Good news all around!

Today was my first OB appt (I graduated from the RE!!) with this pregnancy, and it all went well! I actually met with my OB's assistant, as Dr. Gernhart was in surgery this morning. Anyways, we did a full physical and annual exam (always fun!), and drew 4 vials of blood for a pre-natal blood panel! Some of the tests are redundant, but I know they need the results for their office.

After all that, she asked if I wanted to hear the heartbeat again! Of course, I said YES! So she got the doppler out and started to move it around... and couldn't find the heartbeat! Of course, my heart just sank as she said "let me go get the ultrasound machine." My mind started racing, cuz if any of you know me, I'm a worrier by nature (thanks to my mom!), but she came back and set up the machine quickly. As soon as she had the wand on my belly, I saw this beautiful little baby wiggling around and kicking it's feet!! It was so sweet! She then moved up a little on my belly to show a big black square.. she said, "well here's the reason we couldn't find a heartbeat with the doppler... your bladder is full and was in the way!" Ooops, my bad! :)

So I go back in 4 weeks for my regular OB appt. She did tell me because I am 35, I will be seeing the perinatologist at Methodist Hospital for my 20 week u/s (the BIG one!). Depending of what they think then, I might have to go back to see them alternating with my regular OB. Just because I'm OLD.... huh! ;)

More good news was when I was leaving my OB appt, my cell rang and it was my RE calling with the results of the ultrascreen I had done last week..... and all was NORMAL!!! So they were very happy and told me to keep in touch!

So we are on our way now to a healthy normal pregnancy! OMG, now it's really starting to sink in!!!

Ultrascreen

Today was my 12 week ultrascreen ultrasound where they check for any abnormalities and for Down's syndrome. Everything went well! I apparently didn't have enough sugar or caffeine in me when we got there, the baby was sleeping! The u/s nurse had to kinda poke and wiggle my belly to get it to finally "wake up"! It was kinda funny when it did, it was moving around like "what? what'd I miss?" :) She got all the required measurements and we listened to the heartbeat. It was 161bpm... very happy! And it measures 5.26 cm or just over 2 inches long. It also was measuring a day ahead, so today I am 12w0d.

It was funny, during the u/s, the baby kept sticking it's legs straight in the air waving them around! Then they took my blood and combined with the u/s, they can detect if there is further testing needed for any abnormailites. I will get the reults in a week. It will be a loooong week!

I am still just in awe of the whole process and the whole experience. It's really starting to feel real now!

Belly shots!

I have been taking pictures every week (Except week 10, we were out of town) of my belly to see the difference per week... to me, I can't really see any difference, as today I'm 11 weeks pregnant. So I looked at the picture from 4 weeks and compared it... yep, I'm getting a little bigger!

My pants are getting tight, and I'm starting to use the Bella Band (thank God for those!!) so I can still wear my regular pants, and not have to buy maternity yet.

Well, we are off to the cabin in an hour or so to celebrate the 4th of July with the family... hope you all have a happy and safe 4th!!

Ultrasound!

Today was our next ultrasound, a few days early, since we couldn't go on Friday, due to the fact we are going to be out of town. Everything looked great!! The baby measured a day early at 9w5d, and the heartbeat was strong too. It was so cool to see him.her dancing around and it even waved at us! :) Best part is, it's starting to look like a baby! You can even see it's nose!

We go back July 9th for the Ultrascreen, when they test for Down's Syndrome via ultrasound, and do bloodwork to screen for several genetic problems... scary! But the BEST news overall, I get to stop my progesterone shots!!!!! WOO HOO! Also, I get to start stepping down the estrogen pills I'm taking too... so that's all news I'm progressing right along!

Nothing!

This weekend was interesting... I did NOTHING! I was down all weekend with horrible allergies and a migraine. Blah. I literally was in bed all weekend, or on the couch with an icebag on my head. I can't take my headaches meds because of the bambino, so that didn't help. So I got absolulely NOTHING done I needed to do! We are leaving for the cabin on Wed night/Thurs morning, and have so much to do now. Well, all depends on how I feel.

I can't wait to get out of here.... I need a vacation!

2nd ultrasound!

We had our 2nd ultrasound this morning, and everything looks great! Baby measured right on track (7w6d) at 1.5 cm (our little bean is GROWING!). We got to see him wiggle a little, then we heard the most beautiful sound... his heartbeat!! It was so quick! The nurse measured it at 158bpm, which is perfect for his size. It was so cool to hear, just makes it all that more real!

Here's a picture, although it's not really that great. She said I was having a uterine contraction during the u/s, and of course it was right in the way of where she needed to see, but we did get a picture. The baby is is the floating thing on the left, with the head on the right, and feet on the left, and the perfect round circle thing to the right of the baby is the yolk sac (what is feeding the baby until the placenta develops). The gestational sac looks a funny shape because of the contraction, but she says it's all normal. Just means my uterus is growing and stretching for the baby!



The Dr. also called back with my bloodwork results, everything looks awesome. She said to keep up with the same meds still, and that after next appt., they will start decreasing my dosages! My next appt. is scheduled Wed., June 24th. Supposed to be the 26th, but we will be out of town at the cabin that weekend, so going a couple days early!

I'll be 8 weeks tomorrow! Just want to get past this first trimester!

Belly Book!

