From retrieval to transfer

Things have been moving and shaking at the Jones' house! After getting the fertilization report on Saturday morning, I set out to be on task and get things ready for my munchkins while I'm out. Sunday morning I started estrogen and progesterone, which will continue to pregnancy tests and hopefully after that day to help maintain the pregnancy! We always get our detailed instructions and they go directly into THE binder. It holds everything relevant as well as a 4 leaf clover postcard from Joy and a note from Pastor Glenn saying he would be praying for us. The paper said they would call between 3-4 on Monday to give us our transfer time on Wednesday. Perfect timing because my munchkins leave at 3, but I had District Discussion at 3:45. By 3:50 our meeting hadn't started and I hadn't received a phone call, so I called good ol' Nurse Allison and left a message. Nothing like leaving a meeting with the administration to take calls about your embryos! Call #1 gave us a time to register and transfer time, but then I had to excuse myself from the meeting again for another call. They had to schedule an egg retrieval for Wednesday morning, so they bumped us to 9:45 arrival, 10:15 transfer. After discussion, I ventured back to school and am proud to say that I was pretty productive in spite of being so tired and bloated! (Three side effects of IVF- hot, tired, bloated) Tuesday was my last day with my kiddos until December 11. While I'm so excited about IVF and having time off to just relax and be a bum, I'm really going to miss my kiddos and my girls at school. So thankful to say I really love what I do!

Yesterday morning, we started the day out by having breakfast with Joe's dad. Perk of transfer...no anesthetic which means I can eat and not be a grumpy butt. With full bellies, we were off to Midwest. 

Dr. Bopp came in to give a hug and a handshake before going back to check on our embryos. Now, I'd been pretty calm and not anxious about the process until Bopp walked out of our room. I swear it took an eternity for him to come back! Although, while waiting my medicine had kicked in so I was a little more relaxed and giggly. 

Bopp came back with what he hopes will be our baby's first picture! We had planned all along to transfer back two embryos. We had ten eggs that had fertilized but our two were the only ones that continued dividing and made it to the stage they need for transfer. So, to borrow from FRIENDS...all our eggs went into my basket.

Unlike retrieval day, Joe got to go back to the room with me to be there for transfer. He got to rock a jumpsuit H2T. (That's head to toe if you're not familiar with America's Next Top Model) He is also rocking his Bert Kreischer "Machine" t-shirt, Bert is a very hilarious comedian that didn't retweet Joe's picture. Oh well.

We walked back into the sterile environment to the procedure room. The room we were in was adjacent to the lab, and Dr. Adaniya was right there to confirm my name and birthday. Dr. Bopp did a practice transfer to make sure the catheter was positioned, and then Dr. Adaniya put the two embryos in the catheter, handing it to Bopp. After the transfer, which we could see on screen thanks to ultrasound, Dr. Adaniya confirmed that both embryos were out of the catheter. Back to our holding room to kick my feet up and relax for a few. Joe got the car and I got to ride in the wheelchair down. We were headed home and into bed. Shockingly, laying perfectly still was a bit of a challenge! Kitty and Baby hung out with me which was safe because they both are too fat for me to move out of the way. (20 pound weight limit)

Today, I've got a hot date with the couch, the DVR, and file folder games to color! Just keep praying that our little embryos have latched on and will continue to grow. Nothing really going on between now and pregnancy test day on December 8. Please pray for me not to be anxious about anything in these two weeks while we wait!

