Ugh. We lost the babies again.

Jane's hormone levels dropped.

No babies again.

Ugh.

Now for the NEXT hurdle!

So...

As you might suspect, there are many hurdles two gay men need to overcome in order to have children. The next hurdles consist of blood tests to verify that the pregnancy is moving along properly.

On Monday, 8/23/10, Jane goes to the Clinic again for more bloodwork. They will be looking for her hormone levels to have doubled since Friday's bloodwork.

On Thursday, 8/26/10, Jane goes to the Clinic again for more bloodwork. They will be looking for her hormone levels to have doubled again since the 8/23/10 tests.

Typically, if the numbers triple or quadruple anywhere along the line, that would suggest that there are multiples (as in twins or triplets)...

If all is fine on Thursday, 8/26/10, then we schedule the ultrasound to determine just how many babies we have!!

:)

I'll update everyone Monday once we know how the bloodwork went!

Potato #1

Looks like good things DO come to those that wait!

Just posting quickly while on the road...

Jane had her bloodwork this morning at 7am...

Results were available around 9ish!

Her Beta bloodwork numbers were 29 which are good for frozen embryos (though of course it differs from woman to woman)...

So...

WE ARE PREGNANT!

Woohoo! :)

More info coming soon!

Cycle #3 Update, 8/11/2010

Oops... I just realized that I forgot to post the updates that I had been editing - sorry!  But here is the latest!!  :)

Cycle #3 Update:

1. Lupron start date: 7/4/10
• Started!
2. OCP (birth control pill) stop date: 7/9/10
1. Done (and many thanks to Jane's husband)!
3. Approximate date of suppression check: 7/15/10
• Done, all looks okay!
4. Estrace start date: 7/16/10
• Started!
5. Approx. date of endometrial lining check: 7/30/10
• Done - Jane's lining looks great!
• Slight schedule adjustment... Embryo transfer originally scheduled for 8/9/10 has been moved to 8/11/10... all good!
6. Last dose of Lupron: 8/2/10
• Stopped!
7. Begin progesterone & prometrium: 8/3/10
• Started!
8. Begin prednisone and doxy: 8/4/10
• Started!
• Spoke to the clinic and confirmed the embryo plan.
• Potato #1 and Potato #2 each have one(1) pair of "Grade A five-day embryo blasts", with each pair coming from a different egg donor.
• Following an extensive review of each egg donor's "proven productivity", Dr. H. suggested that we start off with (2) of Potato #1's embryo blasts, and (1) of Potato #2's blasts.
• Once the (3) embryos are thawed out, the geneticists and Dr. D will review them, and if any of the embryos appear to have any "issues", then we will thaw the 4th embryo.
• Yikes - learned that Jane is experiencing morning sickness - something she didn't go through with her own children... :(   Gosh, thanks so much for doing this for us!!! :)
9. Embryo transfer is scheduled for Monday, 8/9/10 Wednesday, 8/11/10
• Transfer scheduled for 10:30am... Jane needs to be there by 10:00am - we will be there too!
• When we got there, we found Jane wearing green nail polish (mani/pedi) and a green tshirt... according to other surrogates wearing green "helps"!
• We also met a couple from NY, that were also having their first transfer done today - good luck guys!!
• FYI: Vitrified/Cryopreserved embryos thaw within 90 minutes or so, as they are moved from dish to dish within the incubator(s).
• According to Dr. H. and the geneticists, all three embryos thawed at "100%", so the decision was made to move ahead according to plans!
• Potato #1's embryos are displayed below:

• Potato #2's embryo is displayed below:

• Note, that the Clinic waits until at least the surrogate is in the office before they start the embryo thawing process (which makes total sense, if you ask me)!!
• Dr. H. transferred the embryos to Jane; everything went well!
• Jane rested for a little while to let gravity "help"...
• We ran out and got her some french fries (another "surrogate helper")...
• And then we all went out and had a REALLY GREAT MEAL/TIME at Joey Garlic's Pizzeria, where we got to not only enjoy great company, but an awesome and yummy meal!!

Next steps:

1. First Beta on Friday, 8/20/10 (9 days out)
• Note that it takes longer for the body to actually generate the hormone levels that are measured by the Beta, so it is considered somewhat "unwise" to do a home pregnancy test, since it is looking for much higher hormonal levels.
2. Subsequent Betas, scheduled as appropriate...
• And will be reported here as soon as we know!!

All in all, we had a really great day, and are REALLY excited.... statistically speaking, it looks like we are "due"...

:)

Cycle #3...

Here is our Cycle Schedule for Cycle #3. 

