Deer Be Gone

I used to like deer. Sweet, shy animals. So pretty. I grew up in a rural area and now live in a somewhat rural area, so seeing deer is not uncommon, but there is still something magical about seeing them wander through your back yard. Unfortunately, the deer really like my roses. We first discovered this last year when on Mother's Day, I went outside and found my bushes mauled. The roses survived, but the roses had been full of buds ready to bloom, and it was a kick in the gut on an already hard day.

We hadn't had problems with deer yet this year, and I hoped that the wet spring might keep them away since they could easily find food. Alas, that theory was shot down yesterday. My rose bushes were again full of buds, days away from exploding with blooms. I went outside yesterday, and you guessed it...they had been eaten. The poor bushes look shorn. Again, they're still alive, but it's so awful seeing the bushes like that. So yeah, I used to like deer. Nobody messes with my roses. We used a "deer-be-gone" spray last year that worked ok, but we've decided that a more permanent solution is needed: chicken wire. It's going to look awful around the bushes, but hopefully it will protect them.

In surrogacy news, we are making a little progress! We received the second draft of the contract late yesterday, and there is only 1 tiny correction that needs to be made. The donor/surrogacy coordinator from the clinic FINALLY returned my call yesterday (I had called her twice in the last week with no response). It turns out that we CAN get started with testing since our contract is in the finalization stages! I'm going to try to schedule my testing today, and I've emailed our surrogate to set up hers. I asked the coordinator when we could start cycling, and she said that if the surro's tests come back clear, then with her next cycle (mid-June)! I'm still anticipating things really getting going in July, but wow.

The funny thing is that after she told me that, I started to panic a little bit. Am I ready for this? Do we have all our financial ducks in a row? I had a brief desire to flee. After waiting for this for almost 9 months, I panic? That's not the reaction I was expecting. But I calmed down. I am ready. We ARE ready. This is one of those situation in which I just need to take a deep breath and a step forward and let what needs to happen happen.