Phone Consult & Short Vacation

First off, I have to apologize for being MIA for a couple of weeks.  If you have been waiting for me to update here, I'm sorry it took me so long.

On 6/4, I had my post transfer phone consult with Dr. Keenan.  He was genuinely sorry and disappointed that our transfer didn't work out.  He said everyone at the clinic were shocked and disappointed that I was not pregnant.  He said there was no good reason why I did not get pregnant.  My lining was good.  The transfer went well.  The embryos were of good quality.  I had an endometrial biopsy done prior to my transfer, and that should have increased my chances.  He doesn't think it is an issue with the embryos since we had embryos from 3 different donor families for all three of my transfers, and each family has had successful pregnancies.

He suspects that I may have implantation issues.  I asked him what that means and he said there is something in the uterus that is not favorable for implantation, but it may be impossible to really know what it is.   He said there are not much research done on implantation issues in humans (since it would threaten a pregnancy).  I asked him about additional testing for issues such as autoimmune issues, as suggested by others.  He said there is no evidence of autoimmune issues causing EARLY pregnancy losses like a chemical pregnancy as in my case.

I asked about the 3 attempt per pregnancy policy at NEDC and if he would make an exception.  He said most women should get pregnant by their third try.  I can't remember his actual words, but it was pretty much no.  He did however bring up the topic of special needs embryos.  He said there is possibly a chance we could try again with special needs embryos, though he was not comfortable with it.  These are embryos that may have a higher risk of medical conditions and is usually overlooked by adoptive families, such as embryos where siblings have been born with a heart condition or downs syndrome, or a parent is HIV positive, etc.  A transfer wish these embryos would be treated the same as other transfers, meaning I would still need a current home study.   He said if that is something Babe and I are interested in, then he will have Angie, the coordinator contact us.  That afternoon itself, Angie emailed me that Dr. Keenan had approved us to do another transfer with special needs embryos and wanted to know if we wanted to see the profiles.  I told her we had not decided and would like her know when/if we were ready to see those profiles.

So, at this point, we don't really know what our next steps are.  We could do another round at NEDC with special needs embryos but I am not sure if I am comfortable with that at this point in time.  We could try another agency or clinic that does embryo adoption or embryo donation, but we would want to make sure if there are any issues that we can rule out that can affect implantation, such as autoimmune issues.  Or we could focus on going back on the route of traditional adoption.  We are currently in a holding pattern as to our next steps.

Instead of making a decision, Babe decided that I needed a break from all this and sent me on a short vacation to Florida.  He would have come with me but he does not have much vacations days.  I went to visit a friend from high school, one I have not seen since I was 15!  It was fun catching up, and it was nice to be able to chat with her about our journey.  She too had gone through infertility, had a couple  of miscarriages and now has a 5-year old son.  We went on a glass bottom boat ride in Key Largo, toured the Everglades on an airboat, checked out alligators, held a baby alligator in my hands, ate some fantastic key lime pies, and checked out the (in)famous South Beach of Miami.  And that is the reason for my delayed update here on my blog.

Checking out fish and corals on the glass bottom boat

View from the back of the boat

Some of the homes and boat in Key Largo

Our neighboring airboat hunting for alligators

The (in)famous South Beach of Miami

Transfer Day 5/16/14 (Delayed Post)

Today is 5dp3dt.  Yesterday the blastocysts continued to hatch out of their shells and attach itself to the uterus.  Today, they will attach deeper into the uterine lining and begin implantation.

I am finally getting to the post about my transfer day.  I apologize if you have been patiently waiting for a more detailed post about our transfer.

Our transfer was on Friday, May 16th at 11am EST.  I started drinking water a little over an hour before the transfer.  I was a little nervous because at my first transfer in November, my bladder was not full enough, so it had to be filled with at catheter.  That was not real fun.  The other reason why why my bladder was not full enough was because after I started drinking water, I had to have a #2 (bowel movement/poop!) and ended peeing too.  Sorry, if TMI!  

I was nervous because I was trying to "go" before starting to drink water.  Man, what a relief it was when I actually "went".  Now I could concentrate on just drinking water and filling my bladder.  At 10 am, an hours before the transfer, I took my medication for the transfer: Va.lium, Al.buterol, and 3 ibuprofen tablets.

We arrived and checked in at NEDC at 10:30 am.  I was already relaxed and a little giddy from the Va.lium.  We were shown into the recovery room and met Julia, one of the nurses working that day.  She was the same nurse that helped us back in November too.  I undressed below the waist and put on hospital gown and cap.  This time, I only wore the snowflake necklace that Babe gave me for Christmas, unlike back in January where I was decked out in a ton of snowflakes: earrings, necklace and socks.

Candy, the new IVF nurse that replaced Katie (we miss her!) stopped by quickly to introduce herself.  Dr. Keenan stopped by and chatted for a bit.  He asked a few questions and had me sign some paperwork.

Then Carol, the embryologist stopped by and gave us our embryology report.  She thawed all 5 of our 2PN (day 1) embryos.  Of those, 3 survived the thaw and had grown into multi-cell (day 3) embryos.  I was a little sad that 2 of the little embryos did not make it.  

Unlike blastocysts which are graded with a number and 2 letters, multi-cell embryos are only graded with a number from 1 (best) to 5 (worst).  Out of the that made it to multi-cells stage, two were graded at 1, and one was graded at 2.  

Below is a photo of our 3 embryos.  As I mentioned before, Babe as affectionately named them "The Three Amigos".

1. The first (A) was graded a 1, with 8 cells.  This looks good.
2. The second (B) was graded a 2, also with 8 cells but its cells were fragmented.  Carol didn't think this little guy would make it.
3. The third (C), was graded 1.  This is our little overachiever as it was already a morula, meaning it was already a day 4 embryo.

We were going to transfer all three of The Three Amigos!

Embryo A, graded 1; Embryo B graded 2 with fragmented cells; Embryo C graded 1,  morula stage.

It was time for my transfer.  I walked to the procedure room and carefully laid myself on the table and put my legs in the stirrups, trying to be careful about my sore butt.  Dr. Keenan asked if my bladder was full enough and I said, I hope so.  I told him I drank 2.5 - 3 bottles of those 16oz bottled waters.  I didn't feel super uncomfortable but I could tell my bladder full.  Candy the new IVF nurse put the ultrasound want on my belly to see how full I was.  At first she was having some trouble getting the right angle and needed some help from both another nurse, and also Dr. Keenan.  When we finally got a good view, Dr. Keenan said my bladder was borderline full, but he could work with it.  So, thankfully I did not need to have my bladder pumped even fuller with a catheter.

