Nerve-racking News

The lab at REACH (our clinic in Charlotte) called with an update on our embryos. Of our 6 eggs, 4 survived the thaw, and 2 fertilized. So we at this point we have 2 embryos.

Dr. Teaff said she typically gets 2 or sometimes 3 out of 6 eggs, so on the one had we are right on track, but at the same time, I'm nervous and a little disappointed because just because we have 2 today doesn't mean we'll have 2 well-developed ones on Wednesday for the transfer.

Fingers crossed.

Third Phase

I had some more labwork and an ultrasound this morning to check on the progress of everything and we are still right on track for the transfer next Wedneday

So I start three new medications tonight, including progesterone injections, as well as go in for an intralipid infusion tomorrow morning. Tomorrow is also the egg thaw / embryo making day so we will be anxiously awaiting news over the week-end as to how many survive and look good.

Things are picking up fast now - today and tomorrow are the most complicated in terms of number of medications, and I go in again Monday morning for labs again. I made and have been following a calendar chart to keep track of everything - here is detail view:

Miami Beach!

We took a long week-end getaway trip to Miami Beach for Memorial Day to have a little break after a particularly stressful spring and also hopefully as a last hurray before hopefully I'm pregnant.

We got a nice package deal that include a rental car, but after a traffic jam between the airport and our hotel, crazy road closures in Miami Beach that made getting to our hot difficult, and a very expensive parking charge at our hotel we thought maybe it was more trouble than it was worth. So the first day we returned it to a place within walking distance of our hotel.

Here was the ride in - notice the "Welcome to Miami" sign!

Here is our hotel as well as views from our balcony towards the Atlantic and from the elevator lobby across Miami Beach towards Miami proper.

We slept a little later each morning, had breakfast, and then spent a few hours on the beach. The hotel had nice padded chairs for guests, and we rented an umbrella each day. They brought us free towels, water, and fruit and had guys coming around from which you could order additional food and drinks. The water was incredibly warm and clear and we swam and sat and swam and sat a few times each day.

There is a very touristy shopping and restaurant street called Lincoln Road that was very near our hotel and we spent a lot of time walking and eating there. Here is the imfamous sunburn photo (I promise it was never as bad as this picture makes it look, as you can see in the other pictures. There was also a really cool tree on this street we admired each day.

There was another, shorter pedestrian street with restaurants where we had dinner another night. It was very pretty with lights in the trees and lots of cafe tables on the sidewalks.

There were a couple specific places we remembered from when we were in Miami with our friends Goran and Dijana a few years ago for New Years - including a Nespresso coffee shop and an ice cream parlor called Paul.

Finally, on the last night we rented bikes and took a ride along the lovely esplanade along the coast. Its been awhile since I've been on a bike, but it was really fun.

Farewell Passat!

Last night we sold our Passat, which has had an oil problem for a few years that go so bad two months ago the car really wasn't reliable enough to drive. Until school ended I didn't have time to get it cleaned up nice enough to sell, but once I did and got it posted on Craig's List, I got a lot of inquiries and a couple people came to look at it. We got $800, which we thought was pretty good considering.

Here it is in its Craig's List glamor shot (holding up pretty nicely):

It served us (and Azra) well for over ten years. Here we are with it the day we got it in 2004 (we all look a litter fresher a decade ago!):

Second Phase

I had some lab work and an ultrasound done today and everything looks exactly how it was supposed to. So we move into the second phase of the medical protocol, which means I start taking estrogen on top of the three things I'm already on. I do this for about two weeks until the next check in for labs on the 28th. At this point I've picked up or had delivered all but one of the drugs I'll need - and have gotten stuff from four different pharmacies. At this point I've got quite a pharmacy set up in my own bathroom: