The Post I Thought I Might Never Write....

Well.....I have some news for my peeps in Blogland......


Third time was a charm, and....

WE'RE PREGNANT!!!!

I took a First Response Early test Wednesday morning (11 DPO) just to check since we were scheduled for an appointment on Thursday with the RE to discuss our "next step" aka IVF.  I just about fell off the potty when I was greeted with a BFP!!  I took this digital one last night, and another First Response one this AM (I will pee on anything that sits still long enough...lol) and all came back positive and darker than yesterday!  


We still went to our RE appointment today, because given my 50/50 chance of chromosomal abnormality, I wanted to know what our game plan would be.  They ran my beta to confirm that I was preggers, and it was 46.5 at 12 DPO -- not bad for it being so early, and my progesterone level was very good at 39.5, but they want me to continue with the Crinone for the next month at least....yikes.  Estrogen level was A-OK too, so they want me to come back for labs again on Monday.  So far I'm feeling fine, aside from some increased tiredness, occasional light cramps, super sore tatas, and the occasional slight wave of nausea!


So, that's my story!  Third time was a charm and apparently ovaries do produce better after being threatened with IVF!  Ha!  Thanks to everyone who sent me "good luck" vibes -- apparently they worked!!  Please keep them coming in hopes that we have conceived a healthy baby!  You've all been such awesome support thru this whole process and I love reading all of your blogs nightly!  ;)  

TWW....take 3....

Hope everyone is doing spiffy in Blogland!  We are almost 4 days into the TWW and all is fine!  The IUI went off without a hitch on Saturday!  My progesterone level was 2.3, showing that I was ovulating, and when I got home from the IUI I peed on an ovulation predictor stick (just 'cause I had an extra one and I love peeing on things) and it was definitely positive!  Yay!!  It was the first "true" positive I've ever gotten on one of those sticks!  I was almost convinced that the sticks were broken!  Ha!  So timing looks pretty darn good, so we'll see what comes of try #3!


Life otherwise is pretty good around here -- my new job is going well and B starts her new job on Monday!  A lot of changes going on in our household, but they seem to be changes for the good, so hopefully our "baby-making" will follow suit!  


Congrats to all the BFP's out there and new babies, especially my friend Carey and her partner Janine!!  Can't wait to meet your little cutie when you're ready for visitors!!  

Fast Forward!

Today I went in for my CD12 ultrasound and bloodwork and was expecting the worst and hoping for the best... and I did indeed get lucky!  


My lining was awesome at 11 mm!!


Righty decided not to really join the party this month - a bunch of small follies and one 12.


But lefty...wow...talk about an over-achiever this month!  I have a 25 and 23 on the left side!  Yay!  


My bloodwork showed that I was already moving towards ovulation, so they told me to take the Ovidrel as soon as I could, which ended up being around 6 pm since I was at work when the RE's call came in.  They want me to come back in tomorrow AM super early to check bloodwork again, just to make sure that I ovulated or am in the process of ovulating, and the IUI should be tomorrow afternoon!  


I was shocked!  The last 2 IUI's were after CD14, but this cycle I'm rip roarin' ready to go at CD13!  Maybe this is a good sign!  I'll take any good signs I can get at this point!  


Please keep your fingers crossed for me tomorrow.... I'm really hoping this is "the one"!  :)  

Stinkin' Thinkin'

Yep....that's what I've got....

From the age of 5 until I was 18, I was a competitive swimmer.  I swam almost 7 days a week, and at least 2-3 hours a day.  It was pure insanity.  Anywho....around the ripe old age of 15, I started to get tired of swimming (imagine that...lol) and developed what my Mom termed "stinkin' thinkin'" - which translated, means basically an extreme case of negative attitude.  My "stinkin' thinkin'" would undermine my confidence and belief in myself, and eventually would lead to poor performances in swim meets.  Swimming, like most sports, can be just as much mental as it is physical, and when my penchant for negativity took hold, look out....bad things ahead.

So...fast forward a little over a decade and the "disease" has come back.  I am feeling so down about this cycle, and our chances of becoming parents via IUI.  I know this is only the 3rd try and some people try for months before getting their BFP, but I guess I thought for me, the difficult part of this process would be in "staying pregnant", not "getting pregnant".  Without going into massive details at this point, I'll just say this... my Mom had 4 miscarriages due to a chromosomal abnormality, and unfortunately her sense of humor wasn't the only thing I inherited from her, so God only knows if I'm able to get pregnant, if it will result in a viable baby.  So I guess I was just hoping that maybe getting pregnant would be the easy part, but that's proving to be difficult as well.

I don't want to have "stinkin' thinkin"" about this cycle, but I can't help feeling this heaviness in my heart as I go thru this cycle.  I should be excited about the CD12 U/S on Friday and the impending IUI #3, but instead I just feel numb and like I'm going thru the motions.  I know I should be staying positive, but I just feel like the handwriting is already on the wall and IVF may be on the horizon.  We're only doing a maximum of 4 IUI's and then giving up and moving on to IVF (if we can figure out how to pay for it).

So, I'm not really sure where all this leaves me -- the roller coaster that is "Try #3" is chugging up the hill and there's not much I can do to stop it, so I guess I'm just going to have to hang on and attempt to enjoy the ride.  If anyone out there has any good vibes or positivity to send my way, I'm definitely accepting donations!  :)

Hope everyone is having a good week!

Third Time Is A Charm....

Well, officially "not preggers" this month over here!  


Three days after stopping the progesterone gel (aka nastiest crap in the world), AF is rearing her ugly head.  Oh well...I've got to say, the worst time of the cycle for me is between the BFN and AF's arrival, so I'm glad to be over that part and headed towards another try.  This is the one that's going to work....I just know it.  


But if for some reason it doesn't, we've got a consultation with the RE coming up on the 17th to discuss future options.  I think B and I have come to accept that IVF might give us the best and most immediate chance at starting our family, and since I'm only 31 and she's 32, our chances are pretty good.  We just need figure out finances, insurance, and a plan.  


Of course we're hoping that IUI #3 will seal the deal, and we can reserve the complicated stuff for me getting pregnant with B's baby!  :)


Good luck to everyone else in the TWW!  I'll be checking back in soon!