IVF in Three Pictures

Some readers have expressed interest in knowing more about what the IVF process is like. My hope is to explain a small piece of what its been like for me in three pictures I took over the past 3 weeks.

There's a lot of medicine:

In the heart of the gearing up for my egg retrieval, I was giving myself 3 shots and taking 5 pills everyday. This went on for a week, one rough week, which brings me to my next point...

There are a lot of doctor's visits and blood draws:

I was going to keep track of the number of blood draws and ultra sounds I had to do this time around, but during that one week, it was four. I should count my blessings, it could have gone on for much longer and been much worse. I got the majority of this 400 page book read while waiting for doctors, ultra sound techs, and registration staff to call my name.

There are a lot of follicles:

These are my ovaries. The small black circles you see are all follicles.

Let me try to explain this the best I can (I'm not a medical professional, this is just how this has been explained to me). Every woman has follicles during her cycles. One follicle houses one egg. In a typical cycle a woman would produce one follicle. If that was mature enough for fertilization, the follicle would burst and release the egg. You know the rest: fertilization by a sperm with the egg. Bam! Baby.

In IVF, all the medication I took was designed to have my body produce as many follicles as possible. Our magical number was 19. Fifteen of those 19 were mature enough for fertilization, and after the doctors put Nick's and my "stuff" together, 10 of those 15 were sent off for genetic testing based on how well they developed over the course of 6 days.

Okay, that was a lot of numbers.

Summary:
Currently we are in the three week waiting period after the egg retrieval (November 17th), while our 10 embryos are having genetic tests run on them. On Tuesday, December 9th we're going to have a phone conference with our doctor and he is going to tell us all about the genetic makeup of each embryo. We'll know a lot more about what implantation may look like after that meeting. After that, we have to wait about 5 more weeks before I can have our doctor impregnate me. Somewhere around the last week of January, but again, we'll know more after this meeting with our doctor.

Any questions?

It has been crazy, and I would not be exaggerating if I said that if I never had to stick myself with another needle it would be too soon. But let me tell you, my love for my husband and my children has grown tremendously through all of this. Nick has been so sensitive to every sleepy comment or hormone induced criticism. I have felt more pain and uncomfortableness in the past few weeks than I ever have before and Nick has encouraged me and been patient with me and tended every need of mine or our children's. He is even more amazing than I ever knew!

During the past 3 weeks I haven't been able to thoroughly play with my children or do any other type of jarring physical activity (like running, horse-back riding, or jumping on a trampoline). I had to treasure different, quieter moments with my children. This trial, while I hope to never have to do it again, has helped me recognize how committed I am to my children -- both the ones already here and the ones for whom I'm desperately trying to prepare.

You'll get another update in a couple weeks. In the meantime, love on those babies of yours!

Hapiness is... Stories Before Bed

Especially when everyone is "reading" their own book.

Let Them Eat Birthday Cake!

Blurry Pictures

Getting one kid to hold still and smile in the right spot for a cute picture is no problemo, but two kids is another matter altogether.

And so the stage of blurry, non-looking pictures has begun...but they are still cute!

As of Lately...

...We're happy!

...We play nice.

...We watch shows under blankets.

...We dress up.

...We bathe.

...We eat (oatmeal with carrots).

...We drink.

...We be merry.

...We're awesome!

...Life is pretty incredible!

I Could Not Have Known

Two years ago I could not have known this morning would be so hard.

I could not have known that it would take every ounce of calm I had to keep from either screaming at her or crying in the corner.

I could not have known that my wonderful Mommy Plans of going to the library would be thwarted by a decision between milk and water.

But even though I could not know those things, I also could not have known that over two years, (with all the tantrums and fights, and screaming for hours) how much I would love her.

I could not have known how much of me I see in her, which is surprising, frustrating, but mostly exciting.

I could not have known how much I want to help her learn, grown, expose her to new and wonderful things, and simply be around her.

I could not have known how even though she brings out the worst in me, she also is able to refine me and makes me better everyday.

I could not have known how happy I am to have her in our eternal family...and how because of her I can better know how much I want James in that family too.

4 more days until an eternity of unknowns with James!!

Why My Daughter's Crying

Have you spent an inordinate amount of time on the site Reasons My Son is Crying?

I have.

If you ever thought you were a bad parent because your kid just threw the biggest fit and you have no idea why or how to fix the problem, you should check out this site.

I'd like to take this moment to point out that toddlers are deranged sociopaths bent on the destruction of their parent's sanity. Their best weapon to accomplish their psychopathic agenda is completely unreasonable, irrational, and over-the-top tantrums for absolutely random and nonsensical crises.

This was yesterday's:

She woke up from her nap.

Anyone else loving that her shirt says "Sweet"?

I love my daughter, I really do. And she is shamelessly ridiculous.

And just to add to it, this meltdown happened because I made Alexa stop sitting on his abdomen.

Yeah...

Remember When...

It's so crazy that such a vital phase of our life is nearly over. I mean, Colorado has given us so much! A Ph.D., two Master's Degree's, 3 jobs, three residences, our first home, countless friends, innumerable memories, and of course, our two beautiful children and their birth-families.

And now we are 21 days away from leaving it all behind us for a new adventure in New Mexico.

So, come and reminisce with Nick and I as we share some, perhaps, lesser known memories.

Remember when...

We moved to Colorado and didn't have a couch so we walked around AFW (aka The Mecca) and sat in these little beauties for a couple weeks until our couches were delivered (and we had a landline)?

We took that hike up the flatirons but only got halfway before your pants ripped in a very inconvenient place and then I had to hike down in front of you so other hikers wouldn't see...anything?

Someone spray painted this lovely message on the garages outside our window (and when this was our view)?

Our rice cooker lid shattered and it looked happy about it?

We played racquetball all the time and you gave me a black eye (and when I had acne so bad I looked like I had chicken pox)?

I took random, "useless" pictures of you...a lot?

We were totally captivated with the Colorado sky (and still are)?

 We went to those Valentine's Dances for grown ups?

We went to like 5 Rockies games in one summer while I was in grad school and we thought a dude with crazy earrings in was worth a picture (and now it's not even worth a second glance)?

We had two cars and they both broke down the same week we moved?

I somehow convinced you to use your finger to desecrate one of our nation's most honored landmarks and presidents?

I used to work with these kiddos everyday?

My making descent food was actually worthy of a picture because it happened so infrequently?

I was a woman of business and wore clothes like this?

 

Our patio looked like this?

You had to do those shifts at the observatory that were so fun and so cold?

We met Gertrude and Helga?

Our new fridge broke and we had to buy a new one only to find out the old one's problem was that the door didn't close all the way (gosh I loved that fridge)?

All our kid stuff fit into one tiny corner (and we owned and had space for a desk)?

Hope you all enjoyed that waltz down memory lane with us -- I know I did! Have I mentioned we are really going to miss Colorado??