Whirlwind day

Today was a big day.  C&W were flying up with W's mom to do a hospital tour, stop by and say hi to Dr. B and get some new pictures of their little one.  C texted me when they got to the airport and I called the hospital to make sure they weren't too terribly busy with laboring mommas.  They said they had 4 on the board, but of course there's no way to predict when babies will come.  C texted me again when they landed and I headed to the hospital to meet them there.  We met in the lobby and then headed up to Labor and Delivery.  It was kind of funny because when we first got there, we walked up to the nurses station and I told them, "I'm not in labor."  LOL!  The head nurse took us to a labor and delivery room first and then walked us to the triage area, where we will go when we first get to the hospital.  She discussed that the baby will be staying in the room with them for most of the day/night.  They don't really keep baby's in the nursery.  On our way out, we saw the waiting area for friends and family and discussed the plan for when I go into labor a little bit.  

We walked over to Dr. B's office to say hi and she was excited to see all of us and meet everyone.  She was so sweet and asked if they had any questions and spent a few minutes chatting with us.  It was so nice of her to take just a few minutes to talk with us.

After we finished at the hospital, we decided to grab lunch at Panera (one of mine and C's favorite) before heading to the ultrasound appointment.  We got to eat and visit for a bit and C got to feel the baby move. Yea!!  So exciting.  After lunch, we headed to the ultrasound appointment.  This was pretty funny.  We arrived at the location right on time and we walked in, were greeted by a very outgoing, friendly gentleman.  I wasn't sure we were in the right place, even though the sign on the outside said "Storkvision"  It turns out, it was an insurance office that had recently moved in to that suite.  GPS took us to the wrong location.  Luckily, the actual location wasn't too far away, so we hopped in our cars and headed to the new address.  They were ready for us when we arrived, so I filled out a little bit of paperwork and then we headed back to the ultrasound room.  It was so big.  There was a very big screen TV at the front of the room and two couches (one on the left and one on the right) of the room.  In the back, was the bed/table where I would be when they did the ultrasound.  This is also the day we found out that this little baby is now breech.  Really?!  I had told the US tech that at our OB appointment on Tuesday, baby was head down, so she placed the wand closer to where the head would be and instead, we saw more butt/legs.  Thank goodness we had told her gender was still a surprise and we wanted to keep it that way, that she moved it pretty quickly and none of us saw anything regarding the gender.  She focused a lot on the face and got a few good views of the hands/feet too.  I think this really helped make it that much more real for C&W too.  Seeing their little babies face.

We got some great pictures of all of us after the appointment too.  Once we finished up with the ultrasound, we said our goodbyes so that they could head back to the airport and back home.  It was such a fantastic visit though.  It's always nice to spend time with them.

Such a cute little baby.  The technician kept commenting, "Look at those lips!" and how full they were.  

Later in the evening, there was an event at a local birth center where my doula with Baby "E" is now a midwife.  It was Belly Art Night.  They do these events once a quarter and I was really looking forward to it.  They have several artists that come to the birth center and paint all the 3rd trimester bellies.  I had asked C earlier if there was anything particular she wanted me to have them paint or something special they liked.  She said that she really liked dragonflies, so I had the idea of putting a baby dragonfly in a bubble with a Mommy and Daddy dragonfly looking in at the baby.  It turned out so great and it was such a fun evening!  

  

The picture on the right is me with my doula with Baby E's birth (now midwife) Gina.

All the beautiful bellies!!

Busy Day - US Appt and Fun with DD

Today was a big and busy day!!  We got to see the little one again today and it was so much fun.  C & W flew in for the appointment since W had to head back to work later that day.  I was off the entire day because DD had a casting call for a local photo shoot in the early afternoon.   Our timing couldn't have been better, as we all walked in at the same time.  We went up to the office and visited for a little bit while we waited to go back for the ultrasound.  This US was an anatomy scan to ensure that everything is going well with the baby.  The Dr. was great about explaining everything during the scan, pointing out each organ and describing the details.  We could see all 4 chambers of the heart, the kidneys, the umbilical cord, face and even see the baby practice breathing.  Before the appointment, we talked about the gender and if they wanted to find out today or not and originally thought that they would want to know, but when we were all in the room during the US, C&W decided that they didn't want to know today so the Dr. let them know when she was going to be in that "area".  It was so cute and funny.  When she told them she would be in the area that would revel gender, C turned around and faced W and W put his head down.  I watched the whole time, but of course, I'm not a sonographer, so I really couldn't tell either way.  I would have a 50/50 chance of getting what I saw correct, but it really would be a guess.  We will just have to wait and see how long the envelope lasts.  After the Dr. was done with the part that would show gender, she let us know so that C could turn around and they could both watch the rest of the US.  The Dr. tried really hard to get a good profile shot of the baby's face, but this little one was a bit stubborn and didn't want to cooperate too much.  I still think the one she got is a good one though.  

