The First Steps

December 10, 2008 (my 25th birthday) Mike and I had a meeting with a representative at the University of Utah. We will call her April. We met with her to begin our application for the Miracle Fund. The Miracle Fund is a way for a private donor to donate the money for a couple to go through the IVF (invitro fertilization) process. This donor donated enough to cover the cost for 25 couples in 2008. It was a crazy meeting and I left very emotional. I wanted so bad to get this fund. We had a 12 page application we had to complete, as well as 5 references we had to get and a few medical tests. We finished the application and got all test results in around the beginning of January. Then it was just a wait process. It was excruciating to say the least. I knew the committee that would review the applications only met a few times a year, but I didn't know how long I could wait. Then Friday, March 27, 2009 I got a letter in the mail with this logo on it

I still had to wait another 2 hours or so until Mike got home before I could open it. That was the hardest 2 hours to make it through. I ended up with a really clean house though, because it was the only way I could find to keep my mind occupied while I waited. When Mike got home we opened the letter:

Dear Nicole and Michael Montgomery
Through the generosity of anonymous donors, and after successful completion of a family study by a State licensed social worker, you will be able to be recipients of one cycle of IVF to be completed before the end of March 2010.

Monday I called April back and got the name and number of a social worker who would come to our house and complete a home study. A home study is where a social worker comes to your home, interview you and your spouse, inspect the home, and evaluate you as an individual and a couple. Pretty scary if you ask me. But, the social worker sounded really nice over the phone, and the interview date was set.

What Makes The World Go Round

There are some things I hate in life more than others. One of those things is people who get a blog and then NEVER update it. To me a blog is a way of telling those you don’t talk to on a daily or weekly or monthly basis what is going on in your life. Well I am one of those super sucky people that I hate. It has been over a month since I last posted, and I feel so bad. It has been a crazy crazy time. I will update with the biggest highlights, but I spent a few days in Louisville Kentucky, which was interesting. The city is beautiful and I actually had a lot more fun that I had expected to. Quinn left on his mission. He is already in and out of the MTC. He is currently serving in St. Vincent. It sounds like he is having a good time. I haven’t seen any pictures, but I would assume it is beautiful. Maybe I can get his mom to update his blog with the pictures he sends.
Mike managed to lose his job. He is working at 2 part time gigs right now, while he looks for a full time position. He has great potential with his travel business, and I see that taking off HUGE in the next few months. With him working so much I rarely get to see him. I might see him for a whole hour once in a while, so really the only time I see him anymore is Sunday. Luckily our car is in the shop getting new brakes today, so I got to see him while he took me to work and took me back to the shop to pick up the car. SCORE!!! Love him to bits, yes I do.

Whilriwnd

Well I made it back to Salt Lake City at 9:10 am on Thursday morning. I made it to the rehearsal no problem. The wedding was beautiful. I don't have any pictures yet, but as soon I get some I will be sure to post them. It was so much fun to see my brother get married, and then 2 days later see my brother-in-law give his mission farewell speech. Quinn did such a good job. He is going to be a very good missionary. He is going to the West Indies Mission, which is in the middle of the Caribbean. I am excited for tomorrow, when we get to take him to the MTC. It will be such an exciting time for his family. Now all boys will have served missions for the church.
I will say I will be glad to get back to work on Thursday. It has been a full schedule ever since North Carolina and I am ready to get back to just plain normal life. Guess we will see if just plain normal life ever exists again.

Best Job Ever...Yeah Right

Many people tell me that I have a great job. I sit at a desk working 4 10 hr days, I have management that I am friends with, and I get to fly to exotic (including Phoenix) locations. Well to all of them I say BLAH!!! I was sent to Raleigh North Carolina (RDU) this week to do some work. Well, not only is it the first week in March, but it is also the week of my brother Nathan's wedding. His rehearsal dinner is tomorrow and the wedding is on Friday 3.6.9 (love the date, it is so numerically fun). Anyways, the rehearsal is tomorrow, and I am stuck here in Raleigh, with a broken plane and a flight attendant that will time out (not be able to fly due to workhour restrictions) if we do not take off soon. So, either I fly really late into Atlanta, and stay for 5 hours there, or they cancel the flight here, and I come back at 4am to fly out on a 520am flight to Atlanta, then finally to Salt Lake City. Oh what choices!!!
I am trying to find the humor in it, I promise I am, but if you know me you know that things like this stress me out. Of course it is only happening because I have something to get home to, because I have plans from the minute I get home all the way through next Wednesday. If you ever get stuck in the Raleigh airport flying Delta, the agents are super nice and super helpful. Just tell them you kow Nicole from SkyWest and if they know me, they may be extra super nice to you.
Jessie & Nate, I love you and promise I did not mean for this to happen. I will make it home by the rehersal...PROMISE

