The Adventures of Pippi Longstocking!

I'm 30 weeks pregnant with a .....

PippiLongstocking — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 15:36:00 GMT

girl!! After 3 failed hig tech attempts it happened. No MS, no PGD, no swaying- just the plain old-fashioned way! I'm going for my 3D/4D u/s today and can't wait to see her little face. I'm thankful evey day that despite all my setbacks- my dream came true. I'm trying so hard to enjoy and savor this pregnancy (despite the backache, leg cramps, etc.) as I know it will be my last. It's a bittersweet thing. I just wanted to post this to give hope to all of you that high tech doesn't work for. Good luck!

The rest of that cycle and onwards and upwards...

PippiLongstocking — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 04:58:00 GMT

Obviously my January cycle didn't work out . I got a faint BFP around day 7-8 past transfer, but it never got much darker. My beta was a 9 (Dr. P actually called to tell me the bad news himself) and I had to keep doing my meds until it went down to a 0 (two days later). I felt like I needed to do something different. Because of my high FSH and my dh's extremely low sperm count, we had been told that we could not get pg naturally- so I decided that I wanted to try and find a new RE. I wanted to cycle locally and I wanted a new approach. So, on several recommendations, I found a new RE in the Bay Area. I really liked him. He was very thourough and has all patients go through about 3k of pre-testing and recommends a laparoscopy to check for endometriosis. After the testing I discovered I have elevated NK cells and one copy of the MTHMR gene- which means daily Folgard and baby aspirin. The elevated NK cells means an Itrallipid transfusion near ER and several times during pregnancy. This new RE (even besides the expensive pre-testing) was quite a bit more expensive than HRC, but I loved that he was going to do something different and that he had great hope it would work! So, I was waiting for AF to come to begin the Estrogen Priming Protocol before cycling in September when I started feeling strange... burning nipples, lightheaded, thirsty, crazy dreams. Sure enough, on day 9dp I got a BFP and it kept getting darker this time! My beta was 331 on 14dpo, 697 on 16dpo, and 5308 on 21dpo- boy was my RE surprised. Now I am waiting anxiously for my u/s on Monday, Aug. 9th. I am so nervous, excited, scared, happy- I feel like this is a HT pregnancy- I just wish I knew it was my little girl!

4dpt

PippiLongstocking — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 04:26:00 GMT

I feel so down tonight. I don't know what is wrong with me (uh, hormones?) I am so very, very sad. I just feel like there is no possible way this could've worked. I feel like I should know by now- which I know makes no sense. I just can't stop thinking about "what ifs" and I know that it does me no good and just unnecessarily stresses me!! So I need to stop and focus on the fact that (at least right now) I am pregnant (with triplets!!) and just pray that at least one little girl is snuggling up right now. I really want to POAS tommorow morning, but I don't know how I'll possibly make it through the day if it's negative

3dpt

PippiLongstocking — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 01:41:00 GMT

I definitely recommend doing your bedrest in a hotel, with your DH and without your children, if at all possible! The first day and a half of bedrest was great. I hung out at the Lodge with my dh and he brought me yummy food and I watched lots of TV and read... can't complain! We drove home on day 2 and day 3 I spent at home in bed with my dh AND my kids! Not so relaxing... I tried to watch TV but it was a little crazy with the kids piled in bed with me I am now 3dpt and I can't WAIT to POAS, but I know I need to wait until the trigger shot is all out of my system. I might POAS Thursday morning- I'll be 5dp5dt. I've been feeling really crampy the last day or so and today I feel light headed and hungry. I'm sure those are just Progesterone symptoms, but I can't help but hope!!

I'm PUPO!!

