Hello everybody! It's Baby Morgan again - back to tell Part 2 of the story of how I came to be!
First, I must apologize for the delay. Daddy said Uncle Ronnie told him waiting for this blog is like waiting for the next episode of Yellowstone to come out! I didn't know I was as popular as Kevin Costner! 😜
I just have to say though, growing so much and so fast is EXHAUSTING!! I'm a little over 18 weeks old in my mommy's womb. The internet tells me:
I am as big as a cucumber
I am also as big as the red stapler from the movie Office Space
I've mastered the art of yawning and hiccupping
Nerves are developing, specifically the ones that serve the 5 senses
I can fully hear my mom talking and making noises!
My mom should be able to start feeling me moving around ANY DAY!
Enough about me... let's get on with the story!
If you haven't read Part 1, you should go do that now! We left off with the day I was conceived in the petri dish in Iowa City - May 8. This is a special day...the day of my mommy's egg retrieval, my grandpa Gene's birthday, the day my mom and dad went on their first first date in 2015 (if you know you know), and the day I was made!
Transfer Day!
Transfer Day is typically 5 days after egg retrieval. This meant that my transfer day would be May 13, the day before Mother's Day!
Well, this threw a little wrench in the plans. Before Mommy even knew that she'd get to do another IVF cycle so soon, she had planned to host a bridal shower brunch for my auntie Kelsey at my mom and dad's house on May 13 - that SAME DAY! What are the chances?
Invites have already gone out and plans have been made! Mom cooked a bunch of food the night before and hung up decorations for the party. Thank goodness for wonderful friends and family who stepped in to host the shower while Mommy had to be gone!
Let me just tell you - Mom and Dad have missed out on A LOT during their journey to me, this bridal shower is a perfect example. But now that I am on the way, it is all worth it!
Anyway, Mom and Dad woke up early and hit the road to Iowa City. Mom is basically a pro now at timing her water intake so she has a full bladder by the time they get to the clinic. Same as usual - she wore her lucky "stick baby stick" socks and "wake, pray, transfer day" shirt. Regardless of the outcome, it would be the last time she would be wearing these.
They were so ecstatic when Nurse Kelly came to the waiting room to call them back! Kelly is one of their nurses at the West Des Moines location. It was so nice to see a familiar face!!
As you might remember from previous cycles, Mom and Dad don't get the results of their embryos until right before the transfer. The plan was to transfer 2 and freeze any others that developed enough to be frozen.
The report was not good.
Of the 12 eggs retrieved, 10 were inseminated and 8 fertilized normally. Of those 8 little guys, 6 of them did not make it. The remaining 2 (one was me!) did not look promising. It was the worst embryo report Mom and Dad have gotten through this process (well, besides their first cycle when there were 0 embryos!).
My mom and dad made the quick decision to transfer the 2 embryos they had. When it was all over and everyone left the room, they cried and cried.
They usually cry after this part because they are so happy that they made it this far. This time, they cried because the outlook was very grim and this was the last time they'd be doing this.
Test Day
Test day would be in 10 days - May 23. Daddy had to keep injecting Mommy's hip with a scary-long needle full of progesterone in oil. Leading up to May 23, Mommy was just waiting and waiting for the cramps to start and to see some blood every time she went potty.
Each day came and went and each day there were no signs of a failure. Temptation got the best of my mommy the day before test day and she took an at home pregnancy test.
And, it was POSITIVE!!!!
(So she took about 10 more tests that day, just to be sure.)
The emotions of that day and the next are hard to describe: Scared. Hopeful. Anxious. Excited. Terrified. They'd been excited before - only to have their hearts shattered again and again.
Mom and Dad arrived at the clinic the morning of May 23 and walked in with their nurse, Hilary. Mommy told Hilary all about the at-home tests she'd taken the day before, and Hilary has very visible goosebumps!
They waited by the phone all morning/early afternoon for the results. The email came first and they clicked it. HCG was 69. The highest one yet. But they didn't know what that meant! Was it high enough?
Not 30 seconds later, Hilary called. She said,
"I have been waiting so long to give you guys good news. Your hCG is at a 69 which means, YOU'RE PREGNANT!"
Mom was speechless, literally. Dad started sobbing. He said, "Can you say that again?"
"You're pregnant! We will have you come back in 2 days to redo the hCG and make sure it is rising appropriately. It should be at a 117 next time."
After they got off the phone, there were lots of tears and hugs and shock!
Mommy dug through her nightstand drawer and gave Daddy two gifts she has been holding onto for a lonnnnnng time.
And Daddy reached in his drawer and gave Mommy two shirts he'd gotten her a lonnnng time ago.
After a few hours of pinching themselves to make sure I was real, they went to Grandma and Grandpa's house with Mommy wearing the shirt Daddy got her. Then they stopped at Uncle Ryan's and Aunt Kirby's house. Then they FaceTimed the rest of their family and close friends who knew today was test day! They made everyone read Mommy's shirt. ☺️
To say everyone was happy would be the biggest understatement of the year!