Parsons Family Journey

Ultrasound check-up

2010-04-28T21:48:00.004-05:00

We had our check-up appointment today and it went as well as we could expect. The clot is much smaller now and less of a threat. The Dr says that it looks more 'organized', which I guess means less fluid, more clot and that is a good thing. Baby 'A' looks great and is right on track meaning that despite the worry of the clot he or she is getting lots of nutrients. The heartbeat is now at 169 BPM.

Baby 'B' actually also has a heartbeat now. However, 'B' is still way behind in growth, has only grown a little in the past week. Our Dr does not give much hope that that baby will ever catch up and expects that 'B' will not have a heartbeat by next week when we go back. It is disappointing to know that there is one in there that is struggling but we are relieved that Baby 'A' is continuing to grow stronger.

We are almost 8 weeks already but it is hard to let myself feel pregnant when I am still a little worried. We go back again next week for yet another sonogram and hopefully some more reassuring news.

Hoping for a sibling for Lanee

2010-04-23T22:24:00.003-05:00

Wait... what is this? I am posting to the blog? It has been over 16 months since I last posted but I have been inspired to start it up again for a few reasons.

Let's see last post says will her birthday be the 18th or 19th... well it is the 18th. Such a good little girl making it easy on Mommy, didn't even wait for the Dr to get into the delivery room. Lanee becomes funnier, smarter and even more fantastic everyday (yes even on her crabby days), which is why we decided she needs a sibling!

So in February we started our FET cycle only telling a few key people who we needed to watch Lanee. We thought it would be fun to be more like 'normal' people and be able to surprise people with the good news once we received it. On March 24th we transferred 2 of our 9 frozen embryos and the wait began. I had my first blood pregnancy test done on April the 2nd and got great news, we had an HCG level of 247. We went back 2 days later on Easter to find that it had gone up to 509, yeah! Rann wanted to wait longer to tell family but I convinced him otherwise, thankfully cause I have no idea how I would have held out.

It was Easter day so the perfect occasion to take pictures of Lanee with her Grandparents. I set them up for their photo and just before snapping the picture I said "OK Lanee, tell Gigi and Grandad that you are going to be a big sister!" We did the same with Nana and Grandpa later in the day and I ended up with some great photos of what our Mom's look like when they are shocked!

I had a ultrasound scheduled for Friday the 23rd but had some concerns that brought me in for the ultrasound on Wednesday the 21st. Our Dr has told us that there are 2 sacks in there but one of them is much smaller in development and therefor has only a small chance of catching up and developing at this point. The other is measuring at 6 weeks 5 days and has a wonderful heartbeat of 138 BPM. However that baby is in danger due to a subchorionic clot that could potentially separate it's sack from the wall. I was put on bed rest for at least a couple of days and was told to come back in a week for another ultrasound. I of course started researching and our chances are pretty good that things will be fine but we will just have to wait and see what happens. So here I am, bored with laying around, technically I can be up now but I will continue to take it easy until next Wednesday's ultrasound. Hoping for the best and will continue to update!

Thursday!

2008-12-15T15:33:00.002-06:00

Thursday is the big day! My Dr wants to start induction at 1:00. (Probably closer to 2 or 3 by the time I get all settled in) Now the question is will her Birthday be the 18th or the 19th?!?!

Maternity Pictures

2008-11-01T21:12:00.002-05:00

We went to Sears a couple weeks ago to have some maternity photos taken.... they did a nice job... we have lots of pictures coming for the family and they will be in just a few days.... here are some of our favorites and a collage that I put together

27 and 28 Week 3D Sonogram Pictures

2008-10-05T10:29:00.005-05:00

It is October!

2008-10-03T11:01:00.005-05:00

82 more days to go! I am starting to really like that number.... Yesterday I had an almost 3 hour Dr. appt. First we had blood drawn for my glucose test and we should get the results of that today. Well apparently the lab lady put my file in the wrong spot after that... so I had a huge delay before it was finally sonogram time. All looks good with baby.... she is said to weigh 2lbs 14ozs now. Then the usual talk with the Dr. He says that he is very comfortable with my progress that I can wait another 4 weeks before coming back.... then start the 2 week check ups.

