Winter Cycle Friends 2009/2010 - Everyone Welcome!

[olim78]

ooooh, Katie, I saw that you were doing a tracker again - just in case you want it, my EDD is 4 August and my next midwife app is 21 April.

x

[claud662]

Good afternoon ladies!! It's my first day of work after Passover/Spring break and have been bombarded with work so this is my first minute to write personals and an update!!

Stephanie-Katie knew about my h/b because she still checks the March/April boards and I posted a quick note this morning after my Sns!!! We saw the flicker RIGHT AWAY!! It waas soooo exciting and has made all this fear of the bleeding/spotting minimize a little bit!! We go back next Wednesday and then my first obgyn apt in two weeks!!! You heard it was ok to color hair?!?! I 'm so nervous but I'm DUE (naturally dirty blond but highlight with beach blond and the roots are getting bad!!!) My RE says to wait past first trimester but I don't know if I can wait that long!!

Katie-yah for a good haircut!! That always makes someone feel good!!! I am just recently in the past day or so getting some waves of nausau that come and go but nothing too bad!! Other than being tired and very slight tendrness in (.)(.) not really having symptoms!

Lou-My heart went out to both you and SIL when I read your post. As someone who has had both SIL get pregnant in the past year and me going through this roller coaster it has NOT been easy and I must admit to shedding some tears as well. How come you don't want to share your experience with her? I think it would actually bond you two and she can then confide in you when she begins her next treatment. I don't know your family dynamics and don't want to overstep anything but IVF sisters are the strongest!!!

Ok-back to work but I will try to do more personals later!!!

xoxo

[hjw]

Good morning ladies! Sorry I've been MIA for a week or so, I have no good excuses to offer you, other than that I'm feeling really good in the second trimester (hurray, it makes up for feeling so rubbish for the first trimester!!) and therefore seem to be keeping really busy and making the most of my time. So I make sure to keep up to date with all your news once a day but never seem to have time to sit down and do any personals lately. And today is no different, unfortunately, so I'm really sorry not to do personals but wanted to check in quickly and let you know that everything is OK.

Since I last posted, I am still feeling some little baby flutterings if I lie on my stomach in bed at night, but that's just now at 18 weeks starting to get less comfortable to do (bizarrely, even though I seem to have a huge bump when I stand up, it's still soft enough to lie on my front in bed, so I guess that indicates that the baby is still relatively low down). I've felt what I've thought might be baby wiggles while I've been sitting on the sofa quietly, or lying on my back in bed, but only in the last day or two, so only time will tell if they are actually baby movements or not. I have my 20wk scan (which will actually be 19wks3ays) a week tomorrow, so DH and I are starting to get very excited about that. The hospital won't tell you the sex as a matter of policy though, so we will have to pay for a private scan at some point later in the pregnancy if we decide we want to find out. And then we go on holiday to Dubai on the 18th, which we're almost as excited about as the scan (OK, not quite that excited!)!

Just to answer the question about dying your hair, I did a fair bit of research and asked people questions, and the conclusion I came to was that modern dyes are very safe, but it's best to check with the hairdresser that the one they are using is free of bleach and safe to use. Particularly if you're having highlights, it's fine, because the dye only touches the (dead) hair and not your scalp. Those all over tints I'm not so sure about, as they don't apply to me, but a few hairdressers in the past have told me that all modern dyes/tints are safe to use in pregnancy. The only thing to think about is that apparently in pregnancy the colour can 'take' less effectively (especially in the first trimester, for some reason I think). I had my hair highlighted at 11wks and am going again next week (19wks), and I definitely noticed at 11wks that the blonde colour wasn't quite as blonde as it would usually be.

Hope to do personals next visit, ladies, apologies again for not doing them this time! Welcome to our newcomers, olim (so happy to see you on here again and to hear that everything is going well, missed you!) and malya.

