Patience

For those of you that don't know, Travis and I have been trying to have a baby for about two years now... After charting my basal body temperature every morning for a year to track ovulation, and no luck getting pregnant, my doctor started infertility testing. He started with doing blood work first to check my Estrogen and Progesterone levels. When those came back normal, he then wanted to have an HSG dye test done on me and a Semen Analysis done on Travis. The HSG dye test is an xray in which dye is entered though a catheter into the uterus to see if there is a blockage in the fallopian tubes. This was the most painful thing I have ever felt in my life!!! The results of this test weren't good, and Travis's test results weren't that great either. The xrays showed that my tubes were blocked, and his analysis showed low sperm count and motility (how well they swim). So no wonder we weren't getting pregnant, right?


Unfortunately, the next step for me was surgery. My doctor had to figure out what was causing the blockage, and boy did he! What he found was very advanced stages of Endometriosis and scar tissue that had completely blocked one tube and then totally covered everything else. My uterus, my fallopian tubes, my ovaries, my bladder, and small intestines! It was nuts! But with Dr. Godat being the fabulous doctor he is, he got me all "cleaned up" in just a couple of hours. During this same time period, Travis was referred to a specialist where more testing was done on him. Another Semen Analysis, blood work, and even an ultrasound. When all was said and done, Dr. French confirmed that there was an issue of low sperm count and motility, but nothing came back to pinpoint why. His blood work and the ultrasound were fine. The doctor said that the sperm count and motility was on the very low end of normal, but was in his eyes technically capable of causing a pregnancy.


So with me being good to go and Travis all checked out, it was back to trying... but this time with the help of medication. Dr. Godat said that because of the aggressiveness of the Endometriosis, that we were on a time crunch to get me pregnant (otherwise I would have to have the surgery again in a year). I started a regimen of Clomid, Estrogen, and Progesterone two weeks after my surgery. After the first month on Clomid, Dr. Godat could tell by my temperature chart that it wasn't working right, so he doubled the dosage for the next month. But after six months of this regimen with no pregnancy, it was time to try something else.


And that brings us to Wednesday, February 9 and Friday, February 11. That week we had our first two Intra-Uterine Inseminations (IUI) done. IUI is where my doctor takes a sample of Travis's sperm, spins/washes it to separate all the good ones out, and then inserts the good ones into my uterus at the openings of my fallopian tubes through a catheter. With Travis's sperm having trouble getting to where they need to be, this procedure is supposed to increase our chances of conception since the sperm doesn't have to travel near as far (they are deposited right where they need to be). The only thing was, is that the analysis didn't look good when Dr. Godat was spinning/washing the sperm. Within the last nine months it appears that his sperm count and motility has decreased even more... so to say the least, it was a bitter sweet two days.


Now where does that leave us you ask? Well, waiting. We have to wait two weeks (until Friday, February 25) before we can take a pregnancy test. And man have the days drug on. I've tried really hard not to get too excited about the results, but it's SO HARD not to since we've wanted a baby for so long and it's our first real chance of conceiving. If it doesn't happen this month, we go back to the drawing board for more testing with Travis. But keep your fingers crossed!... maybe it worked! I know that if we don't get lucky this month that we will both be disappointed, but thankfully, we have so many people that are praying for us, love us, and will be there for us, that we will make it through the ups and downs of this adventure just fine. God has a plan for us, and I'm trying my best to be patient while waiting :) Until next time...

Destiny

And so the journey began... I met Travis on June 9, 2006, thanks to our mutual friends Sean and Brandy Atnip. I had just recently moved back to the Dallas area from Beaumont, and my friend Brandy was coming up for the weekend to visit me. Since Sean had a friend that had just recently moved to the Dallas area too, he decided to come with her. Once Sean and Brandy got to town we met up with his friend, and it was all over from there :) We went out to The Quarter Bar in Uptown and had a blast! From the first night we met we were pretty much inseparable. I never thought I'd be lucky enough to snag such a good looking awesome guy, but look at me! I did!

The next year and a half flew by, and before I knew it, it was February 8, 2008. It had been a long day at school and all I wanted to do was just go home and do nothing. Travis had other ideas though. He insisted that we had to go to dinner with his cousin Kim because he had been promising her that we would go for weeks. So, I reluctantly gave in on the condition that we would go home early. We pulled up to Trulucks (with me still not being in the mood to be out) and went inside just in time for Kim to call and say she was running late. Great. They went ahead and sat us at the table, we ordered some wine, and then Travis started acting all weird and nervous. The next thing I knew, he had a ring in his hand and was asking me to marry him! I was so excited and in major shock, that all I said was, "Really, you want to marry me?" He laughed and said, "Of course I do. So is that a yes?" And as soon as "yes" came out of my mouth my whole family walked up to the table. Another surprise! We weren't meeting Kim there after all. The phone call of Kim being late was my dad calling from the parking lot letting Travis know that they were there! Six months later, on August 9, 2008, Travis and I were standing on the beach at Magen's Bay in the beautiful St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, getting married. It was absolutely amazing! Ever since I was a little girl I had wanted to get married on the beach, and that day all my dreams came true. I married the love of my life and my best friend with our toes in the sand! And all of our family and close friends were there to help us celebrate in paradise! It was truly perfect!

In January 2009 we sold our condo in Uptown, and moved into our new home in Carrollton on February 26. We had been here only a couple of months when we added another furry child to the mix. Our sweet little rambunctious Bella. Bailey, our first furry child, thought her world was ending. We had totally ruined her life. But now, two years later, I can honestly say that they are buds. It's actually kind of funny to see people's reactions when I take them walking and people see a doberman and a little bitty weenie dog enjoying each other's company. They really are quite the combo!

Well, I think that should just about bring you up to speed for now. Until next time...