We had a 3d/4d ultrasound last Sat. but Delanee was asleep the whole time with her legs in front of her face. We did get a couple of cute pictures though and as a bonus we get to go back this Sat. to see if she will cooperate better. Here is the picture from last week and also some pictures of her room.... still not finished but getting closer.

109 Days to go!

2008-09-06T22:57:00.006-05:00

It seems that we are getting things ready for baby now. Last week I got her bedding in. It is mostly light green with dragonflies. We purchased our 3 pieces of nursery furniture and a glider/ottoman combo from Babies R Us last night.... we got a great deal that even Dave Ramsey would be proud of. They will hopefully be in sometime next week so I can share pictures of our actual nursery. Today we added a second clothing rod to her closet for her ever growing wardrobe. Then we got a new bi-folding door for the closet and a door to separate her room from the laundry room. I can't wait to have it all finished!

As for me I think I am growing.... to the point where I shock myself when I walk past a mirror somewhere! I wanted to share some pictures of the furniture and bedding and an updated video for those who have not seen them. Please keep the video comments to yourself.... but all others are welcome!

Surprise, Surprise

2008-08-17T09:47:00.002-05:00

Today we had an elective 2D ultrasound to 'confirm' the gender.... well it was definitely confirmed as a ..... GIRL! Talk about a shock. We have to start all over with name choices and nursery decorating. The ultrasound was lots of fun we got some good video of her sucking her thumb, then she fell asleep and would not wake up for us so that was the end of that. We took some of the better video clips and put them in a shorter video to share.

19 Week Ultrasound Check

2008-08-02T10:53:00.004-05:00

On Friday we had our "big" ultrasound to check on the baby. The tech measured and checked the heart, head, brain, umbilical cord, arms, legs, stomach, and everything else. All looks great! The weight is estimated at 10 ounces right now. She said the baby was very wiggly and I got in trouble for drinking orange juice to make sure the baby was moving.... she could not get a good view of the heart valves so we have to have another one later, oops..... but we did see the 4 chambers in the heart. Unfortunately the tech lady said she was not able to confirm the sex as a boy. Rann says she was mad at me for the orange juice so maybe she didn't really try. The heartbeat was 124 beats per minute. And the theory is that a heartbeat under 140 is usually a boy... We get our next ultrasound at the Dr. office in 8 weeks but we are looking into getting an extra one done at a 3D clinic before then to make sure he is a boy and to get some better pictures. We only got 3 pictures this time and the are not good or maybe we are spoiled by the high tech pictures we got previously at the fertility clinic. I will post the best picture we got.
As for me the Dr. says that everything is growing just right. I am feeling lots of kicking (taps) and other movement everyday now. It is nice at this point and not bothersome yet. I am gaining about 1 pound per week and my belly is definitely getting bigger. We started a video of the belly pictures we have been taking and will continue to take through the end. We are also adding that to the post today... enjoy.

12 Week Ultrasound

2008-06-11T18:13:00.003-05:00

Today was the final appt. with the fertility Dr and I am officially a normal pregnant person now. We had a great ultrasound today and everything looks just right. The heartbeat is 154bpm and the baby is now 2.3 inches long from head to rear, not counting the legs! I am now measuring a few days ahead of schedule instead of a day behind so lets keep our fingers crossed that that will help get a baby here before the new year! And the most exciting news is that the Dr was able to tell us the sex..... we are "pretty sure" it is a boy. She said that she could not be absolutely sure since it is still early and "he" was moving around the whole time. I am not trained to read these sonogram things at all but I think I saw what looks like a boy when he was moving around also. She said that she is not wrong very often and that if she was wrong I better call her and let her know! So we are going with that and will hopefully get that confirmed with my OB Dr in about 6 weeks. Here are some pictures that we got!

8 Week Ultrasound

2008-05-14T20:25:00.002-05:00

Well the morning started off in the rain, and while on the way to the Dr. we saw Sheena at an accident scene on the highway. Good work out there officer Parsons, be safe.
Everything looks good at the doctor. The measurements show the baby is growing right on track. This weeks pictures are not as good as last time but you can definitely tell he/she is much bigger. We have an appointment at the OBGYN on June 6th. It will be a long 3 weeks!

