Infertility....part 2: IVF

I am so grateful that I shared the last post, although it was entirely too long for uninterested Infertility folks to read, but hopefully for those whose lives have been touched or effected by infertility, that was for you. (Actually, I know it has been read by many, my stat numbers went way up, I just hope it helped someone out there).
Thank you for all your kind words that were written, spoken and some left unspoken.  It truly is amazing to feel the love and support of so many people out there.  THANKS a million times!
Disclaimer: This is probably going to be a little long again, I try to condense, but I'm such a story teller, sorry.  I intend to someday write a book...but probably not soon, and probably not ever, but I intend to.
Enjoy.
So part TWO, what is this part all about?  It is actually the part where they try to get you pregnant!  Yes, I say they, because it is a WHOLE group effort sometimes.
When we moved to North Dakota, we weren't exactly sure why we moved.  We knew it was the right thing and we could see the positives but we definitely see a huge reason why we moved here now.  My job is a state job and bless those state jobs for having wonderful insurance!  We knew that this next step and the processess we would have to go through would not have even been an option had we not had this insurance.  We were only obligated to pay 20% and thankfully that was in our budget. 
So then began the many many trips to Fargo, North Dakota.  Our first trip was on April 16 (which was actually to Bismarck at a Satellite office) where we met our Reproductive endocrinologist for the first time.  Dr. D was awesome!  She was very kind and helpful and by golly she was on the ball, these people mean business when they want to get you pregnant!  I loved that!  Because lets be real, most infertile couples have been trying for awhile and are super sick and tired of waiting! So her nurse called us and scheduled us for the next InVitro Fertilization class.  At this clinic it is required to take a 2 1/2 hour class to learn all about IVF and what you will be going through and how their clinic works. 
So the first week of May we went to the class.  It was kind of nice to sit in a room of 9 other infertile couples and feel comfort in knowing that I'm not the only person that has to do this and that the entire room was in the same boat as us.  That was really nice.  The nurses and staff teaching the class were very knowledgeable and we really learned a lot about IVF and some of the misconceptions.  Like for example, the movies make it look like you have to take shots for like 6 months and then the process is a forever process but it's not true.  Everything happened with in a 2-3 week period of time and it was quick!  That's way better then the movies (silly dramatizations, infertility is drama enough, why do they have to make it look worse then it is?).  So we began the scary but wonderful journey to actually have some success at getting pregnant.  When I say Journey, I'm not kidding you.  We had to travel 6 hours to get to the clinic and then 6 hours back home every time for all our appointments and treatment.  I am a carsick type individual so let me tell you, that was fun! ;) We had to stay in hotel for about a week because they needed to see us every other day sometimes.
We all know how LONG winded I can be when I get talking so I will try my best to get to the point...So with IVF things have to be all timed nice and perfectly for you to be able to start the next scheduled cycle at the clinic.  We weren't sure if my cycle would come or go when it was "scheduled" to.  They have certain specifications and if you don't meet that, then you have to wait until the next round (the next month and they induce your period instead).  We missed the deadline for June by two days (dang periods! sorry TMI) and I called the nurse, almost in tears, to tell her I was two days too late for starting when they wanted me too and that we wouldn't be able to do the June Cycle.  She said, and I quote "Oh no, that's okay, we'll keep you on the June schedule, we'll just bump starting your meds a couple days, no big deal".  I was elated!!!!  That meant #1 we were able to start IVF for the June and #2 I would get to go home in July to see my whole family rather then do IVF the month of July.  I was so happy.  We decided to try June and see how it works or if it works and then go home for July, take a break and then try again in a few months once we've saved up some more money. I wasn't trying to be negative but I was trying to cope with the reality that it might not workt he first time and that hopefully we can do another round if this one doesn't take. There were a lot of factors though riding on June's IVF treatments.  You see, we hoped to get more then just one Egg and then hopefully be able to fertilize those eggs and implant some of them and freeze some for later.  BUT my worst fear was that I would not even ovulate and the medication would not even produce any eggs and then that meant my hopes were shot for good. Or that I would just get one egg and we would have to pay $15000 out of pocket to do this all over again because we didn't have any to freeze.
