Happy Birthday Super Doggy!

Today is Zach's birthday!! Our big boy is now 2 years old! ♥

Here is a picture of Zach playing one of his favorite games with Daddy. It's called SUPPPPER DOGGGGY (you have to say in a super hero announcer voice) haha

My little trooper

Ada seems to be feeling pretty good. Although, she never really "acted" sick.

She is taking her medicine like such a big girl. She doesn't even really cry, just whines a little.

She slept well last night and has been great all day, I do think she slept more today than usual so we'll see how tonight goes.

Thanks to everyone who is keeping our sick little family in their prayers, we appreciate it!! ♥

A sick baby and a very rough day

I must have said 100 times while I was pregnant that I was so happy to be having a summer baby because I wouldn't have to worry about the yucky cold season. I thought this would buy us at least 3-4 months, let Ada get a little bigger, a little stronger before she had to fight off those types of germs. Well... not the case.

Last Wednesday Russel started to sneeze. We thought nothing of it because he has seasonal allergies that usually start this time every summer. He wasn't careful about being close to Ada because we were sure it wasn't a cold. I mean, come on, it's JUNE! Friday morning, however, when I woke up sneezing and coughing we started to panic. I was so terrified of Ada getting sick. She is only 4 weeks old, so tiny and fragile still.

Since Friday I have listened to and analyzed every breath that comes out of her little body. Yesterday I felt like Ada may have been a little warm so I attempted to take her temperature. It was normal, but I just had a gut feeling something wasn't right. I decided to wait. After her 3am feeding this morning she cried and wanted to be held. This is out of the ordinary for her, she normally goes right back to sleep with no crying. I decided then that I'd call the pediatrician first thing after they opened and make an appointment.

I took her in at 2:30pm. The doctor listened to her lungs and said they were clear. But when he looked in her mouth he said that her throat was red and she had some drainage :( It took all I had not to start crying right then. It broke my heart that my baby wasn't feeling well. He wanted blood work to determine if the infection we were dealing with was viral or bacterial. For that, we'd have to go over to the hospital.

At this point I was crying. I called Russel because I knew I could not handle the blood work alone. Ada was crying, I knew she wasn't feeling well, and I can barely stand to have blood drawn myself. So Ada and I took a little detour and picked Daddy up at his office on the way to the hospital.

At the hospital we found the lab and got back pretty quick. Emotionally, I was hanging on by a thread. I asked Russel if he could hold her because I just couldn't. When the nurse brought in the supplies I actually asked if I could just leave. I couldn't stand it. I waited in the room next door. That turned out to be a mistake. As soon as I heard Ada start crying I lost it. I felt so helpless, I should have stayed with her.

Because they needed a blood culture they weren't able to just do a heel stick, they actually stuck her with a needle in the arm like they do with adults! :( It breaks my heart to see her little band-aid. I was so stressed out that we got out to the car and realized I left the diaper bag in the lab!

Once we were back at the pediatrician's office Ada was exhausted. I nursed her for about 3 minutes and she totally passed out. The doctor came in and went over her blood work results. He said the blood work gave us "good news". Luckily the infection isn't bacterial. If it were she would have gotten a shot of antibiotics and then been admitted to the hospital for 2 days for IV antibiotics. Since the infection is viral, there is no medicine to treat the infection itself. Basically it has to "run its course". The only thing we can give her is medicine to make her feel better until that happens. She is taking Tylenol drops and throat spray. Dr. S also said to put a bottle of warm water against her tummy to comfort her and make her feel a little better.

Wow, this turned out to be a long post.

I am totally exhausted. I feel like if one more thing goes even slightly wrong it is going to open the flood gates. I feel like I have 3 days worth of tears just waiting to burst out!

We gave Ada her first dose of medicine and it went surprisingly well. I can't say enough about my wonderful little baby. She is so good. Even though I know she hasn't felt well for the past day or so she hasn't been extra fussy at all. She is such a sweet little girl. She is asleep in Daddy's arms right now, he says he feels responsible for all of this because he was sick first.

Please say a prayer for our little Ada. Please pray that her little body heals soon and she feels better FAST. ♥

Crying in the car after leaving the lab. Look at the little bandaged arm :(

Two seconds later...

Ada's First Bath!

Ada finally got her first bath! We've been giving her sponge baths until her umbilical cord fell off. She absolutely hated the sponge baths and screamed the entire time so we were really looking forward to letting her get in her tub to see if she enjoyed it a little more. We were a little nervous but the bath tub was a BIG hit, she loved it! I think next time I won't make the water "bubbly" because she kept putting her hand in the water and then sticking it in her mouth, I'd wipe her face and she'd instantly do it again :) I will spare Ada and not post the bare bottom pics on the blog (but trust me... they are ADORABLE!!! ♥)

Mr. Turtle Tester, checking the water temperature for Ada :)

This looks like a sad face but she was actually very happy
There goes the soapy hand straight for the mouth!

All clean!!

♥ I could not love this sweet little face more ♥

Snuggling with Daddy after her bath

RESOLVE

Resolve is an organization dedicated to addressing the needs and concerns of people who are faced with infertility. June 25 is Resolve's Advocacy day, and hundreds of people will be descending on Congress to support legislation to help those facing infertility, including the Family Building Act of 2009 (H.R. 697). The Family Building Act amends the Public Health Service Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to require a group health plan that provides coverage for obstetrical services to include coverage for non-experimental treatment of infertility that is deemed appropriate by a participant or beneficiary and the treating physician. The bill would also require coverage for assisted reproductive technology only if certain conditions are met. Additionally, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) will be introducing the Family Building Act to the Senate! This bill mirrors the House version of the bill.

What you can do:

• Send a letter/email thanking Senator Gillibrand for her initiative.
  
  
• Contact your Senator to either co-sponsor or support this bill.
  HR 697 has been assigned to committees.

• Contact the House Committee members directly to show their support. (The 3 assigned committees are
  House Energy and Commerce
  House Education and Labor
  House Oversight and Government Reform

• If you haven't already, contact your Representative to support HR 697 as well.

2 weeks old

Christmas in June

Ada and I need to teach Daddy some lullabies.

Last night after I fed her, Ada decided that she wasn't in the mood for Mommy to put her to bed so it was up to Daddy. She seems to really be comforted by Russel's voice so for the past couple of nights he read to her as I nursed her and then continued to read after I put her in her bassinett. It worked like a charm.

Well, last night my back was really hurting so I had him take her. He couldn't read, carry, and rock her all at the same time so I guess he decided singing was best. I fell asleep for a minute and woke up to "White Christmas" being sung over and over and over and OVER. :) I guess it was all he could think of.

It may have been annoying to me, but it worked!!! :)

Story Time with Daddy

♥ Aww ♥

♥ I took this one this morning and just had to share ♥

Ada's Birth Story

Wednesday night Russel and I celebrated our last night as Mandy & Russel before beginning our life as Mommy & Daddy. Russel came home from work early and we went out to dinner. It was such a surreal feeling that evening, I'll never forget it. It really did feel like the end of a chapter and the start of something we couldn't even imagine.

After dinner we came home and got everything in order since we had to leave at 5:30am. We were very at ease when we went to bed. A few nights before we both felt like we were having panic attacks so I really worried about the night before the csection. To our surprise, though, we were very calm and slept about 5 hours. Before falling asleep we just lay in bed and looked at each other smiling. There were no words for what we were feeling but we didn't really need them. I knew how he felt and he knew how I felt.

Thursday morning we got up, got showered, and dressed and headed out. We were so calm, it shocked me. I video taped us leaving the house and driving to the hospital. We arrived and immediately saw my dad standing out in front of the entrance, my Mom and sister were inside. I got checked in and sent back to get prepped.

I got my IV and got to have my family come back and say hello before heading off to the OR. At that point I got SO nervous!! I was so ready to just get back there. I had a blood pressure reading of 156/104!!! They kept checking me and it slowly went down. Once I in the operating room got the spinal it returned to normal.

I was so teary eyed when they wheeled me off to the OR. I felt so alone because Russel couldn't come with me right away, he had to stay behind and get his scrubs on and wasn't allowed in the OR while I was getting my spinal block.

A little after 8am they put me on the table and gave me the medicine. Russel came in and sat next to me. He was so emotional. I think I was too terrified to get emotional yet. It's a very strange feeling to be laying there talking to people and know that your stomach is cut wide open as you speak! Russel kept rubbing my arm and head and saying "You're doing great, you're doing great"

At 8:23am Ada Ann arrived!! We heard the doctor say "Here she is" then we heard her cry for the first time, and we both started crying. They took her over to be examined and then wrapped her up and brought her over to meet us. She was so beautiful!

Later that night we found out from a nurse that Ada received a really low APGAR score after birth. The APGAR tests evaluates a newborn's appearance, pulse, grimace (response to touch), activity, and respiration. At 1 minute after birth her score was a 3 out of 10. They repeated it at 5 minutes and she scored a 9 out of 10. Apparently they had a very difficult time getting her out and that caused a little problem, but she bounced back very quickly. Luckily Russel and I had no idea until hours later. I would have been terrified! Looking back I do remember the doctor saying "You didn't want to come out of there did you?" But I thought she was just referring to Ada being breech. It scares me even to think of now even though I know it all turned out fine.

Wow, I should probably wrap this up.

The lactation consultant came in just after Ada was born to help with breastfeeding for the first time. I was holding Ada and the consultant started to "teach". While she was talking Ada latched on and started nursing! The LC was shocked. Ada took a 25minute feeding! From that point forward I fed Ada all by myself. The LC came in daily to check on us and to check our log (Russel kept a log of pees, poops, and feedings) she was very impressed with Ada and said she was going to put a gold star on her door! Ada has continued to feed like a champ. I can't believe how lucky I got on that one! I can't imagine how stressful that would be to have problems with breastfeeding and I know so many mothers do.

Ada is a SUPER SUPER SUPER baby ***KNOCK ON WOOD*** She eats great, sleeps great, and only cries when she wants fed or changed. We are SOOOO blessed, Ada is making it easy on a couple of rookies.

As for me, I am doing GREAT! I was terrified of not only having a csection but having to recovery from it. I know so many people who have had such a tough time with it. I decided to try to be positive about it from day 1. I have been very lucky so far. I have had no pain at all and am up moving around great. The nurse helped me the first time I got out of bed after surgery, which was the next day. After that I got out of bed, showered, and dressed by myself. I'm now 5 days post op and doing amazingly well. I still have had no pain (I stay on top of the pain meds though) and I move around great. I can roll over in bed, climb in and out of bed, and walk around fine. Another BIG blessing that I am SO grateful for!

Life is perfect. I can't remember life before Ada. I have the perfect husband who couldn't possibly be a more perfect father.

Introducing Miss Ada Ann!

It is 4:52am and I haven't been to sleep, not because Ada won't let me but because I won't let me. I am just on cloud 9 and couldn't possibly fall asleep. Ada is in her little hospital crib sleeping, well... like a baby. She is absolutely perfect! I know this might be a little premature but I am almost positive she is a genius. :)

I'll post her full "birth story" tomorrow. Wait, it is tomorrow, so I guess I mean later today.

We are doing great. I am feeling really good and Ada is breastfeeding like a champ. The lactation consultant came in for the first feeding and as she was just preparing to demonstrate Ada latched on and started eating. The LC was shocked and said that was the easiest latch she'd ever seen. I've fed Ada several times since then with no help at all. This has been such a huge relief because all too often breastfeeding is a major challenge, I know how lucky we are to have doing so well already.

♥ The full story and many more pics later today ♥

P.S.... She has hair!!

This is it...

WE'RE HAVING A BABY TOMORROW!!!

We'll be leaving the house around 5:45am and heading to the hospital. I was there today for my pre-admissions testing and was SO disappointed to learn that video cameras aren't allowed in the operating room for the c-section. We'll only be able to take the still camera in. Yet another crappy con of the whole c-section deal. But I'll get over it :) I just can't believe that within about 14 hours I'll see my baby girl's little face!

Check the blog tomorrow for pictures! Russel or I will get at least one up at some point.

Matching Panic Attacks

It's funny that after a year and a half of trying to get pregnant on our own, then going through 8 weeks of fertility treatment, and of course being pregnant for the last 9 months that it would come as such a complete shock that we are having a baby. But for some reason the realization hit us last night and caused his & hers breakdowns.

