Three Sisters Guide to Surrogacy

Nothing for a year!

2011-07-30T18:29:00.000-06:00

Wow, it is amazing how much time goes by when you aren't paying attention! For anyone that had actually been reading this blog, here is a quick update:

The journey I began last July unfortunately ended in August. I did not get pregnant, after transferring 3 decent, but frozen, embryos. The IPs were not able to create more embryos, and that was the end of our journey. It was very sad at the time, but now that a year has gone by, it is just sort of part of history. My heart still breaks for D.

This is shaping up to be a big year for Three Sisters! We had an Australian baby in February, which turned out well in the end. Thanks to Katrina for making that one an amazing trip for us, too!

There are 4 of us pregnant right now! I have invited them all to blog through their journey, so hopefully you will be meeting them soon! It is of interest to note that 75% of us are pregnant with twins! Really? Yes, it is crazy.

25% of "us" is actually "me". I am currently 11 ½ weeks pregnant with identical twins. We only transferred one embryo! Go figure. I will blog more about that in another post. Thanks for reading, and feel free to leave comments!

Hugs, Jennifer

OMG!

2010-07-15T21:15:00.000-06:00

I am happy to be able to say that I am starting a new journey of my own this month! I have been matched and the calendar just arrived! How exciting! ("The calendar" is the calendar that has the dates of all the stuff I have to do from here on out to get pregnant-lots of information, and somewhat overwhelming.) Let me just say, that this is not my first rodeo when it comes to being a surrogate, but I took a look at the thing, and had a LITERAL and PHYSICAL pain in my stomach at the thought of the shots! (smiling) I am surprised that I feel this way! But it is cool, and exciting, but still scary! Here we go!

Great News!

2010-06-07T14:31:00.002-06:00

Katrina is pregnant! Congrats to her, and to her IP's!

Celebrating One Year

2010-05-25T10:46:00.002-06:00

It is hard to believe that a year has gone by already.

It sure goes fast when you are not the one raising the child!

(But, then again, it goes fast when you ARE, too!)

There is no denying that this is a cute kid. But what is more important to me, is that I am a part of this family now. Being invited for the big day, and being welcomed as family, means the world to me. As a surrogate, I expect to feel a certain bond with the family, or at least sense of accomplishment about the baby. From previous experience, I had expected the bond to weaken over time, as the family moves on into new chapters in their lives, as parents. I can not tell you what it meant to me to feel differently this time. I am blessed to have felt the love from extended family, as well. I received a tearful "Thank you" and many cheerful "nice to finally meet you!"-s. Ryan doesn't know the difference yet, and this will all just seem normal to him. But the way I felt during this visit to Reno, is what it is all about, to me.

Thank you Jill and Randy, for giving me such an amazing gift.

Ryan is ready, and waiting for the guests to arrive!

This is Jill and Randy's nephew, Ben. You know you are in like family when you get attacked by a "killing spider"

Ryan is enjoying his company.

Proud surro-mamma!

Ryan's first bite of birthday cake! His grandma made him this sweet little lamb cake.

(It was CARROT CAKE! Yum.)

Ryan received a Boise State blankie from my dad. (Because he was born in Boise, ya know!)

That is all for now! Thanks for coming by and looking!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

2010-04-22T08:36:00.000-06:00

It is official! Ryan is a year old. I had a great time visiting in Reno. I am super busy this week, one of the downsides of taking a vacation, but I am going to post pictures soon! Keep your eye out!

Ryan is almost a year old!

2010-03-17T09:56:00.000-06:00

Ok, so several months have passed and I havent been on this blog in forever! But now that I have my new and improved blog, it is time to get back in the saddle! Ryan and Jill came to visit in October....he was just 6 months old! In spite of his frightening weight loss in the hospital, he seems to have recovered in the eating department! We had such a great time, and it was so good to see them. I have a hard time believing that his first birthday is next month! I have been invited to Reno for his party! My dad and I, his surro grandpa ya' know, are going to drive down for the weekend. I am so proud that my dad loves him just as much as everyone else! Please enjoy these pictures!

This is my dad, John, with Ryan, and my daughter Alexa hiding in the corner!

Beautiful Alexa with Ryan.

My husband, Kevin, with Ryan. You wouldn't know it to look at their big bald heads, but I PROMISE you they are not related! LOL

This is just a sweet picture that I thought needed to be shared! Thanks for looking!

One Month Old Already?

2009-05-19T08:14:00.023-06:00

Ryan is already changing... Jill sent me these pics this weekend. I cant believe how different he looks. What a doll.

A Gift from Ryan

2009-05-12T12:21:00.008-06:00

Today I received this beautiful charm from baby Ryan, engraved with his initials. He shops at Tiffany's! What a boy! It is neat to see that his parents are training him so well! (already!) I am joking, of course, but I have never received anything from Tiffany's. It was fun to open the package and find that little blue box...