Love,

Sarah & Joe

Retrieval and fertilization

What do the Manning brothers have to do with our IVF cycle?  Nothing really, except their numbers.  Yesterday, Dr. Will retrieved 18 eggs!  At my first monitoring appointment, they counted 18 follicles and I took that as a good sign.  Retrieving 18...even better!  I'm a little sore and bloated, but the egg retrieval wasn't too bad.  I slept most of yesterday.  Before I move on and explain why Eli is also included, I must go ADD and share a story.  I wore my lucky Colts socks under the not so cute slipper ones they give.  Somehow in my post-anesthetic state, I showed them to my nurse.  It turns out, the nurse that was taking care of me is Marcus Pollard's sister in law.  Marcus Pollard was a tight end for the Colts before my boyfriend Dallas Clark came along.  Marcus Pollard's number when he played for the Colts was 81...yup that's 18 backwards.  (http://www.nfl.com/player/marcuspollard/2502504/profile)  Sorry, I am just a big nerd when it comes to football!  Joe got me home and in bed, the rest of the day involved napping, DVR, and the iPad.  
I was awake early this morning since Ingrid, the biologist from Midwest, had said she would call with the fertilization report after 8:00.  I was really hoping they would call before Joe headed off to work so that we could get the report together.  At 9:20, my phone finally rang.  They attempted to fertilize 16 eggs, 10 of which fertilized!  (Woohoo!)  They did ICSI on 13, and 8 of those fertilized.  The other 3 they let fertilize naturally in the dish, and 2 of those fertilized.  Prayers were answered!  Tomorrow I start progesterone and estrogen.  On Monday they will call me with the time of our transfer on Wednesday!
It's really been an exciting and emotional few days.  We've waited so long to get to this point!  Thanks to everyone who continues to support and encourage us.  I've said it before and I will say it again, we are truly blessed to have such an amazing support system.
Pray that our little embryos grow strong and make it to day 5.  (They will put two back in, and any remaining will be stored on ice for future baby Jones' attempts.)  After Wednesday, I will be propping my feet up and taking it easy!  
Thanks again for all the love and prayers!
Sarah & Joe

Busy week ahead!

Happy Thanksgiving!  We started off the holiday at Midwest, but I'm going to rewind back to yesterday.  Tuesday, Allison called and said I should order one of the medicines and they could loan the other in case I needed it.  Because I'm paranoid, I made my momma come over and spend the day Wednesday waiting for Fed Ex.  Wednesday morning I navigated through some nasty fog for another monitoring appointment.  Overnight, my ovaries were busy getting follicles mature.  Dr. Bopp came in and gave me a hug, excited that we were finally rolling.  He wanted to wait until my labs came back to confirm that we would do the trigger and then retrieval on Friday.  Allison reviewed two possible triggers that could be used, depending on my blood work.  One was a Lupron & HCG, which she sent me home with.  The other was a full 10,000 units of HCG.  Allison called me later to let me know we were ready to trigger, which is exciting but we ended up not needing the medicine I'd ordered the day before. (the medicine incident that included the minor meltdown)  Although, if we hadn't ordered it we would have been in a pickle.  I think after Allison called me with the retrieval instructions, I may have called her 4 times with various questions.  Bless her for answering all of them and talking me off the ledge!  Also, bless my dear girls at work for keeping me off the ledge, too.  
The HCG shot was to be given at 8:30 since my retrieval was scheduled for Friday morning at 8:30.  
I really wish I would have taken a picture of these needles!  The ones I did in my belly weren't too traumatic, they were pretty small.  Not so much for this one!  The first needle was huge because it was used to mix the HCG powder with the liquid....still pretty intimidating.  We worked together to follow the directions step by step to get it ready, and then came the slightly smaller but still large and scary needle.  Fast forward a few minutes and then trauma was over, and not too bad.  Joe Jones gets 4 stars for his shot giving techniques.
The reason we had to go to Midwest today was Dr. Bopp wants to make sure the HCG is being absorbed to get us ready for retrieval.  The downside to cycling around the holiday is not seeing Bopp and Allison as much because they're off enjoying the day with their families.  Thankfully, everyone I've seen at Midwest has been caring, encouraging, and supportive so I'm not too worried.  
Today, we went over all of our instructions for the next week...it's a little busy!
No food or drink after midnight tonight, thankfully we have to be down there early so I won't be too whiny about being hungry and thirsty!  No artificial sweeteners or heavy lifting after tonight either.  I'm going wild on caffeine free diet coke today!
Tomorrow, Dr. Will (makes me think of the guy from Big Brother) will go in and retrieve my eggs.  We will speak with the nurse, the doctor, and the biologist.   We will leave our goods to fertilize in the lab while Joe drives home and I become one with the couch.
Saturday, they will call in the morning and let us know how many fertilized.  
Sunday, I start progesterone and estrogen support.  
Monday, they will call between 3-4 and let me know what time are embryo transfer will take place on Wednesday.
Wednesday is the big day!  Our hope is for two healthy embryos to make it to day five to get put back in.  Transfer doesn't require anesthetic, so I won't be whiny and hungry.  They do give me some medicine to help me relax though.  She said we'll stay there a little bit and then it's home to bed rest.  I can get up for potty, showers, and eating.  Just to be safe, I'm taking off from transfer day to pregnancy test day.  I love my job and my kids, but want to make sure I stay as germ and stress free as possible while our embryos are sticking!
We will go to Midwest for the first pregnancy blood test on December 8.  This is called a "beta" test where they look at HCG.  If it's below 5, they won't have you come back for a second test and you schedule a post cycle appointment.  Between 5-50, it's not clear either way so you have to come back two days later for another blood test.  If it's over 50, they say it's positive but encourage cautious optimism and bring you back two days later.  They gave us a paper that says to be cautious until we have an ultrasound where we see the fetus and a heartbeat.
So, there you have it.  Please pray specifically for us and all we have going each day for the next week.  I may be a little loopy after anesthetic tomorrow, so it may be Saturday before I do another update.  
Enjoy a blessed day with your families!  We are very thankful for our family and friends and for the Cade Foundation that helped us get to this point in our journey.