There was a large TV screen on the wall that I was able to see the ultrasound image on.  The dark blob towards the top and middle of the screen was my bladder.  The middle part below the bladder where the "+" sign was my uterus, and to the left of it, the cervix.

He then inserted the speculum and proceeded to clean the entrance to my cervix with first a warm saline solution (I think), and then with an alcohol solution that stung like heck (which he apologized for)!  He did a test transfer first where he inserted a catheter in through my cervix and into my uterus.   He told me to watch for a white line (the catheter) snaking in from the left.  It was only a test transfer, so there were no embryos in the catheter.  When we were all ready, Carol the embryologist passed the embryos in a catheter to Dr. Keenan through a window to and adjoining room.  I'm assuming that is where the lab or incubators are.  I was asked my name, birthday and how many embryos were were transferring.  Dr. Keenan inserted the catheter with the embryos into my uterus and told me watch for the white flash light.  There was the white flash of light!  The babies were in!

The catheter was removed and Carol checked the catheter to make sure no embryos were left behind.  We were done!  You can see 3 little white spots below the "+" sign where the embryos were placed.  I'm praying that The 3 Amigos will snuggle in and stick around for the next 9 months.

I have to admit, I was a lot more nervous this time around.   Probably because this could be our last time here if this transfer does not result in a successfully pregnancy.  But Dr. Keenan is so sweet.  He said to stay positive, and he will be praying for a positive outcome!

I laid on the table and rested for a few minutes before making my way onto the bed where I was wheeled back into the recovery room.  Babe was waiting for me with a smile.   He had been chatting with Julia and she even recommended a Cuban restaurant to us.

The foot of the bed was raised and I was told I had to rest there for 30 minutes.  I was glad my bladder was not extremely full as the longer I laid there, the more I felt like I had to pee.  Towards the end of the rest period I was crossing my legs and was anxious to use the bathroom.  When it was time, I was allowed to use the bathroom and change back into my regular clothes.  We were given our after transfer care instructions.  On our way out, the receptionist gave me a slip with the date and time of the post transfer phone consult with Dr. Keenan.

On our way back to the hotel, we stopped by Mimi's Cafe for lunch.  I would love to go back there some time for dinner.  When we got back to the hotel, I took a 5 hour nap.  The Va.lium really got me.  For dinner, we went to La Cabana, the Cuban restaurant recommended by nurse Julia.  It was a first for the both of us, and it was pretty good.  We just took the rest of the night easy, watching movies on TV at the hotel.

My first beta is next Tuesday, May 27th, day after Memorial day.  It's only less than a week away.  We'll have to see if I have any symptoms this time around, since I didn't have any previously.

Quick Update: PUPO!

Just a quick update.....

I just got knocked up by another man who is NOT my husband!  LOL!

We got done with our transfer.  NEDC thawed all 5of my 2PN embryos and three survived and grew into multi-cells (day 3).  They transferred all 3.  Multi-cell embryos are only graded with a number from 1 to 5, with 1 being the best quallity and 5 being the worst.  We transferred two grade 1 embryos and one grade 2 embryo.  One of the grade 1 embryos was actually a morula, so even further along, about a day 4.  I asked Carol, the embryologist what are the chances of us getting triplets and she said not very good, since the grade 2 embryo's cell is fragmented. 

So, I am PUPO (pregnant until proven otherwise)!  I need to go take a nap now and sleep off my valium.  I will write later with a more detailed post about transfer day, probably after I get home.  But I just wanted to give you an update because I know there are many of you that have been/are praying for me and this transfer.  Thank you so much!  That means the world to me.

We Are A Go for May Transfer!

We are a GO for our May transfer!

I had my ultrasound and blood work appointment this morning.  I was a little nervous about how thick my lining was going to be, since I had one incident where my lining was too thin back in September.  Fortunately my November and January transfers my lining was thick enough at 9.3 mm and 7 mm (minimum required for NEDC).  To make matters worse, yesterday I was out and about and was going to be late taking my afternoon dose of Es.trace.  When I got home I was so tired, I fell asleep on the couch.  For 5 hours straight!  By the time I woke up, it was time for my next dose of Es.trace.  I panicked and ended up taking both doses together.  I was guessing that it should be OK, since I had also been taking my other doses consistently.  I am doing acupuncture and had a shiatsu massage as well on Friday.

But this morning, I was pretty nervous.  Thankfully, my lining came in at 7.9 mm, so I knew I would be OK.  This afternoon I received the call from the NEDC nurse with the official lining result of 7.9 mm and estrogen level of 195.  I am cleared to start PIO shots tomorrow morning.  I do PIO shots once a day tomorrow, and then will increase to twice a day after tomorrow.  I will reduce my Es.trace to one tablet, twice a day starting tomorrow.

Ugh... the dreaded PIO shots.  I found out Babe will have to travel for a few days after our transfer which means I will have to either find someone to give me those shots while he is gone, or I have to do it myself.

But our transfer's a go!

Yesterday, Mother's Day was a low key day for us.  We took Babe's mom and dad out to brunch on Saturday for Mother's Day.  Usually, all of Babe's siblings and nieces and nephews show up at his parents for Mother's Day for lunch.  Though Babe's dad would grill, you know how it is, his mom would end up having to clean the house because "company" was coming.  And after lunch even though we the kids would do dishes, his mom would end up having to do work anyway.  So, Babe and I decided to take her out for lunch instead so she didn't have to do anything.  I think she ended up spending Mother's Day with her some of her grandkids.

Mother's Day is still kinda tough for me at church, so we also took the day easy, sleeping in and skipping church altogether.  I called my mom who lives in a different country many time zones away.  It's hard missing out on spending time with her on all these holidays, especially as she is getting older each year.  I'm hoping Mother's Day will be different next year.

4 days to transfer!

2 days till we hop on a plane to Knoxville!

Unexpected Blessing

I received a HUGE unexpected blessing last night.

I was chatting with a friend on FB while watching a movie at home and eating a slice of peach tart when she asked me for my email address and then asked me to check my email.  I received an email from a hotel with a confirmation for a hotel reservation.  I was like, what's this?

My friend, bless her heart, had sneakily booked us a hotel room for our stay in Knoxville!  She is giving us our entire 4 nights of hotel stay for FREE using her credit card points!

