Going Solo

Round 9 inseminations complete.  Elizabeth is teaching two classes during summer session at the university, so this is the first time she was unable to come to an insemination with me.  I was a bit nervous about getting there, since the new doctor is about an hour away, and I hate driving.  But I had our brand new GPS with me, so I figured everything would be okay.  

About 1/2 way into the trip, I realized that I would be making it to my 3pm appointment by the skin of my teeth.  The new doctor likes us to have the sperm thawed when we get to the office, and I knew there wouldn't be time to start the thaw in the parking lot.  So I pulled into a rest stop, right behind a pickup with a McCain Palin sticker and began fumbling around with the nitrogen tank.  As clouds of nitrogen began filling the car, I am sure that the person in the pickup assumed I was a terrorist.  I used the socks I had in my purse (because you never know when you'll be in stirrups) as gloves and removed the vial.  Once again, I momentarily forgot that cars have windows and everyone could see me, I tucked the vial into my bra to thaw.  

As I sped off, I remembered that Elizabeth and I had switched cars before the appointment, and she had the car with the E-Z pass.  I was rapidly approaching the toll booths, and as usual had no cash on me.  So I tried to dig around in Elizabeth's messy car and find enough change for the tolls, all while keeping my eyes on the road and making sure the sperm didn't slip out of my bra.  Fortunately I managed to find enough change for the tolls, but as I was slowing down for the toll booth, the sperm began to slip in my bra.  So once again, I momentarily forgot that cars have windows and everyone could see me, and I stuck my hand in my shirt and began re-adjusting the sperm.  The people who had slowed for the tolls around me probably thought I was trying to save time by doing my monthly self exam while commuting.  

I made it to the doctor's office just in time, and was able to hand my just-thawed sperm to the nurse.  It was a bit strange to have an IUI done without Elizabeth by my side, but at this point the procedure feels so routine that I don't quite need the support like I used to.  I think she feels much worse about it than I do.  And so begins TWW number 9.