PippiLongstocking — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 23:13:00 GMT

I've been waiting over a year to say that (pregnant until proven otherwise for those who don't know)! Day 3 the nurse called to say that my 5 strong embryos had been biopisied and sent to PGD. Yippee!! I was so happy. So my DH and I packed up the car and left the boys with the in-laws to drive the 6 hours back to HRC to get our babies!! We arrived late last night after a stop for sushi in Santa Barbara (yum! but hopefully my last sushi for a while...). We stayed at the Lodge and I left early this morning to track down an Egg McMuffin at McDonalds. Then, we headed over to HRC and I had an 8:30 acupuncture appointment with Rumiko. That was different than any acupuncture I have ever done. She actually put electrical charges on the needles in my uterus! Yikes!! After that, they led me into the transfer room and put a writstband on me (a good sign as last time I was led into a conference room). My DH met me in there and we waited until Dr. Potter came in with the best news I've ever heard. Out of the five embryos biopsied- we had one boy, one abnormal, and THREE girls!! They were all grade B and not hatching, so he recommended we put all three back. I would LOVE twins so I readily agreed. He said the chance of all three taking would be about 5% so my DH and I were OK with those odds. Now, I'm back at the Lodge. In bed, with my laptop, a book, some bad TV, and snacks- can't really complain. I will be sending my DH over to the Olive Garden later for a dinner of Shrimp Caprese and hopefully those girls are snuggling in for a good, long nine months. I have always wanted a girl born in October- I just may get her this time!!

01/11/10- Egg Retrieval Day and Day One Fertility Report

PippiLongstocking — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:25:00 GMT

Don't you love the symmetry of my ER date? I think it's good luck!! All went well- 9 eggs- felt very crampy afterward and still do the next morning. ER was at 8:30- slept soundly and don't remember a thing. My DH came over to pick me up (I had walked over in the morning) and I met him in the parking garage. Went back to the Lodge to pack up and then headed home!! Next morning (today) got a call from Lori saying "Good news!!" Of my 9 eggs, 8 were mature this time and 7 fertilized!! 2 of the 7 aren't looking so hot but they are watching them. I will be happy with 5 going to PGD on Thursday (even happier if it's 7!) So, next update will be how many go to PGD on Thursday!! FX

The Night Before Retrieval...

PippiLongstocking — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 04:09:00 GMT

Well, I sit here in the Laguna Hills Lodge the night before my ER. We came down to Orange County on Day 8 for a Day 9 u/s at HRC. My orig. u/s and b/w was scheduled for day 10 (which is normal) but because my E2 level came back at 677 on day 5 (last time it was 114) they wanted me to come in a little earlier. So, day 5 E2 was 677, day 7 was 1290, and day 9 was 1969. I triggered on day 10- right on schedule!! They still see only 8-10 follies but at least my higher E2 levels this time might mean that more will be mature. When I had my u/s on Friday, Dr. Potter said one of my follies was already at 23 mm. and we might lose that one by waiting until Monday for ER, but that waiting might give a chance for some of my 12-14 mm. follies to catch up!! I sure hope so. We've had a great weekend here in OC. We were staying at a friend's beachouse and it's been really relaxing. We checked into the Lodge and went swimming this afternoon (it's about 70 degrees- even in January) and then out to a nice dinner. No shots today- which is a welcome break! We stayed here tonight as opposed to the beachouse because my ER is scheduled for 7:30 tomorrow morning which means I have to be there at 7:15 (!). DH will have to be up before I leave to give his contribution and I'll have to try and not wake the boys. My plan is to have them meet me there after my ER- I hope that will work. I've been really really crampy this time and pretty bloated. I look like I'm at least 3 months pregnant and I can't stand anything rubbing against my belly. Hopefully all good signs that there are a lot of eggies growing in there! I'll post tomorrow- if I get a chance- with an ER report.

I'm Back!!!

PippiLongstocking — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 18:25:00 GMT

For all those who have been following my story- I'm back for another round. We decided that we would give it one more shot on the assumption that the first round is often considered a "practice" round and this time around we would start out knowing what happened last cycle. Dr. P changed my protocol this time to the Microdose Lupron which means only two days of a very small dose of Lupron and 10 days of BCP before starting stims. I'm starting off on a high dose- 450 of gonal-f and 2 vials of Menopur. Ouch! Started stims on December 31st, 2009 (Happy New Year to me!) and now I'm on day 5. Went into my local clinic today for an u/s and b/w to see how things are progressing. Let me tell you that I feel different from last time- I'm crampier, have more wet CM, and just feel like things are going on in there! The local RE counted about 9-10 follies with some small ones that she didn't count. A little better than my last cycle... Next step is waiting for E2 results from Lori today (which I know are going to be higher than my 114 last time!) Another appt. on Thursday and then I'm off to Laguna!!

