3rd Ultrasound and now 12 weeks!

I know it has been a long time since I have updated my blog and a lot has happened. Last time I posted I was 9 weeks and now I am 12 weeks along. I had my first OB appointment with Dr. Sheridan and I am glad I switched, I really felt comfortable with her. At 10 weeks it was Thanksgiving and my 32nd birthday. My mother in-law was in town and my best friend and her family came to town for the week as well. I hosted Thanksgiving at my house and had both my grandmothers, my parents, mother in-law, aunt, sister, best friend and her hubby and 5 kids and of course me and James. It was a nice evening and everyone was a great help cooking and cleaning and I received wonderful birthday gifts as well. 

The week before my sister Ame and my niece Chloe were in town and we had an early birthday dinner celebration for me and my sisters gave me a wonderful basket of maternity stuff. They gave me The Belly Book (a pregnancy journal), two maternity shirts, a body pillow, organic lotion and oil for stretch marks as well as wrist band for morning sickness (which I have never had to use) as well as pregnancy tea, which is so delicious!

 

As for how I have been feeling... well, I did not stop the progesterone shots. I called Dr. Montville after taking my "last" shot and asked if I should take start taking it every-other day to taper myself off of it and told him I had an unopened vile of the progesterone. Dr. Montville said that every IVF patient is always scared to stop the progesterone but it is completely safe to go off of it since I now had a placenta that was producing progesterone. He did say that since I still had a vile left that I can take it every other day until it is gone, after all it was expensive and there is no need to throw the meds away and it will not hurt to keep taking it. The week of Thanksgiving was probably the roughest week I have had being pregnant so far. Everyone and everything was annoying me to the point of crying. I honestly had a complete break down because when James got back from the grocery store (I gave him a detailed list with a coupon for every single item on the list, took me forever to do) he bought 10 onions and I had 1 on my list! I honestly lost it cried and cried and found it insane for anyone to ever buy 10 onions. I realize now I over reacted but still think it is ridiculous to buy 10 onions. I the am sure the fact my body was now making its own progesterone as well as the fact I was still giving it to myself along with all the other crazy hormones in my body,  the fact I had a house full of guests, I was overly tired and I was hosting and cooking Thanksgiving dinner on my birthday just was a little to much for me to handle. So far, though, that has been the roughest week for me. I am lucky that I have not been sick at all, I have not even felt nauseous.

10 weeks baby the size of a Prune

11 Weeks size of a lime - feeling a lot bigger now

11 weeks 1 day baby was moving around like crazy

11 weeks - baby face - 175 bpm

11 weeks baby waving at us

12 weeks size of a Plum

This is my last week in the first trimester and no longer feel annoyed at everything. I feel great. Dr. Sheridan said that the baby looks great and I am considered a normal patient that I do not have any more things to worry about that a regular pregnant person. My next appointment is the Friday after Christmas I will be 16 weeks. She said if she had time she could do an ultrasound to find out the sex of the baby since she will not be around for my 20 week and the Dr. taking over for her while she is on her maternity leave can not do ultrasounds. So, fingers crossed we get to find out!

Today, I was surprised to find a gift in the mail from my friend Jackie. She sent me a lovely card, a baby bump picture frame and a maternity shirt that says Due for Delivery June 16, 2013 with my zip code on it. It is so cute and thoughtful.

Thank you again for all the support and positive energy that everyone has been sending us. We are so lucky to have such great friends and family.

MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN OUR FAVOR

2nd Ultrasound!

We had another ultrasound on Friday, November 9, I was 8 weeks 5 days. I was nervous but not as nervous as the first one. We were so happy to see our baby who has grown so much in 2 weeks. The heartbeat was 186 bpm! According to an old wives tale a heart rate like that indicates it is a girl. Only time will tell if that is true.

8 weeks the size of a Raspberry

I do have to say I love doing my weekly chalk board. It is fun to come up with new fonts to learn to draw.

8 weeks 5 days!

9 weeks size of a green olive!

Dr. Montville called today and said he received the ultrasound from Friday and said everything looked perfect! He said that on Sunday (10 weeks) it would be my last night for my shot of progesterone! NO MORE SHOTS!!! YAY! and as of today I can also stop taking my metformin! I am now officially out of his care and need to see my OB. I am in the process of switching OB's since I do not really care for my current one. Dr. Montville sent a referral to Dr. Sheridan. Her office called me today and I need to call them back tomorrow to verify the appointment day they said they wanted to see me. On my voice mail she had stated she had an opening on November 26th ( I will be 11 weeks).