After we finished the appointment, we headed to the lobby to schedule the next OB appointment and had one of the nurses take a picture of all of us.  It was so sweet, because all of the office staff came into the lobby to "help" get the best picture.  They are all super supportive.  Here are the pics from the visit today.

Boy or Girl???  We'll see how long the envelope stays sealed.  : )

Head and Spine

Face with an open mouth

Baby was a little stubborn, so this was the best profile shot the Dr. could get.

We all walked out to the parking garage together and visited in the lobby area of the garage for a few minutes.  My belly is a bit bigger now and C was so sweet because she asked if she could touch it.  I told her, "of course!"  I told her that she could touch it anytime she wants to because after all, it belongs to her. As long as their little baby is in my belly, my belly is just as much theirs as it is mine.  <3  I really just wish the baby would have been a bit more active, so they could feel it kick.  Hopefully next time they come up to visit, baby will be a bit more active.

When we left, they headed to the airport and I headed to pick up DD for her photo shoot.  This one was for the Picture People and they were photographing children for potential Valentine's marketing.  We were advised that there would not be a stylist or make up artist, so to bring everything we need.  Ugh!  I'm not used to that.  I picked her up from school, took her home, gave her a bath and dried her hair.  I then curled her hair and pinned it up so she would still have curls when we got there.  I took 3 outfits for them to consider, multiple pairs of shoes, curling iron, hair accessories, hair spray and an iron (just in case her clothes got wrinkled).

We arrived at the photo shoot and were there about an hour.  She did really well considering how long they photographed her for.  I think they got some really good shots, so we will wait to see if they decide to use any of them.  After we finished up there, we headed to meet one of my surro sisters, Beth and her two boys at Chick-fil-A.  It was a nice little treat for DD too.  She got to play while Beth and I visited and then she had some fruit and ice cream.

I was definitely a very busy day, but so wonderful and filled with fun.

Absolutely wonderful day!!

Such a busy, but completely wonderful day!!!  I was off work and got to sleep in a "little".  About an hour, but hey, I'll take it.  Any extra sleep is great.  Our youngest DS broke his ankle several weeks ago and was originally scheduled for a follow up appointment on the 20th.  I ended up having a colleague off that day, so it would be really hard for me to take him.  I was already off for the day for the two baby appointments, so called to see if I could get his appointment rescheduled.  Luckily, I was able to reschedule for today at 9am.  He's had a boot on for a little over 3 weeks and it was a great appointment and he finally got it off.  The Dr. said it actually healed really well and the bone had fused back together, which rarely happens.  He will have an air cast for another 4-6 weeks when he does any physical activity and has to do some physical therapy too to help prevent re-injury.  After I finished at his appointment, I grabbed him some lunch and took him back to school.  I grabbed a sandwich for myself too, but could only eat half of it.

 

After I ate my sandwich, I headed to the airport to pick up "C".  "W" had to work, so wasn't able to make it, but hoping he will be able to come up for the next one.  I picked her up and we headed to the Perinatologist's office.  It was only about 10 minutes from the airport, so we were there really early.  I knew there would be some paperwork, so it worked out just fine.  We got all the paperwork filled out and got to visit for a while before they called us back.  "C" gave me a gift.  It was so sweet!  She gave me some soaps that look like macaroons and a gift card to Loft.  It was such a thoughtful gift and I'm so grateful.  The interesting thing is that I was looking at their maternity stuff on line last night. 

