(IN)FERTILITY FRIDAY

We are officially 7 days into the wait and it is going pretty well. Honestly most the time we are so busy that I don't really have time to think about it. I've been doing lots of praying when I wake up and go to bed, so hopefully God's plan is the same as my plan. :) 

As far as symptoms go, I am feeling very normal. No pregnancy symptoms, but I have never felt them early anyways. They usually show up around 6 weeks for me. The shots in the booty have gotten a little better over the past 2 days since I have stopped icing the area beforehand. It seems to help the oil disperse more and not be as sore. My left side is definitely worse, but it is a least bearable now to the point where I can walk around. I've been laying on a heating pad for a while after too which is helping. 

The heparin shots in the tummy are now making their mark. Literally, the first few days it was fine, but now there is no hiding the bruises. Time to break out the tankini when I'm in public. When I hit a blood vessel it pools under the skin and causes lumps so my stomach is for sure bigger. It's a lumpy swollen stomach. Oh well. What do you expect when I inject a full syringe in there every morning and night. 

So Wednesday is the big day! I have a dr.'s appt at 8 am to go in a give blood. They test the blood for your HCG levels and then call you to tell you if you are pregnant or not. It's horrible you have to wait all day! I will be taking a pregnancy test that day to help ease the nerves some. It should be accurate by that point. If all goes well I go back on Friday for another blood draw to make sure my levels are doubling every 48 hours. If so, we are pregnant! If not, we go back to the drawing board and start it all again, but we are not even going to talk like that. 

If I'm pregnant, I'm sure I'll be so excited I will do an early post so I don't keep you guys waiting till next Friday. If you don't see anything by Wednesday night, things may not be good. I appreciate all your continued prayers as I need them more now than ever. Prayers for a baby, but also for peace and understanding if things don't work out. I know God's timing is perfect, I just have to keep telling myself that daily. I hope you all have a good week and I will hopefully be back on Wednesday!! 

House Update

With all the infertility stuff going on lately, I have completely forgot to mention how things are going with the house. When we got back from our trip from Cashiers for July 4th we were so excited to see they should be pouring a slab soon. It took like 2 months to get to that point. I thought I would never have a house. Well since pouring the slab it is nuts to see how much work can be done in just 1 day. Last I looked, Thursday, they were working on putting up the wood on the roof! I am getting so excited. Dave literally goes by every single day rain or shine and walks through it all. Twice we have seen some mistakes and let the builder know which I'm sure they really appreciate LOL. Atleast they know we are on top of things. We have been busy this last week and half  meeting with the pool guy, finalizing my last design elements by choosing tile for our master bath, and met with the low volt guy about cable and audio stuff. It is so neat to see it all coming to fruition and we feel so blessed to get to do this! Here are some pics  over a 15 day period. These guys do some work!! 

July 6

July 15

July 20

(IN)FERTILITY FRIDAY - FET TRANSFER DAY

Well today was the day guys! I had my transfer today and as far as I know everything seemed to go well. Now we just need to say prayers that these baby/babies stick. 

Here is a rundown of how the morning went:

I woke up and took my morning meds/shots and they haven't really seemed to get any better. Hopefully soon my booty will start to get used to them since I have another 2 weeks of them at the minimum. Dave & I headed to the Dr. and on the way I had to drink 24 oz of water so I would have a nice full bladder. It is easier for them to see the uterus. When we got to the Dr's office, I put on a nice hair net and socks, but could stay in my dress since I could just hike it up. 

 They called my name and in the room I went. Sorry for the spread leg shot, they were velcroed into the stirrups. I did make sure you couldn't see anything though thanks to the blanket. You're welcome! :) The embryologist came in verified my identity, confirmed I was putting in 2 embryos, and told me I had 4  left. The Dr. inserted the catheter and squeezed the embryos in and that was it. He watched on an ultrasound to make sure it went in well and pointed out where they were. I laid there for about 10 minutes and we were on our merry way.

 I walked at a snails pace out of there hating that I had to be vertical at all, but David wasn't down for carrying me out. Rode home in the back of the truck and have been laying in bed ever since.

I am on a restricted bed rest for the next 2-3 days and then can resume life as normal after that. Still no working out or anything strenuous though until my blood test to see if I'm pregnant in 2 weeks. (really 12 days, but who's counting! me!) Let the 2 week wait begin. Last time was such an emotional roller coaster. I am hoping to be preoccupied enough with the girls time flies by and I don't think about it too much. Here is an ultrasound of our potential babies!! Thanks for all your prayers and support during this It really has been nice people knowing about it this time. I have received so many texts and kind word over the past day or 2 and who doesn't want lots of people praying for them. I do!  