As for how I am feeling, I am feeling fine. I am still really tired and my boobs are super tender but other than that I feel great! I hope I did not just jinx myself. I am just hoping that since it took me so long to get pregnant I am granted with the gift of not feeling nauseous!

This week I also received my first gift and card for being pregnant. It was from my friend Kira. It was so thoughtful. She sent me some organic stretch cream as well as organic stretch cream oil. It was a great surprise! Now I have a busy week ahead of me. We have James' mother coming on Friday for a week for Thanksgiving we also have friends coming to stay for the weekend so we all can go to our friends wedding. My sister Ame and niece Chloe will also be here for the weekend. I am so excited to see them since it has been since my benefit in August since we have last been together. Then on Tuesday my best friend Lauren and her family are coming up for Thanksgiving! So, I have a lot of clean and laundry to do before everyone gets here. As, for Thanksgiving, which is my 32nd birthday, I am hosting.. I think there are 14 people coming so it should be fun. Why I am hosting this year and not my mother is because my mother had to have emergancy back surgery this past Friday. So on that note, I would love some of the amzing positive thoughts and energy you all keep sending my way to be sent to my mother for a speedy recovery. 

I hope everyone has a great week.

MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN OUR FAVOR

Our 1st Ultrasound

Last Friday, October 26, we had our first ultrasound ( I was 6 weeks 5 days pregnant) to see our baby and to hear the heartbeat. I was so nervous and excited. We have never made it this far with our other pregnancies so I was scared there was not going to be a heartbeat. When we first got there we went in and they said my bladder was not full enough and that I needed to reschedule, I started to cry and then she said I could go and drink more water in the waiting room. When we went back in she measured my ovaries and uterus and then I was allowed to empty my bladder and she performed the trans-vaginal ultrasound so we could see our baby. We saw that there was only one baby and we heard and saw the heartbeat. It was 113 bpm. It brought tears to our eyes.

That is our little baby :)

James and I holding our first ultrasound picture!

This week my Dr. called, himself, and told me that he received the ultrasound and said everything looked great and that he wanted another ultrasound exactly 2 weeks from the date of our last one to make sure everything is growing as it should. This news scares me a little because part of me fears that something might happen. I need to just relax and realize that I am high risk for the first trimester and that it is just protocol and I know I will feel better seeing our little bean grow and we will just get to have more pictures of our baby.

This week I went and bought a chalk board. I am going to record my growing belly with info written on a chalk board. I wish I came up with this idea on my own but I did not. I got the idea from Pinterest.

The announcement Board

Holding our ultrasound 7weeks pregnant!

We have our next ultrasound on November 9th which is next Friday.. Fingers crossed everything is growing perfectly and the heartbeat is there.

MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN OUR FAVOR

Pregnant or Not Pregnant that is the question??

So, of course, I could not wait until the day of the blood test to find out if I was pregnant ( which was actually, Monday). I tested on Friday October 5, 2012. I figured I would test and if it is positive I then "know" and if it is negative then it could be to early since it was only 7 days after the 5 day transfer. I did not wake up in the morning and test, I woke up with every intention of waiting until Sunday, the day before the blood test. I did not have to work on Friday and so I was home cleaning and doing laundry and using my own bathroom. Every time I would go pee I would open my cabinet and see the home pregnancy tests staring at me, begging me to pee on them. I still refrained, mainly out of fear of seeing a negative. Then Lauren called and I brought it up to her and she said "go and test, I would have already tested by now if I were you."  She was really good at convincing me that if it comes up negative it is probably to early. So, I gave in and tested. I was so nervous that I didn't even get off the toilet and set it on the counter while washing up like most people. I just sat there elbows on my knees holding a small piece of plastic that within a minute was going to effect  my mood for the rest of the day. I have pee'd on so many of these at least 150 if not more in the last 5 years of trying and 99% of the time it has always been negative, even after staring at it for 10 straight minutes in hopes to maybe see some faint line. This time, however, was different as soon as I saw the liquid go across the little window of the test I see the "control line" show up and within seconds the pregnancy line shows up! I was in disbelief and started crying and pacing the house. At that moment I wish I would have waited until James was home because here I was so excited and nervous and crying with excitement and didn't have anyone to tell. Yes, I did think of calling Lauren back immediately but did not as I knew the first person should be my husband.