Eeeekkk!! We were just talking over lunch about how I needed to book my hotel and car rental yet, and how the price of the hotel we used to stay in had for some reason gone up a lot.  I was contemplating staying at a cheaper hotel that we had never been in, but was a little nervous about.  I was telling her I may just suck it up and pay more for a nicer and more established hotel.  This hotel that we are booked in is really nice, and costs $160 a night, way beyond our budget for a hotel room.

When I looked back at our FB conversation, I see that she had been sneaky, asking me a few questions about where I was looking to book, etc.  I am so grateful for her generosity.  She said it didn't cost her anything but her credit card points, though she could use it for other stuff for herself.   She said it was a pleasure for her to help me out, so I didn't have to not worry about money and, I could, quoting her, ".... relax n enjoy n get pregnant dammit"!  I thought that was pretty hilarious.

I am so grateful to her for this generous gift.  She is a blessing to me.

Today, I finally booked our rental car.  We are renting from Enterprise car rental, another first for us.  Wow, this trip is full of firsts and new experiences.  I hope that is a good sign for our transfer as well.

On another note, today I increased my Es.trace dosage to one tablet, twice a day, an increase from only half a tablet twice a day.  Also today, I was just sitting here surfing on FB when BAM! Holy hot flashes!  Out of nowhere came this hot flash.  I have never experienced anything like that.  For a bit there I thought something was wrong with me, and then I thought oh that's right, I'm on Lu.pron.  Usually the only times I have ever felt any hot flashes was in bed at night.  This was a first and hopefully not too many more.

On Sunday I had received an email from Debbie, the counselor/mediator that works with NEDC donor families.  She passed on a note from my donor family that they are excited to hear about my May transfer date.  They wish us the best of luck, and are thinking of us often.  It's alway really nice to hear from the donor families.  They sound like a great family and are very open to having communication with us, even now, before our transfer.  We have decided that we will wait until there is a successful pregnancy before communicating directly with them, and are understand our decision.

17 days to transfer!

And So It Begins.... Again.

And so it begins.... again.

I started Lu.pron tonight.  I have been on birth control pills since March and will continue till Saturday night, but the Lu.pron shots officially (to me at least) marks the beginning of my protocol for my May transfer.

After talking over with Babe we have decided that we will stick with 2PNs as per NEDC's normal process for donors with both 2PNs and blastocysts.  Yesterday, Carol the embryologist called me after hearing that I had some concerns but I assured her that we have decided to stick with NEDC's usual process and go with the 2PNs.

According to Carol, they will thaw three 2PN embryos 2 days before our transfer, with the goal of having at least 2 of those will survive and grow into healthy multicells.  If all three are of great quality, they will only transfer two,  and will refreeze one for future use.  According to her, this is the best stage to refreeze embryos if needed.  She also said that 2PNs do very well at thaw and have pretty good pregnancy rates.  The pregnancy rate for 2PNs is the same as multicell and blastocysts.

The other thing Carol mentioned is Dr. Keenan tends to recommend patients going for their third try at NEDC to try embryos from a different stage than the previous attempts.  This is true as Dr. Keenan did suggest trying embryos that are not blasts this time around.  It just so happened that while looking at donor profiles, most of the donors that seemed right for us had blasts.  The family we selected just happened to also have 2PNs, so like I mentioned in my previous post, they were more of an afterthought.  But we have decided this is good thing, using 2PNs.  In the end, we are ending up to use embryos at a stage suggested by the doctor anyway.

One more thing that will be different for us this transfer.  Because we are using 2PNs, NEDC will have to do assisted hatching on the embryos, which at the time of transfer will be at the multicell stage.  There is an additional cost of $525, but that in the end, the cost is just another part of the process of working with embryos.

I have scheduled my 2 ultrasound and lab appointments for 4/24 and 5/12.  My endometrial biopsy is also scheduled on 4/24.  In addition, I have scheduled an ultrasound to check my uterine lining for polyps.  My gynecologist has suggested having the biopsy and ultrasound on the same day so I could save a trip to the doctor's office.  Unfortunately, the ultrasound tech is not in the office the day I need to have my biopsy, so I have to go in to the doctor's 2 days in a row.  My gynecologist wants to have the ultrasound done as close as possible to the biopsy so he has the most current results.  I also checked with my gynecologist if there are any other testing that can be done for recurring chemical pregnancies and he said no.  Dr. Keenan said the same thing, so I will let that rest.

So right now, all my appointments are scheduled, my calendars are updated with appointment and reminders to take my medication on my phone.  I just have to remember to do my shots and take my meds.

Next up, I need to book our flights, hotel and car rental.

Finally, Our Transfer Date

I have been waiting for my May transfer date and protocol all week.  I knew I would get it by Friday because Katie, the nurse's last was was Friday.  On Thursday, I heard that some of the ladies on the FB embryo adoption/donation group had received their protocols.  Yet, I still did not get mine.  I knew that in the past, my transfers were usually towards the end of NEDC's cycle because I was transferring blasts.  So I assumed mine would be towards the end again.  I was getting pretty anxious.  So Friday morning, I sent Katie an email saying I still have not received my protocol yet.  I received an response that she was working on the protocols then and hoped to get them all by the end of the day.  At a little after noon, I finally received my protocol.

My transfer is scheduled for Friday, May 16th.

I was pretty excited to get my transfer date and a little earlier than I had expected.  Then I noticed that the stage of my embryos to be transferred is 2PNs (day 1 embryos).  I was a little surprised as I was expecting to transfer blasts (day 5 embryos).  I called Katie and spoke to her about this.  Because our new donors has both 2PNs and blasts, NEDC's normal process is to thaw and 2PNs first and grow them into multicells (day 3) and transfer them.  That way if none of the 2PNs survive, NEDC would still have time to thaw the blasts and we would not have to cancel our transfer.

I'm a little torn about this.  We selected the donor family based on the fact that they had blasts, and we were planning on transferring blasts.  The fact that the donors also has 2PNs was more of an afterthought.  I am worried that we will not have a successful an outcome with 2PNs as with blasts, though I know many people have had success with transferring blasts, multicells and 2PNs.  On the other hand, Dr. Keenan had suggested we consider transferring different stage embryos this time around since we had transferred blasts the last two transfers.  I think we had decided on blasts because we still had leftover blasts from our last donor family.  I had asked Katie about the success rate of embryos from different stages and she assured me that many pregnancies have resulted from all three stages and the success rate is the same.

Katie said that if we really wanted to, we could call the embryologist on Monday (she was out of the office) and talk to her about it.  We do have a total of 7 2PNs and 5 blasts, so it is possible that we could have enough blasts to transfer if we really wanted to.  However if none of the blasts survive the thaw, then our transfer would be cancelled, though this is highly unlikely.

