This past week Justin and I decided we were finally ready to announce the name of our sweet boy, and man did we get TONS of responses. My mother's family, my father's family, my husband's family, and a good amount of our friends - everyone had some type of feedback to give (most of which was extremely positive). Just to answer everyone's questions in one place, I wanted to give a little background on the name we chose. Liam was decided before we had even discovered that Olivia would be a girl. We chose this name a couple of years ago and for some reason, Liam was always the top contender for a boy name. We don't personally know anyone named Liam (though I do have a couple friends who have named their little ones Liam), the meaning of the name is absolutely beautiful, and it also has a bit of Justin's heritage to top it off. 

Now for the middle name. The middle name situation was just weeks of changes. We wanted our son to have the name of someone we loved, admired, and someone we would be proud to honor. Initially, the middle name was going to be Arthur - BUT because this might be our last baby, I also wanted to make sure we made the right choice. This is our first time naming a little boy and it was much harder than naming the girls. With both girls, it was a no brainer, I knew I'd choose my maternal and paternal grandmothers. With Liam, I was conflicted between a name from my family and of course suggesting Justin choose a name from his.

Justin is very easy going with middle names and has always allowed me to take the front seat by choosing. This time around, I really wanted to extend him the same courtesy. One night I was going through pictures of Justin as a baby and a plethora of photos of his grandfather, Papoo fell into my lap. That's when I knew our first choice was the right choice. I only have a handful of memories from Pop, but they are all good. Justin was privileged enough to have had his grandfather for over 24 years of his life - a rarity for a lot of us. He knew his grandfather was proud and I'll never forget the first time I saw Justin taking a seat at the "big guy" table. Exchanging stories of deployment, military memories, and cracking open a cold one alongside the men that had been able to watch Justin become a man. 

I'm so proud of the name we chose for our son and I'm even more proud that we are able to honor a great man. 

Baby dust, please?

So, I went in for my second blood draw to check my estrogen levels this morning... Good news! My levels are steadily increasing and our reproductive endocrinologist is keeping me at my current dose to prevent over stimulation. My next appointment is Monday, and I am going in for an ultrasound and blood work to check my estrogen levels yet again. I've had two blood draws since I started taking the follistim drug, and Monday will be my first actual ultrasound where I get to see my potential babies AKA follicles. I couldn't be more excited or more nervous. Justin leaves pretty soon, so this is truly crunch time for us. In preparation of being able to take my trigger shot (HCG) I am purchasing an ovulation kit and pregnancy tests.

 I keep thinking back on these very events when we were trying to conceive Ava bug, and I can't help but smile and have these extreme butterflies. Infertility is scary at times, but keeping your head high and your attitude positive makes a world of difference. I am currently on stimulation day nine and I have to say this last week has flown by so quickly. I have appreciated my husband and our daughter for their patience and kindness this past week. I have been nothing short of emotional since I started my medication and sometimes that's not easy to deal with. I've been cramping a lot more since they increased my follistim dosage on Monday, but other than that and the tiredness I haven't had any major side effects.

I am completely blown away by how great our reproductive clinic is as well as the pharmacy that they utilize for medication. Customer service has been amazing and I couldn't be more blessed to have such a sufficient staff taking care of us this time around. Not that our previous reproductive center was awful, I'm just bias when it comes to care in the Pacific Northwest. Justin and I came to a conclusion on potential names for baby Howland # 2... those names are:

It took us a while to secure names, but these names both feel so right. We were originally going to go with Delilah.. but we'd hate for people to inevitably give her the nickname of Lilah when that wouldn't be her name. Justin was also really stuck on a junior for awhile, but that was short lived. Even though we don't know if this cycle will take or not, it's been so fun to do the baby shopping, names, etc with Justin. This is exactly what we did prior to conceiving Ava bug and it was all worth it. 

Staying connected with my husband has proven to be the most important aspect of this entire journey. I'm not quite sure I'd have the encouragement I needed to kick infertility's butt if not for him. So here's the shout out that is much deserved. Justin, you are without a doubt an absolute rock star and I love you to pieces. The daily injections, the nightly foot rubs, and the constant irrational tears from me that you have to deal with.. seriously, I struck gold with you my love! 

So, there it is guys. I'm so grateful for all of those who are following our journey. My readers mean so much to me, and the support you give is just incredible. That being said, baby dust our way is definitely welcomed! Stay tuned for a video of our ultrasound next Monday, and an update on where we go after Monday. 

Happy Thursday all!  

♥- Leilani