IUI#1 CD17 2DPI - Sore

Oddly, my lower abdomen area has felt sore the past couple days. I had a lot of cramping around the day of IUI, but yesterday and today I've continued to feel sore (which is a similar feeling to having to pee), almost as if the muscles in there are bruised. >.< Not sure what's up with that.

I took a pregnancy test last night, just to see if it was really true that the trigger shot would show up. At first I didn't think there was anything there, but when I let it dry overnight, this morning there was a second line about half as dark as the first. I also realized, though, that I only had three more test strips (and an expired Clearblue digital) left from my attempts in 2011. So this morning I'm ordering more. And not knowing how soon they'll arrive, I might not start testing out the trigger on Monday, but wait until Wednesday. Then I can
test Weds, Thurs, Fri - by then I'll be 9DPI and hopefully the trigger will be gone - and hopefully the new tests will arrive by then so I can start using them over the weekend and into the next week. Of course, if they haven't arrived, then I'll probably use my CBE digital on Monday, but if it's positive I'll take it apart to double-check, and I might also go buy some more at a store. A lot of the reviews I've read of the CBE say it can give false positives. And, mine is expired anyway.

Still don't feel remotely close to pregnant. Hoping next week goes by fast. If I have a fertilized egg it should be arriving in the uterus over the weekend, and could implant as early as Monday. Wednesday through Saturday is more likely, though.

Financially this will be a tight month... it will be better once I can file my taxes and use the returns to pay off my credit card. I should get *just* enough back to pay it off. Also, my car is paid off so that's helped a lot. But Kaitlin needs a couple months of no household bills in order to save up for her dental work, so I'm covering those on my own for February and probably March and April too. Should mean she'll have enough for her teeth in May... I'm hoping so, anyway.

Will be repainting my nails this weekend for Valentine's Day! And redecorating my office on Monday. It's the little distractions that help right now, LOL...

IUI#1 CD16 1DPI – Not Feeling Very Pregnant

Well, yesterday was interesting after that IUI. I was bloated, gassy, and crampy most of the day. When I woke up this morning I had about the same symptoms, but to a much lesser degree. And, well… I don’t feel very pregnant, LOL.

Of course, that’s because I’m NOT pregnant yet. I wouldn’t actually be pregnant until implantation, which won’t happen for another week or so. I do plan to do what some of the ladies on the forums suggested and “test out the trigger shot.” Basically, the Ovidrel shot is a high dose of HCG, the hormone that a pregnancy test is looking for. The shot causes your body to ovulate, but the hormone lingers around in your system for a while. So if I were to use a pregnancy test right now it would likely be positive. What the ladies suggest is using a pregnancy test starting about 5DPI, and then every day after, in order to watch the HCG dissipate from my system (the second line should get progressively lighter, then go away.) Then, if the line comes back in subsequent tests, I’ll know it’s a real positive and not just the trigger.

5DPI will be Monday, and I have a ton of little cheap pregnancy test dip-sticks from my last rounds of TTC. So starting Monday I’ll be testing. The trigger should fade from my system around 9 – 11DPI, which is next weekend… and then I can start watching to see if I get a positive.  Of course, if the line never fades (which might happen if embryos were to implant early) then I guess I won’t get to see the trigger disappear. Not that I’d be disappointed, if that were the case. :P

My temp did rise this morning, indicating I ovulated yesterday. I am hoping that I released both big follies… I am actually hoping, too, that both eggs fertilized, to increase the chances of at least one implanting. I am also hoping that only one implants. :P But it’s cool to think that if at least one of them did get fertilized, our embryo’s gender is already decided. The chromosomes have already begun combining and maybe the embryo is already starting to go through cell division as it floats down the fallopian tube toward the uterus… I like to try and picture what it must look like. In the next week or so the egg(s) would reach the uterus and try to attach to the uterine lining. That’s when I hope that at least one of them implants, nice and solid.

I know the chances are far greater that I won’t get pregnant, than they are that I will. Still, with two follicles I might just have two 20% chances rather than one. Assuming, of course, that at least one of the eggs is high enough quality to survive until implantation. 

In the meantime, a few more pics from our IUI adventure yesterday.

IUI#1 CD15 – Swimmers on their way!

I finally got back to the office after our IUI procedure this morning. We got up early, drove separately to the doctor’s office (because our workplaces are in opposite directions), waited about 40 minutes while they thawed our swimmers, then went into the procedure room. Here we are hanging out in the lobby...

The procedure was less uncomfortable than I’d anticipated. I also got Kaitlin to take a video while it was being done. :P I peppered the nurse with questions. They’re not going to give me progesterone… they just want me to call them if I haven’t gotten my period by Valentine’s Day. She said I could start testing at day 14, which is February 12^th. I don’t know if I’ll be able to hold out that long… I may start testing earlier. I actually find BFN’s less disappointing if I test for many days in a row, with each day being a little more warning that it didn’t work, than to wait and wait and then test and only get a negative… or have AF show up.

I also asked her, rather anxiously, if she was very sure my follicles were still in there and I hadn’t ovulated yet. She said that with a trigger shot they pretty much always know when ovulation will happen, 36 hours later, and that I was probably ovulating right about when we were doing the insem. She also said I had some good, fertile CM and my cervix was very open, both good signs. She had a little trouble getting the catheter in – I guess my cervix is a little bendy – but then there didn’t seem to be any problem once it was in there.

She also said that I had 10,120 million sperm in my sample, and that anything above 10 million is good.  She let us keep the little vial, too.  According to its label, the sample was obtained on 1/23/2013 – an interesting tidbit.

