Genetic Center Results (16w1d)

First of all, I apologize for not writing this blog post sooner. I didn’t get to work until 1:00 so I didn’t take a lunch. Anyway, when we arrived at the genetic center we first spoke with the genetic counselor, who seriously did not look old enough to be doing that job. She explained the results from our quad screen and went over exactly what DS is and what causes it. She explained that the quad screen is just a screen and not a diagnostic test. She went over our family history and explained that the only way to know for sure is to get an amnio which we declined. Then we went into the ultrasound room. They had a huge screen on the wall which showed everything so we didn’t have to stare at a little screen. She checked the baby from head to toe. Everything measured right on target and there were no markers for downs (cyst on brain, spot on heart, enlarged kidneys, enlarged bladder, etc.) Baby was wiggling all around (which I still can’t feel!) and drinking amniotic fluid (aka baby pee.) Baby was stubborn and sitting almost Indian style at first so I had to get up and go pee and shake things up a bit and then she was able to get the measurements she needed. We do need to go back in three weeks so she can look at the heart because baby is still a little too small for that. All in all I am extremely relieved and feel like I got the reassurance I needed. Obviously there is always some remote possibility that something could still be wrong but I am not interested in the amnio.

So, I suppose you are wondering whether we were able to get a look at the goods huh? We got a quick peek at first and then baby crossed its legs. After I got up to go pee the legs opened back up and we were able to get a pretty good look at the goods. And…I was right, we have ourselves a baby boy! We saw his little baby “pee pee” and are pretty confident it is a boy. The tech said it was definitely a boy so hopefully she is right. We still have our big u/s for the 11th so we will double check then. So, without further ado, let me introduce our little miracle Noah Michael Vollmerhausen.

Profile shot.

Front view (alien picture)

The “money” shot (this one is not of the "pee pee" itself, just his little "jewels".

We picked the name Noah because we just like the name. The name Michael is special to us both because Shawn and his dad’s middle name is Michael and my father’s name was Michael.

We did tell our parents the sex and we will tell our grandparents tonight then we will tell everyone else in the family/friends.

Thank you a million times over for all of your love and support. The past couple of days have truly been some of the roughest days in my life. I am a believer and I know that God would never give us more than we can handle and I will love this baby no matter what. Hugs and kisses to you all and let me know what you think of the name!

16w0d & Quad Screen Results

I didn't really want to get the Quad Screen anyway because I have heard horror stories of people getting bad results and worrying over nothing, but I decided to do it anyway. And what do you know? My quad screen came back with a 1 in 39 chance of Downs. The other numbers were fine but because of this number I have to go to a genetic counselor and get a level 3 u/s at a genetic place. The good news is that we get to see our little Doozer TOMORROW! I'm scared to death! I will obviously love this baby no matter what and even if it does have downs I would never terminate, but I can't help but be upset over the possibilities. You always want your child to be perfect and when there is a chance that something may not be right it is devastating. I am hopeful that everything will be fine but I can't help but look at the numbers. Why is it so high? I'm not over 35 so that didn't factor into it. So anyway, I am a mess these past 2 days since hearing the results. We go tomorrow at 10 a.m. to meet with the genetics center and to get the u/s. Please, if you pray, please send a quick prayer our way for the health of our little one.

15w2d

Hello there! I bet you thought I fell off the face of the earth? Nope, I’m still here and all is well. I guess I owe an explanation as to why I had to go invite only huh? It had nothing to do with the comments we received from the article, I knew that was going to happen and didn’t let it get to me. A bit of background first:

