No More Waiting

The two week wait is over and it actually went by pretty quickly.  I was pretty busy driving down to Florida for my sisters wedding, which was beautiful! 

Me, My sister and Cousin

  I have to say I was not very optimistic about this month.  I did not feel anything that would make me think maybe the IUI had worked.  So on Wednesday morning I woke up at 4:45 and decided I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep unless I tested.  My boobs had started to get sore on Tuesday night (which has been the only indicator I have had with my last two pregnancies) so I was a little curious at what the results might be.  And they were....POSITIVE!!!

I couldn't believe it!  The line came up immediately and was extremely dark!  I woke my poor husband up at 4:45 saying "I'm Pregnant! It worked!"  He was excited but being tired from work won out in the moment and we celebrated more later when he was actually awake. =)  

I called my nurse Wednesday morning to let her know the results and before I had even heard from her got in my car and started driving to the office to get my blood drawn.  Thankfully she called me back before I got there, otherwise I would have looked a little crazy.  My nurse called me with the news around 11:00 that I was indeed pregnant and my hcg level was nice and high.  They like to see anything above 80 and my level was 741!  I was thrilled and excited but still nervous knowing I had to wait until Friday (today) to do a repeat draw to make sure my levels were doubling normally.  

I got up extra early today so I could get to the office nice and early, thinking that this would ensure I would get a call before lunch with my results.  That did not happen.  Waiting is awful and stressful, but I tried to keep myself busy.  I finally got the call around 2:00 that my numbers have doubled and are now 1469!  My doctor is pleased with the numbers and I'm excited!  Things are going well so far and I have a very early ultrasound scheduled for next Friday at 9:30.  I will either be 5 weeks and 2 days or 5 weeks and 4 days depending on when you count from the date of my last period or date of IUI.  

I hope this next week goes by quickly and things continue to go well with this pregnancy!  I am excited and feel like God has answered our prayers!!  

I hope you all have a great weekend!  I will update after my ultrasound next week!

XOXO

Brooke  

IUI #4

Our fourth and final IUI is complete! 

I called the office this morning at 8:00am to give authorization for them to start the thawing process of my husbands frozen sample.  Thankfully I decided to leave right after I got off the phone because traffic was terrible this morning, it took me almost an hour to get there when it normally only takes 30 minutes.  

When I called this morning to tell them the thaw the frozen sample the nurse told me they had split the sample into two vials and I could choose to thaw one or both.  I chose to thaw both because I want all the swimmers I can get!  I hope I made the right decision, if this doesn't work we will have to pay for Chris to freeze another sample.  

Follicle and Swimmer Count for IUI #4

Follicles: 2 Mature Follicles

Swimmers: 32 Million motile swimmers (pretty good I think for a frozen sample)

Giving the Swimmers a head start!
Just keep swimming, Just keep swimming!

Instructions now are to start using the progesterone suppositories on Wednesday and to test on Wednesday March 25.  So the two week wait begins again!  I am actually headed home on Wednesday for my sisters wedding!  So that will be a nice distraction =)

Have a great Monday everyone!  I will update sometime during the two week wait to let you know how its going.

XOXO 

Brooke

The wait is over, the results are in...

And they are a big fat NEGATIVE. 

This cycle was not successful. 

Meaning it's time to start again. I will call my nurse tomorrow to let her know we want to do one more IUI cycle. I think this next cycle will be our last IUI, if it is not successful we will have to discuss IVF. 

Hope you all are having a great Sunday! I had a good day spending time with  my fur babies at the dog park!

XOXO 

Brooke

One Week Down

We have made it. One week down, one week to go!  

I was pretty busy at work this week which helped make Monday-Thursday pass by quickly. This weekend moved a little more slowly since I was left alone most of the time since my husband is working the noon-midnight shift.  

But I found ways to keep myself busy:

Making yummy food
Chicken, Broccoli, and Pepper Stir-fry and Chocolate Chip Scones!

And I made a sign/picture for my husband for valentines day with all our special dates :)

Only one more week till I test.  I have no feeling either way right now if this month will be successful or not.  

 continue to pray that I will get to see 2 pink lines next Monday!

Hope you all have a great Sunday Night.  Now I'm going to enjoy watching the SNL 40th Anniversary special.

XOXO

Brooke 

Two week count down

My two week wait officially started yesterday since I'm not supposed to test until Sunday February 22, sooooo long!  I have been trying to keep myself busy this past weekend spending time with my husband and fur babies.

The two week wait can be torture: trying to not obsess and keeping yourself busy so you aren't wondering what every twinge or ache means. So how do you keep yourself busy? What can you do to keep your mind from wondering what may or may not be going on inside your body?  This two week wait I decided to comprise a list of things I'd like to do to try and stay busy.

1. Crafts: I have quite a few craft projects I would like to try and complete. So why not filling my time during this agonizing wait by doing things I enjoy. Whether it's making a new wreath or playing with the cricut my husband got me for Christmas I'm sure it will help pass the time.

2. Walking: I try to go on a walk every day, that doesn't always happen, but I try.  I love getting outside enjoying the fresh air and decompressing. ( My dogs love it too and get very excited when its their turn for a walk. With four dogs we have a rotation because I only take one at a time.)

3. Baking: I enjoy cooking and baking. So passing the time making yummy treats doesn't seem like a bad way to go. Plus I'm sure my husband will be thrilled to have homemade cookies around the house.

4. Yoga: I have just start to try and do some simple "fertility" yoga (anything to get a baby, right?).  I found a These poses Pinterest and have been trying to do them.

5. Organizing my Closet: This is something just for fun and I will probably save it for this weekend since it will takes lots of time and my husband will be gone all day working the 12-12 shift, so he won't be around to entertain me. 