This post should have been put up a long time ago, but it's been a zoo at work and getting online is few and far between! But a few days after I found out I was pregnant, my friend from work, Dani, who is on maternity leave, sent me a package here at work. I didn't know it was from her at first, so I didn't know what it was! It came from Amazon, and I was thinking "did I accidentally buy something?!"

It was the "Belly Book"! It's a very cute journal for the mom-to-be, complete with places to write, places to post pictures, and questions to answer! It is divided into the 3 trimesters, and starts with how you found out you were pregnant. You can journal all your cravings, dr. appts, weight, feelings, a place for ultrasound pictures and weekly belly pictures (which I have been doing since week 4!) What a thoughtful and wonderful gift to someday give the child I am writing about!

THANKS DANI!!! :)

And so it begins...

I have felt yucky for 2 days now... and today, I'm a bit green around the gills. Man, this sucks. I mean, I kinda wanted this (I told Tommy yesterday that I wanted to be sick, and he looked at me like I had frogs coming out of my ears). So I guess I got what I wanted... it's not that bad, it's managable for now. Just kinda annoying when I'm trying to conentrate on work. Ugh.

I have tums, tea, and peppermint in my desk drawer... here we go! :)

First Ultrasound!

We have one healthy baby measuring 5w6d and has a heartbeat!!! We are soooo freakin excited! I was ready to throw up getting ready to go this morning, I was so nervous! We got there about 8:50 this morning, signed in, they went and took my blood, then had to wait for an available room... which seemed like HOURS.

3 min. later, we got into a room, I changed, got up on the table, and the nurse came in. She said, "OK, let's see what we have created!" Got the DildoCam all ready, and away we went... as she was probing around, I saw a flash of a black spot... then she went past it. Come to find out she was scanning my entire uterus to see how many sacs were in there. When there was only 1 found, she zoomed in on it and announced we have 1 baby!

She showed us the gestational sac, the yolk sac inside, and the beautiful little bean called a baby... then she zoomed further and said "Look!" She was pointing on the screen to a little flickering spot. The heart! Tommy got up from the chair and got up by the screen and we both squinted at the most beautiful sight we have ever seen...

The nurse then told me to get dressed, handed me it's "first picture", and told me to meet her outside. Tommy took the picture from me and took a picture of it on his cell phone, and texted it to the few close friends and family members that knew we are pregnant. Talk about excited dad! It was cute.

My bloodwork came back awesome too! My progesterone went up from 20 to 23 (great!) and my estrogen was good too (although she didn't give me the details). But my beta.... whoa! Remember, it started at 86, then 2 days later went to 204... well today it's 19,684! I'd say that's pretty good! The average for this day is around 12,000, so I'm very happy about that!

Now it just has to sink in... we are FINALLY pregnant!!

Is that a symptom??

I've been having some cramping on and off for a couple weeks now, even before I knew I was pregnant. The thing about cramping in early pregnancy – is that you don’t really know for SURE if it’s “good.” Sure, everyone tells you “it’s normal. I had period-like cramps for days/weeks/months. It’s your hormones. It’s your uterus stretching. You’re doing great!” And you want so desperately to believe them … these women that have been there and KNOW.

But unlike morning sickness (which I haven't really had ANY of), which everyone equates with a healthy pregnancy for the most part … cramping is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, if it’s a normal pregnancy symptom and you’ve been trying for SO long to get pregnant (and stay pregnant), hey, bring it on! Great! Pregnancy related symptoms, step right up! Happy to see ya! Sit down and stay a while! :)

But with cramping … which feels EXACTLY like period cramping … there is this nasty little voice that tries to loudly whisper in your ear, “Something is WRONG! That’s why you’re CRAMPING! You are so SCREWED!” It’s hard not to listen.

I have no spotting whatsoever. I have no bleeding. My toilet paper remains as white as the driven snow. And so I offer up a fervent prayer. Please let it stay that way. Please let this be OK. Please let me have this. I don’t want to wish time away … but I wouldn’t mind fast-forwarding just a few weeks. Just to get over this hump. I have my first ultrasound tomorrow morning. I'm nervous, excited, anxious, all rolled up in one. It can’t get here fast enough.

Weekend

Memorial Day has come and gone, can you believe it?! It's the "unofficial" start to summer! The weather was supposed to be rainy and cloudy on and off all weekend, but it turned out to be PERFECT! We had a BBQ Friday night with a couple of friends and their kids, it was soooo nice out. Saturday, I wasn't feeling so well (headache and crampy) so I pretty much couched it all day, taking naps on and off.... oh, the life! Sunday I felt so much better, so I got up and ran a few errands, Tommy and I were going to work in the yard, but we decided to take it easy.. I got laundry done and cleaned up the house a bit. Monday Tommy got up to go work for a while, and I went over to my parents for a bit. We both got home about the same time, and then we decided to take us and the dogs out to Zorinsky lake to let the dogs run around and splash in the water! It was so warm out, so it was a perfect day! I even got a little bit of a sun burn! Yeah, first one of the season! Then we came home, and all 4 of us passed out for naps!

