And, since I know you're all dying to see Maya, here's a picture of her.
I'll try to take some better pictures of her soon and get them posted.
Friday, May 27, 2011
I'm PUPO
PUPO means Pregnant Until Proven Otherwise! Big update below:
And, since I know you're all dying to see Maya, here's a picture of her.
I'll try to take some better pictures of her soon and get them posted.
And, since I know you're all dying to see Maya, here's a picture of her.
I'll try to take some better pictures of her soon and get them posted.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Socks, Egg Retrieval, and Shots, Oh My!
I was involved in a lucky sock exchange on a message board that I chat on. I received my socks last week and absolutely love them!
As soon as I saw them, I knew that I was going to wear the pair on the left to the ER and the pair on the right to the ET since they say "Happy Socks" and I'm going to be happy to (hopefully) be getting pregnant that day.
Yesterday was ER day. I woke up bright and early since we had to be at the clinic at 8 AM. The clinic is in Chicago, so we knew we needed to leave by about 6 AM. Getting to the clinic was a breeze and there was no traffic to deal with at all. Of course, it probably helped that it was Saturday.
When we arrived at the clinic, we got called back right away. They had a room for me with this sign on the door.
As soon as we got in the room, I got changed in the gown and my lucky socks. The nurse took care of some paperwook and the anesthesiologist came in and started my IV. I had to empty my bladder (twice) and then I went back to the room where they did the ER. It was freezing in there! As I was laying in there, one of the nurses asked if it was my first time. I told her yes, and then asked if it was hers. We both laughed and she said no. Phew!! She told me that she hopes that this is my first and only time. So do I! As I was laying there, I was kind of nervous and I was shaking really bad. The anesthesiologist was standing by my head and he told me to just take deep breaths and he rubbed my head. Awww!
The doctor came in and verified my name and birth date, and then the anesthesiologist put the drugs to put me to sleep in my IV. I will never understand how that stuff works so quick. One second I'm laying there awake and coherent, and the next second I wake up and everything is over. I don't even remember feeling tired and closing my eyes.
When I woke up, I was back in my room and Drew was there. He said that the whole thing only took about 10 minutes. I guess that the anesthesiologist wheeled me back to the room and I kept asking them to take pictures of my socks! Drew said I asked like 10 times for them to take pictures of my socks. I'm mortified! I don't remember this at all. I even prayed on the way to the clinic that I wouldn't word vomit as I was waking up. Fail!
I looked a little rough when I eventually woke up, but I was coherent and in good spirits. Thumbs up to feeling pretty ok. They had put some water and crackers in the room for me for when I woke up. I drank some water since the nurse told me that I had to pee before I could leave. I felt pretty good, just crampy. I told the nurse that I wanted to use the bathroom, basically because I really just wanted to go home. She grabbed my IV bag and told me not to flush the toilet because she had to check when I got done. Um, gross! I don't know what she was looking for, but I guess she saw it, because she told me that she could take my IV out and that I could get dressed.
They told us as we were leaving that they got 13 eggs. The also told us that they would call us the next day with the fertilization report.
When we got home, I spent the majority of the afternoon laying on the couch and sleeping. I had to go take Rachel's prom pictures, and was not feeling very good at all. Somehow I made it through and immediately came home and camped out on the couch again.
I'm on an antibiotic and I need to, of course, take it with food. So, it was time to take my dose last night and I opened up the fridge to find something to eat. A hot dog sounded semi-decent, so I started cooking it up. As soon as it got done, I took my pill and sat down to eat. I got about half way through and knew that it wasn't a good idea anymore. I sure did get sick and threw it up. Gross!
After I felt a little better, it was time for Drew to give me my PIO shot. I, honestly, was terrified. The needle is huge! I'll have to take a picture to compare the needle from the Ganirelix (tiny) and the needle from the PIO (huge). I worried for nothing!
First, let me back up and talk about my trigger shot on Thursday. That needle was the biggest that we had done so far, so I was a little worried. And Drew had to give it to me in my butt cheek. At first, I went to lean over the kitchen counter because I wanted something to support me. Drew tried to stick me and didn't do it hard enough, so it just poked me and hurt. So, he tried it again, and still didn't break the skin! I was in a little pain at this point, and slightly annoyed, so I went to go lay flat on the couch. Thankfully, the third try, he broke skin and gave me the shot. So, that's why I was a little worried about the PIO last night.
