Journey to Baby

It's no secret that Boe and I have been trying to have a baby for the past 3 years or so. And it did not come easily. These past 3 years or so have been very hard with many ups and downs. We have learned so much, are faith has been tested, we have grown stronger as a couple, and our love for one another has been strengthed. Infertility is not easy and it took a long time for us to come to terms with. We have been blessed with wonderful caring Doctors and nurses along the way, been blessed financially, and with great Insurance. We have had such a great support system full of family and friends. We strated to investigate our infertility in the fall of 2010. We tried clomide (unsuccessful), 4 IUI's (Intrauterine Insemination) and lastly IVF ( Invitro Fertilization). We started IVF in the spring of 2011. It was the first time we felt we had a chance at getting pregnant. We started our fresh cycle in April which included many Dr.'s visits, lots and lots of shots, and a handful of ultrasounds. Once my ovaries were nice and stimulated we retrieved 12 eggs. We implanted 2 embryos. Those 14 days waiting to see if they took were the longest of our lives! To our surprise we found out we were pregnant! We were thrilled! The Dr. wanted to continue to check my HCG levels to make sure my numbers were going up like they should. But unfortunately they weren't doubling. There was concern over an eptoic pregnancy or the baby had stopped growing. I had to come down for an early ultrasound right away. Boe had to work so I had to make the 3 hour trip to Utah alone (worst idea ever). The ultrasound confirmed our worst fears. The Dr. said the gestational sac looked like it had collapsed within itself. My Dr. tried to reassure me that it was most likely natures way of protecting me from an unhealthy baby. But just to be sure they wanted to do a follow-up Ultrasound the next week. I was crushed and heartbroken. I needed Boe there with me. Luckily I have 2 sisters that live in Utah so I was able to go see them and find the comfort I needed until I drove back to Idaho. The next weeks Ultrasound showed an empty uterus and I "offically" miscarried 2 days later. Worst pain I have ever experienced. We took the required 3 month break and than in Sept 2011 we tried again. This time we did a frozen cycle which still requires shots but no stimulation. So it's alot easier on the body. Due to our embryos not being in as great of shape after being frozen we decided to implant 3 this time. Again another long wait but unfortunately none of them took. After 2 heartbreaking cycles we debated whether or not to try again. I was physically and emotionally drained. I had put my body through so much that past year and I was ready for a break. After many talks, fasting, and prayers we decided to try just one last time before the year was up. This time we decided to try a new Infertility Clinic.We are so glad we did. Not that the first clinic was bad but the second one was so much more personal and our results were better. We had one nurse and one Dr.this time who watched us closely and checked on us often. It was a new set of medications/shots with a slightly different regimine. We retrieved 24 eggs (this is fabulous results), 23 were mature (which is awesome and very rare to have that many), and 7 were excellent or top quality (they said that almost never happens) and 6 were great quality. We implanted 2 embyros two days after my birthday and found out Dec 29th we were expecting.Greatest birthday/Christmas present ever! This time my HCG level was high so no concern! I peed on 5 sticks just to be sure. We had our first Ultrasound in Jan. at 5 weeks and were able to see our baby's heartbeating. We were a little surprised we weren't having 2 but we didnt mind we just felt so blessed. We are so thankful and grateful for the wonderful Dr.'s, Embryologists, Nurses that took such good care of us and our embryos. I am again so thankful for wonderful family members and friends who prayed and fasted for us. I am very grateful for my mother who let me call her constantly and vent/talk/cry her ear off. She is such a strength to me. And to Boe who is my rock I could not have made it through with anyone but him. Our bond and love have grown so much and am thankful he was always there for me with his healing hugs. And we are especially thankful for a loving Heavnely Father who gave us the strength and faith to get through. This baby is going to be so loved. Im starting out 25lbs heavier than I would like due to all the hormones I have been on this past year and half but I dont even care this baby is totally worth it. IVF is obviously not the first choice of way of getting pregnant but honestly it is such a neat process its amazing how far science has come and I am grateful for it because without we wouldnt have this precious baby of ours and 7 more embryos waiting for a chance! : )

My box of all my medications/shots

This is me waking up from our retrival in Dec. I look high as a kite

Baby's first picture! This is a picture of the 2 embryos we implanted in Dec. Not sure which one became our baby.