One Year Ago..

Today is the one year anniversary of our third and final transfer! Finally we had success!!!

One year ago today, we transferred two embryos into my uterus.  Two tiny microscopic embryos that finally decided everything looked (i) just right (/i) and snuggled in.  Today those little totsicles are adorable, giggly, precious 4month old baby girls.

See those tiny little dots in the top picture?  Those are the little embryos..  Not that they weren't cute and all but I like today's picture much better.  Adorable beyond belief!!

 I am forever blessed to have been able to carry them and hand them over to their Mama & Daddy.

One year ago today I went in with cautious hope and a little bit of faith.. Today I am astounded by their every accomplishment and so proud of those little blessings.

The Final Birth Story....

Hey peeps..  I know, I know. I left you hanging back there in July.  Let me start by saying the Twins were born healthy- full term and no issues whatsoever!   I kept meaning to post over and over but I would find something else to do.  I think perhaps with this being my LAST surrogacy and all, I didn't want to let go.  Writing my birth story seems a little like the last word on the last page in the last chapter of a really good book that you just don't want to put down.  But today is 16 weeks since the babies were born so I figured it was kinda now or never.  You have to let go sometime, right?

So we left off at 34w5d and dilated to 4.5cm.  My dr was sure labor was imminent.  Let me just say now, my dr was pretty much wrong every single time she swore I'd have those babies before my next appointment.  I went in the next day 34wk6d and still the same 4.5cm.   The dr and I discussed the likelihood of needing to be closer to the hospital.  I think this was the biggest worry for all of us in the last days. With the first set of twins I was in L&D and went from 5-9 cm in a matter of minutes. So being so close, we were pretty much all afraid that once I went into real labor (vs the inconsistent contractions that became the bane of my existence)  the babies would pretty much be born in the car on the way to the hospital (remember I live 1hr from my delivering hospital).   Back and forth we went, whether to book a hotel and stay close by or just go home and risk it.  Ultimately we decided that I would just go home. Logically with all factors involved it just worked better. Plus there is a decent hospital halfway to my delivering hospital (although no NICU) that would work in a pinch.   My dr decided that seeing us a few times a week would be best but every visit she swore she'd see me in L&D before my next appointment.  Every visit she was wrong... lol.  It became a running joke. How many times can the dr guess wrong?? lol 

So fast forward 2 weeks.  YES 2 weeks.  Apparently when someone asks how long can you walk around 4.5-5cm dilated and not go into active labor??  Well I don't know the exact answer but we will say AT LEAST two weeks. 

Monday Aug 8 - by this point everyone who had guessed in the baby pool had to pretty much guess again.  This was my date.  8/8/16.  What an awesome birthday for twins!  I had a dr appt that day and asked about doing an u/s because at our last one (2wks prior) baby b was slightly smaller than baby a. She agreed (fyi- still dilated to 5cm and holding).  At this point, DH came with me to all appointments and we always brought the hospital bag - just in case. lol.  This was the first u/s he had been able to come to, so his first time seeing these little ones 'in person'. Long story-short, the u/s showed that Baby B had not grown in the past 2 weeks.  This was slightly concerning since she was already the smaller twin. They looked at the cords and all looked okay but with 2 babies jammed in there, it's sometimes harder to see everything clearly. Plus the fact that laying flat on my back for any length of time was enough to make me want to pass out.  Not the most fun experience.  My Dr came back in said that if we still wanted to induce (we had asked at what point induction would be advisable) then she thought that baby a measuring smaller and not growing for 2 weeks was enough to warrant an induction.  So we agreed to induce on Wednesday - Aug 10 - exactly 37weeks.  Naturally Aug 10th was Baby Mama's pick in the baby pool.  I told her she didn't win if we induced though. lol :) 

Surprisingly enough, we actually made it to induction day.  I figured these girls did not like being told what to do the entire pregnancy so they would come on the 9th just to be contrary, but they were nice and compliant.   We all arrived at the hospital at 8am for induction. Finally!! 

 We got hooked up to the monitors and they checked me -- still 5cm.  Not a contraction in sight. lol.  They ordered the pitocin and my epidural at the same time.  Again from the last twin pregnancy I was worried that once it got started it would go fast..  ha ha ha. Silly me.  I did ask about breaking my water and letting nature take it's course vs the pitocin route but little miss baby A was hanging out too high up and there was a risk of the cord getting pinched.  Little booger.  So we settled in. Pitocin came and got hooked up.  Then my epidural lady came and placed that.  I had only had like 3 good pitocin contractions when I got my epidural and I think that's probably why it was the most painful. Normally you've had hours of labor and pain is a thing of the past by then.  This lady kept saying boy your vertebrae are close together, I'm having a real hard time getting between them.  I'm like Lady, this is my 5th epidural and no one has ever told me that before. LOL!  Eventually it was in and we all settled in to wait. 