Babe and I need to talk about this a little more and decide if we should just go with the normal NEDC process as they obviously know what are doing, or if we want to push transferring blasts.  I think I am just a little shaken up realizing that we may not be transferring blasts after having setting my mind on it.  But maybe that is not such a bad thing.  I just have to shift my thinking a little.  I will be praying about this.

After getting my protocol, I called the pharmacy to order my medications for this transfer.  This time, I ordered only what I really need to get me through the transfer and my first beta.  I still have some leftover meds from my previous cycle too.  Plus, with the new pharmacy, and maybe this year's coverage has changed, the some meds cost a lot more than before.

When we were still working with Briova, the PIO (progesterone in oil) only cost me around $20 and $4  for 4 vials each time.  This time around, it cost me about $60 for 2 vials!  I'm so glad I ordered the PIO from Briova last time, even though I didn't need it then.  Also, now I have to pay for the syringes and needles, whereas in the past, it came free.  I'm waiting to order needles and syringes since I have a lot of extras from past transfers and a fellow blogger friend who is now pregnant sent me her extras.  I thought it was unnecessary then, but now I am grateful for them.  Es.trace is still super pricey, costing me about $3.50 each tablet (and I need about 70 to last me through my beta).

And this showed up at the door yesterday morning via overnight service.

It is a lot less than my usual order of meds, but like I mentioned earlier, I only ordered what I absolutely need.

• 2-week Lu.pron kit + extra syringes and needles
• 2 vials of progesterone in oil (PIO)
• 15 tablets of Es.trace
• Albuterol for transfer
• Diazepam (Vali.um) for transfer

Next step, I'll be starting my Lu.pron shots on Tuesday.

ODAs Signed

As of yesterday, our copy of the ODA (Open Donation Agreement) with the donor family was signed, notarized and sent via priority mail.  It sounds like the donor family did the same as of last week.  So, as far as the ODA is concerned, we are set and ready to go for our May transfer.  I'm so glad this is taken care of.  I am also grateful that the donor family was quick to accept and was committed to getting the ODA completed quickly.

Now, I have to wait for to hear back from Katie with my protocol and what my transfer date it.  She said I would receive it before April 15th.  So that's what's next.  In the past, I received my protocol around the 10th, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed I will get it soon.  Only one more week to April!

Donor Family Match Requested

**If you would still like to take part in my $10 Starbucks gift card giveaway in honor of my 200th follower, please do so by commenting in the last post here.  You have till 11:59 pm CST Saturday, March 8th to do so.**


This morning, I finally emailed NEDC's coordinator to be matched with a family.

This has been THE HARDEST decision Babe and I have had to make in our embryo adoption journey.

After receiving donor profiles of Caucasian families last week, we narrowed those down to 2 families.  We requested information about the embryos from these families, which we received on Wednesday.

After reviewing all the profiles, we narrowed our choices to our top 3 families.  One was Caucasian, one Asian, and one bi-racial.  This was the toughest part.  Do we want to pick a family where the children looked like me, or like Babe, or a of both?  For me, it is a tough decision to have to pick the race of your child.  Ideally, we want children that would look like the both of us.  However, if you think about it, in many cases, you don't usually get to pick the race of your child in traditional adoption either.  So we decided we would not let race be such a big part of our decision (though I have to admit it was tough!).

We want to pick a family with the highest chance of a successful pregnancy.  Since this is our third transfer at NEDC, we would be out of the program at NEDC if we are not successful this time.  So, we are looking for a family with excellent quality embryos, but also with a young genetic mother, as recommended by Dr. Keenan.  But none of these families had both.

I emailed the embryologist asking what has a higher chance of a successful pregnancy, embryos from a younger genetic mother, or embryos with higher quality grading.  In her opinion, embryos from a younger genetic mother is more likely to give me a higher chance of pregnancy than higher grade embryos.

So, after even more consideration, we have decided to go with a family with the younger genetic mother.  This morning we sent a request to be matched with this donor family.  Hopefully, this will give the family the weekend to review our profile and make a decision to either accept or decline us.

I'm relieved that this part of the decision is made.  I'm praying that the donor family makes a decision quickly so we can proceed with the next steps of our transfer.

Donor Family Next Steps

Yesterday, my period finally arrived.  Five days from my last dose of Es.trace and PIO shot.

Getting my period after a procedure is always hard.  Last transfer was hard because I was technically pregnant, even if just barely.  Therefore the period indicated I was miscarrying.  This transfer is even harder..... as not only was I pregnant, I had a high beta number.  We were overjoyed for a few days until we found out it was again, another chemical pregnancy.  So yesterday, my period marked that I am again miscarrying.  But this time it is harder.  My pregnancy was more real.  I am experiencing the loss of my babies.

On Friday, I spent over an hour on the phone with Debbie, our counselor that works with donor and recipient families at NEDC.  Since we will have to wait until May for our next transfer, we will most likely have to update our home study before we can do our transfer as our current home study expires in April.

From our discussion, I found out some things that I did not know or even had to consider back in May of last year when we did our matches with our first two donor families.

• NEDC requires a recipient to have at least 6 embryos adopted before a transfer.  Because we currently have 2 embryos left from our current donor family, we will need to be matched with at least another donor family to meet the minimum number of embryos.  Therefore, we will need to have at least one other ODA (open donation agreement).
• There are no expiration dates on the ODAs.
• If we end up going with a different donor family for our next transfer (not use our existing embryos), we could reserve the current embryos for future siblings, and the current ODA will still be valid. However, because this next transfer will be our third and last at NEDC (we are only allowed three tries), we may have to release our leftover embryos if this next try is not successful.
• For our next transfer, we will need one or two new ODAs,  depending on if we end up selecting one or 2 different donor families.  We will pay one fee for up to 2 ODAs, but only if we need 2 families to meet the minimum of 6 embryos (minus the 2 we already currently have).

Last week, I had contacted Angie, the patient coordinator at NEDC and requested additional Asian/Caucasian and Asian donor family profiles that had not already been sent to us back in May of last year.  I was considering if we should look at profiles of Caucasian families too.  I was concerned if Caucasian families would reject an Asian/Caucasian biracial couple like us.