Over all, it was a great weekend. I do notice I'm a bit more tired than normal, so it's been a challenge to not lay on the couch and fall asleep! But today it's back to the grind... WORK! Ugh! But it's a short week, and our first ultrasound in Friday morning, so we do have that to look forward to. I'm feeling pretty optimistic about it. Not so scared anymore. I figure, I feel good overall, and haven't had any spotting or anything, so as far as I know, I'm still pregnant! But I have a feeling now that I have said all this, this week is going to DRAG on...

Hope you all had a happy and safe Memorial Day weekend!

Forgetfulness

A friend of mine asked me last night if I would meet her out at a restaurant/bar with her to meet a guy she met online.. so I said, sure! I wouldn't want her to go alone anyways, so I was game for a couple hours. When we got there, she ordered a beer, and I almost forgot... I ordered one too! HUH!?!? Then it occured to me, I can't drink! My friend knows I'm pregnant, so she was like, "Uh, you gonna drink that?!" I guess I just have been in "no baby" mode for so many years, that I didn't think about it! DUH! Of course, then I grabbed the waiter again and told him I needed a ROOT beer instead :)

I still feel pretty good, little crampy every now and again, but nothing bad. Sick feeling every now and again, but nothing that doesn't pass quickly. So all is good. Just anxious for the ultrasound... 10 more days! UGH!

Looking good!

I had my second beta this morning, and it came back at 204! So that is great, it more than doubled! My RE did say my progesterone was a bit low (20), and they don't like it to go below 20 (it's OK that it does, but she said they are pickier!). So she said if I have any spotting to call and they will up my dose of those AWESOME shots in the butt! :)

My first ultrasound is scheduled to be May 29th! I will be right around 6 weeks at that time, which will be right around the time we will be able to see a heartbeat! It's sooo amazing! According to a couple of online IVF due date calendars, I will be due January 22, 2010. So weird to see the 2010!

Thank you all for your continued prayers! It seems to have FINALLY worked and we are soooo thrilled!

And the results are in.. again...

Sorry it has taken awhile to get on here to update, but wanted to wait until I get the phone call from the RE...

AND WE ARE PREGNANT!!

I went in for my beta this morning.. the nurse asked if I tested at home yet before now, and I told her no (which is the truth!) So she said, for fun, let's do one now! Huh?! So they drew my blood, I went in the bathroom and squeezed out some pee (hadn't drank anything yet this morning), and she put the drops on their pg tests. She left it in the bathroom counter and went and got more progesterone needles for me. I was just sitting there sweating!! She came back with my needles, picked up the test, looked at it, looked at me and said "you're pregnant!"

OMG!!! She showed it to me, it was a pretty dark line! My RE was right there, she grabbed the test and looked at it and told me, "See, I told you we'd get at least one of em to stick!" :) My RE gave me the test and told me to take it and stare at it all day. Which I did all the way home! I didn't want to tell Tommy over the phone, as I know he was going to be home around 9am this morning. So I waited...

Tommy came home about 8:45, and the first thing he asked me was if the RE called yet. I was just laying on the couch, relaxing, and I told him no (which they hadn't!) So I got up, gave him a hug and told him I did want him to look at something upstairs... so he followed me up to our master bathroom and I flipped on the light. On the counter, I had laid the test from the RE office, and the digital I took when I got home (I know, I'm a freak!!) He looked at them kinda funny, looked at me and asked if I was pregnant! I said "Yes, silly, the digital spells it out!" He looks at it again, and then comes over and give me a big hug and kiss. He then picked it up again to look at it. It was so cute! I didn't know if her really knew what he was looking at!

So then I called my parents, as they knew we were testing today. They were so excited, my mom started to cry. She then told me she was so excited she couldn't sit still so she started to jog around her house... LOL! What!?! I text my sister this morning, but haven't heard anything yet, she's at work.

So I got to work about 9:30am, and as I did, my phone rang. It was the nurse from the RE's office to tell me my beta came back at 86! Which is a good positive! Anythying over 5 is positive, so 86 is lookin good! :) I have to go back Sunday morning to the hospital to have more blood drawn to make sure my beta is doubling. Then more than likely they will schedule my first u/s 2 weeks out. Then it will be revealed... how many are in there! :)

So that's the story, thanks for all your texts, phone calls, and emails.... oh, my sister just text me... she said she is literally jumping up and down in the parking lot of her work she is so excited! LOL!

I will keep you posted as to the beta on Sunday. :)

Longest week ever...

Man, this week has DRAGGED on.... it's been fairly busy at work, and even at home I'm pretty busy, but still... it's only THURSDAY. Tomorrow is my beta. I am going to try and get there as early as I can so I can get in and out, and that means getting my results sooner. We have been praying and trying to stay positive. I have been crampy on and off, feel like I'm just about ready to start my period, but I know that won't happen because of the progesterone I'm on. My left boob hurts a little, my right not so much. I'm tired, but that's I think due to the fact I can't seem to slow down! Pregnancy symptoms are so similar to PMS symptoms, so I'm trying not to look into it too much! But I still haven't caved and POAS! (pee on a stick).

I will update you all as soon as I hear tomorrow morning. Thank you all for your love and support, either way this works out!

Pregnant with triplets!!

I can say that now, officially, as they transfered 3 embryos into me yesterday! :) Now if any of them stick, that is the question.

Here is a picture of our 8 thawed embryos, with the blastocyst (best one) in the top left corner, the first picture. I don't know which other 2 she transfered.