Well, that wasn't the case and all the prayers of many many loved ones were felt again.  We started stimulation medication on June 1st (I had to give my self shots in the tummy, not as terrible as it sounds, totally worth it too).  By June 11 my ovaries had been stimulated to the point where the doctors were ready to induce ovulation and let those puppies loose.  You see, a woman had follicles on her ovaries and each follicle contains an egg.  Once those follicles get to about 22-25 mm they release the egg.  Well for your information 22-25 mm is about an Inch.  I had 18 eggs!  So that meant I had 18 inches of follices but I also had about 12 more that weren't mature enough to release eggs but were still about 15 mm (3/4 inch) So if you add that up, my ovaries were exploding with follicles!  I felt like I ate Thanksgiving dinner every day.  Normally a woman releases ONE egg each month from ONE follicle.  These meds really did the trick.  We were SO grateful.  So they took my 18 mature eggs and they fertilized them with my husband's sperm.  They were able to get 11 fertilized eggs, the other 7 didn't make it.  Then of those 11, they watched them over the next 3 days and called me.  The doc said she had 5 that looked REALLY good and they wanted to keep watching them until day 5.  You see, IVF will transfer (implant) the embryos (not eggs anymore, because they are fertilized now) on day 3 or day 5.  Success rates are much higher on day 5 transfers because that usually means the embryos are growing nicely and are dividing nicely and preparing to become babies.  They gave us the option of day 3 or day 5, with day 5 though, they said it is likely we will lose some along the way.  But we decided that if we could just get one or two good ones and have high hopes for getting pregnant THIS cycle then we wanted that.  Day 3 would have given us many more to freeze but we might have to do more cycles.  We chose day 5.  We showed up on Day 5 and they prepared us for the transfer.  They were very nice and the only uncomfortable thing is you have to have a full bladder so your uterus is laying down flat (didn't know a bladder does that to a uterus? well now you do!)
The doctor came in a showed us the embryos they had that had made it that far (on paper of course), there appeared to be about 8, but what she showed us was a grade A, number 1 embryo.  She said it looked so good and she was so confident that she wanted to just transfer one embryo, that one.  Originally the plan was two, just in case one didn't take.  We talked a little more and she said that if we did two she was almost confident they would both take and that there is also the possibility that they could split.  She said IVF embryos have a higher chance of splitting then just average embryos.  We were slightly frightened, but in my heart I thought, 'if I get 4 babies that would be crazy but, heck, I can do it!'  My husband was frightenend thinking "4 babies all at once!?"  We said we were okay with the chance of multiples and that we wanted to still transfer two.  I really didn't want to take a chance of one not taking and then be left with nothing.  So she said okay and we signed the waiver and away we went.  They are so very professional, about 5 nurses and the doctor were in the room to make sure they were transferring the "Hanson Embryos" and not the chinese couples' that were in just before us (haha).  The doctor transferred them (details here unneccessary, use your imagination) and she said, "wow, that went absolutely perfectly" and "things are looking just perfect".  I was a little unnerved hearing a doctor say perfect so many times, I mean come on, you have to leave room for error right?  She did not. The doc said, "we've done all we can now, just have faith and be positive" as she patted me on the knee and left. So we left and prayed with all our being that they would take. Oh and they had 3 extra embryos to freeze.  That was great news too (transferring frozen embryos in the future is a third the cost, much more doable).
They told us they would have me come in to have a blood pregnancy test in about 11 days.  Did I say this process was quick or what?  I was like, "serious? that soon?"  geez!  I was not prepared for that day.  I was going to girls camp (for our church) that week and would have to leave camp for a couple hours to go to Bismarck for the blood test.  My husband wasn't going to be at camp with me so on the Sunday before I left, I had a total breakdown.  I cried and cried and said, what if it doesn't work and I'm all alone at girls camp crying...so I pre-cried and pre-mourned so he could hold me and I could handle it better when it happened.  I tried to hope for the best, but when you've seen SO many negative pregnancy tests....another one is just, well, it's actually horrifying.  I hate taking them.
I went to camp.  It was a wonderful time. I drove to Bismarck on Wednesday, nervous as could be, but trying really hard to be positive (I had spotted the night before and was devastated at what that might mean).
They drew my blood, I grabbed breakfast and drove back to camp (bawling again the whole way there, in preparation for bad news so that when I got the news I wouldn't look like a total wreck to the girls there).
I was waiting for the girls to finish their classes and was just hanging out by myself at the campground when my phone rang.  We don't get hardly any cell service down there so I was shocked when it rang (probably a gift from above).  I looked and it was a Fargo, ND phone number.  My heart sunk, "already? They had the results?"  I answered it and the nurse on the other line said she couldn't hear me well, I walked around until I found a good spot and probably looked really funny as I was bent over sideways not moving an inch.  She said...."So, Are you ready for some good news?"  WHAAAA?  Did she just say what I think she said???? I think I said, "No I mean Yes,  no way?" She said, "We consider anything over 2 for HcG levels to be pregnant and you are 164?"  I was half crying have smiling and said, "Are you serious? Not possible??"  She laughed and said, "You are definitely pregnant!" I could hear all the nurses in the background squeeling and cheering, I was on cloud 9.  I honestly couldn't believe it, so I called my husband.  Mind you I'm still standing in the half bent over position so I can get service to talk to him. Do you know how hard it was to not jump up and down and spin around...I couldn't or I would have lost service.  So I called him and told him exactly what the nurse said and he was so  excited, he started asking me what that meant and I said I have no idea, but it means I'm definitely pregnant.  It was absolutely amazing!

