And the Results Are...

Pregnant!

This morning I received a very exciting call. The nurse from the Clinic called stating that my Beta test came back and I'm pregnant! My beta was 350, which is great (anything over 25 is good!) No, this number is NOT an immediate indicator of multiples. As B keeps saying "we are hoping for a healthy baby."

The really great part is that I asked the nurse if I could be the one to call R & B. She said yes. Oh my word. I was so excited I was practically shaking! I decided to call R first (I knew that R would probably  be at the desk and able to pick up immediately.) R was SO excited! I could hear the smile through the phone! We chatted for a minute and R suggested that I call B with the news. B's reaction was great, too. B started laughing as soon as I said my beta number. B responded with "I don't think there's just one baby in there, Shawnee!" I could tell B was pleased with this thought (or shocked, who knows!). I said that I was sorry I didn't start the conversation with a "You need to sit down!" and then say what the beta was!

What happens next? Well, I continue with the same meds I am currently taking. This Friday, I will go back to the lab and have them check my beta again to make sure it is doubling the right way. I will repeat this again next Tuesday (I think.) Then, three weeks from today (give or take) I will go in for an ultrasound to listen to the heartbeat and find out how many there are in there.

Honestly, I am still ecstatic with the news! I am so stinkin' happy for B & R! What an amazing thing to be able to share this experience with another family. How cool is that!

Yeah for little miracles!

Pre-Test Nerves

Remember back when you were in college and mid-terms were approaching? Remember going through your class syllabi and noting which classes had tests you had to study for and which had papers that you could whip out last minute? Remember the nerves as you walked in to a core class thinking that you were no way prepared for the test and there goes your whole college career?

That is so not me right now! Not going to lie, I am a titch nervous, but I'm mostly excited to know that no matter what the result is I've got great IP's on my side who will work with whatever tomorrow brings. I wouldn't say I'm peaceful about the whole thing, but I'm glad to know tomorrow will NOT be a repeat of last February's situation with my IP's. Positive or negative, I'll be able to talk with them about the results.

I'm done with this negative bit! On to fun stuff...

I'm so glad that I switched my PIO shot to the night. I've been sleeping with a heating pad on the injection site which is helping TREMENDOUSLY with the soreness and bruising. I'm still icing the heck out of the spot first so I don't feel the injection much. I do still have bruises up and down my thighs, but they are much smaller than the golf ball sized ones I was getting.

I've had a few foot and leg craps over the past couple of days. B advised me to drink pickle juice to help with those, and although I haven't gone straight for the juice, I have been eating pickles. (No, pickles are not a pregnancy craving of mine. I just really love pickles and now I have an excuse to eat them!)

I'm still cramping, however, I've been able to get out of the fetal position. I am working my normal hours without much interruption or discomfort.

My water intake is still insanely high, which causes many trips to the restroom. Thankfully, my coworkers are really great and just laugh at me as I need to be excused every hour!

I am so thankful that the infection in my fingers that I experienced last January did not come back this time around! My nails and cuticles  look great, actually! (Not sure if I blogged about that little problem last time. Four of my finger nails became painfully infected during my last transfer. No one really knows why this happened or what caused it, we just know it coincided with the start of Lupron and wouldn't go away until I was put on an antibiotic. It took a few weeks to clear up.)

Anyway, all of this to say we will know by this time tomorrow if the fun symptoms I have mentioned will continue for a while or if we will start over next cycle.  Keep praying for a little miracle!

The Fetal Position

Yes, I am blogging about the fetal position. You know the way it works: lay down on a couch, bed, chair, floor, etc, and tuck your knees close to your chest while hugging your legs. I've seen guys do this when kicked in the groin, newborns like this as it reminds them of the womb, and now it's a position I'm curled up in it. 

Why am I curled in a tiny ball? 

Apparently, there is a war going on in my uterus. The Lions are trying to gain yardage on the Vikings' turf. (Today is the first game of the regular season and MInnesota plays Detroit.) We all know the Vikings are going to kick Lion butt, however, we have to watch every play, every commercial, and listen to all of the commentary to get to the final score and the cheer of the Vikings.

Or, if you want a different metaphor:

A week ago Dr D repeatedly put two embryos into their temporary home for the next 8-9 months. (See previous posts if you are confused.) Being the hospitable person I am, I medicinally made their environment as luxurious as I could. As we learned last week as we were being introduced, these little embryos are stubborn and rather picky for the perfect place to hang out. Now that they have been there a week they have chosen today to start redecorating.

However I say it, there's a whole lot of cramping going on! Since my girls are resting I decided to take this opportunity to relax in the most comfortable position I can find and hope the cramping lessens. Hence the fetal position.

Please note that I am not complaining. This is exactly what is supposed to happen. Cramping, nausea, exhaustion, etc are all GOOD things when you are a surrogate! I'm just noting the symptoms and when I experienced them for my own benefit, and hopefully, someone else can benefit from my experiences, too.

Speaking of nausea... Welcome back! I was just a bit nauseous this morning, but sometime during church this morning WHAM! Nausea hit! I made it through lunch, and I really need to start on the clean up, but blech! The thought of that makes my stomach roll, too! Oh well. Life must still go on. Dishes, laundry, and floors await!

The signs of a miracle are many!

To Pee or Not to Pee

A big debate among surrogates is whether or not to test for pregnancy at home. Some think the results should be left to the beta test two weeks after the retrieval. (My test is next Tuesday.)

Others start testing as soon as they get back from the transfer, mainly because they don't want a surprise the day of the beta. Usually people start seeing results somewhere around day 7.