I have a co-worker who we will call Nark. Meaning she squeals on everyone for everything. I had previously provided her a link to my old blog which I have since deactivated so that when you visit it it will direct you to this blog. I also disabled the old blog so that you cannot find it by searching since I knew people might be searching for my blog since the article referenced the name but didn’t link to the blog. (Hopefully I’m making sense so far.) So, to make a long story short Nark had been visiting my blog every day since the article came out. How do I know? For one I knew by checking my Site Meter, for two, I know because she said something to my co-worker about one of blog entries being “tmi” (the one about my swollen parts.) I mean it is a pregnancy site right? I didn’t say anything because I knew that since the article was out everyone I knew would be able to find my blog if they cared to do so. So, on Friday afternoon Nark comes into my office and tells me that one of the partners is surfing my blog (gee I wonder who forwarded them the link?). While I didn’t think they would be interested I wasn’t too concerned. Then the partner I work for calls me into his office and tells me that they are concerned about my internet use because some of the timestamps on my blog and during work and non-lunch hours. I explained to him that the timestamps are incorrect because some of them say 5 a.m. and I am never up that early. He insisted that I must be blogging during work time and that they don’t even want me blogging at all on their computer because I am “publishing something.” I told him that wasn’t fair because what about other people who went on MySpace and posted at work? He said “blogging is different.” I told him while I agree that I shouldn’t be blogging on work time (and I never was) I don’t think it is fair to monitor what I do during my lunch with making my blog a specific target and not anyone else. He agreed that I could blog on my lunch and before work. I left feeling pretty ticked off that they would peruse my blog for the purpose of trying to find something that I may have done wrong. Then when I got home I checked my Site Meter because I was curious about how long they spent on there and what they were looking at. I found that they had been on my blog for over 2 hours, read almost every single post including the comments, AND did a search for the word “boss.” I was really pissed by this point. I really felt like they were looking really hard to find something to implicate me in some way. I was hurt that they accused me of blogging on company time and wouldn’t even consider the fact that the time stamps might be wrong. I am sure that Nark directed them to my blog with the sole intention to get me into trouble. I was hurt that I forwarded the article to everyone I knew because I was proud and they turned it around and used it to try to get me into trouble. So, I decided to go invite only. It has never been brought up again and I am over it for the most part. And can you believe that Nark had the nerve to ask me for an invite? So anyway, that is why I went invite only so that my job does not continue to use the blog as an investigation tool.

Anyway. I have been doing okay. I am 15w2d today! I had been having some pain in my lower pelvic area for a couple of days and suspected it might be a UTI so I headed over to the OB on Thursday. Sure enough I was right. So now I am taking antibiotics to clear that up. It feels better but not totally better yet. I am also having some pretty painful RLP. My doctor also commented about my swollen ankles again on Thursday. My ankles have been swelling every single day. My blood pressure was great so at least we don’t have to worry about that for now. She did say that with the PCOS I am at higher risk for preeclampsia and so she wants me to do the 24 hour urine test this weekend. The thought of peeing in a jug and keeping it in my fridge totally grosses me out. I’m kind of confused as to why she wants me to do the test but something about finding a baseline. She also had to bump up my evening insulin from 20 to 25 because my morning sugars are getting high again. All of this combined sent me into kind of a panic mode Thursday night. I was angry at my body because of the PCOS and how even now that I am pregnant I can’t be “normal.” It made me terrified to think of everything that could go wrong. I don’t trust my body at all and that scares me. I’m scared that the swelling is somehow an omen that my blood pressure will get out of control at some point. I love this baby so much and I am doing everything in my power to keep it safe and healthy. I am dealing with this horrible diabetes diet that forces me to eat things I don’t like, I am sticking myself in the stomach every single night and will continue to have to do so until I deliver, I am following everything the doctor tells me to do. Still I don’t trust my body. I just wanted to be a normal pregnant woman but I can’t even do that. I am not complaining, I promise. I know how incredibly blessed I am to be here. I also know that God had a hand in creating this baby and I can only hope and pray that He will help me keep it safe.

Anyway, I guess that is about it for now. I really hope you all continue to comment and read even though I have gone invite only and I hope that you understand why I felt I had to do so. I love each and every one of you and want to thank you for all of your love and support, I could never do this without you.