I spoke to Angie on Friday and asked about looking at profiles of Caucasian donor families.  She said NEDC does not have any rules or policy against a biracial couple like us adopting Caucasian embryos, so we are more than welcome to request those profiles.  I asked if Caucasian families are accepting of a biracial couple like us adopting their embryos.  She said she did not know off hand or had any numbers of such cases.  It would be up to the donor families to accept or decline our match.

*Note: I asked Angie if NEDC has a policy about us adopting Caucasian embryos, because I knew that NEDC tends to reserve biracial/multi-ethnic embryos for couples of the same ethnicity because the pool of embryos tend to be very small.

So in the mean time, there are lots to think about.

1. Do we want to consider asking for profiles of Caucasian donor families, or just look at the limited pool of Asian/Caucasian and Asian families we already have?
2. Do we want to stick with blastocysts, or change to embryos from either 2PNs or multi-cells?
3. Once we have considered the above, we will actually have to select one or two donor families, and then wait to see if they accept our match.

Whew!!  Lots of things to consider.

Transfer Day 1/21/14 (Delayed Post)

I apologize if you have been patiently waiting for a more detailed post about our transfer.  I have just been relaxing and not doing much since we got home from Knoxville.

The night before the transfer Babe and I went to the Longhorn Steakhouse for dinner.  We splurged a little and I had a yummy steak and a glass of red wine.  An embryo adoption mama had suggested the red wine as it is supposed to help with the transfer.  After dinner, I was able to meet up with another embryo adoption mama for dessert at a cute little cupcake store.  Both and her and I had the same transfer day.  It was so much fun finally meeting up with another EA mama, catching up, sharing stories and for our husbands to meet another EA dad (to-be).  We wished we had more time to keep chatting and hoped that we would see each other at NEDC for our transfers.

This transfer was a lot like the one in November except we were and hour later this time.  Our transfer was at 12:45 pm, so I started drinking water a little earlier than last time where my bladder was not full enough and a catheter was used to fill my bladder.  Not fun.  At 11:45 am I took my medication for my transfer: a Va.lium, 2 Albu.terol tablets, and 3 ibuprofens.

We arrived at NEDC at 12:15 pm and were excited to see that the EA mama that we met up with last night was in recovery.  Her bed was right next to mine!  Of course we started chatting again which was nice as it make the time go by fast and I was more relaxed.  I undressed below the waist and put on a gown and a cap.  I had worn my snowflake earrings which I made a while back, the snowflake chain and pendant and a pair of Christmas snowflake socks.  Babe looked and me and said, hey.... two earrings and a pendant... maybe we will have three this time!  I said, don't say that, I'm not sure if I can handle triplets!  Plus look at my feet.....I have a whole bunch of snowflakes on my socks.  How many does that make??  We had a laugh about it.  

Snowflake earrings that I made

Snowflake pendant and necklace that Babe gave me for Christmas

My Christmas snowflake socks

Carol the embryologist came over and told us that they thawed 3 embryos from our donor family.  All three survived.  

• The first (A) was of "great" quality, graded at 3AA.  
• The second (B) was "good", graded at 2AB.
• The third (C) did not thaw so well, graded at 2BC.  She did not think this little guy was going to make it.  She did mention that some part of it (I can't remember what) was already starting to disintegrate.

From my prior research, here is what the grading means at a high level.  Embryos are assigned 3 separate quality scores - a number and two letters.

1. The blastocyst development stage - expansion and hatching status; with a rating from 1 - 6.  Excellent embryos can be anywhere from 2 - 6, with a fully expanded embryo being a 5, and a hatched embryo being a 6.
2. The inner cell mass (ICM) score or quality; with a rating of A-C.  This is what becomes the baby.
3. The Trophectoderm (TE) score or quality; with a rating of A-C.  This is what becomes the placenta.

To read more about what exactly this means, you can read more about it at this website.

Embryo A graded at 3AA, Embryo B graded at B2AB, and Embryo C graded at 2BC

So we transferred three embryos - one "great" (A), one "good" (B) and one that will probably not make it (C).  To be honest, I was a little disappointed at the quality of the embryos.  At our last transfer, we transferred two "excellent" embryos - 4AA and 6AA.  It's hard not to get disappointed when I had such excellent embryos last time but it didn't work.  I can't help but wonder, since these are not as good, will THIS work?

It was then time for me to head over to the procedure room.  When I was being prepped, Katie the nurse noticed my snowflake earrings and complimented me on them.  Of course I had to show off my pendant and my socks too.  It was funny because the the other nurse and Dr. Keenan wanted to see them as well!

Dr. Keenan asked if I thought my bladder was full enough and I responded, I hope so.  I had been drinking water for a while but it was not uncomfortably full.  When Katie put the ultrasound wand on my belly, Dr. Keenan said well done!  It was full!  There were cheers going around which I thought was pretty funny.  It was a relief for me because it was not a fun experience having your bladder pumped full with fluid.  I was able to see the ultrasound image on a large screen TV.  The dark blob on the top of the screen was my bladder.  The middle part below the bladder where the "+" sign was my uterus, and to the left of it was the cervix.

He inserted a catheter in through my cervix and into my uterus.  He told me to watch for the white line (the catheter) snaking in from the left and pointed out that was the catheter.  It was only a test transfer with no embryos in it.  When we were all ready, Carol passed the embryos in a catheter to Dr. Keenan through a window in the wall.  I was asked my name, birthdate and how many embryos were to be transferred.  Dr. Keenan inserted the catheter with the embryos into my uterus and told me to watch for the white flash of light as that's when the embryos would be transferred.

There was the flash of white light!  There babies were in!  I'm PUPO!  The catheter was removed and Carol checked to make sure no embryos were left behind in the catheter.  We were done!  You can see three little white spots under the "+" sign where the embryos were place.  They look like little grains of rice!  I hope these little guys had a chance snuggle in nicely.

3 embryos (white spots) transferred into my uterus, right below the "+" sign on the screen.

I rested in the room for a bit before being wheeled back to the recovery room where Babe was waiting for me.  I was a little bummed because the other EA mama had already left.  There was a new couple on the other side of my bed now.  The foot of my bed was raised, and I had to rest for 30 minutes before I could go pee.  Fortunately my was not extremely full, or else I would have had to go in a bed pan!  After the required wait time, I was able to get up and use the bathroom and change back to my regular clothes.  A different nurse, Sandy gave us our instructions for after EA transfer and spent a few minutes going over how to do PIO shots.  I think that was very nice and helpful, though when she was demonstrating how to do it, she kept hitting me in my sore spot!

When we left the clinic, it had started snowing.  Beautiful snowflakes were falling from the sky.  Coming from MN, it's not a big deal, but snowing in TN, that's something special.  I hope that is a good sign for us!