Completed:
Lupron start date: 7.4.10

Coming Soon:
OCP (birth control pill) stop date: 7.9.10
Approximate date of suppression check: 7.15.10
Estrace start date: 7.16.10
Approx. date of endometrial lining check: 7.30.10
Last dose of Lupron: 8.2.10
Begin progesterone & prometrium: 8.3.10
Begin prednisone and doxy: 8.4.10
Embryo transfer is scheduled for Monday, August 9th, 2010
 
:)

The countdown to Transfer #3 is about ready to begin!

Following a very much anticipated conference call with Dr. H., it appears that we are ready to create the timeline for the Transfer #3, which should be finalized by the end of the week!

Each of us now has two frozen "Grade A" five day blastocycst embryos ("five day blasts"), and the idea at this moment is to transfer three of them to Jane.  Which three of the four isn't really a concern - we're just hoping for at least one healthy baby!

Woo-Hoo!!

2 More Frozen Embryos!

We were notified by the clinic today that two of the embryos fertilized by Potato #2 made it to nice Day 5 "blasts" - YAY!!  They are still keeping an eye on the third one, but we are excited, as we now have two nice frozen embryos each - almost enough to take over the world with!!

And there is another egg donor coming in this week, whom we also hope to receive more eggs to fertilize from.  So, though we are trying really hard to temper our excitement, we are really excited!!

Woo-Hoo!!!

WooHoo - there's an update!

Gee, sorry for not posting in so long - but there just wasn't anything to post.  :(

Now, after over a month of silence, we are happy to report that there is finally something to update everyone about!!

The clinic contacted us during April about an egg donor that will have eggs retrieved during the week of the 17th (if not sooner).  So, we while Potato #1 has two happily frozen 5 day blasts, we decided to use Potato #2's sperm for these eggs (assuming we get any).

Then this week, the clinic contacted us at the last minute about an egg donor  (literally for the next day).  We wound up with 3 eggs which were successfully fertilized with Potato #2's sperm.  Now the wait is on to see how many might actually grow to become happy 5 day "blasts"!  What a blast, man!  :)

Yay!

:)

And the wait continues...

We followed up with Dr. Handsome to make sure we are still on the radar, and are relieved to hear that we are.

At this point, we have two frozen "grade a blastocysts" and are just waiting for more available eggs to fertilize.

Ugh.  Thank goodness we are patient people!  :)

Looks like we will have one more embryo to freeze!

Quick Update:

We received (4) eggs from the last egg donor, and following fertilization it looks like we have (1) really great grade A embryo that we'll be able to cryopreserve tomorrow!

Of course there is still the chance that there might be two!  I guess we'll find out tomorrow!

Oh, and btw, do you watch the Ellen DeGeneres show?  Well, Ellen is lookin to change lives, and is looking for folks to write in about anyone you know that may be having a tough time ( more at http://ellen.warnerbros.com/show/respond/?PlugID=234).  Though we have jobs, and a roof over our heads, I am trying to see if I can get them interested in doing a story about surrogacy, as I don't believe they have done one yet.  Feel free to drop the show a line and give a plug for us - just reference our website so that they know where to go to read about us!

:)

No update to update the update yet...

So, we are anxiously waiting to hear if we got any eggs and fertilization action going on yet... more news as soon as we have some!

Next Egg Donor on deck!

We just got word that the next egg donor we hope to receive eggs from will likely start her stimulation medications this Friday, with an anticipated retrieval by the week of 3/1/10!

As for the status of the fertilized embryos, we wound up with two "Grade A" blastocysts to cryopreserve.  According to the Clinic, the vitirification process used in the cryopreservation provides for an average thaw rate of approximately 99%.

Yay!

Lets just hope that this doesn't become an Abbott and Costello skit!  Hey - who's on Third?  I don't know?!?  First Base!  nyuk-nyuk-nyuk!

Embryo Update...

According to Dr. H, the Clinic was able to cryopreserve two "Grade A (the best grade) blastocysts" today.

Tomorrow, perhaps some of the others will also make it to the blastocyst stage and they will be able to freeze them also, but at least today "we have two beautiful ones."

Woo-Hoo!

:)

Moving forward...

Hola everyone!

To paraphrase Mark Twain (and the Lowell Shallot), "rumors of our demise have been greatly exaggerated" and we are [albeit] slowly moving forward towards Transfer #3! 

