Plans

Well, well, well. I haven't updated the blog since May! Oops! Sorry about that! I've been pretty busy! The end of school is always so crazy, and then we went on a couple of vacations. We went to Washington D.C and Nashville, and both were so much fun! This summer was a summer that was definitely "planned." (more on our summer plans later.)

     I have always been one to plan everything I can. I planned what I wanted to do with my life, I planned our wedding, I plan vacations, dinner menus, even outfits for work. Well, all of my planning came crashing down on me a few months ago. As you may remember, Paul and I "planned" on starting a family after we had been married for five years. However, I always had in the back of my mind that it may take us longer, so we started trying for a family a little before our four year anniversary. Like I said, our plans were shattered when we were told in February we would never be able to conceive a child naturally. 

     You see, I learned that our plans are not always what is best. But you know whose plan is best? God's. Always, without a doubt, never failing, His plan is ALWAYS perfect! Perfect timing, and perfect in what His will is for us, if we just let go of our plans, and give it all over to Him! 

OK, back to our plans this summer, if you recall, the only option for us to have a child of our own is through Invitro-Fertilization (IVF). We knew we would be going through this process this summer. This is something we prayed about heavily, and really felt led to start the process in the summer. IVF is not for the faint of heart. I started with medication in late May, and by the middle of June, I was going in every three days for ultrasounds and blood work. I was driving an hour one-way to go to these appointments. We felt since I'm a teacher, and have the summer off, this would be the best option for us at this time. 

     There is a lot that goes into the process, and I'll explain more in-depth in a later post, but I'll give you the abbreviated version. After being on the fertility drugs for about 3 1/2 weeks, Paul and I went in on June 30th for the egg retrieval. Three days later, on July 3rd, we did the embryo transfer. We had three embryos initially, but we felt led to only transfer one. I'm already high-risk because of my diabetes, and we didn't want to put any more stress on my body. So, after the transfer, I was sent home to rest. We had to turn several people down for July 4th plans, and know you know why; I was trying to grow a baby. I rested quite a bit longer than my doctor told me I had to, but I figured since I'm home, why not? What is it going to hurt? So, after July 3rd, we just had to wait. Just like any normal couple trying to conceive, I had to wait about 10 days to find out if we had a positive test. 

     On July 13th, I went to Austin to have my blood drawn. This was a very important blood draw because it would tell us if we had a BFP (Big Fat Positive) or BFN (Big Fat Negative). So, I left the house at 7:00 to get to the lab by 8:00, I was home by 9:00. Then, we had to wait..some more! God has really taught me a lot about this whole waiting thing. Anyways, I had specific instructions from my Dr.'s office to call the on-call nurse after 1:30. Well, at 1:31, I made the call. Of course, it's a pager and I had to wait for her to call me back. It took her almost an hour to call me back! It was the longest hour ever for us!!

This is how the conversation went:

Me: Hello

Pam(the nurse): Hi Monica, this is Pam, it's a positive! 

Me: Um, are you serious, really? 

Pam: Yes! Your levels look really good and are promising to be a strong pregnancy!
Me: umm, ok umm thank you!!! 

She then gave me instructions to continue some of the medications I was already on, and to go in on Monday for another blood test. This test is referred to as a BETA, and they want your numbers to at least double in a 48 hour period. So, I went in on Monday, the 15th, and my BETA went from 55 to 111! I was officially pregnant! Paul and I just hugged each other, cried, and praised God!! 

This was news we had prayed for and wished for and dreamed about for so long! And, we give ALL the glory to God!! 

We told our families that day, and they were over the moon excited! 

So, what have we been up to since July? Well, we went in on July 29th for our first u/s. We got to see and hear the baby's heartbeat, and it was the BEST thing I have ever heard in my entire life!! The heartbeat was beating at 109 BPM. 

Today, we went to our second u/s and heard the heartbeat again! Again, best sound ever! The heartbeat was 167 BPM!!! Any guesses on if it's a boy or girl?! Today was bitter sweet, however. I have been under the care of my Reproductive Endocrinologist, Dr. Burger at the Texas Fertility Clinic since February. She is absolutely amazing! Well, today we "graduated" to a regular OB/GYN! I cried hard core in the exam room, and told her what a God send she has been! I thought she was going to start crying too. She gave us a big ole' Texas size hug, and told us to come back when we were ready for our second!! 

So, the baby is the size of a raspberry now; he/she should be making his/her appearance into this world sometime around March 23rd!!! 

I just want to take this time to thank each and every one of you for your prayers and concerns. It means so much to Paul and me! 

I'm so happy to be writing this blog, but I just want to reiterate that we give ALL the Glory to God!!! His plans are always perfect, in every.single.way. 

God is good all the time; all the time God is good! 

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." --Jeremiah 29:11

                                          This is our sweet little Raspberry!