I love Lincoln's Birthday!

Okay, so I'm a bit pushy but come on folks... I've waited long enough. Here is the story. When Clay got called on Monday with his analysis results, the Dr.'s office mentioned Dr. Jarrett was also coming to town on Feb 12th (Lincoln's Birthday people) and I may want to try to get in then. I called Dr. Dutta's office this morning and talked to the wonderfully helpful and always pleasant nurse Stacey. She thought it was originally supposed to be in place of the March 11th but it looked like it was in addition to. She said it wouldn't hurt at all to call over and see about getting it moved. So I did.....

Mrs C. (I know her real name but I will not use it since she is not as joyful to work with as Stacey) answered the phone. I fumbled for the words to explain why I was calling and it went downhill from there. She must be having a bad day. She complained "I wish they wouldn't do that! It's too hard to schedule. I'm already trying to reschedule today's appointments... did you send in your paperwork...yada yada, yada." I wanted to yell, "Look lady, it's not a big deal. Either you can or you can't so quit complaining" but secretly I had my eyes closed and my fingers crossed. It would be almost a whole MONTH earlier and although I'm not expecting any answers or meds from the "consultation" at least its one more step in the right direction.

Finally she says, "1pm" and I say "That works." So folks, I am now taking the next step at 1pm on Thursday February 12th! Happy Birthday Mr. Lincoln! Happy Consultation Day Kim Brockman!

Now grumpy Mrs. C muttered I may have to wait under her breath but that won't rain on my parade at all. I don't care. I was shaking when I hung up the phone. I was excited, scared, and wanted to kick Mrs. C all while smiling and jumping around. I hope I didn't get my girl Stacey in trouble and I hope it all works out. Now its time to update some counters, tickers, widgets, and whatnots....15 days people..15 days!!!

Playing around with tickers

Call them tickers, widgets, or gadgets, but I just can't seem to find one I like. This one would be good if it didn't look like I was already at the end of the pencil. Hmm... do they base all the tickers on a length of time like 1 year and then when you are as close to the event as I am then it just looks right around the corner?

I didn't replace the countdown on the right hand side because I'm not sure what I want yet. I did realize the one on the right is somehow wrong already. That happened with my Christmas countdown too. It was like 2 or 3 days off. Oh well, guess we are all a little off in some way ;o)

Oh wait, I get it... after another look at the pencil...it's based on 6 months. Maybe I'll look for something on the ticker factory that counts down the days. I like that better. Maybe I'll even have fewer days to countdown if I can get in to see the doctor on Feb 12th instead of March 11th.

At least one of us is "normal"

We got Clay's test results back from his semen analysis today and all was "normal and within expected ranges" according to what Clay said the nurse told him. I was getting a bit impatient so I called the Champaign office to verify they got my paperwork and ask about the test results. Then no more than 5 minutes later, Clay called and let me know the nurse had given him the results. Now the difference between my husband and I.... I would have asked about 10 more questions and for a copy of the results to be faxed, but Clay was just happy with the results and I am too. We now know at least one of us is fertile. The other (me) just needs a little push.

Clay also said the nurse told him Dr. Jarrett was going to be coming to town in February on the 12th so I should be able to get in early and not have to wait till March. That would be outstanding so keep your fingers crossed I can move my appointment and start my next step a bit earlier.

"Live a Little, Laugh a Lot"

So Thursday afternoon at work, Mel and I went to a presentation as part of our company's "LIVE WELL, WORK WELL" program. It was a presentation from Barb Bancroft, RN, MSN, PNP. She is an award-winning speaker and holds informative and humorous seminars on health and disease prevention. Long story short, her most recent book is entitled "Live a Little, Laugh a Lot." I picked up a small pamphlet on her and the book as we left the enjoyable presentation. I read the pamphlet this morning and wanted to share part of it. A few excerpts from the book are given and I will be sharing one of those.

Hysterical Highlight "In 1873, Edward H Clarke, an esteemed Harvard physician claimed to have discovered the reason for 'female sterility.' The cause, he wrote, was the education of women, which diverted energy from the reproductive machinery to the brain, resulting in women with 'monstrous brains and puny bodies."


So disregarding the confusion on whether or not he was sexist by today's standards implying that only uneducated women can remain fertile (although I don't think that was his intent and I don't think that serves a scientific benefit.)

Regardless...can I say then I am too smart? HA! Just kidding!!!

However, it makes me wonder what other theories have been proposed throughout the years. After all infertility is not new. Infertility has been around since the dawn of man. Maybe I'll have to look into that. I am sure there will be many interesting thoughts......

The task at hand

Tomorrow we make our first trip to Champaign and the fertility clinic. We will be going for Clay's analysis. It is a small step in the road to make sure we are only dealing with one set of infertility problems and not two. (Otherwise known as mine and not his.) So in honor of the task at hand tomorrow (yes I chose those words on purpose...), I thought I would do a short post about semen analysis and what they will be looking for.

According to WebMD, a typical semen analysis will analyze 8 factors. They include:
1. Volume: This is a measure of how much semen is present in one ejaculation.
2. Liquefaction time: Semen is a thick gel at the time of ejaculation and normally becomes liquid within 20 minutes after ejaculation. Liquefaction time is a measure of the time it takes for the semen to liquefy.
3. Sperm count: This is a count of the number of sperm present per milliliter (mL) of semen in one ejaculation.
4. Sperm morphology: This is a measure of the percentage of sperm that have a normal shape.
5. Sperm motility: This is a measure of the percentage of sperm that can move forward normally. The number of sperm that show normal forward movement in a certain amount of semen can also be measured (motile density).
6.pH: This is a measure of the acidity (low pH) or alkalinity (high pH) of the semen.
7. White blood cell count: White blood cells are not normally present in semen.
8. Fructose level: This is a measure of the amount of a sugar called fructose in the semen. The fructose provides energy for the sperm.

I could continue to post and share the "normal" or "expected" levels, but I think I will wait until we get the results back, which I am hoping to have by the end of next week.

I've been doing some other reading on the topic too. I am also doing some "research" tomorrow during our trip. Examining the materials and supplies available. I don't think I'm going back in the room with Clay but I will give him the responsibility to do some research in that back room, so I can report back to the interested parties.

Here's to not missing the cup!

What everyone says....

Quotes from an actual email conversation held with a friend a few weeks ago....

Me: "I'm trying so hard not to get my hopes too high for anything to really happen. I need mentally prepare myself just for waiting until March 11th when I go to the doctor but its hard sometimes…"

Friend: "Well just think of it like this…If it happens on its own before then well great, if not then you have a back up plan. It will happen, the man above works in crazy ways. I know how hard it is not to get excited and worked up. It will all fall into place. I know you want to slap me right now because everyone says that."

Not that I would ever really smack this friend but she gets it ;o)