Following several strategy discussions, here is our general plan of action:

1. We will be using eggs from several donors.
2. Both of us potatoes will provide our sperm, which will be frozen and thawed as needed for fertilization.
3. Donor eggs will be fertilized, and any resulting "good day-5 blastocysts" will be cryopreserved.
4. Once we each have a good number of frozen embryos, they will get thawed and transfered to Jane.
5. Assuming that several embryos attach, anything over two will be selectively reduced.

Today, 2/10/10:

• Both of us went to the Clinic and provided our sperm.
• Several "very nice looking mature eggs" were retrieved from an egg donor.
• The first batch of eggs were fertilized.  We should gain a better sense of how many fertilized tomorrow, and how many resulted in blastocysts on Monday.

Woo-Hoo!!     :)

And today's word of the day is...

dis-ap-point-ment   [dis-uh-point-muhnt] / [dɪsəˈpɔɪntmənt] / hear  **

-noun

1. the act or fact of disappointing: All of his efforts only led to the disapppointment of his supporters.
2. the state or feeling of being disappointed: Her disappointment was very great when she didn't get the job.
3. a person or thing that disappoints: The play was a disappointment.

Origin:

1. 1605-15; DISAPPOINT + -MENT

Synonyms:

1. failure, defeat, frustration
2. impasse
3. setback
4. fiasco
5. mischance
6. dissillusion
7. false alarm
8. flash in the pan

** Compliments of Dictionary.com (An Ask.com Service)

We received the call at 11:23am to let us know that we're not pregnant.  We immediately called Jane (not knowing if she had already received the results), and sure enough, she already had.  Needless to say, all of us were somewhat shocked.

Dr H called us this afternoon to follow up with us and discuss options.  Hearing from him really helped; more on that later.  For now, we are all trying to stay upbeat as we consider our next step in this journey.  Jane is doing okay, and though the Potatoes are a little bit mashed up, we haven't beome French Fries yet...

My apologies for not updating everyone sooner, but I'm sure you understand. 

Thank you all for your good thoughts, well wishes, and prayers.

Potatoes 1 & 2

Fertile Friday Update...

Dr. H called us a little while ago and gave us an embryo update:

• (14) Donor #414 eggs were thawed; and separated into two batches (one for each of us Potatoes)
• (1) Donor #414 egg wound up being immature
• (6) Donor #414 eggs in each were successfully fertilized (way to GO, sperm!)

Dr. H commented that this really is great proof of the quality of Donor #414's eggs, and that since so many fertilized and looked good, it appears likely that the transfer will actually occur on day 5 (Wednesday), rather than on day 3 (Monday).

Since they don't like to distrub the embryos, they will be next checked on Monday morning to see how they are progressing and give us a call with an update.

Yay!! :)

Fertile Friday (a.k.a. Friday the 13th)

Weeeeeeeeeee're Baaaaaaaack - and ready to blog! Why? Because we're still working on getting pregnant of course!

During the past few months, we spent time working with Dr. H at the Clinic to identify another donor since the last donor just didn't work out. Too many of her eggs wound up being immature, none of the embryos seemed to develop properly, neither of the two implanted "took", and none of the fertilized embryos survived to freezing - pretty much an all around failure! Dr. H assures us that her remaining eggs will be destroyed, and that she won't be used as a donor again. Whew!

Our new donor (a.k.a. 414), is a proven donor (just as the last one was), but is also commonly referred to internally as a "super donor", as she has donated many eggs which have all resulted in healthy babies (including twins). Granted, there aren't any guarantees, but we're hoping to not break her success rate!!! :)

This time, we spent a lot more time focused on the frozen egg vs fresh egg debate. This isn't exactly a very easy decision, as it seems that there are so many conflicting opinions out there, and there appear to be very few quantifiable and scientifically-based studies to help in the choice. Though the CDC does have a great site dedicated to these statistics (specifically check out the Assisted Reproduction Technology Report which includes fertility clinic updates by state/clinic), the data can be several yers old. Issues to consider include the changing regulatory lansdscape and technology... Advances in cryopreservation and the technological (and legal) ability to grow embryos out to five days are relatively newer advances, which make it even more difficult to interpret the officially reported numbers to the CDC against the backdrop of assurances from embryologists and fertility clinics, and doctors alike that the success rate of fresh vs frozen is now equal to each other. We ultimately chose to go with frozen eggs for a variety of reasons.

Meanwhile, Jane has been awesome! We can't say enough good things about how excited we are to be working with such a wonderful surrogate who has become a friend. We know that this hasn't been easy for her or her own family, as it inevitably creates a major disruption, yet her ability to maintain a positive attitude throughout the process has been especially helpful and encouraging for us. Jane cycled back onto her medications this summer and has been doing great - according to the Clinic, her system is ready to be pregnant! And, of course, so are we!