So now we wait. I made the mistake yesterday of googling pregnancy results for women with high FSH. The results were pretty depressing, with a lot of the medical sites neatly declaring that it was pretty much impossible for such women to get pregnant with their own eggs. Something about how our eggs fertilize fine and divide fine, but don’t live long enough to implant because they don’t have enough mitochondria to sustain them for the week or so between release from the ovary and implantation.  It was really discouraging. I told Kaitlin about it and, in her typical geek-girl way, she responded that my eggs have The Force… then waved her hand over me going “The Force is strong in you.” LOL.

I also found quite a few stories of ladies who had high FSH and were able to get pregnant . So I’m trying not to be too doom-and-gloom about it. But I also hate getting my hopes up if my chances aren’t good… I guess I’d just prefer to be sure that I have realistic expectations . The doctor is kind of maddeningly vague about my chances. I understand, because they don’t have a crystal ball any more than I do, but goshdarnit I really wish I had some hard and fast numbers tailored to my own body – not  “the average woman has a 20% chance” but “YOU, personally, have a ___% chance.” Course, I can wish all I want and that doesn’t make it happen. :P

So the nurse told me I would almost assuredly have cramping, and to take Tylenol but no ibuprofen products as those might interfere with implantation.  I do feel crampy now… not sharp contracting cramps like the really bad AF ones, but more like that general hyper-sensitivity and heaviness that I get throughout my AF cycle. It’s funny because I never really thought of that as cramping, but I guess that’s really what it is. I’m feeling it more on my left side than my right… no idea if that means anything, but my left side was the one that had three follies so who knows?

And now comes the hardest part of this entire process... the waiting. Waiting, for two weeks, to see if my period starts. To see if I get a positive pregnancy test.  And there’s literally nothing further I can do to help the process, except continue to take my prenatal vitamins. At least up to this point there’s been something I could DO. Some action I could take every few days or so. Not now. Now, we wait.

I did get the hooks off of my teeth last night at the dentist, and got my teeth cleaned, so the projects I’m going to try and focus on during this TWW is getting our engagement photos taken, getting Kaitlin’s bills reorganized, and decorating my new office at work.  I also have an embroidery project for the SCA that I have to start working on like a madwoman starting this weekend. So I’m going to try and stay busy and not get either too excited or too pessimistic. Whatever’s going to be will be…

IUI#1 CD14 - IUI is scheduled!

I left work early yesterday afternoon, because it had started to snow heavily and I needed to get all the way downtown to pick up my Ovidrel trigger shot meds from one of the only pharmacies in town that carry it. The roads were scary --  my tiny Toyota Yaris is in desperate need of new tires and has no traction -- and it took me an hour and a half to get there, then a little while longer to actually find the pharmacy. But I did get there in time, and picked up the shot ($167.99, ouch), then spent another hour and a half in the car on the way home. Made dinner and waited anxiously for Kaitlin to make it home, because I was really hoping she would give me the shot since poking myself with a needle is frightening.

She did make it home in time. I swear I was hyperventilating and whimpering. I have a fear of pain, which usually turns out to be far worse than the actual pain itself. In this case, the needle of the Ovidrel is so tiny I actually felt no pain. Not even pinching or pressure. In fact, Kaitlin gave me a static shock with one of her kisses last night, and that hurt more than this. So I felt kind of silly, afterward, for being so scared. I also had a bit of an adrenaline rush, because I think I'd psyched myself out. Now that I know the shot isn't painful, if I have to do this again I think it will be a lot less traumatic.

So I've done the trigger shot, and my IUI is scheduled for Wednesday morning at 8 AM. I'm going to have to book it back down to work right after, because there's a meeting I have to attend at 10 - one I have to spend most of today preparing for. But then, our first two week wait (TWW) will begin... just waiting to see if I get pregnant or not. The doctor reminded me again that with two follies we could end up with twins. But she also said that my bloodwork from Saturday showed that my FSH level had gone down, from 14 to 11. It's still more elevated than they like to see, but it had improved a lot... which is a good sign and makes me hopeful.

At the IUI appointment, I need to find out if they want me on progesterone for the TWW. If they do put me on progesterone, then, I'll need to find out if a regular pregnancy test will work or if they want me to do a blood test. I'm already on CD14, which is past when I normally ovulate. But I haven't had any temp rise or positive OPK, so my hope is that I will ovulate on schedule with the trigger shot, and the timing will be good.

The TWW is going to be torture. It's the not-knowing for fourteen DAYS that seems endless. On the plus side, though, if we are pregnant... we should find out right around Valentine's Day. Since we've decided not to do much in the way of V-Day presents this year (because of money issues), finding out that we're pregnant would be the very best Valentine's Day news EVER. The ladies on the boards say it takes about six weeks to be able to tell if you're having twins... which may mean mid-March. So even if I'm ecstatic about getting pregnant, I'm still likely going to be wracked with nerves until I'm able to confirm whether it's a singleton or multiples.

I'm all out of OPK sticks now, but I won't buy any more until I know whether this cycle has worked or not... I won't need them once I do get pregnant, and the suckers are so expensive. After work today I have a dentist appointment - I'm hoping that I'll finally get the hooks off my teeth, get a good cleaning, and receive my retainers... and be ready to start whitening my teeth again in preparation for some engagement photos. Hopefully I can find enough stuff like that to focus on during the TWW so that it doesn't seem so long...

