Where did it all start? Well, I guess that it could have started back in 2006 when Lauren and I were living together, and having a kid very much was something to be avoided. We were both pursuing our careers, and Lauren had only recently relocated to the Bay Area. Or it could have started in New York City, where, after years of cohabitation, we finally decided to get married. Let’s start there. After getting married, we decided to open the door to fate and see whether a kid would happen. We agreed that “we weren’t going to force the matter” and “if kids aren’t in the picture, we’ll have a great life with poodles and travel.

After Lauren’s salpingectomy, we began IVF. According to our log, we started our first IVF round on 2020-11-25. While in non-pandemic times this would be right around the Thanksgiving holiday, for us, it was the beginning of the shots-and-waiting part of IVF. Additionally, the damned pandemic meant it was a good time to stay focused inward. In the days prior, thanks to the pandemic and supply chain shortages, Lauren went from pharmacy to pharmacy to piecing together the required equipment for an IVF cycle. Last items from a pharamcy in Greenwich village in hand, we got dinner Eventually, it came down to the first night: we received instructions and links to online videos on how to inject the drugs.

This content is largely a revision to 2022-03-18 newsletter.

On the last checkups (around the February 10^th), Dr. Rackow saw what she needed and set us for the implantation on the 12^th. A few anxious days later, we took yet another trip down to the clinic at Columbus Circle. Lauren and I were escorted back to the pre-introduction waiting room. Columbia’s COVID policies had recently changed there so that I could “go back” as well. I had never been beyond the waiting room, and it was really nice to be able to be together. Nervous, we browsed silly things on Twitter, looked for funny images, and tried to quell our nerves.