Stig Arrival

He was so tired and just out-of-it.

My friend Evi and I picked the Stig up in her car, which was barely able to fit his luggage. Only one bag was his, the other is grandma-bound.

I'm so happy he's here...I can't wait 'til he wakes up.

In less than 24 hours....

The Stig arrives! YAY!
I have been tracking his flight online and as of right now he only has 8 hours and 42 minutes to go. I am eagerly waiting...

As pops snores away, I'll share my day. I hung out with my BFAM, wife and little guy today. That was nice. We had some pastries in a cafe downtown and then they drove me up to Kaali. This time I asked the nurse to watch me do the injection, just to make sure I am doing it right. Of course I am and I am just being paranoid.
So tomorrow, I'll actually really do it on my own.
Then we all headed down to the grocery store so that I could get The Stig his requested items. Beer, breakfast bars, salami and water.
After that we headed over to their house and ordered some Hungo Pizza.

My next appointment is on Monday for an ultrasound to make sure things are going the way they should be. I think after that, I will need to go to the clinic every other day.

That is pretty much it for now.

Injection Report

Pops and I went to Kaali Institute this afternoon. On the way there all I could hear was a friend's voice (initials BK) in my head saying: "Ewww, no way! Call a taxi." Between the bus and the metro she'd have a full blown germ-a-phobe meltdown.

Believe me Im not touching any of the handrails if I don't have to. All I cared about today was getting my million dollar medication to the clinic so the nurse could show me how to administer - in other words inject myself!

And ya know what? Not bad AT ALL.

The needle is super sharp and the more I think about it, I may just do it myself.

Also it seems that I've found a sleep schedule! I doze off at about 8PM, wake-up at midnight. Fall asleep again at 5AM then wake around 8. At least Pops is cheery in the morning while making coffee (tea for me) and talking ceaselessly in Hungo...blah blah blah this & that blah, blah, blah...and I'm still only half awake. Then when he stops for air I fall back to sleep until around noon.

As I write this Pops is snoring like a bear in the woods. I'm considering sticking a breath-right strip on his nose right about now.

I don't have much else to report except that I'm catching up on 'Moonlighting' and the original 'CSI' (in Hungarian) on DVD. Oh and I'm half-way through 'Eclipse'. It makes me miss The Stig even more. Speaking of, WHERE IS MY STIG? It sounds like he's busy tormenting his coworkers. No worry girls, I (happily) take on the abuse shortly.

It's time to get back to reading. My dad's one man snore-fest can serve as a soundtrack. I'll check back in tomorrow.

Over and out.

Mari Winsor is my friend

well kinda.
Anytime my pops leaves me alone for a longer than 15 minutes (so far, twice) I break out the Winsor Pilates DVD and "work my buns and thighs".
Glad I hauled that yoga mat from the other side of the globe.
It sure feels good after going to grandmas to eat.
She made enough food for at least 8 people. Pops ate enough for 3. I ate for one. And we brought tupperware to take the rest.
I Love grandmas cooking!
She made:
chicken soup with pasta
blood sausage, kolbasz, pork ribs and red cabbage.
Potatoes cooked in the fat of the above.
Another thing about Hungos: We don't eat light.
Seeing grandma was nice. Although I do see that she has not taken the diet my mom puts her on while she is in SoCal back to Hungary with her. That's ok, I figure as long as she has an appetite she is happy.
The Stig had me bring her a couple of gifts, which she loved. A VHS copy of GoldenEye and pictures from our wedding. Yeah, I know. The wedding was over four years ago but it is better late than never.

Today Pops and I went to the bank and then went to his work to introduce/re-introduce me to his co-workers. After that we went to a little restaurant called 'Kis Harang'. It means 'Little Bell'. I think I'll take the Stig there. He would like it, I think.
I am ready to do the happy dance when he arrives in the airport. I can't wait to see him. Just thinking about him being here so soon gets me giddy!

As for tomorrow, I will head over to the Kaali Institute to get my first shot.
I opened the meds in the fridge today, just to take a gander. It doesn't look that scary and I think that I am over my jet-lag enough this time to remember how the nurse does it so that I can do it myself. Although I might take advantage of the nurse until Friday. Saturday and Sunday I will have to do it myself.

I am excited for Thursday too. I am going to visit my brother-from-another-mother and his wife and baby. They are such a cute little family and I love them dearly. They have been a great help in supporting me through all of this. I can't wait to see them.

Well, that is all I have to report today. I'll let you all know how the injection goes. And hopefully the hormones won't turn me in to an evil, crazy lady.

Thinking about you all in the US and I will talk to you all soon!

I forget...