I have been totally fine up until last night. A little anxiety here and there but nothing serious. Last night I just about lost it. I don't know why, but since I was a little girl I've had a slight anxiety about night time. I don't know what it is and it's really nothing that ever causes problems but if my mind is already occupied with something, it intensifies at night. So last night I walked into our bedroom, it was dark in there, and a little warm. I just got so panicked. I couldn't breathe very well, I started crying, and felt trapped.

Russel got in bed and said he was having trouble breathing. He kept taking these really deep breathes which was making me feel even more suffocated. His breakdown wasn't nearly as dramatic as mine. At midnight (which is SUPER late for us) we were both awake, having trouble breathing, and feeling a little overwhelmed! We are falling apart!! haha

Finally I came out to the living room and spent the night on the couch. For some reason that was a little comforting to me. I slept between 4:30am and 5:45am. At 7am I went back to bed. Russel said he didn't sleep well either. This poor baby has a couple of fruit loops as parents!! Who knew we were such chickens!?

I had my last doctor's appointment today and I told her about our "episode", she laughed so I'm assuming that means she's heard this a time or two before. :) She did give me some Ambien so I can make it through the next two nights.

As for my appointment, it went very well. My blood pressure was 128/70 which was a relief since it had been a little high. I have lost 5 lbs since last week's appointment, the doctor said it was most likely that I was just really swollen at my last appointment. So that brings the grand total of weight gain to 23 lbs for this pregnancy. I'm actually very happy about that, I just knew I would gain 50 lbs. My urine had some protein in it but she said that since my blood pressure is fine then it's most likely that I'm just a little dehydrated. We talked in great detail about the c-section. I feel ready, at least for now.

Tomorrow I go to the hospital for pre-admission testing.

Please help me support Ben and Kari!!

I just started a new blog and I would love it if all of my current readers and followers would please visit. Also, feel free (and please do) link the new blog on your blog, Facebook, or Myspace page. Anyway you can get the word out would be wonderful and greatly appreciated! The blog is for a friend of mine going through an extremely difficult time, the first post explains everything.

If you would like to link this new blog on your page just copy the code that is in the box below the picture, go to your blogger layout, choose "html/java script", and paste the code.

<center><a href="http://www.bkhickey4.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa264/mk9906/BKH%20Support/6resize.jpg" /></a></center>

Rough Night

I have a feeling the next week is going to be a long one. Although a small part of me finds it so odd and a little sad that I've only got one more week of being pregnant left, the biggest part of me is so ready for the pregnancy to be over. I am getting more uncomfortable by the day. Last night I got into bed, couldn't sleep (which is becoming the norm for me), and started to feel sick. My stomach was very upset, I was having contractions, and I was burning up. I tried to take a bath to relax but that only made me feel worse. I got out of the tub and just sat on the bed for a while trying to relax. Finally the contractions stopped and I didn't feel as sick anymore. I slept pretty well... which means I slept about 4 hours.

Between the excitement of finally meeting our daughter and the discomfort of the final stages of pregnancy, I know these last 6 days are going to seem like an eternity.

Finally...

MAY 28, 2009

This is the day we will finally meet our sweet baby girl.

The external version this morning did not work. It was pretty awful actually. I had been warned that it would hurt but things usually aren't as bad as people make them sound, well this was! After a few attempts to turn the baby the OB said she wasn't really moving at all and I was in so much pain that I couldn't keep trying.

After the doctor stopped the version I stayed in labor and delivery for monitoring. Ada did great and after about 1.5 hours they released us.

Our c-section is schedule for next Thursday, May 28th at 7:30am!!!

It is amazing to me that after all this time and all that we've been through we are finally going to have a baby.

My Upside Down Baby

Or should I say "right side up baby"? At any rate she is the wrong way. She is basically sitting on her butt. Although I was a little disappointed I wasn't at all surprised and did get some encouraging news today.


Last week the doctor said that they could attempt to flip her by doing a procedure called and external version. Those tend to be more successful when the amniotic fluid level is between 15-20. Mine was 10 last week so I wasn't given much hope for this working. At today's appointment my fluid level was up to 17.6!! I am so excited and have a lot of hope that I may be able to avoid a c-section after all.


The ultrasound tech also did a biophysical profile of the baby. This measures several things like the baby's heart rate, movement, muscle tone, breathing rate, etc. Out of a possible 8 points Ada scored an 8! So she appears to be totally healthy. And the tech also confirmed one last time that she is absolutely a girl! :) She even labeled and printed the picture for us and gave it to me as "proof".


Russel and I have decided to attempt the external version. The doctor will monitor the baby while trying to turn her. We check into labor and delivery at 7:30am tomorrow. I was relieved to learn that the procedure is done in labor and delivery. There is some risk that the procedure could cause the baby to go into distress and if that happens the OB said they could have the baby out within minutes, so although something like that happening isn't likely it can be handled if it does.

Say a prayer for us.

I'll update again tomorrow after we are home.

Trip to labor and delivery

This is a long story and I'm totally exhausted so I'll make this as short as possible.

Last night around 8:30pm I decided to take a bath and relax before watching tv. I stayed in the tub for about 30 minutes, got out and watched tv for an hour, then went to bed at 10pm.

Normally Ada is her most active when I first get in bed. She will roll, kick, and punch for quite a while before settling down. After being in bed for about 10 minutes and not feeling one movement it occurred to me that I hadn't felt her in a while so I tried to remember the last movement. I couldn't remember feeling her since I was first in the tub.

I got out my fetal doppler and listened to her for a minute. I heard her heartbeat so that calmed me down. After another hour passed and I still felt nothing I began to worry again.

Finally, at about 12am I woke Russel up. We talked for a while and then decided to call the doctor. I explained to her everything that had been going on and she sent me to labor and delivery for monitoring. We left the house around 1am.

I was sure that as soon as we left the house Ada would start moving and I'd feel silly for even going in. But that didn't happen, I didn't feel any movement the whole way there (it's about 40 minutes).

Once we got to the hospital, I was immediately put in a labor room and set up for a fetal non stress test. As soon as the nurse put the first monitor on my stomach she heard the heartbeat. And soon after that Ada kicked the monitor. She hates those things and always goes nuts when they put them on.

It felt so good to feel that movement.

Ada and I were monitored for a little over an hour. Her heart rate was perfect the entire time and she did move a little more during that time.

The doctor felt confident enough to release me and said that things looked great.

We got home at 5am, I still couldn't fall asleep even though my back was killing me and I was exhausted. I finally fell asleep a little after 6am. When I woke up Ada was active.

I'm not sure why she felt the need to scare me to death but I'm feeling much better today.

E-I-G-H-T

Marley "tagged" me with this on her blog... here goes :)

8 things I'm looking forward to...
1. Meeting my sweet baby girl, Ada.
2. Seeing the look on Russel's face when he meets his daughter.
3. The day when our golden retriever stops acting like a 10 week old puppy :) He's nearly 2 years old so we are hoping this happens soon!! haha
4. Our family reunion in late July.
5. Going home to visit my Grandpa, who has been sick, I haven't been able to go since it's 2.5 hours away.
6. Seeing the baby again on the ultrasound this coming Monday. Praying she's flipped!
7. Being able to walk like a normal person again.
8. American Idol tonight :)

8 things I did yesterday...
1. Since my day technically begins at 1am (and that is probably the only way I can think of 8 things I did) I'll say the first thing I did was get up to potty.
2. Second thing I did? Got up at 3am to potty! haha
3. Since I didn't take Pal out the second he took his last bite of breakfast I got to clean up a little mess of his at around 9am.
4. Went to the doctor and learned that Ada is breech.
5. Had lunch with Russel.
6. Came home, sat on the couch, and got online
7. Actually made dinner.
8. Got in bed and got a foot massage for about 30 minutes!!

8 things I wish I could do...
1. Walk, clean the house, roll over in bed, basically move about like a normal human being again.
2. Go home to Ohio to visit my Grandpa
3. Avoid a csection, hopefully Ada cooperates on that one
4. Get outside and work in the flower garden
5. Go to New York to visit Sarah
6. Decorate the entire house, with no budget :)
7. Fix everyone's problems
8. Have an easy time losing weight after the baby comes.

8 shows I am currently watching...
1. American Idol
2. Will & Grace on DVR
3. Dancing with the Stars
4. Law & Order SVU
5. Ax Men (haha I know, Russel watches it and I actually like it too!!)
6. Frasier on DVR
7. Seinfeld on DVR (I barely watch "real" tv anymore!)
8. Ellen (the talk show)

Oh, now I have to tag eight people... Tess, Kerry, Sarah B., Eve, Debbie, Shannon, Krissy, Kerri M.

Lots to report (36 week 5 day appointment)

Wow, I have a lot to share from today's appointment. I'll try not to leave anything out.

We went back for the ultrasound first. We learned the most disappointing news right away. Ada is not head down and she should be at this point. If she won't "flip" then I'll have no choice but to have a c-section. I'm not completely devastated but certainly hoping and praying that she will turn so I have a chance at a vaginal delivery. Ada weighs about 5 lbs 15 oz and looks great.

Next came my exam. My blood pressure was back to "perfect" so I was very relieved by that. My urine test was fine, I have gained 27 lbs (yikes), and Ada's heartbeat was perfect.

At my last appointment they did a routine test for Group B Strep test. Basically Group B Strep is a bacterial infection that occurs in about 15 - 40% of healthy pregnant women. As my doctor explained it to me, it's not dangerous to the mother but can be passed (and cause serious problems) for the baby if the infection isn't detected. To my surprise, I tested positive. So this means that if I have a vaginal delivery (or if my water breaks and I have a c-section) then I'll have to be on IV antibiotics to prevent the baby from getting infected.

After all of those things were out of the way I talked with my doctor about turning the baby. I'm not sure how I feel about all of this. So after LOTS of talking the plan is for me to come back one week from today and do another ultrasound. If she is still feet down, I'll come back the next day and my doctor will try to turn her. She'll conduct and ultrasound while attempting to guide the baby downward. Hopefully something will change before Monday but that is not likely.

The most exciting news I got today is that despite being breech, my cervix is experiencing some progress toward labor!!! I am 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced. That was a happy note to end on. With all of the other news I was starting to feel really down.

So I guess for now we aren't sure what is going to happen.

We did get a couple of pictures from the ultrasound, I am becoming more and more convinced that this little one looks like her Mommy ♥

Same picture as above, just labeled.

One last Mother's Day Post

We (well, Russel) got out and did a little work in the flower garden last night. I had such big plans but after working for about 10 minutes I was totally exhausted and spent the rest of the time sitting in a chair, drinking water, and "instructing" Russel on what I wanted done :)

Yesterday after lunch we went and picked out the flowers that I wanted to plant for Mother's Day. I have these same lilies in another part of the garden and they are beautiful, and begin to bloom right around Mother's Day every year. The ones that I already have planted (from a couple years ago) are orange but the ones I picked out yesterday are pink (of course ♥)

I have my very last ultrasound tomorrow morning. It kind of made me a little sad at first then I had to remind myself that the next time I get to see her it will be in the flesh!!! I can't believe this pregnancy is almost over. Tomorrow they will check to see if she is head down, the location of my placenta, and get an estimate on her size. I haven't had an ultrasound in 10 weeks so I'm really looking forward to seeing her again! I'll post and update and pictures tomorrow.

♥ My First Mother's Day Card ♥

When Russel got home from work today he had a card and chocolates. My first Mother's Day Card...

He also had the best idea. He said that instead of getting me flowers, he wants us to go tomorrow and pick out a plant that will flower at this time each year, we will plant it on Sunday ♥

For the past couple of years Mother's Day has held a small amount of sadness for me. Wondering if I'd ever get to be a part of that. It's surreal to finally be here.

35 weeks 5 days (9 months)

35 week appointment

I am 35 weeks 5 days pregnant.

I had the first of my WEEKLY appointments today. These appointments are going to make the remaining time go by so quickly. Feels like I'm always going to the doctor.

I am a little disappointed with today's results. And a little irritated.

My blood pressure was 130/80 (which is a little high for me) if you'll notice my previous posts my BP is always a little low. Ada's heart rate was 158, again a little high for her but still nothing to worry about. I have gained 25 lbs and my urine was negative for protein. Still good results but I've gotten used to the "perfect" results.

Today's appointment was a little different. Normally they only check my weight, urine, blood pressure, and Ada's heart rate but today they also did an exam!