Going Password Protected

I really didn't want to have to do this. I always said I wouldn't go password protected because I wanted anyone to be able to find my blog. I knew when I accepted the interview with the Baltimore Sun that family and friends would then have access to my blog but I thought it was a small price to pay for the chance to raise awareness about infertility. I also knew that when I forwarded the article to my work that it would allow people at my work to access my blog as well. But I wanted people to know about the article, and thought they would be proud that I was doing something good. It turns out that by doing so that I have somehow opened myself up to some untrue and hurtful accusations. So I will be going password protected starting sometime before Wednesday. For the benefit of those that know me personally, and that I know are reading because I have a tracker that tells me (and I even know which pages you are viewing and the search terms you are using), I am not going password protected so that I can talk about you or any other reason other than it is obvious that people that I know personally are way too interested in my blog. I apologize if this makes it difficult for anyone using a reader, as I know that readers will not track password protected blogs, however I don't see another choice. So please e-mail me at ravenschic@verizon.net if you would like an invitation to my blog. You must tell me your name (first only) and your e-mail address as well as if you have a blog. Again, I really hope this does not cause me to lose readers but I feel it is the best option for me at this time.

Ob Visit

Two posts in one day, whoa! Just wanted to update everyone on my OB visit today. Doctor said I am doing great with my blood sugars and that I can now come in every 2 weeks instead of every week (I had no idea I would be going to the OB so much this early.) Baby is good, h/b was 155. He told me I have some edema in my ankles (I didn’t notice it) but when I left and had to walk back to my building in the heat my hands swelled again. I told the doctor about my hands swelling and he didn’t seem concerned. He also told me I don’t have to sleep on my left side. He said they usually only tell that to patients who have babies that aren’t growing correctly. He said you will know if your uterus is pressing on any arteries and if I start to feel lightheaded while lying on my back obviously switch to the side. I’m happy about that because it is much more comfortable to sleep on my back for now. But the most exciting news is that we have our big u/s scheduled! On August 11th at 5:30 p.m. we will hopefully find out if Doozer is a boy or a girl! I can’t wait and I am so excited! I added a countdown thingie on the side but I can’t figure out how to resize it. Oh well…

14 Weeks & Assvice

Okay folks, back to business as usual. Today is 14 weeks! Yay Doozer! Doozer is still doing well as far as I can tell. We still listen to the h/b every single night and it still brings me great joy to hear it. How am I feeling at 14 weeks? I'm not sick in the mornings any more. I still feel incredibly hungry in the mornings and I will occasionally gag if I don't eat but no puking. I am not as tired and have some more energy. Not a lot more energy but some. I am having what the doctor told me is round ligament pain. I am very sore feeling when I walk on the inside of my legs right between my legs. I also feel like I have to pee more now than I did before. I thought the uterus was supposed to rise but it seems to still be squishing my little bladder. I am having a horrible time trying to sleep. I am coughing because of allergies, it gives me a dry throat feeling. On top of that I have to get up every hour to pee (I'm not kidding) and I read in my books that I am now not supposed to sleep on my back but on my side because it could cut off the blood circulation to the baby. Well I am a back-sleeper so this has been very difficult for me. I go to sleep on my side but wake up on my back. So I am constantly waking up to reposition myself on my side. I also found something new last night. This part might be a little too TMI but oh well. For the past couple of days I have felt like there is something between my legs that doesn't belong. I took a mirror and looked last night and my lips down there look bigger. They look like they hand lower and are slightly larger. I am assuming this is a pregnancy thing but I'm going to ask my doctor just to be sure. Sorry for the TMI. :) Also, on Saturday we went to an outdoor party and I was outside in the heat from 2:00 until about 8:00. Towards the end of the day I noticed my hands and fingers were swollen. My fingers were so swollen that my "fake bling ring" (because I can't fit my real rings on) was tight. My ankles weren't swollen though. Then I figured it was about time to get out of the heat. I am assuming all of these things are normal pregnancy things but I will ask my OB at my blood sugar appointment today. Hopefully this will be my last weekly appointment since I my sugars are doing so well. Also, no more spotting which is great!