I'm really, really excited for tomorrow morning! Oh, here's a pic of last week's blue nails (since this week's are kind of crappy) and my new dark blue contacts from PinkyParadise - I ordered them on a whim on Black Friday and they only just arrived in the mail. :P

IUI#1 CD13 – Trigger Shot...?

Well, I had negative OPKs yesterday. When I called the doctor, she told me that the Ovidrel trigger shot is only carried by two pharmacies in town, and neither were open Sunday, so she asked me to do another OPK today and call with the results. My morning OPK was negative (though I think the line is getting darker) so I called it in and left a message.

I’m actually hoping maybe I’ll still get a positive test before I have to have the trigger, because I believe the shot has to be self-inflicted and that squicks me out. Ugh. I’d much prefer it if my body would just do the surge thing naturally so I don’t have to stick a needle in my own stomach. But, I figure I can’t go get the prescription until after work anyway, so I will get the chance to do at least one more OPK first. Maybe I’ll get lucky and it will be positive all by itself, which would mean we could do the IUI tomorrow afternoon?

Now to call USAA and get Kaitlin added to my account so we can work on consolidating her loans. :)

I repainted my nails twice over the weekend and I don’t care much for either look, so I probably won’t take a picture. I broke a couple nails, too, while helping some folks load Kaitlin’s old washer and dryer into their car after selling them on Craigslist. Happy that she was able to sell them, but bummed that it messed up my pretty nails… sigh.

Really looking forward to doing this IUI. I know it’s coming in the next day or so, but just really, really wanting to get the TWW started so we can find out if it works!!

IUI#1 CD11 - We Have Follies!

Just got back from our morning visit to the RE. I gave them more blood (they had to stick me twice again, ugh) and another urine sample. They did an ultrasound - my first experience with a transvaginal ultrasound. The idea of it was a little intimidating, but it really wasn't bad or even uncomfortable. The ultrasound showed some sort of small cyst or fibroid on the outside of my uterus, though the doctor didn't seem very concerned by it. It also showed two follies in one ovary and three in the other... and on each side, there was one that was 19mm! The doctor likes them to be at least 18, so it sounds like we have TWO good ones. The tech did say that increases the chances of twins. I'm not that worried, though... I think the chances of a single birth double with two potential eggs... and the chances of twins are higher, but probably not as high as a singleton. And there's always the very big possibility I won't get pregnant at all, of course. Since the chances of a procedure working are about 20%, if I DID ovulate both big follies there would still be an 80% chance that each of them was not going to get fertilized.


(And bottom line is, if we did have twins, we'd just figure out how to make it work.)


So I did respond to the Clomid (YAY!!!) and the doctor is now going to have me start using OPKs. Tomorrow I have to call and tell them whether I got a smiley or not. If I did, then the IUI will be on Monday. If not, then I have to come in for a trigger shot - and then the IUI will be on Tuesday. Though I'm not excited about the idea of a trigger shot, I have so much work to get done on Monday that it really probably would be much better to do the IUI on Tuesday instead. The sad part is that Kaitlin won't be able to be there for the IUI procedure, because she has to work. She doesn't get paid leave, so if she misses the hours she misses the pay - and we need all the cash we can get right now.


So no more Clomid for now, just OPKs. We're actually going to get to do this - I'm really relieved, and excited now. I'm so impatient, LOL - it already feels like we've been waiting FOREVER to be able to do the actual put-the-swimmers-in procedure. Also, found out that I will likely not have to pay for the ultrasound, my insurance will cover it, so all I had to pay today was my $45 office visit copay. SCORE.


If this cycle is successful, the due date would be late October. Fingers crossed, fingers crossed...


Also, I have to add that when we were getting into our cars to leave the doctor's office, Kaitlin reminded me to drive safely because I was carrying two potential babies. LOL!

IUI#1 CD10 – The Clomid Challenge

Life has been a whirlwind this week and I haven’t had the chance to blog. But here’s the latest:

Tuesday afternoon, Kaitlin and I left work early and met up at a mental health counselor’s office. We’re required to attend donor-related counseling before our RE’s office can inseminate with donor sperm (or eggs.) So while we were there, we talked to the counselor a bit about the possibility of embryo adoption. As it turns out, our RE runs an embryo donation/adoption program from her office, and she has a waiting list that the counselor said moves pretty quickly. An embryo adoption costs only the amount of the transfer – somewhere from $4000 - $5000; without all of the medications, ultrasounds, egg extraction and fertilization procedures involved with IVF.

This actually is a very attractive option for both of us. Not just because of the price, but because neither of us is wedded to the notion of having a genetic child. We want a child to raise from birth, and I want to be pregnant – but it really doesn’t matter if that child isn’t our biological relative. So if my eggs do turn out to be lackluster, we have another option besides the $20,000 IVF procedure. What we talked about is going through four IUI cycles first, so we can use all the swimmers we’ve already bought. If none of those are successful, then we’ll be looking at embryo donation instead.

Anyway, a little earlier this week another person from the NorthWest forums shared her story on the thread I’d posted about my low AMH / high FSH worries: She said when she was 33, and her AMH was .73, her doctor put her on 50 mg of Clomid, gave her a trigger shot and did an insem… and she ended up with 4 good follicles and TWINS. Whoa. My doctor has got me on 100 mg of Clomid. So I went from being terrified I would not be able to have a child at all, to being terrified that I’d end up pregnant with multiples. My god, this whole TTC thing is the craziest roller coaster I think I’ve ever been on!