So here we are now, I'm 8 weeks pregnant.  I know what some of you might be thinking...kind of early to be sharing the news?  Well, I contemplated this announcement and decided that if I only get to be pregnant for the frightening 10-12 weeks (when they say things are still iffy but after 12 weeks things are alot more positive) then I want to be excited with those I love.  I want to enjoy these moments where I am sick from the second I wake up until about 4:00 in the afternoon and find joy in this journey.  It is truly a journey.  I'm not out of the woods, any number of things could go wrong, but for now, I'm thrilled to announce that we are pregnant!  We heard the heart beats...oh yeah....there are TWO in there!  The one picture is not an Alien, it is our TWO babies. (and I had to put it second or else the little picture would pop up and give away my whole post) Babies AA and BB! And the first picture has my two neices in it, polar opposites and possible what my two babes could look like...nothing alike! but cute as could be! :) Boy and girl, Girl and girl or Boy and boy! We shall see!

We are due on March 6, 2013 and I'm guessing probably sooner because it's twins.  I hope and pray that these little pea size babies will be healthy and grow to full term and beyond.  I know it's real now because I feel sick all the time and that's definitely not normal, amongst other strange pregnancy feelings, but now I just want to get them here safe and sound.  That's the next step.  Of course if it doesn't work out for us to carry these babies much longer, you will hear because this is my  journey and this is how I have to get my children.  It could mean a number of things.  Right now, we just pray that they will be a full term pregnancy with a healthy delivery and grow up to be strong amazing children! 

Thanks for reading!

Alas....It's time to talk about Infertility

Keeping my readers happy is a good thing...I know I don't have a million readers because I'm not a super cute crafty "Pinteresty" type blog, this is just a blog about me and my family and our happenings.  Nonetheless (p.s. what a great word!) I still like writing things, knowing that people may or may not read them or even care.  It's kind of like giving a talk in church, you want it to be good and you don't want to sound stupid, but you know that moment where you are standing up there and you hear chatter and kids screaming and you think to yourself, "Is anyone even listening to me?".  Yeah, that's sometimes how blogging is, but eh, what the heck, if no one listens or reads atleast I know my mom does. (and Kristen and Lindsay).
So I've been debating how to go about talking about a certain subject near to my heart and my life. 
I guess the only way is to say it: Infertility. 
There I said it to the world!  Now I kind of want to cry, typing that made my eyes well up with water.  I will resist, I can hold the tears back.  Woo, I did it.  It's really hard to blog with a head ache and burning eyeballs from crying eyes and contacts.  Okay, so I can't go back and proofread this or I will definitely cry.  So if there are grammar and spelling errors, blame it on the emotions.
I remember a few years ago when I found out a close friend of mine was trying to have a baby and she wasn't having any luck.  I remember thinking, "Man this girl is SO amazing and would be the best mom in the whole world, why can't she be blessed with children!".  I remember kneeling and pleading in prayer for this friend to become pregnant.  It made my heart ache so bad for her. (p.s. she did get pregnant and has a beautiful little girl!! yay!)
 (Alright, you don't know this, because time does not exist in writing, but I have to take a cry break...the tears shot out and now my head hurts...be right back). Okay I'm back.  I'm going to attempt to resume where I left off, with burning eyeballs too.