We went out for a quick lunch on our way back to the hotel.   When we got back, I tried really hard to respond to some texts and email, but the Va.lium was kicking my butt.  I actually nodded off in the middle of texting.  I gave up and took at FIVE hour nap.  I was that tired.  We had Italian food for dinner and stayed up watching movies.  The next morning, we headed to the airport for home.

My first beta test is next Thursday, 1/30.  It's less than a week a way, but I'm hoping that I will be able to keep myself busy and not obsess over every symptom, or lack of.

Prayers appreciated!

Quick Transfer Day Update

I just wanted to do quick update about our transfer today.

Everything went pretty well. Three day 5 blastocysts were thawed and all survived the thaw.  All three were transferred.  One embryo was "great", another good, and the last one is not expected to make it, but they transferred it anyway. 

So, I'm currently PUPO (pregnant until proven otherwise)!!  We leave to head back home tomorrow. I will do a longer update later. 

Transfer Day & January 2014 ICLW

Hello ICLWers!

I just realized that I missed the last 2 months of ICLWs.  Oh well, November ICLW was right around first transfer, and December, it was just a crazy month with Christmas.

Well this ICLW is an exciting time for me.  Today, we are are having our frozen embryo transfer for our adopted embryos at 12:45 pm EST.   Depending on when you are reading this, I may already be PUPO (pegnant until proven otherwise).  We are working with The National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC) in Knoxville, TN.  We adopted frozen embryos through them which we will transfer and hope that we can be pregnant and carry our adopted child(ren).

This is actually our second try at NEDC.  In November, we transferred two excellent quality embryos at NEDC.  Unfortunately, it resulted in a chemical pregnancy.  So we back to try again.  Prior to this, we had gone through over 9 years of trying to start our family......... Clo.mid, IUIs, IVFs and surgeries.  Originally we were diagnosed with unexplained infertility but towards the end, I was diagnosed with low quality eggs during our IVFs.  We decided to adopt instead.  We started going down the international adoption route but switched over to embryo adoption because we felt that was the better choice for us.

If you new to my blog, or if you'd like to see where we've been on our journey, you can see the highlights on the Our Journey So Far page.  Stick around to see how this things play out in the next couple of months.

We Have A Transfer Time!

Katie the NEDC nurse called around 2:30 pm with our transfer time.  I was getting a little nervous as it was getting late.

Our transfer is scheduled for 12:45 pm EST tomorrow (Tuesday). 

I will take my Va.lium, albuterol tablets and 600 mg of ibuprofen at 11:45 am.  We check in at NEDC at 12:15 pm.  I hope I do a better job filling my bladder this time.  At the last transfer in November, my bladder wasn't full enough so Dr. Keenan had to fill it with saline solution using a catheter.  Not the most pleasant experience.  This time the transfer is a little later so hopefully I will do a better job. 

The embryos will be thawed sometime in the morning.  Please pray that the embryos survive the thaw. We currently have 5 embryos from the donor family and plan to transfer two.  Pray that they only need to thaw 2 and both will survive.  If not, pray that we have at least 2 excellent quality embryos to transfer. 

I am finally getting excited about this.  We are here in Knoxville and will finally get to meet our babies for the first time. 

Prayers for our transfer tomorrow is most appreciated!!

We Are A GO For January Transfer!

I had my ultrasound and estradiol appointment this morning.  I was a little nervous that my lining would be too thin, like it was in September.  My lining measured at 7 mm this morning.  I remember back in September I was told that NEDC requires the lining to be at 7 mm at this point of the cycle.  I JUST made it.  I was so nervous about it that I emailed Katie the NEDC nurse right away but I didn't hear back from her until when she called.  Of course when she called, I was in the middle of my eye appointment, so she left a message.  Thankfully, everything looked good.  And yes, 7 mm is the minimum for the lining to be at this point in time.

But, I'm good to go.  We are still a go for my transfer on Tuesday the 21st.  I won't know my exact time of my transfer until closer to Tuesday.  We are going to be leaving on Sunday on a super early flight.  It leaves at 6:30 am so we will have to leave our house at 4:30 am.  I'm not looking forward to that as I am not a morning person.  Also, Babe will have to give me my PIO when we connect in Charlotte, NC.  We will have to find a family restroom so he can give me a shot there.  There is no way I can give myself a PIO shot.  That will be interesting to see how that turns out!

More than a couple of people have asked me how I feel about this transfer.  Excited?  Nervous?

I guess the answer is neither, but also a little bit of both.  After so many rounds of failed IUIs and IVFs, in the past few years, plus the last transfer that resulted in a chemical pregnancy, I guess I am approaching this like I did in November.  Cautiously optimistic.  I am optimistic that this can work but also cautious because I know that it can not work.

I feel like I should be more excited about this transfer but at this point, I'm not.  Maybe part of it is I was nervous that the transfer may be delayed if my lining wasn't thick enough and I didn't want to get disappointed.  But now that that hurdle of it is out of the way, I will hopefully start getting excited.   Especially since I start my PIO shots tomorrow morning (Ouch! Not really looking forward to that!), it may seem more real.  I'll probably be more excited once I'm on the airplane heading south to (slightly) warmer weather.

Now, off to start packing for my trip to TN!

One Week To Transfer!

My transfer is in exactly one week.  We hop on the plane (hopefully) on Sunday, pending my ultrasound and estradiol appointment on Thursday.  My lining will need to be at at least 7 mm for this to be a go a planned.  If all is well, our transfer is on Tuesday the 21st.

Truth be told, I'm a little nervous.  Though my appointment for my last transfer in November went fine (my lining was 9 mm), I'm a little nervous that it may be thin like it was for my originally planned September transfer when it was only 6.3 mm.  It was supposed to be delayed a couple of days but in the end was cancelled when we found out I had a polyp that needed to be removed first.  So, I'm praying that my lining will be at least 7 mm, so we would not be delayed.  To help it along, I have been going in for weekly acupuncture sessions, though I will have 2 this week.  I have also been eating fresh raspberries and putting a hot pad over my uterus to help with blood flow to the lining, as per my acupucturist.  If all goes well, I should start my PIO (progesterone in oil) shots on Friday.

