Divide and grow

Today I was updated with how my embryos are doing. Out of the 8 that were fertilized, 7 are still dividing and growing! This is great news!!  They won't update me again until Monday morning.

During this time I am preparing my body for the transfer.  I am taking a progesterone and estrogen pill.  I take it 3 times a day.  These two hormones are essential for a pregnancy to happen. Without it, my body would reject the pregnancy.  They are strengthening the lining of my uterus.  I am also taking a steroid that will help prepare the lining as well and also fight off any infection or bacteria that might get in the way.   I am also taking an antibiotic to prevent infection from the egg retreival.  The last thing I am taking is baby aspirin. This seems so strange to me because I have always known not to take aspirin with pregancy but this low dose will help with blood flow to my uterus which is good because when your estrogen level gets so high the blood flow isn't as great.

The transfer is on Monday mid morning. I do not know how many they will transfer. All of that will be decided on Monday when we go in to talk to the doctor and look at the quality of each embryo.

Thank you for your continued prayers!!!!  God is Great!!!

Embryos are growing!

On Wednesday they were able to retrieve 13 eggs.  9 of the eggs were mature so all 9 of them were fertilized using ICSI.  This is a process where they take a single sperm and inject it into my egg.  They did this with all 9 of the mature eggs.  This morning when they went to check on the eggs they found 8 fertilized and continuing to grow!!

We are very happy with these numbers!!!  I don't know if all 8 will survive and continue to grow up to the transfer.  They will call me again on Saturday to update me with how they are doing.  It is a very delicate process.  No they will not transfer all 8 back to me!  They would either transfer 1 or 2 embryos.  If there are any other embryos that are still growing then we will freeze them.  We can use those in the future.

They will update me on Saturday with how they are doing!  We are praying for the perfect amount and healthy embryos!

The transfer is scheduled for Monday morning!

Eggs Harvested!

This morning I went in at 7:30.  They gave me an IV and went over all the paperwork and procedure.  Everything went great!  They retrieved 13 eggs!  That doesn't mean that ll 13 were mature though.  They will call me tomorrow to let me know how many were fertilized.  Then they will monitor them to see if they continue to grow.

My transfer day is Monday Morning.

Right now I am feeling tired and am a little sore  Which is expected.
Tonight I will start a new round of medicine.  I will be taking Endometrin which is a progesterone.  I will also take Estrace which I will have to update you later on what that is for...
I also take an antibiotic tonight to make sure I don't get an infection.
I'll also start Medrol and I'll have to update you later on what this for.  Right now I can take Tylenol 3 for the pain.

Last shot!

I took the trigger shot!  I had a little mini crisis.  I didn't have one of those plastic connector pieces for it to get the medicine out of the vial.  For the Menopur shots that I mixed each time I had a plastic piece which made it very easy to get the medicine out.  For the HCG (trigger shot) Ryan helped me get the medicine out with the needle and I was able to give the injection.  I don't know if Walgreens was suppose to send me the plastic piece for it... The vials were much bigger than the Menopur vials so I couldn't use those for it.    Then I was looking at the bottles and they said "multiple dose vial" on the side of it...  I followed all the directions exactly as I was given and used 1 ml of the water provided and mixed it with the powder and then drew up the entire contents of the vial.  So hopefully I was suppose to get the "multiple dose." This is the first little mini freak out that I have had....  I just want to do it right.  So I started to panic a little and of course got on the computer... which is never a good thing.  I quickly found myself completely overtaken by God's presence.  I closed out of the websites and immediately felt God tell me that He is in control.  I began praying.  I have been praying during this whole process.  I know many of you are praying for us too!  He is in control and I am reminded that it is His miracle!  I pray that his hands run through the medicine and my body so they can do what they are suppose to do.  I pray he provides wisdom and knowledge for the doctors and nurses and that the timing will be right and that their hands will be guided.

My estrogen levels were at 1075 on Sunday.  Yesterday and today I really began to feel a lot more pressure around my ovaries.  Most of the follicles are about 17-18 mm today.  I have 11-12 on each side!  I really do kinda feel like I am about to burst at the seams!  LOL  Take a look at a ruler...  17 mm seems really big!!  I am ready...  I am ready for the next step!

My retrieval appointment is set for 7:30 am on Wednesday.  The transfer is scheduled for Monday.
My mom is coming up tomorrow, Tuesday, to help out!!

