Round 7 IUI update

Today was the day we finally got good news this round: The injections worked and we have about 4 mature follicles ready to trigger tomorrow night. Here is our schedule for the next couple days:

• Trigger (have Curtis give me the shot of Ovidrel) at 10:30pm tomorrow night. She said that we don't have to do it exactly at 10:30, as long as it's not too much later.
• Thursday morning Curtis has an appointment to "do his thing" at 8:30am.
• My appointment is 10:30am.
• TWO WEEK WAIT!!

After the insemination I'll start my "pregnancy diet". You know, the things a pregnant woman can and can't eat. I'll continue nuking my sandwich meat in the microwave prior to eating it. I will cut out caffeine, which really sucks cause last time I did that, I was falling asleep at my desk by 1!! I didn't realize how much I relied on that morning cup of coffee! And in order to get my caffeine fix prior to Thursday, I'm sitting here enjoying a Cherry Coke Zero as we speak. It's gonna be a long two weeks, that's for sure...

I'm super nervous about the insemination, since it's not our doctor doing it (way to plan a trip to Disneyland DOC! GAH!), but I'm really staying positive. I just keep telling myself that this is it. This is what we needed. I've always thought we would need the IUI, so I'm glad we're finally here.

In other news, I'm not sure if I mentioned it before (and I'm far to lazy to look), but our dog Ava had puppies again. I'm almost positive that I talked about her last litter (last year)...Well, she had another litter this time. Only instead of 2, she had 7! LET. ME. TELL. YOU. 7 puppies is ridiculous. They are only 3 weeks and I'm already counting down the days until we sell them. Thankfully, we already have people interested, but we haven't even got to weaning them yet! I cringe just thinking about it. I keep trying to leave the dirty work to Curtis, since this is kind of "his thing", but my OCD takes over and I have to get in there and clean and try to get the smell out. Ok, I'll admit, I think they're totally adorable and I play with them a bit too, but that doesn't mean I want to keep them or do this all over again anytime soon. Oy vey, it's just a lot of work!

OH! and I forgot to tell you. I was talking to the Dr. Formally-Awesome-Now-Disneyland-Butthead about the cost of the injections I had to take. I told him that I read that they were $500 a shot. He said, "Oh God no! The 5 shots you took were like a total of $200. The ones I will give you were like less than $50 a piece!" Talk about a load off!! Of course I'm hoping that we won't need to take those shots ever again, but to know that if we have to I won't have to shell out $3,500 for medicine, I'm relieved. To say the least! Ha ha.
Also, just a quick side note, I'm watching TLC while typing this and the commercial for Say Yes to the Cure: Lori's Fight came on. Can we say tears?? Damn I'm emotional.

Anyways, nothing but GOOD news today at the doctors! Yay! I'll be sure to give you all an update soon! Lots of love and baby dust to all of you!

P.S. If my Nana is reading this (she just got a computer and I sent her a link, so I'm hoping she figured out how to use it) I love you and can't wait to see you this weekend!! Muah!

The Good, the bad, and the infamous shot

Yesterday we had our monitoring ultrasound. Curtis was able to come with me, which was awesome because I could finally introduce two of the most important guys in my life, haha, my RE and my husband. Unfortunately, with the appointment being a Saturday, my doctor was extremely busy so we didn't get a whole lot of time to talk, but I'm still glad they got to meet.
Well, the ultrasound itself went ok, but we did receive some disheartening news. It seems as if I am becoming resistant to the Clomid. Once again, I was only on 50mg, but instead of 4 follicles maturing, we only had 1. Dr. A said that he has seen this before, a woman becoming used to the Clomid and having to up the dosage, but it still kinda hit me like a punch in the gut. He said that next month, if we have to start again, to go ahead and take 75 mg. I told him about the Walmart pharmacy fiasco and him, and his nurse, informed that it's pretty normal for Walmart to screw up when filling scripts. Looks like I'm going to be moving back to Fry's, or maybe even the mom and pop pharm downtown, but I'll have to see which one is going to give me the least grief. At this point, money really isn't an object.
Back to the ultrasound, Dr. A gave me another script for a trigger shot, so we went and picked that up while in the big city, as well as did some shopping for our big camping trip next weekend. Here's a shot of the goods:

I'm really looking forward to it! My brother and his fiance and my brother's friend are all coming up and we'll be out there from Friday until Sunday morning, since Curtis has an overtime shift on Monday night. Going out on the boat and camping always helps me relax and I think it's a good distraction while waiting for the two week mark. Plus, I get to use my brand spanking new pole (see it up above). It's pink and I love it! 

