29 weeks

Yep, I've missed a few weeks...... 

How far long: 29 weeks

Size of babies: About 3 1/2 pounds. I've almost reached the total weight for each of the boys, and I still have 6-8 weeks left!

Total weight gain: I think I'm up 12 pounds total. Only 5 on my own, the rest is babies!

Maternity clothes: Uhhhhh.... YUP. I had to buy a fleece jacket at Old Navy, because Chris' fuzzy hoodie wouldn't cover my belly anymore. I had to buy an EXTRA LARGE. This belly is getting out of control. Today, Logan wanted to play a firefighter game and told me I got to be the house because I was so big. Thanks, kid. 

Movement: These kids are crazy. The boy kicks a lot more than the girl, but hers are more intense. And they both get hiccups now, which is the only weird thing about having two, is I feel them both. And, I was told today, they are both head down, which would explain why I feel his so low. It's weird, trust me. 

Sleep: Meh. Not well. It usually takes me awhile to get comfortable to fall asleep, then I get woken up really easy, and usually am up after that. Not much fun.

What I miss: For a few weeks I could brush my teeth without gagging, but that's back now. Other than that I'm still enjoy being pregnant! I doubt that feeling will last much longer, so I'm going to be happy for now :)

Cravings: Nothing new. Still loving the milkshakes, and milk on its own, really. I get heartburn easily, and milk is the only thing that helps. It's been tough to eat anything really, just haven't had much of an appetite. 

Symptoms:  Officially feel huge. I've also been having quite a few contractions. I went to the ER a few weeks ago and had to get fluids and a shot to make them stop. And, by the way, that shot burns like a MOFO. For reals. At my checkup today my cervix had also shortened a lot since last time, so we're pretty sure I'l be on bed rest after my next appointment. Boo. But, I made it through the holidays which was my main goal, so I guess I can't complain too much.

Best moment: My last few appointments had shown that the boy was breech, but today they were both in perfect position. They'd better stay put now, (I really don't see how they'd have room to flip now), so HOPEFULLY no c-section!!! Wahoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And it's kind of creeping me out, but anytime I make a noise with a kick or contraction, Logan gets excited and says, "The babies are coming!!!!" He thinks he'll get to see where they come out, and I'm not having that discussion. 

21 weeks

So, I ended up going to the dr on Friday instead of today, because on Thursday I had a really uncomfortable pain that lasted most of the day. Of course, it was gone when I woke up on Friday, but I went ahead and had my appt early just to check on things!

How far long: 21 weeks

Size of babies: About a pound a piece, 11 inches

Total weight gain: No weight gain at my appointment, so still up just one pound.

Maternity clothes: Yep. I finally bought a second pair of jeans, wahoo!

Movement: Feeling these little ones most of the day now.

Sleep: Good. Nose is still a little stuffy, but that's a pregnancy symptom I had with the boys too.

What I miss: Being able to brush my teeth without gagging, I realized this one after I had already posted last week, but it's really annoying!

Cravings: No new ones this week. Although I'm already imagining the Thanksgiving ham, mashed potatoes, and stuffing.... mmmmmmmm!

Symptoms:  Just starting to feel bigger across my stomach. And seeing as I am already measuring over 26 weeks, that makes sense!

Best moment: Earlier last week I was walking into the kitchen and felt baby boy scrape along my insides. It was enough to take my breath away, and I told Chris, "I think he just flipped!" Sure enough, at the ultrasound both babies are now head down!! YAY!!!! I'm hoping they both stay put, because I really don't want t c-section! And as long as they stay down, that gives us a pretty good chance!!!

Weeks 19 and 20

At my last appointment there was a chance I would have to spend the rest of the pregnancy on bed rest. Over FOUR MONTHS!!! Thankfully, my cervix is not short, and besides taking it easy, I'm good to go!


I've been meaning to start this for a few weeks now, I've seen this on some other preggo friend's blogs and thought it was cute idea! Plus, it'll help me remember the little things when this is all over!

How far long: As of now, 20 weeks, but I'm hoping to do this every other week after doctor's appointments, so I should've done it at 19.

Size of babies: Two bananas! And the sonographer last week said that they were about the weight of two Dr. Pepper cans.

Total weight gain: I'm now officially one pound over my starting weight. Don't get excited, no actual numbers will be posted.

