Transfer is complete!

Today was the day...transfer day! I got the call at about 9:20 this morning saying the embryos were looking good and it was time.

Holly and Randy got here and off to ohsu we went, check in was at 1:30 and we were ready to go. The embryologist came in first and explained how everything was going to happen and how the embryos were doing thus far. There were 5 that were still doing well. He decided it'd be the lead embryo and the next grade down for the 2nd embryo. Transfer was smooth and easy with no complications. We are ready and have our lucky socks on!

This is an ultrasound picture as the embryos were heading on into there new home. You can see the white arrow looking thing towards the bottom middle of the ultrasound....that's the embryos on their was out of the cathader and into the uterus.

After the transfer was complete we got to sit and watch Holly practically hang upside down for about 20 mins. All this while she had a very full bladder. Lol, made for an interesting 20 minutes. Once we got back she has been laying low with her feet up and will continue to take it easy for the next few days.

This was our transfer day gift to Holly. It included a pair of comfy pjs and socks, sour patch kids, Baby Ruth, Runts, sugar babies, pickles, a book called " skinny bitch bun in the oven" and "The Bump Book".

Holly will be going in for a blood test in about 2 weeks. It's going to be a loooong 2 weeks. Please keep your fingers crossed for us!!!

Transfer..Thursday or Friday!?

Transfer time is almost here! I'm 100% positive that it will be another sleepless night while I wait for that phone call in the morning. Will tomorrow be the day..or will it be Friday?

On Tuesday I got the call from the embryologist saying that the day 3 transfer would not be needed because our embryos were doing great and growing well. Of the 10 fertilized embryos, 8 of them were 5 or more cells and 5 of the embryos had a 2.5 grade and above and all with little fragmentation. For those that don't understand these numbers...that's good news!

I should be receiving the call from the embryologist between 9:45 & 10 tomorrow morning to let us know if its going to be transfer day or if Friday will be.

Miss Holly is ready and waiting. Her PIO shots aren't as bad as she thought they would be but she definitely has a tender little booty with some small bruises. She ices her booty for 10-15 mins before my brother gives her the shot so that she's nice and numb and can't really feel much..which is great. However, she was telling me tonight that when the PIO goes in and is spreading out..it tickles! Lol! I've never read or heard of anyone saying that but it's a heck of a lot better then hurting!! Funny girl!


I'm so stinking anxious!

Egg retrieval

Egg retrieval was yesterday! I had a ton of anxiety going into this whole part of the process. I'm one of those people that looks everything up online. Yep, one of those! Which means more then likely I seem to find all the horror stories of egg retrials. I will say, from what I had read, my retrieval and recovery so far has been pretty easy.

We got to the clinic at 8:30am, had my vitals done and was taken back to the operating room. We met the anesthesiologist, he explained what he was going to do, got my IV's started and hooked up to monitors. Next thing I knew Dr.Lee had come in, I was signing one last consent form and my drugs were starting to be pushed on in. Luckily, my husband was allowed to stay in there during the procedure which made it a bit more comforting. About 30 seconds after the meds were being pushed, I was out and don't remember anything until they were practically done. Erik said the right ovary was a breeze and I made no flinches at all. At some point I was up and asked if they had started yet and then I was passed out again, I don't remember that. Erik also said that I was having a conversation with Dr.Lee about the tree farm and all that..lol! It's so weird that I don't remember any of this! I do remember before I went under that Dr.Lee and I were talking about the farm, he was telling me some of his best life memories were out here at the farm. So funny! Anyways, Erik said that once they got to the left side I started flinching a bit and making some painful facial expressions. I do know that I woke up towards the end of that last egg that was being a trouble maker to get and felt some decent pain but after that, it was over.

Dr.Lee successfully retrieved 10 eggs which is more then I was expecting! Although I do know the doc, I am glad he was the one that did my retrieval. He definitely calmed my nerves and made me feel better and really is just an all around great guy! Once I was done they gave me a little bit to recover and next thing I knew they were standing me up and helping me get dressed, after that into
the wheel chair I went and off we were.

