Adam David: A Birth Story

Adam David

December 31st, 2013

3:35am

10lbs 3oz

21 1/2"

Oh Adam, how you kept everyone waiting and guessing! I will be honest, I did not really love that about you for those last couple weeks of pregnancy but I sure love that about you now.  I'm so happy that you got to choose your birth day, that you got to join your Daddy and Papa earthside in YOUR way, on YOUR time, and that you were kind enough to go easy on me too! What a thoughtful little guy :) You waited until 41 weeks and 5 days to show your precious little face but I think everyone would agree, you were worth the wait!

 

Your birthing day began with a typical middle of the night trip to the bathroom, I woke up at 1:00am and as I got out of bed and walked to the bathroom I felt fluid trickling down my legs the whole way. I wasn't sure if it was amniotic fluid or not at first, this had never happened to me before, I have always had the bag of water ruptured artificially so I definitely was not expecting this! At any rate, I wasn't having contractions so I decided to get back in bed and wait to see if contractions would start.  It didn't take long! I had a couple contractions that were ten minutes apart, then 7 minutes apart, then 5 minutes apart and by then I just couldn't lie down through them anymore.  I asked my husband to get me a towel so I could get out of bed without getting amniotic fluid on the floor again and he just laid in bed next time me, half asleep, and said he was looking for it.  I suggested that he look in the bathroom ;) I got out of bed and stood up and swayed through a few contractions before I decided that these were getting intense enough that I wanted to be in the water.  At 1:50am, I called our awesome midwife, Stephanie, to let her know what was going on.  She asked if I was ready for her to come and I told her I thought it would be a good idea. And then at 2:00am, my husband called your Papa to let him know it was time! He said your Papa sounded very calm and by 2:20am he texted me that they were on the way! I floated around in the birth tub, with the jets swirling the water, and breathed deeply in and out through the contractions.  I could feel you moving around inside me and remember smiling to myself as I enjoyed those last kicks.  By 2:30am, Stephanie had arrived and quickly checked on your heart tones and got to work setting up the birth supplies.  I talked and laughed with Stephanie and my husband, breathing through the contractions which were coming closer and closer together.  I remember a few of the contractions I started feeling a little "pushy" but kept breathing through them, I did not want your Daddy and Papa to miss this... and maybe I was in a little bit of denial that it could be happening so quickly! Around 3:15am, your Daddy and Papa arrived - I was happy to see them there but was deep in my work by then, I could feel you moving further down with each contraction and soon I told my husband that you were coming.  I think he was a little surprised! Within a couple of contractions, you were crowning and then I pushed your head out and said "ooh that feels better!" - which sounds so funny, but it did! And with another push, the rest of your body slipped earthside into your Papa's hands. He lifted you out of the water and just like that, at 3:35am, you and Daddy and Papa officially became a family.  They ADORE you Adam, you are one lucky little guy!

I held you while we waited for your cord to stop pulsing, since we were still attached, then your Daddy cut your cord and we got out of the tub.  While Stephanie tended to me, your Daddy and Papa cuddled with you, skin-to-skin, and got to know you a little better :)

Soon, they were ready for me to nurse you so you could get that very important first milk - I think you liked it because you nursed for quite awhile! When you were done, Stephanie weighed you - 10lbs 3oz - measured you - 21 1/2" - and checked you out from head to toe.  You checked out perfectly in every way!

When we were both stable, Stephanie and her assistant (Crystal, who didn't make it in time for the birth but who we all love!) left but I was so happy that you and your Daddy and Papa stayed for a couple more hours and that each of my children, as well as myself, got to hold you and love on you before you went home to start your life together! What a precious little blessing you are and I feel so honored to be part of your story, which is just beginning! Thank you Adam, and thank you M and C - I love you all so much and can't wait to watch you grow together.

P.S. Adam, it looks like you are settling in nicely at home!

 

"I Am Patient and Waiting"

"I Am Patient and Waiting"...or at the very least, I'm good at repeating that mantra until I've convinced myself!

