IVF - part 2

It has begun.

IVF is finally in the works.  There was a lot of prep and testing before we could begin but we're into it now.  One of the preliminary tests was to see if my fallopian tubes were open.  They injected saline and watched on the ultrasound to see if it flowed through.  Holy crap that hurt.  Probably the worst pain of my life.  One of my tubes was blocked but we're going to leave it as is and just continue with the IVF.  It would be more pressing if we were trying different fertility treatments but since we've opted for the big guns it won't make a difference.

I went in on day 3 of my cycle for a baseline ultrasound, and began the hormone injections that evening.  I can't say I'm a fan of the shots.  Who is, really?  I make poor Michael do it for me.  The worst part is that the main hormone comes in a pen that clicks down the dosage slowly.  So there I am with a needle in my gut while the pen clicks down 50mg at a time.

It's uncomfortable.  I have a few bruises on my belly. And a few bruises on my inner elbows from the every-other-day blood draws.  I wouldn't call this a good time.

My Dr. has been giving me a calendar of what will happen next every time I go in to see him. Tomorrow will be my final blood draw and ultrasound before egg retrieval.  I'm becoming more nervous with each visit to the Dr.  

But, even with loads of hormones pumping through my bloodstream, I feel pretty darn good.  I had headaches and nausea the first few days, I'm sore and a bit crampy in my gut, and I'm tired.  But I'm not raging with anger or crying at commercials - and I still like my husband.  It's miraculous!

The egg retrieval will happen early next week.  

I sure hope they find some that aren't rotten.

Labor Day

For the past 4 Labor Day weekends, we've gone camping with our dear friends.

Now our dear friends live all the way across the country.  

What to do, what to do?

Kitty had soccer and a birthday party so we opted for a one-nighter in Pigeon Forge.  I wasn't pleased at first because we've been there a hundred million times and I wanted something new. But, given our time constraints, it was the logical choice.

I ended up having a marvelous time.

We went on a MagiQuest adventure where Kitty successfully defeated a dragon.  It was an interactive scavenger hunt with riddles and magic wands.  I went into it with an uppity anti-nerd attitude but I enjoyed it immensely.  Sorry, nerds!  You have a good game going on there.  Dare I admit that I wouldn't mind going back and doing the adventures we didn't have time to complete?  Is this what it feels like to be a nerd?

We also stumbled around in a mirror maze before heading off to pizza.  What a great day!

The next day we ventured out to Parrot Mountain.  I didn't know what to expect because all of their marketing pamphlets are incredibly cheesy.  But, wow!  It was amazing.  We saw all sorts of exotic birds and even had the opportunity to feed and hold some of them.  Kitty held a bird named Zelda. Zelda!  It's her favorite video game. 

The entire place was up in the trees, it had rained the night before, and everything felt very magical. I loved it.  

Man, I gotta slow down before I become a full-fledged nerd.

We finished off the weekend back at home with popcorn and a movie.  It was blissful.

Here's to new Labor Day traditions! 

IVF

If you know me at all, you know that Michael and I have struggled with infertility issues our entire marriage.  That's nearly 20 years if you're counting.  It's been difficult and heartbreaking.

We've done every procedure until our only remaining option was in vitro fertilization - a procedure I never felt like we could responsibly swing financially.  I tried to make peace with only having one child a few years ago.  I was mostly successful, but there was always a nagging in my heart, the dangling fact that we'd never tried IVF.

With our downsize and move to TN, I began to feel like we could responsibly spend the required money to try IVF.  Added to that was the unexpected bonus that IVF in Tennessee is half the cost of what we were quoted in Oregon.  The timing is finally right.

I am not naïve to the fact that I am old now.  I'm also not naïve to the statistics; our odds for success hover around 13%. 

But I have to try.  

I have to be able to look back and know that I absolutely did everything that I could.  I can't have regrets.

As we embark on yet another fertility treatment, I feel different this time around.  For the first 10 years I felt desperate for a child.  For the second 10 years I felt desperate for Kitty to have a sibling.  I don't feel desperate anymore.  Now I feel hopeful.  I'm throwing my Hail Mary pass and seeing where it lands.

I'm still nervous of course. I've had 3 miscarriages and numerous unsuccessful pregnancy attempts.  I'm not eager to add another mark to either of those counts.  But there is peace in my soul.  It's the peace that comes from sincere prayer, and it's the peace that makes anything surmountable.

Even if we aren't successful, I can finally seal up this portion of our lives, move on with confidence that there was nothing left undone, and simply be at peace.  I look forward to that.