Once we were back to my parents, I feel like I slept most of the day. My inlaws came over for a nice visit and after that I was out for the rest of the afternoon again. I had some pretty good pain, but nothing bad enough to take the pain pills they gave me. I hate taking those things and always just try to manage through my pain. I worked pretty well. I took a few Advil later in the afternoon and used a heating pad. Other then that, it's been pretty good. I'm still laying low on the couch through today and can feel some sharp pains here and there but nothing compared to yesterday.

This morning I got a call from the embryologist! Super nice woman! She let me know that they did retrieve 10 eggs, but a few of them were not mature when harvested. By the time they did ICSI last night, they ones that were not mature, had matured. And, ALL 10 eggs fertilized giving us a 100% fertilization!!!! Ohh that totally got the excitement flowing for me! Now we just have hope them little babies keep growing and get themselves ready for transfer which will take place on Tuesday, Thursday or Friday, depending on how the embryos grow. Soo excited!

Poor Miss Holly has been up sick all morning with the flu after Kaden(nephew) woke up with it yesterday. Hopefully she's feeling better ASAP. Don't want her sick during transfer.

Here's to hoping everything continues to go well!


Here's a funny picture, that I totally don't remember taking. Me and Dr.Lee as I was being wheeled out of the office after the extraction.

Egg retrieval & transfer...SET!

I'd just like to say...my life is so crazy right now! It's hard to believe that back in September when this whole journey started it felt like the transfer date was so far away. Luckily, the time has flown by. The holidays were crazy busy, which really helped. On Monday I went back for another ultrasound and showed great improvement. My E2 level was up, the follicles were growing nicely and my faith in this journey was restored. The doctor had me come back in yesterday(Wednesday) for another ultrasound and said I was super close to ready for retrieval but decided one more day would be best. So, this morning I made another trip back down to ohsu for another ultrasound and blood. When I got there my most favorite nurse, Amanda, took my blood and chatted with me for a bit then told me that Dr.Lee would be with me shortly. Shoot! Dr.Lee?! (Incase you don't remember Dr.Lee...Read here!)  Now before I say anymore, I will say, Dr.Lee is wonderful! So very nice and always answers any questions I might have and reassures me when I need it. Anyways, do, Dr.Lee it is! He comes in and does my ultrasound and is pretty positive that I'd be doing the trigger shot this evening. After we were done with my ultrasound we were sitting in there chatting and getting towards the end of our conversation and he says "Well! I am on this weekend, so I will be doing your egg retrieval!" Ah hell! Just my luck! Lol!

Egg retrieval is officially set for Saturday! So surreal, scary, anxious, exciting...just a big ball of emotions that range from one end of the scale to the other! I'm crossing my fingers everything goes well and these egg mature and fertilize well. If all goes well, Holly's appts for possible transfers days are already set. It'll be either Tuesday, Thursday or Friday of this coming week. EEEEK! 

It's weird for me think that after my trigger shot tonight..in about 15 minutes...that's my last shot! Thank god! My poor stomach is all sorts of bruised up. 

Keep us in your thoughts, please. Lets hope my lucky socks do their job and keep the good luck coming!

It's almost time!

It's been a few days since I've updated but there are a few reasons for that. This last Friday I went in for my first ultrasound after starting the stimms, menopur and follistim. For those that don't know, these are 2 of the 3 shots I take daily. These 2 shots help the follicular growth and get them ready for the egg extraction. Fridays ultrasound and blood work was frustrating and I was not happy with the results. The ultrasound showed some follies on my ovaries but not many and not very big, then I got the call about my bloodwork. My E2 was low, which ment 1 of 2 things. Either I wasn't responding to the meds well or I was a late responder to the meds. Obviously, that wasn't the news I wanted to hear.