Love,
Sarah & Joe

Adventures in shots and monitoring

The show is on the road!  This morning I went back for another monitoring appointment.  I've responded well to the medicines....18 follicles on the first day, 21 on Sunday, and 22 today  The follicles are slowly getting bigger, which is a good thing.  I'm headed back in the morning for more blood work and another ultrasound.  We just need the follicles to get a little bigger and be more the same size.  (please pray for that) My uterine lining is also thickening, the first ultrasound she said they wanted it be thicker than 8cm, and Sunday it was almost 9.  Woohoo.

Things are moving right along, so we are on target.  Today I had a minor meltdown when leaving Midwest because I may need more medicine.  Yup, that's all it took....I think I may need a hormone alert that goes off to give everyone a heads up.  At least this meltdown was just in the car!  ;)  After a good cry, I was on the road back to munchkin land.  I'm ordering more of one medicine that I will need tomorrow, and if I need the other for Thursday they are going to loan us the two vials.  We're trying to work around the holiday delivery. Bless Nurse Allison for answering my e-mails and Joe Jones for his ability to remain calm when I'm in crisis mode!  

"Shooting up" has become less traumatic!  I've expanded my horizons and done injections at home, at church, at school, and at the eye doctor.  This is all in an effort to ensure shots are done between 5:30-5:45 am and pm.  (Yes, 5:30am is when I get up.  It's a lot easier to get things done before the munchkins come.)

Thankfully, I work with fabulous ladies who remind me to take care of myself and not stress about missing time in class!  (While I do miss my Allen friends, the move to preschool has been such a blessing in many ways!!!)

Please continue to pray for my follicles to grow, my estrogen level to increase, and for my hormones not to be too crazy!  More to come when we know when the egg retrieval is! 

Thanks for the love, support, prayers, and encouragement!  We are truly blessed with amazing family and friends!

Sarah & Joe

One week down!

First off, I need to thank everyone who has prayed for us, given encouragement, and just been an awesome support as we have started on our cycle.  I keep thinking about some of the couples at the Cade Banquet last year that didn't have any family support...I just can't imagine.  We are so blessed to have amazing family and friends!
Monday morning my darling husband got up with me at 5:40 to help cheer me on as I started the Menopur.  That's another blessing...Joe Jones is always the calm, level headed one when I'm in a panic.  Shot was done, Joe went off to bed, and I went off to my munchkins.  That morning we were "blessed" with enough snow to set the kiddos into full excitement...oy vey.  I got home to do my Follistim shot at 5:40 since they are due every 12 hours.  This one didn't stress me out since it's a dial up  pen and I've used it before.  Joe said I could wake him up Tuesday if I needed him to do the shot.  However, my co-dependent self was on a mission to do it on my own!  While the hands were a little shaky, I got it done on my own.  It helps to have the instructions taped up so you can follow, follow, follow directions!  (Gotta love Dr. Jean's Rules Rap)