I am not dilated at all, so the doctor says Ada is perfectly happy where she is for now. I am measuring 37 weeks so she's about a week ahead. I'll have an ultrasound next Monday to check her size and make sure she's still head down. I can't wait to see her again. I'll be sure to update and post pictures.

Last Baby!!!

I forgot to post about last Monday's OB appointment.

It went well. I have gained about 23 lbs, my blood pressure was 122/66, and Ada's heartbeat was 146 bpm.

In the beginning of pregnancy you have OB appointments once a month, then starting at 28 weeks (7 months) you begin going every 2 weeks, then at 36 weeks (9 months) you go every week until baby comes. I shouldn't be starting my weekly appointments until next week but because my feet were SUPER swollen last week they will start tomorrow. My doctor wants to monitor my blood pressure again because of the swelling. Since my BP has been perfect the entire pregnancy, and I was walking WAY too much before my last appointment I'm not worried. I'm sure it's just typical swelling for this late in pregnancy. I don't mind the extra appointment though, I love hearing her heart in the office and getting everything checked.

I can't believe we are getting so close. It doesn't seem real.

I'll update when I get home from tomorrow's appointment.

OH.... and did everyone notice??? I'm on the last baby of my pregnancy ticker at the top of the page!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!

Finally...

The nursery is complete!

Well, nearly :) I still have to put the picture in that 8x10 frame on the bookshelf and Russel has to install the camera for the video monitor. But we no longer have any "big" projects to finish for the nursery!

A painting by Ada's cousin Moji.

Ada is named after her Great Grandmother and Grandmother

We did these adice cards at our shower, this one is my favorite. It's from my Papaw Curt. It says "take her to church and help her to be kind to people" ♥

Of course, Ada's nursery wasn't complete without a picture of Old Gero ♥

Ada's Bookshelf

Russel made the most beautiful bookshelf for Ada. I am so proud of him, he's never done anything like this before but he did a GREAT job. Of course I took a thousand pictures, here are just a few. :) Ada is such a lucky little girl to have such a wonderful father ♥

~Click to englarge~

Help The Williams Family

A few weeks ago I posted a prayer request to this blog. It was for baby Jonah. His parents go to the same church as a friend of mine. Jonah was born with a rare skin disorder. If you didn't catch that post, click here to read it.

Jonah's mother, Patrice, updates her blog daily with news on Jonah's condition. He has made a great deal of progress and is even home with his parents now! I encourage you to read her blog, they really are an amazing family.

Anyway, to the point of this post. Matt & Patrice's family have come up with an idea for a fundraiser. Patrice's brother designed a magnet that you can purchase (via paypal) for $10. Ten percent of that will go toward EB research and the remainder will go directly to the Williams family to help with Jonah's care. His bandaging supplies alone are rather expensive.

Here is a picture of the magnet, just click it to order one. (This link will take you to Patrice's blog, on the sidebar you'll see the "Buy A Magnet" button)

My latest project

The other day on my Due in June message board one of the girls posted some nursery pics, they were adorable. She is having a girl too. One of the cutest things was a little wall hanging with the cutest phrase on it. I'd never come across anything like it before and loved it! I wasn't able to find it online so I decided to get creative and try to make one! I just finished it tonight and I think it turned out great!! Russel loves it too, of course ♥

32 week 5 day Appointment

I had another doctor's appointment today.

It went great, I've finally learned to take a book with me so those hour long waiting room stays aren't as painful! It really did make the time go by much faster.

As for the important details...

My blood pressure was 120/64
Ada's Heartbeat was 146 bpm
I've gained 18 lbs

Things are going very well. Now we are just anxiously awaiting her arrival!!

Ada's Quilt

One of our favorite things from Ada's baby shower is her family quilt. It is a baby quilt with a special square from each family member. It is beautiful and we got it hung up this evening. It is a tiny bit higher on the wall than I would have liked f0r it to be, but I didn't want it low enough for Ada to pull at it when she's on the changing table. It still looks great, I think :)

Baby Shower Pictures!

Sorry it has taken so long to post these, I have been so busy since we got home. Here are some of the pics, I'll post more eventually.

~Click pictures to enlarge~

Daddy & Mommy

Sarah, Papaw, Janet, Missy, Mom

One of the tables

Emma & Russel



The bassinet cover that was handmade just for Ada!


Sarah and Cody at Grandma's after the shower

Emma

Debra & Emma

Russel loading my car after the shower

My car was full and so was Russel's!!

The quilt that the whole family made together for Ada.

Another pic of the quilt

A booster seat from Jane

More gifts from Jane

The coolest baby monitor EVER!!! Thanks Sarah!!!

The booster seat, another gift from Sarah

A cute dress from Aunt Sue

A handmade quilt from Grandma Hale, and me crying AGAIN!

"A Steelers Fan Just Like My Daddy"

Ada got SO many cute clothes!!

Even the grandfathers played the games!! haha

Some of the food

Papaw and Mom

Some gifts

Emma wasn't sure about Russel at first

Sarah and Grandma

Best baby shower EVER!

We had our baby shower this past Saturday and it was amazing!!

I'll upload some pictures later but for now I'll just tell the story.

I left Friday morning for Portsmouth, OH so I didn't have to travel on the day of the shower (it's 2.5 hours). Friday I spent the whole day hanging out with my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I never get to spend that much time with them because I normally have to rush home because of the dogs. Since I came alone and Russel was home with the dogs I had plenty of time! It was a GREAT day! That night Russel's sister and 3 nieces came into town. It was the first time I've seen baby Emma (who is now 1) since she was born. It was so great to see them and have them there for Ada's big party :)

Saturday morning I got up early (of course, I can't sleep when I'm excited) I spent the morning at Grandma's. Russel drove up that morning also. For the first time in 2 years we got to spend the night together in OH because we finally found a dog sitter that we trust!!!

At 10am I went over to where the shower was being held to help set things up. My parents called when Caroline and I were on our way over to say that they were already there with my sister Missy. The only sad part of the day was that my sister Sarah, who is so excited about baby Ada and sends her the most wonderful gifts all of the time wasn't going to be there. She is in New York City and her job just doesn't allow her any time to come home. She wasn't even able to come to our wedding. I had been talking to her all week and was a little sad she'd have to miss the party but understood why.

Caroline and I arrived at the shower and everyone started unloading the cars. My uncle Gary had gotten there first because he had the key. He was worried that I was going to be upset because there was some "problem" with one of the restrooms. Strange, I know! haha So I started to walk over to the door to that restroom and for some reason I just got really emotional because I thought maybe there was a surprise or something so I started crying my eyes out. I scared everyone half to death. My dad started crying because he said he thought something bad had happened to me. I just stood in front of the bathroom door crying! haha. Finally I opened the door and MY SISTER WAS THERE!!! She had flown in the day before just for the shower!!! I cried so hard I almost threw up (literally!) The funniest part was that NO ONE knew about this except my parents and Missy. So poor Caroline was totally confused! haha

My grandma also had a crying fit when she saw Sarah, she had no idea either. It was such a great surprise!!

We had the best time at the shower. There were so many people there, the room was just full of fun. My grandparents on my Mom's side and Dad's side hadn't seen each other in YEARS, and no one has seen Sarah in so long. Russel's family who we never get to see was there the entire weekend. Everyone was laughing, talking, catching up. It was so wonderful to think that our little Ada brought all of these people together. She is such a gift.

We got SO many wonderful gifts. We are so lucky to have so many kind and generous people in our lives. We got a carseat, swing, bouncy seat, video baby monitor, umbrella stroller, diaper disposal, tons of first aid supplies, baby medicine, diapers, books, toys, bath supplies, homemade quilts and blankets, a bassinet that belonged to our niece and the most beautiful handmade cover for it, TONS and TONS of adorable clothes, a booster seat, sound machine, and so many other things that I can't even remember them all right now! It just really touched us that so many people care so much about our little girl.

The best gift of all came at the very end of the shower.

We had one last gift to open. It didn't have a card or say who it was from. We opened it and it was the most beautiful quilt. All of the grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins had made a personalized square, my Mom put them together, and my Papaw (yes, Papaw) quilted them. It is so beautiful. It means the world to me and I know that someday it will mean just as much to Ada. It makes me cry just to write it about it now.

It was truly one of the best days of our lives. It was perfect. We were celebrating so much more than the expected arrival of a baby. We were celebrating a miracle that we once thought we may never receive, and most importantly we were celebrating the way that miracles like this bring people who love one another closer together.

Praise God for times like these!

31 weeks

I am 31 weeks 1 day pregnant! Next Wednesday I'll officially be 8 months!

30 week appointment

I am 30 weeks 5 days pregnant.

From now until I hit 36 weeks I will go to the doctor every 2 weeks.

The appointment went great. My blood pressure was 120/68, Ada's heartbeat was 154 bpm, my weight gain is good (I've gained almost 15 lbs), and I am not anemic so I don't need iron supplements.

Ada is much more active these days. If I lay on my back, I can see my belly bouncing around when she rolls. It is amazing. While I was sitting in the exam room today waiting for my doctor I was looking at all of the delivery room pics on the wall and it makes me so excited for it to be our turn!

Evan's Story

A friend of a friend experienced a loss last year that no parent should ever have to. Her name is Daven. Last May when she went into her 6 year old son's bedroom to wake him she found that he had passed away.

After testing, doctors told Daven and her husband that a chemical found in the cough syrup Evan had taken the night before his death had contributed.

Daven is strong enough to use this painful experience to educate others.

Please read her post on my friend Eve's blog and feel free to leave comments for her.

Click here to read Daven's blog entry

30 weeks!!

What a milestone!!

I am 30 weeks pregnant today. This really feels like the homestretch.

My whole body is filled with gratitude. We really felt at one point that this may never happen for us and now we are just 10 weeks away from meeting our daughter!

What an amazing gift.

6th folder 6th picture

This is fun! Marley just tagged me to post the 6th picture in the 6th folder of the "My Photos" album.

This is from the 6th folder, titled "ER & ET" which stands for egg retrieval and embryo transfer. We took pictures of me sitting in the car in the driveway that morning, in the pre-op room with my IV started, the sign in front of the fertility clinic, and so on! haha

Here is the 6th picture: It's me laying on the table after my embryo transfer, I had to lay there for 20 minutes. Russel took it with his phone, we didn't want to look weird taking a camera into the actual room where they do the procedure! haha

Good news and a surprise!

Yesterday I had my one hour glucose test at my 28 week appointment and today Pal had his first visit with our vet.

I'll go first... I had a crazy appointment. It was Monday morning and raining. I got to the hospital (where the lab and my doctor are located) at 8:30am. I thought that would be plenty of time to get my orange "glucola" from the lab and get back upstairs to my doctor for my 8:45am appointment. Well when I pull up the valet is backed up and there are NO parking spots. So I waited in line for the valet. I finally got to the lab at 8:40am which gave me only 5 minutes until my appointment. I pulled a number out of the little take a number wheel and got number 50. After sitting there for 10 minutes (now 5 minutes LATE for my appt) they come out and call number 43! I finally got my number called at 9:22am. I was freaking out, I hate being late for things. I sucked down the drink (not as bad as I thought it'd be, it really does taste like orange soda) and ran upstairs for my appointment. I had to be back at the lab in EXACTLY one hour for the blood work to test my tolerance for the drink. I finally got called back to an exam room at 10:10am. I ended up having to just do a "nurse visit". She did all of the regular stuff. Checked my urine, checked my weight, checked my blood pressure, and the baby's heartbeat. I didn't have time to wait for my OB because by this time I had to run back downstairs for the blood work.

My blood pressure was 120/68, I have gained a total of 11 lbs, and the baby's heartbeat was 148bpm which the nurse said was perfect.

And for the best news.... the nurse just called from my OB's office to let me know that my results for the glucose test were perfect!! This is a HUGE relief! This test checks for gestational diabetes which *can* cause major complications, so it's a big weight off to have one less thing to worry about.

Pal's turn... I just have to say once again, Pal is the best dog! He is so sweet and well behaved! I put him in the back of the Yukon and he just laid down and slept. Zach runs around back there in a circle for the entire 25 minute ride to the vet! haha

Pal was a big hit! All of the nurses and receptionists loved him, and he wasn't shy about taking all of the attention they would give. I was so proud of him. The vet also loved him, he was so well behaved during the exam.