Was in disbelief but there are 2 lines!

I called James and asked him to come home before his next class. He asked why and I told him that I needed his help to move something because I was getting the house ready to have friends over that evening for poker. He still asked if it could just wait until after class. So, I said I had also bought him a small gift and wanted to give it to him. He immediately, asked why I was acting so strange I said if you want to find out then come home. He, honestly, did not have a clue. Once I knew he was on his way  home I ran downstairs and grabbed some red tissue paper and a white bow. I wrapped the pregnancy test as his "gift". When he got home I gave it to him and he was so excited. We both got teary eyed and realized our dream might be actually coming true. After our moment of excitement we both did say to each-other that it is very early and we have been at this stage before. Now we have to wait for the blood test to find out our hcg beta count. We, also, decided that we were not going to announce anything until Friday the 12th after we had received three beta counts since I had never announced when the actual blood test day was, or so I thought. (I did not realize until today, when I started getting about 20 text messages, and checked my blog that I had said I would find out today. So, I figured I owed it to all of my loyal readers and people who have supported us to share the news when I said I would).

On Saturday when I woke up I tested again ( after all, I did buy a 3 pack) to make sure it was real and did not go away. It didn't, there it was even darker. Sunday morning I tested again and again it was a darker line!

As you can see the line gets darker!

On Monday morning I went to the lab for my blood test and patiently waited all day for the Dr. to call me with my numbers. At noon, Dr. Montville himself called me to tell me I AM PREGNANT! and my numbers were 222 (they wanted anything above 100) he said the numbers were great. I went back today to find out if my numbers went up they wanted the numbers to increase by 55-65%. When Zoey (my nurse) called she said my number were 447! My numbers more than doubled!! and I have now reached a number I never have before. My previous pregnancies I started with low numbers my first pregnancy I tested and it was 48 two days later it was 114 then 167, 290, 314, then 38 ( lost it). So, as you can see I never had strong numbers so we are so excited that I started out with such strong numbers and that they doubled. I asked Zoey if I go in and test on Friday and she said NO! I asked "Why, don't you what to make sure they double again" she said no they will and my numbers are perfect and I should not worry about anything and if I start spotting or bleeding then we know something is wrong which there is nothing you can do about. She said that my ultrasound is scheduled for when I am 7 weeks pregnant which would be October 28th which is a Sunday so she said she would schedule it Friday, October, 26, 2012, I will be 6 weeks and 5 days and said it was fine and that way I would not have to wait another weekend without hearing something. We will get to hear the heart beat and see our little "blast". 

She said she would ask Dr. Montville if I could have one more blood test since I was wanting one. When she called me back she left a voice mail stating that Dr. Montville said that it is a waste of money since the test is about $140.00 and everything will be fine my numbers are perfect but if I really want one to call them back and they will fax one to the lab for me. I am thinking I will have one. I know it is expensive but can you really put a price on your piece of mind? what do you think? So, here is to more waiting! This pregnancy is baby steps.. Fist step was get past the blood tests. Next step, is to hear the heart beat, followed by making it to the second trimester. We still need all the positive support of our friends and family and positive energy sent our way. I do feel good about it this time. I am very tired and everything smells bad to me and I pee a lot but other that that I feel good, just nervous. 

So excited!

We also found out on Tuesday last week that all 5 of our embryos made it to be frozen and we received confirmation that they made it safe and sound to Florida!

Thank you so much again for all of your love, support and positive energy, please keep it up!

MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN OUR FAVOR!

May the odds be ever in our favor!

On Friday September 28, 2012 I had my implantation. We had to be at the surgical center at 9:15am and I had to have a full bladder. When we arrived we were very anxious to find out how many embryos made it to day 5 and just excited to get to this point in our journey. 

Once we were called back, they did an ultrasound on my bladder to make sure it was full. They need a full bladder so it is out of the way from the uterus. Then Dr. Montville came in and talked with us and showed us our little blastocyst. As I had stated on Wednesday (day 3), there were 8, and as of the day of our transfer we had 6. Two of them did not continue to mature and were discarded. Out of the 6, which were all in great we did have one that was "perfect" as he had said. He said it was graded the best grade they give them and this is what they strive to see in the 5 day blasts. He then talked to us about how many we should implant and even though we went in there thinking we were for sure going to have 2 implanted we decided to go with the Dr. and embryologists recommendation for our first attempt and implant one. 

