Updates and Progress

I have been putting off making a blog post because I have so many different posts I want to make and don't know where to start...so I haven't made any.

I want to post about ...
the big cake I made for graduation at our school...a silly little thing, but it was hard work, and I was proud of myself.
the hope chest I painted for our living room.
the work I've been doing in our kitchen.
the big crochet project I've been working on (I'm so excited about this, but it's a gift, so it has to wait).
the little painting projects I've been doing around the house.

and several other things that I can't even remember right now.

I've also wanted to post about the decision we made about our journey toward a baby, but I've been debating on how much to share. Those of you who know me know that that's a little strange for me because I share EVERYTHING. This news seems different though. I've really only told family and a few close friends, whereas normally I blab my mouth to everyone. Maybe it's because it's a big deal. Or maybe it's because I'm scared. Or maybe it's because I'm still hoping for a miracle between now and then. Or maybe it's because I don't want the added stress of people wondering how it's going.

But talking about it makes it seem less scary, and prayers from others can only help, right?

We've decided to do IVF. After some more tests (and surprisingly some pretty good results), the fertility specialist we are seeing recommended going straight to IVF, mainly because I had little to no success on clomid the first time and because my issues really wouldn't be helped by other procedures like IUI. This is exciting. The doctor thinks we have a 55-65% possibility of success per cycle (a normal couple has a 25% possibility of pregnancy per cycle without treatment). We're hoping and praying and, honestly, expecting to only have to do one cycle. The doctor was pretty hopeful. It also raises our chances of twins to like 20%. However, it does raise some ethical questions like whether or not we will freeze embryos for later use.

And, even with the discount this particular clinic offers for full time teachers, we won't be able to afford it until Steve gets his year end bonus...about May. So there are still nine more months to wait. And I will be going through all of it during the school year.

We are craving you prayers, for a miracle in the meantime or for success in the future, for peace of mind all around, and the finances to do all of this.