Baby's First Ultrasound

2008-05-05T20:45:00.007-05:00

Today was our first ultrasound. After an HOUR wait the Dr finally came in (woke us up from our nap)! We have one baby measuring right on track. The Dr. said that everything looks to be going well. The size of the baby is at 6 weeks 4 days and I am really 6 weeks 5 days but that is well within the expected range. The heart rate is at 124bmp. That is great for this stage and it should go up then come back down to a baby's speed. Then he turned the sound on for the heartbeat and I was very surprised to get to hear that already. They must have some very good sonogram machines. Rann is very good a recreating the sound of the heartbeat for me! I go back next Wednesday for the next ultrasound.... so here is one of the pictures from today!

Ultrasound Scheduled

2008-04-25T21:51:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to update since I have not posted anything lately. We had another blood test on Friday the 18th (2 days later) and it was 407 so that was pretty much a perfect double in 48 hours which is right on track. Then we had another test on the following Wednesday the 23rd (I had figured it should be about 2400) it was 2700ish so again right on track and then some. We are scheduled for our first ultrasound May 5th in the afternoon so I will post after that with hopefully a picture!
I have felt pretty good so far... some days I am really tired and others I feel fine.... I don't sleep well at night lately I am sure it has something to do with anxiety and the dreams about sonograms! I have felt nauseous a few times most days just for a couple of minutes and nowhere near needing to actually get sick.
Hurry Up May 5th!!

We are pregnant!

2008-04-16T11:36:00.002-05:00

Today was the magic day!!! Our pregnancy test came back positive!!! The beta number is 194!! The like for it to be above 20, but anything above 5 is pregnant..... I was thinking 80ish to 150ish meant one baby and 200-300ish meant twins..... so now the big question is one or two!!! I get another check on Friday to make sure the number is rising correctly so maybe I will have a better idea by then!!

Pregnancy Test Day is Coming!

2008-04-13T23:32:00.002-05:00

We will be having our beta (Blood Pregnancy Test) on Wednesday the 16th and the days can't seem to move fast enough. I have counted and recounted them so many times! I have had some pregnancy symptoms but they are all also very common side effects from the progesterone I am still taking so who knows whether they are caused by that are a real live pregnancy! Hmmmm..... Only 3 more days to go!! Or wait if I go to bed now it will be 2 more days then, right? Good Night!

More Embryos to Freeze

2008-04-09T19:11:00.002-05:00

The embryologist called today, and they were able to freeze all 6 remaining embryos. That gives us 9 that are frozen, 2 are rated AA, 2 are rated AB, and 5 are rated BB. Strange to think about...

Auto Email

2008-04-08T20:47:00.002-05:00

We have added some of our families' email addresses to send an auto-email when we make a new post.

Embryo Transfer

2008-04-07T12:38:00.004-05:00

I am home from the Embryo Transfer.... We transfered 2 Grade AA!!!
We froze 3 today & are waiting on 6 more to see if they grow to the correct stage before Wednesday then they will freeze them! I am now 2 weeks 5 days pregnant with twins. We have added their first baby pictures below.... the 1st ones name is Wall and the 2nd ones name is Fence.... just kidding Nita!

Embryo Update

2008-04-05T11:21:00.002-05:00

We got an update on our embryos today.... they said that 12 of them appear to be growing really well and he (embyrologist) expects to have many really great embryos to choose from on Monday! Whoo-Hoo!

Fertilization Report!

2008-04-03T22:52:00.002-05:00

Hello All.... Just wanted to let everyone know that we had 13 off our eggs fertilize. So we have 13 embryos growing in a dish! We have been told that on average they expect about 50% of them to divide and grow to day 5 embryos. We are scheduled to have the best 2 transferred back in to their home on Monday at 9:00am.

After the Egg Retrieval

2008-04-02T15:24:00.003-05:00

We had our retrieval his morning. We had to be at the center at 7:00am which is about an hour away, so an early morning for us. They got 18 eggs and we will know tomorrow how many of them fertilized. I just took a 3 hour nap and am feeling pretty good thus far except a minor headache and some pains in the stomach. We will know more tomorrow yet again..... Thanks for checking in!