So here we go.  Let's see what all this medication does to an old mare like me!

Genetics

We all know Michael's genes have bullied mine into submission when it comes to our daughter.  The only trace of my genetics in Kitty is her fiery temper.  You can thank my Viking blood for that.

In addition to her dad's brilliance, knobby knees, double joints, and penchant for all things nerd, Kitty inherited this:

Our Kitty is nearsighted!  I won't mention that I didn't believe her when she said she thought she needed glasses.  I also won't mention that I gave her the old you-have-to-be-honest-on-the-eye-exam speech on our way to the doctor.  I also won't mention that I felt like a real horse's patoot when I realized just how nearsighted she actually is.

I blame my skepticism on the Viking blood.  

Kitty was so excited to get her new glasses.  She kept exclaiming, "Wow!" as we were driving home.  Apparently she didn't realize that most people can see individual leaves on trees.

I just wish she would take after me a little more.  What's wrong with my tree trunk sized legs and whiskered chin?  Come on! Who wouldn't want hairy arms?

Oh, well...at least we'll always have our fiery tempers.

Thank you, Viking blood.

Saturday!

I revere Saturdays.  Since Michael typically works long hours during the week, Saturday is the only day that we get to see him uninterrupted. On perfect Saturdays, we go out and have adventures together, avoiding anything that can be construed as responsible or work.  

Last Saturday, we explored caverns, roasted in the sun on a paddle boat ride, ate ribs and the best banana puddin' you ever had in your life, and successfully completed an escape room. Thankfully there were 2 guys in the room with us that were big escape room fans.  They taught us the tricks and helped us to escape, thus successfully guarding our secret dinosaur research lab from attack.  I did absolutely nothing to contribute.  I wandered around the room fondling objects while wondering, "Hmmm, how are they going to get all these padlocks open?"  

It was a fun day.

The Saturday before that, we went to the Wonderworks museum.  Kitty and Michael did a ropes course - I couldn't participate in sandals - we experienced a hurricane and an earthquake, laid on a bed of nails, made enormous bubbles, and challenged each other in a game of Pacman.

It was also a fun day.

Oh, how I wish every day could be Saturday!

4th Grade!

 Kitty started 4th grade.  4th Grade!  Be still my heart.

She was incredibly nervous on her first day of 4th grade.  I think she still felt like the new kid attending a new school.  Probably because she is.  We said a prayer and I offered to walk her into her classroom to help ease her anxiety.  She thought for a moment and then said, "How about you just walk me to the front door."

I felt a bit slighted at first, a bit panicked like, "Oh, no, she's embarrassed by me already.  It's only 4th grade!" But my feelings quickly turned to pride as I realized that Kitty was standing up to her fear and nervousness.  She was being brave and independent!  You go, girl!

I was also relieved that she let me walk her to the front door.  My baby still needs me!  

Look at my tall and beautiful baby on her first day of 4th grade.

I set up a surprise for her to find when she arrived back home from her first day.  

And then she got to choose where she wanted to go for dinner.  It was the Olive Garden.  She loves those breadsticks!

We closed out the evening with ice cream because that's just what you do.

Kitty was extremely excited after her first day of 4th grade and all of her nervousness had disappeared.

It's going to be a great year.

And she's still letting me walk her to the front door every morning!

That's It

School begins ridiculously early in TN.  I mean, first-week-of-August kind of ridiculous. 

Since the bulk of our summer was spent in Idaho, we decided to have one last Tennessee hurrah before they ridiculously sent Kitty back to school.  The obvious choice was Dollywood.

But first we stopped by Soaky Mountain water park to become nauseated on the slides.  And to hit our heads on the tubes a couple of times.

Except only I did that last part because apparently I'm a doofus...hitting my head probably won't help that ailment.

We had a great time playing in the water before heading off to Dollywood to see a nighttime 3D drone and fireworks show.  Michael has been badgering me about seeing this show all summer but I reacted the same way I always do towards him.

"Oh! Are you talking?"

It turns out he was justified in his badgering.  The show was amazing.

Then we stayed the night in a hotel and got up the next morning to hit the park for realsies.    

We had a blast!  And I ate a delicious chocolate ice cream cone.  Nothing is better on a hot day than a chocolate ice cream cone.

We saw a tremendous show called A Gazillion Bubbles and enjoyed the day riding some rides and being sprayed by foam.  

It was a great way to bid farewell to our short summer. 

But seriously...who starts school the first week of August?!