And wait we did.  The excited parents eventually went off for lunch and came back again.  Still waiting.  Lots of checking in between, me changing positions trying to make monitoring 2 babies easier b/c those babies were stinkers. Eventually they broke my water on Baby A and put a scalp monitor on her b/c she was always my little mover and would NOT stay on the monitor.  Stinker!!  Actually truth be told, they put 2 scalp monitors on b/c the first one didn't work. lol. Like I said, she's the troublemaker.  I could bore you to tears with the waiting but pretty much it went really smoothly.  Finally I got to 9cm and had to spend some time on my side since Little Miss Baby A was not keeping her head down properly (she wanted to turn sideways instead of head down) and there was a darn lip on my cervix.. sigh..  Troublemaker I tell you.  We all laughed that these girls were trying to be so convenient for the dr, they waited until her office hours were over before my nurse even had to call her to come to the hospital!  Yep - all day long.  Rotten kids, so much for my worry about going fast! Lol! 

 Finally it was time to head off to the OR (all twin births at my hospital must be delivered in the OR) for the birth!  We gathered around for a quick picture of all of us together - because naturally all these hours in labor, no one thought to take a picture. lol. We are lame. ha!  But at least we all look cute in our scrubs. 

When we got to the OR, Baby Daddy stayed just outside the room (per hospital rules only 1 person is allowed in the OR, we stretched the rules by letting DH & Baby Mama in).  Once Baby A was born she would immediately be taken to the hallway to be checked over anyway so he would get to see her right away (they had a little set up there with the bed and all for her).  So we got into the OR and I had to transfer from my bed to the OR bed.  I love how these people think that a woman with a good working epidural can just move themselves from bed to bed.. That may have taken a few mins. lol.  Our room was packed. My dr, the NICU staff (just in case) , nurses for the babies, my nurse plus her mentor nurse b/c my nurse was new and wasn't allowed to do everything yet.  Then the pushing started. and went on and on.  I was beginning to think this kid was not going to come out AT ALL and we'd end up with a c-section after all.. I did learn that I cuss a LOT during delivery.  Ooops.. lol. Finally Baby A came out - sunny side up!! ARGH!!! No wonder she was so hard to get out. I swear this child- TROUBLEMAKER.!! Apparently when she was sideways and finally turned she turned head up instead of head down. Always something with this girl!  But she was here and looked wonderful!  Super quiet though! She came out all cone headed. Poor thing!! I told Baby Mama to go on out and visit with her for a few minutes b/c the Dr was going to do a quick ultrasound to make sure Baby B was still head down.  

 My dr was highly amused when she did the ultrasound b/c it was the first time she saw her own fingers on the ultrasound. lol.   Baby B was head down and ready to rock and roll!We called Baby Mama back into the room. Baby Daddy & Baby A also snuck back in!  The dr tried 3 times to get her water to break but it wouldn't budge, so she decided we would go ahead and push with the water intact.   Baby B was smaller and actually facing the right direction so she came out much easier!!  The water finally broke as she was coming out!  The entire pregnancy I always commented how BabyA was the mover and Baby B was always content to just hang out in her little corner, usually curled up.   We found out at delivery that Baby B's cord was much shorter than Baby A's.   I'll spare you the sight of fresh baby covered in goo pictures but I do have one of Baby B (Baby A's cord was still hanging there attached to placentas b/c in a twin delivery both babies are delivered and then both placentas) which shows her freshly born before her cord was cut and it is pulled tight.  Yet Baby A's freshly born picture shows her in the same position and her cord is laying loose and looped around.  Poor Baby B just couldn't move around as much as her sister b/c her cord was holding her in place. lol.

Stats :
Baby A - 6lbs 6oz, 20 inches long , born @ 5:23pm 
Apgars 6 & 9

Baby B - 5lbs 6oz, 19 inches long, born @ 5:42pm 
Apgars 9 & 9

Exactly 1 lb and 1 inch apart!!  

   The babies were 100% healthy! There was a slight jaundice issue but nothing huge. The parents were given their own room down the hall from mine and were released after 2 days :)  I hung out at the hospital for my entire 48hours (vacation!!) and went down to their room to hang out, or they came to mine.   I pumped for the twins for the first few months, they had to supplement with formula anyway while I built up a supply.  Now that they no longer want any milk,  I am still pumping and donating to Preemie Milk Bank.   I do get pictures all the time and even went to visit right before Thanksgiving :)  I love this family to pieces! I'm so glad to be a part of it in a small way =) 
 
And that, my dears, is that.   My 3rd surrogacy is over and while my dr keeps trying to convince me that I should do just one more.. I'm 98% sure that I'm officially retired.  Do I miss it? Sure. About 2 weeks after giving birth to the twins I was already missing the pregnancy. lol. But three great journeys is a blessing and I hate to jinx myself.  So I'm calling it - I'm out. 

Thanks so much for following our journey. I'll always be around to answer any questions anyone might have.  I may occasionally post updates on the 2 sets of twins :)  Until then, take care!

A major catch up !!

And yet again I have failed at my blogging duties.  I blame twin brain.  #1. I can't comfortably reach the keyboard anymore. #2. I think up all these great posts but when push comes to shove,  Oh LOOK!! Squirrel!!    lol!  I swear these babies have made me soo ADD it's not even funny!

So here we sit at 1 day shy of 35 weeks!  Further than we made it with the last set of twins (born 34w3d).  My Doc assures me that typical gestation is 35 weeks and each day is a victory.. So I'll take it :)

Let's try to play catch up...