Everything is going as planned!

Today, Sunday 1/25, I had another appointment!  Many people ask why they have these appointments on a Sunday or they say they are surprised they have it on a Sunday.  While that is true for regular appointments, my follicles don’t care what day of the week it is and we must stay on schedule.  I have been closely monitored this whole time and I must continue to have sonograms even if it is on a Sunday.  However, you can imagine my surprise when my Doctor walked in to do the sonogram!  All of my other sonograms have been done by my nurse and I certainly didn't expect my doctor to be working on Sunday morning!  But as I stated above we must stay on schedule and I am close enough they needed her to see everything and decide what/when the next step would be!

She gave me a full report after the sonogram and I actually have 11-12 follicles on EACH side (not just total as I previous thought) She said everything was looking really good! Most of my follicles are 14-17 mm.  They are going to have me continue my current medicine for at least 1 more day to give the smaller ones a chance to continue to mature.  This means I will be using my "just in case" medicine!  

My doctor said they are looking at a retrieval date on Wednesday!  It is not set in stone but that is probably when the retrieval will happen!  

After my doctor and nurse have the results from my blood work this morning they will call me with what I will need to do next.  They will tell me when to stop my medication. They will also tell me when to administer the "trigger" shot.  The trigger shot is what will force ovulation. I will administer this shot at home.  It has to go in my buttocks so it will be a little more difficult to administer myself.  Then they will be able to retrieve my eggs.  

A question I also get frequently is, "how are you feeling?"  I am feeling pretty good!  I don't feel too different from taking the shots.  I do have some extra sensitivity around my ovaries but that is not surprising.  They are doing 24 times more work this month!  (that is 2 years worth of eggs!) And I'm sure things are getting crowded in there...  LOL.    The Ganerelix medicine does have a headache as a side effect and I have had several headaches since taking it but I am managing just fine!  My stomach has tiny bruises all over it from the shots but it is not bothersome.  I only have a few shots left!  

Thank you so much for your continued prayer and support!!  We know that God is in control and we trust in Him no matter what happens! 

Getting closer!

I had an appointment on Thursday 1/22. They checked my follicles again through sonogram. They are looking good and growing as they would expect! My estrogen level is up to 450 which is also great!   They said the size of the follicles will continue to grow 2 millimeters per day.

I started taking the Ganerelix shots on Wednesday. They are pre-filled syringes so it is easy to administer it in the morning as I'm rushing around to get out the door for work. This medicine will keep me from ovulating on my own. I will continue to take this shot up until I give the trigger shot.  The trigger shot will force ovulation and that is when the egg retrieval will take place.  The most notice I will have of when the retrival day will be is 2 days.  I am still taking the follitism and Menopur in the evenings. So I give myself 3 shots each day!

I have my next appointment on Sunday morning. They will do another sonogram to check the follicles. Hopefully they will tell me I ready for the retrival!

I also have had to get some refills on my prescriptions. I need to have enough to get me through Sunday! While this was a little frustrating to need to order more medicine, I would have been annoyed had I ordered it in the first place and then not need it.   One of the refills I needed was the Ganerelix. This was "just in case" I need it on Monday.  This "just in case" shot costs $160. :/  The total of the medicine I had to refill was 585. But we know that God is taking care of us and we are able to pay it. There are a couple people who have sent donations to our IVF fund which has been a huge blessing!

Next appointment is Sunday morning!

Follicles are growing!

January 19, 2015

Today I went back to the doctor for another sonogram and blood work!

I have 10-15 follicles on each side!  The follicles are where the eggs are growing.  They said that everything is looking perfect!!  This is great news!  Now we will watch the follicles as the eggs continue to grow and mature.

They also tested my blood and my estrogen level has gone up a lot exactly how it is suppose to!

So what's next???
I start taking Ganirelix on Wednesday.  This is another shot that I will give myself in the morning before work.  This will prevent me from ovulating on my own.  I will continue the other 2 shots in the evening as I have been.

I have my next appointment on Thursday for another sonogram and blood work!

Thank you for your support and prayers!!!

shots

I have taken the first round of shots!  It went well!  The needle is so small you can't even feel it!

2 down 24 to go!

Next appointment is the 19th!

January 14 appointment

Today's appointment went well!! They did another sonogram and said everything looked great! They are ready for me to start my medicine tomorrow! I will be giving myself 2 shots everyday for the next ten days. I will be taking Follitism and Menopur. I have to mix the Menopur myself. They shots are given in my stomach below the belly button.

