Its still unreal that Im pregnant

Its been awhile since I've posted, I had my third pregnancy blood draw a few days ago and my levels were 6530 or something close to that. They are in the normal range :D It feels good to be past the two week wait and although its still unreal we are pregnant Im letting myself get a little more excited every day and I think about so many things that have to do with pregnancy and imagining holding my little one soon!

We have had so much fun telling our family and friends that we are expecting. We told early because most of my co-workers know due to the nature of my job. Most people we told over the phone because they live far away. When I told my 3 yr old little sister she was going to be an "ant" she ran and cried because she didn't want to be a bug!!!! Sooo cute and funny! She has named him GC if he is a boy and if its a girl she says Cienna which is her name hahaha. My mom is super excited to be a grandma and has already sent baby Romberger a gift in the mail. My dad is glowing and cant wait to take his grandchild for a weekend camping trip, that will be great for me too! ;) He says once they are out of diapers he will be more excited but I assured him he will never have to change a diaper. Telling my grandma was my favorite! She cried and squealed like a little girl on Christmas Eve. It was so cute and precious. Definitely a moment I will never forget. Even Grandpa was excited and talked about a new video camera. All of our family and friends are so excited for us and we couldn't be happier!! We still have a few people to tell. My grandparents in OK, my Gpa Giles, and Gavin's g-parents. Its so fun telling everyone!!!! Excited to keep telling more people.

So far Im craving TOMATOES!! with salt. Hot Veggies! and Fried foods, which I try to stay away from. I do crave healthy things like spinach and avocados too! I want to eat like all the time! Which doesn't help my bloated belly much. But even with all the discomforts im loving every minute of being pregnant!!!

I feel so blessed because I know it doesn't always happen on the first IVF try. I always felt really good about everything though and haven't felt too worried. I've just had comfort and know that everything will work out. That doesn't mean that I don't stress about every symptom or the lack thereof and I make sure im not doing anything im not supposed to and doing the things Im supposed to be doing. Today I felt like a got hit by a train. I was sooooo exhausted! I woke up feeling so tired and went back to sleep and all day just couldn't "wake-up". Hopefully this means my body is working hard making a baby.

Baby dust and prayers to all of you waiting for you BFP.

Love,
Gina

Beta HCG at 4 weeks 5 days pregnant post IVF

Today was an emotional roller coaster. I woke up happy but still had my cramps. Around noon I went to the restroom and to my horror there was blood!!! I thought if I was going to have implantation bleeding it would have happened 5 days ago. I text my dear husband and he immediately called me. I couldn't help it and I started crying. He offered to come home to be with me but I told him I would call the doctor to make sure everything was okay. I called a couple times and got their answering machine so I just left voicemails. Thats when I somewhat lost it. I went into my bedroom and prayed and cried. The thought of losing this baby was so scary. I want this baby so much and I want to be a mom. Gavin told me that whatever happens he loves me and everything will be okay. We can do it again. I also talked to my mom and dad and sister and a couple friends. Between all of them I was able to accept whatever would happen and realized that stressing would do more harm than good and it was out of my control anyways. I told a couple of my besties about what was going on and they told me to go see a doc. Its kinda hard when my doc is in Pleasant Grove and Im in St. George. Sooo I decided to go see the doc I will go to at nine weeks when Dr. Foulk turns me over to an OB. I called the office and told them Im a new patient and they fit me right in. Made me an appointment for 2:50. They did a beta HCG test and said they would call with the results. The nurse remembered me from when my mom went to them over 3 years ago with my baby sister!! Dr. Chalmers said I was like VIP there. It was great to feel so comfortable and welcome already!! Im excited for the future! So I just got a phone call from my IVF coordinator with the results.

My HCG levels were 343 last Thursday and today they are 1961!!! That is a good sign!!! :D Im glad I went to the doc and now I feel a lot better. Im still cramping and having sharp pains. My coordinator told me the sharp pains are my ovaries. My uterus is stretching and confused. It wants to shed the lining but the HCG levels are telling it not to so for the first few weeks of pregnancy its common to have cramps. I just can't wait to hear a heartbeat!!! I am trying to not tell too many people yet. I would really like to hear a heartbeat first. At the same time I want to shout it from the roof tops!!!

