty for the first half, having a little too much confidence. 

Now, here we are at halftime; and even though we've taken a long halftime, I like to think of it as a long pause. I recently realized it's been a full 6 months since we've been to the fertility clinic or done a single thing to think about all that comes with fertility treatments. It's been a NICE break... actually that's an understatement. It's been a wonderful break for a lot of reasons. It's given us a time to focus on us, as a couple and on ourselves individually. It's been nice scheduling gym time into my weeks rather than Dr appts. It's been a time to reflect on the first half of our game to evaluate what worked and what didn't so we can come out strong in the second half, whenever that may be. 

In honor of Katy Perry and her amazing performance at the Super Bowl, here are some of my fav quotes/pics related to her...

I plan to take the 2nd half (Round 2 of fertility treatments) by the reins and dominate... #TeamRicci WILL come out on top!

Love these lyrics :)

Some motivation/inspiration.

The hurricane is gone... time to go chase our rainbow soon. 

Just because the Super Bowl is over and that became the inspiration for this post, it doesn't mean that we are starting up just yet. I'm not exactly sure when we will be, but it's coming. And when it does, I want to be ready. I want to hit the ground running, take the ball into our possession, run for the end zone without looking back, do a victory dance, and come home with a WIN.  

I know it won't be a piece of cake, but going in with a positive mindset will sure help. I've been making progress at the gym and have been consistently going to 2-4 classes a week (the ridiculous winter we've been having has made it difficult at times with the snow). I feel stronger, I'm seeing muscle definition again, I'm more energetic, regaining confidence again, and just overall feeling healthier. One thing I love about all of the gym classes I go to (yoga, yogalates, Zumba, intervals/circuit, etc) is that music is a big part of them all. Music pumps me up, inspires me, motivates me, and pushes me. It puts me in an instantly great mood and makes me want to push harder. It gives me confidence that I can and will beat this soon. It makes me not fear the needles and meds. It makes me believe I can do it with ease. It makes me want to overcome and defeat the little bit of doubt that still peeks its head out occasionally. It makes me feel powerful, strong, and positive. Music makes it all better. 

I used to use music as my motivation for injections last time. One of us would pick an upbeat song that would get me in the zone and able to do the shots. It totally worked. This time around I intend to do the same thing, but throw music in as just an everyday ritual and maybe even more-so during treatments. Recently, Scott & I had a mini dance party where we just played fun music and danced around the living room like the goofballs we are. It was so much fun. (Picture the short dance parties on Grey's Anatomy that Meredith & Christina used to have.) I told Scott that when we do start up again, we should throw in moments like this because I will most likely need it and it just instantly picks me up. 

Music, exercise, healthy eating, occasional meditation... those are my necessary ingredients for the second half of our game. I'm sure there are a few others but these are all things that are not only good for me but also things I enjoy and make me feel good. They keep me centered and balanced. Being on fertility meds can be a crazy ride, but staying balanced, positive, and calm might not make me feel as though I'm not myself. 

My trainer at the gym already knows all about my journey and where I'm at. I did a session with her in December but have been working with her for almost a year because she teaches the intervals/circuit class. Since I've been working harder over the last 2 months, she keeps saying she's seen a difference in me, like a transformation. I'm more focused, I have good form, and have been doing really well. I plan to keep it up at the gym (and she'll be laying on the guilt if I don't!) when we do decide to start back up, and hope it only helps the situation. The Drs haven't said I can't workout, so hopefully it'll only fuel me more. It'll keep me in shape physically and keep my mindset balanced when feeling not myself on diff meds. No idea if they'll have me on the same meds or different, so if I can keep workouts consistent, I might not feel like my routine is being shifted too much. 

Ok now I'm just blabbing, so gonna end it here. :) You get the point! 1st half was rough, we're reevaluating and training for the 2nd half to come out stronger than before and play my heart out to bring home a win for Team Ricci. 

Thanks for cheering us on from the sidelines and bleachers. We sure feel the love from many places & appreciate it all so much! 

XOXO,
Stace

Every New Beginning...

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end..." (-Semisonic, Closing Time)

Here we are... the end of 2014!! I don't know how we are here again; I swear every passing year seems to pass by faster than the one before. Eek! Another reason why I'm always trying to remind myself to slow down, pause, and LIVE IN THE MOMENT... Life is way too short to spend it wishing time away, being upset, or waiting for things to happen. NOW is when things are happening. 

My big theme today is new beginnings. Closing one chapter to open another. Leaving behind the roller coaster of a year that 2014 was, and skipping into 2015 with renewed hope, excitement, and energy. New obstacles, new triumphs, new stresses, new rewards... I'm sure it'll prove to be a crazy one, but hopefully the good kind of crazy. :) 

I know a new year isn't always a surefire sign that bigger & better things are going to happen... but it sure is fun to hold onto that possibility. It's a good reason to start new/redo some things that haven't gone well, yet keep the things going right. I feel like it's going to be a big year in terms of our fertility journey, our marriage, and our home, and other fun stuff. 

