Our Miracle

First off, pregnancy stats: I am still feeling great, minus the headaches I get daily. I have gained probably 4 lbs., but haven't been to the doctor to know for sure. My belly is getting bigger and bigger. AND we find out the genders on MONDAY!!! We are so excited to see our babies and to find out what they are going to be so we can start buying things. :)

I've been debating whether I wanted to post this on my blog for everyone to see, but I have decided that everything on this blog is like a journal, so I should be able to write on here like it is. 

A question I have gotten over and over from people in the past month is: Do twins run in your family?

The answer: No, although, if you didn't know that twins only run on the mother's side of the family, you would think they run in our family since Kirsten (my SIL) has twin girls. But, since she is Leigh's sister (biologically, anyways) it doesn't run in my family. 

So, how did we get pregnant with twins?:: Fertility treatmeants

The story:

I have what is called PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), which means my ovaries are filled with tiny cysts--they are follicles that do not get big enough to be released during ovulation. Since my follicles never get big enough, I rarely have a period. This has been happening ever since I started my period. And, as a teenager the doctor's always said, "It is probably because you play sports, but here is some birth control so you can be regular". I have been on birth control for that reason off and on since I was 14, which I wish the doctors would have looked in to it and helped me understand what was going on. 

Anyways, I knew I probably had PCOS before I even met Leigh, but it didn't really effect me then since I wasn't married and wasn't planning on having kids until after I was married. I was on birth control for the first year of our marriage (2008-2009). We were going to Guatemala during our first anniversary and I did not want to be taking a small baby or be pregnant myself, so we stayed on birth control until after. I went off the month after we got back. I knew there was a possibility I wouldn't ovulate for months, but we didn't know how long. After 6 months of not ovulating I went to an OBGYN. He said that a couple in their 20s should get pregnant in 6 months, and if they have not then something is going on to prevent it from happening.

This is when I started fertility treatments. I had 3 cycles that I took Clomid (a medication that stimulates your ovaries). We had increasing dosages with out even a tiny bit of success. My numbers for hope of ovulating were so low each month, the doctor was even surprised. At the end of the 3 cycles he referred me to a fertility specialist in Eugene. I called to make an appointment and they couldn't get me in until right before we were planning on leaving for Utah. I researched and researched fertility centers in the Utah Valley and decided to go with the one that was closest to Provo, Utah Fertility Center. 

We went for our initial consultation in September, they did some diagnostic tests--an ultrasound to confirm I had PCOS (and yes, I very much do), blood tests, and a semen analysis. Everything checked out great except for my PCOS--but the doctor told us, "this is one of the easiest things we deal with here, so we will get you to ovulate". We left feeling extremely optimistic and grateful. They started me on my first cycle of treatments immediately. I took Clomid days 3-7 then I had injectables starting on day 9. The injectables are a more intense way of stimulating the ovaries and getting the follicles to grow. I gave myself a shot in my belly every morning for the injectables. They had me come in for ultrasounds to check on my ovaries starting at day 12. They were hoping my ovaries would be ready by day 14, but my ovaries are stubborn. We knew there were 3 things that could result from this cycle: 1. My follicles would never get big enough (they said that is a small chance) 2. My ovaries would overstimulate (too many follicles that are big enough, they only like 1-2 to be released to prevent high multiples) or 3. There would be 1-2 ready and they would be released. As the days kept going with more injectables, more money spent, and the follicles not growing like we all thought, I was getting a little nervous. But, on October 21 I went in and 2 follicles were the perfect size. I went home in excitement and gave myself the shot to release the eggs. The next day I went in for an IUI (we knew nothing was wrong with Leigh, but we wanted to increase the chances of getting pregnant). That Saturday I felt myself ovulate, it was sort of painful, but amazing because I actually knew what was happening. We went about our daily lives the next two weeks hoping for the best and praying daily that we had a baby growing.

On November 7 we took a pregnancy test the night before I would have the blood test to see if I was pregnant. The second I put the test down it said I was pregnant. We were SO excited, but still nervous for the blood test. The next day when I got the call for the results, the nurse said my numbers were really, really good.

At 6 weeks I had some spotting so we ended up going to the fertility center in panic for an ultrasound. They reassured us that everything was great and that there were 2 sacs in there, but could only see one fetal pole. They were SO small then, that it was hard to see anything. We went back at a little over 7 weeks and TWO babies could be seen. Leigh could tell immediately when the ultrasound came up and when the doctor said she saw two babies he jumped up and was so excited. We were so grateful and amazed that those 2 eggs were fertilized, implanted, and growing.  These babies have not ceased to amaze us every time we see them or hear their heartbeats.

This journey, although frustrating at times, has truly been a growing experience for Leigh and I and our families. I have grown in my testimony of prayer and of the growth we receive through trials. We are definitely fortunate in the fact that we did not have to wait years for a baby or go through things that I know others going through infertility have to. These babies are truly miracles. Another question I have been getting is: Are you nervous about having twins? And I never know how to answer that because of course we are nervous to some extent--I mean we don't know what it is like to raise a child, let alone 2 at the same time! But, we are more excited than anything. We know that we have been blessed and we are so so SO grateful for the double blessing. We have confidence that everything will work out and that the Lord will prepare and guide us through this entire journey. We have also been blessed with family that has been supportive and SO loving and continue to be so along with their excitement. We know that these babies are going to be so loved (& spoiled) and July cannot come fast enough. :)