The weekend came and went and this morning was time for me to sad back down to ohsu for another ultrasound. Today is MLK day, so the waterfront officers were all closed. It was almost eerie walking in that huge building since its normally packed with people everywhere. I managed to get to my appt about 30 mins early and had tons of time to kill..and time to get nice and nervous. Well, turns out not only was I early but since its a holiday the clinic wasn't running with a full staff. My appt was 40 mins late. Not only just mine but 4 other woman as well. Kinda crazy, never seen so many people have to wait. Anyways, when I got into the ultrasound room and got started...I was pleasantly surprised. I could see some large follies without the doctor even needing to point them out. Woohoo! Huge surprise!! My right ovary had the larger follies and my left had more follies but they were medium size compared to the larger ones on the other side. Such a relief to know that they are there and at this point, growing!

The doctor told me while I was there that she wanted me to come back tomorrow(Tuesday) morning for another ultrasound and that she would be calling me this afternoon with my blood work. Well, she called with good news. My E2 levels were up and all looked good. Maybe this really will work! She informed me that while comparing my E2 levels with ultrasound, I should wait 2 more days to go  back for the ultrasound rather then tomorrow. That should be a good amount of time to let the  medium sized follies catch up to the larger ones and then we will be good to go.

If all goes as planned *fingers crossed* I will do a trigger shot Wednesday night and have my egg retrieval Friday. Ahhh! I have to keep in mind that the follies could not grow anymore and that would mean that this whole cycle is down the drain. It's just crazy how many things come into play to make this all come together, all the pieces of the puzzle have to fit. I'm trying so hard not to get my hopes up but it really is only human nature. I just want things to work out in our favor...for once. That's all! Ahh man! There is so much anxiety and emotion that is invested into all of this. It's really tough. Even today, just finding out that I had follie growing sent my mother into a bawling spree. Then I got the call from the doctor while we were out to lunch together, of course, she was bawling like baby in the middle of the restaurant. Lol, I'm sure she will love me so much for sharing this info but oh we'll. Hi Mom, I know you're going to read this! Lol!
 
Last week Holly had one last check to make sure she was responding well to the Estrace pills she's been taking. All looked well but she had to add in 1 extra pill a day until the transfer.

Well, here's to hoping the next few days will be exciting!!!!

PS: check out the bruises I get on my gut from these shots!!!

Stimms!!

Well, we are getting closer. The closer it gets the higher my anxiety gets. It's all exciting but so darn scary. I'm afraid of being heart broken and I literally can't imagine the emotion that will be pouring out of me if all goes well. Lets hope for the latter!

Today I took the trip down to OHSU. Not sure what I was thinking when I made an 8:15am appointment downtown Portland. I'm used to my small town with no traffic, not crazy Portland drivers and rush hour traffic. Oh well, made it down there with 15 mins to spare. I was nervous going in. It seemed like this last week just wasn't a great week in the blogging world for the ladies and my fellow IVF'ers. Thankfully, the appointment went great from start to finish. Last time I had blood drawn it took them a ridiculous amount of poking me just to get some blood. Like, 12 pokes, if I remember right. Last night I started hydrating up like crazy and sure enough, 6 viles and 1 poke was a breeze. I had 3 different nurses remember me from that day because they all took turns. Ha! They all came in to check out how easy the blood draw way today. Looovely! Once blood was drawn in I went for the ultrasound to check and see if the horrible side effects of lupron have been worth it..sure enough, my ovaries looked suppressed. Whew! I was holding my breath most of the afternoon waiting for the call on my bloodwork. Finally, it came. All is well and I am suppressed!

Now I get to start 3 shots a day, 1 in the am and 2 in the pm. Follistim and menopur, hopefully they're nice to me. I also started my first dose of decreased lupron tonight. Woohoo! Lets hope the dumb side effects of that crap start to lessen. On Friday I head back down to ohsu for another ultrasound and little blood. Maybe by Friday they'll have a better estimate on a retrieval date. We shall see!