I absoulutely love it, and am trying to decide if I will start a charm bracelet, or wear it as a necklace. Either way it will be fun...AND it means I get to do some shopping of my own!

Thanks Ryan!

Good News!

2009-05-11T15:24:00.011-06:00

I went to see Dr. Klomp today, and he is very pleased with my incision. He says it is healing better than he expected, for everything we did. He also gave me the green light to be a surrogate again. What a huge weight lifted off of my heart. Yay!

I am feeling much better these days, and had a great time at the winery yesterday with Katie and Michelle. Here is a picture of us....hmm....maybe a reminder that it is time for me to get back on the weight loss wagon? Ha ha.

Today I received a letter from Jill's mom...that would be baby Ryan's Grandma. How sweet it was, and brought tears to my eyes. Thank you Verla! (Here we go with the crying again...) I wasn't expecting it, and it truly made me feel proud. It is amazing how many people's lives are touched by a child, and that is especially true when surrogacy is involved. I am happy that I was able to be a part of something so big.

Mother's Day

2009-05-11T09:27:00.002-06:00

Whoot whoot! We all went to the Sawtooth Vineyard for a Mother's Day celebration (along with 200 other people!) and had an awesome time! Thanks Jennifer and Michelle! My shoulders got a little burned, and some lady asked me when I was due!!! (ummm...I'm six weeks post-partum.....but I am still wearing my maternity jeans, cuz they're just so comfortable!), but other than that, I think I'll do it again next year! Who's coming with me?

It's Official.

2009-05-07T12:22:00.006-06:00

I just returned from the courthouse. Kevin and I had to appear before a judge to terminate our parental rights to Ryan. In Idaho, the woman giving birth to the baby is the legal parent, and her husband is the "presumptive father" even when there is no biological connection. When he was born, Kevin and I, along with Randy, the biological father, all signed a paternity affidavit stating that Randy is the father. This allowed him to be put on the birth certificate. Now, Randy is the only parent, Jill will have to adopt him, as a step-parent adoption. Interesting, huh? Anyway, it is all done and everything is legal.....I guess I cant change my mind now! JUST KIDDING!

One of the questions the judge asks, is how long I have considered giving up my rights to Ryan. It was nice to be able to truthfully answer, "Since before he was conceived." You know this day is coming from the minute you start the journey. It wasn't sad, and believe it or not, I didn't even cry. It is nice to know that the intended parents no longer have to worry that something might go wrong. I am sure most of them are reasonably confident, but I would imagine there could be a tiny little voice somewhere putting doubt in their mind.... Anyway, he is all theirs now, in every sense of the word. My work is officially done!

Here is another pic of Ryan....just 'cuz he is so cute. I will continue to tell the story of his birth, next time. Thanks for checking in!

Still Crying...

2009-05-06T08:15:00.013-06:00

Good morning. It has been nearly three weeks since I delivered Ryan, and I am barely starting to feel "normal" again. It is surprising how long it takes to recover when you arent distracted by the daily routine of taking care of a newborn!

I wasnt able to drive for 2 weeks. That was pure torture. Imagine being pregnant with someone else's baby...they call your or email you every day, sometimes twice a day, so excited and waiting for the big day. Then you spend 3 days in the hospital, clebrating his arrival. Now it is time to go home, alone. The kids go back to school and your husband goes back to work...it has been very lonely. I do hear from the parents often, and they send me pics regularly. How can I expect them to call me every day when they have a completely new life now? This seems to be a normal part of recovery, and this is when a lot of tears are shed. They are not tears of sadness, really, but HORMONES! How can I fight that? I cant, so I still cry a little every day.

The pain from the c-section is nearly gone, but UGH the horrible scar! I had to have a T-shaped incision, due to difficulty getting the little guy out. My uterus was just not cooperating. So there is a vertical incision, in addition to the "bikini" cut. My uterus was cut this way as well, and the jury is still out on the matter of if I will be able to have another baby. This has also been weighing on me, heavily. I want to be a surrogate again, but I will have to defer the decision to my amazing doctor, Dr. Klomp. I will see him in a couple more weeks for my checkup, and we will discuss it then. UGH, more tears...

So that is enough sad stuff...how about some pictures! This is me with Jill and Randy, the morning of the c-section. We are waiting for it to be "time" to go upstairs. This turned out to be a decent picutre, but what a bundle of nerves we all were!

I was so impressed with the nurse, she actually got my IV in where it wasnt in the way of my wrist...that is one of my biggest pet peeves!

Jill and I were comparing our pedicures, which we went and had done together, the day before. Everything is ready to go, we are just waiting on Dr. Klomp and the OR to be ready!

Ryan

2009-05-05T17:06:00.003-06:00

Hello! I want to introduce you to Ryan, our latest surro-baby! I gave birth on April 17. He weighed 7lb 3oz, and was 19 1/2 inches long. Just a little guy, but oh-so-cute! Stay tuned for the whole story!