When it comes to all of the important things, Pal is in great health. His heart sounded great, lungs sound clear despite the cough he has, eyes, ears, and teeth look great, and the vet said that Pal is the perfect weight at 34 lbs. The cough concerned me at first (he coughed all night the first night he was home and barely moved on Sunday) but he has *really* perked up the last two days and has barely coughed at all so the doctor says he's on the mend and doesn't need medicine for it.

The only issue that we need to deal with is his skin. He has been scratching and digging at a spot on his hip. They ran some tests and determined that he basically has a nasty skin infection. They shaved both hips and gave me prescription dog shampoo and antibiotics. We have to bathe him twice a week and give him the pills twice a day for 2 weeks then he'll get checked out again.

We are very pleased with his health, anytime you adopt an animal who has recently been a stray you have to assume there are unseen health issues. And shelters and rescues just don't have the resources or finances to get every tiny detail checked out. So we are actually lucky, overall he's in great shape!

Now for the surprise. Or should I say, Pal's dirty little secret. The vet says that Pal is close to 2 years old and fully grown!! haha I swear when the vet said that Pal looked at me like "oops". He has a full set of adult teeth, but dogs do have those by around 6 months so that didn't tip us off. The vet says that Pal has two teeth in the very back which dogs don't get until around 9-10 months and Pal not only has them but they had quite a bit of tartar on them so he's had them for about a year at least.

We don't mind one bit though. He's our Pal, how could we not love him? ♥

He is the perfect dog for this family in every single way! Zach has been in heaven since Saturday! Especially since Pal got all rested up and plays with him much more. They have played together all day today. Russel and I actually had a conversation at dinner last night without stopping every 20 seconds to say "Zach, stop. Zach, drop it. Zach, leave it." and we watched tv together without having a golden crawling all over us! haha Zach's behavior has actually been much better too. Russel sat on the floor last night and loved all over Zach for a long time which never happens because Zach is too hyper to sit still.

So all is well in the King house! Baby Ada is doing great, I'm feeling better now than I have in months, Russel and I are getting some peace and quiet, and the animals are happy! :)

♥ Meet our new Pal ♥

This story really starts a couple of weeks ago.

Russel and I were driving through our neighborhood when we spotted a small puppy in the middle of the street. We stopped, and checked to see if he was wearing a tag. He was not so Russel tried knocking on the door of the house he was in front of. No one was home so we brought the puppy to our house until we could find the owner.

Zach instantly loved the puppy, he always does. They had such a great time playing together. The best part was that Zach was so well behaved. Normally he spends all of his time 2 inches from our face, so it was nice for Russel and I to actually sit near each other and have a conversation while Zach and the puppy played. Luckily for the puppy's family we were able to reunite them. After the puppy left and Zach returned to his normal "in your face" behavior we REALLY missed having the second dog around.

We have spent the last couple of weeks talking and talking about getting another dog. We thought "Are we stupid to get another dog 11 weeks before the baby is due????" Each day that passed however Zach was making the decision easier and easier. Russel swears that Zach was purposely being bad so we'd get him another dog!! haha

So we searched and searched for the perfect friend for Zach. It was a pretty specific need that we had. Someone friendly, playful, well behaved, house broken, crate trained, good with cats, good with babies, and calm. Surprisingly, on Saturday, we found just that!!

He is perfect!

And we think it's meant to be. We were looking for a friend for Zach and we find the sweetest little guy who was already named Pal!! :)

**Click the pictures to enlarge them**

Picking out some chewy things at PetSmart


Home at last!!


Getting ready for a quick bath


It's LOVE!!

Unexpected trip to the doctor

I made a "better safe than sorry" trip to the doctor today.

This weekend was so busy, I didn't feel Ada move much but my doctor said that baby tends to be quiet while Mommy is active and active when Mommy is quiet. So I didn't think much of it. I also have had a few very brief moments of "crampiness".

I decided to call the doctor just to be safe. I was sure she'd tell me everything was normal and not to worry.

She actually asked me to come right in for monitoring. I went in and actually went straight back to an exam room. Not my normal 45 minutes in the waiting room! They did all of the normal stuff. Checked my urine, which came back fine. Checked my blood pressure which was normal. And checked my weight. I have lost 1 lb. So I've gained 11 lbs this pregnancy so far. The weight gain, actually lack of weight gain really surprises me. I'll be 7 months pregnant in 2 days, I figured I'd be up much more by now.

So anyway... then they did a fetal non stress test. Basically they put two straps around my belly. One to measure the baby's heartbeat and movements and the other to check for contractions. I had to lay on the table with the straps on for about 20 minutes.

The results were great. I had no contractions recorded and the baby looked "perfect" according to the doctor. Of course during the test she was super active.

The doctor says that the cramps I described did sound like contractions but aren't cause for concern unless I notice a pattern in them. If I feel 6 of them in one hour I'm supposed to go to the hospital. I didn't feel 6 in a 4 day span though so I'm not too concerned at this point.

I'm glad that I called and went in. I'm sure I'd be worried to death by now if I didn't have that reassurance.

My next doctor's appointment is next Monday. It's my glucose test appointment. I'm not really looking forward to that one at all.

Sweet Dreams

I had the most wonderful dream last night.

Ada was a newborn, she was in a bouncy seat in the living room floor and I was sitting in front of her. She was so beautiful. The most precious little face and just a little bit of red hair.

It felt so real. I was grabbing her little feet and she was laughing at me. I remember in the dream our eyes were just locked onto each other and I just felt so completely happy and in love with her.

I just can't wait for this dream to come true.

It won't be like this for long...

The honeymoon may be over soon

Everyone refers to the 2nd trimester as the honeymoon period of pregnancy. The morning sickness is gone (although mine didn't leave until 5 months) and the physical discomfort of late pregnancy hasn't set in yet. I have to say that I have *really* enjoyed this part of pregnancy. I have had very little nausea, and my belly is still not so big that it really gets in the way or causes any problems, and the best part has been feeling Ada move so much.

Over the past 3 days, however, I think I'm starting to notice some of that 3rd trimester discomfort. Walking for any amount of time really kills me. It makes my back and hips hurt and Ada feels like she weighs 20 lbs! I just feel so much pressure. I am also afraid that it won't be long until I'm not able to find a comfortable sleeping position. I've been lucky to basically sleep the way I always have up until this point but I think that will be changing soon too.

I think the weight may start creeping up on me too. I am up 4 lbs from pre-pregnancy weight. Actually I've gained 12 in the last 2 months but I had lost 8 in the first trimester so that puts me at + 4.

According to my pregnancy tracker, I'll be in the 3rd trimester tomorrow!!!! I can't believe that!

I can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel!!

Prayers for Jonah

The following was copied from the blog of a friend of mine.

Praying for Jonah
I am dialing up all prayer warriors right now, anywhere in the USA. A young couple at my church just had their second baby a few days ago and Jonah is fighting for his life at Brenner's Children's Hospital here in Winston-Salem. He has a genetic skin disorder that they weren't even aware of until he was born.

The really sad piece to this puzzle is that their other son, Gabriel, was born still born a year ago.

You can click on the picture icon to the right to follow their blog.Thank you for your prayers, and please tell others that you know to pray to. God is the Almighty Healer. I am so thankful to be able to call on you Lord.
Posted by Molli at 9:26 PM

Yay!!! An Award!

Tkeys and Kari have given me a blog award!! They chose mine as one of their favorite 10 blogs!! Thanks girls!!

Now, I'll pass the award along to my favorite 10 blogs!!

Here are my winners in no particular order...

Infertility Rocks (http://infertilityrocks.wordpress.com/)

Because I said so (http://reneemayse.blogspot.com/)

The McMahon House (http://themcmahonhouse.blogspot.com/)

Loving Rylie, Missing Sophie (http://lovingmy2girls.blogspot.com/)

The Boling Bunch (http://thebolingbunch.blogspot.com/)

Yes, We're Parents (http://tessiekeys.blogspot.com/)

Our IVF Journey (http://benandkari.blogspot.com/)

From 4 to 6 (http://from4to6.blogspot.com/)

Family Journeys (http://jessenamy2006.blogspot.com/)

The Rosnes Family (http://rosnes.blogspot.com/)

If you are here because I've nominated you...

1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate at least 10 blogs that show great attitude and/or gratitude.
3. Be sure to link to your nominees in your post.
4. Let your nominees know they have received the award by leaving a comment on their blog
5. Be sure to link this post to the person who nominated you for the award.

Ada Ann 26 weeks

We had our last 3D/4D ultrasound today. It went great. Little Ada is just beautiful. Seeing her makes us so anxious for her arrival! We can't wait to see this little precious face while we are holding her in our arms!

***Click to enlarge the pictures***

Can't wait until Monday!

We have another 3D/4D ultrasound on Monday. I cannot wait to see little Ada again!!! I have been looking forward to this since our last one in December.

We did get to see her at my doctor's office when I was 20 weeks pregnant but the ultrasound tech was awful. She didn't show us anything and just snapped a picture of whatever was on the screen at the moment. I don't think Ada is even in some of the pictures!

We had so much fun at our last 3D/4D. At that time I was only 17 weeks pregnant so Ada still looked a little bit like a skeleton. This time we will actually be able to see what she may look like. She should look more like a chubby cute little baby.

We should get lots of pictures so I'll be sure to post. Our appointment is at 9am.

Back from the doctor

I had another great appointment today. My blood pressure was perfect, baby's heartbeat was 138 which is great for this stage of pregnancy, my urine test came back fine, and I have gained 12 lbs. The doctor says the weight gain is still a little less than average but not any reason to worry. I am hoping to not gain more than 25 lbs total.

The doctor also said that I'll be getting another ultrasound at her office around 34 weeks. We have our 4D ultrasound at the fetal photography studio next week and thought that would be our last so I'm glad to know I'll get another one a little closer to Ada's due date.

Basically a very uneventful appointment which is a good thing.

6 month appointment tomorrow!

I cannot believe how fast things are going! I will be 25 weeks pregnant on Wednesday! I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow. It will be one of the not so exciting ones. Just blood pressure, urine, and weight check, they will listen to the baby's heartbeat, and I'll meet with the doctor. Russel is off tomorrow so we may try to tour labor and delivery while we are there.

We've decided to take one of the birthing classes. It's actually not as much about birthing as it is about having your baby at this particular hospital. It sounds like it will be very informative. The class will answer questions like how to know that you are experiencing "real" labor, when to come to the hospital, how everything will go before and during labor, what visiting hours are, policies, etc. There are a couple of other classes we may take, but will decide a little later on.

I'm sure some are reading this and thinking that "classes" and books aren't necessary in "getting a baby out" but information makes us feel more at ease about things. And it will be fun for us, we want to do all of the fun things that new parents do since this may be our only pregnancy.

I won't be getting an ultrasound tomorrow so I won't have any pictures to share, but I will update when I get home.

♥ Our Valentine ♥

Ada and I are so lucky to have a man like Russel for a Daddy and a husband.

I feel like the best thing I'll ever do for Ada was finding Russel. She will have a father who adores her and makes her his first priority. She won't ever wonder if she is important to him, she'll never miss him at her sporting events or school functions, she'll never suspect that he doesn't have any idea what the strange art work she gives him as a Father's Day gift is, and she'll always know that she means to the world to someone.

Russel puts his family first. He works so hard to give us everything and never complains or wants anything for himself.

Russel is the kind of man that all men should be.

Happy Valentine's Day to the most wonderful husband and Daddy in the world!!
♥
Mandy & Ada

Hi Mommy!

Ada has become quite strong over the past week. For a few weeks I only felt her move a few times a week. That always amazed me because on the ultrasounds she is always SO active and it was so odd to me that she could be moving so much without me feeling a thing.

Well I am finally feeling my active little girl everyday!! She seems to have patterns. I feel her first thing in the morning while I'm still in bed, again around lunch, when Russel comes home from work, and starting around 8pm until I go to bed. Her 8pm show is really her best! That is usually when Russel can feel her too.

Her kicks have even been a little uncomfortable for me today. She is getting very strong! But even the uncomfortable ones are fun. It's so amazing. I have spent so much time thinking and talking about her that it is surreal to think that this little person that I love so much is INSIDE MY BODY! The kicks are a wonderful little "Hi Mommy" from her! Such a happy little reminder.

Only 11 more days until our 4D ultrasound. We can't wait! The first 4D was so much fun. At that time I was only 17 weeks pregnant so Ada was still very small and looked a skeleton still. At this appointment she will have much more baby fat and will look more like a cute little baby rather than an alien! It might also give us a little peak at what she actually looks like. I am so excited. I will post pictures as soon as we get home that day. It will be Feb. 23 at 9am.