Speaking of two week wait, I gave myself the Ovidrel shot today at noon. Which means, Tuesday morning at 12am sharp, I will ovulate. I timed it that way so we would have a bit more workaround for "sexy time". Last month we were kinda rushed, it being cycle day 13 and all, and even though it is sex, waking up earlier than normal and trying to squeeze it in before work (we already get up at 5:45am) is really not "fun". 

Giving myself the shot was not as easy as it was last time, which is probably because Curtis gave it to me then. I'm not sure if I tensed, or if I am just being one big dramatic baby, but I really felt it this time. No me gusta, let me tell you that*. It wasn't so much the needle, it was afterwards, the injection site felt a bit of discomfort. Maybe cause I just pulled it from the fridge, and I didn't warm it up, but I was at my cousin's house and I wanted to be quick about it. I wanted to get back to this cute little face:

This, my good friends, is a 7 week old Dachshund. Isn't he the cutest little thing ever?? I sent this picture to Curtis and he said that I could get one (the lady he came from has some more that are almost ready, but not red like him, they are black/brown), but I'm not sure if I should. Sure I'm feeling mothering and such now, and I want to baby something and cuddle with it, but am I ready to potty and kennel train? Plus, would my two big dogs play nice with one? They are nice to the chihuahua from next door when the little girl comes over to play with my stepson, even though it looks like they are trying to eat him. I guess I'll just wait a couple days and see if I still want to get one...

Oh my gosh, I just realized I never told you guys about my decision with the IUI! Where is my brain at?!? Well, I'm sure you can already tell, but we're not doing an IUI this month. In fact, we are probably not going to take that step until September. We're not prepared to pay for an IUI out of pocket for the next couple rounds, so we're going to take our summer break to save up...if we get that far of course. After my period started, I felt so desperate and heartbroken I thought jumping to an IUI would help me, but instead it made me a bit more stressed. I feel comfortable sticking to this plan for the next couple rounds, before my stepson gets here in June. I just think it's the best idea for us right now. 

Well, I guess this post has gone on quite long enough. I think I covered everything, but if not, I'll be back in the next coming days to discuss the inevitable two week wait we're starting again. As always, send your prayers, thoughts and/or baby dust! 

*Throwing in a little spanglish for you guys. I do live next to the border y'all...

Cycle Update - Entering the 2 week wait

This little sucker cost us $90!! 

As you can see from above, our ultrasound yesterday went splendidly! Doctor found 3 follicles on my left ovary, all around 15-18mm, and one follicle at 18mm on my right ovary. He said while that is still a high number, he felt ok with us going ahead for the month. He also said that we could even go down a smidge on the Clomid next month, but I'm, of course, hoping that there won't be a treatment plan next month! 

Anyways, for those who don't know, that little shot in the picture above is called the infamous "trigger shot". 36 hours after injection, I will ovulate and potentially drop all the mature eggs I have growing. Since we've gone the trigger shot route, we will not need have timed intercourse (every other day). We only have to  have our marital relations, like, three times in the next 36 hours. Anything after that is pointless because the egg only lives for 24 hours. That is one reason I decided to ask for the shot. The other is that I HATE those over the counter LH tests (ovulation predictor kits). When I was taking them in November, it said that I ovulated, when we all know that I was not responding to the Femara at all. I told my RE yesterday that I really didn't want to have to rely on those to narrow down my ovulation date. He completely agreed with me. He said those tests are horrible and misleading. So he called me in the shot and here we are! 

Now, you can't get this shot at just any pharmacy. You have to go to a special one called an Apothecary. The wait was pretty fast (about 20 minutes) and the pharmacist is super nice. It was right across the way from another fertility clinic, so I'm sure they get orders like mine on the regular. They also gave me an ice pack, since I'm 1,000 miles away* from home and the shot needs to be refrigerated. Of course Curtis just had to be the one to give me the shot, since, ya know, he's an EMT and that makes him the most "qualified" in our house for any and all medical needs. (Sorry for the sarcasm honey! You know I'm just kidding...). Regardless, he did a great job, even though he was really nervous about "sticking me". The injection didn't hurt at all and I have no redness or anything. I'm sure that's expected as this isn't like Lupron or Progesterone, but I figured I would let those of you who were curious know how it went**. 

