Firstly, the last cycle had a huge change of plans. We actually have amazing health insurance, thanks to the great state of Massachusetts, that covers infertility. Unfortunately, that also means they can tell us what to do. After 3 failed IUI cycles, our RE recommended going to IVF, and I felt ready for it. We had everything prepared, and I was taking the birth control to regulate my cycle for 3 weeks before all the fun started. 2 days before the end of the BC, I got a call from the RE. Our insurance denied coverage for IVF. I spent a long time talking to the insurance company and reading lots of legal stuff. What happened, apparently, was that my RE never really talked to them to see HOW we were covered. He was recommending IVF after 3 failed IUI cycles and 2 failed TI cycles, because that was what we needed. Our insurance will only cover IVF after 6 failed cycles in which ovulation is shown. We only had 5. I was EXTREMELY angry with everyone involved. Mostly because I had wasted 3 weeks on birth control getting ready for IVF. If they had told me I needed another IUI first at the end of the last one, I would have been much better. Anyways, I was very angry and upset about the whole situation. The RE obviously thought another IUI was not worth trying, and the statistics on a 4th IUI working after 3 failed ones are very poor. But whatever, this was the stupid hoop I needed to jump through to get insurance to cover the $15,000 price tag of IVF. Fine.
During that cycle, I had, for the first time EVER, TWO follicles. The day I found that out, the first one was measuring at 18mm, and my E2 was 300ish. Normally, I would expect them to trigger that day for the IUI the following day. But my RE must have said something like, "What the hell, lets go all out for this last one!" because the nurse called and told me to do 3 more days of shots to try to make the 2nd follicle be big enough to release as well. The day I triggered they could not find the 2nd one, but the first was 21mm and my E2 was over 450. 18mm and 300ish was all I had the other 5 trials. That gave me a bit of hope. This cycle actually WAS going well, for once. I also remembered to order cheepo pregnancy tests online before it was testing time, so I could test all I wanted without throwing away lots of money. ($15 for 25 rather than the normal $25 for 2.)
A few days before my blood test, I tried one of the tests. And it had one of those "If I turn it this way and squint, its there" lines. WHAT!? So I did another. Same thing. Another the next morning. Same. Another that afternoon, same. Well, ok if you compare them, they got slightly darker, but it was still a "am I a crazy person?" line. Blood test came back positive for the first time EVER!
The hcg was low though, which was potentially a problem, but not certain yet. I had it re-checked a few times, and it was doubling appropriately. So what must have happened is late implantation, which is not bad at all =)
So now, here we are at 9 weeks, 1 day. Finally past the huge miscarriage risk time period, hooray! I was avoiding spreading the news too much until then, so I did not have to un-tell everyone. We have been "graduated" from the RE to a normal OB, and everything is perfectly on track so far. The baby is due early February if all goes according to plan. Travel plans as of right now are going to Texas for Thanksgiving and Richmond for Christmas/Yule. Thanksgiving is about the last time I will be able to fly for a while, and Yule is about the last time I will be able to be away from home for a while. Of course, if things don't go quite as planned (bed rest or similar) travel will be canceled.
I have no idea if we will/should have a baby shower. I barely know anyone up where we live, so I don't think there will be one here. If there is to be one somewhere else, someone who lives there will have to plan it =P Oh and for those who do not know, I HATE SURPRISES. Seriously. Don't anger the pregnant lady.
As for how I am feeling- I am in the first trimester, how do you think I feel? I have not actually thrown up yet, but I have gotten very close. I have dealt with nausea on a regular basis for something like 4 years now, so I know how to prevent actual vomiting. Cold water, cold apple juice, cold house, breathing, sour candy, fresh limes, ginger, and ZOFRAN! Aka Magic medicine.
For those who want to get presents/gifts for the baby- some guidelines. (No one should feel obligated to get anything!) I STRONGLY recommend following these if you want your presents to be appreciated by me. If you want to know my reasoning, post a comment/e-mail me/call me. If you see something that you think is AMAZING but you are not sure I will like- ask me! I hate surprises anyways. I am really picky, and you are welcome to just not get anything or give a gift card if that really annoys you. It is just part of me. Thanks <3
- BRIGHT colors! I very much dislike pastels. Bright colors with high contrast is much better for baby eye development anyways. Bright color + brown/black/white is fine too. Even something like light blue + dark brown stripes is great because of the high contrast. That is about the only time a light color is good =)
- Avoid gender segregation as much as possible. My girls will wear blue, my boys will wear pink. My boys will play dress-up and my girls will play with cars. My girls will get dirty in the dirt, and my boys will have purses. All goes vice versa as well. You really want to get a doll for my girl, that is fine, but do not get it just because you know she is female. Get the doll because it is cooler than the car. If the car is cooler, get the car! I don't really understand gender segregation, and I am trying to avoid it.
- I am not sure how much it matters in baby toys, but I like "thinking" toys. LEGOS and K'Nex are MUCH better than a toy with a button that makes annoying sounds. For baby toys, think blocks and other toys that help develop fine motor skills.
- PLEASE for the love of all that is good, NO SOUNDS! To clarify, I mean no sounds that require batteries. Rattles and the like are totally ok. The battery-sound toys look SO COOL at the store and on the commercials. I was 14 when my sister was born. I remember her noisy toys. I might have taken screwdriver to some of them and removed the batteries before I went insane.
- No play kitchen. George and I want to avoid the fake kitchen stuff, and instead let the little ones help in the real kitchen. Some of you might think this is a bad idea and I will regret it. If I change my mind, I will let you know.
- Stuffed animals are great, but make sure they are machine washable! Babies are very good at making messes, and I do not want to have to figure out how to wash complicated toys.
- We will be cloth diapering. Please no buying us diapers or wipes or creams or anything like that. We will handle that part =)
- I love bath toys. Bath crayons are awesome. So are those color tabs for the water.
- Speaking of crayons, all art supplies are awesome. Crayola brand in my opinion is FAR superior to other brands.
- Books are wonderful! Dr. Seuss books are the best.
- On the subject of TV/movies. We do not have TV. We do have a PS3 that plays DVDs and we have Netflix. Try to avoid stuff with TV characters, because our kids will not really know them. Disney movies are GREAT! Particularly when the DVD can be played in French (most Disney movies can). I don't really like mindless TV shows/movies for kids. You can ask if you want to know about one in particular. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is cool, and so are the Care Bears.
- Clothes- I know almost nothing about baby clothes, honestly. I did get a whole bunch of stuff from my sister, so I will have to look through that to see what we might still need. For those who knit/crochet, hat/socks sets are always awesome and easy! We will also need some sweaters for a winter baby.
- Bottles/Binkeys- Let us handle that please =)
- I will figure out what other (bigger, non-toy) stuff I want sometime in the next week or so and post a registry on my blog.
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Rachael
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