♥ Listen to Ada's Heartbeat ♥

February 8, 2009 (23 weeks 4 days old)

Against my better judgement I bought a fetal doppler when I was 12 weeks pregnant. It is a little machine that is used to listen to the baby's heartbeat. When I started looking for one I was shocked by how expensive they are. I kept looking and finally found one online for only $40. I took a chance because the others were all around $200, and I figured since this one was so cheap it would be a waste of money. Obviously that didn't stop me!

It arrived in the mail a few days after I ordered it. I set it up and gave it a try. I was shocked when I actually heard the baby's heartbeat!! It works!! In the beginning it would take me 10-15 minutes to find her because she was so tiny. These days the minute I put it to my belly I hear her. Now that she is big enough we can hear her heartbeat as well as her movements. Last night she kicked the machine so hard that it made a horrible sound in Russel's ear!

The only thing I was disappointed in was that the recording function did not work. We tried a few times when I first got it and although it comes with a cord to plug into a recorder we could never actually get it to work.

For some reason we decided to try again this morning and it worked!! I think it may be because in the beginning the sound was too faint to pick up on the recorder. Hope you enjoyed the clip!

Belly Pics

I have been horrible about doing this. These are cropped and watermarked because I also posted them online (publicly). The several week chunk that is missing I blame on horrible morning sickness. I barely got off the couch much less dressed for pictures!! haha

Baby Pool

Ok, I think I have officially posted this everywhere! We started a baby pool!!

Go to: http://www.expectnet.com/games/BabyAda to join in!!

20 week anatomy scan

This update is a little late. Believe it or not, I'm still fighting the "morning sickness"! I haven't felt great this week and even vomited on Monday. I'm starting to think that I'll just be sick the entire pregnancy. I'm almost 5 1/2 months now.

We had our "BIG" ultrasound on Monday. This is normally the appointment where the doctor will tell you the gender of the baby if you wish to know. Since we had the fetal photography session we knew it was a girl. Well, we thought it was a girl. I was nervous because I worried that since the ultrasound tech who did our photography session wasn't a doctor that she was wrong.

More importantly this is also the ultrasound where they take a very good look at the baby to check for possible problems. They look at the brain, take head measurements, look at her heart, lips, chin, etc.

As soon as the machine came on we saw the baby jumping all over the place. Very active.

We were told that the head measurements were great, brain looks good, they saw a healthy 4 chamber heart, and the baby weighs about 14 ounces. AND... they also confirmed that little Ada IS a girl!!

Here are the pictures...

♥ Ada kicks Daddy ♥

Russel finally was able to feel little Ada kick this morning. She was super active so I put my hand on my stomach and I felt a small little pop so I had Russel run in and put his hand there. It took a minute but at the same time I felt a kick I could tell by the look on Russel's face that he felt it too!

Next appointment

Our next appointment is January 19th. I'll be at the 5 month mark. This appointment will focus mostly on the ultrasound. They will look at the baby closely and make sure that she is growing properly. We are so glad that we got to see her at the 4D ultrasound, it takes a little of the stress off of this next appointment.

I will have more pictures then, I'll be sure to post them!

2008, What a year!!

January 3rd = Our first fertility test results, not a good day. :(
January 31st = I quit my "real job".
March 21st = Our beautiful niece Emma was born!
April 28th = One year mark of trying to conceive. Final fertility diagnosis.
July 3rd = Zach's (our dog) 1st birthday!
July 17th = Started our first IVF cycle!!!
August 17th = We adopted another kitty and named her Kiwi.
September 9th = Our 2nd wedding anniversary!
September 11th = My Egg Retrieval Surgery
September 16th = Embryo Transfer. Transferred THREE embryos!!
September 22nd = First positive home pregnancy test!!! Followed by me collapsing in the living room, burying my head in the ottoman, and bawling my eyes out! :)
September 25th = Blood test confirms that WE ARE PREGNANT!
October 13th = We see one beautiful baby on the u/s with a healthy heartbeat.
December 26th = We find out... It's a GIRL!!

The coming year will be our best yet, we will meet our sweet baby girl, Ada.

Happy New Year!!!

Ada's first movie

Here is a little video clip from our 4D ultrasound. If you look toward the top and in the middle you'll see her face. She moves her head around, then yawns. She moves her arms around a little then she rolls around and shows you her back. She is so precious already!!

And seems to have a little attitude already(she must get that from Russel! haha) We didn't get a video f this but, toward the end of the ultrasound she was tired, she kept yawning and rubbing her little eyes so the ultrasound tech kept shaking my belly to keep her moving, finally she just flopped over on her back as if she was just so frustrated!! That's my baby!!

A wonderful "first"

Today is the first day that I haven't taken my morning sickness medicine and not gotten sick!!

My doctor had me taking it in the mornings to prevent getting sick. At lunch this afternoon it occurred to me that I forgot to take it this morning but I didn't get sick! I may try to skip it again tomorrow and see if the pattern continues! I'd love to finally be off of all of the medicine.

Wish me luck!

It's a....

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GIRL!!!!!

We are SO happy!!! Everyone in the family is thrilled and all admitted that they were hoping for a girl. She'll be a very lucky little girl to have so many people who love her so much!

Boy or Girl?

We are *hoping* that we find out tomorrow!!! I can't believe it's already time to find out the gender. When I was battling morning sickness it felt like the pregnancy was just creeping by, but now that I feel so much better it really is speeding up!!

Our appointment is at 12pm so assuming that baby King cooperates, I'll post as soon as I get home!!

Intelligender Results

Ok, so for what it's worth, which probably isn't much :) Here are the results...

Great OB appointment today

I had my 16 week OB check up today and it went great. My blood pressure was 112/78, and the baby's heart rate was 154 bpm. They also tested my urine for sugar and protein and checked my weight. My urine was negative for both and I my weight is the exact same as it was at my 6 week appointment so I haven't yet gained any weight. She wasn't concerned about it. She said that even though I haven't gained weight my belly is growing and I'm now "showing", and since I'm eating well and not vomiting anymore she's not worried.

She was really happy with the way things are going and said that the risk of something going wrong with this pregnancy is now less than 1%, which is very comforting news for us.

My Intelligender test finally arrived in the mail today. So I'm going to conduct my little science experiment in the morning and see what it says. :)

In other news, I have felt movement!! I've felt about 8 kicks total in the past 5 days. I wasn't sure at first but today the doctor described what it would feel like and it was exactly what I've been feeling!

Now we are just waiting for Friday and hoping to see a healthy growing baby and hoping he/she will cooperate and let us know which we are expecting!

So excited!!

I think I've told every I know the news already but I thought I'd post it here too!

Originally we were going to have to wait another 4 weeks to find out the gender of the baby. I really wanted to get it done while my younger sister is in town for Christmas so I made a couple calls and found an office that can do it the day after Christmas! I called my doctor this morning to see if she recommended this office and she said yes and that a lot of her patients have gone there. It's actually not a medical office, it's a 3D fetal photography studio. They focus on gender determination and keepsake photos and DVDs for the family. And because it's 3D we'll get a really good look at the baby rather than the typical black and white, flat ultrasound pictures.

Sarah, my younger sister, is so excited about this baby and because of her work she never gets to come home for visits. She'll likely miss the rest of the pregnancy and the birth so it was really important to me that she could be a part of this.

Only 8 more days until we will know the gender of Baby King!!

Intelligender

I have fought the urge to buy this for 6 weeks now! I finally couldn't resist any longer.

As most of you know, I've been a member of a message board for women trying to conceive (TTC) for a year and a half. It is a wonderful site that offers so much support. You get to know women who are going through exactly what you are. The site has boards for general TTC topics, IVF, and even pregnancy boards. Well, over the past 18 months I have heard lots of girls talking about Intelligender. It's a test that you can take at home to tell you if you are having a boy or girl. Now, before the eye rolling starts, it is mostly just for fun. I don't think anyone would ever take it then immediately run out and start shopping for blue or pink.

The Intelligender website claims a laboratory accuracy of 90% but it also says that "real world" testing shows an accuracy of around 82%. Most of the girls on my board did get an accurate result. I do know a couple who did not.

I think it will be fun to take it then see if it was right. The test is inexpensive, otherwise I wouldn't have wasted the money. And it's a fun way to pass the time until we get the real answer :)

My test should arrive in the mail in a few days! I'll let you know what it says!

What a difference a year makes

This time last year we were in the middle of our "last chance" cycle before going to a fertility doctor. We'd agreed a few months earlier that if we had no success by the end of the 2007 we'd finally see a doctor and find out if something was wrong.

I remember being so excited and scared that I'd be able to take a pregnancy test on Christmas Eve and find out if we'd conceived that month. I even considered not taking the test until after the holiday because I didn't want to get a negative and have it ruin Christmas. Well anyone who knows me, knows that it didn't take long for me to decide against that!

I prayed and prayed in the days before Christmas that I'd get a positive pregnancy test. I had a plan all worked out, that at the very end of opening gifts I'd hand Russel one last gift and tell him it was just something small I'd picked up last minute. I didn't even tell him that I would be testing that morning.

Each month I would try different tricks after taking the test thinking maybe that would change the result. Sometimes I'd stand there and watch the test, sometimes I'd lay it down and not look, sometimes I'd leave the room and come back in exactly 3 minutes, sometimes I'd hold it in my hand with my eyes closed and picture 2 lines hoping that the power of positive thinking would make a difference.

I tested on the morning of Christmas Eve, and just like the 8 previous months I saw that awful, heartbreaking one pink line. I was crushed and couldn't think of anything else over the entire holiday.

We kept our promise to each other and about a week later we went to a fertility specialist. Surprisingly, later that same day we got the first set of results. They were even more devestating than all of those negative pregnancy tests combined.

On that day, January 3, 2008, I felt so wronged. It was so unfair to me. We were lost. It felt like we'd never have the one thing we wanted most of all.

Less than one year later, we're grateful for our infertility. We appreciate everything that it's given us, all that we've learned, and all the ways that we've grown as individuals and especially as a couple.

And most importantly less than one year later... we're 4 months pregnant!

Vote in our poll!

It won't be long until we'll find out if this little one is a boy or girl! We are so excited to finally be able to stop calling this baby "it" :) Vote in our poll on the right side of this blog!

Today's Appointment

At today's appointment I did not have an ultrasound but I did get to hear the baby's heartbeat.

Everything was great. I have gained back 2 of the 8 lbs that I had originally lost. My blood pressure was 116/78, and the baby's heartbeat was 170 bpm!

My morning sickness has been very mild over the weekend so it was good to hear the little one's heartbeat to know that he/she is ok. I have prayed for my morning sickness to end but as soon as I feel better I immediately start to worry/wonder if the baby is ok.

My next appointment is December 22nd. I also found out that our "BIG" ultrasound (when we find out the baby's gender) won't be until I'm 20 weeks! I was hoping they'd do it a bit earlier than that but I guess I'll just have to wait. :)

Hate to complain... again

First of all, let me say that I really don't want this post to sound as though I'm not grateful for the gift that has been given to us. I have prayed and prayed for this baby for so long and thank God for answering those prayers. Now comes the whine...

This morning sickness is just about to get the best of me. I could never have imagined that it could be this awful! I am so sick all day long, sometimes worse than others. I am 12 weeks 2 days pregnant today and have been sick since 5 weeks 4 days. May not seem like that long but when you're so sick you can barely get off the couch or eat the days just drag by. I had lot of hope that things would get better the closer that I got to the 12 week mark. Unfortunately the sickness has just gotten worse. I vomitted again last night and just sat in the bathroom floor crying. I'm so exhausted, both from the pregnancy and from the vomitting. I just don't have much left in me it seems.

I am just praying that I start feeling better soon.

My next doctor's appointment is Monday. I don't think I'll be getting an ultrasound then. The doctor told me at my last visit that this one would be to check on my weight, I've lost 8 lbs, and to see if the medicine is helping.

I'm also going to ask when we'll be able to find out the sex of the baby. I cannot wait!!!

Thanks for listening. :)

Update

Sorry I didn't post this after our last appointment. I've spent this last week just trying to hang on! I am *PRAYING* that what everyone says is true and the sickness will ease up very soon! I'll be 12 weeks on Wednesday so we'll see if things get a little better.