The success rate of pregnancy with implanting one is 55% and the success rate for implanting two is 57% however, the rate for triplets increases to 30% with two. We just figured with all the complications that can happen if, for some reason, we did get pregnant with triplets it was best to implant one on our first cycle and we do think it is best to listen to the experts. This way we will also have some to freeze which is what we need. The most expensive part of IVF is getting the eggs ready, the retrieval and growing of them. We know that we could never afford another fresh cycle and really wanted to make sure we had some to freeze. We find out how many made it to be frozen tomorrow. We are hoping they call with the number being the remaining 5.

James and I holding a picture of our Embryos!

A very magnified image of the blastocyst that was implanted

Our little embryos!

Once my bladder was full we went to the surgical room, James was allowed to come in. We then got to see the embryo on the screen which was of course magnified and on the other screen was the ultrasound and we got to see it being implanted. Once it was implanted James got to wheel me to recovery where I had to stay laying down for over 30 mins. After that, we were able to go home.  I asked if it was okay for me to drive the 4 hours back to Casper and the Dr. said that would be fine and to just take it easy this weekend and by Monday I can go back to work as normal. I was so excited to get to go home to Casper it had been a long 2 weeks!

James getting ready to go into the surgical room

This was right after being implanted! laying there hoping that our little embryo is getting comfy in there.

I want to thank everyone again for all the support and amazing positive thoughts and energy. Now, I need to wait until next Wednesday to find out if it worked and if I am pregnant. I am so glad I am going back to work so I can stay busy and TRY not to think about it.. Ha ha like that is even possible.. 

May the odds be ever in our favor!!

17 eggs, 10 mature eggs & 8 EMBRYOS!

Yesterday was our egg removal. We arrived at the Billings Surgical Center at 9:30 am and taken back to get ready. I had to get in a gown and get the IV started. I felt bad for the nurse as she could not get a vain and ended up poking me over 4 times before she got a good one. James was taken to the "jack-off room" and I waited for his return. Once he returned the Dr. came in and talked to us. He told us that is should take about 30 mins and they would come and get James when I was in recovery.

James and I when we arrived at the surgical center

This is the 'jack-off' room

 As you can see the room James was in kind of looked like a jail cell minus the bars. a twin bed, a small TV in a small room and there is a sink. Anyway, it got the job done and at least this room did not have a microfiber chair like the last clinic we went to.

James and I before I was taken back to the surgery room

So the procedure took about an hour longer than normal. James said he was started to get worried. I guess my left ovary had moved behind my uterus (probably because it was so big) so it was a lot more poking and prodding and they had to put in a cathider and change the size of my bladder so they did not puncture it. They also had to work around the uterus so they did not puncture that as well. But after it was all said and done they told me that out of the 36 follicles they drained I had 17 eggs! I was in excruciating pain when I woke up. I can not even imagine the pain if they did not put you to sleep for the procedure, you would probably pass out from pain. The bloating, cramps and sharp pain was almost unbearable and I actually have a high pain tolerance. They gave me some morphine, fentanyl, and percocet. As well as a prescription for percocets. After they all kicked in it was still painful but manageable for me to go to sleep. Last night was pretty rough what helped was the pain killers as well as a heating pad. 

As for today I am feeling 50% better than yesterday which is good. Still have a hard time walking around as it is still very 'heavy' and bloated and crampy. This morning the Dr. called and said that out of the 17 eggs I had 10 mature eggs and out of those 10 eggs 8 became embroys! We are so excited. Now lets hope that I do not hyperstumulate this week and that all 8 continue to grow so we can do a 5 day transfer. We however will not know if we do a 3 day transfer or 5 day until day 3 which is wednesday morning. Plus they are monitoring me to make sure I do not hyperstimulate. So it might be that we will be spening this entire week up in Billings waiting for the transfer. I am so ready to go home and sleep in my own bed and see my dogs. Go to work and get my mind off of it but that is most likely not in our cards. I hate this saying but I am going to say it because it does fit here.. "It is what it is"... and I know this is all worth it and I WILL get pregant this time. I have a good feeling about it.. Now we just have to wait all week and hope our little embroys continue to grown nice and healthy.