Last night, to get out of the house, pops and I went for a walk. It was a perfect night. No rain or snow. Crisp and cool.
We walked along the Danube between the Chain and Elizabeth bridges.
Gorgeous. I forget what a beautiful city this is. Everything is perfectly lit up and really just stunning.
Therefore, I am happy to report that I left the house yesterday.

We left the house today too, as we had some business to attend to. That is always fun. Waiting in a stuffy, over-heated room filled with people waiting on doing government "business". But all in all it is good news: Let's just say that as of tomorrow (as long as I pay up, which I will force pops to do), I have some health insurance here too. We are not exactly sure if it will help with the treatment I am going through now, but it never hurts to try. Perhaps some of my meds can be "covered". Perhaps not. It is part of the perk of being a citizen of a socialist nation.

Tonight should be fun. We are going to grandma's house for dinner and shower.
Let me explain.
Somehow or another someone in the apartment house where we live in, keeps flushing rags down their toilet. We suspect anyway.
Last time this happened, Pops had the plummer pull out and keep the 'clog'. It was a wash rag. So now Pops is on the look-out for anyone who has a similar wash rag in the building. He is on a mission to find out which upstairs neighbor is flushing rags down the toilet so he can punch their lights out.
So, needless to say, when the drain started backing up last night, Pops was pissed.
HAHA, man there was some serious words coming out of his mouth. Hungos are very colorful with their words when they are cussing.
So long story short, we can't take a shower without the tub part overflowing. It's cool. It will be resolved, hopefully, by the time The Stig arrives. And besides, somehow grandma gets her towels super soft. HOO-ray for grandma. I sure hope she likes the gift we got her.

UPDATE: Pops fixed the shower...he is hoping the rag was flushed to the downstairs neighbor so they have to deal with it. Hungos: We like to pass on the greif.

I'll report back soon.

Oh and I can't say thank you enough for all the comments!!! Keep 'em coming!

3AM Showers and The Crunchy Towels

Showering in a space the size of a small telephone booth (we americans are so spoiled) in the wee hours of the morning is fun!

I didn't leave the apartment all day. I helped my pops re-organize the place. Let's just say it's obvious there are no ladies hanging out here (for long periods of time, anyway).

This whole jet-lag thing is a blast. Everyone sleeps while I'm wide awake. I fell asleep at around 11pm and then BAM I'm awake at 2:00. I tried reading but my mind was racing too much to really get in to the 'Eclipse' book. Only on chapter five. I figure a chapter a day.

I pulled out my sleep shades. Nope. So now I'm blogging about 3AM showers and crunchy towels which, in case you're wondering, are due in fact that not many people here have dryers which means everything is hung out to dry. When it's winter and/or you live in the city where you don't have a place to hang your clothes in the sun everything comes out crunchy. My husband just loves it!

Also, due to the icy reception of my thermal spa yearnings by those in my family, I won't be going to any of the world famous spas. Booooo. Oh well, it is not the end of the world. Acthung! Der spa ez verboten!

Note: Spas here are actually thermal baths and most do not use chlorine.

All I can say now is I'm ready for 'The Stig' to arrive. I miss him terribly. He is so dreamy. And by the time he gets here, my jet-lag will be done and his will start. I figure as long as we are in balance with this treatment, that is all that matters.

Well, I suppose I'll go hang out on WebMd and kill some time.

Oh, before I go, I have to say THANK YOU so much for every one of the comments. I swear I check in all the time and I am so happy to see more. You guys make me laugh... chartered jets and magic wand smiley faces. Good stuff.

OK, I'll check in soon.
From the Motherland - Over and Out.

Ultrasound Good-to-Go

I finally met my doctor today face-to-face.

Here's the run-down:
We left the apartment at about 1pm.
Went to the metro station and my pops bought me my two-week bus pass.
Went way down to the depths where the red-line runs, went 3 stops.
We met up with one of my dad's friends to make an exchange (we are Hungos and we do lots of exchanges..don't ask).
Got on the bus and went 6 stops up the hill on the Buda side.

Note: Budapest is actually two cities separated by the Danube river.

The bus stops right across the street from the Kaali Institute.
The place is surrounded by residential homes in a very quaint area.

The waiting room is elegant and pretty full with patients.
I was called into dr. Kovac's office and reviewed the paperwork I'd sent. He then gave me a run-down of the process. Man, those hungos sure love to talk!
After all the blah, blah, blah the next step was an ultrasound to make sure that I don't have any cysts.

In an adjoining room a nurse was waiting for me. I changed into a gown and then came the magic wand. Get your mind out of the gutter.

Ultrasound showed NO CYSTS and several good follicles on both ovaries. Hungo doc says that is good. Based on the ultrasound he recommended that I continue on my birth control pill for one more day.

