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September 27, 2010

I'm All Out

Well, everyone knows by now. I don't think there is one person we know who doesn't know. It feels good to be all out :) The best thing happened today! Mr. Later Than Most has a close friend that he plays volleyball with. Well, we haven't told her yet. We planned to tell her tonight for a Bear's game viewing. Wellllllll, she emailed him that she is due in May! Whoo hoo! It'll be fun for us to be able to chat. We aren't that close, but it's still fun. She was so excited to hear our news as well!

Yesterday Mr. Later Than Most and I were shopping at Target. I dragged him to the baby stuff to show him what type of stuff people need. Well, it was so funny! He found a travel system and high chair he liked! Ha! He was pushing the stroller down the isle to see if he like it. It was so cute. He was pushing and I was testing the weight of the infant seat. Unfortunately the whole set gets terrible reviews in my Baby Bargains book, but it was fun anyway.

I did have to surrender my heart monitor one more time. Mr. Later Than Most took it back and said I can have it once a week. I had that crazy IF addiction again. I was checking twice a day. Hey, when you have no symptoms, you have to cling to something!

I'm trying to decide if I should go to a baby resale this Thursday night. I know my mom would go with me, but I keep saying, "it's early." I would love to go though. Recycling is fab for the environment and I love a good bargain. Hmmmmmmmm. . . .

September 22, 2010

My OB Sucks

This is going to get long!

Yesterday I went in for my fetal heart tone monitoring that my OB practitioner approved. At my first OB appointment, the practitioner said I could go in for the monitoring inbetween my regular appointments. This would allow me to get more comfortable with less appointments than I was having at the RE and help me to feel more secure after the perigestational bleed. Well, before my appointment yesterday, I called the answering service and told them that I had some ovary pain. I wanted the nurse to know this before I came for my appointment in case they wanted to check my ovaries. So I was giving them a head's up as an ovary check ws not part of a fetal heart tones appointment. Well, the person taking the message was an idiot. She goes, "What? Your IVF hurts?" You dumbass.

So, I get to the office and am brought back by the nurse. She says she can't understand the message that was left. I laugh and explain the ovary pain to her. I told her they found a rather large right ovary at one of my ultrasounds, and that it was bothering me. She has me rate it on a scale to 10 and I say it's a 5 because it comes and goes. Yes, this seems like a fab appointment, but now it starts to go down hill.

I hop up on the table to hear the baby's heartbeat. The nurse finds "it" and tells me "There it is!" Um no. I begin to tell her that she has found my heartbeat. I know it's mine because my hand is on my chest, and I can feel the exact beats that I'm also hearing through the doppler. Not only that, but you and I both know that I've been dopplering this baby like an addict. So, I tell her the heartbeat is mine.

Me: Actually, I think that's my heartbeat. It matches the thumping I feel in my chest.

Nurse: Well, don't you hear the other heartbeat in the background?

Um no. Sorry, I teach kids to read and write. I'm not a nurse. So, she works for maybe 2 more seconds and seems to find the baby's heartbeat. She let me hear it for about 7 seconds. No, I'm not exaggerating. Seven full seconds. I sit up and the conversation fun continues.

Nurse: So, what exactly do you want us to do about this pain?

Me: Well, the pracitioner told me to tell you if it was bothering me, and it is. So, I don't really have any requests, but I'm letting you know.

Nurse: Well, is this a dibilitating pain?

Now I want to hurt her. Didn't I just tell her it was a 5? A 5 is not debilitating. Then, she looks at my records and says, "Why are you here? You were just here two weeks ago." Really? Now I have to explain that the pracitioner said I could. Well, of course she challenges that because it's apparently nowhere in my file. She decides to send the doctor in anyway since I'm already there. So, I wait about 5 minutes and the doctor comes in. Mind you, I sense the ATTITUDE. She sits down, and says, "How can we help you?" Make sure you insert a snotty tone there. For the love of God, I'm not a doctor! So, I start the friggen story all over again. If you are counting, this is the third time I've told this office in one day.

The doctor looks at my paperwork and says, "Blood pressure good. Baby's heartbeat is in the 160's. You DID HEAR the heartbeat didn't you?" Um, what's with the emphasis on hearing the heartbeat? Is she referring to the dumb nurse that I had to correct because she let me hear my own exciting heartbeat? The doctor says that I'm going to feel a lot during pregnancy and that I should take a Tylenol. Then, she sends me packing and adds that pain or blood should take me to the emergency room. No more talk about my ovary pain. Thanks for nothing.