Baby dust to everyone TTC! I hope you get your BFP soon too!! I don't think reality has really set in that Im pregnant yet. Its funny the second you find out your pregnant you worry even more than before. Im sure hearing the heartbeat will help but im also thinking I will always be waiting for the next step. So my goal currently is to just ENJOY being pregnant and EVERY step. (Even the scary ones)

Looking forward to Feb 26. Thats the day we hear the heartbeat!!! :D

AHHHH!!! Its UNREAL! BFP! 10dp5dt Beta HCG test

Hey everybody!! (If you just want to see my beta HCG number scroll down to the bold red text in the next paragraph.) Today couldn't have come soon enough. I felt really good about my beta HCG test because I caved and have taken a pregnancy test everyday for the last three days :D but I knew I would feel better after getting the blood test. 3 days ago I took a strip pregnancy test where if the second line shows up you're pregnant. Well it looked like maybe a SUPER SUPER faint line might have shown up but I wasn't POSITIVE. So after taking two and dipping one in water I cried and cried because I decided there were lines there! I was very very happy and said a prayer of grattitude to my Heavenly Father for this miracle. I still wanted more definitive answer so I went to wal mart and bought the clear blue digital pregnancy tests. So it was less stressful, it says either "pregnant" or "not pregnant". I took the test when I got home and was trying to tell myself its no big deal if its negative because its still early and I could still be pregnant even if It said negative. I knew deep down however I would be a little devestated and worried if it came back negative. I honestly should have been waiting for the blood pregnancy test but I was just dying during the two week wait. And then.... PREGNANT?! I calculated the days and read on the internet to see how long HCG stays in the system after a trigger shot. Some places it said it stays in the system max of 10 days and I was 13 days past trigger shot and other places I read two weeks so I figured I could still be showing a false positive pregnancy test. Either way I WAS ECSTATIC!! In fact. As I was walking out of the bathroom holding the pregnancy test in my hands I almost passed out I was so shocked and excited. I fell and caught myself on the wall and decided to lay down for a minute. Now I understand the phrase "I have good news, are you sitting down?" haha I suggest stay sitting for a little while after you read your pregnancy test. I decided I shouldn't keep the good news from Gavin a day longer so I printed off some pictures of Gavin with brand new baby Cienna and put them up on the magnet board. I put a onsie on the table that said I <3 daddy and the positive prego test by it and a note that said he was going to be such a good daddy. When he got home from work I videoed him walking in. He was shocked but a little confused because he didn't realize we could take a pregnancy test early. I don't think he believed me that it was pretty legit. So every day after I took a test and it was always POSITIVE :D :D I loved taking these tests! A little addicted to getting a positive pregnancy test. :D

Soooo today was the big day!! I went in at 11 and got my blood drawn. I didn't want to wait for the office to call me and my friend told me I could get my results right from the lab in an hour. So of course I did!! My beta HCG was 343!!!! I WAS SO EXCITED!!! Kept asking myself, this means im pregnant right? Am I really pregnant?? I called Gavin and he didn't answer at first. When he called me back and I told him he sounded so excited!!!! he said, "THATS AWESOME!! The nurse said that anything above 25 is pregnant but they like it to be above 100 so my numbers were beautiful. I take another blood test in a week and then my first ultrasound is at seven weeks on Feb 26. I can't wait to hear the heartbeat!! I will feel so much better once I get to hear the heartbeat!

My symptoms right now:
Insane cramping!- I woke up last night at 2 am with an insane cramp. I couldn't sleep for a couple hours. It hurt so bad :( but Gavin took good care of me. Today I've been cramping on and off all day too. It feels like a charlie horse in my abdomen.
Need a bigger bra - TMI but its one of those first pregnancy symptoms and they're super sore
Naps- I can feel my body wants to focus on helping my baby grow which is awesome! Hope I can keep up with my 12-14 hour shifts at work.
BLOATED- I look 3 months prego already. This is partly because I got a little overstimulated before egg retrieval and I think some of my symptoms are coming back but I also think its a early pregnancy symptom.
Im glowing- This may or may not be because I know there is a baby being made inside me now!

The Two Week Wait after Egg Transfer

The two week wait!!! Im into day two of my two week wait. This whole time I've been going through the steps and been focused on each thing to follow. Turns out that my next step is a pregnancy test. AHH!! The scariest part of all and its so far away!