As for what I do to get my uterus ready for implant is this: continue to take the Cabergoline for another 4 days (this will help reduce our chances of OHSS) take Doxycyline 100mg in the am and pm and give myself (well, James has to do this one) a shot in the bum of 1ml of progesterone mixed with olive oil in the evening. I also will start taking, tomorrow, Medrol 8mg in the am and pm as well. All of this stuff will help thicken the lining of the uterus and help make it "sticky" we want it to be a nice cozy place that the embryos want to attach themselves to.

My hospital bands

We are super excited that we have 8 embryos and hope it stays that way.. Again, thank you so much for all of you who support us and who have been sending us positive energy and thoughts..It is time for me to take a nap and rest have a great day.

Tomorrow is the Egg Retrieval

Tomorrow is the big day! My Egg Retrieval.. This is when we will see how many eggs I actually have. As of Friday I had about 36 follicles. Their computer chart can only chart 15 for each side so that is all you will see in the photo below they had to write down the rest on paper. Having this many is typical in people with PCOS and because of this I am at a higher risk of hyper-stimulating after the eggs are removed, so Dr. Montville put me on Cabergoline 0.5MG for 8 days. He said that studies have shown that taking this will help reduce my chances of hyper-stimulation and will not have any effect of my chances of getting pregnant.

James and I being silly while waiting for the Dr.

List of all my growing follicles

At our appointment on Friday the Dr. told us that it was time for us to take the HCG shot that night and have the removal on Sunday (which is one day sooner than they had 'guessed'). I signed my consent form for the surgery and was told the usual of do not eat or drink after midnight or you will turn into a gremlin and to be there an hour early. So, tomorrow morning we will be at the surgery center at 9:30am! For those of you who do not know what the process is let me explain in my words!

Tomorrow they will sedate me with versed and propofol (yes, propofol is the drug Micheal Jackson OD'ed on) they sedate me because otherwise it would be so painful they would probably have to have someone hold my legs open. So, once I am 'out' they will use the same ultrasound probe they used to monitor the follicles (photo of said probe is in last post) except this time there will be a tube with a needle on it attached to the probe. They will inset that inside of me into my uterus and up near the ovaries (which mine right now are 5 times the normal size) they then will suck all the fluid out of the follicles, all 36 of them. They then will put the fluid in a warm test tube ( that is where people got the saying 'test tube baby') and then it is handed over to the embryologist who will get rid of all the fluid and take out the egg which is microscopic and put the egg in a petri dish. While I am having this done James will be in the 'jack-off room' giving his sample. Once all the eggs are in the dish they then will 'wash James' sperm' and then pour them over my eggs and hope they fertilize. "In Vitro" literally means "in glass" which is where it is in before they remove the egg. I hope you all liked my science lesson. I am now off to bed and I will let you all know tomorrow on many eggs I end up having.. Fingers crossed it is a lot and that everything goes as planned.. Sleep tight everyone.

Update on growing Follicles

I had another appointment this morning and I have 12 follicles on the right side and 10 on the left. My estrodial numbers are good and are going up as they should be. The Dr. has lowered my Follistim dosage which is normal for this stage of the game.

This is the list and measurements of my growing follicles!

As for how I am feeling, I have been getting nauseous and have had on and off cramping but this is all normal and part of doing IVF. Just to clarify, for all of you who do not know how everything works with IVF, just because I have 22 growing follicles that does not mean that I will have 22 viable eggs and who knows how many embryos I will actually have. It is a good thing that I have a good number though, but with that comes the concern of hyperstimulation (OHSS) which is when your ovaries get to big and you fluid starts filling up in your abdomen. This is very painful and most of the time ends in the hospital and would be a wasted cycle (so we DO NOT want that to ever happen). The Dr. is a bit concerned about it because of the count I have and my symptoms and also it is more common for women with PCOS to have this happen. As for now we are still on schedule to have the egg retrieval on Sunday or Monday. I am very anxious to see what he has to say tomorrow.

The ultrasound machine

James arrived tonight so now I am not here alone. I am happy for that but feel bad that now that he is here I don't have any energy and sleep a lot. I do have to say it was not that bad being here by myself. I talked on the phone with friends and family and my best friend, Lauren, kept me company every day and night. We would even Face Time every night and watch Friends together (our ultimate favorite show).