Now, obviously reading this does not do the justice of really being there. I felt like I was treated like a child. I didn't request an appointment. I was already coming in for a scheduled appointment and brought up my concern. I'm sorry if the nurse tried to pass my heartbeat off as my baby's. I know what a fricken baby heartbeat sounds like. And I'll tell you, there is a big difference between 120bpm and 160bpm.

So, I left there crying. Don't worry, they didn't see it. Mr. Later Than Most got the wrath of it. He was pretty pissed at them. He brought up a good point: The IVF Clinic was so positive, we just want to continue the positive experience. Last night I worked hard at searching, and to make a long story short, I found a smaller practice. At this one I'll see the same doctor every time. There are only four doctors and they also have a midwife. The midwife was not suggested for an IVF patient, so I'll be getting new OBGYN. It's weird to switch, especially since I'll be going to a whole new hospital, but today I'm feeling good about my decision. I need to contact insurance and get a copy of my records, but I have plenty of time. My first appointment is October 5th. Hopefully the people at this practice are a little nicer. I don't want to be Kathryn Heigel in Knocked-Up. She switched OBs about 5 times!

September 19, 2010

Weekend of Fun

I was out of town this week for an out-of-state bachelorette party. I had bought my tickets in March, so I decided I would stick with my plans and perhaps have my last weekend girls outing for a while. True though, bachelorette parties are not entertaining when you are pregnant, duh! I felt like the poor girls had to drag me around all night! Luckily, another attendee was pregnant too, so we ordered our waters together, and luckily, she was ready to go back to the room with me before the other girls. My friends were so great though, they bought us some O'Doul's for Saturday's hotel room celebration, and they carried my suitcase at the airport. It's nice for others to know :)

My new weekend experience is that I have a cold! Bound to happen, but it's hitting me hard. I don't mind the 100 sneezes a day, but I'm trying really hard to not call my doctor and ask what I can take. I do go in on Tuesday for a fetal heart tones appointment, so I'll ask then if I have to. Right now I'm just drinking water and looking forward to some Ramen soup for dinner!

Mr. Later Than Most caved today when I asked for my doppler! He is out of town too. I called and told him I wanted to use it. He told me where it was hiding right away. This tells me two things. 1. I love him for knowing that I needed to use it, otherwise I wouldn't ask. 2. I cannot give him something to hide from me if I really want it hidden. That job is for my mom. :)

September 16, 2010

Doppler and More Coming Out

Well, the doppler is gone. Talk about addiction city. I started using it two times a day :( So, I walked right in to Mr. Later Than Most and handed it over. I told him that I'm only allowed to use it once a week and he agreed. So, right now it's hidden. I did try to crack him today and asked for it, but he didn't give in.

I think my insecurity is coming from telling more and more people about Trouble. Right now, most friends, all family, and most coworkers know. With each person, I get a little nervous. I know it's normal, but I can't wait for it to go away already! It does feel good to be passed 11 weeks.

Well, Heather requested some pictures, so I'll include some here :)




11 Weeks:

Life is Good outfit! So cute, I had to!

10 Weeks



September 13, 2010

Yup, I'm Addicted

The darn home doppler addiction has started! I promised myself I wouldn't use it everyday. So, I found Trouble's heart beat on Friday. Saturday I showed Mr. Later Than most and he was impressed. Then, I woke up this morning and had the urge to check on Trouble. Then, I came home and stared at it! LOL Don't worry, I didnt' use it again! I do have experience with these addictions though. When we were TTC, I had to have Mr. Later Than Most hide by basal thermometer from me. I was getting out of control and even temping at night!

So, I'll be letting my friends in on my secret this week. I'll be out of state for a bachelorette party, and the nondrinking will need some discussion. The best part is that I will be able to start wearing whatever I want, and I won't have to hide my stomach pudge.

At my last OB appointment, my OB did not mention the optional NT scan that you can do. It helps to check for Downs and other things that could be different in a pregnancy. Mr. Later Than Most and I could NOT decide if we wanted to do it or not. It does have a 5% false positive and that was enough to scare me. Since she didn't mention it, I took it as a sign not to do it. I feel a little weird though, a lot of girls on my site opt to have it done. Oh well, I have to do what's right for us.

I started shopping. . . eeek. This weekend I bought a couple of small things for Trouble. Nothing big at all, but I've been addicted to internet sites and just looking for bargains. The IF devil hangs out and says it's too early. I've been able to put some earplugs in while the IF devil talks to me. The good news is that she only sneaks up on me about once a week. Horray!


