IVF Adventure: Part I

Note: I am writing this blog partly as a therapy and personal/family history, and partly as a way to keep my family and dear friends informed. I didn't want it as public as Facebook, but if I am sharing this with you, just know that you have permission to share with anyone who might be interested or who you think may benefit.

Since my last post, I've found my Top Ten Guy(see previous post). I feel so very blessed and lucky to have married Hans Branch. When we first started dating, he asked if the fact that he had four kids was a concern for me. I told him no, as long as he was open to having more. He said he would be and he meant it. He said he wanted to have the experience of parenthood from the beginning with me. He said he could see how I light up when I hold a baby and how much I want to be a mother and he wants me to have that opportunity. He left no doubt about his commitment when he underwent a painful surgery(vasectomy reversal) a few months before we married.

Several months after our marriage,  the doctor started me on a round of Clomid. Since we were both 39, we didn't feel that we could wait and hope for a full year before taking any action. This lasted about 4 months, with no success. I had also been tracking my temperature every morning and taking ovulation tests. So, just after our 1 year anniversary in March, we decided to take the plunge and use up everything I had saved to pay off my student loan debts to instead pursue IVF.

All of our tests have been good/normal: my HSG(x-ray of uterus and fallopian tubes), and blood tests, his semen analysis. This is good, because it means that there is no major concern to make us poor candidates for the IVF, but frustrating because we still don't know why we haven't been able to get pregnant naturally.

A friend of Hans's referred us to Dr. Richards, who was their IVF doctor. They traveled to CA for the procedure. Lucky for us Dr. Richards now practices in Utah, so we only have to travel to Logan.

The PROCESS

I have been taking Prenatal Vitamins with Zinc and Folate since we decided to pursue this. On April 27, I started taking Birth Control pills- only the red ones, no sugar pills, until the Doctor told me to stop on the 17th. Hans and I both had to take a week of an antibiotic, which I hated to do, but it is standard for all IVF couples, so I decided to trust the doctors and go ahead with it. I have also been drinking Kefir and eating raw sauerkraut to try and replace the probiotics.

On May 12, I started giving myself an injection every morning, which really hasn't been too bad. The tiny needle doesn't hurt at all, but I learned not too push the med in too quickly after bruising myself badly from the first one.

On Friday, I had an Estradiol blood test and on Saturday I had my first vaginal Ultrasound. Dr. Richards said the blood level(less than 25) was right where it should be. He also said that it looks as though I have a good number of eggs in there that we can work on growing over the next couple of weeks.

On Monday I will be adding two more injections to stimulate the growth of the egg follicles. Then, I'll have another Estradiol test and ultrasound this weekend.

If you have any questions about all of this, please feel free to comment or ask. I'll be updating once or twice a week until the end of June, after I take the pregnancy test.

We would be grateful for your prayers on our behalf.

My Top Ten List

In case you were wondering what I am looking for in a man(potential husband), here is my list:

1. We feel the same about the church. He is clean and chooses to stay far away from the edge.Loves and serves the Lord. Honors his Priesthood. 
2. Sense of humor characterized by humility.(Doesn't take himself too seriously.)
3. Integrity. He is honest and strives to live a principled life.
4. Cheerful/Optimistic
5. Loves and serves everyone: kind, friendly, courteous, respectful, and helpful.
6. His motivation, sense of responsibility, and confidence have prepared him to be a  good provider.
7. Intelligent
8. Sincere
9. Sensitive
10. Physically fit/attractive

Bonus points for singing, dancing, or playing the guitar. ;)

The first five on the list are must-haves. The rest may be things he is working on, or wanting/willing to work on. 

I'm not expecting him to be perfect, but these are the traits that are important to me. This is the kind of man I will marry. Actually, he's a lot like this guy. :)

Angela Ang documentary: Resolution Horse Company

I worked as a volunteer with this group a couple of summers ago. Not only was it amazing therapy for the kids, it was great therapy for me as well! Melia still asks if I can take her back to see Hope(the pony). I'm hoping to get back and help some more this year.

