11 weeks- Graduation Day!

I have officially “graduated” from my RE to my OBGYN.  This is definitely a bittersweet moment, but mostly sweet.  The staff at MLF and my RE have been great throughout the entire process, and I appreciate them so much for everything.  But I am so GLAD I never have to see them again!  That is, until the next baby.  They are sending my paperwork to my current OBGYN, and I am subsequently going to leave my current OBGYN to join a practice that is affiliated with two hospitals in the area and one birth center.  Unfortunately, my current OBGYN is not affiliated with any birth centers, and I really would like that as an option for my birth plan.  

Today’s u/s was the most entertaining of them all!  The little man was huge!  He was measuring 11w1d (which is right on track) and had a heartbeat of 167 bpm.  He is about the size of a plum (I’m told) and he was jumping around in there like a little monkey!  It was hilarious…he was bending his little knees and springing himself up towards the top of the screen.  I.am.in.trouble!!  He also moved in such a way that you could see his little rump, his two legs, and then something sticking out in between!! The u/s tech asked if we knew what we were having, and after I told her yes she said “good because that’s his sex organ right there between his legs”.  I couldn’t believe it!  That’s definitely not the irish in him…lol J  I seriously love him and I am totally in for it- he is going to crush me, I just know it.  That little jumping bean on the u/s screen has already stolen my heart!  We didn’t get a very good picture because he was moving around too much.

As for my future with my RE and his practice, I asked how soon after a baby is born that I could start my next IVF cycle.  I know, I know, I never focus on the present. But I wanted to get his thoughts on our last appointment.  He said that he needs me to not be breastfeeding for at least two months before we start another FET or fresh cycle, so I am thinking Jan/Feb 2013 would be the earliest we would get back on the IVF horse.  My 32^nd birthday is tomorrow (what a great birthday present today was!) so I didn’t want to push up to far against the 35 deadline because then it’s an uphill battle even WITHOUT all of my chromosome issues.  I would like to be done by 35 and put these horrific childbearing years behind me.  That’s so sad. I was looking forward to these years my entire adult life and I’ve been reduced to rushing through them to get to the other side.  I hate infertility.

I have to do some serious thinking about IVF nurse and RE gifts.  I have off the week between Christmas and New Years and I wanted to visit the office in Bryn Mawr to see those guys and give little “thank yous”.  I’m leaning towards bath & body gift sets or some kind of gift from Harry & David.  I wanted to stay away from alcohol because some people don’t drink, and also anything Christmas because I don’t know who’s Christian vs. Jewish.  M wants to get the RE some Cubans, and my last task today was to make sure I asked him if he smoked cigars before I left his office.   I suppose all of these are trivial things, because “thank you” just doesn’t seem adequate for the team that helped us to realize our dreams.   Although we aren’t out of the woods yet (still 2 more weeks until I’m out of the first trimester), I am feeling very good about where we’ve come from.   If I start to panic about miscarriage or losing the baby, M always reminds me that our peanut has already weathered like 7 rounds of the natural selection process to get where he is today- egg retrieval, ICSI, reaching blast, a freeze AND a thaw, transfer, and implantation.  And we hope he isn’t going anywhere any time soon!