(You can't see much in the pic, but its the little circle where the arrow is pointing, they are next to each other.)

By the way, this is a hilarious article about the 2 week wait but is 100% true how you feel when you go through this. https://www.babble.com/pregnancy/the-8-stages-of-the-two-week-wait/

Progesterone Shots Update

Friends, I had to do a quick post to let you know how the shots are going. Yikes! I was totally misinformed. I was all worried about the actual needle and getting the shot. That part is not too bad. I ice the area for 5 minutes ahead of time and don't feel too much, just a little of the oil going in. However, about 4 hours later the pain truly kicks in. I am so sore!! I feel like I bench pressed 500 lbs and can barely walk afterwards. I seriously walk around like an 85 year old and it takes forever to sit down or stand up. Dave has even had to help me squat down to pee. TMI I know. I can only sleep on my stomach because both sides hurt so bad. This shot is miserable! 15 days to go :(

I also started my heparin in my stomach twice a day so we are in full force with the meds. I finally wrote it all on my mirror so I don't forget anything.

I am getting excited from the big day on Friday! Hoping it all works out and we have a beautiful baby/babies out of all of this! Thanks for your continued prayers!

FET Meds Galore

I know I just did an infertility post, but I just received the rest of my meds in the mail and it is no joke! These little tummy shots seem like the size of a hair compared to these progesterone ones that go in the booty
muscle. Here is my regimen for the next 20 days starting tomorrow!
Morning: Estrogen, Progesterone shot, & Heparin shot
Evening: Estrogen, Baby Asprin, Prenatal vitamin, Heparin shot

 The scary needle & where it goes in! Nice sharpie circles so I know where to do it. LOL

Here are my before and after pics with the Lupron. Not much change, I think it's just from the cruise haha. 

Just wanted to fill you all in so you could feel my pain with me! :) Have a great weekend!

(IN)FERTILITY FRIDAY

 Great week as far as my fertility journey goes! I had my last ultrasound today and everything looked good. We are a go for my embryo transfer next Friday! I also had my blood drawn. Honestly thats the worst part of the appointments. They take a vial each time to test my progesterone and estrogen levels. As much as I don't like doing it, I am hoping to do it 2 more times! The next time will tell if I am pregnant or not. If I am pregnant, I come back 2 days later for another blood draw to make sure my levels are doubling. I'll give 10 vials of blood to hear that good news!!

I have my last Lupron shot in the stomach tomorrow and then the good shots in the rear begin. At my appointment today, they made 2 circles on my upper butt/hip, where Grammy will be administering my progesterone shots. I don't have a lot of meat on my bones where the circles are so I am thinking this will be painful. I will also be starting my heparin this upcoming week. One shot in the morning and one at night. Got to keep this blood thin so it flows nicely to and from a baby! I did go buy a tankini to wear for the rest of the summer, because the stomach is about to get bad. As far as weight gain goes, I have gained 5 pounds since birth control, but I am not sure if it's the meds or from eating 5 entrees each night on my cruise! LOL

I sported my Unshaken t-shirt today to remind me that no matter what happens my faith will remain unshaken and I can get through anything. I have honestly had a lot more peace about it all this time versus the last. I just feel like if for some reason it doesn't work, that is part of God's plan and his timing is always perfect and I will understand and see it from his point of view one day. This is one of my favorite verses and my anthem as I fight infertility! Romans 5:3-5

Here are 2 other verses that are great for any other infertility warriors out there:

I will be back before next Friday with a mid week fertility post, letting you know how the progesterone shots are doing. I am saving Friday's post to inform you on how the whole transfer process went and I will have plenty of time to blog next Friday while being on mild bed rest for the day! I hope you all have a great weekend! And I had to throw in 1 last picture of me sporting my first choker since 2005. I was obsessed with them in high school and the beginning of college and David loved them too! I was so excited to hear the choker trend is back! I'm 100% all over this one! :) 

Paige's Graduation Trip Recap

Paige, my niece by way of David's older sister, graduated from high school this past June and a big present was needed. The family decided that a girl's cruise would be a great way to celebrate! Fast forward 2 months later and here we are finally on our cruise. It was Paige, Gammoe, Emily, & I. We went out of Port Canaveral on the Royal Caribbean to the Bahamas for a 3 day cruise. It was a lovely trip! Here is a recap of the cruise. 