They also took a blood sample to test my estrogen. At this point they want it to be low.  Oh by the way, Ryan and I passed our infectious disease test.

I have another appointment on the 19th. They will do another sonogram, test my estrogen again, and then determine if I start the next round of medicine. If I am ready then I'll be giving myself 3 shots a day.

Today, I also paid the remaining balance.  It felt good knowing we were able to pay for $7,000 of the total amount (IVF, medicine, and 2 other tests) with money we were able to save and from what I have made from Jamberry!!  We are wanting to pay the $6,000 loan off quickly because the interest rate is high! Praying for continued success with Jamberry!!

Thank you everyone for praying for our journey.  We are praying that God wraps his arms around my body! We know that I can take all the medicine I want but that only God can give the miracle of life! Pray for knowledge and wisdom for the doctors and nurses! We are also praying for the debt to be paid off quickly!  Thank you for praying with us!

Medicine arrived

I got my medicine on Saturday, 1/10.  I was surprised at how large the box was!

I opened it up and begin going through it all to make sure it was all there.  I am not going to lie... I was a little overwhelmed!
I quickly typed up an email to my nurse with all my questions!  Some of the medicine say I have 99 refills...  LOL... really hoping it doesn't come to that!

Here is a picture of it all!  You can't see all the needles and syringes in the picture!  I start giving myself 2 shots a day on the 15th.  And for a few days I'll be giving myself 3 shots a day.  Ryan says he wants nothing to do with helping me administer the shots.  LOL.  Some of the medicine I have to mix myself.  I have to be able to put together the syringes and needles.  Some of the syringes come with a huge needle that I have to switch out for a smaller one!  We are keeping all of this on the a top shelf where Austin cannot get to it.  I am glad they sent the red safety trashcan to keep all the used materials in.

Trail Transfer

Yesterday (1/5) I had an appointment to have a trial transfer.  This was a real quick check to make sure the doctor could get in where she needed to be with the tools that she needed to use.  She said everything was great and it would be no problem!  Great news!

They also did a saline solution clean out of everything...  so they pumped me full of water and had a sonogram and took pictures of everything.  They said everything looked great!  Of course, after pumping me full of water, the water then decides when it wants to drain..... so that was lovely.  haha.
After all of that, I talked to my nurse about all the medicine I will be getting.  She showed me what it will look for and how to administer it.  She said that there will be some days that I have to give myself 3 shots.  One of the shots I have to mix myself so she showed me how to do that.  I am a little overwhelmed by all the medicine but I think once I get it and know exactly which days to do what, it will be ok!!  Ryan said he wants nothing to do with helping me administer the shots.  lol

I also had labs drawn.

After talking to the pharmacy again to finalize everything, it was discovered that the first person I talked to forgot to calculate in one of the medicines so the total price was more than the original quote.  Though at 2,350 it is still quite a bit lower than the very first quote we were given of between 3000-5000.

We also got approved for a loan.  We didn't get approved for as much as we had hoped for but we should still be ok!  Ryan is putting in more to our HSA which is matched by his employer!  We are happy that RCI is helping us pay for it!  :)

This puts our total available funds just a couple hundred over the total amount.  Which is good and we are hoping there aren't any additional costs that may come up!  We are mapping out our budget and plan on having the 6,000 loan paid off before baby comes!  

I also talked to my principal at work.  I needed to talk to him because there will be a period of 10 days where I have to go in for a sonogram about every other day and the earliest the appointments can be is 7:30.  I needed to talk to him about it to tell him why I may be late and to ask if it was ok to be late or if I needed to take a half day.  I was so nervous as I was preparing to talk to him about it.  He is new this year and I am still getting to know him.  However, I already knew he was and understanding guy!

So I peeked in his office and asked if he had a minute.  He was eating lunch and said yes.  I went in and closed his door.  His expression changed, he stopped eating, and he seemed to be a little confused because when the door closes, you know it is serious!

I sat down and said, "I am just going to be completely honest with you."
At this point, he is looking at me like, "oh gosh... what is she about to tell me."  There was a look of worry and curiosity.
I said, I just wanted to be honest and I told him that my husband and I had been trying to get pregnant for about 21 months and had been unsuccessful.  I then explained that we had been told that IVF was our only option at this point.  I didn't go into too much detail about that, but then explained that there would be some days that I would need to miss work and/or be late to work.  I had my handy dandy Erin Condren planner (thanks to Natalie!) and showed him the official start date (1/14) and explained that after the appointment on the 19th, I would have to go in for a sonogram about every other day, but the exact days and details were still up in the air.