On another note, I had an appointment with my doctor to follow-up on my blood pressure concern.  At my hysteroscopy to remove my polyp, they found that my blood pressure was really high.  I went to see my doctor and we discussed that we would monitor my blood pressure at home for a couple of months, increase my activity levels, lower my salt intake and eat more fruits and veggies.  Well my blood pressure was still slightly elevated.  I have to admit, I have not been good at eating a low sodium diet with all the holidays and traveling.  Nor have I been exercising much with my butt being sore during PIO shots, being on vacation, and trying to get out to exercise in this recent extreme cold weather.  

I am not keen to start taking BP medication.  But with a family history of high BP, and me potentially being pregnant, my doctor has started me on a BP meds called Metholdopa.  This medication is safe for pregnancy, and is in fact used by pregnant women to control high BP.  At this point, it is more important to manage my BP as having high BP during pregnancy can lead to complications such as preecampsia, low birth rate and stillbirth.

I will have a follow up appointment with my doctor in about 3 weeks.  By then, I will would have had my transfer, and will know if I am pregnant.  It is not the way I was hoping to start off 2014, but I will do what is best for my body and my future baby (babies?!).

2014.... Here We Go!

I can't believe that we are already almost to the second week of 2014.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas celebration with family and friends, and hope your ushering in of the New Year was fun and safe. 

Our Christmas this year was pretty uneventful.  The weather here in MN cooperated, so we had cold but good weather for Christmas eve and day.  We were able to attend Christmas eve service at our church and they had really awesome Christmas music and message.  On Christmas Day, we drove an hour up north to Babe's family and celebrated with all the extended families.  We celebrated New Year's by having a small get together with a few friends at our house and had food, fellowship and played some games.  It was nice and intimate.

As you may know, we have a transfer coming up on January 21st for our adopted frozen embryo(s).  This is a great way to look forward to the new year, with the hope that we will be pregnant and have a baby this year.  So far, I had been on BCPs for about 3 week (done now), am currently on Lu.pron (started on 12/22) and started taking Es.trace on January 1st.  I have my next ultrasound and E2 appointment on January 16th, and if all goes well there, I will start my PIO (progesterone in oil) shots on the 17th. 

It seems like everything was a waiting game, and now the transfer is almost here.  Transfer is in 12 days and we hop on a plane in 10 days!

This Christmas, Babe surprised me with a sweet gift.  He's usually not so great about getting gifts, plus we also agreed that we were not going to get each other a Christmas gift as our little Texas vacation was our gift to each other this year.  Anyway, Babe had heard that I would have liked to get something "snowflakey" to commemorate our embryo adoption transfers..... earrings, a necklace, etc. Well he surprised me with this little silver necklace with a sparkly crystal snowflake!  Sorry the photo isn't the best, but it really is pretty.  

My pretty silver necklace with a pretty crystal snowflake

Speaking of snowflakes, I forgot to post about this after my November transfer.  On our long drive (14 hours!) back to MN from Knoxville, we stopped at a rest stop in Berea, KY which also happens to be the Kentucky Artisan Center.  It is a neat place that showcases art and handmade items by local artists.  I wanted to pick up a Christmas ornament that would be a keepsake from our transfer.  I saw some cool wooden snowflake Christmas ornaments.  I had a hard time deciding between these 2 snowflakes, so Babe said let's get both.  We did transfer 2 embryos, so one ornament for each embryo.  Even though our November transfer resulted in a chemical pregnancy, I'm glad we picked these 2 up.  It is a wonderful way to remember the 2 embryos that I was pregnant with, even if for just a couple of weeks.

Wooden snowflake Christmas ornament from KY

Wooden snowflake Christmas ornament from KY

I am usually not one to make new year resolutions, but I have decided to read at least 25 books this year.  It shouldn't be too difficult, right?  Less than one book every 2 weeks.

What are you looking forward to in 2014?

Post Transfer Consult & January Transfer

In case you are wondering if I had fallen off the face of the earth after our last transfer and chemical pregnancy, the answer is no.  Actually Babe and I were on vacation down south, to the (slightly) warmer state of Texas.  It's actually pretty funny, the day we left last Saturday, Dallas was actually warmer than Anchorage, Alaska!  It was a good thing we didn't fly into Dallas.

On Monday, while on vacation, we had our post transfer phone consult with Dr. Keenan.  This was actually scheduled before we left NEDC on our transfer date.  Dr. Keenan said there were a few things that he wanted to go over and try to figure out what, if anything would have caused this transfer to not be successful.

1. The embryos:  The embryos were excellent, at 6AA and 4AA after they were thawed, so they were great.  There were no problems there.
2. My lining:  My lining was fine at the transfer.  Again, no reason for concern there.
3. The transfer process:  The transfer we perfectly without a hitch, so not a problem.
4. Anything post transfer:  I mentioned that I was sick with a cough and was on antibiotics and inhaler meds, and he said that was not a problem.  I also mentioned that was some stress due to a death in the family, pain from the PIO and travel.  Dr. Keenan said, as far as stress, as long as I was not so deeply affected by it that I could not sleep or eat, it would not have been a problem.  Everything else should not have been an issue either.

So, as I am already aware, sometimes even with the most perfect embryos and best situations, we may still not be successful.  Dr. Keenan said sometimes, it may take more than one transfer for us to be successful.  If we wanted to go back for a January transfer, we could do that.  I told him we have already decided we would do that, and Katie already has put on the list of January transfers.  He said let's pray that the next time we would be successful.  I love that he used the word "pray".  Even though he does not say things outright, I can tell he is a man of faith.  Did I already mention that I love Dr. Keenan?

On Thursday, I received my protocol from Katie for our January transfer.  Our transfer date is Tuesday, January 21st.

I'm already on BCP, and am looking forward to moving forward to our January transfer.  I just put together my calendar with all my dates and times for meds, shots, etc.  I will order my meds on Monday, and will start my Lu.pron shots on December 22nd.

January will be here before I know it.

Beta #2

My hCG from my second beta came back at a whopping 4.  So instead of doubling, it dropped from 13 to 4.

I am officially no longer pregnant.  I get to stop all my meds including the dreaded PIO.  I should get my period in the next 3 - 7 days.

Katie said it was a chemical pregnancy, meaning an early miscarriage.  In a way, I'm glad I didn't test early at home, because I might possibly have gotten a positive result, only to find out that later that I am not pregnant.

We are already planning on going back in January for another try.  NEDC transfer dates in January are the 15th through the 21st.  I should be getting my protocol by the end of next week and we get to do this all over again.

Transfer Day 11/20/13 (Delayed Post)

I apologize again for my much belated post about our transfer day.  Anyway, here is how the day went.

