I'm not the Mama, I'm just the Stork!

For nearly nine months we shared living space – he made me sick, rammed his head into my bladder, shoved his body into my stomach space, and threw wild dance parties at all hours of the night. And  now gone, home where he belongs  a nd I have this body back to myself.  So, now I meet shocked faces as I’m out and about after  how many days  from giving birth?!  I was at Publix for the first time and a cashier asked me if I had the baby and I said, “ yeah last week!” and she then says, “who has the baby now??”  That was weird but I explained and said his mama! I'm also asked frequently “How are you?” but, really, “How  are  you?” Because we have so many sweet family and friends concerned for my emotional well-being, even more so than for my physical recovery. Many have been concerned since we first  announced our plans for me to carry someone else’s child  because they imagine it is difficult to “give up” a baby after carryi...

On Friday, July 26th baby’s parents and I headed to the doctor's office for our check up. We did a nonstress test and ultrasound which both looked good. Dr. asked if I wanted him to check my cervix since I was having contractions and back pain the night before as he said it could be back labor. I said yes but was still completely closed. Dr. Said he really didn’t think I would end up dilating at all and then asked me about the baby’s movements. The baby had always been very, very active but I had noticed a little less moving within the last day or two. He told me I should feel 10 within an hour especially after eating. He asked me to monitor more closely and to call him if the movements were not like they had been in previous weeks and said he would send me to the hospital for further monitoring. We left the appointment and went to a baby consignment shop and Walmart to grab a few more last minute baby items and then I stopped and got my usual drink from Dunkin and some lunch fr...

So excited for this week!!!! Today is 1 year since we officially meet and match with our new Swiss family!! We had our very first Skype call and all knew we would be perfect for this new journey and adventure together! I cannot believe how fast this year has gone by! Tomorrow our Swiss family travels back here to Florida for their big day welcoming their 2nd little boy into the world!! They will be here for 2 months and we can’t wait to spend more time with them while they adjust as a family of 4 and prepare everything needed to go back to Switzerland. I’m so glad their little boy has waited for them to come before arriving and we look forward to making so many memories together in the upcoming weeks! Today, was also another non-stress test, which looked great! Our next appointment will be on Friday and hoping we can get an official c-section scheduled as the baby’s parents will be here to attend with me. Can’t wait for Mum to see how big my belly has grown in person, finally feel ...

Monday was another check up! The non-stress test was great and the baby was kind of all over the place which is what we want. We also did a quick ultrasound and dr. said the baby is VERY low now and  the only thing that could change is I go into labor! We are now starting appointments 2xs a week to keep an eye on things but dr. Doesn’t want to mess/check too much and cause things to get moving. The Baby’s head is very low and the pressure is crazy! I’m feeling extra huge!   Thursday, we had another non-stress test which again was great and we did the group B test and dr. Checked to see if there was any dilation. The check was almost unbearable and painful, I thought for sure he would say we have made some progress but he said my cervix is still closed. He said things could still happen as the baby is still very low and probably a good reason for me to have our planned c-devotion. We will check in again next week!  I prepped the kids so that they know what to expect a...

Week 35!!!! This past week I have had a lot stronger contractions, mostly at night time that will wake me up. My sleeping is off and on...some nights it’s great and I’ve even slept in until 9-10am and some nights it’s terrible and I’m wide awake until after midnight or for 2-3 hours in the night. So, looking forward to sleeping on my stomach again. My appetite comes and goes...loving veggies, watermelon, sour gummies, and drinking tons of water!!! Not really wanting any meat again! The pressure down below is intensifying and bathroom visits are at an all-time high, sometimes I’ll go, stand up, and have to go again! My boobs are huge, my belly is huge, it’s so hot outside and I kept stressing that my water might break when I’m out in public somewhere!!! I’ve been trying to stay busy with some house projects and making sure everything is ready for baby’s parents to be back here with us in just under 2 weeks now but I’m also making sure I rest and put my feet up when I can! I’ve stocked u...

The official countdown and Swiss baby watch are on...We are just 36 days or less from meeting a special little king! Thursday, I went for a weekly checkup and our first stress test. I have never had to do the stress test monitoring before so did not really know what to expect or what they were looking for. The reason my Dr. has us doing it is that baby boy is measuring above average and because IVF is a little riskier and my dr. just wants to be sure we are up to date and extra observant. Ultrasound looked great although he is still head and face down and very low so we probably will not be able to get any more good photos of him. So, we headed to another room for the non-stress test. I was hooked up and they told me I would sit for 20 mins while they recorded the baby's movements and how his heartbeat responded to that. I tried to lay very still and be very calm and after 20 mins the nurse and Dr. came in and said he was being very well behaved and quiet and that this heartbea...