No Transfer

PippiLongstocking — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 18:07:00 GMT

The rest of my miserable cycle in a nutshell. Sunday morning- 12 eggs retrieved! Drove home feeling over the moon that we got so many little eggies. Day one fertility report- only 6 mature- only 4 fertilized- only 2 still growing. Two eggs!! Now the wait until day 3 to see if they are still strong enough to go to PGD. Wednesday afternoon got the email that the two embies were biopsied and off to PGD. Traveled back to Laguna on Thursday. Friday morning- 9am... Had my acupuncture appt. scheduled for 8:45 and knew it was bad news as soon as I got there. Sent into Dr. P's consult room and waited imapatiently for half an hour. When he got there- he showed me my two beautiful little thriving embies- both boys. I bawled in his office. I bawled the whole day. I bawled the next day. And now, here I am- two days later wondering what to do next?

One hour until ER...

PippiLongstocking — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 15:22:00 GMT

Thought I'd post how I'm feeling an hour before ER. I've been so crampy. Not really bloated but definitely feeling like AF is coming for a few days. My boobs are SO sore- really, really sore. I'm nervous about the ER but I'm even more nervous about how many eggies they'll get. What if it's 2? None? It's all out of my hands now. I took my last sups last night and it feels so weird that there is nothing else I can do for my embies. They are as cooked as they are going to be. I'm going to take a soapless shower this morning and use the unscented deodorant I bought. I should look really cute going down to the breakfast room with my dh (I can't eat until after...) Check back in later!

I triggered last night!!

PippiLongstocking — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:54:00 GMT

The time has finally come. My E2 was 1500 on Thursday and 1900 on Friday and my follies were all about 17-22 mm. on Friday. I didn't count how many there were- I think about 8 or 10. I figure at this point- does it matter? We're going to get what we get and I'm not backing out now. Kelley told me a great story about a woman recently who had 8 and two were normal girls and now she is PG!! That helped. I'm just hoping that we get 8+ eggs and they are all mature and all fertilize and all go to PGD. Dr. Potter said we need to just do 2 probe, so that is what we are going to do. I can't imagine going through all this and then having a baby with Down's- but I figure my chances are less than 1 in 250, so we're going to have to risk it! The false positives on the 5 probe rule out my small numbers of embies doing 5 probe. Again, I wish HRC offered a 3. Oh well... I triggered last night at 11 (easy) and today I just take my Doxycicline and no shots!! Yeah! We're going to have a nice relaxing day of shopping and dinner with friends. I also have my first acupuncture with Rumiko at HRC, so I'm looking forward to that. Tomorrow morning at 10 is my ER. Yikes! I can't believe it's finally here. We're not doing MS, so my dh can just do his deed with my help here in the hotel room (I didn't know that) and then we bring it over when it's time. I'll update tomorrow. Wish me luck!! I'm nervous about the "concious sedation" part....

Our stay at the Lodge

PippiLongstocking — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:38:00 GMT

Well, my dh is sleeping and I'm wide awake so I thought I'd do an extra blog post on our stay here at the Laguna Hills Lodge. We checked in on Sunday night- my mom and two boys. The rooms are clean and nice- not fancy, but fine. There is a little fridge (for your meds!) and a microwave. Each morning there is a breakfast that is basically cereal, toast, pastries, hard boiled eggs, juice, and coffee. I've been craving a hot breakfast so yesterday I took the family out to breakfast after my u/s. On Monday morning we swam a little and I went to my appointment at HRC. The BEST thing about staying here is that you can literally see HRC from my hotel room. You could walk but it's about 92 degrees here right now, so I haven't been walking much at all! I drive over to HRC and park in their garage (have cash $$- the first day cost me 5$$ to park!) After my appointment we headed across the street to the mall for lunch (Rubio's tacos-yum!) and then we met up with some friends at their house to play in the sprinklers and have dinner. Tuesday we spent the day at Disneyland. I didn't bring my meds but I should've brought them with me. You can take them to the First Aid and they will refrigerate them for you. Instead, we rushed home at 11 so I could take them. Wednesday I had another appt. so the boys went swimming- then we had lunch at In N Out and shopped a little. We headed over to Laguna Beach and went to the Sawdust Festival which is an outdooor (but shady...) art festival in Laguna Canyon. There is entertainment, food, and tons of amazing art. My boys love it there- lots of waterfalls, yummy food and kid's art classes. Also, all of the artists are very receptive to the kids looking at their work which is nice. Some have trains, or toys to lure the kids in!! After the festival, we drove down to Aliso Beach in Laguna- easy parking and a great playground on the beach. The kids loved all the sea anenomes in the tidal pools. Thursday we spent at Disneyland again. This time I took my meds and did them at First Aid so we wouldn't have to rush back. We stayed and watched the Electrical Parade. On Friday we just stayed around the hotel- swam a little, shopped, headed over the the Irvine Spectrum for dinner at the Cheescake Factory (they also have a ferris wheel, carousel, and little train). Then off to the airport to pick up my dh and send my kiddos and mom home. The John Wayne airport is not more than 10 minutes away and super easy to navigate. One day we had planned and didn't do is heading down to Carlsbad to shop at the outlets and go to the Flower Fields (which I love). My boys also love Legoland, but we did that just a few months ago. So that was our week (so far) at the Laguna Hills Lodge. I would definitely recommend it and the location just can't be beat.

