Some things never change

My sono went good. I just love the staff at Dr. B's office. I can't say that enough! They are amazing. It's like catching up with old friends every time I'm there. Such a blessing.

Everything looks great. We are on track to have 20+ eggs again for retrieval. Yes, that's a lot for the average patient but actually on target for me. That is why some things never change. :-)

I go back on Thursday am and we will go from there. So relieved to be in TX. It is good for my soul!!

Random thoughts

We made it to Texas. Had an eventful time at the hotel with my parents but got them on the road this morning for two weeks of grandparent spoiling. So thankful to have friends who let us use their laundry room last minute so we didn't have to travel with throw up clothes. Thanks Frilouxs!!!

Shots are going well. Started follistim on Saturday and go for first sono tomorrow. My belly is getting bruised now but it's such a small price to pay.

I've had several people comment that they are reading the blog and finding God speaking to them through some of the quotes I've used. That excites me so much! I truly believe that one of the reasons we are on this journey is to show others that God is in the business of answering prayers. If I'm being honest, I must admit this:

It took infertility to make me learn to lean on God.

Not necessarily proud of that but I've vowed to do all I can in praising Him and sharing our story. Sorry if you ever get tired of it. :-)

Most likely, it wasn't infertility for you but I'd love to know what made you learn to really lean on God.

For grins

I found this picture the other day and it made me smile.

It's a pic of my sweet 3rd grade deaf Ed class when I was pregnant with L. They were sooo excited she was coming. This was a week before she was born and the 3rd graders had a shower for L. They gave her books and cards. It was so much fun.

I laugh at this pic because they were being silly and I'm huge and pregnant. I just love it!

We are in the final countdown to TX. I'm ready to get there and get everything settled. I'll update from the road. Hopefully I can see everyone there that I want to. :-)

Answered prayers

At some point you'd think I'd finally get that God has this all covered. That his timing is perfect and that I shouldn't continue to lose sleep over anything in the process of IVF. You'd think after 6 years and four IVF attempts I'd get that through my head. All I can say is I'm only human.

I talked to Dr. B's office today. We will be starting our follistim shots on Saturday. Yes that is the day I'm going to Texas. Yes that means I don't have to have one single monitoring visit at the clinic here in MS. I'm beyond excited and amazed that this has worked out so well. We will have a sono on Tuesday November 6 and are looking at a retrieval around the 13th. We will know more after the sono. I'm excited to head to TX and get this show on the road!!

So thankful for answered prayers.

Perspective

Wow. I needed a little perspective this morning. Yesterday was a bit rough with a near constant headache and a spirited 2.5 year old. Today is a new day though and I'm determined not to take this journey or L for granted.

I realize we are so blessed to be doing IVF again. There are so many people who don't even get one opportunity and here we are on #4. There are also so many people who would love to have just one child (I used to be there) and here we are hoping for another. I don't want to be ungrateful for what we have or to take any of it for granted. If you ever see me doing that, please remind me of my blessings.

Thank you Lord for blessing us so tremendously. Help us to remember how fortunate we are to be on this journey regardless of the outcome. Help us to live a life satisfied with what we do have. Amen.

What are you taking for granted? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Easier/Harder

Lupron is evil. I'd forgotten just how much. If you want a good read just google it's side effects. Really it's not as bad for me as most people say but I really do dislike it. If I can get by with no hot flashes I'll take the few symptoms I am having. Just a few more weeks.

I've discovered that there are some things that are easier and some that are harder on this cycle. Easier, we have L so not everything rides on us being successful. Don't get me wrong, we really want it to work we just aren't consumed by it. Harder, we have L so things like shots at specific times are harder to remember. After missing a dose I finally had to cave and set a reminder on my phone. I never missed a shot in any of our other cycles so I did open my eyes to how much more relaxed I am overall.

We stop the pill tomorrow and anticipate starting our stim meds next week. Getting closer! We will be headed to TX in two weeks and are looking at three weeks till retrieval. Wow, we are really doing this!!

Finally, something that touched me today. I need to really remember this and put it to practice daily.

Thank you Lord for this journey. We trust in you and praise you for everyone who has supported us and loved us. We could not do it without you!

Blessings in disguise

This.....

really made me think. I took some time last week to read the book I made for L of this blog. I'm so thankful I took the time to document our journey and all of our feelings. I hope someday she will appreciate it too.

Yes, infertility is a bitter trial. I've said before that I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy but I also wouldn't change our path. You see it really has been a blessing in disguise.

It has taught us so much:
1) how to really depend on one another
2) to be sooo grateful for our amazing friends and family
3) to be better parents
4) not to sweat the small stuff
5) rely on God
6) just enjoy the moment
7) count our blessings
8) share our story

And so many other things. I hope you will take sometime to look at your own life and find the blessings in disguise.