Maternity clothes: I have a few shirts that aren't maternity, but they're starting to hang off the bottom of my belly which bugs me, so I should probably say yes to all maternity clothing.

Movement: Just in the last week I've started feeling them move most of the day. Logan keeps asking to feel them kick, so hopefully he will soon! I'm also anxious to see if they'll have the hiccups all the time like my boys did.

Sleep: Would be normal except my allergies have been bothering me and a stuffy nose makes it hard to stay asleep.

What I miss: Nothing I can really think of.

Cravings: Chocolate milkshakes.

Symptoms: Starting to get the constant sciatic pain. (hooray) Other than that I don't really feel pregnant til I try to bend over.

Best moment: I love how much Logan loves these babies even though he knows they aren't ours. He rubs my belly, kisses the babies, asks if they're kicking me, and has added their birth to his countdown calendar to his birthday. (It's currently: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Dadda's birthday, the babies' birthday, then his birthday. Which isn't til June.)

19 week belly pic:

17 weeks, good and not so good

Yikes! Didn't realize it had been quite so long since I updated... I'll try to be better!

I think I'm finally getting over the morning sickness. THANK GOODNESS! I was never sick with the boys so this was a brand-new-NOT-fun experience. Ugh. Horrible! We just got back from a family vacation in Ocean City, MD., and even though I had to use the puke bag on the plane home, (first time in my life and completely mortifying), the babies did pretty well. Then yesterday we went to the State Fair, and I only had a corny dog and fried oreos, which I was pretty proud of!

Today was my 17 week checkup and ultrasound. We finally learned that baby A is the boy and B is the girl, which is opposite of what I thought! Baby A has been living in my ribs and having raves every night, so I just knew it was the girl! I told A & D they were in for a troublemaker :) All their measurements are great, growing right along like they should and measuring 7 ounces a piece. Heartbeats are both in the 150s, and as of now baby boy is breech on my right side, and baby girl is laying sideways. Really hoping they eventually end up head down, as I really don't want a C-section!

The only not so great news was that on the ultrasound it looked like my cervix was short. Which would mean a VERY HIGH chance of my water breaking early, preterm labor, etc. SO, I have to go back in two weeks for another check. If it is short, I would have to be on bed rest until the babies were here. Potentially 18 weeks. Halloween, class reunion, Thanksgiving, Christmas.... I'm getting stressed out just thinking about it!! Any thoughts or prayers our way would be greatly appreciated! I was stir crazy after just three days after the transfer, I can't imagine over 4 months!!!!!! Especially for Chris and the boys... I know I'm needed :) Ok, only happy thoughts from now on! I'm supposed to take it easy, (which just that is hard for me to do), until my next appointment. Wish us luck!!

Transfer!

Our transfer was scheduled for the morning of June 27th. The Saturday before, (which was the day of Logan's 4th birthday party!), I had to start the progesterone shots. YUCK! It's no secret that I was terrified to start them, but I knew I had to, and thankfully, my amazing hubby was going to give them to me. Well, my MIL had to give me my first one since Chris was a teeny bit nervous (read: about to pass out) about giving them to me. I was happily surprised that the needle itself didn't hurt, besides the poke going in, but LET ME TELL YOU; the next day made up for it!!! The lumps and bruising that these things leave are excruciating! In the words of one of the nurses I spoke to hoping for some helpful tips, "They just suck. There's not much you can do to help it!" I lay on a heating pad before each shot, and after, and most nights Chris will massage the knots for me, and while it's somewhat better now, for the first couple weeks, I could barely sit down without almost being in tears! Chris got smacked a few times after he would playfully hit my bottom, and the pain would make me swing at him before I could even think about it! But anyway, that's not the point of this entry! :)

Wednesday the 26th, we left the boys in the care of our moms and headed down to Houston about noon. We actually got to really talk to each other, and besides the debate that almost resulted in him getting pushed out of the car in the middle of I45, we thoroughly enjoyed each other's company! We got in a little before 4, and got checked in to our hotel. (SIDE NOTE: I do NOT recommend the Hampton Inn in Houston. The A/C unit would shake and rattle every few minutes and I found a ROACH in the bathroom! I think I got a total of maybe 4 hours of sleep. Not fun.) We relaxed for a bit before we met up with some of our best friends, David and Analee, and they took us out to a yummy Italian dinner, then we got ice cream!! They also took me by the Little Couple's home, but Chris says I was being a bit stalker-ish. I love them! I'm pretty sure I saw Bill watching Family Guy on the couch... But AGAIN, not the point here! Analee also gave me a fun bag of treats and entertainment for my next few days of being stuck in bed, it was perfect!! I always hate saying goodbye to them, but so glad we got to see them even for a little bit.