Will I ever leave Laguna?

PippiLongstocking — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:43:00 GMT

I am so sorry that I haven't had time to blog. It's been crazy here at the Lodge with two boys, my mom, and myself in this little room. We've been keeping busy with the beach, the pool, the mall, Disneyland, appointments, etc. Things are going fine just really really slow. Tonight will be my eleventh day of stims! I have somewhere around 12 follicles, I believe between around 14 and 20mm. Dr. Potter wants the little ones to catch up so my retrieval has been moved from Friday to Saturday to Sunday and, now, maybe to Monday. No biggie except I want to go home! Now my mom is flying home with the boys on Friday and my dh and I will stay the weekend and then drive home (hopefully Sunday!) Should be nice and relaxing here this weekend. My E2 levels have been 114 (day 5) 594 (day 8) and 1194 (day 10) so they are rising nicely, just not quickly. I'll have another u/s and b/w tomorrow and then hopefully trigger on Friday or Saturday night. I'll update when I can. BTW, for those who are thinking of bringing their kids- it really is fine (and fun!) We are all having a blast. It's nice to have my mom here to watch the boys (they go swimming) while I have my appointments. Wish me luck tomorrow!

Darn! Not progressing as I had hoped.

PippiLongstocking — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 03:31:00 GMT

Had my Day 5 u/s and b/w yesterday. My E2 came back at 114- really low and my follicles were still really small. I'm hoping it's because I was still bleeding and now things will start happening. Because of those results, Dr. Potter upped my meds to 450 gonal f and 2 vials of Menopur. I had to pay another $400 for the Menopur, but luckily I had enough gonal-f to get through 10 days. Thank goodness! So, two nights now of the upped meds and I'm getting bloated and crampy so hopefully that means I've got lots of follies growing in there. I'm leaving in the morning to drive to HRC and my next u/s and b/w will be there on Monday morning. Can't wait to see what is going on in there!! I'll post after that appointment- if I can. This next week is going to be hard with two boys and my mom at the hotel- I'll check in when I can....

BTW, the headaches completely went away- must have been allergies or my body getting used to the stims. I feel fine and completely normal now- yeah!

Day Two of Stims

PippiLongstocking — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 03:56:00 GMT

Did it! Got through two days of stims. Not a big deal at all. The hardest part is mixing the Menopur- after that it's easier than the Lupron. I think the needles are thinner and sharper than the Lupron needles which make them easier to stick! The gonal-f is super easy! I really didn't think it even worked. Unfortunately, I think I have the headache to prove it did. I checked the side effects of Gonal-F and number one is headache. Says 20% of patients report getting a headache. Of course I have to be one of the 20%. Figures... I was hoping it was just an allergy headache so we'll see.... Other than that- just trying to relax, do my meditation CD, drink lots of water and pomegranate juice and encouraging those little follies to grow, grow, grow!!! Had acupuncture this morning and she stuck needles (MORE needles!) in my ovaries to encourage blood flow. Hope that helps! I'll update again after my next u/s and b/w on Friday. Can't WAIT to see how many eggies are a growing!