The next step is to do the dirty and wait. As of Wednesday morning, we will be in what most call the 2 week wait (2WW). If Aunt Flow doesn't show up by February 29th, I pee on a stick and pray for two lines. If she does show up before then, well, we have our answer. But I'm not allowing myself to think those thoughts! I'm staying super positive and telling everyone we will be pregnant this month. Yesterday, I had nothing but positive thoughts in my head. I told everyone that it was going to be a good day, and we kept saying that we were drawing the line at 4 follicles. Low and behold, there were 4 follicles! I feel that it's all a sign for good things this month and I'm so excited! I also had a stern talking-to with my Pop. I told him that he's had almost 3 months with my kiddos up there in heaven and it's time he send one or two home or I was going to be very upset with him. Pop never liked it when I was upset, he always did everything he could to make me happy, and I know that this month will be no exception. 

So I hope you all are ready for this blog to turn in to a pregnancy/mommy blog because, We're getting pregnant this month!!

*Okay, that was an exaggeration. I'm only like 90 miles away, but 1,000 just sounds so much more dramatic. 

**Sheesh, did that sentence make any bit of sense? I am entirely too tired to function right now. 

[Insert some witty title here]

As if the past week wasn't exciting enough, the Provera finally did it's job and cycle day 1 started on Tuesday. I called and refilled my prescription for the Femara and decided to check on the two remaining refills I have. My doctor was kind enough to write me 5 prescriptions of the Femara total, and since I've met my deductible for this year (with my insurance), I wanted to see if I could fill all remaining prescriptions. You see, I only pay $7 per round right now. Unfortunately, I waited to long and will only be able to get one more prescription filled before the end of the year; on the 31st exactly! If this round, and that round fail, the next one I buy in 2012 will cost us $186. Hopefully that dollar sign is motivation to my ovaries to GET STUFF DONE. haha.
Anyways, cycle day 3 hit yesterday, so I started my first dose of the Femara. As usual, Curtis is just starting his graveyard shift, so I'm all by my lonesome with only my crazy pills and Netflix to keep me company. Well, that's not true. I do have two cute little German Shepherd puppies to keep me company. I'm not sure if I told you, but the day after my Pop passed, my female German Shepherd (we have a male and a female), Ava, had puppies. We knew she was pregnant, as I found them stuck together outside one day, and as luck would have it, she went in to labor almost right after we left town. Thankfully my brother-in-law and his girlfriend were able to hold down the fort until Curtis got back. She only had two, thank God, but they are two of the cutest puppies I've ever seen! I'm fighting getting too attached to them, as we know we don't want four or even three full grown GSD's to feed, but it's so hard when they are just.so.adorable! So while they are at the house, keeping me busy with letting them out to go to the bathroom and feeding/weaning them, I am keeping as much distance as I can. They turned 6 weeks old today, so when I get off work it'll be time for their shots. And while we wanted to keep them until they were 8 weeks, they are getting to be quite the handful and seem to be able to make it just fine without Mama, so they may be able to go to new homes a bit sooner.

Then to top it all off with a big, fat cherry, Curtis and I are completely sick. I started it by coming home from the family fiasco with my sister's cold and it's just working its way around our house. I'm downing vitamin c like nobody's business, hoping that this wears off before New Year's day. Who wants to start out a year alone with a cold? Yea, Curtis is working New Year's night. I swear, fate, Mother Nature, God, whomever!, has just decided that every round of Femara is torture time for Lindsay. It always happens on graveyard! Ugh.
Anyways, enough of my ranting and complaining. Ultrasound is scheduled next Friday at a new doctor's office since my office's u/s tech is out. If all goes well, I could be getting my trigger shot that day! Two days before Curtis' next graveyard shift begins. UGH. Do you know how unromantic it is to spend the hour and 15 minutes I have with him on graveyard days with a pillow under my butt, legs in the air, naked as a jaybird? Trust me it's not.

Now I know this post is getting long, but bare with me (is it bare? or bear? Heck if I know). If you've been reading this blog since the beginning, or even jumped in somewhere in the middle, I thank you. The support from friends and in-laws has been inspiring and so wonderful. I seriously love each and every one of you. 2011 was quite the year for me. I swear it flew by, yet I feel like we accomplished so much in that short time. I lost the greatest man I knew and was diagnosed with infertility. My stepson was taken across the country and we spent money we were saving for a family vacation on a lawyer instead. But in the midst of all this negative, Curtis and I grew closer than ever before. I don't think my relationship has ever been as solid as it feels now. I made friends and grew closer to people I never would've imagined, some whom I've never even met!, seem closer to me now than my own family. So while I can't wait for 2012, I can say I'll never forget 2011. It was a real turning point for me. And I hope that all of you have fond memories of 2011 that you can look back on. I wish you all a Happy New Year and I'll see you all on the other side of 2012! Here's to new beginnings!