Look It Up!

Aren't they adorable?! ;)

Skyped with S & B today :) Between the 3 of us, a minor language barrier, and a French to English dictionary, we chatted for almost an hour! My daughter even joined in and met Mimi the cat, all the way in Paris! My daughter is 4.5 and confused as to why it is bedtime in Paris when it is little brother's nap time here. Such a fun age to try and explain the magnitude of the situation! We exchanged our tattoo stories, made plans for their American visit next month (excitingly, it includes indulging in American hamburgers and French chocolate! Yesssss!!), and gave virtual home tours :) The connection I feel with them is so deep and natural, I know we will be friends forever. I love teaching my daughter that although we do not share the same culture with S & B, we are still connected through many other things. It would be an absolute dream to one day take my children to their home to really engulf them in the French culture. I, myself, would love to stroll through their museums and stuff my face with croissants if that meant that I got to spend time with peanut and his/her family one day! Who knows what will happen! I also snapped a picture of us on skype today to go into Peanut's document gallery :) It's super cute! They also read this blog, so I'm excited for them to see themselves hehe! Hi S & B!! And yes, I have already named the soon-to-be miracle, Peanut, for now!

The Waiting Game

Well now the waiting game begins. I've completed all that I can at this point, and passed all of my evaluations. Since I weaned my 14 month old earlier this month, we have to wait for me to have 3 regular cycles to get the IVF process started. Luckily, for me, I have short cycles so it's looking like things can resume in early March! Yay! In the meantime, I get to spend more time getting to know S & B, and vice versa. I'm looking forward to their visit in a few weeks. We plan on taking them to a few of our favorite spots so they can see where their little peanut will be tagging along to :) I'm savoring this time, but hoping March comes quickly!

Bless the Broken Road

I am thrilled to have received the okay from S & B to share their story and how we came to meet. I cannot use their names, for it is illegal in France to conceive a child via surrogacy, so that is why I will always address them as S & B. 

Their story - This wonderful couple have been together for 12 years and have such a sweet love story. In March 2012, they became pregnant with their first son. Everything was magical and it inspired them to get married to officially seal that bond as a family. They wed in late October, and a week later, S suffered from placenta previa. She hemorrhaged severely and lost 100% of her blood by the time they arrived to the hospital. Their son, so unfortunately, did not make it. As B held their angel, he was told that his wife would also not make it. After 2 cardiac arrests, the removal of her uterus, and experimentations on S, she slipped into a coma for 2 days. Miraculously, S survived and has since then, made a full physical recovery. However, the wound of losing their son is still very fresh. They took a year to grow closer to one another and find peace in their life together. Since S & B come from large families, they wanted to pursue surrogacy regardless of the legal matters that occur in France. S & B looked at 4 other surrogate mother profiles before coming across mine. I am very honored that I am the one that they chose <3

How we came to be - Like I have said before, I had not even finished my surrogate profile before I received an email from the agency saying that a couple from France wanted to meet me. Honestly, I went into this experience thinking that I wanted to help a same-sex couple that lived in the US. I wanted to keep my options open and for some reason in my gut, I knew that I should open their profile.  Right away, it hit me like a freight train. This lovely woman who has been through so much loss and agony, looked identical to a friend of mine that had lost her battle to aggressive cervical cancer not even a month before. For me, signs from the Universe are everything, and I knew that this was a sign from her. D lost her life, leaving behind a 13 month old son, and was bringing this woman to me that had lost a son but has hope to have another. I lost sleep over the next few nights just thinking of all of the emotional heartache that everyone around me has suffered, while I have my health and happy children. I knew this was it. I knew I had to meet them and help them complete their family. For them, and for D. 

I told the agency to set up the meeting and to not send me any other profiles. The connection we had in our first meeting just solidified that everything was going to be perfect!

Paperwork Galore

You would not believe how much paperwork and legal documentation goes into this process. Well, I guess it is expected since you are caring for a child that is not yours. On the bright side, I received an email with the IP's personal contact info :) All of our contact can now be made directly to each other, rather than the agency! It's like we're family. I've already bookmarked Google Translate since they cannot write in English, and obviously my 2 years of high school Spanish is irrelevant. I told S & B that I will be taking French next semester, so hopefully I will learn more than "Where is the bathroom? My name is Kailey." I would love to be able to speak a little bit of the peanut's native language.

As soon as I get the okay from S & B, I will share their story with you and how we came to choosing each other. It's an incredibly heartbreaking story, yet so full of hope and miracles! I love them so much <3

Surrogate Support Group!

My name badge from the meeting! Eeek!

Today I attended my first surrogate support group! What an incredible experience! I was one of many surrogates that attended today. There were girls there that represented each stage of the surrogacy process! Those that were considering surrogacy, those of us who have been matched but are waiting to complete our final screenings and paperwork, those who are getting ready for the IVF transfer (sending sticky baby dust to them!), those who were pregnant with their surro babies, and those who have delivered and are contemplating doing this all again. It was so nice to be surrounded by women who share my same emotions and don't judge me since they are in the same boat. I am really thrilled to be included in this group of women and look forward to my monthly meetings! The delivery stories are inspiring, and the tips on how to give yourself daily injections in the rear end are helpful yet nauseating! It's all part of the process, and it's for the best cause ever. You gotta do what you gotta do to get that baby here :)

And so it begins...

It's official! My uterus is soon to be home to a French boy or girl (or both!). This is a journey of my surrogacy along with my loving husband, Tim; and two amazing people, S & B. My road to surrogacy has been long, but worthwhile. When I decided that it was finally time to pursue this journey,  I didn't know what to expect. I have never cried so many tears, dreamt so many wonderful things, or longed for this relationship with people on the other side of the globe. I have been waiting 4 years to make this a reality, and now that my own family is complete, I will be the vessel to bring another family together. I hope to document everything for them so that one day they can show their child(ren) that no matter how you get here, it's the journey that is the biggest gift. Here's to you S & B. May the world bring you nothing but blessings and happiness.