Hazel

[Arabsrcool]

Hi girls, sorry to have been MIA. The m/s has been kicking my butt and I am lucky to make it thru the work day. I have to keep a trashcan right by my feet, just in case. I have been reading, but haven't had the energy to do personals and work has been a killer lately. No fun at all! Glad you girls are talking about hair color, I am scheduled to go next Thursday for highlights and really didn't want to cancel. I really really need some gray cover up and some splashy highlights! My hair is such a mousy brown, I cannot hardly stand it plain, or in this case, with grown out highlights! Ugh.

Malya324 and Olim78,

welcome to our group! Glad to have you here!

lou,

You are a work out machine! I am so jealous! Glad to hear your bump is growin and your jean are getting snug! Your trip sounds amazing and the tennis tickets will be awesome. I am so jealous! I was looking forward to going to TN, but now I have to save my vacation days for maternity leave (not that I am complaining mind you). Maybe TN next year!

Hazel,

That is so cool you can feel the baby move!. I bet you are getting excited for vaca!. I am sure you will have a wonderful time and am so glad you are feeling better.

Claudia,

Congrats on seeing the heartbeat! That does help with the fears doesn't it?! So just one baby bean correct?

Katie,

Hurray for a good haircut!. Did you go to someone new? Good haircuts are the best, but I bet your pups baths did wreck your coiff!

Steph,

Are you still waiting to get the "word" to move? Your dh better make sure those "free mechanic work guys" step up and help with the move. Hope you are feeling ok.

Ronda

[katie99]

Hi everyone -

I have to say that I'm starting to get a bit weirded out since all of my s/s seem to have disappeared. I feel great. In fact - I feel too good. I mean dont get me wrong, I'm not complaining, but to go from feeling like I was at Death's door to feeling this good 2 weeks later? even that extreme fatigue is gone, boobs are fine, no twinges, stretchy feelings, or anything. hmmm, now i really cant wait to go for the next u/s next friday - I'm starting to need proof that I'm still preg!
Ha ha

Steph Thank you so much for explaining abiut hair coloring. I was thinking it was an old wive's tale or something, but then you always second guess yourself. Yep, Claudia is right - I'm still over on the cycling threads often, theres 3 girls Ive cycled with a few times before that I'm waiting to get their BFPs so I'm always checking up on them. Have you started packing yet?

Malya Welcome! Me too! I feel like i'm a quasi ivf expert - but on the subject of pregnancy and babies - I'm clueless! What are your appt dates and EDD? I'll put them on our list - we're a fair sized group and its easier to remember who is up to what that way.

Lou I've had those sharp pains a few times also, especially if i moved or turned too quickly. I think that your bikini ready midsection in in such good shape that your body is just trying to make some room for the sac expanding. Great deal on your tennis tix!

Hope Aww, that must have been so sweet to see the little arms waving at you! I hope that i get to see that too.

Olim Welcome! Its so good to hear from you again. I cant believe that you're so far along already! How are you feeling, mum? It must be amazing to feel those little flutters! Good for you to keep the gender a surprise, you get to know soooo much during the ivf process that a surprise sounds really nice. I do want to know though - because i could never keep news that big to myself! hee hee. I 'm with you on how different me & DH are about baby names! Whew! We seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum! Oh, well there is plenty of time to negotiate, right?

Claudia Hooray for no m/s! Hope that you're not being worked to death!

Hazel I'm so glad to hear that you've turned a corner and finally feel good again! You must be so excited to feel those flutters! And about your upcoming holiday! I cant wait to hear all about it!

Ronda Ugh, honey - I'm sorry that your m/s is holding you hostage! I hope it subsides soon! Were your pregnancys with your DD's bad with m/s also? I went to the same salon, same stylist, but I went super early and for once the place wasnt packed - it was empty so she was able to take her time for a change - I'll have to remember to do that next time too. Enjoy your highlights!

KTelise Good luck at your 1st OB appt tomorrow!