Thankfully, Drew had perfected his sticking skills and he managed to break skin the first try and it didn't even hurt at all. Of course, my muscle is really sore today and it hurts to sit.
The clinic called me this morning with the fertilization report. Out of the 13 egg, 7 were mature, and 5 fertilized! They are going to call us again tomorrow to let us know how they are growing.
Yesterday was ER day. I woke up bright and early since we had to be at the clinic at 8 AM. The clinic is in Chicago, so we knew we needed to leave by about 6 AM. Getting to the clinic was a breeze and there was no traffic to deal with at all. Of course, it probably helped that it was Saturday.
When we arrived at the clinic, we got called back right away. They had a room for me with this sign on the door.
The doctor came in and verified my name and birth date, and then the anesthesiologist put the drugs to put me to sleep in my IV. I will never understand how that stuff works so quick. One second I'm laying there awake and coherent, and the next second I wake up and everything is over. I don't even remember feeling tired and closing my eyes.
When I woke up, I was back in my room and Drew was there. He said that the whole thing only took about 10 minutes. I guess that the anesthesiologist wheeled me back to the room and I kept asking them to take pictures of my socks! Drew said I asked like 10 times for them to take pictures of my socks. I'm mortified! I don't remember this at all. I even prayed on the way to the clinic that I wouldn't word vomit as I was waking up. Fail!
I looked a little rough when I eventually woke up, but I was coherent and in good spirits. Thumbs up to feeling pretty ok. They had put some water and crackers in the room for me for when I woke up. I drank some water since the nurse told me that I had to pee before I could leave. I felt pretty good, just crampy. I told the nurse that I wanted to use the bathroom, basically because I really just wanted to go home. She grabbed my IV bag and told me not to flush the toilet because she had to check when I got done. Um, gross! I don't know what she was looking for, but I guess she saw it, because she told me that she could take my IV out and that I could get dressed.
They told us as we were leaving that they got 13 eggs. The also told us that they would call us the next day with the fertilization report.
When we got home, I spent the majority of the afternoon laying on the couch and sleeping. I had to go take Rachel's prom pictures, and was not feeling very good at all. Somehow I made it through and immediately came home and camped out on the couch again.
I'm on an antibiotic and I need to, of course, take it with food. So, it was time to take my dose last night and I opened up the fridge to find something to eat. A hot dog sounded semi-decent, so I started cooking it up. As soon as it got done, I took my pill and sat down to eat. I got about half way through and knew that it wasn't a good idea anymore. I sure did get sick and threw it up. Gross!
After I felt a little better, it was time for Drew to give me my PIO shot. I, honestly, was terrified. The needle is huge! I'll have to take a picture to compare the needle from the Ganirelix (tiny) and the needle from the PIO (huge). I worried for nothing!
First, let me back up and talk about my trigger shot on Thursday. That needle was the biggest that we had done so far, so I was a little worried. And Drew had to give it to me in my butt cheek. At first, I went to lean over the kitchen counter because I wanted something to support me. Drew tried to stick me and didn't do it hard enough, so it just poked me and hurt. So, he tried it again, and still didn't break the skin! I was in a little pain at this point, and slightly annoyed, so I went to go lay flat on the couch. Thankfully, the third try, he broke skin and gave me the shot. So, that's why I was a little worried about the PIO last night.
Thankfully, Drew had perfected his sticking skills and he managed to break skin the first try and it didn't even hurt at all. Of course, my muscle is really sore today and it hurts to sit.
The clinic called me this morning with the fertilization report. Out of the 13 egg, 7 were mature, and 5 fertilized! They are going to call us again tomorrow to let us know how they are growing.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
It's a Go
I had my final monitoring appointment this morning.
I just can't believe that we're at this point. It's surreal. I'm going to (hopefully) have babies growing in just a few days.