Tomorrow I have an appointment with the RE again. This time it’s another blood test and an ultrasound to see if I responded to the Clomid. Then I guess we decide if we’re going to do an IUI. Now, normally I’m ovulating around Day 11, but I guess you don’t ovulate while actively taking Clomid… so hopefully we won’t miss our window. Maybe just MAYBE we might even get to do an IUI on Sunday (or Monday, though I’m hoping not because I have a bunch of things on my plate at work.)  Then our first TWW begins.

In the meantime, I spent a good portion of this week trying to work out solutions to Kaitlin’s debt management, since her student loans are going to come due in March and she has some major dental work she needs done, but doesn’t have enough money for it. I think I’ve come up with a few good strategies. Kaitlin was home sick yesterday so she’s going in to work tomorrow while I’m at the doctor. Then on Sunday we’ll get started on some of her debt reshuffling.

Also of note this week, at work I switched offices with one of my staff members. My new office is at the back of the hall, smaller and with very different furniture. I love it. I love the position of it, I love the arrangement, I love how I can decorate it and still fit all the things I need to fit into it. I bought some little stuff at the dollar store to decorate for winter … crystal beads, a white table runner, a dish of hershey’s kisses and some adorable, light blue, mini snow boots (that actually have lip gloss in the heels.) I’m already planning for Valentine’s day decorating. I feel like this office is really mine. Like I came home, or something. I’m already fantasizing about buying a tiny refrigerator and microwave to stash under my cavernous desk, and hanging all kinds of cute seasonal decorations from the ceiling.  I’ve been so happy about it, honestly, that I haven’t gotten much work done today because I keep staring around happily at my new space.

Oh, and here’s a pic of this week’s nails – I’m redoing them tomorrow. One more week of wintery-themed nails, and then a whole month of Valentines!  YAY!!

So that’s the update for now… fingers crossed that tomorrow shows promising results to the Clomid. <3

IUI#1 CD6 - Complications

After stressing all weekend I finally got to talk to my RE's office this morning. My FSH came back at 14, which is too high (should be under 10). In essence, this means I don't have very many eggs left, and they're not very high quality. The nurse assured me that didn't mean I couldn't get pregnant, and that we could still do an IUI this cycle. She's starting me on Clomid today. I take Clomid twice a day, CD6 - CD10, and then on Saturday they're doing another blood draw to test my FSH again and an ultrasound. They're hoping that the "Clomid challenge", as they call it, will bring my FSH level down - I.E., improve my egg quality.

But I am still pretty worried. A low AMH and high FSH is indicative of menopause. I'm running out of eggs. I should have done this years ago, and now IVF may be my only option... IVF is invasive, and extremely expensive, and there's a high risk of multiple births. That would make Kaitlin happy, probably, but I'm a lot more apprehensive. Can we afford twins? And what if we go through IVF, which is likely to cost more than both our cars put together... and it fails?


I should probably not stress until I know more. I need to get dressed and go pick up my meds at the pharmacy. Kaitlin and I also have our counseling appointment tomorrow afternoon, to use the donor sperm. And, Kaitlin's going to the dentist tonight as she has a cracked tooth. She's in need of some major dental work that she doesn't have the money for, and here I am thinking we might have to do this hugely expensive procedure if we want to be parents....


I guess it's just a lot to take in. I suppose I had this naïve idea that getting pregnant would involve (perhaps several attempts at) putting swimmers up in there at the right time, and then we'd end up with a baby, nice and neat. Now we're looking at meds and ultrasounds and possibly a lot of injections and the risk of twins and it's just overwhelming. I suppose being overwhelmed is pretty par for the course when becoming a parent, though.


I'm debating whether I should self-prescribe some nutritional supplements to go along with the Clomid. Several ladies on the NW forums have mentioned DHEA, but there's debate as to whether that's good or not... and then there are things like Vitamin E and Vitamin C which I'm less worried about taking because they're good for you anyway. I need some more prenatals too, since the ones I have are at work and I only get to take them at work... I really need to take them every day.  So while I'm at the pharmacy I may see about picking those up.


I'm off work today, thanks to a national holiday, but Kaitlin's working so I'm at home alone. I just cleaned up the kitchen; I figure after I go to the pharmacy I'll come back and clean the bathroom, which has needed a good cleaning for a while. Then I don't know what I'll do with the rest of my day, but hopefully something relaxing that doesn't take much brain power. I'll get a picture of this week's nails, too - they're dark blue with silver and blue spangle glitter. Not my favorite of the looks I've done so far but they're still pretty.


Trying hard not to stress but it's difficult. I want this so much... I'm remaining focused right now on how grateful I am to be living in the day and age where we have the ability to see inside the human body, to test things in blood that tell us what's going on, to actually put human eggs and sperm in a petri dish, create the beginnings of a baby, and plop them directly back into a uterus - basically circumventing a ton of the things that can go wrong in order to improve chances of pregnancy.


I will say - I'd be okay with adopting an embryo, too. I'm not inextricably attached to the concept of having my own biological child, I'd just like to experience pregnancy and the raising of a child from the moment of birth on. If that's impossible, I'm also not opposed to adoption of a child who's already here. I'd love to do a foreign adoption, but as of right now most countries have closed their doors to same-gendered couples who want to adopt.


Anyway, I realize there are options, and it doesn't make sense to freak out as if this is the end of the road for us when we haven't even done a single IUI cycle yet. I need to stay focused on the options. The truth is, if it's meant to be, it will happen. And if it's not, nothing in the world that we try is going to work anyway. Which I should then take to mean that I'm meant to have a different life. Maybe traveling and writing instead, I don't know. I'm just not ready to give up yet - and that's good, because I shouldn't be.