So I began my journey with this terrible disease that is sweeping the nation years ago (not for myself, but for others and then eventually for myself).  I began to think and wonder and worry and care about this terrible epidemic.  The "Why's" started rolling in.  My heart and mind could not understand why so many women could get pregnant and so many other's could not.  I am not one though to question God or His will so the Why's didn't last long.  I just prayed, very hard and fervently for those I cared for who had the righteous desire of becoming parents.  I was thrilled to find out that my one friend was expecting and for her it was just a hormone deficiency in her body that was easily fixed.
I wish it was that easy for all these other women.  Some women have completely unexplained infertility and others have very definite reasons why they cannot conceive.  The most difficult part about this all is the righteous desires they have to bring a miracle of a baby into this world and to be their parent and to love and care for them, yet they are not given that opportunity.

My personal journey began only a year and a half ago.  I am not an expert, I have not suffered from this disease for years and years like some people have.  I have come to learn some very important things: Infertility comes in stages.  These are Lex's stages of Infertility...nothing proven or scientific, just lived and learned.

• I think the first stage is Desire.  You are so excited and thrilled to start trying to have a baby and at the hope and expectation of getting a positive pregnancy test.  It is fantastic and exhilerating. You may or may not be charting ovulation, perhaps you are just excited to finally not have to take a birth control pill and not worry about getting pregnant, rather, you aren't worried about anything. If you get pregnant you get pregnant.  It's righteous and its the first step for any "trying" couple. This stage for me lasted about 4 months.  I knew after coming off birth control I would probably not have tons of luck getting pregnant right away, so I didn't get my hopes up the first little while.  But when I skipped a period after only 3 months...the thrill was almost unbearable!  I was planning when 9 months from that date was and how to tell my family, it was so exciting.
• The second stage is Disappointment.  That moment when you skip your period and anxiously wait the two minutes for the pregnancy test to show a positive and it is negative.  Then you try another and another and they are all negative, but you skipped your period, so you go to the doctor and pay for them to poke you and draw your blood to confirm that those darn pregnancy tests are wrong ( oh how I wish they were wrong) and they call and say, you are not pregnant.  That is sincere disappointment. I still remember the very moment when I got the phone call.  Your heart sinks and it is the first of many sinking moments. This stage lasts for awhile and then kind of just mixes into the next stage.
• The next stage might be Anger.  I hate to say it, but it is an awful stage and when I made it past that stage I felt like a new woman, one who could conquer anything, but boy oh boy this stage does a number on you.  You question life, your purpose, if you are meant to be a mother, if you are good enough, if you are being punished.  Then comes the anger towards others who are pregnant.  It's a terrible disease I tell you and this part is the hardest.  Just when you want to be the MOST happiest for some of your good friends, that is the moment where you would rather just crawl in a hole and not hear about anyone or anything having babies.  I think if I found out our neighbor's dog was pregnant during this phase I would have lost it.  Because your mind can ONLY focus in on babies.  Literally, everyone and their dogs are having babies and you are not.  It is extremely difficult and I think this phase might show it's ugly face randomly throughout the journey, but it passes.  I promise it passes.  Perhaps during this time period, it is best to not look at facebook or anyone's blogs or receive any text messages, if that is even possible.  :)  If not, hang in there, this too shall pass.

I added a couple scriptures here because honestly sometimes reading them was all I personally could do to keep going:

  "My son(daughter), peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes." (D&C 121:7-8)

"And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son (daughter), that all these things shall give thee experience and shall be for thy good." (D&C 122:7)

So when it feels like the world is crashing down on you, know that 1) you are not alone, there are thousands of women going through this and often times they are silently enduring it, so you may feel very alone, but you are not and 2) you shall triumph and it shall be for thy good!  That's perhaps the hardest thing to imagine, but it is amazing now looking back how empowering it is to come out of that phase and to feel like you are a women who has experienced something very few have.

Many women experience infertility but I'm sure the numbers of infertile to fertile are very low, so just think, we are stronger because of these struggles, we are empowered and we now have this incredible experience that few have. (I try to look at the positive even when I feel so low sometimes)

