Ugh, the pregnancy moods are already kicking in! First of all, let me say that I've been so exhausted lately. Last night, I went to bed around 6:30pm and didn't wake up until 7:30am this morning. Also, I'm really bloated so most of my clothes are either not fitting or fitting tightly and although I know it's just from the pregnancy, it makes me feel fat and just puts me in a bad mood.
Additionally, nothing sounds good to me food wise. I'm hungry but when I go to make something, nothing sounds good. So I'll find something tolerable because I've gotta keep my nutrition and after a few bites, I can't stand eating it anymore. Once in a while I'll either get a craving for something specific or I'll find something to eat that once I start eating, I devour but it's rare. I did go this morning for my last beta test. The lab should be getting same day results and faxing them to Dr. Kaufmann's office. Okay, I'm going to go take a nap. LOL.
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I had my second beta test today and everything is progressing well! It was 139 so just over double from Wednesday. I had a little spotting last night when I was getting ready for bed but of course, that's perfectly normal.
Dr. Kaufmann called me last night as well to touch base and give his congratulations! He is such a nice doctor and it's so amazing to me to get personal phone calls from a doctor and not just his staff. Little things like that only fuel my excitement further! Only a couple more weeks before we get to hear that little heartbeat and find out if there's just one or two lima beans in there! Well I decided for shits and giggles to take the last FR test I had this morning to see if the line was any darker than yesterday. There was no questioning it today. Positive.
I have blood work scheduled for Monday at Quest Diagnostics that Dr. Kaufmann's office scheduled to determine if I'm pregnant but my insurance requires that I gat a blood draw done with my doctor in order for them to cover my OB care. So I called my doctor today to schedule an appointment sometime late next week or the following week. To my surprise, she asked if I could come in this afternoon because she had an opening. So I did. Pregnancy is confirmed! My beta was 54, I am three weeks and three days and the due date is June 30. A beta of 25 or higher is considered pregnant and my doctor assured me that 54 is right on track for how far along I am. I'll be getting the scheduled draw on Monday to make sure that it's increasing properly. Sorrell and I called Grant and Russ yesterday to tell the great news. They are sooo excited! You could hear it in their voices. I also let them know today about the blood work. We also spoke with Stephanie. She is just as excited! Lol. I was so proud of myself because she said that I'm the only traditional surrogate (other than herself) that she's had who got pregnant on the first try with a single IUI. Yay me! I knew I was a baby making machine. ;) Yes, I'm the most impatient person today and I just had this feeling all day that I'm pregnant. Then I found out today is Russ's birthday and I knew that I needed to try taking one of the Clear Blue Digital test that say either "Not Pregnant" or "Pregnant". The result.....BFP. BIG FAT POSITIVE!!!! I am so ecstatic right now I can't believe it!! Sorrell and I are trying to get Grant and Russ on the phone tonight to tell them but we don't want them to figure it out yet so we're acting all casual like, oh we just want to drop a line when you're both home to touch base. LOL. Oh my goodness. This is really happening. Ahhhh! Okay, here are the pictures of the tests. In the first picture, the top test is the First Response one I took yesterday to see if the hCG from the shot was in my system. Clearly negative. The bottom one is the one that I took early this morning (around 4am) that has the super faint line I was obsessing over all morning. Clearly different from the first, though faint. And here is the confirmation test. No questioning these results! :)
I counted the pregnancy tests I have and I had six total. Three that came with the Space Ship (ovulation kit) Russ sent me and three I bought myself. Russ sent me the Clear Blue Digital which don't specify they are early tests but the stats show them working up to 4 days before a missed period. I bought the First Response Early Pregnancy Tests because I read reviews that they were the most sensitive early tests out there and the best. I think it was Consumer Reports that said that. Also, they actually say on the box that you can use them up to 6 days before your period, which is today.
As I already mentioned, I took the first test yesterday hoping for a negative to prove that the hCG from my trigger shot was indeed out of my system. I decided to start daily testing today rather than tomorrow, mostly out of going crazy over the wait. This morning I peed on another First Response stick. After three minutes, I thought I saw the ever so faintest second line! Could it be that I was starting to have just enough trace amounts of hCG in my urine for it to pick it up today or was it just me looking so hard at the test that I was seeing the strip that activates? I took it to more even lighting. Still there. Is my mind and heart playing tricks on me? Wishful thinking causing me to see something that wasn't there? I went into my bathroom and pulled out the stick from yesterday to see if you could see the same second line on it in the right lighting. Nope, that baby is as negative as can be. One single strong solid line with no other inkling of another line or anything else with it. If you ask me, there is a definite difference between the two tests and I can help but get excited over it! I suppose we shall find out for sure tomorrow!! :) This two week wait is KILLING ME!!! The blood test is scheduled for Monday, one week from today. Dr. Elkins said that we could start taking home pregnancy tests on Thursday. However, I have tests that can work up to 6 days before a missed period, which would mean tomorrow.