Now on to the assvice portion of my post. Here is a little background first: I am well aware of what I am not supposed to eat and drink during pregnancy. I have spoken to my doctor and I feel confident eating turkey sandwiches from my favorite deli because I am familiar with them and have been eating there for a while. I also allow myself one caffeinated drink per day. the reason I do this is because I cannot have anything with sugar like sprite or anything that doesn't have caffeine. I LOVE diet soda and since I can't have any sweets which I also love I treat myself and allow myself to have one diet soda a day. So, at this party I was enjoying my diet Pepsi for the day. A lady comes up to me later on (someone I don't even know) and starts out by saying "I was deciding on whether I should say something to you or not..." We all know as soon as someone utters those words that means that they are going to spew useless information and assvice that is none of their business. So while I has the urge to advise her that she shouldn't say anything if she had to think about whether it was appropriate to say it I kept my mouth shut. She proceeded to tell me how I shouldn't be drinking caffeine while I am pregnant and when she saw me drinking the diet soda she was "concerned." I explained to her (I really didn't need to explain but I did anyway) that I had discussed it with my doctor and that I was allowing myself to have one caffeinated drink a day. I mean seriously, maybe if I was drinking a beer or something she may have had a right to say something, but I just really thought it was odd. So I guess that makes me a horrible Mommy for drinking on caffeinated drink a day, for shame!

The Price of Fame

Seriously, I'm just kidding about the fame part. But seriously, I have been checking out the comments to the article in the Sun and I am shocked to see the stupidity of some of the commentors. It is not a surprise to me in the least, I knew that taking a chance and putting our story out there would get some not-so-nice comments. I am still so amazed at some of the things that people say, or should I say "type." I am obviously not going to continue to defend my feelings to these ignorant people, especially on the Sun website, but I will address some of their comments, just for the sheer fun of it. Lets start with:

"Screw them. There are too many people in the world as it is. " I'm not even sure this deserves a response.

"If they're leaving it in God's hands to carry the pregnancy full-term, then why did they choose to have science intervene to get pregnant in the first place?" Not sure how these relate to each other. I was always leaving everything to do with our IF and treatments in God's hands. However, leaving it in God's hands does not mean that we can't pursue treatment created by doctors who are created by God. With this type of logic should we choose to forgo all medical treatment (cancer treatment, surgery, etc.) to leave it in God's hands? If I get an infection should I leave it in God's hands to clear it up instead of taking the medication?

"Perhaps infertile couples should get a clue and take their infertility as a sign that they weren't meant to have biological babies." This is ridiculous. I do not believe that infertility should be taken as a sign that someone is not meant to be a biological parent.

"Then they could pour the same amount of time, money and effort into adopting a needy kid or animal." WHAT? Are you suggesting I go and adopt a puppy? You can't be serious. I'm an animal lover but it is not the same thing. As for adopting a child, I have nothing against adoption. In fact, we almost went with adoption instead of IVF. I wish people read up on adoption before they go suggesting it as an alternative to infertility treatment. Adoption is an expensive and long process as many of you know, it is not a decision to be made lightly. Plus, why do these people care what I do with my time, money or effort? If they think there are so many needy kids out there maybe they should "just adopt" as well.

"These people are incredibly selfish." Hmmm...are we selfish because we spent all of our savings, went through years of testing and procedures, shots, heartaches, all to bring a child into the world? To me that seems like one of the most selfless things that someone can do. Come and talk to me again when you have had the pleasure of submitting yourself to countless embarrassing physical exams, giving yourself injections in the a$$ every single night, etc., all for the love of a child that you have never met. Then you have a right to judge.

"Well, if a baby is going to solve all these people's woes then I feel bad for the kid and all the pressure that's already being put on it." Not sure where the article said this. Obviously becoming pregnant won't solve all of our woes. But part of this statement is true. We have an amazing marriage, a wonderful family, two beautiful kitties, a nice house, jobs...etc. The only thing missing in our lives is a baby. There is no pressure, baby is already loved more that he/she could ever imagine.

"Sometimes nature, God, whatever higher power you believe in is trying to tell us something, and I think that something is that not all humans are meant to breed." Yes, lets hope this person does not breed.

"The fact that we are now obsessing over getting preggers and blogging about every neurotic thought or medical procedure speaks volumes about how empty some folks lives really are." Can I tell you how much I hate the word preggers? Sounds like something a 13 year old would say.

"We are not on this planet just to procreate, and parenthood is not going to solve all these people's problems in life. It's kinda scary and sad." Once again, not sure where he/she/it got the idea that parenthood would solve all of our problems.