• The next stage is Acceptance.  The moment I found out exactly what was wrong with me, I completely fell apart.  Like literally. I did not accept it right away.  All the other tests I had done were coming back fine, but this test was different. I had a panick attack (I think) in the xray room when I realized that the reason this test was painful was because my tubes must be blocked, if they weren't this fluid would flow right through them.  My body became extremely hot, my hands started to cramp and I was shaking all over.  It was devastating.  I went home and my husband held me in his arms because I had no strength left to even stand on my own two feet. Remembering this moment is still very emotional for me.  Perhaps I'm still struggling with Acceptance of this but I did accept it finally. At the time, I felt like I was not a real woman, I felt broken.  After some some prayers and blessings, I took a nice nap that day and woke up ready to face what was ahead.  It was a matter of a day for me in accepting this journey I was actually on.  I woke up feeling renewed and ready to win this battle. To Triumph over my foes!
• The next stage is just Patience and I think I'll throw in Education.  From here on out, you become educated on many different paths you can take, ones that may work, ones that won't at all, ones that you can afford and ones you can't at all.  You learn about your insurance and that MANY insurances don't cover infertility.  That breaks my heart for SO many, because if you don't have insurance, those places want ALL your money up front, like I'm talking $15,000 up front.  You learn if  you are even capable of conceiving a child or if it is not even possible.  Sometimes you figure out what they will try, to see if it will help you concieve, but they can't be sure it will work.  That's so hard.  For some the fix might be easy and black or white.  For others it might be a series of different treatments and medications and who knows what else to see if it works or not.  It is a difficult, painful and challenging process once you have entered that realm, but sometimes just getting answers is good enough.  It's somewhere further then you were a year ago when you first began trying (or 8 years ago or however long).  This might be an exciting time or a difficult time because it could be trying something new that you haven't tried yet, or it could be doing another round and it not working...again.  That disappointment and anger stage might come back, but hang on to the acceptance one.  Like one nurse told me, This is YOUR journey, YOUR path.  This is how you will try to become pregnant.  It's true, whatever path you enter, it is unique to you.  Other women can get pregnant for "free" like I say jokingly, but you know what, hang in there.  I firmly believe that if we are meant to have children, then we will have them.  Prayers will be answered and hearts will be healed.  I can't promise that those children will come from our very womb, but they will come to us in the way they are supposed to come.  Sometimes infertility means you will be able to get pregnant, just not the conventional way or sometimes it means you may not ever become pregnant and perhaps there are babies out there meant for you but who enter the world another way.  That was a hard thing for me to accept. I wanted so badly to have babies by my own body, to give birth to them and I still may get that chance, but I wanted to accept that if it didn't work for us that I would be okay with not carrying a child and being able to adopt a child of my own.  I was okay with it.  And I know that I will get to have lots of babies in Heaven too someday.
• Enjoy the journey.  That may be easier said then done, but I've done it and there are days that I don't enjoy it, but writing this renews my strength to keep moving forward with you (even if I just have one reader who is suffering, that is enough for me).  Learn from your experiences and know that they are truly for you good.  You are stronger for what you have endured.  Good luck and endure it well.

 ........ but for those who don't have to take this journey and are just reading this as one who didn't suffer infertility, please be sensitive to these wonderful couples who are silently suffering without children of their own.  Please, don't ask women when they are going to have children, please don't suggest ways that will help them get pregnant, please don't complain about being a mother in front of them and please don't mention if you got pregnant by accident and don't want to be pregnant.  That is my plea to people everywhere.  Those are the 4 hardest things for me to hear when my deepest desire is to have a baby more then anything else!  You may not know who these women are, but I'll clue you in....they are the women who are without children (granted, some women without children aren't trying or don't care for kids, but don't try to guess, just rule of thumb...woman without kids: might be suffering with infertility).  I was a woman not trying for a while, but then when I started trying, I quickly became that other woman. 

I write this for awareness and to help people know and understand about infertility and the reality of it.

Thank you for reading this very long post.  It is something I have wanted to share for some time.  I think if you have a friend who is willing to share this information with you, the best thing you can do for them is pray. Advice isn't always the best, but the prayers are felt.  If you think a friend is infertile and they just aren't saying anything, please don't try to pry it out of them, they are not ready to tell, let them come to you, but be there and be ready for when they are.  I'm still not sure I'm ready to tell everyone, but I'm doing it and for whatever reason I am, I feel good about it.
 I can honestly tell you that I have felt the prayers of so many people as we have struggled.  If anyone knows me, they know how badly I would love to be a mama and to have lots of babies.  I am thankfully past that stage of anger and I get so excited when I find out friends are having babies.  I'm so thankful for the family members who love me for me and don't suggest any ways for me to get pregnant.  Infertility is real, it isn't just in your head, I promise.  If my tubes being blocked is "in my head" then I have an anatomy way different then everyone else..with Fallopian Tubes in my head?!?!  haha.  Oh humor has helped me through it too.  Thank goodness!