So I've been on bedrest the past 2 days, and soooo bored, but it's all worth it. Tomorrow I can resume normal activites, but of course I will take it easy. My bloodwork came back all good too, my estrogen and progesterone all normal. I still have to keep on the estrogen pills (6 a day) and the progesterone shots at night.

I get to go in for my pregancy test (beta) a week from today, Friday, May 15th. This is gonna be a loooooooong week! And I decided, I'm NOT going to test early. I am gonna try and wait it out (if I can! :)

TRANSFER!!!

OMG, I am soo freakin excited! I got the call erlay this morning they want to do the transfer TODAY!! She said there was 1 that turned to a blastocyst this morning, and 2 otehrs that will veeeeery soon, so she wants to transfer all 3 this morning in about 1 hour! So I raced home, told Tommy, and we are ready to walk out the door! I won't be able to update again for a day or two, as I have to be on bedrest for 48 hours.

But I will update when I can! Wish us luck!! Love you all!

Day 2 Fertilization Report

The RE called today.. the 3 that survived the thaw over the weekend are growing nicely! She also told me they took out the other 7 that were frozen to thaw yesterday, and 5 of those survived. So we have a total of 8 thawed that are growing and hopefully will continue to grow until the blastocyst stage. She said transfer is looking like May 8 or 9 at this point, if they all grow properly.

I hope we can transfer at least 2, maybe 3 (gulp) just to give me a better chance. But it will be determined later as we see how many thrive to that stage. They will call again tomorrow to let me know their progress.

Thanks for all your support and prayers! They are working!

Frozen babies made it!!!

Out of the 4 embryos they took out to thaw, 3 survived! I'm happy with that. Depending on how they grow, she might end up taking out more to thaw tomorrow, but that will all depend on today. They will call me tomorrow to let me know how they are doing! Grow babies grow!!

Tentative transfer will be either Thursday or Friday!

Infertility Awareness Week

This week was Infertility Awareness Week... I hear there is also legislation going on trying to get insurance companies to cover more infertility treatments, as it's very expensive. Tommy and I are blessed to have pretty good insurance thought my company... after our deductible, our insurance pays 90% of IVF and other assisted reproductive techniques. Others aren't so lucky.

Anyhoo, I saw this video on a website that is helping to bring awareness to infertilty and the effect it has on couples, just like us. It's almost like I wrote this myself. Please take the 3 or 4 minutes it runs to look at this video. And I hope no more of my friends have to endure what we have in the past (and first) 2 years of our marriage.

http://www.tearsandhope.net/emptyarms_video.html

Second u/s

This morning was my second u/s to see if my lining was good to go... and it is finally!! It was 8.1, so it all is ready. The nurse called me back later in the morning to go over the "plan"... I am still to take the 4 oral and 2 vaginal tablets of estrogen (yuk), and starting Sunday, May 3rd, I will start the progesterone shots again! Woo hoo! (NOT!!) They are going to take 4 embryos to thaw out, and they will call me Monday with the report on how they are doing. Thawing out is pretty hard on the little dudes, so I pray at least 2 survive the thaw, and then grow to the blastocyst stage. I will probably know more on Monday when the actual transfer will take place.

Keeping all fingers and toes crossed we get a good report on Monday!!

First u/s

Went in for my first u/s this morning. They just wanted to check my lining to see if those God-awful estrogen pills were working. They need it to be 8mm thick to to do a transfer, and I was only at 6.8mm :( So... guess what! I get to take MORE estrogen pills! Except now I get to take not only the 4 orally I already am, but now take one vaginally in the morning and one in the evening!

I go back Friday for another u/s, so I hope this helps... what a girl won't do to get her baby!! :)

ETA: Oh, and I added the picture above last night... it's a picture I took at our family's cabin on a lake up in South Dakota. I love it up there, it's so serene and beautiful at sunset. I can't wait to get back up there this summer.

Blah!

Well since I've been taking these estrogen pills, I have been nauseaus on and off all day! Ugh! Yesterday was particularly bad, as I have finally got the the highest dose I will be on, and that was rough. I finally called my RE to see if there is anything she could give me or I could take for the nauseausness... she said there have been several people calling complaing of that (so I'm not the only one! :) Since I take 4 pills a day, she suggested taking 2 in the morning and 2 in the evening... and so far today, I'm not doing too bad! Finally, I don't feel like gagging every 5 min!

Oh, and she did mention that if we get pregnant this cycle, I will have to stay on these estrogen pills for several weeks into the pregnancy, so I better get used to it! Oh, GREAT! :)

I go in for my first u/s on Monday morning, so I'll be back to update then!

Here we go again!

My cycle started today, so here we go again!! I called my RE and told them we are going to do a FET... so she told me what will happen. They will prescribe me Estrogen pills I have to take for the next few weeks, and I start tomorrow. Then on April 27, I will go in for an u/s to see how my uterine lining looks. That is when they will also start the thawing of the embryos. They will give me updates as to how many survived the thaw, and then how they are growing. They have to grow to a certain size (blastocyst stage) before they will transfer them back into me (usuaklly 5 or 6 days after thaw). So she said transfer will probably be that first weekend in May, if all goes well! Then I have to start the progesterone shots again (yuk).

So I went and picked up the estrogen today to start tomorrow! I just pray we get some good blasts to survive the thaw and grow into one of our children!