Now I feel better. Once again, I knew that this would draw some negative comments and that's okay. We all have a right to our opinion, no matter how pigheaded it may be. I just hope that somewhere out this article touched someone today, and helped them know that they aren't alone. If it did it was worth it to me.

No Autographs Please...

He he, well, here's the article in the Baltimore Sun I was telling you about. I think the article is great and it features a few other IF Bloggers too. Unfortunately the online version doesn't show the photo. It's kind of a goofy photo anyway. But if you want to see the photo and you live in the area you can see the entire article in the Today section of the Baltimore Sun. What do you think?

Little Scare

Well I had a tiny scare this morning. When I woke up this morning and wiped I was spotting. I called the doctor's office just to let them know since I had an appointment at 10:30 anyway. They told me to lay down until it was time to leave and drink water. Of course I was worried and I made Dh get out the doppler to listen to baby. When we found baby (which never takes long now) I felt a bit better but still worried. When I got to the doctor he did the exam and stuck one of those jumbo q-tips in my cervix to make sure it was closed, which it was. When he pulled it out it was filled with blood. He showed it to me and told me that the membrains in my cervix are very close to the surface of my cervix and are bleeding. It doesn't hurt the baby, baby is fine with a h/b in the 150's, but he said it is something that could continue to make me bleed throughout the entire pregnancy. He used silver nitrate to "burn" the membrains to keep them from bleeding. When I heard him say he was going to burn them I was a little concerned. I pictured him with a blow torch frying my cervix to a crisp! But, he used these things that looked like long matches. It didn't hurt, I didn't feel it at all but he told me I may have some cramping which I am. He said hopefully this will take care of it so that I wont bleed anymore. I was told to go home and stay off of my feet today to give my cervix a chance to heal. He was pleased with my blood sugars so I will stay on the same does of the insulin and go back again next week. I am chilling out on the couch now resting. I am cramping but I'm trying to not let it bother me. I am still spotting a bit when I wipe but he said I would today. So, we had a small scare but overall it wasn't bad. I hope this is the biggest scare we get!

Poll

I added a Poll to my side bar for you to put in your guesses if you think Doozer is a boy or a girl. We have plenty of time so keep the guesses coming.

Dear Doozer

Dear Doozer,

This is your Mommy. You probably can’t hear my voice quite yet but I read that in the next couple of weeks you will be able to hear me talking! I already talk to you a lot anyway though. Mommy is so excited to finally be in the second trimester! Mommy has been trying to read a lot of books and information to learn all about you and how you are growing. Mommy is also trying very hard to take good care of herself and be healthy and strong. The doctor tells Mommy that she has gestational diabetes which means that Mommy has to be careful what she eats, monitor her blood sugar, and give herself an insulin shot every night. Don’t worry though, Mommy is used to giving herself shots (wait until Mommy and Daddy tell you all they went through to get you here) and it doesn’t hurt.

Mommy and Daddy listen to your little heartbeat every single night. It is the highlight of my day and I look forward to it all day. Your little heart beats so fast, it sounds like a galloping horse! Mommy especially loves to hear you kick with the Doppler. It makes Mommy & Daddy giggle to hear you kick and move around. Mommy can’t feel your kicks yet but I am sure waiting for that moment. Every once in a while I try to sit really still and see if I can feel any “flutters” but I haven’t felt anything yet. That’s okay though, it’s still early and in the next few weeks Mommy will hopefully begin to feel you move.

I can’t wait for you to meet your Daddy. I know you are going to love him! Daddy puts his hand on my belly every morning and every night and tells you how much he loves you. Your Daddy is the most amazing man, a wonderful husband, and I know he will be an amazing father. He takes such good care of me and you. Your Daddy has the most gentle and kind touch and strong loving arms that I know will hold you tight whenever you need it. Your Daddy is so silly and full of life, just like big kid! Daddy makes Mommy smile and giggle when she needs it and I know he will do the same for you. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if your first smile is reserved especially for your Daddy!

