Friday, August 15, 2014

A Weekend of Monitoring

Jonathan and I went to yet another monitoring appointment this morning.  My follicle count is up to 27+ and there are still another 8-10 small ones that will grow larger over the next 48-72 hours.  I didn't see Dr. Hansen today (he teaches residents on Fridays), but I saw his partner Dr. Craig.  She was VERY pleased with what my estrogen is doing and what my follicle count looks like.  In a nutshell this is what she said:

"Well, I'm definitely going to schedule you for appointments on Saturday AND Sunday.  There's an *outside* chance we won't have to see you on Saturday if your estrogen has not gone up as high as I think it has, but we will schedule you anyway and if that changes we will let you know when we call with your blood work results this afternoon.  I think we can safely say that a retrieval on Monday is out of the running, but I can say with some confidence that it will probably be scheduled for Tuesday. Of course this can all change which is why we will be watching you so closely over the next few days.  But for now, that's our tentative timeline!"

She also told me that since my ovaries are full of fluid and will only get more full, I should be eating a high sodium diet for the next few days so that I can stay comfortable.  She laughed and said I would never hear another doctor again in my life recommend that!  The area around my ovaries as they get bigger and bigger will start collecting fluid, not to mention post retrieval there will be more fluid build up in and around them.  Salt helps reduce some of that fluid, so Chinese food and pretzels it is!  

I'm definitely to the point where my body is working over time.  I feel the need for naps and breaks frequently throughout the day.  I'm so grateful for this perfect timing that God has given us where I really *can* lay down and take a nap when my body needs it.  And what's even better is that my sweet husband can lay down with me and snuggle me when I need/want him to.  How perfect is that?!  I'm definitely ready to be out of the "student loan" phase of our lives and back into making money again, but for now I'm relishing the fact that our poorness also affords us the opportunity to be together 24/7 in these crucial weeks leading up to a hopeful pregnancy.  Priceless!

I was calculating in my head today and sort of "ball parking" what I hope the outcomes will be.  If some ridiculous ratio like *half* of the eggs get damaged in retrieval and aren't "fertilizable", we are talking upwards of 20 good eggs.  Then from there if an equally ridiculous *half* of those get fertilized, we are talking 10 fertilized eggs.  And if still ridiculously only *half* of those are viable embryos, we are talking at least 5 good transferable/freezable embabies.  In my mind, those are pretty good odds.  I'm thinking we have a pretty good chance of having maybe more than that!  All we are looking for are 2 good quality eggs.  If we get no more than that, we will be happy as clams.  If we only get one good embryo, we will be happy, and we will trust God has a marvelous plan for that little Bean.  Shoot...He must have something marvelous for ALL our little ones for all the hype leading up to their arrival!

I tell my little eggs every day to hang in there.  To grow big and strong and to get ready for a big adventure.  Can you imagine??  In 4 days or less they will be aspirated out of my ovaries, put into a dish with sperm (and some will be injected directly with one sperm), and then they'll start growing into tiny lives.  My mommy heart will already be working overtime (as if it isn't already) and I will be anxious to get them back into my womb so they can be safe and warm.  In the meantime it's pretty cool to think that they'll be so closely watched and cared for by the embryologists at OU.  They're already so loved by so many!  I think we will request at some point to meet the embryologist before our embryos hit the lab.  I'd like to shake the hand of the guy (all the embryologists at OU are men) who will be cultivating the early lives of my babies.  It's a big job!  Plus I'd like to have at least a face to conjure up when I pray for their hands and their eyes next week.  NEXT WEEK!!

We'll be parents next week y'all.  Jonathan will be a Daddy and I'll be a Mommy.  There are no words to describe our excitement and also how humbled we are by the gravity of all of this.  God is SO good to us.  Our cup overflows with His blessings already!

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