Out with the old...

I am not at all sorry to see 2011 go. I'm very done with it, and it's not going down as a good year.
In some ways, it was good though. We started it off in Sydney, watching the fireworks with brother- and sister-in-law, as part of a very nice holiday, because MeneerHaan had to work in Australia for 2 months. Christmas barbecues and wonderful warm weather, fantastic trips, all relaxed.

Then I came home to a sick parent. I knew this when I left, in fact my family found out 2 days prior to my departure. I went anyway, because everything was very unsure, but when we were in Australia, surgery showed a nasty form of cancer. Not the homecoming you want. After the first surgery came a second one, then serious complications, few weeks hospital, a bit of recovery and then many many months of chemo. It's just a few weeks ago that we could leave this mess behind us. All seems OK, the doctors are happy, so we are too. Now it's recovery time for real for both my parents. Besides the physical strain, there is the emotional. They, we, need healing.

Soon after MeneerHaan came home from Down Under, his job ended. Even though it was his choice - he was very unhappy in his job - it was not easy making this decision and it meant some unsure times were coming. Luckily I bought my apartment before we got together on my salary alone, so we were blessed enough to be able to afford this. However, being unemployed does not normally improve one's mood (after the first few vacation-like weeks), so we were very glad MeneerHaan found a new job several months later.

The best thing of 2011 was without a doubt our engagement. My "marriage is nonsense" boyfriend proposed in the most beautiful garden of a lovely French castle, with a gorgeous ring. I was completely surprised, I hadn't seen it coming at all. That didn't prevent me from saying YES before MeneerHaan had even finished The Question. :-)

All this time, we were trying to conceive. But without believing it would ever work, because we heard in February that we would need help no matter what. The biggest part of the year we spent getting ready for ICSI. First the basic tests, then MeneerHaan had a fever which delayed his tests by three months. I had to have a HSG and a myoma removed, and they found out I have Hashimoto's disease. This meant another delay to get my hormones sorted out. And finally, at the end of October, we could start. I've written about our ICSI before, so no need to explain that this didn't end as hoped.

It's not all misery. I celebrated some successes at work, even got to accept some prestigious awards for the campaign I'm the project leader of, my loved ones are all good - except for the abovementioned problems, so there is stuff to be thankful for.

But the conclusion is: this was not my, our, year. 2012 needs to be better. In 2011 my family has fought and  beat cancer and unemployment. Next year we will fight and hopefully beat infertility. That's what I will be wishing for next Saturday night at 12 o'clock. On the child-infested New Year's Eve weekend we spend with a lot of our friends. That is, if these kids not have driven me so crazy I'm tying my tubes self handedly.


Yes, I know. I don't need my tubes anyway.
;-)