Naturally having preggo brain I've probably forgotten half of what I should have posted but we'll just have to deal with it.    This pregnancy has been super smooth!  No bedrest whatsoever!!  Remember last time?  Bed rest at 29weeks!   It still amazes me that I got away with none this time!  Awesome!


So let's go back to 25wks preggo.  We had been trying to figure out a time that both parents could come and do a 3d u/s but it just wasn't working out.  So I went with my bestie T and we did one and gave them the pics/videos for their baby shower present! Lol! 

Things moved along fairly well. Every ultrasound showed each little girl in a different position but never head down.  Stinkers!  I actually contributed this towards not dilating and contracting early like I did with the Spanish Twins.  They were always head down and that pressure on the cervix had to be doing something.   Not these girls, they are happy to float along, usually transverse and almost always with their little heads together like they are telling secrets!  We have soo many pics of just their little heads together. I LOVE IT!! :)

28 weeks came and the lovely Glucose test -- which I failed by 9 measly points! ARGH!! What the heck?? I've never failed one!  So I got to do the lovely 3hr at my 30wk appt. Which I PASSED!  Ha!  Take that stupid glucose test!! :)

The fun thing at my 30week appt was that I was able to schedule it so I got the awesome u/s tech!  She even gave us a little 3D pic preview! Woohoo!  She is awesome!

For some reason no one seems to be able to see Baby B's pic but to me it's perfectly clear. lol.  It's a side shot and she has her arm curled up under her head..  Aren't they adorable?!   I love how much they look like real babies in these pictures!!! :)

 Our next appt was at 32w5d - after having had some contractions off and and the dr decided to check my cervix.  It was just 1 cm so we weren't too concerned! :)  This is my 5th pregnancy after all !  All in all things were going good!

Fast Forward us to last friday ( 34wk2d).  Jill (IM) and her MIL were able to come to the appt!  This one was especially nerve racking because I had to work soo hard to make sure that I didn't slip up and say the babies names.  Only Mom, Dad & I know the names and Gma was hoping with everything that we would slip up. lol.   We made it thru the day with no slip ups though! HA! :)   So we had another u/s with the great u/s lady!  Both babies were measuring right at 5lbs (A was 5lb 2oz, B was 4lb 14oz) and both were head down!  First time EVER!  How cool!  Of course these girls like to do somersaults like there's no tomorrow so I wasn't confident that they'd stay there. lol. They are soo active it's not even funny!  After the u/s we saw the dr.  We discussed the pros & cons of getting the steroid shots (I feel nervous not having them if I'm dilating at all b/c I constantly worry about when to go to the hospital with contractions -- soon enough for shots but I hate being sent home.) Dr told us that they are only good for like 2 weeks which we didn't realize so she would give them if we really wanted them but would prefer we wait until she felt we were closer to delivery so they didn't wear off too soon.  We all agreed with that! :)   Then we discussed birth options.  We have always been pro- vaginal birth.  I've never had a c-section and don't particularly want one.  The last twins were vaginal births, so I'm hoping these are as well.  Still we went over the scenarios.

1. Baby A Breech = c-section

2. Baby A & B head down = go for it! We always have the risk that B flips after A is out but the do their best to prevent that.

3.Baby A head down but B transverse -- now this one I don't recall which as which but dr says if B is transverse but facing down then she could try to rotate her into position and deliver.  If B was transverse but facing up then it was risk to rotate and would do a breech birth. (note- those two scenarios could be flipped, I don't remember which was which now. lol).

4. Baby A head down but B breech = could do a breech extraction b/c they don't rotate a breech baby due to possible cord issues.  I did not know this!

So after researching breech extraction (eek) and the possible complications for both the baby & me, Jill and I agree that we'd rather not risk it.  I worry about Baby B's spine getting injured or her head getting stuck and ending in cuts that could cause me more issues too.   So as of right now, the plan is if both are head down we are going for vaginal.  If any other scenario, then we'll opt for the c-section as the safer option.   Whew..

Anyhoo after this long discussion with the OB,  Jill & MIL stepped out so she could check my cervix. Fun times!!  After a few moments, dr looks at me and says well you are getting steroids today!  Apparently my cervix was now 3.5-4cm!  oops!! After a few minutes of discussing, we decided that I would head to the hospital on Sunday (dr was on call then) and get the first shot and another check, then back to the office on Monday for my 2nd shot.   You know what they say about the best laid plans, right??

After the fun cervical check (at 9am!) I spent the rest of the day with my back just killing me. I could not get comfortable and had some noticeable contractions but mainly just a horrible back ache.  MIL had mentioned that she had back labor for Nate (dad) and we all wondered if that was what was going on.  So after talking to the nurse line, I headed to the hospital just in case for a check. 

L&D trip #1 -  We got triage 3 (ha! same a with the last twins!) Now by the time we went in, I wasn't feeling a lot of contractions just mainly back pain. Just pretty uncomfy.  We got upstairs and got all hooked up to the monitors. My BP was a bit high for me (130/77) which I guess just proves I wasn't comfy? lol.  Our nurse was super nice but I feel maybe a bit new? She put the contraction monitor way high where it wouldn't pick anything up anyway.  After a bit of no contractions she went ahead and did a cervical check - announced my cervix was really hard to find (my dr says WTH? you have the easiest cervix in the world to find!) and decided that I was still the same dilation as this morning with the dr.  We did go ahead and get the first steroid shot and was told to come back the next night fo the 2nd one.