Everything need for the morning Menopur

One thing that helps with the morning shot is a little Pandora!  Mercy Me and Michael W. Smith are my two most used stations.  Wednesday morning, I discovered this song..."Tunnel".  It was just what I needed to hear.  As far as side effects, they've not been too bad.  I feel a little bloated, but it's tolerable when your friends don't mind the fact you unbutton your pants at lunch.  LOVE my preschool peeps!
Yesterday was my first monitoring appointment.  I wasn't too sure about letting someone wearing a Tom Brady jersey take my blood, but not really my choice.  She commented on my ChuckStrong bracelet, to which I said something to the effect of it won't go with your jersey.  It turns out she does go to Colts games because her husband is a fan, but she loves the Patriots.  (a little nausea just saying that!)  Thank goodness we don't have that problem at our house!  Fantasy Football is enough trash talking for the Jones'.  (Forgive my ADD, back to appointment)  My ultrasound showed my uterine lining is already thickening, they want it to be higher than 8 and it's already at 7.  I have 10 follicles on the left and 8 on the right.  Woohoo.  Granted, some more may develop and some will drop off but I think the fact I had 18 on my first day was a good sign.  As much as Andrew Luck is growing on me, Peyton is still #1 in my heart.  Corny and cheesy, but it's the little things and I took the number 18 as a good sign! Nurse Allison went over everything with me and said she'd call me later.  Bloodwork looked good, Menopur and Follistim doses are the same, and we go back Sunday morning.
I started Ganirelix last night...yeah for another needle!  This one keeps me from ovulating before they want me to.  It was a pre-filled syringe, so that wasn't bad.  Joe was off yesterday so he helped with evening shots.  I had to tape some new instructions to the wall for this one.  We decided on a date night last night, so we went and had dinner at Chili's.  Romance is having a guy understand that even though it's only seven, you're putting jammies on.  We watched Big Bang and the League, and I'm guessing I was out on the couch around 8:30.  Preschool and hormones make for one tired Jonesy!
I set my alarm for 5:30 today so my timing will be on track.  At least after this shot, I got to go back to bed.  Monitoring in the morning and then home for a nap before the Colts/Pats game.  Hopefully tomorrow or Monday we will know our time line a little better.

This song  is my ring tone! :D

The prayers and encouragement are amazing!  Keep praying for us as the shots continue.  Pray that I continue to respond well to the medication and my follicles get to 18-20 mm.  Pray for Joe as he deals with hormonal me.  We are so excited to finally be moving on, but it's a little scary at times.  Pray that we stay relaxed and positive at our outcome.
Love,
Sarah & Joe

This is really happening!

The big box of medicine and needles

It looks like I haven't blogged since the big box of meds came, so we shall start there!  Joe's day off is Friday, so that left momma off the hook for Med Watch.  Walgreen's hadn't given us a tracking number or estimated time, so Joe was sticking close to home.  Good ol' Sue Lynn brought him Pizza King for lunch and hung out so he could go get a part for the Impala.  While they are hanging out, I'm off in munchkin land with my babies anxiously awaiting news of delivery!  The pharmacy left me a voice mail because Fed Ex had said nobody was home.  Oy vey, there is never a dull moment.  Before calling Joe, I activate Sue Lynn to Med Watch duty!  Turns out my dearest husband had been on watch while fixing my car in the driveway.  Fed Ex was supposed to attempt another delivery or we could pick it up after 6.  I zoom on home and there's still no box.  Joe ventured out to the Fed Ex place to pick up our valuable package.  Opening the box of medicine was step one in the holy cow, things are getting real phase of IVF!

You would think it would have set in after over a year of planning, but nope!  There's always been a curve ball along the way, and so the fact things are finally on track is a little exciting and scary at the same time.  Yesterday things finally got moving so we knew we would be ready for our start cycle appointment!  Like a kid on Christmas, I was up at 5:30 and wide awake.  In my defense, 5:23 is my daily wake up time for school.  Thankfully, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter were able to keep me quiet and entertained until Midwest opened at 7:30.  Allison had said on the weekends to be ready to head down after I called to set up the appointment.  Sure enough, we tossed on some clothes and were on our way for a 9:00 appointment.  In the waiting room, I was introduced to a new game...Angry Birds Star Wars!  Woohoo.