Gi How are you honey? we miss you around here!

hugs & prayers to us all - xoxo

[katie99]

Hazel next u/s 4/16 midwife appt on 5/26 - EDD is Sept 7
Lou- 1 strong HB! 1st OB appt on 4/19 - EDD is Nov 17
Ronda- YAY! HB was 132! next u/s on 4/13 - EDD is Nov 15
Hope 1st OB appt on 4/7 - EDD is Nov 7
Gi- YAY! saw a strong HB! - EDD is Nov 14
Ktelise-1st OB appt is on 4/9 - EDD is Nov 3
Meganlynn- HB of 166! - 1st OB appt on 4/16
Jacqueline- EDD is Oct 5
Katie - b/w on 4/13 -1st trimester screening 4/16 - next OB appt on 4/30 EDD is Oct 24
Positive thinking 1 strong HB 159! - RE appt on 4/12 EDD is Nov 14
Merri Released to OB! HR at 169! EDD is Oct 26
Claudia Saw a strong heart beat! - next Re appt on 4/14 - EDD is on Nov28 - Thanksgiving weekend!
Olim midwife appt on 4/21 - EDD is on Aug 4



Ashley - 12 week nuchal scan on 3/26 - EDD is Oct 7
Karen-next OB appt on 4/5 EDD is Oct 4
Stephanie 2 strong heartbeats 130 & 149! - b/w on 4/6 -EDD is on Nov 4
Sara Surprise twins! 2 strong heartbeats of 117 & 109

[lou71]

Olim!!!-- Hi girl! Nice to "see" you again. So glad you're doing well. And I'm very happy for you to join us here. Yes, I finally got my BFP! That was after 1 cancelled cycle, 1 fresh BFN, and 1 frozen BFN.... ugh! We haven't decided if we want to find out the sex of our baby yet. I'm such a planner that I'll probably cave but I think it would be awesome to save the surprise too.

Steph-- So glad the spotting is minimal now. That really must make you feel better.

Positive -- How'd that job interview go? Fingers crossed for you.

Hope -- Wow... how awesome that you saw the baby wave at your DSS! I can't wait to see those things. I only had one u/s at 6w3d and my next appt is on the 19th at 9w5d with my OB. I REALLY hope she does an u/s!!! I'm going to beg I think. The only thing is, DH can't be there, he's gotta work .

Claudia -- Hi! Congrats on the HB! As for not sharing IVF with my SIL. DH and I decided we weren't going to share that with anyone. I only have two friends plus my grandmother that know. So we were at his parents house on Easter when we found this out. She's been going through this for nearly 3 years. Obviously we aren't really close or I would have known that to begin with. She's a pretty private person too. It was her DH that told me when she was outside! Anyway, she's off to Mayo for treatment next month. I really do hope it works for her as this is her "hail mary" cycle.

Hazel -- Glad you're feeling better. Can't believe you're already 18 weeks along. That's almost 1/2 way there!

Ronda -- So sorry m/s has got you down. I know I'm lucky to not have any and feel good enough to work out. Exercise was pretty high on my priority list prior to pregnancy and my trainer even has me featured on her gym's website in a bikini no less! So I wanted to try to make fitness a priority while pregnant too. I've cut back A LOT though. I basically spin, elliptical, do weights, and play tennis now. I used to do all that plus run 15-20 miles a week, rockclimb, rollerblade, water ski or snow ski, kickbox, and do hardcore training sessions that would make some people in the group puke. I DEFINITELY feel "softer" and my abs are down to a "2 pack" ha ha. I don't care... I feel great. I do hope your m/s goes away soon so you can get back to doing the thing you do!

Katie -- I'm so glad you feel so good! Now you know what I mean about wondering if there's really something in there since that's how I've felt all along. And why I took 7 HPT's prior to my u/s. DH thought I was a wack job for that one! My only real symptom now is still the constipation and a bit of after lunch fatigue. Thank goodness I get a second wind after I leave work though.