Horrible backache , some contractions on Saturday until it finally tapered off that evening (Go figure).  I arrived at the hospital for the next shot.


L&D trip #2 - We showed up for our shot and another very pg lady showed up with us and let me just say I think she waited a tad too long before showing up.  This woman was ready to go! lol!  She got in the wheelchair (I elected to walk) and we waited for the guard to show up and escort us up to L&D.  Meanwhile her husband said he'd just run out to the car and turn it off but he really went to the car, parked it, grabbed the bags ect.  So our guard showed up and the husband was MIA.   Our very pg lady said a few choice words and we decided to leave him behind and get her upstairs!  So off we go!  We just got into the elevator when the guard shack calls to tell our escort that the husband is on his way.  Again more choice words (and lots of moaning) from our pg lady.  We waited a minute or so but apparently the husband got lost and we left him. lol.  Poor woman, I felt for her.  I know that husband is going to get it when she gets her hands on him!  She kept saying- he was just supposed o turn the car off. *&^**&^&  lol.

So we arrive up in L&D and they whisk pg woman off to her room.  They asked me if I was having any contractions to which I said nope, not at this time!  So they decided that rather than go thru an entire triage process again, I could just go down to the ER and get my 2nd shot.   Works for me!

Downstairs to ER we went.  While we were waiting, a man came in all hyped up telling the receptionist that his wife was in labor!! (apparently he didn't do a tour and didn't know that you don't go to the ER b/c L&D has it's own entrance).  He went back to get her out of the car with a wheelchair.  In comes this calm woman. She calmly tells them she's 41wks, having contractions every 3-5mins. Her husband comes bouncing back in with a bag of McD's (omg ya'll ! They stopped at McD's for food on the way! LOL) and they are taken upstairs.   It was just hilarious the complete difference between the two situations.

So I got my shot and home again we went.    Sunday was another day of some back ache... some contractions (about 20mins apart) which eventually just tapered off.    I woke up Monday feeling great! I had actually slept for 7 hours and no contractions or back ache! Wooohoo!!

Onto our next dr appt  (now 34w5d). BP was up a bit again (135/80) but I had a headache.  Dr assured me that it was a bit high for me but wasn't high enough for them to be worried yet.  Belly measured 46weeks :)   Then for our cervical check --  apparently all those sporadic contractions over the weekend were doing something.  From 3.5-4 on Friday to 4.5 (possibly 5) on Monday.   Ooops!

And that's where we sit today.  Another appt tomorrow, if I get any further dilated my dr suggests a hotel close to the hospital b/c I have an hour drive from home. She thinks they will arrive within a week....  We shall see.  Things have been pretty calm the rest of yesterday and today so I think these girls are just chillin out.  Get everyone riled up and then sit back and giggle together.. lol.


Until next time...

19weeks #GestationalSurrogacy #ultrasound #Twins

It's been a while since I've checked in here.  I'm now 19wk2days!  We are over halfway to the finish line!!  With this being another twin pregnancy, my OB typically doesn't let you go past 37wks.  So definitely halfway!! :)   

Things are going well!  We had an ultrasound at 17w6d.  My lovely IM was able to come down for it and her Momma! :)  It was great to get to meet the babies' grandma! :)   Unfortunately we got the icky ultrasound tech.  I had her one time early in the pregnancy of the last twins and didn't care for her.  Her bedside manner is just less than ideal (she doesn't tell you anything that she's doing and pretty much ignores the room while doing her scans).  This just taught us not to schedule another ultrasound on a Tuesday! lol! :)  

All in all the babies look great!! Baby A is(was at the time) on my right side and BREECH.  Baby B on the left slightly angled and also BREECH!  What is up with this whole Breech thing girls?  Never in my history of carrying babies have I ever had one present breech at ANY time in the pregnancy.  These girls just want to go out with a bang! :) LOL   There is still PLENTY of time for them to flip around so I'm not too concerned..  Just seems a typical finding with these little divas :)   Oddly enough I realized later that the u/s tech never did any gender shots.  We obviously know via PGD testing that our little Divas are girls but it still seems odd that she didn't verify that for the record.  LOL.

Here's a peek at them : 

Baby A is doing what I believe is the duck face.  I think she must be practicing for some facebook selfies! :)   Baby B has her little arm/hand up under her head just relaxing!  Apparently their big brother always sleeps like that - how cute!! :)

According to the measurements Baby A was 1 day ahead with a heartrate of 158 and Baby B was 2 days behind with a heartrate of 144 but somehow they both were estimated to weigh (both 7oz) the same amount?  Go figure!   We also asked the tech about the placenta since we had that tiny bleed issue back at 14wks and were told we had a partial previa.  She assured us that it had moved out of the way - no worries.