~*Our Fertility Journey

   This is kind of an obvious one, I'm sure. I'm HOPING it will be a big year for Team Ricci & our pursuit of a pregnancy. 2014 sure was a doozy- but an eventful one!! We found out Scott was infertile within the first week (UNhappy birthday news to him), finally got to start up with the IUI process, did 2 cycles, one of which took and then we miscarried a week later. Tried 2 more cycles and then decided to take a break from the stress and chaos. 

   Our plans for 2015 are to start up again with IUI at some point (ironically it'll be similar timelines to last year- without giving too much away, those who have been closely following might be able to decode that hint and figure out for themselves when we will start back up without actually asking). Before starting up, I need another HSG to make sure my reproductive system is up to par.... but then hopefully we will be cleared to roll shortly after that. 

   My hopes this time are to not really change anything... Last time I took weeks off from exercise. But that didn't get me anywhere except a first class ticket to depression, stress, and weight gain. The Drs never really said NOT to do anything. I took each cycle and tried to relax 100% while on meds, and during the 2week wait. Although mentally that's nice, and I was worried about shaking things up in there, it really only hurt me in the end I think. I don't want to go crazy at the gym but I DO want to keep doing what I've been doing. There's no reason why I can't do what "ordinary" mamas do- keep going. Most "ordinary" girls don't know they're pregnant or might be pregnant in those early weeks, and continue on as normal. I want that for myself. I've been working out consistently for about 4 days a week lately and want to keep that up. It won't be pushing myself to anything new, or pushing myself to exhaustion, but keeping healthy is not a bad thing. So that's one major change I plan to make this time around. 

    As far as acupuncture, I'm still going on avg every 4-6 weeks, just to keep it somewhat. When we start up another IUI cycle, I'm still a little torn on what to do. I believe in it's benefits whole-heartedly, BUT since we don't know of any issues lying with me, I wonder if it's really helping extra or not necessarily. I have been debating taking one cycle off, or just doing a general treatment and not a fertility-specific one. If anyone has thoughts either way, please let me know. It's a lot of money and cutting back a little wouldn't hurt if it's not imperative that I go 3-4x during a cycle at $100 a pop. Again, thoughts on either end are welcomed (preferably with something to back it up- like being a patient yourself, knowing something about acupuncture to begin with, hehe) :)

~*Our Marriage 

    2015 will be a big year for Scott & I in terms of our relationship/marriage because of his new schedule. Having him home more has been FANTASTIC!! He's home for dinners, and home EVERY weekend. It's everything I've ever wanted. Finally! :) We celebrated our first real Christmas weekend together in 14 years without him having to waste away working retail hours. We went to NYC on Christmas Eve and stayed over for 2 nights, just us. It was great. He was so laid back and relaxed, it's how everyone should feel on Christmas. I love having him home. I feel like we can finally be a real married couple. We can make dinner plans with friends, go to family parties and all kinds of get-togethers, etc. We have dinner plans with another couple this weekend & it seriously makes me so happy because for YEARS it was always "sorry, Scott's working..." for everything. No more! He took a pay cut for his new job, but we knew it would be a positive in the end because quality time together is more important than making more money and never seeing him. We are able to do more together, go places on weekends, and hopefully take some weekend/overnight trips soon (hint hint if you're reading this, Scoot! ;) hehe). Hoping it'll be a fun adventure this year in terms of together time!

~*Our Home

   This may be a big news announcement to MOST of you... but we could see ourselves in a new home in 2015!! We plan to put our house on the market in a few weeks (gasp). EEEK!! We plan to move back to the other side of the river, about 30 mins away. Nothing major, still in the Hudson Valley, just over the river and through the woods. This  is a scary thing in a sense because I don't always like change, but knowing me I've weighed lots of pros/cons in my mind. It would benefit us in a few ways, so I'll start with the PROs.

Pros of moving across the river:

- No bridge toll to work ($1.50 bridge toll each day... I have EZ Pass & I think it's $1.25 for the commuter plan, but still it adds up as a minor thing. And I don't always drive over there just for work... LOTS of our friends are on that side of the river, and Dad, so we're always over there).

- No more driving over the mountain, 2x daily... To get to work, I drive over Storm King Mt (a major pain in the winter months, so I often take the longer route across the river), which really kills my car in gas and regular wear/tear.

- Lower taxes (HOPEFULLY)... Taxes are lower in theory, but seem to have sky-rocketed in the last year... hmm. So this one is still debatable. 