My fertility doctor had prescribed Zofran for the nausea and it worked for about a week, but then I got so sick that the medicine wasn't helping anymore. When I went to my regular OB (who I'll be seeing from now on) she prescribed Phenegren. I can't tell you if it helps with the nausea or not because it completely knocks me out! I can't take it during the day so I take it on the really awful days and around 7pm so it helps me sleep through the night.

Last week I had my first appointment with my regular OB. She is so great, I absolutely love her. It's such a relief to have found such a great doctor. She gave us the pre-registration forms to fill out for when we have the baby!!! That was a little crazy! In some ways it feels like this pregnancy is creeping by but I know in my heart that at some point I'll look by and say "wow, where did that time go!?"

At my appointment we had another ultrasound. This was by far the best one yet! We saw the baby moving his/her legs!! We also heard the heartbeat. It took us by surprise. The ultrasound tech didn't tell us she was going to do it so all of the sudden we just heard it! We both cried. It was really amazing. The heartbeat was 168bpm which is strong so that's great! I was 10 weeks 4 days pregnant on the day of the ultrasound and the baby was measuring at 11 weeks 1 day, so that's also good.

I also hit another milestone since I last posted. I stopped my progesterone last week. That was my last IVF medicine so I feel like our invitro journey is finally over.

Here is a picture of our little one. The "blob" is finally starting to look like a baby! :)

Next appointment

I've been awful about updating this lately. I'll blame it on the morning sickness.

I'm hoping that what everyone says is true and that this will stop (or at least get a lot better) at 12 weeks.

We have our next ultrasound on November 10th. That's also my first OB appointment, it was bittersweet to be released from the RE. I was so happy that the in vitro worked on the first try and that our baby was thriving but I was so sad to leave the office because everyone there is so wonderful. I do have a great OB though so I'm sure things will be just fine.

I'll try to update a little more often but I'll definitely post the ultrasound picture when we get it.

2nd Ultrasound

Our 2nd ultrasound was great! The baby is measuring just right for 8 weeks 5 days old and its heart is beating strong. It is amazing to me how much it's grown in 2 weeks!

Welcome "Everyone"

As soon as we found out we were pregnant we agreed that we'd only tell my parents and Russel's sister right away but we'd wait to tell "everyone" until we reached the 12 week mark. Well we just couldn't wait and let the cat out of the bag!!

We are feeling pretty confident because we've seen that the baby has a healthy heartbeat and my doctor keeps telling me that morning sickness (all day sickness) is a pretty good indication that the baby is doing well. If that is true then this little one is doing AMAZING!

A lot of the people that are just learning that we are expecting our first baby are also just learning that we suffer from infertility and after trying for 16 months finally turned to invitro fertilization to conceive.

We feel so blessed to have been dealt this hand in life. It might sound strange after all that we've been through but we thank God for this path He chose for us. We can't imagine getting here any other way. At the same time, please understand that infertility is a painful road. It is a sensitive subject and since most people don't have any experience with it in their own lives or know someone who has, they aren't always sure what to say. For us, we aren't bitter or angry about it, and we don't mind discussing it. But you'd be surprised by some of the things people have said to us that have actually hurt. Someone sent me a wonderful article a while back that hit so close to home. I would encourage everyone to read it, it really opens your eyes to the struggles of infertility. Click here if you'd like to take a look.

I knew from the day that I started this blog that I would make it public once we were pregnant. We've decided to be very open about the things that we've gone through. It was important to me because when we were officially diagnosed "infertile" and told we'd have to do invitro I was so lost. I wanted this blog to be as informative about our journey as possible.

While we are willing to share almost all of the details of our story, our actual diagnosis is a little too personal to share. The bottom line is, we were told by 2 different doctors that we absolutely would never be able to conceive a child naturally. After seeing our test results we knew it was true and didn't want to waste time trying for something that would never happen. Because our diagnosis is so severe invitro was our only option.

I started this blog on the first day of our IVF cycle so if you go to the very bottom of this page and read up you can read the whole journey! :)

Thank you so much to all of our wonderful friends and family for all of their support and love!!

Meet our baby!!!

We went to the doctor this morning for our first ultrasound.

We have one baby and it has a healthy heartbeat!!! We are THRILLED!!! It was such an amazing site to see. We saw the heart flickering away! The doctor said the baby's heart rate is 140bpm.

Here is our little miracle! It doesn't look like much now but it's growing fast! I think if you click the picture it will enlarge.

First ultrasound tomorrow!

We are so excited and nervous about tomorrow. At 10:30am we'll have our very first pregnancy ultrasound. We are praying that we'll see a good strong heartbeat.

Although we're pretty sure we already know the answer to this question, we'll also find out how many babies we have in there. We're pretty sure there's just one.

I'll update as soon as I get home.

Thank God

We have been so blessed over the past year, our lives have changed in so many wonderful ways, and all the praise goes to God. I try not to force my beliefs onto others and I hope this post doesn't offend anyone, but it's important to me to thank God and praise Him for the work he's done in our lives.

This struggle has been such a blessing. It has changed our lives in so many ways. It is a reminder to me to stay strong through hard times because when the path is revealed to you it all makes perfect sense. I can't imagine us living out this dream of becoming parents in any other way.

After a very long time of struggles, tears, heartache, disappointment, and sadness we are exactly where and who we are meant to be.

Praise God!

They were right

A few ladies warned me about wishing for morning sickness. Man, were they right. Today has been a rough one. I'm so sick. On some level the morning sickness is reassuring to me, I worried when I didn't have any symptoms so "feeling pregnant" is a comfort, I guess I just didn't want to be feeling THIS pregnant. :)

5 weeks

We've made it to the five week mark! We are taking this pregnancy one small victory at a time.

This week the baby's heart should start beating. That is just amazing to me. This is what our little one looks like this week:

As far as how I'm feeling... I'm doing really well actually. No more cramping, no more spotting, and only a few waves of morning sickness so far. I hear that the sickness really hits around 6 weeks, so we'll see.

We are so excited for the first ultrasound, only 11 more days!

Just for Krissy :)

Krissy's comment on my last post made me laugh and I had to come clean. :)

On my last post about how crazy I felt for taking HPTs even after the doctor confirmed I was pregnant Krissy said "Oh Mandy, have you forgotten my collection of peesticks?? Check out my myspace photo album and see all the days and days worth of tests. It's pretty pathetic! You only have a couple, I had enough to make a line-up!"

So I had to come (completely) clean :) Here is (some) of my collection. I threw away about 10 of the $ store tests because they didn't work as well for me. There are also 2 digitals missing from this pic.

Forgive my insanity

Most women who get a positive beta (blood pregnancy test)will have repeat beta 2 days later to make sure that the numbers are doubling the way they are supposed to. It's a good indication that all is well with the baby. For some reason my RE doesn't do a repeat beta if your first number is good. Since my first number was 98 they said they didn't need to do another. Which means until October 13th I won't have any idea how the baby is doing.

When I started bleeding on Friday it scared me to death, I just knew something was wrong. I called the doctor and they said that if it continued they'd do another beta on Monday. The bleeding stopped Friday night so I didn't go for another test.

Now, here comes my insanity. Home pregnancy tests detect the amount of pregnancy hormone in your urine. The more HCG in your urine the darker the test line will be on the pregnancy test. So I decided to do a little at home experiment! I drew black arrows pointing to the test line. You should be able to click the pictures to enlarge.

Here is my test from Thursday (the day of my blood test) I was 14 days past ovulation...



And here is the one I took yesterday, I was 18 days past ovulation...



So since the bleeding has stopped, my test is much darker (I know the hormone is increasing), and I'm starting to have some pregnancy symptoms I can relax a little bit.

All this might sound crazy but we are just so anxious about this pregnancy. We are trying to have faith and enjoy this time in our lives... easier said than done sometimes.

Morning Sickness... maybe

I *think* I might be having some symptoms. I felt a little sick while getting ready this morning and again during church. It felt so strange to be so happy to be feeling bad! I've been able to settle down a bit over the past couple days, the bleeding is gone and I think I'm having the beginnings of pregnancy sypmtoms so it seems like all is well. We still feel like we are in a dream! ♥ A very very happy dream! ♥

A "little" scare

Well it certainly doesn't take long for the joy of finding out you are pregnant to turn to anxiety. Yesterday around 12pm I started bleeding. It wasn't a lot but wasn't just "spotting" either. I called the doctor and spoke to my IVF nurse. She was completely understanding of my panic but also completely unconcerned. She said that bleeding like I was describing is totally normal in early pregnancy and tends to happen even more frequently in IVF pregnancies than in natural ones. She said if it continued or got heavier to call back on Monday morning and they'd repeat my bloodwork to make sure things are still progressing. Each time I went to the bathroom yesterday it seems that the bleeding has slowed, by about 8pm it was very minimal and then about an hour later it had completely stopped. I haven't had anymore since then. I am really praying that this is nothing and that the baby is fine. I am so scared but trying to stay positive.

Otherwise I feel fine... and somehow that is another source of anxiety. I don't "feel pregnant". From everything I'm being told and reading on my own, it's a little too early for most pregnancy symptoms to set in. It sounds strange but I would welcome morning sickness at this point!

It's official!

Needless to say, the way we are feeling right now cannot be described!! After 16 months of trying, $10,000 spent, 30 shots at home, 5 different types of prescription pills, countless bloodwork and ultrasounds, and TONS of prayers... we are expecting our first baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our first ultrasound is October 13th. That is when we will find out if there is more than one baby. It doesn't matter to us, 1, 2, or 3... we are just thrilled and truly Thank God for this blessing!

*~*~B I G~*~* Day Tomorrow!!!!!

Of all of the BIG days we've had over the past couple months tomorrow is the biggest FOR SURE! Tomorrow is the day we find out if this worked. I can't believe that we are already to this point! It's exciting but also VERY scary!

We've gone back and forth about whether or not to post the results on this blog tomorrow. I think the final decision is that we will. But please remember, if you have the address to this blog you are one of the VERY few who do, so please keep the news to yourself :)

If we are pregnant we plan to share the news with "everyone" on Thanksgiving. That will be the end of the first trimester and a point at which we can relax a little with the rate of miscarriage dropping drastically. And if it's negative we probably won't ever tell everyone about it.
So please please please don't let the secret slip. :)

Symptomless

Well I'm just a couple days from my blood test and so far I haven't noticed much out of the ordinary. I had some cramping in my back and lower stomach on Friday (3dp5dt, which means 3 days past a 5 day transfer) and that's really about it.

I can't believe the blood test is in just 2 days! Wow, this thing has gone SO fast! It seems like just yesterday we started, and that was July 17th!

Please keep us in your prayers.

Some sad news

As you know on Tuesday we had 3 embryos transferred. When we left, the embryologist told us that we had 2 embryos that were still alive but not doing extremely well so they may not make it to freeze stage.

She called yesterday and let us know that neither of them made it. We are shocked that we have no embryos left to freeze. We just knew that we'd have 2 or even 4 to freeze in case we don't get pregnant this time. To thaw frozen embryos and transfer them only costs around $2,000 so we'd be able to do that a couple times. Now that we have none left, if we aren't pregnant now, we'd have to pay another $10,000 to try again. Needless to say, not a very easy thing to do.

I did get some more details about the 3 embryos that she did transfer. She said they were "top notch" and all three received the highest grade that she gives. One was a perfect blast and the other 2 were grade four morulas. A morula is the stage just before a blast. Both types have good success rates so all we can do for now is pray that one, two, or all of these little ones are going to stick!

Back from the embryo transfer!

I have pictures of the embryos, I'll add them later. I just thought I'd do a quick update for now. We got to the RE around 8am and sat in the waiting room for a while. Then we went back to meet with the doctors. As of this morning we had 1 great embryo, 1 good one, 1 so/so one, and 2 that are still alive but may not make it to the freeze stage. We lost one.

The embryologist recommended that we transfer the really good one, the good one, and the so/so one. Based on the fact that the "so/so" one probably would not survive a freeze and thaw for later use but may have a chance of implanting now.

So we took the doctors' advice and transferred the best THREE!!!!

We already feel attached to these little ones and are going to spend the next couple of weeks just praying that they make it!!!

♥ ♥ ♥ Our embies ♥ ♥ ♥

Transfer tomorrow!