The ultrasound looked good other than my left ovary is placed a little funky, so can be hard to find.  We met with the nurse and signed our life away AKA signed our consent forms.  Monitoring appointments are set for every day starting Friday the 16th-Wednesday the 21st.  We may not go every day, but they set an appointment just in case.  My school day appointments are at 8, which allows me to go straight to school after!  I'm not worried about the fort being held down while I'm gone because I work with FABULOUS ladies, but I will miss my girls and my munchkins.  Hopefully I won't miss seeing my morning crew every day!  

Drum roll please, shots start in the morning!  I will be waking Joe up for moral support at 6 am for my first dose of Menopur.  12 hours later I will do my first shot of Follistim, which isn't too traumatic because it's what I did for our cycles of IUI.  

Please keep the prayers coming!  We are so thankful for our supportive family and friends that have gotten us this far.  Pray for me as I start injections, pray that my body responds well, pray for Joe and everyone that has to deal with me as my hormones start shifting!

Have a fabulous week!

Love, 

Sarah & Joe

First appointment down, many more to come!!

Sarah's Laughter Devotional 11/1/12

I just read today's Daily Double Portion and had to share it because it is awesome!  If you or someone you know is overcoming infertility, please share this with them.  I really appreciate a daily read to keep me on track!
Sarah


The Best Laid Plans

The mind of man plans his way,
But the LORD directs his steps.
Proverbs 16:9

Many plans are in a man’s heart,
But the counsel of the LORD will stand.
Proverbs 19:21

When you stood at an altar as an excited bride and gazed lovingly at the handsome groom at your side, what plans had you laid for your future? You had probably spent hours coordinating every minute detail of your wedding plans, down to the specific color of the napkins at the reception. The honeymoon was planned and was the perfect get-away for the perfect newlyweds. Your future couldn’t look brighter! You had the jobs you had always dreamed of, and you were moving up the career ladders just as you had planned. Everything was going just as you always knew it would. Life was unfolding beautifully, until you tried to get pregnant.

Just as you had done with everything else, you planned just when you wanted to have a baby. You knew just when you want to conceive and had no reason to believe it would happen outside of your timing. Small delays at the onset were no reason for concern, but months turned to years and your plans fell apart. What was happening? Why wouldn’t God allow you to have a baby when so many others conceive so easily? Didn’t He know you wanted a baby more than you desired your next breath? Why is it that the dream most precious to you is the one that seems most out of reach?

Infertility can cause such a crisis in your faith! It can make you feel that God has abandoned you and has nothing to do with you anymore. You may have sensed His presence in such a real way in your life, but now it seems that He is nowhere to be found. How ironic it is that just when we believe God is so far away, He is really so close and is directing our steps!

You may think the casual meeting of a new friend at church is happenstance, until you find that she too has experienced infertility. The Lord has ordered your steps toward someone who understands your struggle. Your Bible falls open to a Scripture that speaks to the hurt your heart feels when your period starts again. Happenstance? No. God’s counsel knows just the word you need to heal your wounded heart. In an unusual move, you turn on the television just in time to see an interview with a local doctor who specializes in the disease you’ve been diagnosed with. The Lord has ordered your steps toward a physician who has the expertise you need. You pray about being able to conceive, yet you feel the Lord whispering to your heart about adoption. His counsel to your heart is wise. If He had allowed you to follow the plan you had designed for your life, you would miss out on the blessings He has designed for you. He loves you enough to allow you to escape your own plans an
d lead you in the way He lovingly designed for you--even if that plan involves infertility.

God has a mighty plan for your life. Plans to prosper you and not harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11) When you come to the manifestation of the plan He has for you, I believe you’ll look with gratitude at the journey He has brought you through and you’ll feel blessed.



(c) 2012 Sarah’s Laughter-Christian Support for Infertility & Child Loss