We are now 40 weeks plus 2 days into baby baking and waiting patiently for Baby A to make his arrival.  In addition, I've managed to come down with a terrible cold including a nasty cough/congestion/headaches/the whole nine yards.  So at this point, I'm grateful that Baby A (and my body) have decided to wait, maybe until I'm feeling well enough to better cope with labor - three cheers for my body's innate knowledge of when the time is right!

So for those who have been asking...

YES! I'm still very pregnant! And I'll be sure to update when that changes, it could be awhile, and that's ok! :) Love you all!

The Watched Pot

Baby A has now been baking for 38 weeks plus 5 days, and as I'm growing increasingly uncomfortable (and larger), I'm feeling like the watched pot! Our estimated due date is only 9 days away but a "due date" is just that - an estimation - and my body really likes baking babies, so I suspect that date will come and go with Baby A still nestled snuggly in his comfy spot.  But this fast approaching date often presents the question "will you be induced?" - luckily, my favorite midwife wrote a blog post on this very topic so rather than hash it all out again, I will let her say it more perfectly than I ever could - please check out her blog post on Induction of Labor.

While some days leave me feeling more miserable than others (directly related to how much sleep I managed to get the night before!), I'm fine with that, really, because it's a bittersweet thing to see this journey coming to a close.  I have loved every minute, even the hard ones, of bringing this miracle to life for M & C - and while the journey is coming to a close for me, a new, more fabulous journey is just beginning for them! So the birth supplies are gathered, the birth pool is filled, Baby A and I have been soaking in the warm water as I find the time, and we will continue to wait until he decides on the perfect time to join his daddies earthside!

36 weeks!

Today, Baby A is officially 36 weeks - full term! And yesterday, M, C, our amazing midwife and her wonderful assistant came to our home for the "home visit", signifying that Baby A is now far enough along that a homebirth is safe.  All the birth supplies have been gathered together in one place and the birth pool will be delivered on Monday! Of course, I'm not expecting any baby action for 4-5 more weeks but we are all prepared for when he decides the time is right.

M & C have had several baby showers, it is really fun for me to see all their friends and family so excited for them - what a loved little guy Baby A will be! They have taken baby-wearing classes, carefully selected baby gear, researched cloth diapers, watched birth videos, decorated the nursery and are so excited for their impending arrival! I couldn't be happier for them or more proud, they are going to be such amazing daddies, I can't wait to see them in action!

As this pregnancy is winding down, I'm experiencing many common end-of-pregnancy conundrums, maybe some of you can relate! So without further delay...

#thirdtrimesterproblems

When turning sideways to fit through tight spaces doesn't work because your front to back is wider than your side to side...

When rolling over in bed at night requires concentrated effort and rearrangement of pillows...

When, much like a potty training toddler, a trip outside of the house must be planned around the availability of restrooms...

When any change of body position is likely to result in a snap, crackle or pop...

When every random stranger you happen to speak more than 3 words to, asks when you are due and what you are having...

Happy end-of-pregnancy, friends! I can see the finish line!

3rd trimester, 3D ultrasound & a wedding!

It's been a long time since I've updated but things have been moving along smoothly so there hasn't been much to say! We are now in the 3rd trimester, I'm 31 weeks pregnant with just 9 weeks (give or take) to go and, of course, the aches and pains that come along with it. M & C have been busily planning and preparing for baby A, they are an adorable combination of excited and anxious. We went for a 3D ultrasound at 28 weeks and wow, technology has come a long way, it's so amazing what they can see with ultrasound these days! At the time, baby A weighed approx. 3.2lbs (he's likely close to 4.5lbs now) and he has been consistently measuring about a week ahead, I'm not expecting him to be a tiny little guy!

Baby A in 3D

In other news, M & C traveled to southern California this week to exchange wedding vows - congratulations you two! So very excited for your growing family!

Halfway!