IUI#1 CD4 - Discouraged

I think today is maybe the most discouraged and scared I've been thus far in my TTC attempts. Yesterday morning I had blood drawn for CD3 blood work. I waited all day for the call from the office with my results, because if the doctor wanted me on Clomid I'd need to get it from my pharmacy that night.



But they didn't call until 4:10 in the afternoon. By then I was in a meeting that didn't get out until after 5, and the office was closed. They left me a voice mail that the doctor had my blood work, she had a plan for me, and I needed to call them before 5 with my pharmacy phone number. Which I take to mean that the doctor did want me on Clomid this cycle. But they didn't say what my FSH was or indicat whether or not there was a problem. It does appear they intended for me to go on meds, but because I couldn't call back before they closed, and because it was Friday, I couldn't get the meds. By the time they reopen on Monday I will be on CD6. Most doctors have you take Clomid from CD3 - CD7, so it will probably be too late if I wait until Monday. All I can think about now is what if that means we have to skip this cycle? And what were my test results? Should I be worried?



I'd posted on the NW Forums and most of the responses indicated that my low AMH could very well be a big problem... Several other ladies there are also dealing with it and having to resort to IVF. Will I have to do IVF? Can I afford it? Am I willing to accept the prospect of a childless life? I realize I am working myself up when it's possible there isn't a major problem.... But it's the not knowing and the inability to get anymore information for the next two days that's killing me. Why oh why couldn't they have called just a little earlier in the day??



Add to that the fact that Friday's work day was particularly stressful and I am just not doing so well today. Trying to keep busy with cleaning and chores and repainting my nails.... But this is going to be a long, long two days until I can call the doctor again. :( Well, in the meantime, here's a pic of last week's pearly white glitter nails. About to take the polish off and do a shaded blue glitter look...

IUI#1 CD1 – Let’s Get This Party Started

AF showed up last night at around 6:30 PM. I still hadn’t heard the results of my bloodwork, so I called the doctor’s office this morning and here are the goods:

I’m negative for all the bad STD bugs (yay) and have immunity to chicken pox and rubella (yay). I am also CMV+ (yay) so I can use our donor without any worries. But, my AMH is 0.74, which indicates a diminished number of eggs available. I looked around online and it looks like that number is about average for a 40-year-old woman; my mom went through menopause early so I'm not necessarily surprised, but it does mean I really need to get a move on this conception thing before it's too late. The doctor scheduled me for a CD3 blood test to check my FSH. The nurse said that just because my AMH is low, that doesn’t mean necessarily that I’ll have a harder time getting pregnant. Some women have low AMH but a high FSH (egg quality).  So I’m going in on Friday morning at 8 AM to have the FSH test done. They’ll have the results same-day, so if the doctor decides after looking at my FSH to put me on meds, I’ll have to go pick up the meds that day and start them, because Clomid is taken starting CD3. According to the RE office, if AF starts after 5 PM, the next day is considered CD1. So I updated my Fertility Friend chart to reflect that, so I can track the cycle the way the doctor's office will.

Kaitlin and I also have to meet with with a counselor named Barb Hyatt prior to any IUI scheduling. Apparently we are required to meet with her because we're using donor swimmers. We have an appointment next Tuesday at 4:30 - that's going to be a $200 session. So both of us will have to go into work super early that day so that we can leave early for the appointment. I have paid time off from work but Kaitlin doesn't, so she needs to make sure she gets in her full eight hours that day or she'll miss out on some pay.

I logged into the cryobank site this morning and had the swimmers shipped to the doctor's office... they should ship out today and probably arrive Friday afternoon, so when I call to get my blood test results that afternoon I'll also check to see that they received the dewar.  I let my boss know I'll be in late Friday, and will work later to make up the time. 

On a non-TTC note, I have been having the best conversations with my boss lately. We went through a really miserable period in 2012 where it felt that nothing I did would satisfy her, and I was certain she was trying to get me to quit or build a case to fire me. In 2013 my New Year's resolution was to find a new job. Yet things gradually improved throughout the year, and I found out yesterday that she recommended me for the maximum salary increase (3%) for this year! All of our dialogue lately has been so positive and felt so synergistic, like we're functioning as a team. It's been awesome and there are no words to explain just how much this has improved my quality of life, my mental health, my sense of security and confidence. Funny how a change in just one relationship can have such a huge impact on one's entire life. 

Anyway, we’re really moving on our TTC plans now!! If all goes well, our IUI should take place sometime close to next weekend. And we’d be able to find out if we’re pregnant sometime in the first week of February, but shouldn’t be any later than February 8^th or so.

Oh my gosh I am excited. Fingers crossed sooo much!!

I also spent 30 minutes of my lunch break walking circuits through the halls and up and down the stairs of my work building. I really need to do that every day. I don't get enough physical activity during the day - my thigh muscles are twitching now - and it's important, especially if I want to have a more comfortable pregnancy and an easier time losing the baby weight after giving birth. And, I really need to start buying groceries for lunches rather than going out to eat, so I can save the money for TTC costs. So today, 30 minutes of walking, followed by a Campbell's soup and a tuna salad/cracker kit for lunch.

Kaitlin and I are subscribed to Emeals, but we don't stick to it faithfully and end up eating out or eating junk way too often. So that's the other thing... we need to faithfully stick to an Emeals schedule every week and cook at home. And I need some tupperware I can use to pack up leftovers for lunches, or for Kaitlin to take to work for her dinners when she doesn't plan on coming home after work (she often goes to fencing practice or games with friends first.) New Emeals plans come out every Wednesday, so I ought to just make Wednesday my grocery shopping day, after work. I guess that means I'm going to the grocery store when I get off today...

