So far, so good

My blood test results are back, and what do you know? I'M NORMAL! :-) Thank you, LORD!

Here are the results:

My TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone): 1.628 Anything below 4 is said to be normal, but for fertility purposes, they would like it below 2.5

My AMH (anti-mullerian hormone): 1.7 This is the test that looks at ovarian reserve--how many eggs I have left. They like to see this above 1, which mine is.

My blood type: A+ (Ah, the perfectionist in me is revealed)

After Dr. Matteri's nurse, Roxanne, shared my blood test results with me, we were able to talk about my frozen embryo transfer (FET) schedule. Prior to our conversation, I had forecasted when I thought my transfer might take place, based on when I thought my cycle would start and then 8 weeks of prepping and so on. I know, I'm a little strange this way. I thrive on having dates to look forward to and checking things off my list. I guessed that if everything goes according to plan, we would likely transfer some of our embryos on Friday, May 21st. Roxanne pretty much made my day when she told me that my transfer is scheduled for that exact date! Then, it's as if she was speaking my love language by telling me she was going to e-mail me a calendar that has all my meds, and upcoming ultrasounds and blood work appointments! I really appreciate how organized ORM is.

May 21st is a little less than 11 weeks away. We hope this FET will result in the much anticipated blessing of a pregnancy! Our good friends recently found out that their FET was successful and our hearts are overjoyed for them :) Paul and I often wonder what that day will feel like for us. When you have been waiting for years to hear those precious words "you are pregnant," it's got to feel like you won the lottery! Will we stare in disbelief and shock, or will we burst into tears of joy? Stay tuned...we hope we get to share our experience with you in 12 weeks or so.

Prayer Requests:

We've been told we have a less than 3% chance of conceiving on our own, but we know that all things are possible with God :) We still pray and hope for a miracle.

That God would continue to teach us how to live joyfully and truly thrive on our journey. This prayer request is probably the one most dear to our heart. Please, allow me to elaborate. It's easy to resort to bitterness and self-pity when friends, family, and co-workers seem to conceive so effortlessly. Paul is notoriously asked by his patients at work the innocent question, "so, do you and your wife have kids?" It may sound trivial, but even simple questions like that can cause pain and sadness, when you are repeatedly forced to say "no, not yet". Both Paul and I enjoy Facebook as a means of staying in touch with family and friends, but it's not without it's challenges. When the pregnancy announcements come, the ultrasound pictures are shared, and the disgruntled person openly complains about this, that, and the other thing revolving around pregnancy and parenting, it takes strength and perseverance to choose joy instead of jealousy, anger, and resentment. Please hear me on this. I don't share these things so that people won't share about the joys and challenges of pregnancy and parenting. That's part of life. I share because we truly desire to thrive on our journey. Neither one of us want to take the easy way out by drowning in our own sea of self-pity. Because let me tell you, it's a whole lot easier to get angry and feel sorry for yourself when you are continually denied the blessing that so many seem to take for granted. We're not immune to these feelings, which is why we need prayer.

I think that's it for now. We will update as things progress, as always.

Much love,

G & P