Today marks 20 weeks of pregnancy, the halfway point.  I met M & C at Precious Predictions (Sunny is amazing, by the way, highly recommended if you are local) for the big mid-pregnancy ultrasound.  They surprised me with these:

You can try to tell me that's not the cutest thing ever, but I won't believe you.  Love them, they are so sweet.  Thanks guys!

The mid-pregnancy ultrasound is really the fascinating one, in my opinion, it's so amazing the things they can see during an in-depth ultrasound...from the brain, to the spine, to the nostrils, to the heart, to the kidneys, to the bladder, to the tips of his itty bitty toes - Baby A is looking perfect and healthy, which makes us all happy! And he doesn't have a huge head, which makes me happy :) Pictures coming soon!

It's a BOY for M & C!

Baby A was more than happy to show his stuff yesterday! We had a fun ultrasound and even got some very...revealing 3D pictures haha No doubt about it, in December, M & C will welcome their little SONshine earthside! They have also made an "official" Facebook announcement, it was really fun to see their friends' reactions.

As for me, I have started feeling little kicks and jabs here and there, and even had a stranger comment about the pregnancy this weekend - I guess it's getting to be obvious now at 15 weeks! I've been feeling well, in general, and have been avoiding the Arizona heat as much as possible!

Looking forward to our next midwife appointment on July 8th!

Ramblings of a Surrogate

The most common question I get from those who don't understand surrogacy is "but isn't it going to be hard for you to give up the baby?" I always answer simply "no, it's not, because it's not my baby."

Confession: I don't often think about being pregnant.  This is a complete 180 from my own pregnancies where I walked around giddy with excitement, constantly planning, from the moment the pregnancy test showed 2 lines.  I'm not looking at what stage of development the baby is in each week.  I'm not picking out baby names, researching baby gear or preparing my children for a sibling.  I'm not calculating how many years the new baby will be behind his/her youngest sibling in school and if they'll share any high school years together.  I'm not planning how to best set up the mini crib next to our bed, who the baby will eventually room with or which spot is best for baby's car seat in the car. 

These things don't make me happy or sad, they are just facts.  They are WHY it's not going to be hard for me to "give up the baby", because it's NOT my baby, it never has been, it was never intended to be! I'm not planning for and dreaming about having a new little one around...M & C are!

I do LOVE hearing how M & C are preparing for their new little one, their excitement and the newness of everything to them.  Sometimes they tell me things that make me silently chuckle, the naiveté of first time parents, having been there myself...oh some of the silly things I did! Sometimes I offer advice, maybe I can save them some of the trial and error, but in the end I know that this is THEIR journey, THEIR baby story, and finding their own way will make them more confident parents.  And they are going to be amazing.

P.S. Gender scan is scheduled for June 29th! Any guesses?

Bye bye first trimester, HELLO second trimester!

Today marks 12 weeks of pregnancy and the beginning of the second trimester, a very exciting milestone! M, C and myself went to our first appointment with my midwife, Stephanie, and her assistant Crystal.  These two women are both amazing and so perfectly in tune with our unique situation, I could not ask for a better birth team! We spent an hour talking to them, asking questions and, of course, listening to that sweet baby's heartbeat! Stephanie found it right away, beating in the 150's, such beautiful music to our ears!

 Before we left, M & C were given a little figurine of a baby,

exactly the size that their baby is now at 12 weeks.

I am happy to be officially DONE with meds, as of yesterday, feeling good and excited to be a "normal" prego (as opposed to one on hormone supplements haha)! I will share soon my feelings on this pregnancy and how it has been different than my own pregnancies, for those who are interested!

Until then, we have another appointment to see Stephanie and Crystal in 4 weeks but M & C are very excited to see what kind of baby is cooking so in just 3 weeks we'll be going for a quick "fun" ultrasound to take a peek at the gender!

Graduation Day

Today, we met for the last time with Dr. L and his wonderful staff at Advanced Fertility Care.  This clinic has really been amazing, so thorough and warm and caring.  I have loved working with all of them.  We also saw the little belly bean again today, who has had exactly one week's worth of growth in the past week - couldn't be more perfect! The heart rate is now 134bpm, strong and regular.