My Crazy Wonderful Man

"Honey, I have a great idea for a snack" That is my favorite line these days. My cute husband knows immediately that I am going to ask for something to eat. It doesn't matter that I am actually closer to the kitchen, or that I am such a picky eater, he will look at me and smile. No ladies, he does not get it every time, but he is pretty darn close. He is such a great guy and I wanted to thank him for being that way. He loves me and I could not ask for more. He has put up with not only me, but me on anti-depressents (not pretty), me on fertility medications (even worse) and me in the hospital on multiple occasions (I am actually pretty funny then). He continues to strive to do his best to take care of me and provide for my future. He has recently started a new travel company M&M Photo Tours. He is very excited about it, and I love seeing the enthusiasim in his eyes when he talks about it. Good luck babe. I know you can do anything you put your mind to. Sorry I don't have a picture of you, but because you are photographer, you are always behind the camera.

Just Some More Lingo

I am putting a few of my favorites, but after talking to our cousins Annie and Tallon I have decided to include a link to the complete TTC (Trying To Concieve) Acronym dictionary.

BD - Baby Dance (making a Baby that is)
BFN - Big Fat Negative (Neg Pregnancy Test)
BFP - Big Fat Positive! (Positive Pregnancy Test)
DH - Dear Husband
POAS - Pee on a stick (Home Pregnancy Test)
SMEP - Sperm Meets Egg Plan
TWW - Two week wait (also 2WW-that horrid time after ovulation, until you get a BFP or BFN)

What exactly does "UNEXPLAINED" mean?

Well, as many of you know, Mike and I are unable to have children the good old fasioned way :( I have a mixture of "UNEXPLAINED" infertility and P.C.O.S. I thought I would post a little dictionary for the few of you that aren't sure what I am talking about when I get on a rampage. (Sorry if you have been subjected to one of those, I know it is unenjoyable, Mike reminds me of it all the time) The following is pulled off of WebMD, I think they say it the best.
***Caution - I do use medical terms***
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (say "pah-lee-SIS-tik OH-vuh-ree SIN-drohm") is a problem in which a woman’s hormones are out of balance. Polycystic ovary syndrome (or PCOS) is common, affecting as many as 1 in 15 women. Often the symptoms begin in the teen years. Treatment can help control the symptoms and prevent long-term problems. For reasons that are not well understood, in PCOS the hormones get out of balance.
Follicle Stimulation Hormone In women, FSH helps control the menstrual cycle and the production of eggs by the ovaries.
Femara This medication is used with other medications to treat certain types of breast cancer (e.g., hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer) in women after menopause. Letrozole is also used to help prevent the cancer from returning. Some breast cancers are made to grow faster by a natural hormone called estrogen. Letrozole decreases the amount of estrogen the body makes and helps to slow or reverse the growth of these breast cancers.(**ALTHOUGH I DO NOT HAVE BREAST CANCER, IT IS THE MEDICATION I AM GIVEN MOST OF THE TIME. THE FDA WILL NOT APPROVE IT FOR INFERTILITY USE, BUT IT DOES THE JOB**)
Hamster Penetration Test The sperm penetration assay (also called the hamster zona-free ovum test or hamster test) checks whether a man's sperm can join with an egg. Sperm are mixed with hamster eggs in a laboratory. The number of sperm that penetrate the egg (sperm capacitation index) is measured. This test is done most often at special fertility centers that do in vitro fertilization (**Yes, we have had this done* Long Live mansters!!*)
Saline Ultrasound A hysterosonogram is done to evaluate the inside of the uterus (endometrial cavity) by filling the uterus with fluid during an ultrasound. This procedure is also known as a sonohysterogram.
Reproductive Endocronoligist (RE) (Dr. Gibson at the University of Utah) Reproductive endocrinologists are medical doctors who specialize in the care and treatment of women who have trouble becoming pregnant or who have other reproductive or hormonal disorders. Reproductive endocrinologists are gynecologists who specialize in infertility.
Semen Analysis semen analysis checks the number of sperm (sperm count), the number of sperm that look normal, the number of sperm that can move normally, the number of white blood cells in the semen, and how much semen is made. For more information, see the medical test Semen Analysis.
hCG If follicles fully develop, you are given a human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) injection to stimulate the follicles to mature.