You won't want to miss this.

Each day that goes by that I talk to H, I just get more and more excited about doing this!

I have always been a fan of reading birth stories. One in particular that I read recently gave me butterflies. It was a surrogacy story, written by the surrogate. It wasn't a home birth but a planned induction hospital birth. I was reading through it and imagining what my journey is going to be like. It will be in a different setting, but deep down it's the same, it's a surrogacy. The surrogate was detailing the pain of labor and the exhaustion of pushing. She was starting to lose focus at one point and wanted to give up, but then she saw the mother who this baby belonged to standing behind the shoulder of the doctor. She had happy tears in her eyes as she was witnessing the birth of HER baby, finally! That moment gave the surrogate more strength. She pushed the baby girl out. They placed the baby on the surrogate's chest and she stated "You hurt! But wow... you look like your brother!" I then pictured what would be my first words to this baby, this baby that isn't my own but will come out of me. I remember the first words I said to my own children. With my daughter I said "You're so hairy!", because she was full of hair! With my son I said "Oh my gosh, you're so tiny!", because he was smaller than his sister.

It is fun to think about these things and how this pregnancy and birth is going to be a completely different experience for me. I'm not scared at all. I am full of excitement and joy!

After the surrogate had birthed the baby girl, she was taken to the warmer and cleaned up. A nurse brought the baby back to the surrogate and placed her in her arms. She looked over at the new mother and said "She's yours!" and lifted that new pink bundle into her mother's arms.

Wow! At this point I had tears in my eyes. What a powerful moment! I couldn't help but imagine H and I in a similar moment months from now. It's just an amazing feeling and it hasn't even happened yet!

I seriously cannot wait to see this baby in his/her parents' arms. To see the look in their eyes of happiness and love for this baby, a baby that I helped create specially for them that they have waited YEARS for!

You will not want to miss this! It's going to be Epic! :)

Woo Egg!

I ovulated on CD 23!
I felt the pains, and all the signs were there. I guess I didn't get a really bright positive on the OPK this time. It happens, most likely because of the amount of dye in the stick. So it wasn't a false alarm ;)

I am almost done with this cycle and then one more practice until the cycle we plan to get pregnant! I am so excited!

Our contract is almost finished and ready for me to go over and make sure it's everything I want/need.

I am thinking the last week in September will be the week of creation :)

I don't think I have ever been so ready for summer to end!

False Alarm

That barely positive I thought I had yesterday morning is actually negative now. I was expecting a more vibrant positive last night, but it never happened.

My cervix can't make up it's mind this month. Yesterday it was high positioned and medium in firmness, but today it's down low and firm. So I either did ovulate and it wasn't very strong or I geared up for it, and then didn't. My CM is creamy and the past couple days it was egg-white/watery. We'll see what the next few days show on the tests. *sigh*

It's a good thing this is only practice :) 

*UPDATE*

330pm

I feel the pain of ovulation on my left side. Sharp, stabbing pain that last 15-20mins. I think something is happening :) 

Woo hoo!!

I got a positive (barely) test this morning!

I can't wait to see what this evening will look like :) 

My cervix is medium-high now, and almost soft but not quite there. It moved up a lot between yesterday and today. Mucus is watery-egg white. 

Ovulation should happen in the next 24-48 hours. 

Nothing will be there to meet it, sorry eggie. Thanks for your participation in the preliminary games though, you were a good sport :p 

Peek-a-Boo!

My egg is playing peek-a-boo.

It looked like it was getting closer, but yesterday there was a drop, but today it is back up again slightly. LH can fluctuate throughout the cycle, but this is a tease lol

I hope I ovulate soon! I really don't want a 40 something cycle again....which means it needs to happen before CD 26.

Turtle or the Hare

Will this egg be a turtle or a hare? That is the question.

I am hoping for a positive within the next day or two but we'll see. I usually ovulate the day after I get a positive test. 

I am trying to space the testing no greater than 12 hours apart but it all depends on when I have to go pee ;) 

My new goal is to aim for 9-10am and 9-10pm, each day until the I see the drop after my surge. I was trying to test in the afternoon (2-3) and then again in the evening (8-10). But I think those are too close together during the day and too far apart at night.

I am bloated, crampy and tired. All good signs! 

I want my cycle to be less than 40 days this month so let's get a move on eggie! :)

Practice makes Perfect!

I am on  CD 18. I took my first OPK today.

It is negative, of course. I have long cycles, remember ;)

I have had EWCM for the past two days, and my cervix is starting to soften but remains low.

I will be testing every early afternoon and evening from today on out, to make sure I know exactly when my surge occurs.

If you want to follow my chart, here is the link.
http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/298a4d

I had my Papsmear completed by my midwife last week and my bloodwork results should be in soon.

Our contract is almost ready to be finalized and signed.

September is only TWO months away!

I am hoping all this practice charting will make a perfect baby for H & M!


Abbreviation Key:
CD = Cycle Day
EWCM = Egg White Cervical Mucus
OPK= Ovulation Predictor Kit/Strip * An OPK is only positive when the test line is as dark or darker than the control line*