- More land... There are plenty of properties over here with more land too, but they're further from work, and some of those taxes are really insane. So where we want to go (Dutchess county, NY), is a little better. 

- Lots of friends nearby... We are often over in Dutchess visiting our closest friends who are like family (and their kiddos!), and we like to go to a lot of restaurants over there... so instead of 25-30 mins, it'll be 5-10 mins :) 

- Closer to work... sort of. Might be about the same commute, but flatter terrain, no mountains or rivers to cross, and lots of coworkers nearby any of us are in a jam. 

- Closer to the fertility clinic... This is more of an added bonus. Instead of 50 mins, it would be more like 30! Score! 

- Not right on top of neighbors, no telephone poles in our backyard, no trailer park behind us with kids constantly cutting through our yard. 

- Looking for a bigger yard for our future child(ren) to play in. 

Cons (whines) to moving...

- I ADORE our house. It's so cute & charming, and I just absolutely love it. I wish we could pick it up, make a few layout changes, and plop it on a bigger lot. If that were possible, and free... haha. I get easily attached to things, and I will really miss this house. It's not my absolute dream house but is really darn cute. So I've been having separation anxiety. But then again I did feel that way when selling my car... and now all is good. LOL... so I know it'll be fine here too. I know a house is what you make it... so no matter where we end up, so will all of our stuff, and I'll still be able to transform that space into our own. That part is kind of exciting & exhilarating actually. A new blank canvas to work from is fun to me. I LOVE decorating. :) So it'll turn into a pro. 

- I'm worried about settling for a house I don't love. I know I won't find the perfect house bc it doesn't exist (wait, yes it does... but it's not in our price range by any means.. haha!). So I'm worried that houses now available which I adore will be sold by the time it's our turn. But new ones will be available, so it'll work out I suppose. Fear of the unknown, drives me crazy... so I have to have faith that an amazing house for us will show up. 

- Moving in general just plain SUCKS... I am kind of dreading the packing/moving process. And the closing process... It's all just stress, stress, stress. I remember. And, actually, we will be moving and closing 2x, so double the stress and chaos. Let's prolong it as much as we can. hehe :) We actually plan to move to an apartment in the area we want to move to once we sell our current house. This will allow us to test out living there, not settle for any house but take our time searching for the right one, AND save some money by downsizing for a little while and paying rent that should be close to half our mortgage. That would be nice and balance costs of IUI cycles and save a nice chunk of change each month. This prob sounds so weird but I'm oddly excited to downsize to a small space with Scott. It might (hopefully) force me to be more organized and clean out things I don't really need. 

- Leaving our friends on this side of the river... But we won't be far! I have been going to the gym 4x a week on average and really love the classes I take there. My workout buddy has been such a good motivator for me, and she teaches Zumba there. We've done training sessions with our fav trainer, also the instructor of another class I take, and I don't want to give that up. (Plus my membership fee is too good to pass up! Not a fan of trading that in for a bigger, scarier gym with higher fees). So I'm trying to think of the practicality of maybe keeping the membership and trying to make 2 classes a week. It would pay for the membership and not be a crazy commute. I can't leave them, I've been doing so well! So that part saddens me, but I really want to make it work.... plus, the house isn't even ON the market yet. It could take forever to sell (but I hope not). 

So yea.... In the end it's a good thing, but it kind of stinks to leave something you love. It's bittersweet. I love the house and I'm not looking forward to packing up ALLLLLLLL the stuff we have. BUT I know it'll be rather exciting, give me a good distraction to the fertility stuff, and be a fun new adventure for Scott & I. Hoping only good things will come from it in the end. 

~*Other Fun Stuff

    2015 brings possibilities of seeing people we haven't in a while, and spending more time with them. Kind of ties into Scott's new schedule/free time, but also other stuff. His best friend, Manny, & family just moved back to the states after being in Germany for 3+ years. Manny's wife, Staci, is in the military (We met them while they were stationed at West Point... Scott & Manny both worked at Best Buy and we lived in Highland Falls, right next to WP). They've been besties since then (5+ years maybe??) and they just moved to Maryland. We are so excited to only be a 4-hr drive away and can't wait to see them more often. 

Prob other fun stuff too. Who knows... we'll see what the year brings. 

One thing's for sure... I'm ready to start fresh, have some distractions, spend more time with my best friend/hubby, and just enjoy living in the moment. Here's to a new home, new adventures, new fun, and maybe even a pregnancy along the way! 

My wish for us, and all the other TTC sisters out there, is for peace of mind and a positive pregnancy test... one that leads to a healthy & happy baby/family in the end. Hope, Wish, Dream, Believe. Our time is coming, ladies! <3 

Everyone be safe today/tonight! 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Here's to new beginnings... 

XOXO,

Stace <3