Mommy has been thinking a lot about whether you are a boy or a girl. Just a few more weeks until we can find out! Mommy and Daddy think you are a boy (just a feeling) but we don’t care either way. We will be happy no matter what! Just continue to grow healthy and strong. Little miracle, there are so many people who already love you and can’t wait to meet you. Please continue to grow healthy and strong so you can come and meet your Mommy & Daddy who have waited so long for you! I love you!

Love,

Mommy

13 Weeks!

I know, I know, I have been a bad blogger, a whole week without an update! But I have had a busy week and I have so much to tell you! First, the most exciting news, I am 13 weeks today and according to some of my books I am in the second trimester! Some of my books say 14 weeks starts the second trimester but I'm going with 13 because it is closer! I am so thrilled and excited to be in the second trimester. I never thought in a million years I would be able to say that! We celebrated by listening to baby on the doppler this morning. We always listen at night after dinner so it was a nice treat to listen in the morning. Baby was very active this morning moving and making all kinds of thumping sounds on the doppler. I cried for the first time in a long time while listening to the doppler. I can't believe we have made it here. I know there is still a long ways to go but I feel like this is a milestone worth celebrating. I also cried because I am the happiest I have been in a very long time and it breaks my heart that all of you are not experiencing the same happiness. I think about it a lot and I pray every single day that each and every one of you will be here someday soon.




I went back to my OB on Thursday. He wants to see me once a week until we get my blood sugar under control. He looked at my blood sugar log that I have been keeping and said that my blood sugar looks great except for in the morning when I wake up. It is higher than it is all day when I first wake up in the morning. It is supposed to be below 95 and mine ranges from 115 to 126. So, he said that since a fasting blood sugar cannot be affected by diet (because we don't eat in the middle of the night) he put me on insulin. I am to do one shot, 20 units, sub-q, in the evening after dinner. He seemed worried that I wouldn't be able to give myself a shot and I had to remind him that I was a fertility patient. So, I thought I was rid of shots, but alas I am still the human pincushion and probably will be throughout the rest of my pregnancy. The good thing is that my sugar doesn't seem to be affected by what I eat during the day and I can eat what I want as long as I avoid high sugar and massive carbs.

But now I have to tell you the funny thing that happened at my OB appointment. When they called me back they took me into a little room to weigh me and take my blood pressure. I thought this was strange since I was told I was there just for a consultation for my blood sugar. I have gained 1.5 lbs since my first OB appointment! Then the nurse sat me down and asked me when my last period was. I thought this was odd because clearly they already have this info but I told her April 9th (which is my made up day so no one gets confused about the IVF.) She looked at me funny and said "Are you taking any medications to keep you from having a period?" Huh? I was confused, I said "I'm pregnant." She looked at me like I was from mars. Then she looked at her chart and asked me my name. I told her and she laughed and told me that she thought I was another patient there for a pap! So then they took me back into the waiting room and called me again. This time I was put into the office to wait for the doctor. He came in, asked me how I was feeling and whipped out the doppler. I was still confused but whatever, so we listened to the baby's h/b which was 150. He felt my belly and said he could just feel my uterus coming above my pelvic bone (which I still cannot feel, am I missing something?) Then he told me all looked good and to make an appointment for 4 weeks. Again, I was confused. I asked wasn't I there to discuss blood sugar. He looked at my chart and said, yes you are, but they put you in under a routine OB appointment so I didn't know. Ahhhh! So, then we finally discussed my blood sugar which was the whole reason I was there to begin with. So, a visit that they told me would take 1/2 hour ended up taking an hour and a half. I have to go back on Friday to see how everything is going. I am now confused as to when my next actual OB appointment is because it was scheduled for next Wednesday, but since they already did one I'm not sure if I am still supposed to go or not. I will ask on Friday.

We went to our farmhouse in Western Maryland this weekend for the 4th. It was a pretty boring weekend over all as it rained the whole entire time! We went to an Amish furniture store and we found the crib and changing table that we want. This is the crib. We want to get it in a lighter wood to match the trim in our house. The crib converts from a crib to a toddler bed to a twin bed. We thought this would be great because then Doozer can use it all throughout his/her time at home. I don't have a picture of the changing table but it starts out as a changing table and can the be flipped over to a dresser. So neat! The quality of the wood is amazing! Much nicer than our bedroom set. It will cost us a tiny bit more than if we were to not get it custom made by Amish but we think it is worth it. We didn't order it now because I thought it was too early but when we go back in September we will order it.

