I heart Petri & Titi

ET (Embryo Transfer) was yesterday at 7am.
I got to the RE a little before 7am. They had me change into a hospital gown and took my blood pressure and vitals. They handed John a one piece "Ghostbusters" looking white jump suit and shoe covers to put on. They pulled the curtain and instructed me to slowly drink my 24 oz water bottle over the next 45 minutes because I needed to have a full bladder for the procedure.
Just as I was feeling as though I needed to pee, they came in to get us. They wheeled us into the OR and I switched beds. Once in the OR, the embryologists from the lab came and asked to me state my name out loud and they looked at my hospital bracelet. When they were sure it was me, they went and got my 2 embryos. The doctor instructed us to look at a wall mounted flat screen TV, where our last name appeared on a clear circle. The picture became blurry as they increased the zoom, and there they were. Two perfect circles with little circles inside them: Our embryos.
The doctor said they were high quality 8 cell embryos.
The embryologists brought them into the ER in a long syringe. They were inserted into my uterus and that was it. Painless and easy. Though I still had residual pain from the ER on Tuesday, this procedure did not hurt.
As I was leaving the OR, the doc handed me a small petri dish with my name on it. He called it their first cradle. I thought that was cute and I cherish it. He also gave me a certificate describing the quality of my embies. A birth certificate of sorts.
They wheeled me back to the original room and I was instructed to lay flat for one hour. This was uncomfortable because I had a very full bladder. After one hour, I was allowed to go to the bathroom. I was then released.
I have the normal fears of a first timer. Can I pee the embies out? If I stand up too soon will they fall out? I said I prayer to God, releasing the worries to him. I told him that I would just do my part for it to be successful, but the rest was in his mighty hands.
Ofcourse, I still have some worry and am being extra careful. However, I do feel much better.
I have named my embies: Petri for petri dish & TiTi for test tube. The names are cute and they make me laugh.
So, I'm spending another day on the couch. My husband is being a great care taker. My parents took care of me yesterday while my husband was at work. They are great care takers too. I am blessed.

Ok, everyone, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE we are not out of the woods, prayers are crucial, so please don't stop!! Thank you!

Commercial that ALWAYS makes me cry

Since I have been off of work all summer, I have been watching "The Duggars: 19 Kids and Counting" in the morning. This commercial plays every morning and makes me tear up --it stirs up some strong emotions in me every time I see it.



Tomorrow is embryo transfer day!!! It was so strange K Love radio called my cell phone randomly today and asked if I had a prayer request. I had not contacted K Love since my birthday when I made a donation to them. Of all days to randomly call, I take it as a sign from God.
The man on the phone said that I should know that I have a small army at K Love praying for me to become pregnant and have a baby. That phone call was so encouraging and such great timing. It can only be from the one and only-- GOD!

‘Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ Isaiah 41:10

God bless y'all~

Stow aways

So, last post I said I had 12 eggs. It turns out, I had 19 eggs! That explains the degree to which my stomach is hanging out. I am so bloated, I already look pregnant!
So, here are my counts:
19 eggs
14 mature
5 immature
14 fertilized
13 embryos

Yeah! I have 13 embies growing in the incubator right now. Potential children, growing outside of my body. God is good!
Two will be transferred on Friday and the remainder will be cryo- preserved (frozen). Please continue to pray! So far so good!!!!

12

I had my egg retrieval today!

I got there at 6:30am and they asked me to change into an oh-so-sexy hospital gown. Once changed, they had me sit in a bed for about 40 minutes as we waited for the meds to kick in from my IV drip. John gave me a kiss before they wheeled me off to the operating room. I remember entering the OR and having to move beds. Then nothing.. I was out.
Next thing I know, I woke up back in the room I had started out in. They took my vitals and then called John out of the waiting room to see me. I will still quite out of it and don't remember the conversations that John says we had.
We had to wait for an hour before they released me. They took my vitals a few more times before I changed back into my clothes.
The doctor told me that they had retrieved 12 eggs. 8-10 is the average, so that was a great outcome!
The rest of the day has been quite painful. It hurts to walk, cough, laugh and even (TMI) pee! I have been resting on the couch all day, dozing in and out of sleep.
I am excited to find out the fertilization rate tomorrow to see how many embryos we have! Thank you to my friends and family for the prayers and support!

Little update

I finished my stims yesterday. They were not as bad as I thought. With me only feeling sick the last two days. With a prayer, I closed my eyes and took my trigger shot tonight. One last boost for my little oocytes!
Tuesday the doc will go in and retrieve the multiple eggs that have developed due to the stimulation shots (stims). The eggs will be fertilized outside of the body and grown for a few days. On Friday, the best two will be transferred.
Then starts the hardest 2ww of all. I hope to do a lot of fun things during the 2ww. Distractions to make the anxiety, craziness, and unbearable curiosity of the 2ww manageable.
Why is this 2ww so hard? What exactly is riding on this?
1)IVF is the dead end of the baby making road. It is intimidating to know that there are no other options available to you, outside of more $11,500 IVF cycles & $3,000 in meds.
2) I have exceeded my lifetime infertility insurance benefits. That means ANYTHING I have done related to infertility has to come out of pocket from now on. Just to give you an idea, one of my medications cost $1,800.
3) Because I have not allowed myself to think negatively. I feel that it will taint the outcome. So, if things go south, I am by NO means prepared to handle that. (Becuase it is NOT an option)
4) Because people know. People will want to know the outcome, whether good or bad.
5) My mom and I have bought some baby clothes. (I know, I am torturing myself)
6) Because we long so much for a baby it hurts. It hurts all over, in my heart, my soul, my mind, in my core...

Please pray for us! Particularly on Tuesday and Friday of this week.
Love to all!

Psalms 113:9
He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the LORD.