6. Work: I'm not sure this should really be on the list since I have to go to work, but it does keep me busy at least Monday- Thursday (I keep my Friday's open to do makeup therapy sessions and normal don't have any so I get a three day weekend most weeks)

7. Taking my fur babies to the dog park: Something we all can enjoy as long as the weather is nice. 

8. Cleaning: I'm a strange person and actually enjoy cleaning my house, at least when I have the time. Vacuuming, dusting and straighting up makes me very happy when the house looks good. 

Those are all the ideas I have so far. If you have any I would love to hear them. And if there is anyone who is also going through the two week wait as well, I hope it goes by quickly for you! 

I will keep you updated on the next two weeks.  Hope you all are having a wonderful Monday!


XOXO
Brooke

IUI #3

This morning we went in for our third IUI.  It went well as far as I can tell and like I always do on IUI day I feel optimistic.  Chris actually got to stay with me this time instead of having to leave right after his part for work, so that was a wonderful change.  Sometimes it feels so strange to think we could be making a baby while I'm laying on a table at the doctors office and he's off at work.  This time we were at least together and able to talk, hold hands and just enjoy the fews minutes I had to lay on the table before leaving.  

FOLLICLE AND SWIMMER COUNT

Follicle: 2-3 mature follicles

Swimmers: 38 million motile (Best numbers so far!)

Foot Five while waiting for the timer to go off!

My instructions now are to begin progesterone suppositories on Sunday and to take a pregnancy test 2 weeks from then, on Sunday February 22.  Oh how I hate the two week wait.   I'm going to comprise a list of activities to help pass the time during those weeks.  If you have any suggestions they would be greatly appreciated! 

As for now I'm going to try and enjoy the rest of my day, thinking about trying not to think about the IUI.  I will be back soon with a list of ways I will plan to try and survive these next few weeks without going crazy!

Hope you all are having a great Friday!

XOXO

Brooke

Cycle Day 11: Ultrasound and Blood work

I went in this morning for another ultrasound and blood work to see how my follicles were growing.  I think I had one, maybe two decent sized follicles with lots of smaller follicles.


FOLLICLE COUNT
Right Ovary: 17mm, 15mm, 13mm, 12mm
Left Ovary: 13mm, 13mm, 12mm


My nurse called with my instructions:

CD 11: Trigger with HCG injection at 5:00pm
CD 12: 9:00am: husband stops at the lab to provide his swimmers
             10:00am: IUI #3 with be done! 


We are headed into the office tomorrow for our third IUI!  We are excited and ready for tomorrow.


Will keep you all updated on how tomorrow goes!


XOXO
Brooke

Excitement followed by disappointment

On Sunday morning I took a home pregnancy test as instructed by my doctors office and was shocked to see a SECOND line appear!! I quickly found the stash of clearblue digital tests I had been saving for this moment and used one. The word PREGNANT appeared on the screen!  I was in total shock. I hadn't thought this cycle had work, but thankfully I was wrong. I couldn't wait for my husband to get home from work ( he's currently working the night shift) to tell him! He was so excited!

I went to the doctor on Monday to have my blood draw to check my hcg levels and my first beta was 110. Which was a good number since my nurse said they like to see at least 80, so my number was above that :)

Today I went for my second blood draw to confirm that my hcg levels were rising appropriately. Unfortunately the news I received was not what I wanted to hear: my levels had dropped from 110 to 73.  My nurse said I have to go Friday for another blood draw to see what the levels are doing. 

I am at a loss for words. I tried to remain cautiously optimistic but I couldn't help getting excited. I have been able to get pregnant twice now, once last March whcih ended in a miscarriage at 7 weeks, and now almost a year later, which seems to be a chemical pregnancy or very early miscarriage.  I am trying to remain positive that one day I will get to be a mom but it is hard when I feel like my body is failing me. 

Will keep you updated on my numbers Friday and where we go from here.

XOXO
Brooke 

Time to wait

I have finished my medicine for this month. No more pills, no more shots!

On New Years Eve I spent my morning back in the doctors office having another ultrasound.  This time they were looking for follicles to see when we would be scheduling my iui. I was looking forward to this ultrasound with high hopes for multiple follicles since they had bumped up my dose of Gonal-F. The results were okay, but not exactly what I was hoping for:

Right Ovary: 19mm follicle 13mm follicle 

Left Ovary: 19mm follicle 12mm follicle

So I had two really good sized follicles (meaning I had to have my blood drawn) which was good but the other two were too small and won't be mature enough to ovulate. I was really hoping for 3-4 mature follicles just to up our chances. (Last cycle they told me we had between 2-3 follicles, so we are starting this cycle off with possibly 1 less follicle already.)  

After the ultrasound I had my blood drawn to check for my lh level. The nurse called me in the afternoon letting me know I would be triggering that night at midnight and coming January 2 for the iui. What better way to ring in the New Year than with a shot in the belly! 

We had friends in town with us for New Years Eve which was great fun we spent the evening playing cards against humanity and laughing our butts off! And after counting down to midnight and kissing my hubby I enjoyed a nice shot of ovideral :)

On Friday my husband and I made our way to the doctors office by 9:30. My hubby completed his part by 9:50 and was off because he had to go to the base to study.  So I relaxed in the waiting room  for about an hour while everything was prepared for the iui. 

I was taken back by 11:00 and on my way home by 11:30.  I am always so surprised how simple the iui process is, no pain or discomfort and over in minutes.  So this month we have 2 good looking follicles and 29 million swimmers to hopefully make some magic happen.  I have now enter the Two Week Wait. This might be the most difficult time of the cycle. There are no doctor appointments, no medicine to take, just time to sit around and wonder, wish, hope, and pray! 

I hope everyone is having a great start to 2015! I hope and pray these weeks go by quickly and there are positive results at the end! 

XOXO

Brooke