Since our weekend at the farm was boring there isn't much to tell but I do have to tell you something funny that Dh's cousin asked me. I walked into the kitchen to be confronted by Dh's 6 year old cousin. The conversation went like this:

"Mo, I have a question."
"Sure, what is your question."
"Did you and Shawn get married again?"
"No, why?"
"Well then how did you get the baby in your belly if you didn't get married again?"
"Err..." I was temped to say the doctor put it there but I thought that might confuse her so I said, " God put it there."
"Oh, okay." Walks away...

He he. I thought it was a funny question and thought it was even funnier when I found out she asked Shawn first and he said, "Go ask your Mom."

Lastly, I have some very exciting news! I am going to be in the newspaper! I have been talking with a reporter for the Baltimore Sun who is doing a story on infertility bloggers. We had a photographer come to our house last night to take our pictures. Hopefully the article will be coming out shortly and I will definitely post a link when it comes out. I am thrilled that my story is going to make headlines and I hope that it helps to raise awareness about PCOS and infertility which is the whole reason I started this blog to begin with. I hope that one day people wont see infertility as a dirty little secret that should be ignored, but as a genuine medical condition that affects millions of people. So, look for the article to come out shortly!

Well, I think this update is long enough. I promise to update more often and I apologize for not commenting more often but I have had a busy week!

12 Weeks!

I can't believe today is 12 weeks! I have no idea why I feel like 12 weeks is a milestone of some kind but I do. Does anyone know why 12 weeks is so special? I just remember people being excited to hit 12 weeks, so I'm excited! As for how I am feeling, still exhausted, still sick in the mornings, although I didn't puke for the first time in a while this morning. Now I have an awful head cold which is making me feel terrible! I have been drinking hot tea (caffeine free) like crazy and it if definitely soothing on a sore throat. But all in all I'm not complaining because I feel pretty good. I just wish I could get energy to do something around the house. My house is messy, and although Dh promises to clean I haven't really seen him do any serious cleaning. He does pick up one room every once in a while but the house on a whole is still a mess. I barely have energy to eat dinner before crashing on the couch when I get home from work. I'm hoping that soon my energy will come back.

As for the GD, to answer a couple of questions I have gotten: My numbers were not high, but on the high end of normal. My doctor wanted to be proactive and get it under control now instead of waiting. I wasn't a fan of this approach at first but after taking my blood sugar three times a day I am seeing that sometimes it spikes up. However, the strange thing is that it doesn't seem to correlate with what I am eating. My fasting blood sugar (when I first wake up in the morning) is supposed to be below 95 and is always around 120. I have no idea how or why it could be high in the morning. I eat the same exact thing for breakfast every morning. Sometimes 2 hours after breakfast my blood sugar is in the 80's, sometimes in the 90's and sometimes it is over 120. As far as what I am eating, I'm basically eating what I ate before but I have cut sugar out of my diet and have been trying to eat less starches. I have an OB appointment tomorrow to show my doctor my blood sugars and my food diary so I think I am going to ask him about possibly going back on Metformin. Although I hate the stuff, I'm thinking maybe it might help.

I've been thinking a lot about the sex of the baby. I really want to know! I feel like I could better connect with the little one if I knew if it was a boy or a girl. I have a hunch (of course not based on anything concrete) but I'm not going to tell you yet. Perhaps I will put up a poll to see what you think.

Last night while listening to baby on the doppler I am almost certain we heard him/her kick! We have been hearing some movement noises, or sometimes Doozer would disappear and we would have to find him again, but last night we heard a distinct noise that could only be kicking. It was the most amazing sound! It is so strange that there is this little creature in there moving around and I can't even feel it.

Lastly, Doozer has been getting lots of little gifts from family members. At first I wasn't sure how I felt about having people give us gifts for the baby so soon but I guess I am okay with it now. Here is Doozer's latest gift:

We got jerseys for Dh and I and a little teeny one for Doozer, too cute!