 

 

 

I think we were both excited, anxious and nervous all at the same time.  It has been 5 weeks since our last ultrasound, so we were both ready to see the baby again.  I was so excited for her to see the baby today because he/she would really look more like a baby.  The nurse called us back and we headed to the room.  I told her about my "retroverted" uterus, so she had me go ahead and undress from the waist down in case they needed to do a vaginal ultrasound to get the measurements they needed.  They had a nice big sheet to put over, so no worries.  The Dr. came in and tried to traditional ultrasound first and it actually worked.  I had my camera, so I recorded the whole thing.  As soon as he started, I watched the screen so intently for that HB flicker or the smallest movement.  I saw the baby kicking and just felt so relieved.  Knowing the baby is good and we are now in the 2nd trimester made me feel so good.  I had been feeling a few flutters for a week or two, but it's so early, I just wanted that reassurance and I'm sure "C" did too.  The baby was kicking and the Dr. pointed out all the parts.....legs, arms, face, eyes, etc.  He tried to see if he could tell the sex, but he said he couldn't really see anything, which he said means it could be a girl or a boy.  ; )  That works out just fine for "C" because she doesn't want to know just yet anyway.  "W" wants to know, so if the Dr. could tell, they were just going to put it in an envelope for them.  I did have to ask him to listen to the HB, which he so nicely obliged.  I recorded that too, so that I could send it to C & W.  Such a great appointment! 

 









Profile with hand to face.







Profile with kicking legs.

Face - Yes it looks like a skeleton at this point, but you can see the eyes and nose pretty easily.

 

 

After our appointment, we discussed grabbing something to eat, but figured we would just go ahead and drive over to my OB and see if we could get in early there too.  I wasn't really hungry yet after the half sandwich I ate and had a granola bar I could snack on in the car anyway, so that would tide me over.  "C" said she wasn't really hungry either.  The offices were only about a 30 minute drive apart, so we ended up at the OB's office around 2:30.  We had such great conversation in the car on the way there and then when we were waiting to be called back for the appointment.  We talked about nursery themes and if she thought they could hold out on knowing the sex.  I told her I would be happy to hang onto the envelope for them if she didn't think it would stay sealed.  ; )

 

When we arrived the Office Manager was up front training someone and I introduced her to "C".  The other front desk person was there too and I introduced her too.  They are all so nice every time and it doesn't seem like that long since I was there last, but it's been over a year since my postpartum visit.  The entire staff is so friendly and supportive and I hope they made feel "C" as comfortable as I thought they did.  After about 30 minutes, we were called back.  Not too bad.  I weighed first and then had to provide a urine sample, which is done at every appointment.  They check for protein in it to make sure everything is going well.  Weight was good and blood pressure was great too.  114/70.  I absolutely love Dr. B and she was so sweet.  She came in and was so nice to "C" too.  She did a cervical check and asked how everything was going.  She asked me if I had any questions and then asked "C" if she had any questions.  She asked her a couple of questions and then we were all done. 

 

We headed out and when we were a little out the door, I remembered I needed to get my parking ticket validated.  LOL!  I had put it in my purse, so had forgotten about it.  We got to the elevator (which was SO slow) and the first time it came around, it was completely full.  The 2nd time, it only had one person, so we headed down to the car.  It was around 4pm and "C"s flight wasn't until 8:45, so we thought we would go ahead and grab an early dinner since we were both getting hungry at this point.  We decided to eat at La Madeleine.  I hadn't eaten there in forever and neither had "C", so it was a great option. 

 

We got our food and sat down.  It was nice to just relax for a bit.  We continued our conversation and it was so nice to visit with her about so many different things.  We talked about babies, mums, what my kids were up to, their family and tons of other stuff.  We finished eating around 5pm and headed back to the airport.  I couldn't have asked for a better visit and was so glad she was able to come and spend the day with me.  They are going to make such wonderful parents!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

2nd Ultrasound Appointment

Today was our 2nd ultrasound.  C & W are traveling, so weren't able to make it to this one.  We were going to try to reschedule for Tuesday, but they wouldn't be able to make it then either, so we just decided to keep the appointment for today.  I decided to take the afternoon off because I had to get some A/C work done, so figured I would head home after the ultrasound appointment.  Went into work and was pretty busy, so definitely kept my mind occupied.  I was so excited for the appointment.  As I walked out of the office for my appointment, my mind wondered a little and wasn't too happy with it.  I knew in my heart that everything was fine and the appointment would be great, but honestly, I went through so much with the 1st cycle of my last journey and with the chemical on our first try this time, I think I wanted to prepare myself for everything.  As much as I didn't want to think anything negatively, it's like I just couldn't keep myself from doing it.  Anytime a negative thought would enter, I would just think of something positive.  "Everything is fine", "I'm still having all my symptoms", "I haven't had anymore bleeding"......I would send thoughts to the baby, "Your mommy and daddy love you so much already", "They are so excited", "Just keep growing", "stay strong".

