utterly shocked!

So we had hoped for 2 blastocysts, maybe 3, and were just as shocked as the doctor to find out we had 5 all excellent quality!!

The best one "9997/1000 I can sell it on ebay" according to the doctor was transferred and the other 4 will be frozen.  Additionally they will continue to watch the 6th one as it may be a candidate for freezing as well.

I'm still in shock to hear that this cycle went so well.  Matt is relieved I'm sure as he was a little concerned about his contribution.  Obviously there wasn't an issue to be concerned with.

So now we wait ... I hate waiting!  July 15th is the big test day and I hope I pass this time with flying colours!  Of course I will test before then just for my own sanity.

day 3 update

So all 6 have continued to grow.

At day 3 they like to see 8 cells.

4 are 8 cells
1 is 10-12 cells
1 is a morula (generally seen on late day 3 early day 4)

Additionally they grade them at this point.  1 being excellent and 4 being not so good.

We have:

3 - grade 1
3 - grade 2 (includes the 10-12 cell and morula)

Based on statistics they hope to have 2, maybe 3 good blastocysts to chose from when we get there Tuesday and any others that meet their criteria will be frozen.

So glad to see they are doing well again!

Day 1 Lab Update

11 eggs retrieved
7 of them mature
6 have fertilized properly

We are scheduled for a 5 day transfer on Tuesday.  I will get another update on Sunday as to how they are developing.

IVF#1 result for comparison:  9 retrieved, 7 fertilized, 5 made it to day 5, 1 transferred, 1 frozen.

Hoping we have similar result in that they have more than 1 that make it to day 5 so they can pick the strongest one!

good drugs!

Well after a mostly sleepless night we arrived at the doctors office bright and early.

The anesthesiologist didn't show up so my dr had to it that himself.  The last time they were late and showed up just before the drugs were given.  Not sure why they don't like to come to give me the drugs, but my dr did an awesome job and I was off on a ride while he did the hard job.

It sounds as though he was able to get 10 eggs, although Matt said he told him that 1 probably wasn't good. We will know better tomorrow morning when we get the fertilization report.  The nice thing was that he didn't have to go through my abdomen as expected so my recovery should be much easier.

Spent most of the day resting, enjoying a nice nap and not watching the movie I had put on.

Finger's crossed we have fertilization of at least 50%, but with ICSI it will hopefully be higher.

Tomorrow is the day!

We've finally made it!  After 9 days of driving I finally got the email to take the trigger shot last night.  Our egg retrieval is tomorrow morning.

Currently they have been tracking 10 follicles, 8 on the right (the side that co-operates) and 2 on the left (the not so easy side).  Last time we had 9 eggs retrieved and it would look like this time should be approximately the same.

Not looking forward to not eating after midnight, nor the agonizing stress of waiting for the fertilization report on Friday, but looking forward to getting these eggs out as I now know how a chicken feels.  Also looking forward to some good drugs and hopefully a nice nap tomorrow!!

Fingers crossed that things go smoothly and we have at least one beautiful embryo to transfer on Tuesday!

And so it begins ...

We officially began IVF#2 last month by taking the birth control pill again.

Currently I am on day 4 of the second cycle of the process, meaning that I have done 3 days of morning drives to Markham for blood work.  I am not nearly as exhausted as I thought I would be and it's actually nice this time to drive in daylight!

So far the medication doses have been the same as last time.  150iu puregon + 75iu menopur per day to stimulate multiple follicles to grow eggs.  In a few days I will begin having daily ultrasounds as well as adding an orgalutran injection each day to prevent ovulation.

Hopefully we will have another successful egg retrieval with embryos to transfer.  I have already been warned that since my ovaries did not co-operate on my baseline ultrasound there is a good chance they will have to do at least part of the egg retrieval through my abdomen which comes with higher risks.  This is what was done for part of the retrieval last time.

I have been asked if I am excited about doing this again.  The short answer is no.  I am excited that we could have another child after it, but guarded in my excitement as there is no guarantee.  Additionally I think the miscarriage has made me more fearful of a negative outcome.  It still hurts everyday that we lost our baby.    We've been through so much to get where we are it just doesn't seem right that we had to experience that too.

I just hope this cycle goes well and we are as fortunate as we were in IVF#1.  I think if we see that positive test and a heartbeat on ultrasound I might be able to be a little more excited.

vacation is over =(

Our vacation was fantastic.  Arabella did so well with all the the travelling and new experiences.  I didn't take the computer, but I did journal old school pen and paper.  Hopefully I will have some time to get it into the blog.

It was so nice to get away especially since we have been sick off and on since Christmas and getting into the sun and heat really helped us all get out of the winter slump.

Coming back to reality is another story though.  It was great having someone else cook and clean.  I did however do 3 loads of laundry on vacation and I didn't even take the cloth diapers!  We packed less for us as we knew we would need the space for stuff for Ari.  As a result I did have to do laundry so we had enough clothes for the week.  No worries, of all the household chores, laundry isn't one I hate.

Coming back also meant that we had to make a decision about IVF#2.  I literally was still struggling with it sitting in the doctor's office today.  In the end we have decided to more forward and give it one more try for a sibling for Ari.  I'm excited and scared shitless at the same time.  Now if only I could find someone that would drive me to Markham each morning!