I am now DONE with my two week wait. Never finished my last post, sorry! I was on bed rest for the first few days and then on a ten pound weight restraint for two weeks. My sister stayed with me for the first week so I felt like I was pretty much on bed rest for the first week. Due to my job duties I had a lot of time off because my job requires me to lift more than ten pounds. It has been nice because I know now that I will have no regrets if I get a negative pregnancy test. I will know I did everything in my power to make it work. The second week was the hardest because my sister was gone and I got bored easily especially after being cooped up for so long already. I was relaxing a lot before my egg transfer because I got overstimulated and the five days after egg retrieval I slept in the recliner and didn't do much except moan and groan. I caved and started taking pregnancy tests 3 days earlier than my scheduled beta test. Mostly for my insanity. I am not going to disclose at this point whether or not those tests were positive or negative and what my blood pregnancy test was but stay tuned. Coming soon.

I have been eating super healthy since egg transfer because I know the vital organs are developed in early pregnancy and how important it is to eat right. With IVF I have a special opportunity to know exactly when my baby is conceived so I get to eat healthy and "ACT" pregnant early on. In fact. I had a lot of fun saying im one week pregnant when I was one week before egg retrieval. And day of egg retrieval saying im two weeks! HAHA it was fun. At work someone asked why I was wearing the pregnancy lead and if I was pregnant and I said I will be in two weeks!!! Awesome reaction. Some things with IVF are actually pretty FUN!! I also knew early on that that months eggs would be my babies so I was super careful at work and wore the pregnancy lead long before egg transfer.

Things I've been eating:
AVACODOS(supposedly increases chances of IVF success so why not?! they're delicious)
Mangos (Good source of fiber)
Spinach (Great source of Folic Acid)
Chicken (Healthy source of protein)
Yogurt (Greek yogurt has twice the protein of regular yogurt)
Cottage Cheese(Good source of protein in early pregnancy)
Citrus fruits (mostly clementines)
Baby carrots (Good to eat if you are naesous and trying to cook, also try putting a piece of apple in your mouth while trying to cook and smells are getting to you)
Cucumbers
Tomatoes(open face sandwiches on whole wheat with a little salt)
Peppers
TRYING to avoid chocolate(caffeine is NOT good during pregnancy especially EARLY pregnancy)


Im SO Glad the two week wait is OVER!!! Good luck to you if you are in your two week wait. Try to enjoy this time to relax because now that im returning to work I realize it wasn't so bad being cooped up for a few weeks. Though I am happy to return to work so I guess just tell yourself it will be over before you know. Enjoy the moment!

Embryo Transfer day 5

I have now reached the end of my calendar schedule! Looking back it went by fast but when I was going through it I thought this day would never come! I can't believe right now I have two cute little embryos inside of me. My egg transfer wasn't until 1:30 pm and I thought it would be in the morning. I thought the day would drag on forever but it actually turned out to go fairly quick. I was in a lot of pain from all the bloating and my chest hurt really bad(side effects from having so many eggs at retrieval(53)). I got up and showered and packed our bags for the long trip home. I had my daily whey protein shake and then Gavin's sisters made me rice bags with Lavendar and Lemon Oil in them :D Those helped a TON with my shoulder and chest pain. We went to Target and I got a ton more gatorade(the only thing the doc wants me to drink), whey protein, Fluffy socks!(thanks Becca and Haley), and a gift for my sweet sister who will be taking care of me all week. We were completely prepared for egg transfer. The car was cleaned and organized, I had a blanket and nice pillow ready and a relaxing playlist made on my ipod for after transfer. We went to Zuppas for lunch and it was my first time there. It was DELICOUS!! Im officially addicted now. We headed to the fertility center after lunch and arrived in plenty of time. We checked in and waited for a little bit. A nurse brought out some Valium for me to take. Even with the valium I was starting to get pretty nervous. I hadn't been nervous really up to this point for transfer but then I started thinking it through in my mind. I was a little worried it would hurt and I just didn't know what it was going to be like. I had so many questions for the doc about all the pain I have been in and wondered if they wouldn't do the transfer because of how I had been feeling.