Little baby, has now grown to 11mm - almost tripling in size in 1 week!

 



 

Today also marks the day that we have been released to the care of my INCREDIBLE midwife at Nurturing Hearts Birth Services which I am SO excited about! We will see her for the first time in exactly one month, June 6th, at 12 weeks pregnant.  M & C are a bit nervous, as any new parent would be, about waiting that long for a check up but I'm feeling great about this little bean, I'm having lots of pregnancy symptoms and I know everything will be just fine! I am to continue taking progesterone and estrogen support for the next approx. 3 1/2 weeks until the placenta takes over, but other then that - we're a "normal" pregnancy now and couldn't be happier about it!



First ultrasound!

We had our first ultrasound this morning which revealed one tiny little belly bean, measuring right on track and nestled in the perfect spot - we even got to hear its little heart beating away at 111bpm!

 Little baby, measuring 4mm

 

 

As a seasoned mom of 4, the "glop glop glop" of the fetal heart beat is a familiar, albeit reassuring, sound to me - but to hear and see the reactions of M & C as they heard their much-loved baby's heart beating for the first time was PRICELESS, absolutely priceless.  I feel so honored to be on this journey with them and can not wait to hear that "glop glop glop" many more times!

Baby's heart rate (at the bottom)

Fortunately, I won't have to wait long! We go back next Monday for a repeat ultrasound and if everything still looks good - we'll be "graduating" and will be released to the care of my AMAZING midwife for the duration of the pregnancy.

Growing, growing, growing...

Yesterday was our 5^th and final blood test and the beta hcg level came back at 1908.7 which is EXCELLENT! We are definitely catching up in numbers and this little bean appears to be healthy and growing quickly! We will have our first ultrasound on Monday 4/29; because it’s a very early sonogram (we’ll be 6 weeks + 4 days) they will be looking for three main things – how many do they see (there should not be any surprises here as we only transferred one but there is a small chance, as with any pregnancy, that the embryo could have split into identical twins), how big they are and the placement within the uterus.  If we happen to see a flicker of a heartbeat that is fantastic but if we do not it's ok because it’s still early.  We will go back about 10 days later for a second ultrasound and it’s really at the second one that they would expect to see the heart rate.  In the meantime, we're all very excited for Monday!

We Did It!

After our transfer on April 2nd, M & C asked me not to test at home, to wait for the blood test, to help relieve some of the anxiety that we all felt seeing negative tests last time.  As it turns out, sometimes I'm not very good at following directions but, as a result, on Wednesday I had the great joy of sending this:

 

 

It was a very long week for me, it took a long time for me get a positive pregnancy test so no one was more shocked than me to finally see a positive the evening before the blood test! I've since been back to the doctor to check beta levels twice and everything is rising appropriately, Dr. L is really happy with how things are progressing and of course, so are we! I go back again for another check on Wednesday but the pregnancy tests keep getting darker so we're all feeling great about it!

 

 

 

Congratulations M & C!!! So very excited for you and your growing family!

Transfer Complete!

We transferred the last remaining embryo today, frozen at the early blastocyst stage.  The embryo survived the thaw with NO cell damage which is excellent! The transfer went perfectly and now we wait until the blood pregnancy test on April 11th!

Here's the embryo before transfer:

And after transfer, in the uterus (the embryo is the bright white spot in the center of the pic):

The embryologist said that the embryo should continue to grow and implant tonight or tomorrow - of course, we are all hoping that that's exactly what happens!

Back in the Saddle

I'm very excited to share that after some discussion, re-signing of contracts and meeting with the fertility doctor - M, C and myself are ready to try again to make them parents! We just got our new calendar and are set for an April 2nd frozen embryo transfer! I am already on the birth control pill (which will allow Dr. L to control my cycle while we prepare) and I will begin injectable meds a week from today.  M & C have one frozen 5 day embryo leftover from our last cycle and Dr. L thinks we have a good chance with this embryo.  We are all so excited and definitely covet all the positive thoughts and good juju you can muster! Here we go again!!!