Jeff and I have been on a long road to have a baby over the past 2 1/2 years. I have debated whether or not to write about it on the blog for awhile now. Some days I want to write about it and others I don't. Most people already know what's going on, but sometimes I forget who I have updated and who I have not. So this is the easiest way for me to keep all of our family and friends up to date and it allows me to have a chronicle of all we have been through.
Summer of 2006: We decided we were ready to have kids. We were settled in Waco, had just started building our house, had great jobs, etc. I remember telling Jeff I didn't want to be 32 having my first baby, so at 28 (almost 29) it was a perfect time for us. Now 3 months away from being 32, I just have to laugh. It just reminds me that our plans and God's plans for our lives can be so different. I am daily reminded to trust that He knows what's best for us.
Summer of 2007: After a year of not getting pregnant, I went to see my doctor here in Waco. He ran some tests and we discussed what might be the problem. I was happy to find out we could do IUIs in Waco without having to go to a specialist in Dallas or Austin.
August 2007-January 2008: We opted for Clomid combined with IUIs and did four cycles between August and January, all not working. As each one didn't work, I became more and more discouraged, knowing in my head it was just pushing us closer to having to go to Dallas to see a specialist. I researched and found a doctor I liked.
February 2008: We went to Dallas and met with a fertility specialist. After talking with him we had two options, continue with more advanced IUIs or move on to IVF. After discussing the options and probabilities with the doctor, we opted for IVF. We met with the nurse, signed all of the consents, learned how to do shots, and prepared ourselves for what was ahead.
March/April 2008: Our first IVF cycle. I endured all of the blood drawn, ultrasounds, and shots (the first night I sat in the bathroom for 30 minutes with the needle in my hand, freaking out...now I can pretty much do it in my sleep). We came to the end of it all with only 3 mature eggs and two that fertilized. Most people my age produce an average of 15-20, so we were pretty upset and our chances of success were dramatically decreased. We transferred both embryos immediately and found out 10 days later that it didn't work.
June 2008: Our second IVF cycle. We tried it all again, this time upping my medicine and adding another one. We had the same result at the end. My body only had 3-5 follicles and we were not even sure how many mature eggs would come from those follicles. We opted to cancel the egg retrieval and converted to an IUI. It wasn't worth spending the doctor/hospital/anesthesia fees for so few eggs. 10 days after the IUI we found out, yet again, that it didn't work.
July- September 2008: We took a much need break from all the doctors and medicine. It was great not to have to think about it for awhile. We also decided during this time to switch doctors. We really liked our doctor but just thought a change of perspective would be good. We are blessed to be at a church with several couples going through the same thing as us. We talked to several of them and switched to a doctor that two of the couples used.
October/November 2008: Our third IVF cycle. Our new doctor upped my medicine to the highest amount possible to try and get my body to produce more than 3-4 eggs. We finally had success getting 12 eggs, which was huge for us. Eight fertilized using the ICSI process and we made it to day five ("embryo transfer day") with all of them. Two were transferred and we were able to freeze the other six...a huge miracle. Having all your eggs make it to day 5 just doesn't happen. They tell you that from egg retrieval to transfer day to expect 10% to make it. We were just hoping to have 3-4 to chose from, but instead had all 8. It is by the hand of God alone that none died and we still have 6 to freeze. Ten days later we found out that even though this cycle went basically perfect, we still were not pregnant. We were extremely sad this go around because of how well everything had gone, but still uplifted knowing we had 6 more that were frozen. No doctor has been able to tell us why we are having these problems and chalk it up to unexplained infertility.
This brings us to today...tomorrow we are heading to Dallas to do a frozen embryo transfer at 2:30. This last month has been so much easier than any of the other cycles...less shots, less blood, less ultrasounds. Everything looks good. We will either transfer 2 or 3 depending on how the embryos thaw out. Please keep us in your prayers tomorrow and the next ten days as we wait to find out if it was a success. I am pretty sure we will find out on the 22nd, but we will find out tomorrow the exact day.
We know that God has our family in His hands. This road we have been on is not a surprise to Him and we continually trust His hand in our lives.
"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11And because it wouldn't be a post without pictures...
All it takes to make a baby...boxes and boxes of medicine, bags and bags of needles.
The sticker on each box I received from the pharmacy. It was the same FedEx guy every time and I often wondered what he thought I was ordering all of the time.
My bruised up stomach from our last IVF cycle (you know you're jealous). Towards the end of my medicine I was using every last drop I had and was doing 4 shots a night.
Before you start jumping to any CRAZY conclusions...no this is not another Burchfield dog (with four our inn is closed for a very long time). Dash is our friends Cathy and Trey's new dog. He is so cute and super sweet. They picked him up yesterday and I went along as the official picture taker.
At Fuzzy Friends getting ready to take Dash home.
In the car ready to go.
With his new bone.
Playing with his new mama.
All it takes to make a baby...boxes and boxes of medicine, bags and bags of needles.
The sticker on each box I received from the pharmacy. It was the same FedEx guy every time and I often wondered what he thought I was ordering all of the time.
My bruised up stomach from our last IVF cycle (you know you're jealous). Towards the end of my medicine I was using every last drop I had and was doing 4 shots a night.
Christmas Eve dinner at Maggiano's before going to church at Second Baptist.
The yummy chocolate banana bread pudding...so, so good!
The decorated trees in the Galleria.
And look who thought it was OK to be on the couch while I was taking pictures.