I explained that I requested all my appointments be at 7:30, the earliest time, and that I would probably be able to be to work by 8:30 or shortly there after.  We have to be to work by 8 so I asked him if it was ok if I was late or if he wanted me to take a half day.  We decided together that if I can have everything covered that it would be ok if I was late.  I do have a student teacher, and I don't want to take advantage of her, I am very confident that she will be able to handle the morning routine on her own.  There are also some Para's and specialists who would be willing to help out!  After all, I do work with one of the most amazing staff ever!!  So caring and helpful!

So I was very relieved that the conversation with my principal went well.  He was very understanding and supportive!  I am glad I don't have to worry about being late or stress out about taking so many half days.....  In case you didn't know, as a teacher it is a lot of work to be gone!

My next appointment is on the 14th and I will have a sonogram and blood work again.  They want the estrogen to be low at that point so that is one thing they will be looking at.  I will begin the administering the medicine on the 15th.

So how much does this all cost??

Our first visit with the Doctor about IVF was a very informative consultation about what IVF meant and what the process was.  I can go into deal about that later....

We were told that IVF would cost $9,850.  We also learned that KU Reproductive Center was the cheapest compared to all surrounding areas even though it was the best place to do it at!  On this day they told us that my medicine alone would cost an additional $3,000-$5,000.  They also explained that Ryan and I would both need to have an infectious disease test that would be $1000 each.  Then I would have some pre-testing done that would be an additional cost as well.... probably several hundred more dollars.

As you can see this is a huge cost.  Nothing is covered by insurance.  It all has to be paid up front before the first IVF appointment.  Obviously this is something we were worried about but instead of worrying about it we have been praying about it.

Back story:
We had been praying for our finances and for God to help us with getting a budget that works and also for help to save our money.  I was invited to a friend's online Jamberry party.  On the very last day, my sister Rogie posted a picture a sample she tried.  I thought, "What!  Rogie is doing this... ok, I need to check it out!" So I bought a few sheets and eagerly waited for them to arrive.  In the mean time, I began researching about this company.  I learned it was a new company.  I believe I felt God telling me this was an opportunity.  I talked to my friend, Natalie, who had introduced me to the product and learned more about it and how it can all be done online and at my own pace and convenience.  Before any of my sheets arrived and tried it myself, I signed up to be a consultant.  I knew this was the path God wanted me to take!!  I had no idea what it would actually mean.....

I made my investment back in less than a week and in a month I was making enough to pay for day care for Austin.  At first we were really enjoying the new income... going out to eat more often and making more spur of the moment purchases that weren't really necessary.  Again, I felt God telling me, "this is not what this is for."  We decided to stop spending and save.

I found myself recruiting to build my team and selling Jamberry products successfully each month.  My team was growing and I was advancing through the ranks quickly.  By November 2014 I had achieved Team Manager Status.  This meant I had a successful downline and was going to be making more money from their sales.  What a blessing!!!  Now we had some savings and I knew exactly what it was for!!

Today:
As of January 1, we have about 3500 in Jamberry money saved up.  We also have about 2000 saved up in our Health Savings account which is through Ryan's work.  RCI matches how much Ryan puts into the account, up to a certain amount.  And yes, this can be used by Ryan, Austin, or I for medical expenses!

We also are getting rid of our Dish Network to save about $80 a month as well as using a Child Care Dependent Reimbursement plan.  This means that our child care expenses are deducted from my paycheck before taxes come out.  It saves us about 100 a month because the taxes will be lower.  We were a little worried about this because it means we get deducted the child care expenses from my check but we pay for child care from our account AND THEN get reimbursed.  So it is like paying for child care twice and then waiting for the reimbursement.  Last month, Ryan was given a raise at RCI.  His raise per month is EXACTLY the same amount that was going to be deducted from my check.  This means our take home pay stays the same!!!  WHAT A MIGHTY GOD WE SERVE!  We can wait for the reimbursement without having to worry!  Ryan also got a 1,200 bonus the end of the year which promptly went into savings.  So all together we have about 6700 saved for our IVF cost.