Friday morning, we headed south from Jax to Port Canaveral to board our ship. We arrived around 1, went through all the security checks and nonsense, and then made our way to lunch at the buffet. PS. The buffet was not exactly my favorite food of the weekend. After lunch, we changed into our bathing suits, got a nice fruity drink, and watch the boat sail off into the Atlantic Ocean. 

The first nights dinner was casual. We had delicious food and all went to bed early since everyone was so exhausted from getting up early and traveling.

Saturday morning, we woke up early, ate breakfast, and went for a workout to burn off some of our dinner. We arrived in Nassau at noon and off we headed to our shore excursion which was swimming with the dolphins! I have always wanted to do this and was so glad we finally splurged and did it. Probably the highlight of the trip. 

 The dolphins were so friendly, they came right up to you in hopes you would give them fish.

Our instructor Mikhal was hilarious and made the experience that much better. We hopped in the water and around us the dolphins swam! We got to hug them, kiss them, dance with them, rub them, feed them, and be pushed with their noses on our feet. It was so cool and the facility was really nice and clean too.

 We headed back to the main island from our excursion and then decided we needed to partake in the craziness with the rest of the tourists so we went to the straw market and to Señor Frogs. Everyone had a real good time there.

 That evening we came in and got dressed for our formal dinner night. We were so exhausted from the full day that as soon as we finished eating we went right to bed. Lively bunch huh?! LOL

 Sunday, the boat took us to their private island called Coco Cay. We had a nice relaxing day laying on the beach and doing some snorkeling. The highlight of the day was when we realized there was live music we decided to pick up our stuff and move over to listen to the reggae band. As soon as we sat down, the singer changed from reggae music to christian music. It was so cool to watch people come up to watch and stop as they walked by once they heard it was worship music. The band ended up playing for about 30 minutes and it was amazing! It was like we had our own little church service on the beach. They ended the songs with a prayer and all the strangers gathered together to hold hands to pray. It was just really cool to see all walks of life who have nothing in common share the same love for God.

 After laying on the beach, I headed to bingo (I didn't win) then did some roulette in the casino (I didn't win) then changed for our last night on the cruise. We all went upstairs to the top deck to drink champagne and watch the sunset. We had another delicious meal, watched some karaoke, went and danced some and then called it a night.

 Monday morning we were off the boat early and our weekend cruise came to an end. I had a great trip and really enjoyed getting to spend some extra time with Paige. I think she really enjoyed it and it will be a memory she will have forever. Cheers to you Paige! We love you!

(IN)FERTILITY FRIDAY

It has been a pretty uneventful week as far as infertility goes. I have been continuing with my nightly shots and have added in the Estrogen pill this week. I started with a 1/2 pill once in the morning and once at night. Now I am up to a whole pill twice a day. Sunday it will continue to increase to 2 pills twice a day. To be honest I am not entirely sure what the estrogen is for. I know you need some to get pregnant, but too much can hinder pregnancy. It really is crazy how they have figured out the exact dosing and have it down to a science. It kind of is hard for this Type A girl to just take what someone says without knowing every single step and reason why. I am not one to usually trust a doctor without researching it all, but here I am popping pills for an unknown reason. :) 

My stomach is definitely getting sore and tender. I am running out of room to do my shots and when I hit a spot I have previously given a shot it in hurts a little more. Only 1 more week of these and then we are on to the fun stuff! ;) You can see in the pics below the bruising on the right side from when I hit a blood vessel and on the left there are some little dots from my injections. It's a good thing I have some many moles and freckles because they just blend right in! 

Next Thursday, I have my last ultrasound to make sure things look good and if so, I will start on the progesterone shots in my booty and the heparin in my belly. The heparin is an added shot specific for me since I have a genetic mutation called MTHFR that puts me at a higher risk for blood clots. I took it last time with Blakely for my entire 1st trimester and that is when the bruising really kicks in. So hopefully I will be back next Friday with the green light to go ahead and do this transfer! Your prayers are still coveted and very appreciated!!

 The girls older cousin Paige is in town and we are off today to take her on a cruise to the bahamas for her high school graduation present! I am looking forward to some time with her and relaxing without the kiddies! Let's pray I don't get bit by any bugs and get the Zika virus. That would really halt all these baby plans. (I am secretly freaking out inside!) I hope you all have a great weekend and I'll be back next Friday with hopefully good news!