And the Official Countdown Begins!

So we received word on Friday (ie: in the form of nature's appearance of Aunt Flo) - that our "official timeline" is off and running for this invitro thing. When I got the news, I was all at once overwhelmed, excited, anxious, but most of all thrilled that we now have a path to walk on. With directions. So grateful.

So here's the plan as I understand it:

3 weeks birth control pills (check, already started on Sunday)

Sept. 30th - baseline test (still not sure what all of this encompasses but assumes that it means your body is ready to accept all of the thousand dollar lupron shots into your abdomen

Sept 30th - Oct. 9th - Lupron shot plus other hormones every day

Oct. 10 evening - trigger

Oct. 12 morning - Harvest/retrieve the eggs ---- pray pray pray for lots of mature ones!!

Oct. 17th morning - transfer of embroyos - pray pray pray that Matt and I's "stuff" gets along really really well for 5 days in the petri dish - we want lots of blasts people (meaning, the really good, grade A, like supermarket fresh egg/embroyos)

So, if all goes well and stays according to timeline, we should know by the end of October, beginning of November if it worked or not. We will see. And pray a whole lot between now and then.

For now, I am focusing on getting healthy - lots of folic acid (haven't missed one in 3 weeks), plus a multi vitamin, trying to get a lot of sleep, going for long jogs, eating healthy, the works. I guess the worst part is the unknown. I really don't know how I am going to feel once these hormones start racing through my body.

I read on my birth control pack (and remember I haven't taken "the pill" in over 7 years) that "it may cause weight gain or it may cause weight loss" or it "may cause for acne to improve or acne to worsen".

Hmmm, so I could get fat but have great skin.

Stay the same weight but have bad skin

Or get fat and have bad skin ---

Or the very best option - stay the same size & have good skin :)

ha. we'll see.. .only a neurotic like me thinks like that.

I'm going to go invest in some very comfortable target pj pants one size too big & a brand new facial cleansing mask just in case the worst option comes to fruition.

On a side note: When I went to pick up my pills at the pharmacy on Friday (in Plano, I was already heading to Dallas when I started my period) - they told me that the insurance wouldn't refill it b/c it had been too soon since my last refill.

First, who "OD"s on birth control pills?

Second, I haven't taken the pill IN SEVEN FREAKIN YEARS.

WTH? After being patient and polite for what I deemed an acceptable time, I finally had to sort of flip out --- "look, I HAVE to start this pill on Sunday. The end. It's for my fertility cycle and it will mess the whole thing up if I don't have the pill for Sunday. Tomorrow is Saturday. My doctor has already left for the day. Please, please do something so I can get at least 2 pills to get through Sunday and Monday until you guys can straighten it out.

Seriously, you would have thought I was asking for high-dose morphine or whatever insane drugs MJ shot up his veins.

Finally, I think she realized how panic stricken I was (and hormonal --- I am on my period remember?), and got it taken care of. So I am a brand new holder of a fresh pack of bcp's. Feel like I am back in college again. How cute.

But seriously, if I flipped out like that over pills with hardly any hormones in my system - I can only imagine what's going to happen to the poor people who get in my way during the rest of this process. It 'aint going to be pretty :)

But with all the complaining about the meds, and the schedule and the money - I know it is so worth it - no doubt stressful, but incredibly and totally worth it. That much Matt and I know otherwise we wouldn't be going to these lengths. This is totally the path for us.

Soooo...bottom line - yay for having our schedule now :) I will try to write more fun posts than just hormonal, "I feel like crap" posts in the next 6 weeks. We'll see :)

Thank you for taking his journey with us. Please keep our little future Clanahan in your prayers. Bless you all.