September 10, 2010

Shopping and Family

I did make my way to Amazon after my 10 week OB appointment. I bought the Baby Bargains book like I wanted, and I also bought a home fetal heart detector. This is weird I know, but so many girls buy it, so I gave in. It was only $30 on Amazon, so I figured it would be a good buy even if it didn't work.

So, the device came yesterday. I followed the directions and poured some water on my stomach. I dragged the monitor across my abdomen for about 15 minutes. I did it nice and slow like my OB did, and focused on my left side because that is where she found Trouble's heartbeat on Tuesday. After 15 minutes, I found nothing. I wasn't disappointed though. The OB couldn't find it for 5 minutes, so nothing made me think that it was an easy job. I promised myself that I wouldn't get obsessive with my new toy, and I put it away.

Tonight Mr. Later Than Most left for volleyball. This was the perfect opportunity to try the monitor again. I didn't tell him about my new toy because I want to be successful with it first. Before I gave it a try, I logged into Amazon and read more ratings. Many buyers suggested to switch the headphones out with IPod ones. Well, I did that and found little Trouble's heartbeat in less than one minute! It was so cool. The funny part is that Trouble was on the right side instead of the left like on Tuesday! How fun! I can't wait to show Mr. Later Than Most my trick! He hasn't heard the heartbeat yet!

Well, all week I've been wondering how to tell my family about our news. There are a couple of issues though. First, I was very overwhelmed with Mr. Later Than Most's family and their excitement, so I figured telling in person wasn't going to work. It nearly gave me a panic attack last weekend. In this day and age, I think texting is very acceptable. Especially if you do it right! So, On Thursday morning, I sent my mom and two sisters a picture of Trouble on their cell phones. The text said, "Does this baby look like me or Mr. Later Than Most?" LOL Well, I had three phone calls within 10 minutes. They actually loved the way I told them. Also, my younger sister got all emotional, so I was glad that I was on the phone and not in person. As I said, I don't deal well with that. I'm a little weird!

So, now both families know! It's earlier than I wanted, but I have a friend's trip next weekend that will bring me out of state. I need to tell my friends before that, and family just had to know before friends.

Oh, one more detail. When Mr. Later Than Most told his family, at some point he told them that we had a boy's name all picked out. His mom replied, "Why would you put a boy's name on a girl?" I thought that was funny :)

Happy Friday!

September 7, 2010

Fab Doctor

I had my first OB appointment today. I requested the nurse practitioner because she was the one who sent me to the IVF clinic in January. I thought she would love to see me, and boy was I right! She was so excited and just wonderful. She said she had been following my paperwork and was so excited when the bleed free ultrasound came through. It was great to see her and to have someone who was almost as excited as me. . . almost!

So, we went over the regular stuff and she asked me how I am since the IVF. Pretty much I feel great, but she said my ovaries are still a little swollen. She said it takes up to 20 weeks for them to go back to normal if you get pregnant from IVF. Oh, my! I didn't even know that. Luckily, they are causing me no trouble at all. Then, I told her it was a little weird to go from weekly ultrasounds and so much one-on-one attention to being with the "masses" at a regular OB. She herself had come from working at an infertility clinic, so she is very familiar with the emotions that us IF girls go through. So, she offered me the best thing ever!!!!!!!!! I get to go in for fetal heart monitoring every two weeks!!!! I get to go in to hear the heartbeat while I'm waiting for my next appointment to come around. I can't believe that! It really was so nice of her to offer. You bet your ass that I scheduled my first appointment already! Hooray! So, in two weeks from today, I go to hear Trouble's heartbeat. And two weeks from that, I'll be at my 14 week appointment.

Speaking of Trouble, you know darn well the nurse had a hard time getting the heartbeat on the doppler today. I knew not to panic. I've read so much online about 10 weeks being a little early for a doppler for some people. This practitioner was determined though! She tried for about four minutes and kept saying, "Don't get worried, I'll find it." After another minute she said, "Okay, this is weird, but cough. Sometimes that could move them around." So I did, and thirty seconds later, BINGO! The cutest little heart beating in the 160's. Today is a great day!

So, I promised myself that I could buy the Baby Bargains book after my 10 week appointment. I'd love to write more, but I'm off to Amazon to treat myself.

Thanks for reading my blog and always cheering for me. It's great to have so much support!

