Regular mums to be don't get any of this...!

We got the good news early on Wednesday morning, so Wednesday night we had a little mini celebration....as attached! Now I know a lot of you may be saying..don't get too excited yet, cause you have a long road ahead of you, and we do know that...it's just on our journey to have a family, we have never even been on the road before! In fact after 12 ivf's and a few with the added drama of egg donors, we have never even had a positive blood test before! So that in itself for us is worth a celebration.

We are trying to bring it down to earth now, but it's really hard. I asked M when I was 'allowed' to start buying baby things today when I got home from doing the groceries this morning. When I was there, trawling down the shopping isles, I even allowed myself to go down the baby isle, the isle in the past few years I have refused to walk down. Look at all these things I will have to buy in the very near future!!! Bit pathetic eh?..anyway He replied, we have a long way to go (blah blah he is the more practiccal of the two of us) then said pull out the 'baby stash', with a big grin on his face...as you can see we are having trouble gaining control of ourselves...so I pulled down the shopping bag from the top of the cupboard, the few little bits and pieces of baby clothes etc that I have bought over the years, when I thought 'it has to be this time...' Oh gosh, we are saying looking at each other...are we really going to have a little human that's going to be so small as to fit into these gorgeous little things! We love him/her already...

Reading all the blogs over the last couple of months, I cannot believe how long some of you have kept it from everyone. I am absolutely bursting! Anyway,stop it! Get control, I am going to wear myself out if I keep this excitement level up for the next 8 months!

Aside from this, we are also waiting anxiously to hear how our second suurogate is going.  She had a low positive reading, so second blood test was, we hoped, scheduled for Thursday or Friday, but opening my email account 3am Thursday morning and 3 am Friday morning to no avail... we would have to wait until after the weekend to see if we had a second pregnancy.

For the family following, here is the schedule for the next 8 months;

FIRST TRIMESTER

Positive pregnancy result – 4 weeks

Once your surrogate mother tests positive for pregnancy she is moved to our surrogate housing. At this stage the gestational age of your pregnancy is four weeks, dated from the first day of the surrogate’s “presumed” last menstrual period. 

5 weeks

Scan to determine number of gestational sacs.

6 weeks

Scan to detect fetal pole (your growing embryo) and heartbeat.

8 weeks

Routine scan

10 weeks

Routine scan

12 weeks

Blood test – complete blood count (CBC) and urine test. Nuchal translucency scans (measurement of the fluid behind the baby’s neck). Sonologist looks for a nasal bone and measures Biparietal Diameter (BPD), across the top of the head at its widest point. Sonologist looks for gross congenital anomalies (GCA)

TRIMESTER TWO

Second trimester starts week 13. Please note in second and third trimesters scans are not always done on exactly the date you turn a particular week. If you wish to know you scan date please contact your client manager.

16 weeks

routine scan and triple marker test, complete blood count and urine analysis – triple test not done for twin pregnanciesas results are not accurate. Triple test results take up to two weeks to be sent to our clinic.

20-22 weeks

Level II scan, blood and urine tests. Baby is measured from crown to rump, around the middle and around the head. The four chambers of the heart will be viewed, as well as the kidneys, bladder, stomach, brain, spine, and sex organs (gender will not be revealed). A survey of the organs, including umbilical cord, ensures that they are developing normally.  Sonographer looks at amniotic fluid levels, location of the placenta, and fetal heart rate. Level 2 scan results can take up to a week to be returned to the office.

We do a 3D scan at this stage.

24-26 weeks

routine scan and blood count and urine analysis. Injection: tetanus toxoid first dose

TRIMESTER THREE

Third trimester starts week 28.

2-30 weeks

routine scan. Fasting and post prandial blood sugar tests, CBC, urine analysis. Injection: tetanus toxoid second dose

32-34 weeks

routine scan, blood test (CBC) urine analysis

36-38 weeks

Colour Doppler study, to check heart and flow in major blood vessels blood test CBC, urine analysis

38-40 weeks

delivery of baby

Anyways, I hope to have more news for you soon.  In the meantime here is a photo that pretty much sums up how we are feeling at the moment.  The dark cloud that we have had hanging over our heads is clearing, and it feels like the dawn of a new time for us (bit dramatic?).. :)