Off we go to see my Dr who announced that both babies looked wonderful !  Both were currently breech (yup, we know!) and Baby A's placenta is now completely covering the cervix (plus slightly anterior).  WHAT?  The ultrasound tech told us it moved??  Apparently the report says complete previa.  BLAH.   So now we cross our fingers that this moves out of the way as my uterus grows (cuz we know there's still a LOT of growing to do!).  I'd rather not have a c-section with this last pregnancy! LOL!  Plus with the placenta where it currently is (anterior) the OB would have to cut thru the placenta to deliver baby A.  Uhmm, no thanks - not what I'm looking for in a birth experience.   Fingers crossed things move along like they should.  Right now these little Divas are trying to do everything they can to guarantee a csection with the previa and both breech.  But I'm sure if I explain things nicely they'll try to get with the program! :)

I have another OB appt next week - no clue why the dr decided to see me in 2 wks vs 4wks but I do what she says. lol.    Other than that bp was great, urine clear!  We're cruising along just great! 

Now if those babies would just agree to let me quit puking!  They have let up quite a bit, but usually at least once or twice a week they jump up and scream- HA JUST KIDDING! GO puke! :)  Boogers anyway :)

19 Weeks

Sources say the babies are now the size of a largo mango (or for those who prefer a non-fruit comparison a square kleenex box).  Arms & legs are finally in proportion, while neurons are now connected between the brain and muscles and cartilage throughout the body is turning to bone.  Serious upgrades going on in there!  It's estimated that movement should be felt between 18-21 weeks depending on a ton of factors.  So far I can feel some kicks and jabs if I'm laying quietly in bed but rarely do I feel tons of movement when I'm up and about :)

14 weeks :)

Hello my friends!  It's hard to believe we are finally 14 weeks and in the 2nd trimester! Woot!!  This have been moving along well.  I had some spotting on Monday and went into the dr for a check up on Tuesday.  I wasn't having any cramping so I wasn't super concerned but spotting is spotting and it's not normal!

First thing they did was an ultrasound! :) Yay! It's always so nice to see them ! Good news is that the babies are both looking wonderful.  Heartbeats were great and they were moving around (I can't wait to be able to feel that movement!!).  Both babies were measuring 2 days ahead (14w1d) .They are still laying in there stacked on top of each other like in little bunkbeds.  Silly girls! There's plenty of room, spread out!! :)   The u/s tech was able to determine that the spotting was due to one of the placentas being low lying and a tiny partial previa.  I've been told to expect spotting off and on but for now it's not a big worry b/c it's still very early and the placenta can move as my uterus grows.   I've spoken with several other friends who had the same issue and theirs all moved well before delivery.  And so we just watch it.  :)

Baby A was nice enough to give us profile shot :)

Baby B decided we should only get a front on skeletal view.. lol ;)

 14 Weeks -

At 14 weeks the babies are each the size of a lemon (or for those that like non-fruit comparisons - the size of a rubix cube). The sources say that morning sickness should be easing away and my appetite should be reappearing.  To those sources I say- try having twins.  Still taking my meds and still puking despite them a few times a week.  The appetite is pretty much non- existent but occasionally I have a moment of hunger :)

• Baby's probably thumb sucking and wiggling his or her toes in there!
• Baby's kidneys are making urine, and the liver and spleen are doing their jobs too.
• And baby's growing lanugo, a thin, peach-fuzz-like hair, all over— it'll help keep the body warm!

Happy 12 Weeks!

Hello my friends!  I know, I've been a very bad blogger.  Honestly, I think my life plan is to sleep ALWAYS sleep right now.    I had a dr appt yesterday and the nurse said to me "You look really tired" (it's 10:30 in the morning. ). Uhm yes, I am ALWAYS tired right now! lol!

So all is going well with the twins! This dr appt was just a "new OB" appt where I get the lovely physical and all the bloodwork.  Fun times I tell you!  I showed up and of course immediately had to pee. My nurse directed me to the bathroom and told me that she needed a 'sample'.  No problem here!

My dr came in to discuss how things were going and is pleased with the progress so far. My uterus is now up to my belly button already (normally 20+ weeks) but that's what happened with the last twins.  Lots of swimming room :)  Naturally with all that room, both little divas decided to hang out low and on top of each other.  I was **this** close to getting a quickie u/s to check the heartbeats b/c my doc could only find one but the other came out of hiding. Drats!  We did hear lots of kicking and moving around ! These girls are active, that's for sure!

So another dr appt in 3 weeks, then in another 3 wks(6 from now) we have the big ultrasound! Woohoo! :)  It's not a big gender reveal since we already know it's girls, but it'll be nice to peek in at them again and see how much they've grown!


So for Week 12 :

The babies are now the size of a large Plum  or since it's National Drink Wine day- they are also the size of a wine cork ( roughly 2.5" & .5oz).

• Most of baby's critical systems are fully formed!
• Baby's about to enter the growth and maturation stage, in which organs and tissues will grow and develop rapidly.
• Baby's now developing her reflexes—if you poke his or her body, you'll likely see movement.
• Baby's opening and closing fingers and curling toes too.
• Baby's brain is developing fast!

If you are facebook friends with me or the parents, then you'll know that we are now FB official! :) LOL :)

Until Next time!!

2nd Ultrasound -- and the number is .....