The next morning, after my previously mentioned 4 hours of sleep, we had to be at the surgery center at 10, so I woke Chris up about 8:30 and we got ready and packed up, then headed to breakfast. It was only about a 15 minute drive, and we had to register at one office, then walk across the building to the doctor's office. Shiva, (director of the agency I'm with, friend, AND new boss!) met us there, with a goody bag of good luck stuff and before long we all headed back to get ready for the transfer!

He's my rock in a sea of chaos.

They tell you to drink enough water to feel like you could use the restroom, but not enough to make you uncomfortable. Apparently I don't listen well, because I was about to pee before we even went in the OR! They took us in and had me lay down, then wait for the doctor. It only took about 10 minutes, and I didn't feel a thing! I had to stay on my back for 30 minutes until I could go pee, which was the longest half hour of my life! 

The arrow is pointing to the light which is the embryos.

Then, I was released and we headed home! I had to lay with the seat back on the drive home and go straight to bed for 3 days after we got back. It was pretty boring, but not too horrible. I waited until the following Tuesday to take a home pregnancy test, and couldn't believe it, but there were TWO LINES!!! I was pretty shocked that it showed up so early, and in the back of my head I thought that maybe there was twins. And, I was right!!! July 31st, I had an ultrasound that showed TWO strong heartbeats! 

I don't think it's hit me yet!

I'll try to post soon on the process of finally getting to the ultrasound... There was a lot of monitoring and blood work!! My IP's are sooo excited and I'm so blessed to carry these two little ones for them!! 

Starting Meds!!

It's finally starting!! I took my last birth control pill on Friday, (thank God, because those things are EVIL!! It took me a couple weeks to figure out why I was so angry all the time, duh!) I wasn't supposed to start my medications until today, but there was a mix-up on my calendar the nurse gave me, so to stay on schedule I got squeezed in for an appointment yesterday afternoon. I had my blood drawn and an ultrasound to check the lining on my uterus. It has to be to a certain thickness so that when they do the transfer, you have a better chance of it sticking. So, twice a week until the transfer I'll have both done to make sure my body is ready! The meds I have to take now are all estrogen (I think). One is a pill that dissolves under my tongue that I take three times a day, and I also have an estrogen patch I wear and change it every three days. Besides getting a headache after taking the pills, these meds aren't too bad!! If everything stays on track, I should start the progesterone in oil shots on 6/22. I am NOT excited about those. From what I've heard they can be painful AND I'll probably be on it for awhile. So far we're scheduled to do the transfer down in Houston on the 27th!! I'll have to be on bed rest for a few days after, and I have a feeling I'll be pretty lazy til I get a positive pregnancy test! I really want this to take the first time!! It has to now, or my IM (intended mother for those of you that forgot!) got some crazy results back on their embryos. She had her egg retrieval back in May, and they got 18 eggs! Pretty amazing! Out of those, 15 fertilized, then out of those 11, were growing embryos that they sent off to be tested for chromosomal abnormalities. Sadly, only THREE out of those eleven came back normal. We were all pretty surprised. One boy and two girls. So, for this transfer they take the boy and one girl, and if for some reason they don't stick, she'll have to do another retrieval. So, lots of prayers that they decide to hang out with me for nine months!!!