A nurse called my name and I realized it was really here. We went into the procedure room and I sat in the chair on the side, the nurse smiled and said you're gonna be over here. I nervously laughed and eyed the stirrups. She left and I got ready. It seemed to be happening faster than I thought it would. I expected to talk about everything before I got dressed down. Dr. came in and showed us our first pictures of our babies :D I was excited to see those. We had 5 embryos that were ready to be transferred. A bunch that they would watch for a few days and freeze any that progressed. He then told us to choose how many we wanted to transfer. AH! I wasn't ready to make such a big decision. I thought it was already established how many were going to be transferred. We always assumed we would transfer two so it didn't take long for Gavin and I to decide. He said thats what he would do too. It maximizes our chances of getting pregnant and if we did have twins that they do really well. We definitely didn't want to transfer 3 because triplets dont do as well and we want a healthy baby. We could still have triplets if both embryos implant and one splits but its not way likely. 

It was kind of like getting a pap smear. It wasn't very comfortable but it wasn't painful either. They moved my head down a lot and so I was kind of upside down. There was a nurse that had an ultrasound on my belly to see the uterus. Gavin was sitting right next to me and we were both able to watch the ultrasound. The embryologist brought in two of our embryos and then Dr. placed them into my uterus. You could see the air bubbles around them in the uterus. They carefully scooted me to the top of the bed and leveled out the bed. I was to lay there for 20 minutes. Just Gavin and I in the room. I couldn't help myself and finally realized it was really happening. I have two little babies in my uterus. I had tears streaming down my face and I was so happy and excited. The nurse came in to give me some instructions and asked if I was okay and Gavin said yes they are happy tears. She held my hand and sat in a chair close to my face. She told me it was a great feeling to finally be to the point to where I was after the long road we have been on. She was so sweet and nice and wonderful. She went through the list of things that I need to do for the next couple of weeks. I have been so excited since the end of that procedure. Im so so so so excited. I thought I wouldn't be excited until after my pregnancy test in two weeks but Im actually very excited now! I have two fertilized embryos inside of me! Im so happy!!! Now Im just supposed to relax and take it easy. I am to be on bed rest for two days after egg transfer and then lift no more than ten pounds for a couple weeks. Also no exercise or doing anything that would make my uterus contract. I have read a lot of things on the internet and surprised when I found  alot of people say that there is no need for bed rest after embryo transfer. I say, why chance it. Do what your doctor tells you to do. My doctor has a higher statistic than the national average so Im just going to do exactly as he says. Its hard to be down and doing nothing for so long but really when I remember why im doing it then it becomes easy!!! Just relaxing and enjoying this time to think positive thoughts! :D 

I will know in 13 days if im pregnant or not :D yay!!! 

Love love! 

Gina

Having HOPE through infertility

Today is Sunday and while at church I was thinking of a couple of scriptures and a word that has helped me with infertility. Recently we had a FHE with our friends and the definition of HOPE was read. Definition- Hope is the confident expectation of and longing for the promised blessings of righteousness. I LOVE this definition. It is spot on of how I feel . And how I SHOULD feel. It even has the word "longing for". I always thought that when you hope for something it just meant you wanted it. HOPE is much more than wanting something. It is a CONFIDENT EXPECTATION. I should EXPECT the promised blessings my heavenly father has promised. It seems like I should have figured this out a long time ago. I think deep down I knew all of this but it wan't until I heard this definition it became so CLEAR. Having children is a commandment from God. Genesis 1:28, "And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth......". Therefore it is a righteous longing for. This leads me to a scripture that has been a comfort to me through this process. 1 Nephi 3:7. "....I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." Awhile ago I attended the temple with the purpose of starting a family. I had some time to wait and came across this scripture. I felt so strongly the truthfulness of what Nephi says. In my case the Lord has prepared the technology of IVF so I could keep the commandment found in the scriptures. Im very grateful the Lord has guided us to find our doctor and those that are helping us start our family. Im early in this journey but see the Lords hand in my life guiding us. For some people the Lord has made it possible for them to adopt. For others they are able to conceive naturally. However it is, he Lord will prepare a way. This scripture has comforted me through many heartaches and helped me to accept the news that we would be doing IVF. I am also aware that through prayer the Lord has guided us to the point we are. I know that if we keep that line of communication open with our Father in Heaven he will help us find the way he has prepared for us to fulfill those things he has commanded. I have been blessed through this process with faith. I have received many priesthood blessings and in one I was blessed to be able to have the faith I need to have a family. At first I thought it was an interesting thing to be blessed with. I guess I thought I had to have faith all on my own and kind of thought I already did. So when I was blessed with it I was a little surprised but I am ever so grateful for that blessing. With FAITH miracles happen. Ether 12:12, "For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; wherefore he showed not himself until after their faith." I find so much comfort from the scriptures, the power of the priesthood(in particular priesthood blessings), and most of all my Savior. There is also the story of Rachel and the story of Sara that show infertility is not new to the world. There is something to learn from going through these experiences and Heavenly Father has a purpose for all of us. Im grateful for my infertility and the things I have learned from it. I pray that I can continue to be blessed with the hope and faith I need to endure to the end. :D I do have a confident expectation that I will be a mother because the Lord has promised that blessing to me and I LONG to be a righteous and loving mother some day.
Love,
Gina