AFM -- We booked our flights to Europe yesterday! Leaving on 5/24 and returning to Chicago on 6/5. We're spending 6 nights in Paris and 5 nights in Prague. I need to pick my hotels now. I'm leaning towards the West End Hotel in Paris. http://www.paris-hotel-westend.com/hote ... hotel.html. But there's a couple others I'm looking at too. Got lot's of work to do today. Everyone have a great day!

[Stephanieford78]

Ronda - Sorry your m/s is kicking your arse. I am glad you could pop in and fill us in n how you are doing though! My next highlight appt isn't until May. I got mine done right before transfer and scheduled it for three months later. No word on the move yet. I am told by another Army wife that lives in the area that we will be moving that there are 3 empty houses on her street and one big one empty around the corner. We could be moving into any one of those, however she said they have just been sitting there. So the Army housing people seem to be taking their time getting the places ready and could have already been done. She said they sit for a week before someone comes in a cleans them. Damn Army, always hurry up and wait! They told us the 12th though so I guess if I don't hear anything by Monday, we will be calling and complaining. I don't even know what the floor plan is. That is bugging me, I can't plan how things are going to look until last minute. Oh well, this is the life I chose. I will deal with it. lol

Hazel - Good to hear from you! So exciting to be feeling those flutters. Don't be mistaken, that is exactly what it is! Most new moms chalk it up to gas, but in your heart you know exactly what it is! That is odd that the hospital has a policy not to tell you the sex. It isn't like they can get sued if they do. Do you think you will pay to find out? You know, if they let you watch the whole time it is possible to have a look-see for yourself. Maybe the tech will hold it in the right position for you to guess or maybe even take a picture of the "part"? It is actually easier to tell if it is a girl than a boy. A girl looks like a hamburger where the boy, you will likely just see a round white blur and hopefully see a little tip to go with, but you can't always see the penis in an u/s. lol Even still, a surprise can be fun too! And a trip to Dubai?? How xciting! I wish I had the money to stay in that huge hotel! I would at least want to stand in the lobby and look up! What all are your plans while you are there?

Claudia - How are you doing! I didn't even think to check the other boards. I was just in there a few days before checking in on Lauren. That is so awesome that you saw the heartbeat. I hope the bleeding has stopped completely.

Olim - Hello! Sorry your August thread fizzled. I am sure you are so excited to share your pregnancy stories and we are here to listen. lol I love hearing good news! Like baby kicking and enough for DH to feel too! I am only 10 weeks and my DH is waiting patiently to be able to feel them move! He is counting down the weeks even to when it will be possible. I am sure his hands will be all over my belly in another 10 weeks.

Hope - Cute story how the baby waved at DSS! Congrats on feeling good. I say we all tell the m/s to go away! Hopefully it will listen! I have been feeling pretty good as far as that goes for a while now.

Lou - No worries!! Your uterus is growing even if you are only 8 weeks, that is still bigger than what it was 8 weeks ago. I have been having the same type of feeling. I feel it when I cough sometimes or when I move a certain way too. I now hold my belly if I cough or sneeze just because the feeling can hurt a bit. It is just one sharp little stab and it is over though. I am not owrried about it, I know there is nothing wrong. I had the same thing when I was preggers with DD. I hope I can excapre the pelvic pressure I had with her this time but seeing as it is twins, I doubt it! It felt like she was sitting on my pelvic bone and everytime I would go to get up from laying down, it was horrible pain right there. I was told later that they think it was cartilage tearing from the pelvic bone area. OUCH!

Katie - The movers will pack me so I don't have to worry about that! They don't unpack though so that's the bummer. Don't worry yourself, you should be feeling better now! I know I am! How is the baby belly? I am sure that will reassure you that everything is ok.

AFM - Well, not too much to say. Glad I have hit the double digits now! I can really feel my baby bump now. I think it is measuring more like a 13 week pg belly though. Still under my button, but just. A little blood came back yesterday but I am not going to let it get to me. My RE said I can go back to him for an u/s if the bleeding continues so I might just do that if it lasts into next week.