Lauren took a picture of us Face Timing

I will let you all know how my appointment goes tomorrow. Thanks for all of your positive thoughts and energy.

Living up in Billings

Time has gone by so fast this summer, I started the Lupron at the beginning of the month. I stated in the last post that I was excited that I was able to monitored in Casper and still work until it gets closer to the actual egg retrieval. After my nurse called every lab in Casper and the surrounding areas she found that there is not any lab that can give same day results for my estrodial level. I have to be in Billings, MT for every appointment, which I was not to happy about but there is nothing I can do. Last Thursday I made the trip up to to Billings for an ultrasound and blood work. My mom made the trip with me which was nice for both of us. She kept me company for the long drive (4.5hrs each way) and my mom got to meet the Dr. and learn more about my PCOS and see what they were going to be monitoring. At that appointment everything looked good right as it should be and when I got my estrodial level back it was 11 and it needed to be below 70 to start the stimulating drugs. So Thursday night I started 75 units of Menopur and 150 IU of Follistim and still continue the Lupron but drop down to 10 units per day.

This is all the drugs I will take to get my body ready for IVF

 I was told that my next blood test should be on Sunday which was one day sooner than originally planned. So Saturday James and I took the 5th wheel camper (since we never were able to sell it) up to Billings and stay at the KOA. It was so much cheaper to have full hook-ups at the KOA then pay for a hotel for over a week. So, I am staying in my camper, but it is home. I have water hook-ups, electricity as well as cable. It is nice because I can cook all my own meal and save money there as well.

KOA Billings, MT

Home Away from Home

 Since James is not needed for another 5 days or so he went back to Casper since he has class and my appointments right now are just checking appointments that last about an 30 mins. Since James was coming back on Sunday we took our nephew Jack with us. He is 5 and such an amazing little boy. James and I are very close to him and treat him like our own kid. He had fun. Once we got the camper all hooked up we played miniature golf here at the KOA and went into the hot tub here. Even though it was a long drive Jack still had a great time, it was his first time in Montana.

Jack playing miniature golf

Me and Jack

 Jack is fascinated in anything medical he always says he wants to be a Dr. when he grows up. To be more specific, he wants to be a Dr. that delivers babies because he likes babies. In our family, we are open with everyone about how things work, even the kids, so Jack knows what is going on with us and what we have to do. He wanted to give me my shots so I got them all ready and let him help me. He was so excited.

Jack helping me give myself my shots

 I had more blood-work on Sunday and Dr. Montville called with the results and said that my estrodial level was 103 which he said is good and needed to be between 100-300. He said to stay on the same dosage of meds and he would see me for an ultrasound and blood-work on Tuesday. So today, Monday, I had to occupy my time. I deep cleaned the camper, drove around Billings, went on a long bike ride ( after fixing my bike breaks) and made myself some Beet Salad. Now, I am updating my blog and watching some TV. I will keep you all posted as the appointments go on. Thank you again to all of our amazing friends and family for their support.

Our Event was a huge success!

So our IVF Awareness Dinner and Silent Auction was a huge success, and it would not have been possible without all the loving support we have from so many amazing friends and family.  James and I are truly blessed to have such amazing people in our lives. I want to also say a huge THANK YOU to my best friend of 23 years, Lauren Ng.  Without her, I would have never gotten done all that I needed to get done, nor would it have looked as nice as it did. She is the most amazing best friend a girl can ask for and her support in me during my struggle to be a mother has meant the world to me. Lauren, I am so grateful to have you in my life and my future children will be so lucky to have an amazing "Aunt".  I love you! 

Me and Lauren

We had over 40 items donated to us for the auction and every item was bid on numerous times. At the countdown to the end of the auction it was nice to see people running up and trying to scribble their name down last minute in an effort to win that item.  The dinner was delicious and the cake was so incredible. Our friend Ashley made this cake for us. She does have her own cake business so if anyone local is looking for a cake please call her. Please e-mail me for her information. We also had a local band TMJ Trio donate their time for our event.   They were amazing!

Our amazing cake!

Through the support of all of you who support us we have reached over 1/3 of the total cost of treatments. That is more than we ever imagined and cannot even express how grateful we are. Through this journey of ours it has really made us realize who are friends are and how amazing they are. 