CD23 – Counting down to AF

I called the doctor’s office today to see if they had my blood results yet. Turns out they should be getting them in today, so I should be hearing from the nurses this afternoon or tomorrow. I’m so impatient, LOL… But today is CD23, so if my body follows its average 24 day cycle AF will start on Wednesday or thereabouts. I can’t wait. Once it starts, we really get going with this whole TTC thing.
I spent most of the weekend getting caught up on sleep, cleaning the house, and playing a video game. All things I am sure I will not get to enjoy nearly so indulgently once we’re moms. Kaitlin and I also talked about our home improvement plans, and plans for the baby’s nursery. From the day I bought my house, I had picked out the northwestern bedroom to be a future nursery / kid’s room. It’s been sitting empty for five years and I cannot wait to be able to fix it up and get it ready for a tiny occupant. *hearts*In the meantime, I’ve spent the last several weeks trying to pass the time by painting my nails. I’ve been a chronic nail-biter since high school and have never been able to keep my fingernails looking nice for any real length of time. But lately I’ve really enjoyed painting them and doing different glitter looks, and now they’ve actually grown out. I did a deep red spangled look for Christmas, and then last week a frosty blue with iridescent glitter at the base. Right now they’re pearly white with iridescent glitter at the tips. I’ll probably keep them this way for a week or so, then change it up again next week – maybe combine the frost blue with the white? I haven’t been ambitious enough yet to make an attempt at French tips. I’m going with sort of a wintery theme since it’s January, but looking forward to doing some fun Valentine’s colors next month. It’s a nice pastime that helps make the TTC waiting more bearable. And it’s another luxury that I suspect I’ll have little time for as a new mom. :P So I’m enjoying it while I can.Things are actually feeling pretty great at work at the moment. I got entirely caught up today, so tomorrow I will tackle some projects that have been on my “when I have time” list for too long. It would be nice if this momentum would continue, since it’s rare that I actually get to feel like I’m really on top of my stuff. I’m finally starting to get over this sicky bug, too. Just a little bit of stuffiness and coughing left, but my energy is back and so is my voice. So all in all… today is a pretty good day!

CD17 – More doctors

This is turning out to be the month of doctors. I left work early yesterday and made an appointment with my doctor, both for the crud that I haven’t been able to get rid of in over a week, and the UTI that seems to be developing. Ugh. She gave me some antibiotics (which I had to wait two hours at the pharmacy for – it sure seems like every kid in our neighborhood is sick with something) and I slept better last night. While I still don’t feel 100%, there’s definite improvement over the way I felt yesterday. I feel like I can finally actually get some work done at work.
No call from the RE’s office yet. Waiting on blood test results… In the meantime, today is going to be a chance to put my One Little Word for 2014, CONCEIVE, to use. I have an interview this afternoon with my boss and our business office manager, in which we are interviewing a potential contract company. My boss asked me yesterday to come up with some interview questions. I was drawing a complete blank, honestly, because my brain was still not firing well. After googling the internet for ideas, and even polling my staff (“I’ll be interviewing a potential contractor, do you guys have any questions for them that you’d like me to ask?”) I picked up the phone and called a neighboring county’s human services director, since they’d recently worked with this contractor on a similar project. Finally I managed to put together a few questions that I hoped my boss would find intelligent and appropriate. This morning I got back an email with her finalized list of interview questions, and to my relief most of mine were on there, and they made up the majority of the questions, too. She did rephrase them some, but I feel better seeing that the ones I came up with were not completely inane. WHEW.I am challenging myself to conceive of a relationship between our county and this company, and try to ask questions that would help us do that. Today’s interview will be a chance to put it into action. But for the most part, I plan to sit very quietly and let my boss run the show. I can beg off still feeling sick and barely having any voice, but the truth is that one of the skills I really need to learn this year is to be quiet more often. I need to stop worrying about being perceived as not having anything to say – and not say anything unless it’s truly valuable. I tend to repeat myself a lot or pick on details that aren’t really relevant, and I do that to fill the silence and make a show of participation. But it isn't really a good use of anyone's time, so my goal this year is to make my participation more meaningful, and hold back when it isn't.In the meantime, if this contract is approved, I’ll receive a contract staff person this year. That means I have to figure out where this person will sit, what equipment they will use, and what tasks to assign to them. Lots of things I have to conceive of in order to get the most benefit... Since they’re temporary, I don’t think it's a good idea to assign them a caseload. But I figure this person can provide a lot of the tasks required behind the scenes, in support of the caseworkers… if this person can take those pieces on, my workers should be able to concentrate on just returning phone calls and solving problems rather than processing mail, working reports, and preparing docket files. That’s the plan, anyway. I hope it turns out well.My house is a wreck, so I’m really hoping I will feel well enough this weekend to set things back in order. The Christmas tree needs to come down, and the floors need cleaning. I probably ought to start thinking about a couple of SCA projects too. I might consider going to archery every week. I’m still torn on that, as I’m so tired at night and I don’t know how I’ll feel once I’m pregnant. But I guess after spending such a long time feeling stressed and exhausted and sick, I’m finally feeling more optimistic about my energy levels again. Hoping the momentum keeps going.