Before I became a surrogate, some of the negative thoughts would have never crossed my mind.  I always think of the saying, "ignorance is bliss", because in this situation, it totally is.  You become so much more aware of all the things that could happen through this process.  Definitely my least favorite part, but I've learned to deal with it. 

I got to the RE's office and didn't have to wait long before being called back.  I did however, have a bit of a wait once I got in the room.  I was so excited and anxious to see what was going on with this little one.  The nurse came in to let me know that he Dr. was with another patient and running a little behind.  I totally understood.  I just think of the last ultrasound and how they saw me unexpectedly when I had my bleeding episode.  Maybe someone else was going through the same thing.  I could wait a little longer.  The Dr. finally came in after about 30 minutes.  She asked me how I was doing and if I had any more bleeding.  I told her that I hadn't and then she started the US.  Just a few seconds after starting, she said that everything is looking good and that the baby is much bigger than the last time.  Measuring around 8w4d and HB was 167!!  Yea!!!  So excited for C&W and this little sweet pea.  Dr. said baby is measuring a little under an inch long.  Amazing!  At the end of the appointment, I recorded the Dr. telling about the parts of the baby.  The head and how the brain is developing, the arm buds, the heartbeat, the cord and the blood going through it and then the leg buds too.  It was so nice of her.  I texted the video to C&W right after the appointment.  Now we just wait for them to send the report to the clinic in Houston and then wait for the next steps.  I'm still on PIO each day and 1 vaginal Estrace and Prometrium each night.  I think my next appointment will be with my OB.  ; )  I am so much more at ease now and can't wait to keep watching this little one grow!

Scary day with a great ending

The morning started a little rough.  Probably the most nauseous I've felt so far, but luckily, it still only stayed as nausea.   I headed to the clinic for the blood draw.  Just routine these days.  The monitoring clinic is always pretty quick and most times I can still make it to work a little before 8 and today was no different.

 

I ate some oatmeal when I got to work and that helped the nausea quite a bit.  I got hungry a little later (which is not unusual), so I ate a banana and that helped.  I had been texting with C some over the morning discussing the day and dinner later.  Trying to decide on where we were going to eat.  We ultimately decided on Railhead BBQ near the downtown area.  Around lunch time, I went to get lunch at CFA for the office, since that's what we all wanted.  On my way back, I was having a little cramping and thought since I had eaten a banana and hadn't had as much water (usually have 44oz. by noon and had only had around 30 oz) that it was just constipation.  I had eaten about half my sandwich and just didn't feel like eating the rest of it.  I through the rest of it in the trash and still wasn't feeling 100%.

 

A few minutes later, I felt a very small gush and knew it was a little more than the usual from my meds.  I went straight to the bathroom and my fear was confirmed.  I was bleeding and it was bright red.  Not a lot, but definitely made me panic for a few minutes.  Luckily, I had on a panty liner because the vaginal Estrace can stain blue if I don't, so only a little got on my underwear.  As I'm sitting there wondering what to do, I just keep telling myself, "It's common.  It happens a lot.  Stay calm."  I had some bleeding with Baby "E" too, so I knew it didn't necessarily mean anything bad, but I wanted to be sure.  I texted Gayle to let her know since she was going to meet us at the clinic for the appointment at 4pm and then told the other manager in my office, as she's aware of the journey.  I told her I was going to run to Walgreen's to grab some pads, since I didn't have any on me.  On my way, I went ahead and called Gayle and decided I would go ahead and run to the clinic, since it was only 5 minutes away.  Pretty sure they would go ahead and see me immediately.  I got there and let them know what was going on and they said they could go ahead and get me in right then.  Thank goodness.  I hadn't call C & W yet, but knew they were on there way.  I wanted to know either way and would decide how to move forward after the ultrasound.  The Dr. came in and of course we discussed that bleeding can be common with IVF pregnancies and we all (my surro sisters) tell each other the same thing all the time.  I think there have been 4 other ladies in one of my group that have had bleeding around this time (or earlier) and all has been well.  I just kept thinking positive thoughts and praying that this little one was ok.  She started the ultrasound and I didn't have a great look at the screen, but was looking for the little flicker of the heartbeat.  She said everything looked normal and then we saw the heartbeat.  The baby measured 6w4d and the HB was 120.  She did say that I had an SCH (see below for more info) that is measuring 3x1, which I think is smaller than the one with "E".  I think that one was a 7x3.  Hoping that it will just reabsorb and resolve on it's own.  OMGosh!!  What a relief!  She was totally good with me coming back at 4pm with C & W too.  Such a great clinic.  I decided that I wasn't going to say anything to C & W about it until our appointment later in the afternoon.  I didn't want to ruin that moment of them seeing their baby and hearing the heartbeat for the first time.  Such a big milestone.  I wanted them to remember the joy that they would feel when they found out this little one is progressing along, not all the drama that I experienced earlier in the day. 