[claud662]

Hi Ladies,

Well the waves of nausau are upon me and they are getting closer together and stronger I am happy on one hand that my hormones are kicking in but not happy to be at work feeling like crap!!! Anyone have suggestions how to hide m/s at work?!?! The bathroom that is near my office is the one that all the little kids in the pre-school use and my office has a HUGE window that anyone can see in!!! Hopefully it wont get so bad that I actually throw up but I am known to have a weak stomach so you never know!!! I''m still in disbelief that we saw a h/b!! My DH was over the moon yesterday which was nice to see since he really has remained neutral since finding out it was a BFP a few weeks ago. I just hope that we keep jumping the hurdles and things progress as they should!!!

no time right now for personals since yesterday and today are superbusy but then I'm going to take tomorrow off (since I'm doing a Youth Group event Sat and Sun) and going for acupuncture!!!

xoxo

[Riley baby maybe]

Hi All!!! Sorry I've been MIA...things are so busy. Glad to see everyone is doing great!

I have to run, but I will be checking back in today to complete some personals, etc.

Found out yesterday we are having a GIRL!!!! DH & I are beyond excited!

[claud662]

riley-how did you find out so early?!?!!? That's so exciting!!!

[gi]

Hi girls,

Hope hopefully ms is leaving you forever!!!

Olim and Malya welcome aboard its a nice busy site here with all of us at different stages of pregnancy which is a great help.

Lou Paris and Prague sound lovely when are you planning on going and OMG you really are a fitness freak

Katie your body is just used to all the symptoms lots more will appear later in pregnancy but i know us ivfers worry over everything.

Riley a little Girl how lovely!!! Ye must be over the moon.

Claud i read your good news on the other site Big Congrats hows the spotting??

hjw no news is always good news glad to hear you are doing well in 2nd tri. it must be lovely feeling more fluttering.

AFM had a bit of drama today tmi time .. had a bowel movement this am and some crinine discharge was on tissue but this time it had some brown spotting in it. I have also been cramping on/off with lower back pain but i have had this since EC but never the spotting, i havent had any spotting since but this is how my m/c start and around this time, i know it wasnt much and lots of people say its ok if brown and not much but with both my mc i never bleed just tiny amounts of brown spotting and u/s showed my babies died. I was upset my mam was here and i told her but i havent told j yet it would break his heart. I think i will wait till hosp. ring about my blood results and see if i spot more before organinsing a scan. I dont want to upset j and i suppose i dont want to hear bad news. Please say a little prayer that my baby is ok.

gi xx

[hjw]

Ronda - your poor thing, I remember those m/s days without any great fondness. Instead of a trashcan, I carried around a sick bucket (actually a food mixing bowl) everywhere I went, even in the car in case I had to stop on the side of the road. I hope it passes soon, it's such a relief once it starts easing up.

Katie - I'm sure everything is absolutely fine, just enjoy feeling more human for a change! I don't know whether you remember, but I scared myself silly around 11 weeks because one day I woke up and felt great, no m/s or anything, so I was panicky that something had gone wrong. I should have made the most of it though, because it was all back about 4 days later! Try not to worry, your scan will be here before you know it (I actually had it in my diary as tomorrow, not the 16th, wishful thinking perhaps! - the 16th is when I have my 20wk scan so it's going to be a good day for both of us...). Thanks again for keeping us all up to date with everyone's info on the list, you are an angel to take the time to do it. I wondered whether it would help us all keep track of who is closest to us in EDD's if we were put in order of how far along we all are? Hope that doesn't sound horribly ungrateful, you know how much I love you!

lou - don't you love that feeling when you book your flights for a holiday and it all becomes real? Paris & Prague is going to be such a great trip. Shame you're not dropping into London as I could do some sightseeing with you! I know, 18wks is almost halfway there - that occured to me this week too. The second trimester is just racing past!