New Plan

I talked to my Dr. on Monday to get some answers... my progesterone level was excellent (those shots helped afterall!), my estrogen was very low (but would have been with a negative pregancy test) and my hCG level came back at <1.

So then I talked to the gal that handles the insurance at the office and talked to her about what this next step would cost us. Now that we have hit our family deductible, our insurance pays for 90% of fertility treatments! Woo hoo! So after discussing it, Tommy and I decided to go ahead and start this next cycle and do a Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET). I have to call my Dr. when Aunt Flo starts up, and she will prescribe me the estrogen pills I will take. So no shots! Until after the transfer... but more on that later.

Today will be a very busy day here at the office, we are down 2 people, and when there is only 4 people to start with in the dept, that's a lot! So it will be good to keep me busy!

And The Results Are...

...negative. I couldn't belive it... My RE called me this morning at 9:15am. She said she was flaberghasted that one didn't take, but sometimes it happens. It was the perfect, textbook IVF cycle... we are heartbroken. I told Tommy after I got off the phone and he was so upset, he started to tear up too.

She did say we can try a FET next cycle if we want, as soon as my period starts. We might do it, we might wait a month. I just don't know if we can take much more bad news anymore. This month marks the 2 year anniversary of us trying. I'll update more when we made a decision as to what we will do next. We won't let this get the best of us... we were MEANT to be parents!!!

Thanks for all your support and prayers xoxoxox

Great News!

My RE called today and left a message on my home phone today... out the 8 remaining embryos that we did not transfer, 7 of them made to freeze! So we have a total of 11 frozen! That is AWESOME! So when and if we need to go through this again, we can dethaw a couple embryos and do a transfer that way (called FET - Frozen Embryo Transfer).

Just had to share the good news! :)

BUSY!!!

I am SOOOOO thankful I have been super swamped at work! Doesn't that sound strange?!?! I haven't thought much about the test on Sunday, so this is a good thing... it's actually going by pretty quickly!

I did break down and test yesteray night, only to see if the trigger shot was out of my system, and since it was a snow white negative, it is out now. So if I do decided to test early, it will be a "real" positive, and not a medically induced one!

OK, back to work! I'm buried!!

Everything A-OK!

I had blood drawn this morning at the hospital to check on my progesterone and estrogen levels, which are necessary to sustain pregnancy. My estrogen level was great! Progesterone was a little lagging, but they didn't sound worried. I just have to keep taking those fantastic progesterone shots in my butt every night... woo wee, those are fun! :)

I got in for my beta (pregnancy test by blood) a week from today... Easter! I'm hoping there is symbolism in that Easter symbolizes new life, that I too may be starting a new life. It's going to be a loooong week!

It snowed today!! There was a huge snow storm that swept across South Dakota and Nebraska, but thankfully we didn't get anywhere near what they did out west. We got maybe 2" and it's so wet, that it didn't stick on any of the pavement. I was worried if I would be able to make it in today to get my blood work done! My tulips, which were starting to come up, I hope will make it too.

Ah, the ever changing spring weather in the midwest!

Transfer!

Sorry I did not get to update yesterday on the egg transfer, but I was confined to strict bedrest yesterday and Tommy was very adimate and me not getting up unless I had to pee! So here's what happened yesterday.

I woke up at 6:30am with Tommy, he went to work for a little while, so I got up and took a shower. Dr. Doherty called about 7:45am to talk to me about my babies. Out of the 10 ones they let grow in the lab, she said 4 of them looked reeeeally good. Since I had so many good quality ones, she said we should only transfer 2. She said she wouldn't be surprised if both of them stuck (gulp) because of the quality. I took my Valium about 8:30, and have been drinking like mad all morning, to have a full bladder when I got there.

We got there at 9am, and was doing OK when I got there. I got changed into my sexy gown and hairnet, and Tommy had to wear a shirt, pants, hairnet, mask, and booties so he could join me in the OR. By 9:30, Dr. Doherty still wasn't there yet, and I was in sooo much pain. I was getting all hot, crampy, just absolutly miserable because of my bladder! FINALLY, the nurse came running in to tell me the Dr. was there! I couldn't even stand up straight it hurt so bad! And I had to walk all the way down to the OR! So hunched over, I held on to Tommy with one arm, and my crotch the other (I was sooo afraid I was going to pee!), we made it down to the OR... Dr. Doherty was at the end of the hallway cheering me on. When we got there, she handed Tommy a picture... of the 10 embryos that were doing so well!


As I finally got down to the OR, they had me lay on the table, and put my feet in the stirrups... but I couldn't even straighten up because my bladder was contracting so bad. So Dr. Doherty emptied some of my bladder, and what a relief that was! Whew!!!! So then I could lay down, Tommy was on a stool sitting by my head. There were I think 4 other people in the room. The ultrasound nurse did the u/s on my belly, while Dr. Doherty did her thing down there. It was totally painless and felt much like a pap smear. It was litterally done in 5 min. Maybe less. Then, bless her soul, Dr. Doherty emptied the rest of my bladder...... that was the BEST feeling I think I have ever felt in my life. Wow, that was something else!

I was then wheeled back down to my room, and was instructed to lay there for 1 hour. After the hour, I had to pee again, so I did, and got dressed at the same time. The transportation gal came up next and they loaded me on a cart (I have to lay down this entire time). She wheeled me down to the front door of the hospital and Tommy brought the car around. I walked to the car, loaded myself in the backseat to lay down, and off we went. We got home about 11:30am.

So I've been a queen ever since... having food, drink, whatever I needed brought to me :) Too bad it's only gonna last a couple days! I have to go back Sunday morning for more bloodwork to check my levels. Of course, at 7:30am... ugh.

Now our mission: pray like hell at least one sticks!

Transfer is set!

The RE office called this morning to give me an update on our little guys, and she told me they are at "Code 1" stage, which means 1 or more have hit all the milestones for Day 2. She couldn't tell me how many exactly, I don't know if she knew!

So we are scheduled to do the transfer tomorrow at 9am. My Dr. will call me in the morning to discuss how many we will transfer. I was always thinking 2, but Tommy said let's do 3. We will see what my Dr. says. It will really depend on how many look good!

I am supposed to have a full bladder when I get there, as the bladder helps to push the uterus down and gives it easier access for the Dr. to place the embryos. Also, they gave me a prescription for Valium! She said to take one on the way to the hospital tomorrow. Me on Valium, relaxed and all, and with a full bladder. This should be interesting! :)

I will update again tomorrow after the transfer to let you know how it went! :)

Fertilization Report!

I woke up this morning feeling like a truck ran me over... I'm sore! Like I did a thousand sit ups! But nothing a little Tylenol and heating pad can't fix! :)

My RE just called with the results of the ER.... out of the 17 eggs they retrieved, 15 were mature!!! Out of the 15, 14 fertilized normally!!! They froze 4 for future use (if needed) and will let the 10 grow normally. I am praying we get some good growth in the next 2 days for our transfer on Thursday! The RE said she would call tomorrow and let me know more details about the transfer.

I called Tommy right away, of course he was taking an nap!! So not sure how much he really comprehended, but at the end I told him we were proud parents to 14 children, and all he said was "that's good!" I'll have to tell him again when he comes to! :)

Egg Retrival

Well, egg retrieval was this morning at 7am. Got there, got in a room in the labor and delivery wing, the nurse came in and started an IV, then we waited... for almost an hour! My Dr. got there about 8am, then the anestesiologist came in and talked to me. I walked to the OR with my IV and sexy hairnet, booties, and gown. The last thing I remembered was going into the OR and them strapping down my arms on the table... then it was lights out!

Woke up at 9am in recovery with the nurse by my side... everything was over! All she could tell me at that time was they got 17 eggs! She said the average was 10-13, so I was happy with that. They will call tomorrow to let me know how they are growing.

After about 30 min. in recovery, they wheeled me back down to my room, where Tommy was waiting. I ate some gormet graham crackers and Sprite, and after about an hour, I had to pee. After that, got dressed, and away we went. We got home about 10:30am.

I am still in quite a bit of pain, even after the drugs they gave me, so I am just taking it easy on the couch. Hopefully the cramping will go away later today.

OK, enough for the update, I gotta head back to the couch! :)

We Are SET!

I had my third appt. this morning with the RE. Did more b/w and another gander with the DildoCam (hee hee, that's what she called it!). My eggs have grown, but still are a bit smaller than what she wants on one side, so I will do ONE more day of meds (tonight). I still had about 6 big ones on my right, and a gaggle of big ones on my left. But they are pleased overall at how I responded to the drugs!

Tomorrow night (Sat. night), I will take the hCG shot, which is the hormone that will trigger all my eggs to ovulate. After the shot, it takes about 36 hours for them to release. I am to report to the hospital, labor and delivery floor, at 7am on Monday morning for my ER (egg retrival)!! It's finally set in stone!

The protocol is that I will get there at 7am, they get me in a room, get an IV started, then the anesthesiologist will come in and talk to me. I then will walk down the hallway to the OR, where they will put the happy drugs in my IV. Meanwhile, Tommy will be there *ahem* doing his thing at the collection lab. I will drift off for about a 20 min. nap, while they take out my eggs. Basically, they take a long syringe and poke it into my ovary and suck out the eggs, both ovaries. They also use the ultrasound wand to direct them where to go. Once I wake up, a half hour or hour later, I will go to recovery until I can eat, drink, and pee by myself. Then we are free to go home! They said they will send me home with Tylenol (hospital strength) for any pain. Also she said I can use a heating pad to help with any cramping. I should be up and at em the next day. They will then have the emryologist call the next day to get me a report of how many they got, how many are mature, and how many fertilized. That will be the exciting part!

I will update again after the retrival to let you all know how it went. I'm so ready to get these things out of me... I feel so terribly bloated!!

The transfer is scheduled for Thursday, April 2. That will be a big day. I can't wait!!

2nd Dr. Appt

Had my second Dr. appt. and follie check today, and I'm still on track! The follies have grown even more, but still not ready. They want me to stay on meds 2 more days on the same dosage to see if they can get any bigger.

Right side:
8 total, biggest at 14mm
Lots of little ones

Left side:
7 big ones and lots of little ones
3 at 13mm
3 at 14mm
1 at 15mm

Left side definatly doing better than the right (they want them to be at least 18mm). My estrogen level is also at a good level right now, so so far so good. I go back in again Friday morning for another u/s and more b/w. Depending on that, ER is scheduled for Sunday, with the ET on Wednesday April 1!

