THE BIG DAY....

So Finally it was the big day - Transfer Day!!! It seems as if we have been waiting for this day for what seems like forever, I can't believe it has finally come! It was a wonderful day. My mom came with me because Brandon had to work, and Kendra's mom came with her as well. It was so nice having the moms there. So they took us all into this small operating-like room. It was a lot more "medical" than I imagined it would be. I had to put on a gown and lay down on this crazy table. The doctor came in and said that both the embryos thawed nicely and my lining looked "beautiful". Perfect! The doctor put in a small catheter and then an even smaller catheter within that one to place the embryos in my uterus. We got to watch the whole time on the ultrasound screen, and with one little blast, both embryos went in . We even all got pictures from the ultrasound machine! It was such a big moment. I was so nervous going into the day, but during the whole procedure (which was only a couple minutes) I was calm and in awe of what was happening. What an amazing experience! And now I feel the weight of the world on my shoulders. I am carrying around the most precious thing in the world to Kendra and Tony. It is such a massive responsibility. I am on a couple of days modified bed-rest and then my blood pregnancy test is scheduled for 10 days from now (I think I'll test earlier though at home, just to be prepared). So now the wait is on (once again!). Hopefully the embryos will implant in the next couple of days, and I will have good news to follow!

PIO shots - getting ready for the transfer!

So I ended up having to do the PIO shots (progesterone in oil). These are the bad ones! In the picture is the Lupron shot (on the bottom) which goes in the stomach - no big deal, and doesn't really hurt at all. The TOP one is the PIO. It goes in your butt area and because it is in oil, you have to massage it and put on a heating pad afterwards to prevent the oil from pooling up under your skin. Brandon happened to be at the Indy 500 when I needed the first one, so luckily my dad was willing to come over and stab me! I was SO scared, but it actually didn't hurt as bad as I thought it would. Brandon took over a few days later :)
So here's my medicine list:
Baby Aspirin and prenatal vitamins every day
PIO shot (1 ml) every other day
Lupron shot (.25) every day
Estraderm patches (change every few days - sometimes 1 sometimes 4)
Estrace vaginal suppository (1 pill 2 x a day)
Endometrin vaginal suppository (1 pill 3 x a day)
Z pack antibiotics
Gee- I think that's it - haha. So our transfer is scheduled for May 28th - YAY!!!!
I didn't think this day would ever come!
I am scared it will work - I'm scared it won't work - I have such conflicting emotions. But above everything else I feel, I just hope hope hope that this works the first time. I will feel just terrible if K & T have to endure yet another dissppointment. My mom is coming with because Brandon has to work, and her mom is coming too, so that is exciting and fun. I can't wait!!!! Wish me some luck.....

Appointment #2 - check!

So appointment #2 went pretty good. Another ultrasound and blood-work. The only issue the doctor had was my lining was only just above the minimum level they like to see. The tech also said there was a tiny bit of fluid in there, so hopefully that will just absorb and not be an issue. They increased one of my medications and I need to go back in a few days for another ultrasound to see if that corrects the problem.

Also, I was informed that I will indeed need to start the PIO (progesterone in oil) injections :( Boo! They originally said I wouldn't have to do that one, but apparantly the doctor has changed his protocol. They are supposed to be really painful and go right into the muscle of your butt. Brandon will have to give them to me. I won't have to start them for another week or so though. I was such a baby about the Lupron injection - and that was nothing compared to this! It should really be a scene :)

1st appt down!

So the first appointment went really well. I had to go downtown to the fertility clinic for bloodwork and an ultrasound. The doctor needed to make sure everything is a certain level so that I could continue on the medication schedule. I received the phone call later that afternoon that everything is a go! So I now have to start an estrogen patch and pill, as well as taking baby aspirin, as well as continuing the lupron injection. Next week they check again to see how my levels and uterus lining is progressing. Crossing my fingers no issues so we can keep the transfer date of May 28th!!!

lawyers, contracts, injections, oh my...

So they finally arrived... all of my medications for this cycle! Before I could get them to mail me all of these lovely pills, shots, patches, etc., we had to make sure all of the contracts were signed by both Brandon and myself, our lawyer, Kendra and Tony, and their lawyers as well. It was a really quick process and we got the paperwork together right away. The contracts basically consist of a lengthy explanation of how the compensation works, including addressing a lot of the "what-ifs". For example, what if the baby has severe abnormalities, what if there ends up being multiple babies, what if I DIE and need to be put on life support in order to save the baby (morbid!), and most importantly, what if the baby ends up not belonging to me OR THE PARENTS!! WHAT?! And I guess that DOES happen sometimes. Sometimes the clinic messes up and inserts the wrong embryo. Umm, yeah - somebody should be getting fired for that little mistake! The most important part of the contract for Brandon would be the part that states that we must, ahem "refrain from activity" that may result in pregnancy for the entire month before the transfer - sorry honey!!! Lawyer/Dr.'s orders!

There was nothing surprising in the contract though and after it was signed I got to start the fun stuff - injections. So I'm thinking, no big deal. I have never been afraid of needles or pain, so whatever. Well, that was before I had a sharp pointy object aimed at my stomach. Brandon sat there laughing at me - every time I would go to stab myself, I would hesitate millimeters from my skin - I could NOT make myself do it! So, being the man he is, he quickly grabbed it from me and shoved it in (as I am screaming "How could you do this to me??"). Turns out it didn't really hurt at all, and I am now able to give it to myself no problem. I get a shot a night for the next month. The drug is called Lupron which apparently shuts down my ovary function so that I don't ovulate during the cycle. Knock on wood, no side effects yet!

The other great thing is I met up with Kendra for lunch, and I had a wonderful time! I was nervous that maybe when we met one-on-one she wouldn't like me as much as she had thought. But it went really well and we had really good conversations. So that makes me that much more excited to move on with this and to do this for them.

The next step involves weekly ultrasounds and bloodowork, as well as starting the rest of the meds. I'll update with each appointment :)