Someday I promise, I will post when we are adding children to our family, but it's probably best not to ask when.   A woman who has suffered with infertility, I'm sure, is anxious to tell of a pregnancy but probably worried that her worst fears will be realized too...a pregnancy that doesn't progress.  That is because the time a woman suffers with infertility isn't just automatically healed by getting pregnant, it is just amplified because the body is already not normal, so does that mean the pregnancy won't go normal?  I don't know or have those answers, but I assure you I fear that in the future. 

I am so thankful for my husband, he is my rock!  He knows the very moment when I need him most and when I need alone time.  That is a gift I tell ya!  He feels my heartache and when my heart breaks, his does too.  I love him for that and thank him for enduring this journey with me.  Thankfully he'll be with me for eternity and to the very end. I'm thankful for my step-daughter, that is perhaps something that many infertile couples don't have.  I do have the gift of a child in my home and how grateful I am atleast for that chance to be a mother, even if it's just a mean old step-mother. :) Just kidding.  I love her and I am so grateful for her sweet spirit and her sensitivity to our situation.  She is a wonderful little 10 year old that is growing up too fast.
Of course I'd be a bad blogger if there wasn't a couple pictures!

My cutie step-daughter and beautiful mother:

And after every storm, there is always a rainbow!  So True!

The fantastic months of June and July

Here you go you blog stalkers you!

Just kidding

(I love posting and then waiting to see who all looks and how many views I have, so maybe I'm the stalker of my stalkers! haha)

This was a photo I took as I had to make an early morning drive, what a pretty sunrise.  I'm jealous my hubby gets to see this every morning, if I could drag my booty out of bed before 7:20am, then perhaps I would see it too, but probalby not.  And I may or may not have taken this while driving. Don't Know. ;)

This is the update on my garden!  I took a risk when I planted it in the only place I could, facing the west  in my backyard next to the garage, so it only gets so much sunlight, but that hasn't stopped my awesome CILANTRO plant from exploding!  It's like 3 feet tall!  Amazing.  I love that herb! And I have one Jalapeno growing!  Woo Woo for me!  I'm leaving for 10 days, so I know when I get back, they will be coming to fruition and ready to pick!  Hooray!

Also got some Roma Tomatoes showing their pretty little bodies!  And my Zuccini and Summer Squash plants have since DOUBLED in size from when I took this picture.  Those things are nutso!

But of course, my grandpa already has picked several HUGE zuccinis, I swear he has more then miracle gro making his plants grow, I don't know how that man does it!  If only....(I guess he IS a farmer).

I only pretend like I did anything on the farm, I know nothing, but water and sun.  That's my knowledge of growing things.  Oh and I weed them occasionally!

Girls camp!  Wow, what a crazy hot week, not mountainous but still girls camp.  These 4 girls are my Young Women, I'm the president of the Young Women organization at church and they are awesome 12 and 13 year olds! We had a blast!

This is my friend from the 1st ward, Candice.  She was 3 weeks shy of GIVING BIRTH while at girls camp!  Seriously she was like a pioneer out on trek and 9 months prego!  She was a trooper and we had lots of fun!  She was my first North Dakota friend!  Good times!

This is my AWESOME counselor and camp director, Nikki! (and Audrey in the background, our other young woman who wasn't in the water).  Nikki rocked at planning girls camp, I love having people I can count on and she is definitely one of them!!

We found Wade's favorite store, it's like Cabela's, but maybe better?  Shhhh, we didn't say that.  We just liked taking pics by the big animals.

We went to Minneapolis in June.  That was fun and the picture overlooking the first floor of the park was the exact moment where Autumn said, "Uh, I changed my mind, I don't want to ride any rides".

I couldn't believe it!!! She had been begging and begging to go to Mall of America and ride the rides.  We got her on a few, I rode most all of them and Wade couldn't ride any because he gets such bad motion sickness on roller coaster rides.  Remind me next time that Amusement Parks are NOT a Hanson Family thing!

Oh yeah, I had a birthday too.  I got some nice gifts and some things I needed (a new pillow and a night stand) and some super cute Maxi Dresses (picked out by my one and only, he's the man!). 

I turned 29.  I like 29, I hope it proves to be a good year!

My little bro comes home from his mission in one week!  WOW can you believe two years can just go by like that!  Super crazy.  He's an amazing young man and I'm thrilled to see him and ALL my siblings! I seriously can't wait!  This is him with Elder Allen who conveniently lives about 5 minutes away from my parents now.  He got home one transfer before Abe, so I'm sure he's excited to see ol' Elder Burns too!

(p.s. Look how Skinny Abe is...better get him to Golden Corral STAT!)
Until I return, hopefully I will get things updated more often!