James and I thanking everyone

On August 2, 2012, James and I had an appointment up in Billings with Dr. Montville. At this appointment they did a saline infused baseline ultrasound to make sure I did not have any more polyps growing and to get a good look at my uterus and lining. James and I also had blood work done. Every time you do fertility treatments they re-test you for all STD's and HIV. James also had his semen analysis which of course came back way above average in all areas. We also signed all of our consents for IVF and were told of the process and also told that I can do all my monitoring, prior to egg retrieval, here in Casper. This is amazing news. I do not have to take as much time off from work and I also do not have to stay in a hotel as long. We were also told that they send us a calendar of when to start taking all meds and dosage as well as when and where all my monitoring appointments are here in Casper as well as Billings. It is so organized and done for me, which I LOVE.   

So starting September 1, 2012 I will start taking my first dosages of medication and the monitoring will begin! If everything goes how they want it to (which might not) then I should be ready for egg retrieval on or around September 20, 2012 at which time I would need to be in Billings and stay there for a week. Once they remove my eggs they will be transferred to a Petri dish and the sperm will be placed on top of them. Once they are fertilized they hope to let the embryos grow for 5 days before they implant them. We were told that before they are implanted we get to go in the lab and look at the embryos under the microscope and get a photo, which is really cool.

I will continue to blog  our journey not only to keep people updated but also because this is my online journal of what goes one.

I still have shirts and totes left over and for sale so please let me know if you would like one! 

Thank you to all the amazing supportive people in our lives.

Shirts For Sale

So James and I are pleased to announce that we did sell our 4 wheeler and truck! Now, if we could just sell the 5th wheel things would really be looking good. So, if anyone knows of anyone looking for an amazing 5th wheel that sleeps 8 please let me know.

Today I talked with the Billings Clinic and the nurse prescribed me some meds to start the beginning phases of IVF, which are: Progesterone (which will make me start my 'cycle') and Mononessa Tablets (birth control, yes, I know it seems weird to go on birth control when you are trying to have a baby but this helps regulate your hormones before you start the heavy duty IVF drugs). I was told to call the Clinic on Day one of my cycle so she can call in the blood-work for me to do on day 3. Most likely the last week in July we will be heading to Billings for a fun filled DAY of testing for both James and I. After that is complete I believe I just continue the birth control for the month of August and start all the crazy drugs in September..

So, on the note of IVF fast approaching I have two designs for shirts to choose from if you would like to purchase a shirt to support our journey. You can also purchase a tote bag if that is more your style. I am taking pre-orders now and will place the order July 30th. If you would like a shirt or a bag you can purchase one by clicking on the donate button on the upper left corner of this blog for the price of your item or you can mail us a check payable to Alicia and James Schaffner 1730 East 26th Street, Casper, WY 82601. However, please put comment in your donation or e-mail me your size and address of where to send it. If you are local you can also pay with cash.

Our IVF Silent Auction and Dinner is for sure August 18, 2012 at 6:00pm I am in the process of printing all of the paper invitations. I am missing a bunch of addresses so if people could e-mail me their addresses I can send them a formal invitation. If you know you will be attending and would like to purchase your tickets through this blog you can through the donate button, please let us know how many and if you want chicken or steak. The tickets are $30.00 each and will include appetizers, salad, chicken or steak as well as potato, veggie and dessert.

Again, we can not thank you all enough for how much love and support you are giving us in our journey to start our family. We hope your summers have been wonderful.

Mens shirts come in S-2XL

Ladies style shirts come in S-XL

Canvas totes!

I will be ordering extras when I place the order for people who miss the order deadline. Thank you in advance for your loving support!

Where does the time go?

I cannot believe that it is almost July. Time sure does fly. I hope everyone is having a great summer and staying cool from this heat.  Here in Wyoming and Colorado it has been one HOT June which is very unusual, and, unfortunately, has caused numerous fires throughout Colorado and Wyoming.   Everyone should say an extra prayer tonight for all the people who have lost their homes and for the fire fighters who are working hard to contain these massive fires.

As for me, I started a new job at the end of May. I am working as an assistant for an Oral Surgeon. It is a very fast paced job with a lot to learn, which I love. So far, it is a great place to work and all the people are really nice. I am very lucky to have found a great job that I am interested in and that has great pay.

