4 Weeks to Go - Minutiae

It has been a pretty good week, though I still have swollen glands and a barking cough – I have been to the doctor and she has given me some anti biotics so hopefully that will knock it on the head soon.  Other than that, I am still feeling very ready for the cycle and getting really excited now.  We have an embryo that is the exact quality that JBB was so I am hoping that this

Most of the week, my bestie and I have been consumed with the minutiae of the trip.  We constantly discuss the trip down to the smallest detail and the thing that is making me the most happy is that we have been examining any stressors on the trip and eliminating them one by one.  For example, we have booked a car and driver for us to use on the day of the transfer.  It really is not that far from the hotel but for both transfers last year, I have gotten on the train going the wrong way and have had to get off at the next stop and rush back.  Once I go in for the transfer, my bestie will then take the car and driver and go and shop to her hearts content!!  Another item that has been organised is JBB.  JBB goes to bed at 7pm and as JourneyMan is taking us to the airport we will need to leave at around 7:30pm.  We have been looking for someone to come over to our place and sit in the house while JBB is snoozing there but my Mum wasn’t able to because she can’t really leave my Dad for that long now and JourneyMan’s Mum is working on that night.  I realised that my Mum is minding JBB on the Friday while JourneyMan was at work so asked if JBB could have a sleepover that night, which she of course said yes to – bless her!!  It means that we can get JBB tucked in with Nanna and then head off to the airport.  Gosh, I am going to miss him sooooooo much when I’m away.  We are planning to Skype every day so hopefully it will keep us all happy.

The funny thing about discussing the minutiae of the trip with my bestie is that JourneyMan is very unlike me in this respect.  I told him what we had been discussing and he said he preferred to be in the ‘macronutia’ and that if he was coming the only thing he would be concerned about is plane-hotel-clinic-hotel-plane home.  This I know for sure!!  He has tried to make fun of me saying things like ‘oh, I think that you should have a decaf coffee before you go in for the transfer’ at this place or that place and the funny thing is, we’ve already talked about those things.  I like the planning of a holiday, it serves to make the holiday way more fun in my mind!!

 There was also a day spent discussing JBB’s birthday party.  We are having his 2^nd birthday party at our new house and it is also for my sister (who’s birthday is on the same day as JBB), my sister’s husband and my Aunt.  It is family only (a apart from my bestie who is my family!!) which means that there are around 30 people coming.  I had pretty much done all the menu and a few people were helping out with some dishes but I have found a wholesale party food place who will provide a pack of food and 50 balloons and deliver to us on the morning of the party – sooooo happy!!  One thing that I do want to do for JBB (and also his sister or brother when they come along) is to make them a special birthday cake every year.  Last year because we had the big combined (with my 40^th) birthday party, I made and decorated 90 cupcakes and arranged them into the shape of a big number 1.  This year I am making a train cake which I am sure he is going to totally love!!  I have to admit, I have gone a bit over the top with his birthday presents, I just keep on seeing things that he would love and buying them – he is so spoilt!!

So, the trip is very organised.  Our finances are very healthy and I have also submitted my quarterly tax on time – yayers!!  Once we hit August, it will be all go – there is a lot to organise and do.  I am very excited now and I am still feeling very ready to be pregnant again and to hold a little baby in my arms again.

Thailand 2.1

So, I am finally ready to talk about our upcoming FET cycle in Thailand. Firstly, let me just say that I have never done a FET before as we have never had anything for the freezer so that in itself is something new and different. In terms of protocol though, it is not much different that doing the fresh donor cycle except for the fact that I don’t have to be synched up with the donor.

It all happened in quite a rush because originally we were going away on Boxing Day (26th Dec) for our family holiday and we realised that it was going to be costing us about $3,000 for that holiday. When I did the sums of what it would cost for a FET in Thailand if only I went (we had already agreed that we didn’t really want to drag JBB over there for another time – he was pretty exhausted after we got back this time) and it came up at $5000 so it was a no brainer to cancel our holiday and organise the cycle for December (thank you IF for taking away our family holiday!).

The other convincing factor was that both JourneyMan and I already had time off work as well because our companies close down for a couple of weeks over Christmas. This meant that I wouldn’t have to take another week off work down the track (which is good because I am a contractor and don’t get paid for any leave) and that JourneyMan would be home to look after JBB for the whole time that I am away (if I was to go in March as we had previously planned, we would have needed some babysitting help so this works out much better).

All of these decisions were really made within the weekend after we got back from Thailand and then also found out that my sister was pregnant. I think people suspected that we were doing it so quickly because of her news but it really had nothing to do with it, it was really the perfect timing.

So, that being said – I have booked my flights and accommodation. I am staying a little closer to the clinic this time as the hotel was a little cheaper and I am flying out on 27 December at 12:30am and I get in to Bangkok at 5:40am. I will go to the clinic that morning for blood tests and scans. Here is my timetable:

24 October – start taking the birth control pill (and Clexane of course)
13 November – stop taking the BCP
17 November – AF due (yes today and of course not turned up – grrrf!!)
20 November – start taking BCP again (and Clexane)
10 December – stop taking BCP
14 December – AF due
15 December – Start taking progynova 3 x per day
27 December – Blood test and scan / start Crinone
1 January – Transfer
3 January – Fly home
11 January – Pregnancy test

It has been very strange to start preparations for this cycle when I wasn’t really over the last failed one. I have gotten there now though and my daily schedule of all my different preparations have been going very well.

I now feel in a pretty good place about this cycle – I feel like I am doing my absolute best to make it successful. I really, really hope that it will be.

Not long to go now, only 42 days.