It is surreal that we are going for our embryo transfer tomorrow morning! I get emotional every time I think about it. After nearly a year and a half of trying this will be our first real shot at getting pregnant and it will be so amazing to at least know that those 2 (or 3) little embryos are in there! :)

♥ All we can do now is have faith in God, and pray that this works! ♥

Final fertilization report

Another great report. Our 6 little ones are still growing strong and "doing really really well" according to the embryologist!!! She said I won't get a report in the morning, I'll just show up at 8am on Tuesday for my transfer!

Well we are off to church... we have so much to be grateful for this morning!!

Great news!!

The embryologist just called with our 2nd fertilization report. We ended up with 8 fertilized eggs as of last night. This morning we have 6 dividing and growing embryos!!!! The other 2 could still start dividing but hadn't as of this morning. This is wonderful news, what a relief! This was a huge mountain to climb for these little "embabies" :) All of our prayers are working!! Praise God!!

Fertilization Report is in

The embryologist just called for our day 1 report. Out of 11 eggs...

1 didn't fertilize normally because the egg was too big
2 haven't fertilized but still might
8 fertilized

According to the embryologist this is a great fertilization rate. She also said "Ok, this is the first hurdle and you made it over it, the next hurdle is for them to divide properly".

So we aren't out of the woods by any means but 8 is a great number. All we can do now is pray that these little embryos are going to divide properly!

Please, if you can, say some prayers for us too.

We will get the next report in the morning.

Egg Retrieval Day!!!

It is 8:18am EST and we are getting ready to leave for my egg retrieval! I am so nervous I could vomit! Lovely isn't it? :) I will be totally "out" for the surgery so when I wake up it will all be over, otherwise I might really be having a nervous breakdown right now! I will update when I can, I may be a little out of it today. I will know as soon as I wake up how many eggs they got and tomorrow we will know how many fertilized!


****UPDATE****
I'm home! I am shocked by how "normal" I feel. I expected to be a little out of it all day or have some pain but I feel great!

We got to the doctor's office around 9:45am and went right into pre-op (Russel got to stay with me right up until the put me to sleep). I got my IV and was put into a bed. After meeting with the anesthiologist we were ready to go!! My heart was pounding! The anesthiologist was great, he made me feel so comfortable. Everyone came into the operating room and got me into position. The doctor said he was putting some anti-anxiety medication in my IV so that I would relax and then they'd give me the anesthia. I laughed and said "I doubt I'll relax" and that is the last thing I remember! haha. I was OUT like a light. The next thing I knew I was in the recovery room and I heard a nurse say "You did awesome". I couldn't believe it was over. Then another nurse came in and said "What is your dog's name?" I thought "What a strange question" So I answered her then asked if I had mentioned my dog. She said that as soon as I came to in the operating room I said "I miss my dog" haha Poor Russel, no wonder he says he feels second rate to Zach! hahaha

They got 11 eggs from me which they say is a great number. We will get a phone call in the morning to tell us how many fertilized and when my embryo transfer will be. Please pray for a good fertlilization report!

No more shots!!

It felt so good to take that last shot!!!

Russel gave me the last shot at 11:30pm last night. We've both been so exhausted lately that it wasn't easy staying up that late but the timing of the trigger shot is critical. Taken even a little early or late could ruin the entire cycle. We mixed the medicine and loaded the syringe about 10 minutes before the shot then injected it at 11:30pm on the dot!

We took our first shot on August 20th. For 11 days we just did one shot daily and for the remainder we did 2 daily. Except for one day where my Follistim cartridge ran out in the middle of the shot so we had to reload and do another injection, I was lucky enough to get 3 shots that day. So with all of that plus the trigger shot we did a total of 30 shots at home!!!

The egg retrieval is tomorrow!!!

Special Day!

Today is our 2nd wedding anniversary!!!

Oddly I'm just as nervous today as I was 2 years ago :)

On our wedding day we never would have imagined that on our 2nd anniversary we'd be days away from in vitro fertilization!

Tonight we celebrate by injecting the trigger shot. :)

Green Light!!

The RE's office called around 4pm this afternnon. My monitoring appointment this morning showed about 13 follicles and my bloodwork was all good so we have a green light to take the trigger shot (LAST SHOT!!!) tomorrow night and we go in at 10am on Thursday for the egg retrieval!!

We can't even describe how we are feeling right now. It's been such a long wait and we can't believe we are finally here.

The egg retrieval is surgery so I will be under general anesthisea. The procedure takes about 45 minutes and I'll have to be in the recovery room for about an hour.. if I check out ok I'll be ready to come home!

After the egg retrieval they will tell us how many eggs they got, the following day (Friday) they will call with the fertilization report. We'll keep you posted! :)

Our 2nd Anniversary!

Russel and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary this past Saturday (our anniversary actually is Tuesday the 9th) We took a 2 1/2 hour trip on a 1940's dinner train through Bernheim Forest! It was SOOOO much fun and I recommend it to anyone! It was such a wonderful time, we made a very special memory. ♥

Russel Before we left

Me

On our way to Bardstown

Our boarding pass

The train!

The depot

Boarding the train

Leaving the station

Looking out our window

♥ Happy 2nd Anniversary to us!! ♥

Last monitoring appt tomorrow!

Finally! My last monitoring appointment is tomorrow morning! I'm not looking forward to it since my last one wasn't pleasent. My b/w was hard because she had trouble getting blood, which never happens. I guess it's because they are taking so much. My ultrasound was also very uncomfortable. They are vaginal ultrasounds and because of all of the swelling and bloating from the Follistim it really wasn't good. :(

Even though all he does is sit in the waiting room Russel still comes to all of these appointments. He meets me there and then goes back to work after they are over. Even though we are only together for a few minutes in the waiting room I'm still so glad he's there.

I'll update tomorrow, hopefully I'll have a great report and I'll be "triggering" Tuesday night!! The trigger shot is what forces the body to begin to ovulate, which is neccessary for the egg retreival. It won't be long now!!

Back from the RE

I had another monitoring appointment this morning. It didn't go quite as smoothly as the others. The nurse had a hard time getting blood, which is awful since I'm terrified of that anyway! Finally she was able to get enough and I moved on to the ultrasound. The doctor says everything looks great. I have 7 follicles (where the egg is growing) on the right ovary and 3 on the left. He said they look good and are "in line size wise". He says he thinks I'll stay on 225 units of Follistim and 5 units of Lupron but he won't know for sure until my b/w is back. I will get a phone call around 2pm to let me know how to proceed with my medicine. Obviously there is a chance that they will call and say some level isn't good in the b/w and we'll be cancelled but we are praying that we get to keep moving along.

I'll update this post this afternoon with the results.

****UPDATE****

The IVF nurse just called... I am responding well to the medicines. The only problem is I'm responding TOO WELL! My estrogen level is 806 so they are dropping my Follistim back to 75 units so that I don't hyper stimulate. I'm so excited that we get to keep trucking along!!! Back to the RE on Monday for more bloodwork and another ultrasound.

Another monitoring appointment tomorrow!

I am going in tomorrow for another U/S and B/W appointment. If everything is still looks good on the ultrasound and all of my hormone levels are good then I'll keep taking my shots over the weekend, go in for one last monitoring appointment on Monday, and then have my egg retrieval next week!!! I'll post tomorrow with the results.

Trying to stay strong

Today has been a rough day. Our new kitten had a cold when we first got her, she's been on medicine for 10 days. I took her back to the vet today to make sure the infection is gone. It is gone, but they did a couple other tests and she has Coccidia. Nothing too serious but she's on more medicine and has to back in 2 weeks. On the way home she peed in her cat carrier. :( On top of all of that craziness the Follistim is really doing a number on me. I'm bloated and sore. I just feel like laying around in pjs all day. It's the most uncomfortable feeling. According to our IVF nurse, the ovaries are normally the size of walnuts and while on Follistim they reach the size of oranges! That just sounds so crazy to me, I did a little research online and found the same info, though. Guess I should have believed her :)

As soon as Russel gets home from work every evening I lay down on the couch and don't get up until it's time to crawl into bed. I have 6 more days of this medicine. All of the research I have done says this pain goes away soon after the egg retrieval so I don't have long to go.

Here is a pic of the medicine I inject every night, click to enlarge.

Another big day!

We've reached another milestone in our journey! Today we start injecting the stimulation medicine!!! This is a HUGE step and really the last big one before the procedure. We are so excited. I have had so much anxiety over the Lupron shots so I'm not thrilled about having to do 2 shots a day now, but every night right before the shots I just try to really focus on how badly we both want this and it makes it easier to handle. I'll update tonight after my shots!

***UPDATE***
I had my first Follistim injection tonight. We did the Lupron shot first because I knew what that would be like and I wanted to get it out of the way. The Lupron shot went fine... they are so much easier now that we're shooting in the belly. Next, the Follistim. We also did that shot in the stomach. I have to admit that it did "hurt" a little more than the Lupron. There is a lot more medicine being injected than with the Lurpon so it stung a little more but nothing terrible. I'm already not looking forward to tomorrow's shots. The good news is we are VERY close to our egg retrieval and once that is here... NO MORE SHOTS! :) If everything goes according to plan we could be pregnant within the next 12 days!!!!!

New Shot Spot!

We tried a different location for my Lupron last night and it worked much better. All of our shots (even the trigger) are sub-Q so our IVF nurse said to use the top of the thigh, belly, or back of the arm for all shots. We decided to use the back of the arm. For the most part this went ok, but the past couple times they really hurt. So last night we tried the belly and I wish we would have tried this sooner! I felt N-O-T-H-I-N-G! If you are getting ready to do IVF or are in the middle of a cycle I would highly recommend you try this spot. It's the location we'll be using from here on out. You just need to get about 1 inch away from the belly button, straight down or to the side.

Here is a video that I watched about a million times before our first injection! :) I should have taken the advise about the belly!!

Today's Results

In today's monitoring appointment the RE (fertility doctor) wanted to see 2 things. Low estrogen levels in my blood work and a thin uterine lining on my ultrasound.

They did the blood work first... which I hate! But the nurse did a very good job and it barely hurt. She said that the results would be in this afternoon but if they were good they would not call I'd just move on to the next step in my protocol. If I receive no phone call then I'll start stimming (injecting my stimulation medicine, Follistim) on Monday.

Next I had my U/S. The doctor said that my lining was very thin and my ovaries looked great! He said "everything looks exactly like it should".

He said he has no reason to think that my estrogen will be high and doesn't think I'll be getting a phone call!!!

He said if I don't get a call then I just need to cut my Lupron back to 5 units a day and add 225 units of Follistim starting Monday!!


****UPDATE*****
Well, the RE's office is officially closed and no phone call!! Which means I start my stims on Monday!!!!!!I will be "stimming"all next week and probably have my egg retrieval the following week!

Nurse Russel

~click to enlarge~

1st Monitoring Appointment Tomorrow

I go in tomorrow for my first monitoring appointment. They'll do an ultrasound and blood work. These tests will tell them if I can start "stimming". If all looks good then I get to start my stimulation shots on Monday!!! "Stimming" is the last big step before the procedure!! I'm excited but getting more and more nervous. Starting tomorrow I'll go in every few days for ultrasounds and blood work to see how my body is responding to the Follistim. My last appointment will be on September 8th... HOPEFULLY... at that appointment they'll tell me when to do my trigger shot and then I'll go in for the egg retrieval a day or two later. I'll post again tomorrow if there's anything to report. :)

Lupron Strikes!!

And at the most inconvenient time! On the last Wednesday of every month I cook for church. Well this month I decided to wait until that day (today) to go grocery shopping for what I needed. I get to the store at 9am and feel fine. Within about 5 minutes I'm so hot and sick that I don't think I'm going to be able to stay. But, I had to stay, the food had to be made today and dropped off this evening. I had no choice. I've never fainted so I can't be sure but I think I was pretty close today!! I had beads of sweat rolling down my neck, back, and stomach. I was sweating so much that my hair was wet underneath!!!! I had to go to the freezer section and stand in front of a door to just keep from vomiting! I was miserable but made it through.

After being in the car for about 10 minutes with the air blasting me right in the face I felt perfectly fine. And I've been fine all day.

I guess I learned a valuable lesson... don't wait until the last minute to do something! :)

OUCH!

Tonight was my 5th shot of Lupron and for some reason IT HURT! :(

The first 4 were super easy and I didn't feel a thing, but tonight it hurt. I think it may have been because the medicine was cold. I didn't let it sit outside the fridge as long tonight as I have the other nights so maybe that was it. Either way, I won't be doing that again. And of course, now I'm anxious about tomorrow's shot already!