Steph - Will they hurry up and call you about your house move!!! Yes I know, weird hospital policy not to tell you the sex. I think it's because there is a huge Asian community in my area and with the preference for boys in some cultures, the hospital adopts the same approach across the board and will not tell anyone the sex as a matter of policy. There are other hospitals in the UK which are the same, it just depends where you live. Not sure if we will have a private scan to find out - I think maybe yes, but whether we share the news or just keep it as our secret is another question! Thanks for the tips about what girls and boys look like on the u/s, DH and I will have to keep our eyes peeled at the 20wk u/s next week and see if we can tell! Our plans for Dubai are mostly to chill out - we are taking our golf clubs and planning to play every other day, and to just relax by the pool with a book on the other days. We have friends who live out there so we'll also meet up with them for dinner a few times. I can't wait! When you say huge hotel, do you mean the Atlantis? There are so many amazing and wacky hotels there now (and the Palm and World developments are just mindblowing when you think what they've accomplished)! We stayed at the Burj Al Arab for the last few days of our honeymoon back in 2004 and that was truly something to remember, we've never been in a hotel like it before or since!

Riley - OMG, you found out the sex already?

Oh gi - my heart sank when I started reading your news. I'm praying that it's nothing, and I'm really sure it's not. My Crinone discharge (sorry if TMI) was quite often pinkish or brownish, I was never sure whether to count that as spotting or not. I also had on/off cramping in the first trimester and into the second. Are you going to get an u/s to reassure yourself that the little bean is just fine? I'm sure they will give you one straight away if you explain why you're worried, and at least it will stop you being anxious.

So a few mentions of baby names has me wondering - are people already starting to think about it? For me, I think I'm a bit superstitious about getting ahead of ourselves and tempting fate by buying any baby stuff or talking names, so I imagine we're going to leave it for a fair while before we go there. The baby is still called Zorba so far as we're concerned!

Hazel

[Stephanieford78]

Hazel - You stayed at the Burj Al Arab Hotel? That is the one I would love to go to. The cheapest room is $1000 a night, no way we could ever afford that, hell we couldn't even afford the trip there. Saved every penny and sold a lot of things to do all our IVF treatments. Maybe someday though! There are so many places I wish I could go, but unless the Army takes us there or close to it, chances are slim. I read a lot though and look at all the pictures of places I wish to go in hopes... maybe someday. As far as baby names, we had a few picked out before we were even pregnant. lol Funny enough we picked two girl names and two boy names in case of twins of the same sex. DH wants a junior and that bugs me, I don't think I will be able to change his mind either. Not unless we have two girls.

Gi - Oh my... I am sure everything is just fine. Try to believe that! I know after all you have been through it must be hard, but look at what some of us others. Like me, I'm bleeding everyday and my babies are still ok! Maybe you had a very small subchorionic bleed that came out a little bit? Think positive thoughts! I will keep you in my thoughts, crossing all fingers and toes. Not easy to type like this I might add.

Riley - WOW, congrats on your little girl! That is amazing they were able to tell so soon! Time to get everything pink and purple I suppose!

Claudia - Not sure how you would get away with m/s and no one see, especially if it makes it's way up. I just hope you get to feeling better soon!

[malya324]

Katie - thanks for making the list it helps so much. My EDD is 10/10/10 ( it think its really the 11th and that my OB just thinks its cool) Can't imagine that I'll actually have it on the 10th, too bizzar.

The last time (the first time) I was at the Ob and he did an u/s, it was a hand held u/s and I didnt get a picture and I didn't hear the heart beat, I figured at 11 wks I'd be able to. Maybe b/c my DH wasn't there? I don't know, is this odd? Should I worry that he does his exams too fast or didn't offer to hear the hb or get a picture? Or am I too sensitive since comming from the attentive staff at the RE? Next visit is on the 22nd of April. I'll be 15 wks at that point, what will they do besides make me pee in a cup.

I'm still on my prometrium pills but I hope to get off them next week. progesterone is staying at 13 so far. Still super nervous that its not going up.

I know I had another question but my brain no longer will allow me to keep a thought in my head.

Thanks for the future advice.