Hi. That’s me. The one with pink hair, not the brick butt. That’s art. Supposedly.

After battling infertility for nearly 18 months, I’m now the mommy of TRIPLETS!

About me:

I …

… am Jenny. I’m also called Jennifer and Jen, but never Jenn – unless it’s the only way to make my URL and Twitter account work for me.

… do not drink gin, despite what “Jennandtonica” implies. I drank it once. The night didn’t end well. I called dinosaurs for a long time.

… write exactly how I speak with friends. This includes words I would not say in front of a toddler, your grandmother, clergy and my BFF’s parents. Of course, if I stub my toe hard enough in front of these people, they just might hear something R-rated. That shit hurts.

… find great difficulty in keeping serious topics 100 percent serious. My favorite brand of mood-relief is self-deprecation. I am a Chandler.

… have a journalism degree I‘m currently only using to write about my life for free once put to work in newsrooms but am now using in the blog world – both personal and freelance writing. Something tells me this is a bit wonky exciting.

… love breaking the journalistic, serious-news rules here by gratuitous parenthesis-use, ALL CAPS and starting sentences with “and” and “but.”

… read what makes me happy. A lot of the books I love fall under the Young Adult genre, and that’s A-OK by me. Some of my favorite books are picture books. I love a good story, and good stories are not limited to Serious Adult Fiction.

… am married to the perfect man. Rob’s my favorite mechanic, comedian, handyman, therapist and rockstar. He supports me better than any bra ever will, and I’m thrilled to call him mine forever and ever.

… have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and am working worked with a team of Reproductive Endocrinologists to make a mini-me, or a mini-Rob AND a mini mix of the two of us. It’s a heartbreaking, frustrating, expensive task, but I hear now know parenthood also claims these adjectives. I’d like to say I have faith in God and modern medicine that Rob and I will successfully procreate, but I’m too rational and know that infertility doesn’t always have that specific happy ending. ** We are fortunate enough to now be an infertility success story.

… am the proud mommy of Tobias, Eleanor and Callista – three fighting babies, born at 28 weeks, 1 day.

… have faith that God is teaching me what I need to know for the plans He has for me.

About my reproductive system:

Meh. I hesitate to include this, as I do not define myself by my infertility journey, but I have a feeling there are at least a few readers who don’t have my medical history memorized.

Dec. 2008 – quit birth control, start charting cycles with suspicion of wonky cycles

Jan., Feb. 2009 – normal cycles, ovulation

March, April 2009 – long, anovulatory cycle – cycle ended without medication

June 2009 – anovulatory cycle, prescribed Provera to end cycle

June – September 2009 – anovulatory cycle, prescribed Prometrium to end cycle

June 2009 – tentatively diagnosed with PCOS, decide it’s time to move forward with medical intervention

Aug. 2009 – consultation with RE, made first RE appointment

Sept. 2009 – first RE appointment, official PCOS diagnosis via ultrasound (bloodwork was normal), HSG shows no endometreosis and clear fallopian tubes; first medicated cycle was canceled because of an ovarian cyst, prescribed Prometrium starting cycle day 17 to end cycle (and not have a long cycle); semen analysis results are stellar. Only one of us has a fertility issue.

October 2009 – prescribed Metformin, Femara and Ovidrel; my body responded well to the medication, and I found out I was pregnant. The pregnancy ended less than a week later.

Nov. 2009 – Feb. 2010 – Metformin, Femara and Ovidrel – body still responding well, but no pregnancies

March 2010 – Metformin, Femara, Ovidrel and Gonal F – added the injectables to produce more eggs

April 2010 – Early miscarriage #2; taking a break and spending the money usually reserved for medication and doctor-visit copays on a venture with a definitely positive outcome – a kitchen makeover!

May 2010 – Metformin, Femara, Gonal F, Ovidrel, Vivelle and Prometrium – IT WORKED!

June 1, 2010 – positive home pregnancy test

10 dpo beta hCG level – 55; 12 dpo – 222; 15 dpo – 706; 18 dpo – 2,175; 23 dpo – 13,154

June 21, 2010 – first ultrasound revealed TRIPLETS, due Feb. 14, 2011.

June 29, 2010 – experienced some bleeding

June 30, 2010 – ultrasound shows we’ve lost Baby C, but Babies A and B are doing great.

July 4, 2010 – experienced more bleeding

July 5, 2010 – It’s triplets! Again! Baby C, who we lovingly call “Ninja Baby” from this point on, made a miraculous comeback.

Nov. 3, 2010 – Preterm labor lands me in the hospital for five nights at 25 weeks, 3 days pregnant. The experience is traumatizing and miraculous, all at once.

Nov. 22, 2010 – Our triplets were delivered via emergency c-section after my membranes prematurely erupted. Tobias was born at 9:11 a.m. and was 2 lbs. 8.5 oz. and 14.37″ long (Baby B in utero); Eleanor was born at 9:12 a.m. and was 2 lbs. 5 oz., 15″ long (Baby A in utero); and Callista was born at 9:13 a.m. and was 2 lbs. 7 oz, 15″ long (Baby C – ninja baby! – in utero). Happy birthday, babies!

About my blog:

“Jennandtonica” is an homage to Adam Sandler, one of my favorite funny people. “What the blog?” reflects my most excellent sense of humor.

My very first entry, written back in October 2007, sums up pretty well what you’ll read here.

I’ve blogged about a myriad of topics that have dominated my life since: weight, fitness, health, cooking, eating, reading, infertility, being pregnant with triplets and now my new life as I work to combine the old me with this new person, the mother of triplets.

Through it all, I aim to keep things honest and personal – just not the kind of personal that sends creepers to follow me around town and peep through my windows.

Behind the scenes:

Do you like my blog header and badge? I’ve proudly rocked work from Lisa at My Little Buffalo in the past. I love her work and am thrilled with what she designed for me. I’m currently using pieces and parts I mixed together from Miss Tiina. Her work is so fun!

For hosting purposes, the ladies of Twenty70 Hosting take good care of me, and I completely recommend them for all your hosting needs!