More Blessings!
CHECK THIS OUT!  We were told from the very beginning that Ryan and I's infectious disease test would be 1000 EACH.  I just found out that it will actually only cost us 350 EACH if we don't turn it in to insurance.  It would cost 1200 each if turned into insurance and then denied.  We already know insurance doesn't cover this cost so instead of it costing us 2000 it will only cost 700!!!  GOD IS GREAT!!!

Medications:
This morning I was on the phone with the pharmacy about my medicine I need.  He told me that it would cost 2900 for all of my medicine!  I was so excited because this is lower than they originally told me.  I had also been told that I would qualify for a 100 savings for every 1000 spent.  I let him know that and he informed me that since I was running everything through insurance I wouldn't qualify for that savings.

I asked him how much my insurance was paying.  He looked again and discovered that the Co-Pay with insurance would be higher than how much it would be if just paid for with cash.  Did I tell how how mighty my God is????  My total cost for my medicine without insurance at all is 2169.   That is 731 LESS!!  I also qualify for the 100 discount on every 1000 spent making my grand total for my medicine 1959!  What a blessing!!!  God has taken care of us!!

I know there will probably be some other costs come up that we don't know about...  but we have already been blessed with lower costs in nearly every category!!!  When I joined Jamberry I had no idea what God's bigger picture would be!  I have a lot of comfort in knowing how much jamberry money comes in each month!  We still have to apply for a loan so that we can pay for the entire cost up front but having the savings and extra income from Jamberry has certainly helped lift some weight off our shoulders!

God answers prayer!

1 year later- and results

In April of 2013 Ryan and I found ourselves in a much better financial place!  Ryan had gotten a job at Research Concepts!  This was a much better job for him in many ways!  It was going to give him experience in his field, paid better, and provided flexible hours!  This is exactly what we needed!  Even when Ryan needed to go to school he could make up the hours he missed at his convenience!  What a blessing!!!  By this time I had also completed my masters degree and therefore received a pay raise from my job!   Things were looking pretty good!!!

We decided it was time to have another baby and we were praying about it!  After the first several months went by we began praying more about it and also listening to God!  I felt God saying, "wait. something bigger is coming."  I didn't know what this meant.  I didn't know what "bigger" was....  I only knew he was telling me "bigger" not "better." We had been trying for about 18 months. After many visits to my doctor to have various tests done we were referred to a specialist that was partnered with KU med.  We continued to pray and waited for God's answers.  Ryan and I both had tests done at this point.  We waited a long 3 weeks to get all of the results back.

The results:
All of my tests came back great.  Everything was working properly and there was nothing to indicate otherwise.
Ryan's tests came back and we realized he had low count and low motility.  This definitely got our attention.  His numbers were severely low.  12,000 count (normal is 30 to 40 million) and motility was below 30%.  This gave us a 1% chance go get pregnant on our own.  I told Ryan the news as he was driving to the lake to meet up with me.  Understandably, he was angry and confused.  Why was this happening???  He felt the Holy Spirit come over him at that point and said, "I need you to see something."
We didn't know what was coming or what the answer would be.

Ryan started seeing a male infertility doctor.  This Dr. is the #1 doctor in the country!  After some more tests a lump was discovered on Ryan's scrotum.  After the Dr. revealed that to us and said that more tests would need to be done.  I was terrified....   was the "bigger" about to be revealed???  More testing was done and more waiting was done.  The Dr. determined that the lump was not cancerous at this time and gave us no reason to worry about it.  However, we now know that it is there.  We know to watch it.  We would have never known this had we gotten pregnant right away.

Ryan's Dr. decided to put him on Clomid.  This medicine would help boost his numbers.  After being on the medicine for 3 months his numbers went up 10 times!!  This was great news but still put us in the range of needing IVF.  While we don't know what caused this or why this path was chosen for us we trust and follow Jesus to carry us on our journey!

After trying on our own for about 21 months...  IVF begins on Monday January 5th 2015.  

3 years ago

Sometime at the beginning of the year in 2012 we decided to begin growing our family more.  Austin was about 16 months old at the time.  We made the decision and I went off birth control for 1 month.  We prayed about our decision and God told us to wait.  We realized that we were not in a financial situation that would support another baby.  This was also one of Ryan's busiest semesters at school.  He was still working at Dillards which did not allow flexible hours.  All of these things put together told us to wait.  So back on birth control I went....