Over the last week HL and I have been paying catch up around home.  We had the garden to finish planting, a new chicken coop to build, a pool to put up, & spending time with Makinlee.  A week ago we were sitting in the Dr’s office trying to digest the news that our fresh In Vitro cycle was being canceled.  It felt as if the rug was pulled out from under us.  We were naive enough to think that since the procedure was scheduled and no one mentioned the possible cancellation that we were good.  We were not good.  My uterine lining wasn’t good enough to justify wasting great embryos on a transfer.  The Dr said he was 99% sure it wouldn’t have worked anyway had we proceeded with the transfer.  Now we are struggling with being able to schedule a Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET) that will allow HL to be home during the painful Progesterone In Oil (PIO) shots.  This is not an easy task.  I think we are almost there with a schedule and it looks like it will be mid August before we try again but that is not set in stone yet.  I’m struggling emotionally with the fact that there are 11 “textbook” grade 5 day blasts frozen just waiting for us to figure things out.  This should have been our time, our chance but it wasn’t meant to be.  It’s hard to just sit and wait almost 3 more months but this is what must be done.  I hope the next 5 weeks fly by because then it will be time for us to go on vacation and get a much needed break from everyday life.  I do however have a ton of projects to keep me busy.  There is sewing that MUST be done, Makinlee’s bedroom to paint, duck and chicken eggs to be incubated, & the garden to be tended.  Also Makinlee is playing T-Ball and I’m helping coach.  We are busy but not busy enough to keep my mind from going to Houston and thinking about our embryos.

We got a call from the nurse late last night and said DO NOT STIM anymore.  Apparently my E2 levels went up into the 6000 in 24 hours so Dr A did not get to push me that one more day he wanted to.  Last night we took 1/2 of our HCG trigger shot and go in tomorrow morning at 8:30 for the surgery.  Fingers crossed, positive thoughts, & prayers my way please.  I hope we get 12-15 mature eggs.  That’s my goal anyway.  I’m still not sure if they are going to allow us to do the transfer next week but I hope I can keep the over-stimulation at bay and get my way.  We are going to head home one way or the other Wednesday so it will probably be then before I update again unless I come out of surgery better than expected.

This morning we went to the Dr AGAIN!  Dr. A did the actual ultrasound this morning and it’s clear he is truly puzzled as well. He went back and forth between what he wants to do and at this point we still don’t know what we will do.  Again, it will come down to the blood work report that will not be back until late tonight.  I still do not have but 1 20 mm follicle but we have many that are really close.  He wants to push me one more day which means the egg retrieval is currently scheduled for Wednesday.  However, this will be dictated by the E2 levels we are waiting on.  Since there are so many flipping follicles we may have to do the egg retrieval now and wait a cycle or two to do the transfer.  This means doing a frozen embryo transfer and the success rates are not as good as a fresh cycle.  I really pray we are able to go ahead with the fresh transfer.  We are battling Ovarian Hyper-stimulation Syndrome risks as it is and the retrieval will probably cause me to over stimulate which is VERY painful and can be dangerous.  Another bump in the road we are facing is my uterine lining didn’t look as good as it should today but it does change from day to day.  We still have 2-3 more days for it to straighten itself out.  We are going to try a few medications starting tomorrow to try and get my body to corporate.  I should know where we stand as far as surgery tonight and then it will be Wednesday before I know if Dr. A will allow a fresh transfer or if we have to wait a cycle.  UGH!!!  Hurry up and wait seems to be the nature of the game these days.

This is what my days and nights are filled with at the moment..

Reading blogs, knitting, & fertility drug injections

Our plans have changed due to the fact that my ovaries have decided to grow enough follicles to populate the entire Parish we live in.  On Thursday we had 24 measurable (10mm) follicles between 11-15mm.  That doesn’t count the dozen or so that have yet to reach 10mm.  We go back in tomorrow for another scan and blood work.  We are hoping the original 24 follicles are between 16-20mm because that means the egg retrieval surgery can be scheduled for Monday.  Right now it looks like it will be either Monday or Tuesday unless something goes terrible wrong like my estradiol levels being really high or if it start to drop.  We are at a critical stage, the same stage that went horribly wrong last cycle.  We have all of our fingers and toes crossed for a good report tomorrow.  We have invested too much time, money, & days away from home for this to fail.  The stats thus far are:

Thursday, April 23

E2=2,364  24 follicles 11-15mm (12 on each ovary)

150 IUs Gonal F,  75 IUs Menopur, 10 units Lupron, Metformin 1500 mg, Dexamethasone 5 mg, Omega 3, Prenatals

I’ll update tomorrow and then hopefully I’ll update again on the other side.

Our In Vitro cycle starts Monday…Today I am busy cleaning the car out, packing, cleaning, & organizing things so that I do not have a major meltdown over the next week.  HL is still at work and will be home until Thursday night.  This week I have to some how jugle a trip to Houston, new medication protocols ALONE (this is always HL’s part in this), & figure out what to do with the animals over the next few weeks.  Makinlee is headed to my mom’s tomorrow and I am heading to Houston with my sister in law, Peggy.  This will be a quick trip.  Drive to Houston on Sunday, spend the night, go to appointment on Monday morning, & drive back.  However, there will be a few shopping stops on the way back.  That is always a perk, right?

Oh and by the way…we have 6 new ducklings that hatched last night!  I’m super excited as is Makinlee.

In the world of infertility treatments there can be too much of a good thing sometimes.  I have 3 more new follicles making it a total of 12.  We are looking at the chance of converting our IUI cycle to IVF.  I’m scared to death.  It’s a waiting game now.  We have another appointment on Friday and should know more then.  For now I’m going to go take a nap and get away from the world for a few hours.  My brain needs a break.