I just can't believe that we're at this point. It's surreal. I'm going to (hopefully) have babies growing in just a few days.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Monitored
This morning was my first monitoring ultrasound. The RE said that everything looks great and that I'm supposed to continue what I've been doing. I go back in on Thursday for another monitoring ultrasound. Based on that ultrasound, we will make plans for the egg retrieval. As of right now, we're still scheduled for Saturday, but that could go forward or back a day.
Yesterday and today have been a little rough. I'm starting to feel kinda crappy. When I told the RE about some of the side effects, he told me that it's just because of all of the hormones and that it's to be expected.
I need to vent a little bit about my RE's office. I hate, hate, hate feeling like my questions aren't valid or that I'm stressing because I'm asking questions. I get so nervous to ask them any type of question because they act like I shouldn't be worrying about it. I'm not going back to the ob/gyn that I used to go to because of this. I totally understand that these people do treatments with patients everyday, but I don't. This is my first rodeo, and I want to be hand held for the first time. I want to know everything that is going on. I want to know how many follicles I have and how big they are. And I want them to answer my question and take some time to talk to me. I hate feeling like a freaking number in their assembly line of patients. It's frustrating, and I'm frustrated about it.
Thankfully, I know some ladies who have been through this and can help to answer my questions. Thanks girls!!!
Yesterday and today have been a little rough. I'm starting to feel kinda crappy. When I told the RE about some of the side effects, he told me that it's just because of all of the hormones and that it's to be expected.
I need to vent a little bit about my RE's office. I hate, hate, hate feeling like my questions aren't valid or that I'm stressing because I'm asking questions. I get so nervous to ask them any type of question because they act like I shouldn't be worrying about it. I'm not going back to the ob/gyn that I used to go to because of this. I totally understand that these people do treatments with patients everyday, but I don't. This is my first rodeo, and I want to be hand held for the first time. I want to know everything that is going on. I want to know how many follicles I have and how big they are. And I want them to answer my question and take some time to talk to me. I hate feeling like a freaking number in their assembly line of patients. It's frustrating, and I'm frustrated about it.
Thankfully, I know some ladies who have been through this and can help to answer my questions. Thanks girls!!!
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Alllll By Myseeeelf
Drew got called out of town for work, so I'm on my own for a couple of days. He's going to California, Hawaii, Japan, Kurdistan (?), Germany, Canada, Kentucky, Texas, and back home. Basically, he's flying around the world in 4 days. He's scheduled to be back Tuesday.
Here's another vlog (Are you guys liking these?) updating on how the injections are going.
Monday is my first ultrasound. I'm hoping for some good follicle growth news.
Here's another vlog (Are you guys liking these?) updating on how the injections are going.
Monday is my first ultrasound. I'm hoping for some good follicle growth news.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Baby Makin' in a Box
I had the biggest headache of my life yesterday trying to get all of my medication ordered for this IVF cycle. The nurse called me in the morning to let me know that everything was a go, and that she ordered my meds. Shortly after that, the pharmacy called me to let me know what meds and how much it was going to cost. The cost, of course, came to a lot more than I thought it should have come to. After spending a good portion of the morning on the phone with people, Drew and I had called the necessary people and were just waiting for calls back. Of course, those calls didn't come until about 6:15 PM. The total they told me in the morning was right, for the most part, so they ran my debit card.
Declined!
Of course. The card has a daily limit on it, and so I needed to call and have the limit removed for the day. However, we're big idiots, and bank at a small, local bank, and they were closed. They don't even have an after hours number to call so that I could raise my limit. Ok, no problem, I'll just transfer some money around online and use a different card. Except that even the online banking is apparently closed after hours and I couldn't even transfer money. Are you freaking kidding me!!!
So, I had to put some of the balance on a credit card (Grrrrrr!!!!!) and they overnighted my meds to me.
They arrived here this morning. Before you watch, just know that my husband is never allowed to operate the camera with my nice lens on it again. Big dummy didn't realize that he could focus it, so practically the entire video is blurry. Amateur!
(Did I mention that I'm sorry that it's blurry? Because I am!)
All of my medications for display. I was actually expecting more, honestly.
The nurse called me back earlier this afternoon and let me know that she wanted me to start injections today. Drew and I headed into the office so that she could give us a lesson on the injections, and so I could get my calender of dates.