Getting started

Yesterday, Chris and I flew down to Houston to really get things started. A month or so ago, Shiva found us the perfect couple. And I mean perfect. The first time we talked on the phone, it felt like we had been friends forever. In my heart, I just knew they were couple! In the surrogate world they are called Intended Parents, or IP's, but I'll be calling them A & D. A and I had been texting before the trip, both of us anxious to meet, but more I think to get everything started! Once you get matched with someone, it's usually around 3 months before you can expect to do the embryo transfer, (the getting pregnant part). I'm a gestational carrier, which means it's an egg from the mom and sperm from the dad (or donor for either), unlike traditional surrogacy, which means the surrogate is biologically the mother. Depending on what type of eggs the IP's are using changes the surrogates process. For mine, A & D, are having testing done on the embryos before the transfer so we don't have to have our cycles synched or anything like that. Once it gets closer to having her eggs harvested, I'll start daily injections of progesterone. NOT looking forward to that. And, the doctor told me yesterday that I'll have to take them for 2-3 months after I get pregnant too. To me, that seems like worst part of the entire process! I'm not a fan of needles, and Chris isn't either so I'll either give them to myself or have my mom or MIL shoot me :)  I'll explain more once we get to that point, that's about as much as I know. BUT, back to yesterday. Our flight left DFW at 6:05. IN THE MORNING. If you know me, you know I'm not a morning person. My boys normally wake up around 9, and I get grumpy if it's earlier than that! We got up at 3:45, (I think I finally went to sleep a little after 1), and left the house by 4:15. After we landed we got our rental car and headed to our first stop, which was to a psychiatrist. When you're first matched you get a general, you can't be mentally unstable/just doing it for the money/take off after you're pregnant, kind of talk, but you and your IP's meet with a specialist to go over the process and make sure you understand what's going. I went first and took a 567 question, true/false test about my personality and history. Then, she spoke with Chris and I about our together-history, and how we would handle different scenarios. After that, she spoke with A & D, then brought us all together so we could go over what we each talked about and to make sure everyone was on the same page. You decide everything from how many embryos to transfer, to how you want to communicate with each other, to contact after the baby's born. It was pretty amazing how we all had the same plan. More reason we were a perfect match! We left there with about 20 minutes to get to our second stop, (with a quick drive-thru for lunch), which was the infertility institute. I think the majority of IP's use a surrogate because the mom can't get pregnant herself, but in our situation, it's just not healthy for A to carry, so we are blessed she doesn't have the heart-breaking stories that most do. She will be on medication to be able to retrieve lots of eggs, then they'll have them tested and use the two healthiest ones. It's very common to have twins instead of just one that sticks, possible that one will split so you'd have triplets, and very rare for both to split and have quads. BUT, yes, there is the possibility of me carrying quads. I already have a feeling I'll have twin boys (there it is again), but I think I'd be ok with being wrong and just having one :) We'll see! At my appointment I had blood taken, a urine sample, and a sonogram checking out my uterus and ovaries and making sure all is well. Which, it is!! So, now it's just a waiting game for me, until the eggs are ready to be transferred!

How I got here...

I grew up a tomboy. I wanted to play football and baseball. (Quarterback or pitcher only. I didn't want to get hurt, but I did have a pretty good arm.) My friends were mostly boys, I wore baggy shirts and shorts, and my hair was always in a ponytail. I would've DIED if anyone of them had known I had a secret stash of Littlest Pet Shop and Quints toys that I played with every afternoon. The only part of being a girl that I really wanted any part of was to be a mom. I remember always volunteering to watch little kids, and knew that whatever I did as an adult would be something with children. I don't remember exactly when I knew I wanted to be a surrogate, but it was sometime in high school when I learned about infertility and what it meant. I used to have nightmares even before I got married of not being able to have kids of my own, and I constantly prayed that one day God would bless me with two boys. (I was an only child and hated it, and there was no way I would voluntarily raise a mini-me, so they were big issues for me.) I was beyond thankful when we found out our first child was a boy. We had a gender reveal party for our second, and when I cut into that blue-filled cake, I couldn't not believe God actually answered my prayers and blessed me with another boy. I was in shock for a few days after! After each birth I remember staring in their eyes and being overwhelmed with knowing I was their mother. Their momma. Both times I also cried because I knew there were so many women that couldn't have this and it broke my heart. I have close friends that have had devastating fertility issues and I just knew I wanted to help someone else have that moment. I had researched a little after my oldest was born, and about 6 months after my youngest, I got serious. My pregnancies were very easy, and besides some irritating back pain towards the end of both, I was one of those annoying women that LOVED being pregnant. So, for me this was the greatest idea ever. I could be pregnant, but then be able to SLEEP???!!!! Yes please!! It didn't take long to find an agency I liked. My second call was to Shiva Landry at Shared Conceptions, and after just a few minutes of talking to her, I knew I found the right place. As I'm sure you'll see as this whole thing comes along, I'm a big go-with-my-gut kind of person. Most of the time, I just know. And most of the time, I can't explain why. I just know. Pretty soon, I'd gotten my profile together, and was waiting to be matched with a couple!