Of course, I do realize that they won't read positive until the hCG has built up enough to be present in my urine. But I have plenty of tests so I plan on starting tomorrow or Wednesday and just testing everyday until the blood test. LOL. I got to thinking about it, and although Dr. Elkins said that the hCG from my trigger shot should be out of my system within a couple of days, it is possible for it to linger up to 14. Well, if that's the case and I start testing in the next couple of days then they will show up positive and I won't know if it's from the shot or a pregnancy. So I decided to take one this morning, knowing that it's too soon for hCG to be in my urine. Negative. That's a good thing because if I get a positive test between now and Monday, we'll know that it's from a pregnancy! Yay! I've been on the estrogen and progesterone since the IUI. My boobs are heavy and sore, I have bouts of nausea, and I'm sooo tired all the time. I just want to sleep all day and when I do nap, it's for several hours and I still sleep all night. It's very strange feeling like you're pregnant but not knowing if you really are. Yet another reason this wait is just so damn long! It feels like it has been forever since the IUI and it's only been a week. Half way done...this is going to take an eternity. I can only image how Grant and Russ are feeling having to wait. There could be a little fertilized egg drifting toward my uterus right now as I type!!
Friday night I triggered with the hCG shot which was a total walk in the park. Sorrell did it for me so I laid on the bed to be comfy and when he was ready, I held my breath to keep my stomach from moving. After a few seconds, I was needing to breathe so I told him to hurry because I was holding my breath. He said, "I'm already done." LOL. Awesome, I didn't even feel it! I have been feeling a little gross since Friday because of the estrogen. It makes me kind of nauseous but it's not intolerable. I'm actually kind of used to it because I used to have the Mirena IUD and it sometimes made me feel the same way. Sunday morning rolled around and everything still hadn't really hit home. I didn't start to feel anxious/nervous/excited until I was sitting on the exam table waiting for Dr. Elkins (Dr. Kauffman's partner) to come in. I had been feeling a little cramping from the hCG but that's normal. The IUI itself wasn't bad...it felt like a normal pelvic exam. A little bit of discomfort from the speculum being inserted and pressure when they used a swab to disinfect the cervix but again, nothing I'm not used to. I didn't feel the catheter being inserted. After the sperm were inserted, I had to lay on the table for 10 minutes and then we were good to go! Dr. Elkins went over the next steps: -Continue taking the estrogen 3x a day (orally) until ultrasound -Begin taking progesterone on Tuesday vaginally 1x a day for first 10 weeks of pregnancy -No OTC pregnancy tests until at least October 18 -Blood test Monday, October 22 If that blood test comes back positive, I go for another one 48 hours later and then another a week later after that to insure that my hormone levels are rising adequately. At around 6.5 weeks (or 4.5 weeks from the IUI) we'll do an ultrasound for fetal heartbeat. It's really strange to think that there could be the beginnings of a baby developing inside of me. Especially when I think of the fact that it's not my husbands. It's very odd. Good, but odd. So fingers crossed that one of Russ's little swimmers has met up with one of my eggs and now that little zygote is floating down my uterus to attach and start developing into a baby! Tonight I trigger in about an hour and a half!!! Let me update you on everything that has happened in the last three days...
Wednesday we got in to Dallas and went straight to the lab for the HSG test. Let me just say that I feel truly sorry for any women who deals with menstrual cramps regularly. Okay, so the took an x-ray of my pelvis before doing anything. Next, they inserted a small catheter into my cervix which was a little uncomfortable because I could feel it, but it didn't hurt. Then they inflate a balloon against my cervix so that they can inject the dye in my uterus. They said it may be uncomfortable and feel like strong menstrual cramps. Uh...that shit down right HURT! Now I don't mean to scare anyone. It's different for everyone and it wasn't unbearable but man, I couldn't wait to be finished. In addition to having to deal with the pain, I then had to turn on each side while they took an x-ray of each, making it only that much more uncomfortable. But, it was short lived and great to know that my tubes were free and clear! Thursday morning we went for our ultrasound. I had three eggs approaching maturity on the right side and two on the left, all ranging from 14 to 18 mm. My endometrium lining was a little thinner than they like it at just over 4 mm. Apparently that could be just my body or from the Clomid but nothing to worry about. They prescribed me estrogen pills that I was to insert vaginally three times a day to help thicken it. I started that Thursday afternoon and scheduled another ultrasound for this morning. But they said that everything was looking good and I was responding well. So we went back in today and I'm ready!! I have two eggs that are mature and one more that is right on the line of being mature so it may end up being a player in insemination. I have to trigger at 10pm this evening and then we go in for the IUI on Sunday at 10am!! It's almost that time!! The house is clean, fridge and pantry stocked and bags are packed! My good friend, Beckie, is going to be watching our kids and the dogs while we're away. She lives up in north Tampa so this evening we'll be taking our son (who is not in school yet) up to her house so that tomorrow morning is expedited. In the morning, we'll drop our daughter off at school and then head to the airport from there. Beckie will come down later in the day with our son and stay here at our house. We arrive in Dallas around 2:30. From there, we'll actually be heading straight to an appointment for the HSG at a clinic in Fort Worth at 3:30. We decided to do it that way because it is significantly cheaper for Grant and Russ than doing it here. After that, we'll get all checked into the hotel and settled until our ultrasound Thursday morning. I am so excited...I won't be getting any sleep tonight! Sorrell and me driving to the airport. Florida decided to rain a monsoon upon us as a farewell. Good thing we left with plenty of time to spare!
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