C & W's Sweet "Pea" (as that's the size of the baby right now)

I left the clinic and headed back to work.  I hadn't been gone very long.  I was scheduled to leave the office at 3pm, so decided to stay until around 3:40pm to make up the time I was gone for "lunch".  I called Gayle to let her know and then worked for the rest of the afternoon, until 3:40pm.  I left and headed over to the clinic.  The bleeding had definitely slowed down and I was feeling a little better.  I texted C to let her know I was leaving the office and heading to the clinic.  She said that they would be there right around 4pm and we couldn't have planned it much better.  When I got there, there were 2 other couples in the office.  Not long after I got there C & W walked in and a few minutes after that, Gayle and her husband arrived.  We all joked in the exam room about what the other couples thought of us.  We were quite a bit entourage.  Two couples and me.  LOL!  We got back to the room and visited in there for a while until the Dr. came in.  She came in and asked how everyone was doing.  I didn't realize she had met them in the hall, so I introduced them to her.  She asked how everything was going and I said it was good.  She asked if I had told them and I said no.  We filled them in at that point.  She said, "she had a little bleeding earlier" and I said, but everything is fine.  I know they were probably a little worried at that point and we explained that it can be quite common in IVF pregnancies.  The Dr. said, "yes, everything is fine." and they seemed a little relieved after that.  She started the exam and she said that everything looked good.  Baby measured 6w3d and HB was 117.  Measurements are good and they can vary a little more when they are SO small.  This little one is about 1/4 inch long.  C got teary and it made me teary.  I'm so happy for them.  I can't wait for them to hold this little one in their arms.  We took some pictures together after the appointment with the ultrasound pictures and then we headed over to C's parent's house. 

 

We still had an hour before dinner, so they let me tag along with them because there is no way I could've driven all the way home and back by 6pm.  DH was bringing the kiddos and my Mom was going to meet us there too.  I was so excited.  I got to see some pictures of C's brother and sister and some of the pictures from their trips to the beach.  While we were there, C & W gave me a beautiful gift.  I will be able to use it for my wedding ring or other jewelry.  They are always so thoughtful and I really appreciate it.

 

 

 

After a little while, we headed to Railhead for dinner.  I haven't had BBQ in forever, so it was a nice change.  Plus, I'm meeting some of my surro sisters for an early dinner (Mexican food) on Sunday.  We had such a great dinner and visited for a couple of hours.  I was glad that my kiddos finally got to meet them.  Especially DD because, as usual, she is the most fascinated with the pregnancy.  I would normally wait until further along to tell her, but she's a very intuitive little girl.  She knew when I got home from the transfer and kept asking, "Is there a baby in your belly."  I just kept telling her soon, but you know that only lasts so long.  She really cracks me up.  She always kisses my belly.  Now she knows who the baby's mommy is and will know who I'm talking about when I mention C & W.  I'm sure we'll get together more throughout this journey and so glad that they chose me to "babysit" for them.  So excited to continue on this journey with them.

 

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Subchorionic Bleeding During Pregnancy

Sometimes, blood clots form within the layers of the placenta. But more often than not, they heal themselves.

What it is: Also called subchorionic hematoma, subchorionic bleeding is the accumulation of blood within the folds of the chorion (the outer fetal membrane, next to the placenta) or within the layers of the placenta itself. These bleeds, or clots, can cause the placenta to separate from the uterine wall if they get too large, if they develop in a bad spot, or if they aren’t eventually reabsorbed.
 
How common is it? A good 20 percent of pregnant women will experience some kind of bleeding early in pregnancy, though it’s often hard to tell what’s causing the problem. Subchorionic hematomas are even harder to pick up because they don’t always result in noticeable spotting or bleeding, especially when they’re small. 

 

 

 



 

Great appointment and visit!!

Got to the hotel in Houston a little after 10pm last night.  Definitely a bit exhausting to make that drive after working all day, but I think it beat getting up at 3am to make the same drive.  My appointment was at 8am and C and I had discussed just meeting at the clinic at 7:45am.  C & W were both going to come, along with C's mom M.  C's Mom has been staying with her to help her recover from her surgery.  It's funny how things work out sometimes, as I parked and started to head in, I had already gotten on the elevator and realized I had forgotten my phone, so went back up one floor to go back to the car to get it.  As I was almost to the car, I saw a vehicle pull in that looked like W's and sure enough, it was them.  Timing couldn't have been better.  I was introduced to her Mom and we all walked in together.  C looked great and I couldn't believe that she had just had major surgery just a week and a half before.  She had a follow up appointment yesterday and they removed one of her drain tubes (on the right side), which is great and means that the healing is going well. 

When we got upstairs, we checked in and got to visit a bit before they called us back.  C came with me (for the fun part) and W and M waited in the lobby.  We went back for the ultrasound and "physical" first.  Dr. M actually did the ultrasound, so it was nice to see her and get to talk to her a little bit, as well as ask a couple of questions.  Everything was great!!  My lining was at an 8.6!!!  Yea!!!  I'm so glad that I asked them to start the vaginal Estrace early, so that we didn't have to push the transfer back.  I was so afraid we would have to cancel and move it to August since I can't take any time off before or after due to other colleagues being on vacation.  I asked Dr. M about my Estrogen level being so high after the first check and if it could cause any issues or be "too high".  She said that it can only be "too low" and that a high number doesn't really impact the cycle as much.  That was definitely good to hear. 

After we finished the exam, C and I headed over to get my blood drawn.  Such fun!  They took 9 vials all together.  8 the first time and 1 the second time.  Yes, I said 2nd time.  She had pulled vials for all of the FDA required labs, but forgot to pull one for my second E2 check.  Ugh!  Good thing I'm a pretty easy stick and I'm not afraid of needles.  She was really good too and didn't leave any bruising and was very apologetic that she had to do it again.  She kept saying, "I'm so sorry.  I always like to get them all at once."  It was quite funny though because they don't use traditional tape when your done.  They have some sticky bandage type material they wrap around.  This time it was bright, neon green.  I joked that I had on my Hulk bandages.  LOL!  As we were checking out, Barb came over to say that my E2 level was at 2815, which was fine.  Glad it hadn't shot up a ton since the first check on Monday.  She was so excited for us and I have to say that she does seem to be much more on top of things this time around.  We got all of the testing done early and I don't feel rushed, which is fantastic.  She said she would send me the updated calendar and that we were on for transfer July 5th.

C & I headed back to the lobby and we all headed to brunch.  It was still really early, a little before 9am, so I guess you could still call it breakfast.  C rode with me and I followed W and M.  We went to a place in City Centre called Flora & Muse (http://floraandmuse.com/index.asp), which was right by the hotel where I was staying.  We all ended up getting breakfast, since they didn't start serving lunch until 11:30am.  W is a lot like my DH in that I think he would've totally ordered lunch if they had been serving it.  C, her Mom and I all had the exact same thing.  We got to chat and had great conversation.  C's mom lives in the DFW area and coincidentally enough, not far from my work.  I think it will be nice having her close because if C & W aren't able to make an appointment, I figure her Mom could join me if she would like.  Her Mom is just as sweet as she is and has such a positive outlook too.  When we were done with breakfast, we had that hostess take a picture of the 4 of us and one of just the 3 of us as well.  We all headed back to the cars and I figured since I had a little bit of time before check out, that I would grab a short nap before making the drive back home. 

I got in a good 30 minute nap and then headed back home.  I was excited to see my DH and babies.  The drive wasn't too bad and I even made a little stop just South of Waxahachie.  I saw these Sunflower fields on my way down, but didn't really want to stop, but made a note on my phone where it was so I could stop on my way back.  They were amazing and SO big.  I've never really seen any up close before and when I looked even closer, the brown part is actually made up of a lot of tiny flowers (I think the seeds are in the middle of each one).  Beautiful!!  I had to take a few pictures and luckily, I know how to work the timer on my camera so you can see how really big they were. 

 

Whirlwind Trip

Wow, what a day.  I have had the busiest couple of days off in a long time.  I'm glad I kept Thursday off too, because it was just as busy as Friday.  I had to run tons of errands, then we had family pics with my favorite photog for Spring.  Plus, I wanted to get a family picture before I'm pregnant again.  After pictures, I had a band booster meeting at oldest DS's school.  I finally got home and got to get ready for my trip to Houston today.  It was definitely a whirlwind trip.  My flight out was at 9am for an ultrasound appointment at 11:45am.  Unfortunately C & W had to work in the AM, but C was going to meet me at the clinic at around 11:30am for the appointment.  I'm so glad that she wants to be so involved.  I do want them to be as involved in the entire process as they are comfortable with.

The surrogacy community is so large and I have been so blessed to have met several surro-sisters in different cities.  I know of 2 in Houston that I have met before and I was so lucky that Denise volunteered to pick me up at the airport and get me to the clinic.  It was a nice drive and we had some time to catch up.  I got to the medical center and hung out in the lobby for a little while since I was pretty early.  About 11:25, I went ahead and headed up to the clinic and checked in.  Right after I checked in, C walked in.  We didn't have to wait very long before they called me back.  I went back for blood work first (as always) and then we headed to the room for the ultrasound.  We sat and chatted while we waited for the nurse to come in to complete the procedure.  It's funny that when the nurse came in, she had mentioned again that they want it to be over a 7.  Really?!  Is it 7 or 8?!  Oh well, either way, I was already there.  She took all the measurements and said that it was a 7.9.  I was just hoping that would be sufficient for them to move forward and not have to push the transfer again.  After the appointment, we had them page our NC so that we could confirm that the US results were acceptable and that they weren't going to need me to come back again the next day since I was scheduled to fly out that afternoon at 4:30pm.  The NC came out and said that everything looked good and we would still transfer next Friday.  Yea!!!  Such great news.

We left the clinic and then headed out to meet W for lunch.  The weather was great, so we ate outside at Cafe Express.  I really enjoy talking to them and getting to know them even more each time we get together.  They have been through so much and both have such a wonderful and hopeful outlook on everything.  The conversation always seems so easy with them and I love that.  I was a little self conscious at first because I was afraid that maybe C and I would talk more and that W wouldn't feel included, but the conversation seemed to flow well between all 3 of us.  After we finished lunch, W headed out to play golf and C took me to the airport.  I gave C her gift and I'm so glad she liked it.  It was an Origami Owl locket that I selected each element for.  She put it on right there.  Made me so happy. 

Good luck charm for transfer.  The pink charm says "hope" for a cure, the ring is for C & W's marriage, a "faith" charm, the yellow stone for fertility and the green stone for luck.

We headed to the airport and I was quite early, so when I checked in, it gave me the option to change my flight.  I was able to get a flight out an hour earlier.  Yea for not sitting at the airport forever. 

Ultrasound Update

Today was the ultrasound at the local clinic and it seemed to go well.  I stopped by the clinic on my way in (at 7:30am) to have my blood drawn and then went back at 1:15pm for my ultrasound.  I have had a couple of surro-sisters that have used this clinic and I've always heard good things.  The RE was so nice and she took several measurements.  A couple of the measurements were over 8 and the remainder were all over 7 with triple stripe.  She said everything looked great and she would send the results to the clinic in Houston.

I headed back to work to wait for a call from the clinic.  I got a call late in the afternoon and it wasn't what I wanted or hoped to hear.  She told me that it did look a lot better, but that it was still not to an 8.  I asked if they were looking for it to be a 7 or an 8.  She said that over 7 is good, but 8 is "ideal".  She said that since it wasn't an 8 yet, that they want me to have another ultrasound on Friday in Houston so that we can ensure there aren't any discrepancies with the measurements.  She also said to go ahead and add a single vaginal Estrace in the evening.  This will help build the lining more as well.

Well, I guess it's good that I kept my days off and we're closed on Friday.  Still just a little frustrated since this means more money that C&W will have to pay and another trip to Houston for me.  At least I will get to see C & W again and we are getting closer to where we need to be.  One step closer to transfer.