Time for Egg Retrieval

2008-04-01T12:55:00.003-05:00

So at my appt. yesterday I got the go ahead for the trigger shot and am having the egg retrieval tomorrow. We have to be at the center at 7:00am and I am thinking we will leave there around 11:00am. I am hoping for lots of good eggs and we will know how many they got before we leave. We will not know how many of them fertilized until the next day when they call me. I will post a report on how many eggs were retrieved tomorrow afternoon!

The 3rd & Extra Follicle Check

2008-03-30T18:53:00.003-05:00

Yet another update on the ever growing follicles. Today they measured 3 @ >18mm, 2 @ 16 & 17, 6 @ 13-14, 5 @ 10-12, and 3 @ <10mm. My lining is still nice and thick, as it should be. The good thing is my E2 level has only gone up a little more to 1640ish. I thought they would have me trigger tonight but... no they upped my doses back to what they were and I go back AGAIN tomorrow morning. I guess they are looking for those 10-14 ones to get a little bigger. I also found out that I can do the trigger shot with a Sub-q (short) needle. I was so not looking forward to an IM (long) shot. So Yea!

2nd Follicle Check

2008-03-29T13:36:00.002-05:00

So I had my 2nd follie count today and my lining is now at 23.27.... wow! There are now 19 Follicles. 4 of them are 14-16mm. 10 of them are 10-13mm. 5 of them are <10mm. The Dr. has just called to give me my E2 level which is now at 1418.... a little high. So they have lowered my Menopur dose by half and my Follistim dose by a third. And they are also having me come in tomorrow for another check. That makes me a little nervous since my fear is overstimulating but it is also very reassuring that they are checking me again tomorrow. Will check back after my appt. at 10:15 tomorrow.

1st Follicle Count

2008-03-27T11:26:00.002-05:00

Today was the first follicle count and I have now been on the stimming meds for 5 days. The sonogram showed that my uterine lining is 13.41mm thick, which is great (the embryos will attach here so the thick lining will make it easier for them to burrow in.) There are approx. 17 follicles as of now. 7 are < 9mm so they need to catch up. 4 are 9-10mm. 4 are 10-12mm. And 2 are 13-15mm. They typically grow 1-2mm a day and I have 6ish days till schedule egg retrevial. The nurse will call me later to tell me my E2 level, which will tell them if they need to change my dose. My next appt is Sat. to check E2 and count follicles again.

Our cable to add the new videos is not working. We are working on having somebody else put them on the computer for us, not sure when though.....

2008-03-25T22:58:00.002-05:00

Just a quick update. My Dr. appt today they took blood to check my Estrogen level. It was at 187 which is right where is should be after 3 days on these medications so they are keeping my dose the same and I go back on Thursday morning to check it again and to have an ultrasound to start counting and measuring the eggs! I can't believe it is getting so close!

Started new meds

2008-03-22T21:29:00.002-05:00

Marcia started her first day on new medication tonight, Menopur and Follistim. The Menopur has to be mixed and she has to do 2 vials each of the first 2 nights. The Follistim is a pen that you insert the medicine vial in and just turn a dial to determine your dose, instead of drawing it up. She is also still doing the Lupron, half the dose, but still a shot, to make 3 shots tonight and will continue for the next 8 days or so.
This first night of 3 shots didn't sit well for Marcia. She is fine now, but while she was giving herself the last one she felt like she was about to pass out, and got hot and clammy. I gave her some ice water and a ice pack.
We ordered a cable to allow us to post our new videos from the video camera. Hopefully it will be here by Monday! Check back to watch.

Our New Webpage

2008-03-18T21:29:00.003-05:00

So we tried to email you these pictures and videos many times and couldn't make it work so we made a blogger page for me. Check back anytime for updates... we will also let you guys know if we add anything new and interesting. Leave us some comments to let us know what ya'll think!

Meds & Needles

2008-03-18T21:28:00.005-05:00

Needles

2008-03-18T21:27:00.004-05:00

Meds

2008-03-18T21:22:00.004-05:00

1st Lupron Shot

2008-03-18T20:50:00.003-05:00