Also, another good thing, that I didn't know my RE does, we are doing ICSI with the eggies and spermies! I can't remember what is stands for, but it's basically when they will inject the sperm into the egg to "force" fertilization, rather than having the eggs and sperm do it on their own. This way, there is a better chance for getting more eggs fertilized! This is also called "assisted hatching". Technology is totally amazing, isn't it!?!??

On a down note, my back is not any better, in fact it's worse that on Monday. I stayed home from work on Tuesday and layed down all day like my chiro suggested with ice on my back to reduce the swelling... Yeah, that didn't help much. I have another chiro appt. tomorrow, so we will see what his next step is. I am just so tired of being in constant pain. It hurts to sit or walk, the only relief is laying down... well, can't do that at work too well! He mentioned doing anti-inflamatory meds, but I can't take any of that because it will interfere with the fertility drugs I'm taking, so blah... I'll just have to suck it up for now!

First Follie Check

I had my first follie check this moring at the RE's. This is to check my progess of how many follicles I am producing on my ovaries. They also did bloodwork too. Of course, I had to be there at 7am this morning (blah) the morning after going to a rock concert with a bunch of friends. It was hard to get up, I'll tell you that!!

Anyhoo, my Dr. called back to let me know I am "cookin' along" just fine! On my left ovarie, there are 6 big ones, and on my right, there were several at 10mm (18mm is the goal, those are considered mature). So they are keeping me on the same dose of Gonal-F (300iu), and starting Tuesday night, I will start another med on top of that, Ganarelix. That is a shot that I will give myself in the upper thigh. It's to stop ovulation, in case I would start to go on my own. I will take that for the next 3 days after that.. depending on when egg retrieval (ER) will be.

I sure have been feeling it though, my sides ache all the time! So I know I'm growing something in there! The meeds also gve me a slight headache after I inject them, but other than that, no side effects.

She wants to see my again in Wed. morning for the next follie check. With that appt., they will probably determine when ER will be! It's getting so close!

Ugh, shots!

Well today will be day 3 of stims.... ugh. It's been a little while since I've done shots, so it took me a minute to remember how to property mix the drugs, when to switch needle sizes, etc. I did finally figure it out, and my first one went off without a hitch.. or at least I thought. I woke up the next morning with a HUGE bruise on my belly where I gave the shot! Ooops! Not sure what I did, but won't do it again! ;) Last night's shot was better, no bruising this morning!

I am on 300iu of Gonal-F, which is almost double the amount I was on for the IUI's (175iu). Let's hope lots of nice mature follies grow!! Still on track for a Sunday morning follie check!

One thing that has really been bothering me latley is my lower back.. I've been going to the chiro and icing it down, like he says, but it still hurts. I have always had lower back problems due to my long torso, but geez, I'm in constant pain now. Tommy tells me I need to get this fixed before I get pregnant, because it will only get worse! I hope more therapy and ice will do the trick!

First Appoinment

I just got back from from the RE for my first appt. Aunt Flo started this morning, so I called in to report, and they wanted to see me for bloodwork and a measuring procedure. They had to measure the length of my uterus to determine where exactly she is going to place the embryos for the IVF procedure.

She was so sweet when she came in the room, she gave me a hug and asked me if I missed her! LOL I told her I've been trying to get healthy and work out in the 3 month break we took, and she told me to scale back from now on. Only walking on the treadmill (no more than 3 hours a week), swimming, and light weights to keep toned, but no running or hard excercise. Oh darn! ;)

She also did an ultrasound, and everything looks good, so they will call me this morning with my blood results, and from there determine what dosage I will start with the Gonal-F. She said I will start tomorrow, and go for 5 days, and be checked again on Sunday morning.

Here we go! Pray for us!

Meds!

Well, the pharmacy called this morning and we filled my prescriptions for my meds. After the nice lady on the phone told me what all I will be taking, and the TOTAL, I about screamed ($2943.00)! It was about double what I had paid for my IUI's! So I asked if I could call my Dr. to verify that I will need ALL those meds. I got a nurse on the phone at the RE's office, and she told me I might need all of it, but this is what you can order now and see if you need the rest later. It all depends on how well I respond to the drugs!

So I called the pharmacy back and told her I was only going to order part of the prescription. Still, for 2 multi-dose vials of Gonal-F (to stimulate my ovaries to produce eggs), 2 vials of Ganarelix (to make sure I don't ovulate on my own), 1 vial of hCG (to trigger ovulation once the eggs are mature), and 2 vials of the wicked Progesterone in Oil (to help keep my progesterone levels high after the procudure... my body doesn't make enough on it's own), the total was $2000.50! Ouch!

My friends at work who know what's going on keep threatening to put up a website called: getheatherknockedup.com. For donations! Knowing them, they probably would do something like that! Crazy kids!

So they are scheduled to arrive on Tuesday, St. Patrick's Day. I just hope they come with the Luck of the Irish that day!

Next step forward

On my way back to the office after having lunch with one of my friends, Jenn (it was so fun!), I got a phone call from my RE's office (RE stands for Reproductive Endocronologist). Our pre-IVF lab work (blood) came in normal (I figured they would, not really worried about it!) So now the nurse was going to get my prescription sent to the pharmacy so I can order my meds either today or tomorrow! It's all getting so real! I really can't wait to get going now... we're both sooo ready!