Friday the 13th (yesterday), became known as Fertility Friday. Frozen eggs were thawed, and we drove to the clinic to do our FDA required labwork, and provide our specimens for fertilization. Due to scheduling reasons, we didn't have an opportunity to discuss the status of the frozen eggs with the embryologist, but expect a call today to learn their status, along with how they fertilized.

Don't worry, we'll update the blog MUCH more regularly now that we are back on track!

Oh, and in keeping with the theme of Fertility Friday (as opposed to the ever spooky Friday the 13th), we are looking for something to rename the day after Thanksgiving, commonly referred to as "black Friday", since that is the day we will find out if we are pregnant!

Any suggestions?

Yesterday is History. Tommorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. THAT is why it is called the present.

Ah... what wise words of wisdom from Kung Fu Panda!

So...

We regrouped with Dr. H, discussed our options, and agreed to move forward with another attempt, from another approach by asking Dr. H to help us narrow down the donor selection process by recommending his most fertile donors (commonly referred to as "super-doners") for us. Dr. H told us that he was relieved to hear that we were open to options, as that is exactly along the lines of what he would have recommended. Great minds think alike. Dr. H's commitment came through loud and clear - it was pretty obvious that a failed transfer makes him work that much harder to make this work! Thank you Dr. H for your support!

Tuesday we have another conference call set up with Dr. H to discuss donors. We will definitely have another update then.

Jane is officially off her meds, and doing well. Everyone feels pretty bummed out about this transfer not working, but Jane is really encouraging and helping us stay positive. Timeline-wise, Dr H suggested that it would be 10-12 weeks at the earliest (mid November to December) before we could try another transfer. We figure that means we have approx 4 weeks to dig in to the donors and figure out who the next Suzie will be.

We're trying to keep ourselves upbeat, which isn't too difficult to do when you have a cute new little puppy in the house (Addie). Daisy our 'doodle and Addie are getting along great, even though it seems like Daisy is regressing a little (as if she never knew how to "stay").

Otherwise, while I can't say that everything is great, we really are trying to stay focused on the next attempt.

I seriously doubt we could do this a third time...

Thanks to everyone for your kind words and wisdom!!

- Potato #1

Thirty Nine (39) Hours Until Fertilization!

According to "Baby Central" (the Clinic), we are now at 39 hours until fertilization, and everything is proceeding on schedule!

Suzie is scheduled for egg retrieval early Wednesday morning, and we are scheduled to provide our "samples" at 11:00am.

By 11:15am, the "samples" will be busy doing their thing.

We should know on Thursday morning how they did.

Let us all bow our heads and pray.

Nine (9) Days Until Egg Retrieval!

NINE days and counting!

Throughout the past few weeks, the Clinic has been monitoring Susie and Jane. We've been advised that:

• Suzie continues her Lupron treatments which are used to suppress the pituitary gland’s secretions of luteinizing hormone (LH). Normally LH is secreted in high amounts by the pituitary gland just before ovulation. In fact, it is this rapid release of LH (the “LH surge”) that triggers egg release (amazing!). Lupron suppresses the LH surge and prevents ovulation so that Suzie does not release the eggs prior to the retrieval (which would be BAD).
• Suzie began her Gonadotropins (which stimulate the ovaries to produce multiple follicles) within the past two weeks. The Gonadotropins have been adjusted according to her hormone levels and ultrasound results, as her follicles have been produced.
• Suzie's regular monitoring suggests that her ovaries are "plump" and that her eggs appear to be "maturing nicely." Suzie will be further monitored on Tuesday and Thursday of next week and into the weekend. This last portion of the monitoring is focused on determining when to "pull the trigger" by injecting the hormone that causes all of the eggs to be released. When the largest follicles reach a critical size (approximately 20 millimeters) the eggs within them should be mature. Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is then given, which causes the egg to undergo a final stage of maturation. The retrieval then follows precisely 34-36 hours later.

Meanwhile...

• Jane's "uterine lining is nice and thick and ready".

And...

• Us potatoes need to get the final FDA-required lab work (yes, from the FDA) completed on 7/24 (this is a follow up to the blood work taken over a month ago for comparison purposes). Since we are both essentially considered to be donors (according to the FDA), the FDA requires all sorts of analysis work be completed to ensure that we are healthy and don't carry any contagions that could be passed along to Jane (certainly reasonable enough).

Jane and the Potatoes are "on deck" for the week of 7/27.

The next steps include Fertilization, Embryo Development, Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD), and Embryo Transfer - More on that later!!

:)