I'm with the group that tests, however, I start testing on day 5 after the transfer, also known as 5dp5dt, or 5 days post 5 day (old embryos) transfers. I know that the likely way most surrogate stories go is that they get negative results for a day or two, and if they are going to get a positive it will happen around day 7pt. Silly, right? I should just start testing on day 7, right? Well, lets just say that I'm impatient and want to start testing early!

Last night I purchased 7 home pregnancy tests. Why 7? No, it's not because I'm superstitious. I'm not at all. I bought 7 because it seemed like a good number: two for Friday, two for Saturday, two for Sunday, one for Monday, blood test on Tuesday. If one of these wasn't bright in your face positive, then I could test again.

I asked B & R last weekend if they had a preference either way on me testing and they strongly encouraged me to go ahead. They also wanted results of the test. Of course, it's their pregnancy so I am happy to work with their wishes.

Yes, I did test today, and I did talk with B & R. Sorry, I'm not going to reveal the results of the test. Agony, I know! I will however, post the results of the beta on Tuesday. Call me crazy, but I feel like the 88 cent home pregnancy test results don't warrant a definitive spot on my blog, however the scientifically proven beta test should get a post all to itself. 

Don't worry, on Tuesday I will also post the results of all of the home pregnancy tests, too! Let's see how well they measure up!

Sometimes miracles take patience, persistence, and a lot of preparation!

Symptoms?

I know three days ago I received two embryos. I also know that I've been on a boatload of meds the past couple of weeks. All of that to say I think the prego symptoms are starting to kick in. 

I've been cramping on and off since Sunday afternoon. To add to that, I've noticed that my body temp is elevated (Shawn should be happy as I am usually on the cold side). Today I've also had fun hormones kick in. Seriously, I started bawling after I put the girls to bed. Tomorrow is Natalie's first day of school and she's so excited. I, however, am a wreck. After a bit of a cry, I seemed to pull it together.

Oh, and one other symptom. I am obsessed with meat and salty foods. I had a bowl of pickles and beef sticks for an afternoon snack! Not craving necessarily, but thinking that combo sounds really good.

I can't wait to see what else this little miracle will throw me!

Back to Reality

Sitting in an airplane definitely gives you time to think. I try to live in the moment, but reminiscing can be a good pastime, too. As I think about the past five days I can honestly say that I have enjoyed almost every moment of my recent journey. 

The good:

-Meeting B & R and enjoying my time with them. Having real people to go with my email, text, and phone calls. Realizing that they really do have similar ideas and beliefs and will carry them out with their children. Being comfortable with the choice in IP's we made.

-Spending some much needed alone time with Shawn. As B & R will soon learn, finding time with just the two of you becomes more challenging once you become parents. Yes, it's okay to talk about the kids when they aren't there, but the time to reconnect as a couple is invaluable.

-New York City! I seriously love that town. There is so much to see and do... Shopping was a lot of fun, Newsies was such a wonderful treat, but its the energy and the excitement that the town possesses that brings this small town girl back time and again.

-The transfer. We had two "great looking" embryos transferred into me. The excitement and the dreams that these two little specks hold will never cease to amaze. Of course we won't know how they are doing for a couple of weeks, but just the fact that they are in there after all of the preparation we have gone through is enough for me right now.

I can't even start a list of "bad/not good." The things that happened that I wouldn't put in the "good" list are rather insignificant when you really think about it. An uncomfortable transfer that went on longer than I was expecting, the nerves I had prior to meeting B & R, cramping after the transfer while on bed rest at the hotel... These aren't big things. In fact, I'd probably park them more into the "that's life" category instead. Of course, given my "special situation" not everyone experiences these kinds of realities, but that just makes my story all the more unique and special.

We are almost ready to land and this will bring my journey back down to reality. My kiddos will be there needing something for dinner, laundry will still have to be washed, I still need to prep for my class tomorrow. Reality. But now I have a little miracle inside as I live my anything but routine life. 

The two embryos/baby/ies first picture.

Just a little pregnant

This morning was THE morning. After breakfast at Panera (yummy!), we drove across the street to the Clinic. The doctor came in to the conference room where B & R and Shawn and I were hanging out. He showed us pics of the two embryos that were chosen for the transfer and had the typical consent forms for us all to sign. Then, we were off!

I was shown to a room to get ready for the transfer. Once I was presentable, the nurse came back with everyone and we were joined by the doctor. He started doing his thing (ladies, you know what I'm talking about! Kind of felt like getting a pelvic from a Resident, if you know what I mean) and a few minutes later we watched on a screen as the embryologist sucked the embryos into a tube. A few seconds later and he was in the room giving them to the doctor for insertion. We could kind of watch on the ultrasound monitor what was happening. The doctor removed the catheter and gave it back to the embryologist to check. 

The little buggers were in the catheter! The doctor said that sometimes happens when he pulls the cath out. Oh, well. Lets do this again.

Wouldn't you know it but they went back in the cath yet again! Sheesh! Apparently, they were "really sticky embryos," which is good, but we want them to stick inside me! 

The third time, the little buggers stuck where they are supposed to stay! As of 11:00a.m. eastern/10:00a.m. central I am pregnant.

I started cramping about 10 minutes ago, which is a bit over an hour since the transfer, but its nothing I'm going to complain about. Just enough to know that something's going on inside. :-)

I've been watching B & R and B hasn't stopped smiling yet. R is pretty excited, too. R commented on the way back to the hotel "I've got to drive even more carefully now as we've got special cargo on board." I'm so glad they are so excited.

Seriously, how cool is it that I get to have a part of making B & R's dream of having a family a reality? Not many people get to be involved in things like this. I'm so excited to be a part of this miracle!