My Appointment

Well, I had my appointment this morning. I am a little bummed out because the nurse said that I might not get to start my fertility meds until July 4th. But, then again, I have waited this long, what is a few more days? They did an ultrasound and looked at my ovaries and uterus...they said all looks good and now we are waiting on my blood work results. I will find out tonight when I start my fertility medication...but usually the nurse is pretty accurate with what she says. So, that is what I am expecting. Other than that...it was a pretty painless and uneventful appointment! I'll keep you updated on when I start my meds :-)

Have a blessed day,
Lisa

Appointment Tomorrow

Well, tomorrow I am going to the doctor's office. They will be doing bloodwork to check my hormone levels and also they will be doing an ultrasound. They will be looking to see how many follicles (they are in the ovaries and hold the eggs while they grow) I have and most likely will tell me to begin the fertility meds tomorrow. Things are moving forward and I am getting very excited because I know these next couple of weeks will go by very fast. Right now, the approximate date for egg retrieval will probably be July 11th. That's right around the corner!

I found a forum/message board that is about the study I am on. A couple of the women on the board said that their doctor told them that so far the success rate has been 70% for the study! Wow...that is very high considering that the national average is 40%. So, things are looking up and I have faith that God will bless me. However, I am still thinking realistic and I know that if it isn't His will, then it won't happen...but I really have a great feeling about all this.

Well, that is my update. I will post again tomorrow and let you know how my appointment went.

God bless,
Lisa

Starting my meds...

Hi...sorry it's been so long since I last posted. To catch up a little bit, my grandfather died on Saturday the 14th. We know he is in a much better place so instead of the funeral being sad, it was a reflection and celebration of his life and what he meant to us. He was a wonderful man and I know I will see him again when I go to heaven.

Last Wednesday I had an appointment at my fertility clinic. They showed me how to perform the shots for the medications. I have started the Lupron shot (my first one was at the doctors office) and have been doing that every morning for a week now. I have noticed many side effects yet...I just feel a little bloated. So, now I am waiting to start my period so that I can begin the stimulation drugs (repronex and Gonal-f). Oh yeah...and while I was at the doctors office they went through the procedure and gave us some more information. When the transfer the embryo's back to me, they will be doing 1-2 embryos depending on the quality. So, if it is a good quality embryo, then they will only do 1...so that makes me feel a little better knowing that the worst case scenerio is twins if it is two embryos (I know it is possible for the eggs to split...but I'm not going to think that way! ha!). Anyway...that my quick update. If there are any questions, feel free to comment and I will try to answer them. :-) Have a blessed rest of the week.

Seven

Yesterday as I was thinking about my birthday and reflecting over the plans I had for my life and how I haven't completed everything that I wanted to have completed by now, God spoke to me. Every since I was a teenager, my plan had been this: get married by 20, have kids by 24, be a business owner by 30. Needless to say...I did get married before I was 20, but that failed (however, thankfully I have a wonderful husband now that I wouldn't trade for anything), I haven't had any kids of my own, and I don't own my own business. So back to the kids part. My dream was to have kids at age 24. As I was thinking about this, God revealed to me that I am 31 years old now...I have waited for this to happen for 7 years. Biblically, this is very significant because the number seven is a symbol of completion. As I received that knowledge, it gave me so much hope and reconfirmed the positive feeling I have about this IVF study and the process I am going through. I am proclaiming it now that God is going to bless me this year with a child. And I am thanking Him in advance for the promise He has given me. I know He has plans for my life and it is all in His perfect timing. I thought this was an awesome thing that He revealed and I hope you will continue to keep me and Jesús in your prayers.

Next week we have an appointment and they are going to teach us how to administer the infertility medications (via injections). I start lupron next week and am a little bit nervous (this is the medication that suppresses ovulation so that I will have more eggs to retrieve next month). Enjoy the weekend and hopefully I will be able to post again soon.

31st Birthday

This year I was able to start my birthday celebration the Sunday before my birthday. Mom and I met halfway in Merrillville, IN and treated ourselves to a Hot Stone Massage. After that, we checked into our hotel and then decided to go eat. We ended up eating at the Olive Garden since both of our husbands aren't big fans of the place and we rarely get to eat there. Needless to say, we enjoyed it very much :-) After that, we ended up going shopping...which is always a fun time! We went to our favorite store...TJ Maxx. Both of us hit the jackpot! ha! When we were all shopped out, we went back to the hotel and relaxed in the hot tub. It was a very nice visit and we will hopefully be doing it again soon. I have to make sure and thank my brother for volunteering to watch my grandpa so mom could take the time away from home. He was a trooper and did a great job taking care of him. Thanks Scotty!!

Then Monday night Jesús took me shopping for my birthday. He bought me a new Coach purse. Funny thing about that is that he had picked out the one he wanted to get me, but wanted to take me just in case I didn't like it. After looking at all the choices, I ended up liking the original purse that he picked out so got that one.

Today, on my birthday we went out to eat at my favorite restaurant...JuRin. It a Japanese restaurant where they cook the food in front of you. The food there is the best and we love it! I have to say....this years birthday was one of my best so far. Thanks to everyone who made it so enjoyable!

Glimpse of Heaven

I don't know how many of you know that my mom is caring for my grandpa during his last days here on earth. He was in a nursing home, but now he's living with my mom and is also receiving care from Hospice. He is to the point where he is barely eating and he can't sit up by himself, just lay down in bed. He has no strength. Today mom called me and told me that he is lifting his hands to the sky and his eyes are wide open. Mom asked him what he was seeing and he responded with "all the people...so many people". I really believe that God has given grandpa a gift to see a glimpse of heaven so that he can let go and return home. I know before he was kind of scared about what happens when he dies...even though he is a believer in Jesus. So, I really have a feeling that he hasn't let go because of that. What an awesome gift God has given him to see just a glimpse before he passes away. Just knowing that gives me more faith and hope that I will see all my loved ones when my time on earth is done. God is an awesome God and loves us so much. :-)

IVF Study - Update

Hi,

Here is an update on my IVF cycle. For this cycle, the dates are pretty solid. However next cycle may be off 1-2 days…give or take. It amazes me how fast things start happening now that I know that I am part of the study and am finally beginning the process.

This Cycle:
5/28: Period
5/30: Blood test and ultrasound
6/2: Start birth control pills
6/18: Start lupron injection (this will suppress ovulation)
6/22: Last birth control pill

Next Cycle:
6/25: Expect period
6/29: Start fertility meds (injections)
7/10: Egg retrieval
7/13: Transfer embryo(s) back to me
7/25: Pregnancy test

Also, on May 30th I had an ultrasound. The nurse told me that on my right ovary I had 8 antral follicles and on my left ovary I had 10 antral follicles. That means that if this was the cycle that they retrieved the eggs then there would be approx. 18 eggs that they would extract! WOW!! I did some research and the normal range is between 15-30 antral follicles, so I am in the normal range. Don’t worry; they don’t put all 18 back inside me!! Could you imagine? Not me!!! That is scary! I’m not sure how many they put back…most likely 2-3 though. Then, we have decided that we will freeze the rest of them in case we want another child at a later time and need to use IVF again. So…that is the latest and greatest. I am excited that everything is falling into place…but I’m not surprised. God works in amazing ways! Have a blessed week!