The Journey

The appointment Friday could not have gone better. How to put it all into words, I am not sure. But I'll try.

The journey has begun, or rather continues, in one giant way.

We kept telling ourselves it was a day that was "not a big deal". Then we allowed ourselves to realize that yes, it was a very big deal. I guess I was waiting for some dates on my calendar for it to seem more real.

The morning was strange.

Joel wanted to shop. I wanted to make sure we remembered where the doctor office was, and focus on the appointment. Both were actually good ideas. We had time to shop. Then time to focus. The problem came when I wanted to focus, and Joel wanted to keep shopping! That's the beauty of this journey, each one of us has to deal with it in our own way.

We went to lunch and focused, then made a stop at an adorable kids shop in downtown Bozeman!

Appointment time...

We arrived 20 minutes early. They were closed for lunch but our doctor's nurse, Julia, came out to greet us.

Once we were back in the room Julia explained what all they would be doing and we talked about when exactly we wanted to do IVF...March? May? Summer? "You can do it whenever works for you," she said.

March.

The plan for the appointment was as follows:
Several tests on me- Looking at my uterus and ovaries (they were looking for a healthy uterus and placement of ovaries, both passed with flying colors!), a trial retrieval and transfer, follicle counting and measuring...

It was intense. On the screen we saw my ovaries, we saw the 20 follicles that are there this cycle, 11 on the right, 9 on the left. We saw exactly where they plan to place the embryos.

It was fascinating...and so so amazing.

To think, the doctor knows the exact teeny tiny place in my uterus that is best for embryos.

One comment the doctor made was "you guys are truly truly unexplained."

The tests showed her that I am very healthy. She had time to review Joel's records from Mayo...again, very healthy.

It's weird. We're a mystery.

One other thing she told us, by measuring the follicles this cycle, was exactly when I would ovulate this month. It's not every day that people find that exactness out...

So, once again, I'm asking God for a miracle. This time, I don't know for sure if He will do it...I mean, we've been trying for over 4 years, so why this month?

The last round of IVF 2 of our doctor's patients got pregnant right before they started...so it does happen.

My prayer has been, "God if it's your will, give us a miracle this month, if IVF is your will, provide for us, give us the strength and wisdom to walk that journey."

It's a continuation in our journey and we are ready for IVF.

The next steps are sort of confusing...so I will share more as they become more clear...

One thing I do know, when my next cycle starts I have a prescription for the birth control pill that starts out IVF (it works to suppress the brain and uterus area, then it's like a blast of hormones that comes later to gear my body up for success!).

On Day 1 I call to let them know I am starting the prescription, and Julia will order all of the meds we will need. They will arrive in a big box on our doorstep. Then we will load ourselves and the meds in the car and go to Bozeman for med training and an IVF calendar.

At the end of the appointment Dr. Shomento said, "you haven't been squeaking very much, you can squeak more, call anytime, every day if you want, we'll answer your questions." That's awesomeness.