CD15 - tired of being sick

Getting ready to sleep on Sunday night. Sunday is always my least favorite night of the week, because when I wake up I have five consecutive days of work ahead before I make it to the next weekend. But tonight it's particularly distasteful, because it feels like I spent the whole weekend sick and tired, and didn't get anything productive accomplished, and now I am facing the first full work week after the holidays... Sigh.
Kaitlin and I did attend an SCA event on Saturday. It was nice to see friends but I had no voice at all and was feeling pretty exhausted by the time we got home. Today I slept late, ate at Village Inn with Kaitlin, then spent the rest of the day on the couch drinking tea, eating way too many snacks, cuddling my puppy and watching Korean drama while Kaitlin was off playing a role-playing game with some friends. Even after an entire day of rest I feel really tired, and I sort of wish I could take a whole week off of work to just sleep and lounge around in my sweats. As exhausting as I expect new motherhood to be, I am truly looking forward to a nice long maternity leave from work where I can do nothing but bond with baby and be a new mom.So next week I will be waiting for a call from the RE's office to find out the results of my blood test. The doctor said that depending on the results she might have me come in for some CD3 tests also, during my next cycle. I'm nervous to get the results... Keeping fingers crossed that they will show a nice, fertile cycle, but I'll feel better once it's confirmed. I am glad, every day, that we decided to go the RE route this time. I don't think I realized during my first TTC attempts just how much more relaxed and confident I'd feel in working with a doctor rather than going it on our own. I think of all the money I spent using multiple vials every month without really knowing whether the timing was right or whether my body was working as it should... At the time I had convinced myself that at home cycles would be less expensive than working with a doctor, but it actually looks like the cost will be about the same... Maybe even less since I won't have to pay for monthly shipping. And the reduced stress, in and of itself, is invaluable. I think if I had it to do over again I'd have started with the RE to begin with. But things have a way of turning out the way they're meant to, I guess, because in the end it was a good thing I hadn't gotten pregnant back then. :PKaitlin seems pretty confident we'll get pregnant on the first try. I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but I have to admit her optimism is rubbing off a little. ;) now, though, I should try to sleep... The real life of work begins again tomorrow. Sigh...

CD13 - First RE Appointment

I'm home sick from work today. I'd taken the morning off for the RE anyway, but by the time we were done it was 1pm and I could barely talk, my throat is so bad. So I called in sick for the rest of the day and I'm trying to rest now.
The RE appointment went great, though I learned I am back to my high school weight now, which was not happy news. Once I get over this bug I've really got to start exercising and eating better. :/ that aside, here's a summary of how the appointment went: We got a little lost trying to find the office, so we were running a little late. When we arrived it only took a few minutes to get checked in, then they brought me back for weighing and blood pressure tests. We met with a nurse first, who went over the info on my medical form, asked questions about past conditions and medications, and we talked a little about my mom because she went through menopause early. Then we met with Dr. Trout, who gave us some info on CMV. Our donor is CMV positive. I've never been tested for CMV, so that's part of the blood work they're doing. Also, because my mom went through menopause early, and that can be hereditary, they want to test certain hormone levels to see whether I still appear to have a good quantity and quality of eggs left. She did say that most women can't get pregnant in the 5-8 years before entering menopause, and that was a little scary... I'm not going to stress about it unless the numbers look worrisome when the tests are done, but it's something I hadn't known before and makes me glad we're not waiting any longer to start TTC.I was able to give her a lot of info on my cycle and the donor we chose. Turns out, we can ship all our vials to the Dr. Office, and they will store them for free for us for 3 months. That means we save on shipping, have all the vials readily available in case one doesn't thaw well, and it will cost us less in storage. So after the blood work comes back we'll arrange for shipping.After meeting with the doctor it was back to the nurse again to have blood drawn (hate that) and give a urine sample, and both Kaitlin and I got flu shots. Then we met with the financial folks. Turns out my insurance may cover some of the diagnostic stuff. I paid a $45 copay for the doctor visit. They're going to bill the rest to insurance and they seem pretty sure insurance will cover it.... That is awesome, because I was expecting it to be completely out of pocket. They also seemed pretty impressed when I told them about our cryobank... I guess they're used to working with the one out of California that charges $700 a vial. :PThe doctor will decide whether to use meds once the blood work comes back. If she doesn't use meds, then no ultrasounds are needed. If she does, then OPKs won't work anymore and she'll have to monitor with the ultrasound. So now we just wait for the blood results, and go from there. The next time I get a positive OPK, I call to set up the IUI. And, they perform IUIs 365 days a year, including Sundays and holidays, which is so cool. I dug out my pregnancy journal last night... I'd bought it years ago in the hopes of getting pregnant, and then shucked it in a corner when it looked like that wasn't going to happen for a while. I let Kaitlin read through it and she really likes it too. I can't wait to get started... Just waiting for the phone to ring with the test results. Keeping fingers crossed that everything looks good. <3 data-blogger-escaped-p=""> And now I'm going to try to sleep this bug off...