DAY 3 Embryos (a Buttload)

Yesterday my embryos were at day 3! It is a significant day in embryo growth. The Embryologist will look at them under the microscope and see how many of them are progressing at the right rate. They want the embryos to be between 6-10 cells on day 3. I waited ALL day for that phone call :D I of course called them first at 3 to make sure they hadn't forgotten about me. They ended up calling me around 6. I was with my sister-in-laws in the car. We were stopped luckily because Haley was so excited she probably would have had to pull over anyways to look at the numbers I was writing down. It was fun to be with them to get the news. I have seriously loved going through this process with all my family and to see their excitement too. Carolee(my niece that is 9) said the dinner prayer last night and prayed for us to be able to have a baby. It was super cute and I have been told by other siblings and friends that their kids pray for us to have babies too. So sweet. I know we have had so much success because of all the faith and prayers from so many people in our cause. Thank YOU! So lets here about more of this success. We heard Thursday that 39 fertilized and yesterday they told me how many are in the right range. Here are the numbers. 

1 9-cell 

14 8-cell(I believe the exact words of my IVF coordinator were "a buttload of 8-cells")

2 7-cell

9 6-cell

Yay!!!!! We have 26 Embryos in normal range at this point!!!! Like my sister said, "Grow babies grow!!" My coordinator was very optimistic about having plenty of embryos to be able to freeze some. That is wonderful news. I never realized how hard IVF is on your body, I know its different for everyone but Im hopeful I wont have to go through the whole entire process again. I saw a cute onsie that said "I survived the ICE AGE". Hahaha my future babies will be tough kiddos ;) Even though this process can be uncomfortable there are many things to relieve symptoms though and survive this short time of treatment. I enjoy a daily French Vanilla Whey protein shake with a banana, peanut butter, ice and a little water(mixed by the one and only blend tech). I keep a gatorade with me at all times and replenish those electrolytes. I don't drink anything besides gatorade, powerade, propel, and my morning whey protein smoothie of course. My blue heating blanket has become my new best friend. The recliner has become my bed and helped me breathe through the night. I also eat TONS of fiber throughout the day. Different kinds of fruit, fiber bars, fiber supplement and on Saturday MiraLax saved my life. (TMI but If it helps someone else who becomes "backed up" from the meds its worth it to tell you). Also my hubby(such a sweetheart) has been rubbing my shoulders and back with an analgesic menthol rub(over the counter). For some reason my shoulders ache and my back. It feels similar to when I had my laparascopy and all the gases were leaving my body though my shoulders. I've also noticed Im always hungry. Not sure why but I just want to eat all the time! Even when Im stuffed. I look huge and the eating probably doesn't help but Im just going to embrace everything! ALL of this is WORTH IT for a chance at my dream. 

EAT AVACODOS. Why? because they are simply delicous. Also I have read on many sites that eating avacodos "triples" your chance of IVF working. Nobody from my doctors office has said anything about eating avacodos and I think that if it really tripled your chance of it working they would have told me. BUT I figure, why not? I love them anyways so im going to eat them! 

Baby dust to all!! Tomorrow is a big and exciting day for us!! Two beautiful embryos will be placed in my uterus. Our appointment is at one p.m. They told me they will give me valium when we get there and then after the procedure I will need to lay there for 20 minutes before we leave. We are driving all the way home to St. George right after and picking up my sister in Richfield on the way. The doctor said it was okay and to just recline the seat back and put my feet up. Tomorrow in my eyes I will be pregnant for the first time. I know I will have two fertilized embryos inside of me. There is a lot of responsibility I feel already. I just want to take care of them and I want them to grow and be healthy. Thanks again for all YOUR prayers and thoughts. LOVE LOVE!!

Gina