We arrived at Knoxville on Tuesday night, the night before on scheduled transfer on Wednesday, November 20th.  We were told to make sure we have our phones handy just in case our transfer times got changed, but we didn't get a call from NEDC so we were a go for our scheduled 11:45 am transfer.

We slept in a little, did my morning PIO shot and had breakfast at hotel.  Then at 10:45 I took my medication for the transfer: a Va.lium, 3 Tyle.nols, and one Albu.terol tablet.  I started downing bottles of water, but realized later, it was too late.

The National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC), also known as the Southeastern Fertility Center

We arrived at NEDC (also known at the Southeastern Fertility Center) at 11:15 am as scheduled.  We checked in at the front desk.  Then we were shown into the recovery area where we met Katie the IVF nurse, and another nurse, I think her name was Julie.  I was told to undress below the waist, and to put on a gown, and a cap.  Then Dr. Keenan and Carol, the embryologist came and met with us.  Dr. Keenan chatted with  us a little and even drew a couple of half moons on my butt because I was telling him how sore my butt was from the PIO shots, and he wanted to make sure were were hitting the right spots.

Carol then told me that they thawed all three of the embryos from our first donor family.  Out of the three, 2 survived the thaw.  They were both "excellent quality" embryos, as per Carol.  Below is a photo of our embryos.  The one on the left was graded 6AA and had completely hatched.  The one on the right was graded at 4AA.  I did a bit of research on embryo grading.  It looks like different clinics may use different grading systems.  The one I found closest to what NEDC uses can be found here.  

Pretty much, embryos are assigned 3 separate quality scores - a number and two letters.

1. The blastocyst development stage - expansion and hatching status; with a rating of 1 - 6
2. The inner cell mass (ICM) score or quality; with a rating of A-C
3. The Trophectoderm (TE) score or quality; with a rating of A-C

So this means that the embryo on the left, my 6AA, has completely hatched out of it shell (6), has many cells that are tightly packed (A), and has many cells, forming a cohesive layer (A).

The embryo on the right, the 4AA, is an expanded blastocyst, cavity larger than the embryo, with thinning of the shell (4), has many cells that are tightly packed (A), and has many cells, forming a cohesive layer (A).

*I am paraphrasing the info found on this website 

In other words, they were excellent embryos!  I was so relieved to find out that we had 2 excellent embryos to transfer.  Carol shared with me a photo of our babies.  Aren't they beautiful?  I was so happy to finally meet them!  

Two "excellent" embryos, graded 6AA on the left, and 4AA on the right

We went over some paperwork, and I was off to my transfer.  I was wheeled into the procedure room.  I was a little surprised that Babe was not allowed in the procedure room, unlike my other IVFs.

By now, my the Va.lium has kicked and and I was starting to get a little loopy.  Dr. Keenan asked how my bladder felt and I told him, probably not full enough.  He said he would just have to fill it.  I asked Katie if they get a lot of people coming in with bladders that are not full, and she said more than they'd like.  I had to climb onto the table and put my legs in the stirrups.  Then came the speculum (my least favorite part), and he proceeded to clean what I assume is the entrance to my bladder.  I was not prepared for how much that solution stung.  Then he inserted the catheter into my bladder and filled it.  I could definitely feel that it was full, but not uncomfortable.  The then proceeded to clean the cervix with the stinging solution again.  That was the most uncomfortable part of the whole procedure.

Katie put the ultrasound wand on my lower belly and I was able to see what Dr. Keenan was seeing on a large TV screen.  The large dark blob on the top of the screen was my bladder.  He showed me that the middle part below the bladder where the "+" was was my uterus, and to the left of it was the cervix, and then to the left of it was my vagina.

He then inserted a catheter into my cervix and into my uterus.  It was a test transfer, with no embryos in the catheter, but it was cool to see how it would be done.  Then when he was ready, Carol passed the embryos to Dr. Keenan through a window in the wall, and they asked me my name and my birthday again, and also if I knew how many embryos were being transferred.  I said two!

Katie asked if I was ready and I said yes.  I started getting emotional and started tearing up.  I apologized and told her I was getting emotional, and she said no worries.  Dr. Keenan inserted that catheter with my babies into my uterus and he told me to watch for the flash of white light as that's when the embryos would be transferred.  

There was the flash of white light!  The babies were in me.  He removed the catheter and gave it to Carol to make sure there were no embryos left over in the catheter.  And then we were done!  Below is a photo of the transfer.  The two white spots under the "+" sign is where the embryos were placed.  And I hope they had a chance to snuggle in nicely.

2 embryos (white) transferred into my uterus, right below the "+" sign on the screen.

I rested for a short while in in the procedure room.  I was trying to savor the feeling of having 2 babies in me.  Before long I climbed back onto the bed and was wheeled back into the recovery room where Babe was waiting for me.  The foot of the bed was raised while I laid there to rest.  Babe and I chatted for a while.  It was kind of a weird feeling because we could tell there was another couple next to us, but they were being so quiet.  I was thinking it would have been great if I could have met up with some of the other embryo adoption mamas from the Face.book group in the recovery room right after our transfers.  After a while, the nurse went over our post transfer instructions and advised me not to cheat with a home pregnancy test.  I was then allowed to use the bathroom to empty my bladder.  When I came back, Dr. Keenan and Babe were chatting, talking about work related stuff which I thought was pretty cool.  I changed back to my normal clothes and we were pretty much done.  We were able to catch a photo with Dr. Keenan before we left the clinic.

We went to a barbecue place called "Sonny's" for lunch to celebrate our transfer day.  The we went back to the hotel to rest.  I was trying to answer texts from friends and family, but the Va.lium was taking a toll on me.  I was so tired I slept for 4 hours straight.   When I woke up, we went to a restaurant recommended by a friend called The Chop House for dinner.  I ordered my favorite, lamb chops and a virgin pina colada to celebrate.  We were excited and a little giddy that we were PUPO (pregnant until proven otherwise).  Babe and I joked about how I just got knocked up by another man!

We went back to the hotel and went to bed early.  The next morning, we left and started our 14 hour drive back to MN.  The nurse advised us that we needed to stop every 2 hours to walk around.  It was a long ride and we stopped and spent a night in Madison, WI.

So that's how my transfer went.   Tomorrow (Monday) morning, I will have my beta at 10:30 am.  The local clinic will fax the results to NEDC, and I will get a call from NEDC with the results sometime tomorrow afternoon.  I will find out after waiting for almost 10 years, if we will finally be parents.

Though I have had no desire to do a home pregnancy test, I am a little nervous now.  Prayers appreciated!