Reesa's Legacy

A beautiful and inspiring message. I had the opportunity to meet this sweet girl. Too good not to share, and too important not to remember.

A Dating Project

A few weeks ago, I went to a fireside at our midsingles branch. Our Branch Presidency each spoke about how they met and married their spouses. I was surprised to learn that our President and his wife had both been married before. He talked about how scared he was to date, how after his divorce he had decided he would simply avoid relationships and finish raising his kids alone. And then he met his wife, and they got to know each other. They connected and he faced his fears and they are together and happy. He told us to be happy and to enjoy this part of our lives.

I had just ended things with another great man, and was feeling somewhat tired and frustrated with the whole dating scene. When President Norton said we should enjoy this single phase of our lives, it hit me. I needed to do something different. I need a new dating paradigm. Dating has been a big part of my life for more than a decade. So, I should enjoy it. It should be fun. As I left that night's activity, feeling anxious about the ups and downs of another evening of socializing with singles, I felt like I needed to read the book 31 Dates in 31 Days. In it Tamara describes her experiences with creating and living her own dating project. As I finished reading about all of the things she learned and the ways she grew, I realized I needed to do this too. So, I emailed Tamara, the author, and asked for her Dating Boot Camp Starter Kit. It's strange, but all of this has felt totally inspired. Perhaps because it coincided with a renewed commitment to spend time studying my scriptures and praying, or simply because it is right for me at this time.

So, I am off! 20 First Dates in the month of May. Already, I have had such positive experiences- friends and family have been amazingly supportive. Guys I've asked have been enthusiastic and encouraging. Even those who have turned it down because they are dating someone already, have been really positive about the idea. And I haven't been on the first date yet. I am looking forward to this new adventure. I will be blogging about each date at 20firstdates.blogspot.com. I welcome your thoughts and comments. 

Dr. Oz 48 Hour Cleanse Review

I just finished Dr. Oz's 48 Hour Cleanse. My first day was Sunday and I felt kind of drained and headachy, but I that was probably because I was in the sun a lot and didn't drink as much water as I should have. Monday was Day 2 and I can't remember feeling so good on a Monday in a long time. Today I am still feeling pretty energized and I've noticed that I am not really craving carbs/sugars like I normally do.

As far as the food- the quinoa breakfast was quite good. I liked it best with the prunes chopped up fine so that the sweetness is spread throughout. I liked the green juice, but I am used to that. If you are not as into veggies, I bet the pineapple/pom drink would be really easy and refreshing. The blueberry smoothie was tasty, although it was kind of small for a lunch and left me a bit hungry in the afternoon. Dinner was so so... Be careful when you make the soup. You need a BIG pot. It makes a TON. Tiffany was laughing at me because it looked like one of those over the top shakes until I split it into two pots. It is unclear in the directions if you are supposed to drain off the broth or eat it with the veggies, but I kept my veggies in- just seems more satisfying. The flavor was OK. I added a bit more salt and some hot sauce to make it more interesting. I was surprised that I really liked the sauerkraut and apples. Sauerkraut is supposed to be an excellent probiotic, if you get the good, natural stuff.

The best part? Dr. Oz recommends you take an Epsom Salt bath. I did last night- added some lavender oil, and read a good book. DELIGHTFUL!

If you decide to do this yourself, remember, as with any cleanse, drink A LOT of WATER! I also recommend that you read carefully through the instructions and visit this blog for tips on how to make it more cost efficient.

Here is a pic from the same blog(Just the Right Things) showing the foods she bought to start the cleanse:

The Beauty of Different

"We are all- everyone of us- uniquely, breathtakingly beautiful."  Karen Walrond

Ruth's Chris, Bells Canyon, and Cousins

I've heard a lot about Ruth's Chris and their amazing steaks. Since I don't care much for steak though, I'd never been too interested. Turns out, Ruth's Chris provides a great dining experience even for the less carnivorous. Luckily, we had gift card to use because it is a bit pricey.