No worries

After a nice long talk last night, we are a full go ahead for IVF. Tommy pays the bills, so he knows exactly our financial situation, and I guess I was just assuming it was worse off that it really is. So he assured me we will be fine and to quit worrying and to get ready for the procedure!

And with that good news, I decided to paint this weekend in our house! I'm painting the upper and lower hallways a tanish color, with white trim. I'm excited! Then next, our bedroom. Then after that, hopefully the nursery ;)

And reality sets in...

We have been pretty positive about our decision to go ahead with IVF. Now I'm not so sure. Last night when I got home, and got the mail, there was a letter from Methodist hospital. It was a letter threatening to send us to collections for our past medical bills! I thought, "Isn't Tommy paying these bills?" When he came home, I asked him about it and showed him the letter. Yes, he has been paying the bills, just a little at a time (he basically lost his job with Visinet over the winter and is barely working 15 hours a week).

So what's the problem? He was furious. So I called and talked to a very nice gal at the hospital. Apparently, there is a minimum payment due every month, and we have been making payments under that amount. Well, it would be nice know what that payment about was!! We are both praying it starts turning green soon so Bigg Dogg can start up again!

I told him I don't think we should do this if we can't afford to pay off the bills we have already racked up from all the previous fertility treatments. He said we should just move ahead. I'm not so sure that's the best idea. I just don't know what to do. It's a horrible, horrible feeling to know that money is a barrier to being parents. Especially when there are sooo many people out there that get pregnant by an "oops" and who do not deserve or appreciate it.

As of now, we are still a go, but we only have about a week to decide. I start meds next week. God, I pray this works.

OK, so I suck at blogging....

Alright, so it's been umm.... 3 months since my last blog, shoot me. It's been a crazy, hectic 3 months.... I will do a quick update, so then I will be up to date.

Well, long story short, we have been trying since we got married, April of 2007. The first few months, we were optimistic. Then it slowly faded, and dissappointment set in. I called my OB, she said we could do some fertility testing, so that's what we did. Nothing. Nothing is techinically wrong, so we were labeled with "unexplained infertility". What a label.

We then moved on to IUI's...first one with Clomid. Failed. Next 2 with Fermara. Failed. Moved on to Dr. Maud Doherty. She's awesome! Tried another IUI with injectible meds, where I had to give myself a shot in the stomach every day to stimulate my ovaries. Failed. We thought we would try one more IUI with injectibles... it worked!

We didn't want to jinx it, so we didn't tell ANYONE. I found out 2 days before Thanksgiving 2008. Our first ultrasound would be December 12, Tommy's bday. We were so excited to see our little bean on that ultrasound machine. Only the nurse didn't find anything. Well, not in the place it should have been. It had implanted way up by the entrance of my tube. We were told we would have to abort the pregnancy, as it would eventually cause problems for the fetus and me. We were crushed. I will never forget that day.

Yep, it finally happened, we finally got prgnant, and then it was taken away. And of course, all this happened on Tommy's birthday. I felt horrible enough, but for it to happen then... So I had to have a D&C, scheduled right before Christmas. Then I was put on medication to make sure all the tissue would be removed. We couldn't even try again for 3 months, so I was put on birth control pills. And now looking back, it was a blessing in disguise to take a break. I think we both needed it to keep our sanity. We never got to tell anyone about this pregnancy, until now.

I also decided this was as good a time as ever, now that I'm not on any fertility drugs (which can cause weight gain), to try and lose some weight. I am proud to say, as of Jan. 1, I am down 18 lbs! Woo hoo!

During the past 3 months, work got crazy... we had to let go of a girl on New Years Eve, so I took on part of her workload, and it was nuts... for 2 months, it really sucked. We finally hired someone capable of taking over, so now my life has finally slowed down a bit at work! Also during this time, I was helping Tommy get ready for spring aerating and lawn season, so that took my time. Oh yeah, and I designed a totally new website for the business. Check it out if you want, http://www.biggdoggservices.com/

So here I am today, on my birthday, thinking, this was NOT how I planned my 35th to be. Don't get me wrong, I really am having a great day, everyone has made me feel really loved! I just thought I would have a family by now. So after all the fertility treatments we have tried, and ultimatly failed at, Tommy and I decided to go for it, all or none...... IVF.

Yesterday, we went in for our pre-IVF blood work that checks for HIV, Hepatitis B & C, and something else I can't remember. So once they come back clear, we will start the process on my next cycle, which according to my calendar, should be around March 17th.

So I will try and keep everyone updated as we go through this interesting process so I have some outlet. I only ask that you keep us in your prayers, as we go through this journey neither one of us thought we would ever have to travel down. They say life's a journey, not a destination... that is no lie. I am only so thankful I have the best husband in the world to go on this journey with, no matter how trying it will be.

Well, I thought I would start a blog...

Hi everyone! I thought this would be a good way to keep everyone updated as to what is going on with me and that way don't have to email a ton of people when something happens!

This is basically going to be a diary of our journey to parenthood, as crazy as it has been. So please forgive me if it seems boring or too detailed. This will be a good outlet for me to get all this out!

This is the first time I have ever done this, so I'm finally coming into the 21st century! :)