I am to start the stimulation medication on the 28th. So, fo the next four days I don't have to do anything. The best part is, the doc said it is OK for me to go to the spa! Oh, that makes me so happy. I will go before my stimulation starts, just in case.

So after that, I forced my dad to pay the $93 consultation fee and the ultrasound. Hee hee. He was happy to do it. We walked out and got my prescription filled at the bottom of the street (6 stops on the bus).

I will be injecting myself with Gonal-F. The same medication they give to IVF'rs in the U.S. I will be taking 112.5 of this stuff which, by the way, is in my little euro-fridge next to the salami and peppers. Gotta love it.

I dropped about $430 at the pharmacy. On one of these posts I may gather a list of how much this is all costing by going abroad.

Oh and the best part is that I can go to the Institute and the nurse will do the injections for me. They showed me how but I might have them do the first two or three or until I get comfy with the process. If this all has a happy ending, I love the fact our baby will be 'Made in Hungary'.

I feel pretty good for the most part.
Breathe. One step at a time.

I am here!

I got in to Budapest last night.
That was easy.

It is pretty cold but there is no snow or rain. In fact there isn't any wind right now either. It is not so bad!

This afternoon I hed to meet Dr. Peter Kovacs at the Kaali Institute to figure out the rest of my schedule.
I'll let you know how that all goes down when I get back.

Real quick: I have to say a big thanks and give a big hug to all who have left comments. Thank you so much for being my support net from so far away.
I really do look forward to reading and seeing them.

I'll post as soon as I meet with the super doc.

Tomorrow I leave!

In less than 24 hours I'll be at the airport kissing my husband goodbye. I'll probably be crying. Actually, I will be crying.

In fact, while writing this I just looked up with tears streaming down my face and my husband says to me: "Stop crying you wuss."

This, of course, made me burst out in laughter. He loves me and I know it. He loves me enough to choose me as the mother of his child. He always knows how to make me laugh.

Anyway, we've chosen to take this journey step-by-step, moment-by-moment. We don't spend any time speculating. We don't get too excited or too skeptical. Instead we're hopeful and prayerful and whatever happens, well, happens.

Speaking of hopeful; this time next year, I could be cradling a two month old.

Or, two-month-old twins. Holy Cow!

Then again, maybe not. That's what makes this a journey, not a story. We don't know how it's going to end.

I'm ready. I'm strong.
Like the detergent says; Small & Mighty

I work a half-day tomorrow then come home and get ready to sit on an plane for twelve hours. Then I have a four hour layover and another flight which will take two hours.

Thursday night I get into Budapest where my dad will be waiting for me with a taxi. We'll stay up all night talking, sharing, squeezing six months of " I missed you" into three weeks time.

Friday morning I meet my doctor for the first time at 1400 (whatever time that is) to get an ultrasound. In preparation for that event I got a pedicure this afternoon. It's always good to have cute toes when your 6,000 miles from home, your legs are up in the air and your lady-bits are on display for a strange doctor to gander at.

I'll have all the medication explained to me that day. I've heard it's not as scary as it sounds.

Then it's another ten days of waiting for the medication to stimulate as many eggs out of me as possible and at about that time I'll get to see my husband again! I am looking forward to that day. I miss him already.

One part of this trip I'm looking forward to is my stay at a (very) nice hotel in Munich on the way home. It was my husband's idea. While there I'll be doing just what I've been told to do so many times over the past three years:

"Just relax."

Almost 10 days to go....

Ten days to go and I'm freaking out a little.

Soon I'll board a plane and take the first step of a miracle process called In Vetro Fertilization or IVF.

Nervous about: the hormone treatment, packing, the long flight, stressing out family in the states, my job while I'm gone (and when I get back), meeting my doctor for the first time, being away from my friends & family, giving my own injections...

In the past three years my husband and I have gone through:

Two months of taking clomid
A cyst rupture
A Laparoscopy and D&C in September'07
A Diagnosis of Endometreosis and Fibroids
Six months of a drug called Lupron (forced me into menopause)
Six more months of trying and hoping
Two more months of clomid
Three more months of trying and hoping
Nothing.

After all that, we went to see an RE (fertility specialist). This doctor informed us our best bet is IVF. I was sobbing the entire time. Soon after which a nurse came into the office and explained the financial details. $10,000 for one cycle. If it fails, oh well. You're out 10K. Sign here.

Thanks but no thanks.

So...

I researched the motherland. Hungary. Turns out they have an institute that does IVF for half the price by doctors who've trained in the US and their success rates are among the highest anywhere.

I sent the doctor my entire medical history along with my husband's blood work and various test results.
My first appointment is set.
Our tickets are booked.
I've started packing.
This is our journey.

I'm freaking out.