James and I have decided on the date of our IVF Benefit and Silent Auction:  August 18, 2012. We are having a sit down dinner with salad, potato, vegetable and your choice of steak or chicken, as well as dessert.  We have booked the venue which is The Powder River Veterans Club here in Casper on 1st Street. There will also be a live jazz band for the silent auction and dinner.  A DJ will play music after dinner for some dancing. There will, of course, be a cash bar. We are excited about it and are very blessed that we already have so many people willing to donate items for our silent auction. If anyone wants to donate anything for the silent auction just let us know as we are compiling stuff now so we can make sure we have a variety of things to offer. We are also going to do a 50/50 raffle at our Dinner Benefit.

As for my idea of making and selling t-shirts the design should be done this weekend and I will post a photo and start taking orders.  A good friend of mine, Justin Junkins, is helping me put my ideas into a digital image as well as making it better than my original drawing. So here is a big thank you to Justin for offering to do this for us. He is also helping me make the tickets and invitations/flyers for our benefit. Soon I will have those and will make a facebook event as well as send out paper invitations to all the people I know that do not have or check facebook often. Words cannot express how grateful we are to have such wonderful people in our lives that support our journey of starting a family.

I have added the Paypal Donation button to my blog so if anyone feels like donating to us in our quest to start a family, we would feel so blessed.  The button is in the upper left underneath our pictures.  Any remaining funds donated after our attempts will be donated to Pay it Forward.  The mission of the Pay it Forward Fertility Foundation is to help reduce the cost of infertility treatment by providing grants and to educate couples about infertility. 

If anyone is wondering what else James and I are doing to try and come up with the money, besides having benefits and having wonderful people donate to us, I will tell you. We currently are trying to sell our 4 wheeler, truck and 5th wheel. We figured we should sell the "big boy toys" to make money so we can have a baby and buy baby toys. So on that note, if anyone knows of anyone who is looking for a 4 wheeler, truck or 5th wheel let us know I have listed the descriptions below as well as posted a picture of each. Oh, and we are also selling some music equipment so if anyone is interested in what that might be please message me.

2007 Yamaha Grizzly 660

2007 Yamaha Grizzly 660 Tons of upgrades! Lifted 2'', Snorkeled, Clutch mods all the way around, Gorilla axles, Passenger seat with storage(another photo) also comes with winch and front storage bags, outlaw MST 26'' tires, Custom exhaust, extra parts. Runs Great. $5,000.00 OBO If interested please message me.

2009 GMC 2500HD Sierra Z71 Package

2009 GMC 2500HD Sierra Z71 package. 4 door, long bed with Duramax Diesel Engine. 45,000 miles. XM Radio, blue tooth, key-less entry, power seats, power locks, power windows, power/defrost mirrors, i-pod input, on-star, Hide-a-ball (goose-neck ball) in bed, towing package, grill guard, Nerf bar running boards, driving lights, $1500 below book EXCELLENT CONDITION $35,000.00 FIRM. 

Please message me if interested.

2005 Montana Mountaineer Fifth Wheel Trailer

For sale is a 2005 Montana Mountaineer Fifth Wheel trailer. SLEEPS 8! The Model is a 318BHS and it is 34' long.  It comes with the ranch hand adapter for a gooseneck.  This is feature loaded for certain.  2 slide outs, bunk house, two sound systems(12v and 110v), 2 solar panels, built in 5kw propane generator that starts from inside, outdoor shower, tons of storage, tv, awning, bathroom, shower/tub, full kitchen, microwave, ceiling fan, auto vent in kitchen, aftermarket queen size mattress in bedroom, full size master closet, dressers in both bedrooms, hot water, forced air furnace, oven, air conditioning, fully enclosed under belly, lifted 4 inches, roof rack, tow hitch on back to pull 2nd trailer, great tires, spare, hydraulic front jacks, built in stabilizers.  Asking $27000 books for $29k. If interested let me know and I can e-mail all the pictures of the inside.

We have the ability to accept credit cards.

I hope everyone is happy and healthy and continue to enjoy their summer. I will post this weekend about our t-shirt sale and as soon as the invitations, with more specific details of our benefit, are done I will post that as well. However, consider this an informal 'Save the Date' for August 18th if you are interested in purchasing a ticket to our IVF Benefit & Silent Auction.