September 5, 2010

We're Out

Mr. Later Than Most's family arrived on Saturday morning. We had huge plans to go to the Cubs game and have a good dinner. We don't see them but 4 or 5 times a year, so naturally I thought it would be a great idea for us to let them in on our secret. It was a good plan, but Mr. Later Than Most said he wasn't ready to tell people and that it was still kind of early. I agreed. I guess I feel further along because I've had so many ultrasounds and so many appointments. Plus, I got to hear that fab heartbeat this week!

So, I worked hard to make sure my clothes were baggy. This bloat does not help the situation. Right before we left, MLTM asked me if I hid the ultrasound pictures like he'd asked. I told him yes and that I put them in the drawer in the bedroom so no one would find them. Then, we all left for the game.

We arrived at the game, got our food, and settled in. As a couple of innings went by, I kept thinking about how cool it would have been to tell his family about Trouble. I daydreamed a little about it being shown on the announcement board. Then I started thinking about how cool it would have been if we brought the ultrasound picture and passed it down to them with beer money or something. After my daydream, I looked down at Mr. Later Than Most. He was on the end, then my MIL, FIL, SIL, grandmother in law, and finally me. When I looked down at him I noticed he handed something folded to his mom. "It couldn't be." I thought. Yep, he was handing his mother a folded ultrasound picture!!!! She opened it up and freaked out. The whole family started hugging and saying over and over, "Is this real? Are you guys joking?" My husband is quite the trickster, so I could easily see their concern.

I was shocked at that moment. I couldn't believe he did it and didn't tell me. It was like a surprise for me too. I'm glad he did, because it prepared me for how people react. There were tears and lots of questions. LOTS OF QUESTIONS. Everything from how I'm feeling to how long did we try. YIKES! As I had mentioned, Mr. Later Than Most is not up for telling others about the IVF. So, my response to questions was, "Oh, I'll let him answer the questions!"

It was quite an overwhelming experience! This morning I punched him in bed and told him he tricked me. We decided to get our act together and make sure that we had a story for when people ask about our TTC experience. I was glad to hear Mr. Later Than Most say that he wanted to tell people it took us two years, but he wasn't ready for the IVF part. I'm so glad he came around on how long it took us to try. I don't want to hide that from people. I want others to know that this doesn't happen right away for everyone. I'm proud of my struggles and IVF success, but the IVF part will wait a bit. I will be telling my family about it though :)

So, now we are partly out of the closet! It's weird, because now we can talk about it with them. Getting it out actually gave me more confidence for some reason. Hopefully that confidence doesn't take me to Carter's and their Labor Day sale!

P.S. Because of our company, I'm not editing my post today! I hope it all makes sense!

September 1, 2010

U/S Update

Well, the nurse at my OB office called me back today. They left me a voicemail saying they did in fact want me to have an ultrasound before my first appointment. So, when I called to schedule, they only had 12:30pm! Yes! It was 11:30, in the middle of the school day, and they had nothing for the rest of the week. Are you kidding me? Luckily I have the best principal in the world, who allowed another teacher to cover my room, while I ran to my ultrasound. Mind you, she only had to cover it for 20 minutes, I had an hour plan period in there.

So, it was my first time back at the OB's office since
the referred me to the IVF clinic. It was weird walking in there. The nice thing was that I actually felt like I fit in! The bad thing was that I was so nervous. For Pete's sake, I can present in front of a large group with about two minutes notice, and these damn doctor appointments scare the bejesus out of me!

The good news is that this little baby looks great! Now, if you remember, the IVF put my due date at April 6th. Since every ultrasound I've had, the baby was always a day ahead. So, the EDD changed to April 5th. Well, today it was measuring another day ahead! LOL- Of course we don't keep changing the due date!


So, Trouble is one inch long which is perfect for 9 weeks. I got to hear the heartbeat too!!! It was so cool. The hb was measuring 170bpm which is perfect. The tech also checked my ovaries to make sure they are doing well since the IVF. She said the right one is still swollen, but it isn't giving me any trouble at all. Oh, and the news. . . . she said the bleed is gone! Now, how fab is that? Well, the only thing is, I'm such a friggen negative Nelly that I keep thinking, "Well, maybe she missed it." Hello? Who does that? Mr. Later Than Most wanted to kick my ass when I told him that one. Hahahahaha. He has a lot of patience these days!
So, so far so good. It's so nice to get good news at those appointments. I will go back on Tuesday for my regular checkup. Don't worry, I'm asking if they can check that bleed one more time! I know, I'm too much! But I don't think they
should check it next week. Just in the next three weeks or so. LOL

Here is Trouble: Measuring 9w2d (picture has been removed)