Sorry, sorry!   I've been wiped out by these little beans! I swear all I want to do is nap! lol!

So we had the 2nd ultrasound yesterday...

...

...

...

...

Oh!! You want to know how many are in there??

...


...


...


...


...


...

 Meet Baby Girl A:

 Baby Girl B : 

And.......

Nope, just TWO :)

Both babies are looking great and measuring one day ahead!  Heartbeats were 172 & 174 :)   All in all things are looking perfect!   I have been released from FCI and have to continue one form of progesterone (bye bye shots!) and 2 estrogen patches for another 2 weeks and then I am med free. My OB has raised all my restrictions (that the IVF clinic placed) and I can be NORMAL again! Lol!

My next OB appointment isn't for four weeks and then it's the normal new patient appointment with all the bloodwork ect :)  For now I'm feeling ... okay.  I'm so sleepy. lol. And nauseous but that's to be expected :)  Hopefully it will let up soon! 

Until next time! :)

1st Ultrasound!

The ultrasound was ....  interesting.

Both IPs were able to make it, along with their 3yo son :) It was a fun day!! We had lunch and then went off to our appointment!

Naturally as soon as I got there I had to pee.  I mean I was bouncing around in line waiting to check in I had to pee so bad. lol!  Got checked in and she told me to go ahead and sneak back and pee in a cup but ask the nurse to be sure.  I went right back and asked my nurse who is all "Let me make sure you don't need a full bladder for your ultrasound first."  I'm like dude, if you need a full bladder for my transvaginal ultrasound there are going to be some problems in the ultrasound room.. lol.  She finally came back and gave me the okay to use the restroom. 

OMG I felt soo much better!  As soon as I came out of the bathroom the ultrasound tech was there and was ready for me so I quickly grabbed the IPs and we all went back.

We start the ultrasound and techie is like Your bladder is really full.  Hello? I just peed!! Literally!  She ended up making me go try again. LOL!   How many times does that happen?

Finally settled back on the table, bladder relieved yet again.

And the ultrasound showed :

1 bigger looking sac with 1 heartbeat just beating away at 104 bpm, measuring 2.3mm - currently Baby A

1 smaller looking sac (posterior so makes it harder to see and the dot of an embryo isn't actually visible in this picture) with 1 heartbeat beating away at 107bpm, measuring at 2.4mm - currently Baby B

Also in the large sac is "something".  No heartbeat was noted at this time so it looks like Baby A embryo split into two but we are unsure if the other one took off.  I mean at this stage they are literally the size of a sesame seed - so TINY.  

I go back Jan 20 (8wks pg) for another ultrasound to count heartbeats. lol.  So who knows at this point!  Ahhh!

I think we all expected 2 with the beta numbers but 3? the ride home was more in shock. LOL!

I know I asked for prayers and good wishes that this all worked but people- you can uncross your fingers now.. We're good! LOL!

Transfer # 3 and beyond ...

Yet again I have ignored my dear readers.   The last we spoke, it was 1 week prior to transfer.  I guess with 2 failures under my belt, I felt that it was a bit of a let down to get all excited and post everything on here and then be another dud....

Let's start of by saying this :

Okay now that we got that out of the way. ..

Transfer was on a Monday this time so T was unable to go with me.  She had to work :(   DH came instead!! :) We went up on Sunday and got there early so we could relax at the hotel. We got some last minute Christmas shopping done while we were out sans kids so it was a nice getaway!

Transfer morning dawned early. We arrived and for the first time ended up sitting in the waiting room for a little while!  Finally we were taken back to Pod #2.  It amuses me to no end that these tiny changing rooms are called Pods. lol.   One of the embryologists came in to have me sign that we were agreeing to transfer 2 and let me know that the embies were looking great from the thaw! One 5AB & one 5BA.   The great chugging of water had commenced and I was instructed to take my lovely valium.

This transfer went as smooth as silk. We got situated in the transfer bed, said hi to Robert- my favorite ultrasound guy who is always so nice to narrate the video we take of the transfers!  I love the entire team at this clinic! They've all been there thru all three of my surrogacies and are just amazing!  Dr K came in and things got started.  Not a hitch! Everything in the exact right spot on the first try.  I swear we were in and out in 5mins or less. I should have timed it! lol!

Then home again, home again for 48hours of bedrest.  The rest of my week was fairly busy. T got her very first foster placement phone call on the day of transfer (good luck sign!!). The time flew by and before I knew it, it was 4dpt.  Now with the Spanish twins, I started peeing at 4dpt and got a big fat negative. I did look at it the following day and noticed a squinter line. So I figured it wouldn't hurt to go ahead and pee. Up until then I had no hpts in the house so I wouldn't be tempted. Plus I really like First Response but those things get expensive after a while.  So I'd heard good things about Dollar Tree tests and grabbed a few of those.   I peed ... and waited...  I got the slightest slightest hint of a line.. So I did what any normal person would do - I sent DH out at 9pm to grab some First Response!

Do you see that??   A faint line.  I admit, it may have darkened slightly from when I first peed but there was definitely a line there. EEEK.

So again, I did what any normal person would do. I went to bed and tried my hardest not to pee until morning and then did another test..

