Record High for July!!!

Well, I heard it on the news...AZ hit a record high for temps for the month of July and it will go down as a record month. So how does one stay cool in this grueling heat??? The boys figured it out...Just look!

The 2WW Game!

I am officially in the 2 wk waiting period and it is so difficult to be patient. Well, I have never been much of a patient person for things even as a child so this should not surprise me...but this is very difficult. The unknown, BUT I am remaining positive. Occasionally the thought of "what if" pops into my mind of it not working, but for the majority of the time I have remained positive and for the most part a feeling of calmness and peace. From the reading I have done some have many symptoms and some have none and still end up w/ their BFP. So I am trying not to overanalyze every twitch my body feels. Here is a run down of my symptoms so far...not that it will account for anything, but only one can hope!

Day 1/Transfer date 7/27: Mild cramping, difficulties sleeping/waking up frequently
Day 2: Mild cramping , poor sleep again
Day 3: A bubbly feeling, stomach making bubbling noises
Day 4: Some bubbly feelings again, occasional cramps here and there, 5 min of extreme tightness in lower abdomen, headache, slept better though
Day 5: Woke up w/ headache, more cramping today- had acupuncture

I must admit I took a pregnancy test although I know it is very early and most don't receive their BFP's until the 10th-15th day, sometimes 17th day...but it was a BFN. I am not feeling discouraged b/c I know it is early...I am trying to remain patient but not easy for me. Positive thoughts from family and friends have been helpful! Many continued prayers....

By the way, according to my acupuncturist he said the first time one attempts IVF there is a 35-40% chance of pregnancy w/ acupuncture increasing that number another 15-25%. Within 3 cycles, one would have an 80% chance of becoming pregnant. What daunting numbers...but I read one woman say "the odds are in your favor" and I do believe they are. I guess this means that I cannot let myself get too discouraged if this first cycle does not take b/c for many it doesn't and it is nice to know I have four frozen embryos to use for an additional two cycles if needed (although two graded less in quality), BUT lets believe for now that they will not be needed and my one or two little girlies in my tummy are making themselves a nice home :)

OK....BREAK TIME...about my sweet boys! They have one week left at grandma's boot camp (so we call it...Lol!) and then off to school on 8/10! I cannot believe it. Hubby and I have an appt next Thurs at the school to find out whom the boys are assigned to for next years teacher. Chan will be in 3rd and Codey in 1st! They are growing so big!!! They have mastered swimming in grandma's pool, they are even swimming laps!! I am jealous of their little tan bodies too!

And....while I was laid up on the sofa after my ET the boys knew mom was not feeling well (unsure why, but did not ask which was good I suppose) and they made little colored plates for me, decorated them all by themselves and surprised me w/ them saying, "feel better mommy." I love them and will have to take pictures of them and post on here next...they are just adorable and a wonderful keepsake to treasure for years to come!

I could not have asked for sweeter sons and a more understanding husband. I am sure I have not been the easiest to please all these past years....let's just say my husband has done a lot for me, taken many steps to ensure I was/am happy even if it meant putting my needs at times above his own and I am so appreciative of that and all he has given me to include this attempt at our baby girl! This would not be possible without his willingness to participate (of course!) and support throughout this process. I am already blessed in so many ways!

Two Beautiful Girls!!!

I did it! I arrived to the fertility clinic today and the lab came to speak to me to discuss our PGD results. We had 7 girl embryos, 2 which were very good quality which were transferred back into me today. 1 of them is what they call "compact" which is the point the embryo needs to progress to so it can be frozen...so we for sure have 1 that will be frozen as a back up if for some reason these 2 don't take. The other 4 need to continue to be watched in the lab to see if they continue to grow to the "compact" stage. If they do then they will be frozen too. Hopefully they do get there...today I have feeling satisfied and blessed for even having 2 embryo girls to transfer. I know some women go through this process and never get to this point I am at...sometimes none of the embryos fertilize, sometimes they only end up w/ the opposite gender they were hoping for...there is so much that goes into this, emotionally, financially, what an overall investment, but a very well worth one in the end if I can hold my baby girl nine months from now. I pray every night for her and now can only wait.....only time will tell and I continue to hold faith....for now I pray that my little beans stick!

I feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family who have supported me through this process. It has been a bit emotional, but their support and positive thoughts/prayers have made all the difference. Thank you!!!!!!

Fertilization Report!!

I got the call and out of 33 eggs I have 25 mature and 12 fertilized and looks like a few others are growing...just a bit slower so they may be usable as well. I am so excited...they are going to do the PGD on them tommorrow most likely and then my ET is scheduled for Monday at noon!!! I pray we have enough healthy girl embryos to transfer two and freeze some too just in case the two we transfer don't take then we will have something to fall back on. Hopefully though this one time will be it for us...will bring us to our long awaited baby girl! Grow babies grow!!!!!!!!!

ER Results!

The doctor was able to retrieve 33 eggs!!!! I am so very excited, but still nervous since I do not know how many have been fertilized. I am praying that most of them are mature and do fertilize! I am hoping for some good numbers before we move onto the PGD process! I pray our baby girl is on her way.......

Egg Retrieval

I got the call today!!! I trigger tonight and go in at 5:15a on Thurs for my ER. I can't believe it is here. I should know after the retrieval how many eggs were retrieved and then I will receive the fertility report I believe the following day on how many actually fertilized. Unfortunately the PGD process can be harsh on the embryos so I do risk losing some in the process, hope I don't lose too many and hoping for some strong hatching healthy girl embryos!!!

I will try and update soon....Thank you to all my friends and family for their thoughts and prayers. May our little girl find her way to us......

Trigger?

Looks like I will most likely trigger tommorrow night which means that I will have my egg retrieval (ER) on Thurs!!!! I have had several u/s and blood work appts this past week and all looks good. I have approx 22 eggs that they could tell from the u/s. My doctor lowered the dosage of my Repronex this past weekend and right about now I am feeling very bloated!!! I am excited for these next two weeks...hard to believe it's here... finally! The shots have gotten much easier too which has been a blessing :-)

I will update w/ more news when I have it.

I DiD IT!!!

Whoo-hooo!!! Today was day one of my injectables, Repronex and Follistim and I did it! I was VERY nervous about ensuring that I gave myself the proper dosage, mixed the Repronex correctly and injected it correctly. They are are both subcutaneous shots (under the skin vs in the muscle) and I injected them in my tummy. I have never had to give myself shots before so this was a very big step but definently a well worth one if it brings us our little girl....just another step of many but we are getting CLOSER "-)

Medications!

Here are my medications for my upcoming IVF cycle (most of them, some required refrigeration so are stashed away in there). Thankfully my insurance company covered most of the cost and I saved approx $2,500!!! However on the downside I had many, many issues around getting my medications to me appropriately. The first time they were shipped they sat in a box in the hot sun in front of my house for 4 hrs!!! Several of the medications needed to be room temperature and w/ our AZ heat I was so afraid that the medications were damaged. After several calls to my insurance companys retail pharmacy they offered to go ahead and send me a replacement. I was extremely relieved. After this cycle being such a financial investment I did not want to risk the medications being damaged by the heat. So I have received the replacement and am scheduled to start the injectables this Sat!! I feel so overwhelmed w/ the whole process. Here's my schedule so far:

7/9: Ultrasound

7/11: Start Follistim and Repronex (take these until end of cycle)

7/13: Bloodwork

7/15: Ultrasound

7/16: Begin Ganerelix in addition to Follistim and Repronex

Ovidrel: Trigger shot prior to retrieval

Potential Retrieval: 7/21-7/25

Potential Transfer: 7/25-7/29

Will be required to take Prednisone, Doxycycline, Progesterone in Oil post egg retrieval and transfer, Estrogen Patch and baby aspirin post transfer.

I am doing my best to educate myself about all these medications, but it is a lot and one of them requires me to mix the chemicals together first before injecting. I am so afraid of making a mistake, but I know these are all normal feelings given this being my first time experiencing this. Hopefully it will be my only time given a successful outcome!

I am continuing w/ acupuncture, hopefully it is helping...hard to believe we started this process (called the fertility clinic) back in February and we are finally getting to this point!! I am trying to stay calm (although not easy) and doing my best to remain positive....