It reminded me of the cruise dining experience I had with Grandmom and Gary's fam on the Royal Caribbean over Christmas. We had herbed wild mushrooms for an appetizer- yummy! I actually drank all of the broth, not surprising to some of you. ;)

For dinner, Mr. A. got the Petite Filet and I had Mahi Mahi on a bed of Asian-style vegetables. Both were delicious, and came out still sizzling on 500 degree plates, but I liked mine best.
Dessert was chocolate heaven. A Molten Lava cake with fresh berries and a little chocolate Pots de Creme. Both were divine. It was one of those dining experiences where you actually have to let it melt on your tongue while smiling and closing your eyes.

Saturday morning I did my walk/run- five miles. Later that afternoon we went hiking up Bells Canyon. In the evening, I went for a walk with a friend. Sometimes I feel like I need to move as much as possible on the weekend since I spend so much time sitting at work all week. Plus, when the weather warms, I just can't get enough of being outside.

Sunday was our monthly cousin gathering at Bo and Laura's house. We watched conference and played relay races designed by Melia and then had taco bar and did a lot of visiting. Always good times with the Thompson/McArthur clan.

Hunger Games

Made it through week 1 of my training schedule. Ran 10 miles last week. On Saturday I did 4 miles in under 43 minutes. Way slower than I was when I did my Half in 2010, but better than last week. And I didn't get a headache!

Saw The Hunger Games Saturday night. Wow! I thought it was really well done, and well acted, but it is a horrible story. Honestly, I'm not sure why so many people, including myself, would actually want to see a movie about kids killing each other. The books just kind of suck you in and then you have to see what happens with the romance, and how they find a way to fight the system... I asked Mr. A. what he thought about it, kind of had to drag it out of him, because he was afraid to tell me he didn't like it. But, he said, "I don't think that's my kind of movie. I liked John Carter better." Really, that is probably a good thing.

Date with Bo and Melia

On Saturday Bo and Melia came up and we went to the Carnival of the Animals at the Utah Symphony. The concert was specifically for children and they had a Children's Dance group perform. It was kind of like visiting a family ward after being in a single's ward forever- much noisier audience. Melia did quite well, although she was pretty bored until the dancers came on. She said her favorite part was the fishes and she thanked me for inviting them. Afterwards we went to Tucanos, one of Bo's favorite places. Oh man, oh man. Such a terrible abundance of good food. Melia's favorites are the baby corn from the salad bar and the chicken hearts. Mine are the collard greens, beans, the pineapple and fried bananas, and the bacon wrapped turkey. I think Bo likes almost all the meats and the traditional black beans and bread crumb topping.

I did run again Saturday morning- well, a combo of walk/running- 3 miles. I am sensitive to dehydration and can get pretty sick. I tried to drink a lot during and after the run, but still ended up with a headache that lasted the rest of the day. I was pretty wiped out Sunday when Stu and I went for a 3 mile walk, but I guess my body needs to get used to all this again. Here is a fun version of the performance we heard on Saturday, with Bugs and Daffy:

Running Again

On Sunday we had a Break the Fast gathering of cousins at Bo's house. It was super fun to see everyone. Almost all of the McArthur/Thompsons in Utah were there. It was so fun! Last time we did a similar gathering, Laura commented that it was strange not having any of the parents there. Like we are all pretending to be grown up. Ha ha...

Anyway, Shalei told me she was thinking of running the Utah Valley Half Marathon in June. It is almost all downhill, not too steep, along the Provo River Trail. So, it looks like we are doing it! I think my roommate Tiffany may join us too. I haven't run since the Bryce Canyon Half about a year and a half ago, so I am going to really have to jump in with the training. I will post updates on here as another method of keeping myself accountable. The plan is to run at least three times per week. I did get up early and run two miles this morning. Woohoo! Ok- it was a combo of running/walking- about 2.3 miles in 30 minutes, but I did it and I didn't hate it. :)