It's been a hard week. We have been mentally preparing for these shots for months, we knew they would be hard. So we have tried very hard to have everything else in our lives be as relaxed as possible. Well things aren't going as planned and the stress is really getting to us. Russel's job is so crazy right now with no slow down in sight, I got sick the day we started Lurpon, and now Russel is sick too. It's trying to say the least but we are staying positive. We have a goal in sight that is far more important than any of the things in our life that are working against us!

4th day on Lupron!

Today is my fourth Lupron shot and I'm a little nervous. I haven't had any of those awful side effects yet but I hear that they really kick in around the fourth or fifth day of shots. I'll be taking my shot in about 2 hours so I guess we'll see! I am feeling a little better today, at least I can breathe. My head is clearing out a little but now I feel it in my chest. I will be going to the doctor on Monday if things aren't much better. I just can't afford to let this go and turn into something more serious right now. An IVF cycle isn't something you can just stop and pick up again. If we were to stop we'd be out a lot of money and have to start completely over. We aren't about to do that now!
Thanks to everyone who has commented or sent emails. Support like that means so much to us right now! We love all of the feedback!!

Naturally... I'm sick

My allergies are killing me! I didn't sleep at all last night. My head is clogged up, one side of my nose is runny, the other side congested, headache, the whole nine yards. This is so hard right now. I knew the the Lupron shots carry some nasty side effects so I was trying to stay healthy and comfortable so I could deal with them better. Now I'm miserable. I'm on my 2nd day of Lupron and I've heard that the side effects don't start until around the 4th day so hopefully this will be cleared up by then. I took some medicine and hopefully I'll be able to sleep tonight. It's so hard when you are so tired that all you want to do is rest but you can't lay down without being miserable.

The first step is always the hardest!

Today was the injections class. It last about an hour and a half but it was so informative. I am so glad they do that because after the class all of my fears had really been eased (or so I thought).

We were told to do our Lupron injections in the evening and this evening was the first one.

I got all of the supplies ready; vial of medicine, syringe, sharps container, and alcohol wipes. I drew the medicine into the syringe and handed it to Russel. And to my surprise I proceeded to have a nervous breakdown!!! I was not expecting to panic like that. I was crying and swaying back and forth saying "I can't do it, I just can't do it". Russel was very supportive and held (most) of his laughter until my fit was over. At one point I honestly thought I wasn't going to gather the nerve to go through with it.

Finally I just closed my eyes and said "Ok, do it"

And like everything else in the world, it was nothing compared to what I expected! It was a snap and now I'm not the least bit nervous about doing them!

I think what most people who don't have to do these at home injections think is "Oh, what's the big deal? It's such a tiny needle, it won't hurt" And all of that is true, but there is a certain amount of anxiety that comes with your husband injecting fertility medicine into your body. This whole process has been dreading one thing after another and after a few weeks that really takes a toll on your emotional well being.

But we've got the hardest part (at least of this part of the cycle) behind us.

Russel will give me one injection of Lupron everyday. On August 29th we'll add another injection (Follistim) to the Lupron and do those two for about 10 more days.

We are praying that all of this pays off.

Big Day Tomorrow!

From what I'm told if you compare IVF to a very scary roller coaster, the first three weeks are kind of like that slow uphill ride. You can hear each inch cranking by, as your nerves are building. And starting "the shots" is the part where you throw your hands up and the real ride begins!

The real ride begins for us tomorrow!

We have our injections class at the hospital at 2pm. I'm so nervous. The class is taught to several couples at a time, I just hope it isn't rushed and we can get all of our questions answered.

We've decided that Russel will give me the shots. I just don't think I can give them to myself. I worry that I would hesitate at the last second and either hurt myself or waste the medicine.

The first medicine that we'll inject is Lupron. We'll do about 9 days of 10 units per day then I'll start the blood work and ultrasounds every few days to see how to proceed with the other shots. My biggest concern is the side effects. I've heard that this particular medicine has some nasty side effects. Like hot flashes, bloating, headaches, awful mood swings.

I'll be posting again tomorrow if I haven't been hospitalized for a nervous breakdown! :)

Even more background

Well, since we are in a "boring" part of our IVF cycle, I have some time to cover a little more background. Looking back I'm not sure why I didn't start this blog when we first started trying to get pregnant. I guess I never thought it would turn into what it has. As I've said, at some point we'll make this blog public to all, and when we do some will be finding out about us trying to conceive for the fist time. It's important to me that everyone understand that IVF isn't something we "jumped" into. And although we've come to consider our infertility a blessing in many ways, it wasn't always so easy to accept.
When we planned to start trying we never even considered that it wouldn't happen instantly. We would say "Ok, we'll get pregnant in June, then the baby will be here...." We had it all figured out. In that way, infertility has been a blessing. What a lesson in not taking things for granted.
After the first month and first negative pregnancy test we were so disappointed, but we quickly got excited for the promise of the next month. When that month ended the same way we reacted much the same way, disappointed but hopeful. After about 6 months each disappointment seemed bigger and the hope was starting to fade fast. In October I was "LATE", we thought just maybe our dream was coming true! We tried to remain realistic but our excitement quickly took over. I took about 15 pregnancy tests, not kidding there. All of them were negative but I just kept thinking, "Ok, it's just still a little too early, tomorrow it will be positive". We eventually had to face the reality, we weren't pregnant. After that we agreed that if we weren't pregnant by the end of the year, we'd seek help. On Christmas Eve 2007 I took a pregnancy test and learned the month would end the same as all of the others. So we kept our promise to each other, a few days later I made the appointment. We saw our fertility doctor for the first time on January 3, 2008. They took some basic tests just to start out. Later that same day the doctor called to say that the preliminary results were not good and they wanted to run those tests over, and run some new ones. Over the next 4 months they ran tests to try to find a cause for our problems and possible treatments. We were finally diagnosed (again, we are willing to share so much of this journey but our actual diagnosis is far too personal to share with anyone) but there is no treatment option. We simply cannot get pregnant without medical intervention. And that's ok with us. We just thank God that we have that option. We still have hope to conceive a child that is biologically ours and we are so grateful.

So here we are, August 4, 2008. Two weeks into our IVF cycle. I'm still taking the hormones and vitamins. I take 4 pills each night. Things are going great, we are getting a little anxious to start the injectables. We go to a class on August 20th so Russel can learn how to give me the shots. I actually have to have my first shot that night so let's hope he's a fast learner!

The Money

I think there's a lot of curiosity about the money that we are spending for this procedure. We have decided to be very open about all that we are going through with IVF so this area is no different. When we first learned that we might have to do IVF I got online and searched high and low for some real numbers. All I could find were estimates, and they varied greatly. I found lots of blogs by couples going through IVF, but again no figures! So if anyone stumbles across this blog, I hope this helps you.

Fertility Clinic $4,500
RE (Doctor) $3,500
ICSI $2,000 (almost all clinics charge around $2,000 for ICSI, amazingly ours is free!!)
Anesthesiologist $350.00
Embryo Freezing $500.00 (if you have some left over you can freeze for future tries)
Medicine $2,000 (this may vary but not by much)

So that brings the total for one cycle to $12,850.00

We are extremely fortunate for two reasons where money is concerned. Our clinic happens to do ICSI for no additional charge, and although our insurance won't cover ANY of the treatments they did cover some of the medicine. So our cycle ended up only costing us $9,350.00 out of pocket.

The money paid to the clinic and to the doctor is due on the day of our injections class, and the anesthesiologist fee is due on the day of the egg retrieval. The medicines of course are to be paid for before anything, as you'll need them first. Embryo freezing fees, if applicable, will be paid after all is "said and done" according to our RE.

If you are lucky enough to have some good embryos to freeze from your IVF cycle and you don't get pregnant from the IVF cycle then you can do an FET cycle (Frozen embryo transfer) for much less, around $2000.00 at our clinic.

So that's the breakdown. We live in KY, a state that does not have any laws in place to force insurance companies to pay for infertility treatments, so it's up to the insurance company entirely. If you don't live in KY and want to know what, if anything, your state mandates, here is a link that might help State-Mandated Insurance.

I tried to write this post to answer all of the questions I had back in January, if you have questions that I did not answer, feel free to email me!

Yikes!!

My medicine for the cycle arrived today!!! I am so excited but SO overwhelmed. Here are some pics... keep in mind... this doesn't include the "big guns". Two of the most important meds that I'll take won't arrive until next week.

You know how you get a little flyer with your medications that describes all of the uses, cautions, etc... here's the one that I got with this...

That's it??

I'm back from my SHG and am so happy to report that it could not have gone better!! The doctor said "Ok, that's it" and I said "That's what?" hahaha! It was painless and over in a snap. The best part is he said everything looks "perfect" and we can move forward with our cycle!!! Our next appointmet, which is our injections class, is August 20th.

SHG Tomorrow!

Well tomorrow is my very first "real" appointment for IVF. We've of course had consults and appts for other tests, but this is the real thing!!!

I have an SHG tomorrow and I'll start some of the medicine! I'm more than a little nervous. Like I said before, one step at a time. My stomach turns every time I really think about it.

They are going to do an U/S (ultrasound) while filling my uterus with saline to make sure that all is well there. It's a big determining factor in the success of IVF. If all looks good, they'll also do mock transfer. The embryos are transferred through a catheter so tomorrow they'll insert a catheter to take measurements and watch its placement on the monitor. This is so on the day of the actul transfer they won't have any surprises.

I probably won't get any sleep tonight. I'll post the results when I get home tomorrow.

Infertility Etiquette

Someone shared an article on infertility etiquette with me today. It is great and hits close to home! We would really appreciate it if all of our family and friends could take a moment and read the article too!

Click here.


Thanks!

Cycle Day One!!

When a couple finally decides that they are ready for their first IVF cycle they must wait until the first day of the next menstral cycle. So today is that day for me!!

I called the doctor and let them know. I have my 1st appointment on Tuesday (July 22, 2008). I will have an SHG and a mock transfer. Basically at this appointment they will look at the uterus by filling it with saline and make sure there is no reason that embryos would not implant. They will do a mock transfer to find the right measurments to use on the big day. I am very nervous because from what understand it's not the most comfortable thing in the world. I have to take this one small step at a time because it is so overwhelming otherwise.

By the way... I should let you know that words like uterus, sperm, cervix, etc are as common as the word "I" in this house so please don't be offended :)

Look at me, I'm blogging!

I have been meaning to start this blog for some time but today I decided I'd finally make the time and get it started. I am mostly using this as a journal of our journey to baby # 1. So, since that is what most of this blog will be about... here's the scoop. :)

Russel and I met in late November 2005. It's hard to explain and probably even harder to believe but I never doubted for one second that this was the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. It certainly shocked everyone in both our lives when we announced our engagement after only 10 weeks of dating. It was unlike either of us to jump into something so serious so quickly. But again... we just knew. We were married on September 9, 2006. It was nothing like the wedding that I had planned when I was 5 years old but it was perfect just the same.

Of course children was an issue that was decided before the wedding. We both knew we wanted kids, it was just the exact date that was unclear. We knew we didn't want to wait a very long time because we weren't gettin' any younger. Especially Russel! :)

On April 28, 2007 I took my last birth control pill! You can imagine our complete shock when we weren't pregnant the very next day! I'm a bit impatient. It took me a couple months to realize this might not happen for everyone immediately. In fact, it usually doesn't.

After 8 months of trying, in December of 2007, we decided that it might be time to see a doctor. We did and received awful news. It took 3 months to confirm that news, but on April 28, 2008 (yes, one year to the day of stopping BC) we were finally told, for certain, that we would not be able to conceive on our own. January was a very difficult time for us. We were just so in shock. By the time April rolled around we got used to the idea, so the final diagnosis was not a big shock.

Our diagnosis(which is too personal to discuss in detail) is severe and our only treatment option is IVF w/ ICSI. That is in vitro fertilization with intracytoplasmic sperm injection. Basically, I will be given lots of medicine some will supress, others will stimulate. After my ovaries are sufficeintly stimulated, the doctor will (through a surgical prodceudre) remove my eggs. The embryologist will take one sperm and, with a needle, inject it into one egg. Then watch for a few days to see who grows the best. After either 3 or 5 days (depends on how they are growing) 2 or 3 embryos will be transferred back into me.

Alright, so there is the story.

We have known (basically) since January that we couldn't get pregnant "on our own" so these last 7 months of waiting have been torture. We are ready to get this show on the road!