Yep!  Definitely a darker line!!  AHHH!!  We are soo pregnant this time around!  About time! 5dpt was also the anniversary of the Spanish Twins' transfer - More good luck!

Naturally I peed 2 more times. Day 6 was the digital above.. and Day 7 -

Naturally during this time I had to tell IM.   On Saturday (5dpt) I sent her that very first squinter test (not pictured here) and told her that I needed her peestick eyes to help me .  She finally agreed that she could *maybe* see something, she wasn't sure. So I sent her my First Response and said "How about this one?"

Immediate response was something like No F$&@ing way !!

lol   I love this girl!!  I then sent her the 5dpt test and I'm pretty sure the poor thing was in shock! :) Adorable!

We had our first beta (9dp5dt) on 12/23 (also my oldest DD's birthday -- good luck vibes were covering this transfer!) and we all guessed what we thought the beta might be.  Some how I guessed exactly on target!!   398 !

2nd beta was this past Monday (12/28) 14dp5dt and it was beyond our expectations.  J & I were both guessing in the low 2000's but this little beta decided to outdo us both and was 3215! Doubling time of every 41hours!  EEK!

And that brings us up to date.  Our first ultrasound will be one day shy of 6wks- next Tuesday (1/5).  I'll be back to update once we see how many are cooking and hopefully the heartbeat(s).!






I have no clue why the tickers with the same due date put in are making me 2 different amounts pregnant. lol.. Go figure.

Another ultrasound & bloodwork Update :)

I had my final monitoring ultrasound & bloodwork today.  All is moving along well and looking great!

Lining was 11.8!  Woot ! Woot!

Estrogen is looking much better at 225 :)

All is looking well and the transfer is in ONE WEEK! 

DH is looking forward to giving me the big ole PIO shots in a few days. BLAH Lol!


Now we just continue to chant - third time's the charm!  THIS one will work!!

Keep your fingers and toes crossed everyone :)

Transfer Story :)

Long story short : Transfer went smoothly, waiting to pee..

Long story long :

So T and I headed up to ChiTown rather late.  Between her kids having activities and then her work (where she accidentally locked her keys and had to wait for someone to come open up the building to let her back in- HA), we left even later than we had planned.  All is good in that we missed rush hour, but we also missed Lou's.  We knew that we most likely wouldn't make it up there before they closed so we stopped at TGIF's where I had never been.

Let's set the mood - the hostess asked us if we wanted dining or bar area? We replied that we wanted a booth and didn't care where it was.  She proceeded to take us to the bar area - which we're thinking, great! We don't have our kids, why have to listen to someone else's? ha!- until we saw the booth.  It was one of those little 2 person booths which means there's barely enough room for you and your purse. LOL.  Sigh.  Oh well.   Then we ordered the endless apps, which is a pretty neat deal but when you have a dollhouse sized table, there's just not much room on it for the endlessness of the apps. Jokes were made that I won't repeat here but we had a good ole time! :)

We arrived in our hotel at around 10pm?! Back in the same hotel we stayed at prior to the twins' transfer! :)  The only thing we learned here was that vending on the hotel map now just means the ice machine and no pop machines, but hey they sell pop at their little 'market' for $2.50 per 20oz bottle. No thanks!  Back into the car to find a gas station, which was actually quite hilarious once we got there the long route only to realize we could have went thru the back parking lot and it was literally right.there.!  Maybe you had to be there but it amused me to no end !

I am not even sure how many times I woke up that night wondering if my alarm hadn't went off. In the end, we were both up and ready to leave 30+mins before it was time to leave. Which is actually pretty ironic since we ended up having traffic issues and were 10mins late. LOL! OOPS!

We got put in this little room (not a pod w/glass doors like before) that was kinda hidden off by itself. It had a real door, u/s machine and everything.  I was texting IM (who didn't come this time around) and she says either we are getting the VIP treatment or they hide the silly people (I'm pretty sure she meant crazies) there. LOL!!

T & I looking stylish before transfer :)

So all went well- I got taken back to the transfer room without flashing anyone - always a plus in my book!  Hopped up on the table and got settled in.  I love that the staff there is so sweet! They had absolutely no problems with us videotaping it :) Of course the size of said video may take me 2 days to upload to share with IM... lol.  

This transfer went smoothly.  No bad feelings, all good. I didn't mention it last time but with the last transfer the RE seemed to have a difficult time getting the catheter where he wanted it and it made me little nervous.  This time it was more of a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am type of thing. Boom little embie was in a nice spot in my uterus.   Ohh, did you notice  I said embie not embies? Yes, we transferred two but you see one decided that it wanted it's own little ride and didn't want to share with a sibling.  So after a transfer the catheter goes back to the embryologist who checks to make sure the embryos are out and yells CLEAR... only this time, we did not get the green light. One little embryo was a good girl and vacated the catheter like she was supposed to, and one little embryo was a bit more stubborn. So we had to do the actual transfer again to get it out. LOL!  So technically that was two transfers instead of one, right? Lol  In the end both are snuggled in and hopefully at least one is going to stay!

