Long overdue post

I'm so sorry I have been so bad at updating.  Between some stress at home with my in-laws and a laptop that no longer holds a battery charge, I have been unmotivated to sit down and type. On Tuesday, November 13, my HCG level was 15.  This is low.  You're only considered pregnant if you have a level of 5 of above.  The testy nurse at my ob's office said "Yes, you're pregnant, but this number is REALLY low."  Gee, thanks for the reassurance.  They ordered a second draw for Thursday.  At this point, I was done dealing with this nurse who had been nasty SEVERAL times, so I called another practice for a 2nd opinion.  I was told that they couldn't see me until December but that a nurse might be able to call me the next day.

Thursday I get my results and the number doubled (like it's supposed to) to 30.  The evil nurse says "You're pregnant, nothing more to worry about, see you around 10-13 weeks. Shortly after I got those results, a nurse from the practice I intended to switch to said "I pulled your results from the hospital and the doctor would like to get a 3rd draw on Monday."

Monday, November 19th,  I made the jump to 259!  This really solidified this pregnancy for me, and how I felt that the new practice was much more sensitive to my concerns and PCOS diagnosis.  Also, they put me BACK on the Metformin, which my old ob's office told me to stop taking as soon as I got pregnant.  New ob (Dr. M) said that staying on it through the first trimester actually helps lower the risk of miscarraige in women with PCOS.

We leave for our LONG OVERDUE honeymoon in 2 days-I can't wait!  Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Cozumel, and New Orleans-here we come!  We get back Dec 10, and Dec 11 I have my first appointment at my new ob's office, and Dec 21 I have my first ultrasound!

Spotting

At 3 weeks & 5 days today, I had some spotting.  I had a little bit of light cramping yesterday afternoon on the same side as my follicle had been on so I was hoping it was implantation cramping.  Today at work, I wiped and had some spotting.  I freaked out and called my ob's office, who sent me in for a quantitative HCG test today, and another one in 48 hours to see if my numbers have risen.

Please keep your fingers crossed & say a prayer for me.

Today I am...

3 weeks & 4 days pregnant.

I never expected this with my first cycle of Metformin, but I feel so, so, so incredibly lucky.

I tested Friday morning and got a negative, Saturday morning and got a negative.  This morning I woke up and tested at 5am and brought the test back to my nightstand, set the timer on my phone for 5 minutes, and read a 'negative' in the dark (light from my iphone) 5 minutes later.  I got out of bed 30 minutes later, carried the test into the kitchen, and saw this:

I know that evaporation lines are definitely a possibility when you read a test outside of the time limits, so I tried very hard not to get my hopes up.  Instead, I bought a box of First Response Early Result tests on my way to work and held my pee for 2 hours.  When I was about ready to burst, I took my purse into the bathroom at work and got this:

It's faint, but it is so there.  So there.  Today I am pregnant, and nothing else except for that is important.  I can't worry about tomorrow when I have this beautiful today.  It's so much easier said than done, but I would like a low-stress pregnancy; I know it's important for me and the baby.

I plan on telling my immediate family at Thanksgiving next week :)

Halloween Ultrasound

I had such a positive week, regardless of all the hurricane devastation in our community.

Halloween night was my transvaginal ultrasound to help confirm my PCOS diagnosis.  Earlier in the day I had felt cramping on the lower left side of my abdomen, where my ovary would be.  I even texted a TTC friend and asked if she had felt ovulation pains and what they felt like; I also had ovulation-friendly cervical mucus and was feeling really positive about what my body was doing.

That night at my ultrasound, the tech said my lining looked really good, and was consistent with midcycle lining that the OBs like to see.  She also said that I had great mucus.  She looked at my right ovary first and said it was definitely polycystic, large and lots of tiny follicles.  Then she switched to the left side and said "Well Emily, you better go do your homework!  There's a great mature follicle on this side!"  I was floored and starting crying right then and there, because I was so afraid they wouldn't see a good follicle.  The next morning, yesterday, my OPK pee stick was positive!  So fingers crossed for a baby May this month-all the stars seemed to have aligned.  I truly credit being on the Metformin because I've never had all my symptoms line up like this.  Even if this isn't our month, I should have a great luteal phase, and then ovulate again next month, while we are on our honeymoon!!!