Let's hope this journey continues down a positive road!

Check, check & check!

Egg retrieval and transfer will be here so soooooon! 

Lupron has been treating me like craaap! If I wasn't sure that it'll be worth it in the end I would have thrown the stuff out! It makes me feel like crap. The joint aches...ermergherd! I feel like I'm 90. It's been sooo cold here lately and I feel like all I've done is stay inside where I can be warm. The minute I walk outside its instant pain. If I have to go anywhere I make sure that my truck is started and my heated seats are on HIGH! The last few days the hot flashes have set in too. Holy mackreal! The other day we went up into the mountains with friends to go shooting and for their kids to play in the snow. It was fun but I didn't do much other then stand around because it hurt to move...but the whoooole time I was having hot flashes. One minute I was cold and then the next I could feel myself sweating. Yesterday morning I was burning up! I walked out in the 20 degree weather and was standing on our back deck in a tank top and shorts...sweating. Today I've got some mad cramping going on..lets hope that means them ovaries are suppressing!  Side effects are noooooo bueno but it'll be worth it. *fingers crossed*

Holly went to the Doctor on Thursday to have some bloodwork and an ultrasound done. I got an email Thursday afternoon saying she was suppressed and was to lower her lupron dosage and start her Estrace. Bring on the thick lining!

We are checking things off our list and its getting exciting!

Today was my last day on birth control. The morning of the 14th I head in to see if I am suppressed or not. Lets hope! 

Earlier I was reading a new blog I found. This woman and her husband are in a lot of way in the same boat as we are. She as well will be going through ivf very soon. She posted this link for her readers to try and make it more clear what happens during an ivf cycle. This is really about as good as it gets for explaining how it all happens. Now if only I could find something that would better explain the whole process of using a gestational carrier. You'll get the idea though...the eggs go in Holly, not me. 

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Hello 2013!!

I can't believe it's already 2013. For as crappy as 2012 was, it sure seems like it went quick. I'm crossing my fingers that 2013 is going to make up for the last few years of utter crap. Ha!

Our Christmas was good. E had to work..boo! Christmas morning I made a huge breakfast for us and a few friends that don't have family in the area. Breakfast was delish! Wednesday morning we hit the road to Portland for Christmas with my family. E's family all spent Christmas in California at my brother in laws new home. We did Christmas Wednesday with my family. Lots of food and fun...prime rib was our main course..SO yummmmyy!

On Friday E and I had an appt at ohsu for our injection teaching. It seemed a bit pointless since I've given myself the shots before buuuut oh well. I guess I didn't realize that I was going to be having 3 shots a day! Not sure how I missed that but man! This will be my routine starting pretty soon!

I picked up all my meds while we were at ohsu. Ugh! As exciting as this whole process is...it's stressful! I still don't understand why the whole process is so damn expensive. Very frustrating at times. This was my total for my meds....and this isn't for all of it. I need a few more weeks worth of follistim since I was only given 5 days worth. Just crazy!

This is what over $2,500 in injection medications look like!

Holly is still doing her lupron shots every evening. She sent me this picture the other day saying that she is officially a human pin cushion. Lol, poor girl. She's such a trooper!

I got to ring in the new year by starting my lupron shots last night. I always psych myself out for shots. They're little needles...thank goodness! I took a quick deep breath and it was over. I was thinking I would need to do it laying down since I'm injecting them myself. Luckily I didn't even feel it go in. I could never be a junkie though, seriously!

My next appt is on the 14th. They'll be drawing blood and doing an ultrasound checking to see if the lupron shots are doing their job and suppressing my ovaries. Lets hope! After that appt I'll have another that week on the 18th and 4-6 more after that to keep watch on everything and make sure I don't get over stimulated. Then on to extraction! After the 14th I have a feeling that next week or 2 will be going by fast. Lets hope!

Off to do my 2nd lupron shot...Here's to a 2013 baby L!!!!!!!!