The twins' mama says if I pee on day 5 and get a + then it's twins but if I don't get a ++ until day 6 or later than it's just 1. LOL :)

Tomorrow is 4days past transfer.. I'm not sure when I'll start peeing.  They say that you should always do first thing in the morning pee b/c it's the most concentrated. "They" apparently don't realize that even non-pregnant (or 2wk pg) me gets up several times at night to pee. lol. I'll be reporting back soon with some results, fingers crossed for good news!

2nd Transfer tomorrow !!

I know... I know... I have been absolutely Horrid at keeping this updated!

So let's just cut to the chase!  All lining checks went well.  Last count, my lining was 12mm (thickest it's ever been!) and estrogen was 255 .   All good :)

Tomorrow is the big day!  Transfer day!!  I have a good feeling about this one!  This is my fifth ivf cycle!
#1 - resulted in my first surrokid
#2 - cycled but didn't transfer for a dear friend. I actually traveled to Texas only to find out the day of transfer that none of the embies passed the PGD testing :(
#3 - resulted in the surrotwins!
#4 - our first failed cycle  in Aug
#5 - Tomorrow!  It's sooo going to work!! :)

So my IM , after weighing many factors and lots of discussion, decided not to come to transfer. While I would love to have her there, I completely understand and it's all good. Bestie T is coming along, so we've got this :)     Traveling up in the middle of the week ( which I'm super thankful for b/c transfer was supposed to be today but there's no way I could have done that !) seems odd. T's kids have activities after school and so we get to wait until later tonite to leave.  Let's all keep our fingers crossed that means we miss any rush hour traffic !! :) 

Everyone keep your fingers and toes and all other crossables crossed for us tomorrow!  I'll update again when we start peeing :) LOL!

Transfer Post - a little late.. #IVF #GestationalSurrogate

Okay I'm super late with this post but ... better late than never?  I'm blaming my pokey internet which has been doing nothing but being a pain in my hiney!

So let's go back a few days, shall we?

Transfer for journey #3 was on a Sunday!  Did you gasp?  Everyone was pretty amazed that they did transfers on Sunday but I heard of someone doing a transfer on Christmas day back when I transferred the twins so after that, nothing surprises me.

There was some talk of DH coming along with me since he wouldn't have to take time off, but then he realized that he hasn't been to a transfer yet (first transfer was IM & I, 2nd transfer was my bestie (Tooshie) and I b/c IPs were from Spain) and he didn't want to jinx it.  Forgive me if I already told this story b/c with my fickle internet, I'm not going back to look thru the last few posts. LOL.. Also meds make my brains fickle. lol.    So anyhoo Toosh came along with me for the transfer.

We went up Saturday to spend the night for our Sunday morning transfer.  On the way up, we stopped to get pedicures. Now technically we wanted cute turtles painted on our big toes but we didn't realize the place we stopped at didn't do designs.  :(  Bummer..

However we thought the colors of the fake flip flops were pretty significant :

Since we couldn't get our turtles, we decided to have accent  nails of each others colors done. lol. Yes, we are geeky like that.

We got to our hotel, went swimming for a bit and then went out for Lou's pizza. Another pre-transfer tradition!  Yummy, gotta have my Lou's!  Totally forgot pics of the Lou's but mmmmmm...

Last transfer, the agency booked our hotel room and so Toosh & I shared a king size bed.  This time, I booked the hotel so we each had our own queen size bed. lol.  I'm sure the highlight for Toosh was giving me my PIO shot again. That girl gets unbelievable pleasure giving me shots. lol.  Lucky for me, it's only once per surrogacy LOL!!

Finally Sunday morning arrived.  We met my IM there.. Love her :)  She was adorable and brought us both cute little goodie bags! Awww!!  and of course she brought me more meds.. lol.

Although we searched high and low, there were no froggie or elephant socks to be had this time around.  I did manage to find yellow & green socks that we mismatched to look adorable :)

the obligatory sock photo

You can't see our shirts (okay I don't have one on b/c I'm in my hospital gown) but I wore a green shirt & Toosh wore a yellow shirt. lol. We are all about our good luck.

IM, Me, Tooshie

Naturally we took our group shot just before going back so you can't see half our bling. lol.

Toosh made the elephant barrettes (which we all wore under our hairnets) and the turtle pins (which we pinned onto our scrubs). I found the froggie necklace (yay clearance @ Claires LOL!) and the bracelets- one is a turtle, one is elephant.   I think we covered all our bases ;)

 The IVF team is super awesome and I love them all to death.  We had the exact same team that got me pg with the Twins :)

Dr K (love that man) is such a sweet soul. You just can't help but love him to death.

We elected to put in just one embie but it as a great 6BA embie who was already hatching A LOT.

I mean look at this monster!

Transfer is pretty much over and done with quickly.  Tooshie video'd it which was pretty awesome so IM(J) could share it with IF (N).


Last time we got a cute little u/s picture printed out - we didn't get that this time for whatever reason.

So we took our first pregnancy picture just IM & I  :)  

No worries guys, I hope to have some ++ hpts to share soon.. Otherwise Beta is on the 12th !


-side note : I mentioned to IM about blurring out her face because my past 2 couples for various reasons didn't want to be identified.  IM is completely fine with me sharing her photo .  You can't imagine how excited that makes me. lol. It's the little things.