I started 200 iu Follistim injection this afternoon. I continue with 200 iu daily until Saturday. On Saturday, I will still continue the 200 iu of Follistim, but I will also add in an injection of Ganirelix and Estradiol (oral pill). I have my first ultrasound scheduled for Monday, May 16. The nurse said that I will probably have an ultrasound on Monday and Thursday. I have a tentative egg retrieval (ER) of Saturday, May 21 and a tentative embryo transfer (ET) of Thursday, May 26.
Drew and I did the first injection earlier this afternoon. I got the pen prepped and Drew administered it. It actually wasn't awful. The needle is pretty tiny. It burned slightly as he was injecting the medication, and afterwards, the injection site was a little itchy and burny. After a few minutes, it went away and I feel totally fine now. Let's just hope that they all go that well and that I continue to feel fine.
Declined!
Of course. The card has a daily limit on it, and so I needed to call and have the limit removed for the day. However, we're big idiots, and bank at a small, local bank, and they were closed. They don't even have an after hours number to call so that I could raise my limit. Ok, no problem, I'll just transfer some money around online and use a different card. Except that even the online banking is apparently closed after hours and I couldn't even transfer money. Are you freaking kidding me!!!
So, I had to put some of the balance on a credit card (Grrrrrr!!!!!) and they overnighted my meds to me.
They arrived here this morning. Before you watch, just know that my husband is never allowed to operate the camera with my nice lens on it again. Big dummy didn't realize that he could focus it, so practically the entire video is blurry. Amateur!
(Did I mention that I'm sorry that it's blurry? Because I am!)
The nurse called me back earlier this afternoon and let me know that she wanted me to start injections today. Drew and I headed into the office so that she could give us a lesson on the injections, and so I could get my calender of dates.
I started 200 iu Follistim injection this afternoon. I continue with 200 iu daily until Saturday. On Saturday, I will still continue the 200 iu of Follistim, but I will also add in an injection of Ganirelix and Estradiol (oral pill). I have my first ultrasound scheduled for Monday, May 16. The nurse said that I will probably have an ultrasound on Monday and Thursday. I have a tentative egg retrieval (ER) of Saturday, May 21 and a tentative embryo transfer (ET) of Thursday, May 26.
Drew and I did the first injection earlier this afternoon. I got the pen prepped and Drew administered it. It actually wasn't awful. The needle is pretty tiny. It burned slightly as he was injecting the medication, and afterwards, the injection site was a little itchy and burny. After a few minutes, it went away and I feel totally fine now. Let's just hope that they all go that well and that I continue to feel fine.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Sunday, May 1, 2011
All Grown Up
On Friday, I took my younger brother and sister's senior pictures. I can't believe that they're all grown up and graduating high school. Where does the time go?
(I probably won't blog a lot about my photography business here, but since it's family, I'm going to blog about this session.)
Friday, late afternoon, we went to a park close to my house. I knew that Rachel would enjoy getting her photos done, but I didn't think Greg would. Surprisingly, he seemed to really enjoy himself. And I got some great images from him.
I am really proud of these images. I got so many winners.
Since I am apparently an idiot, I told my mom that I would have the pictures ready for her today. That's right, 2 days after I shot them. Big mistake. I'm not a big fan of the editing process and I didn't get to take nearly as many breaks as I like to. Bummer! Needless to say, I won't be making a promise like that again!
Surprisingly, I didn't shed a tear while shooting their session. I'm not making any promises about their graduation day though!
(I probably won't blog a lot about my photography business here, but since it's family, I'm going to blog about this session.)
Friday, late afternoon, we went to a park close to my house. I knew that Rachel would enjoy getting her photos done, but I didn't think Greg would. Surprisingly, he seemed to really enjoy himself. And I got some great images from him.
Since I am apparently an idiot, I told my mom that I would have the pictures ready for her today. That's right, 2 days after I shot them. Big mistake. I'm not a big fan of the editing process and I didn't get to take nearly as many breaks as I like to. Bummer! Needless to say, I won't be making a promise like that again!
Surprisingly, I didn't shed a tear while shooting their session. I'm not making any promises about their graduation day though!
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