2014 One Little Word Project

So I have been reading (slash cyberstalking) a completely awesome two-mom family blog for the past several years. I just love all of the photographs and watching their beautiful little girl grow up, and daydreaming of a time when maybe I'll get to blog photos of my own life with a kiddo. Anyway, one of the things that Wendy does is to choose an inspirational word at the start of each year that sort of guides the year's goals and accomplishments. I love this idea, and really want to try it out for myself in 2014.I've put a lot of thought into what word I'd want to strive for this year. 2014 is a pretty packed year for me, with the number one goal, of course, being achieving pregnancy. But I also want to write my fourth novel this year, and get financially into a place where we can afford to install flooring in our basement and get our home more organized and established. I want to change my name and get legally married. I want to continue my success at work so that my job remains stable and my relationship with my boss remains positive. But of all the things I want to do and accomplish, getting pregnant is so high on the list that I can barely think of anything else, really.So it seems only natural that my word, for the coming year, should be CONCEIVE.2012 was one of the most difficult years I've ever been through, so much so that pretty much all of 2013 was dedicated to recovery. In retrospect, if there were words for those years I think 2012 would be ENDURE and 2013 would be REBUILD. But I'm hoping that 2014 is the year when I will finally be able to make progress again toward my life's dreams. I think conceive not only addresses the goal of getting pregnant in 2014, but it also speaks to the state of mind I'd like to be in this year... a fertile place that generates creativity and production, a word that encompasses both the process of planning for the future, and also holds accountability for nurturing those plans into something productive. A word that combines hope, optimism and luck with personal responsibility - and I think it also continues to speak a little to the idea of recovering from the setbacks I've had in prior years. Looking forward to a year of conception!!

CD12 - Getting ready for tomorrow's RE appointment

We spent NYE at home on the couch, being a sicky sniffly couple together. Awwww. :P We did manage to stay up until midnight for the requisite first kiss of the new year, but quickly lumbered up to bed afterward and went right to sleep. Not much in the way of a party this year, thanks to this bug that's going around.
Anyway, we then celebrated our two-year anniversary yesterday. Since the traditional gift for two years is garnet, I got Kaitlin a pair of silver hoop earrings set with little round garnets, and she gave me a silver and garnet bead bracelet. *love* We had a pretty low-key day yesterday, and wandered around the mall before having dinner at The Cheesecake Factory and going to see the new Disney movie FROZEN (which is super, super cute.) I really wish I could have taken today off of work too, as I’m sitting here in sneezy stuffy gassy discomfort… but there’s work to be done and I'm trying to save up as much of my leave time as possible to accommodate a future maternity leave (fingers crossed!) Our first RE appointment is tomorrow. It feels like I’ve been waiting for ages, even though I think it’s only been about two weeks… I’m so impatient, LOL. The TWWs are going to be torture!! I believe I ovulated last night, according to my temps, cervical position/CM and the positive OPK that I got late Tuesday night. Yesterday I was actually feeling a little sad, because I knew I was ovulating but had no swimmers to make an attempt with. Still, I know it’s better to save the money for a doctor-assisted cycle. However, if our doctor says we can’t try with her until February, I may ask Kaitlin to do an at-home attempt with one of our vials. Today I’m making a list of questions for the RE, to try and be sure that we cover everything important. I asked around on the Cryobank message boards and also did some google searches for suggested questions. So far, the list goes something like this: 1. What are your office hours? Do you close on weekends or holidays? Can your hours accommodate our work schedules? What happens if it appears I need an IUI on a weekend or holiday?
2. How will we communicate with you outside of the office? Will I be speaking directly with you or with a nurse? Who can I call if I have a problem after office hours?
3. What kinds of tests can we expect? How long will they take? How much will they cost? I expect to ovulate next toward the end of this month – will we be able to make an IUI attempt then?
4. What are our medication options, and do you recommend meds? If so, which ones, and what are the costs?
5. Will your office do ultrasounds to monitor ovulation? If so, on what schedule, and what is the cost?
6. Shall I continue using OPK tests? Are the smiley tests recommended, or should I use a different kind?
7. Should I have the swimmers shipped to our home or to your office?
8. Once I am ovulating, what is the procedure to get an IUI appointment? How soon after a positive OPK will you perform the IUI? Is timing individualized, or do you follow set protocols for everyone?
9. How many IUI procedures are performed per cycle? How many vials are used in each procedure?
10. Will the swimmers be tested for motility, etc. after thawing and before insemination? Can I get the results of the tests in writing?
11. Is the IUI performed by a doctor or a nurse?
12. What involvement can my partner have in the IUI procedure? Can she insert the catheter? Is the doctor willing to show her how to perform the IUI at home?
13. What are your pregnancy success rates with IUI from frozen sperm?
14. Can I do all the necessary testing and procedures in your office, or will I have to go to separate laboratories or hospitals?
15. What is the total cost of one cycle of treatment, including labs, ultrasounds, office visits, meds, and the procedure? Are there extra costs for phone calls? That’s all I’ve got so far, but I’m sure it’s plenty for discussion. I’m actually feeling crampy and uncomfortable today, but I think it’s gas… The discomfort woke me up very early this morning and it’s been pretty much ongoing ever since. On top of that I’m still feeling sick and tired… This cold I have has turned into a coughing/sneezing/stuffy head thing that is not fun at all. I called Aetna’s fertility hotline this morning to get registered in their program, but the guy who answered said someone had to call me back. I’m going to try again in another hour or so to see if I can get through. I’m not very hopeful that Aetna’s going to help… I don’t think my plan covers infertility. I’m going to do everything I can to try, though, because this is going to be an expensive process overall. Tomorrow’s visit should cost somewhere around $200, and then there may be costs for initial testing, costs for meds, costs for ultrasounds and office visits, the cost of shipping the swimmers, and the cost of the iui procedure – then I have to buy pregnancy tests. (That part I’m actually looking forward to.)I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much, because I don’t want to be too disappointed if we don’t get pregnant on the first try. But a naughty part of me can’t help that little niggling “what if it worked right away?” daydream. ^~ Tomorrow can’t come fast enough.