Los Porchs

Honestly, nothing sucks quite like having to go back to the ol' birth control after YEARS of being off it because you're TRYING to get pregnant.  It's a swift kick to the teeth as I attempt to prepare myself for this FET.  I'm trying to find ways to stay grounded, give myself grace, and not overthink, analyze... it's not easy.  I try to keep moving to keep from the brief pauses because in those moments of silence, I. Freak. Out. Plus side?  Our insurance covered this. I also picked up my Estradiol, which only set me back $15.  I can start taking this when my next cycle starts.  Then comes the progesterone!  Woooo! Timeline(ish) May 1 * Start bc May 21 * End bc start of new cycle, start Estradiol mid-cycle, progesterone begins The rest is kind of to be determined.  I need more labs done; I get to pee in a cup!  And we need to sign our transfer consent, but other than that, we're pretty much ready to go.  :) So I guess... stay tuned?  I know a few

The best little helper :) We are so excited to be done with some (seemingly) quick & easy changes to our half bathroom (aka The Poop Bathroom ).  We had bought a mirror and replaced the vanity top a few weeks back and I had a paint sample stuck on the wall and spent a ridiculous amount of time mulling this over.  "Nothing is permanent" so we went for it! Before: Everything about the fixtures and toilet just screamed out-dated We changed out the vanity top & found that mirror but wanted to finish! Progress (end of day Saturday): This is 2 wax rings ... should only have 1 We also found a Gatorade bottle with water in it in the tank of the toilet to reduce the water usage... Oh Linda...... Hot damn!!!  Look at that sexy toilet. After (mostly): Charlotte's feelings on not having full attention on her: "You no take my picture." In other news, we also decided to buy new windows for our

No news is good news, right? I'm patiently waiting for cycle day 1 so I can get the ball rolling but until then, I'm savoring every moment with my Charlie Bug who seems to have grown into a preschooler overnight. Xo Mama Porch

I usually love getting the mail.  Charlie & I walk to the mailbox together and peek inside.  She loves literally any mail, even the ads (especially the ads).  She is obsessed with checking the front porch for packages -- C:  Maybe we have packages? Me:  I don't know... probably not. C:  Maybeeeeeeee Today we got the mail and I kind of wanted to just leave this beast in there.    You know what? I'll take it.  It's better than $1000. Insurance is by far our biggest nightmare when it comes to this fertility stuff and yet I am forced to humbly remember that I am #blessed to have insurance that covers this for us as so many do not have that coverage.  The insurance has been my #1 complaint with this process.  I don't remember it being such an ordeal to get approval.  Actually, I remember it being fairly easy.  This time, I had to LEGIT prove that I had been trying to conceive before our fresh cycle IVF in 2013.  Yep, you read that right.  Porch is

We took Charlie to the park today to get out some energy in an effort to maximize her nap.  That being said, it's now 12:45 and she's still awake.  She DID eat some lunch and is just kind of on her last leg, but regardless -- she's still a w a k e. #wearallthebabies (even the fake ones) Pushing her baby in the bike apparently, this is how we roll now.  baby goes with us. sweet girl would have stayed in that swing all day long if we let her! We are so happy to live in an are with easy access to several parks!  Makes our time together super fun.  Can't wait for the warm weather to stick!  I'm dreaming of dinner dates on the deck with friends & family. xo Mama Porch

Welcome to Wisconsin, my darlings.  Porch and I drove to Northbrook this past Thursday to bring our 4 embabies (frozen embryos) to join us in Wisconsin where they will hopefully be transferred in the near future.  All things said and done, it was a pretty quick transition.  We drove to our new clinic to get the tank for transport and then headed to Northbrook to the lab and they put the embryos in for us.  We grabbed a quick lunch and then headed back.  I went to work while Porch took the tank back to the new clinic for storage. I feel we look pretty well-rested for parents of 5 under the age of 3.  ;) We're ready!   The long ride home So it was somewhat uneventful if you take out the emotional aspect... you know, of our family being in one state now... and the fact that this means we're 1 step closer to being ready to do a transfer.  ;)  Can you picture me with 5 kids?  Hahahahahaha, I thought I was a hot mess with ONE! xo Mama Porch

A lazy Sunday over here today.  We ventured to Costco and then putzed around outside.  It was warm-ish (like 50F) so it was nice to not need 100 layers, but still kind of chilly.  I even opened some windows this morning just to get some fresh air into the house.   Suburban Dad:  watering grass seed on a Sunday morning "GET OFF MY YARD!" We enjoyed our raspberry plants so much last year that we decided to add a blueberry bush! Caught her red-handed as she watered our planter... with bubbles. Having a conversation with the bird.  Poor bird was trying to get back to her nest. She dropped her Shopkin off on the rock and then walked away. The nest.  It drives me crazy, but it's nice at the same time. Nana and Papa stopped by on their way home from the cabin & Charlotte fought her nap before their arrival.  She finally crashed around 3:30pm.  Needless to say, it's going to be a fun eveni