It's a...

We had our "big ultrasound" on Monday! We got to see the baby's brain, heart, kidneys, bladder, fingers and toes.... and most importantly, we saw that this baby is a GIRL! I, for one, was shocked. I just knew this baby was a boy based on my cravings, but I guess that really doesn't mean anything. 

It was so great to see Heather & Brandon, too. We went to the hospital and toured Labor & Delivery. It wasn't as nice as I was expecting, I guess, but it'll do. We did find out that if I need a c-section, I am allowed two people in the room, so that's good at least. That was probably the best news I got. We found out that they won't allow us to take pictures during the delivery- we were hoping to get photos of Heather & Brandon seeing their daughter for the first time, but they nixed that. And I'm not allowed to have my support person with me during my epidural, which I'm really upset about. I'm not sure why I feel like that's such a big deal to me, but it is. But I have 4 months to adjust to the idea that my husband won't be there to hold my hand so I'm sure I'll be fine. 

We also pre-registered at the hospital, since we were there & to save me from doing it later on. The admissions lady kept calling me "mom" (of the baby) and then said, "and I'm sure you'll want this to be a private admission, so we'll note not to tell anyone you're here if they call." I guess she didn't understand at all what surrogacy is, and thought this was some sort of shameful adoption situation. *sigh* Oh well. 

I get to see Heather & Brandon again in a couple weeks when we vacation for Spring Break, I can't wait! I hope they can feel the baby kicking while we're there!

18 Weeks

I really am terrible at this. Here's an 18 week belly picture. 

Everything is going great, baby is kicking a lot these days. I finally was able to feel it from the outside a couple days ago. Brandon felt it once but now every time he puts his hand on my belly, the baby stops kicking. I think he/she is messing with him! I'm feeling pretty good, too. My extreme and constant exhaustion is gone, I just have a severe case of the lazy now. 

My craving for everything lemon has evolved into craving everything orange. My new must-have thing are these Ocean Spray Sparkling Tangerine drinks. They are amazing. And steak, I want steak and A-1 all the time. And pickles. I made fried pickles the other night and ate so many I made myself sick. Totally worth it.

Monday is our big ultrasound and Heather and her Brandon are coming up to be there. My Brandon was hoping to come along & see them but he's testing for rank that morning, so he has to miss all the fun. Our lawyer contacted the hospital and arranged for us to tour the labor & delivery unit and speak to head of L&D about our PBO and wishes for our hospital stay. Crazy to think that we're nearly halfway there. 

15 Weeks!

Can you believe we are already 15 weeks? I can't! It seems like this pregnancy has been flying by so far. I had an OB appointment today so I thought I should post.

Everything is well, baby's heart rate was in the 150's (she wouldn't tell me an exact number) and my blood pressure was 116/58. We have another appointment and ultrasound on March 4th!

I've been feeling lots of little flutters over the last couple of weeks, but just this weekend & today they seem to be getting stronger. I'm sitting here now and can feel lots of rolling & kicking around. It's kinda neat! I've also 'popped' a bit over the last week or so and I'm definitely looking pregnant, not just fat anymore. So score!

Long Overdue Update

We are 14 weeks today! Our first OB appointment was the 14th and everything went great. We had an ultrasound and saw the baby wiggling around, and he/she was measuring 2 days ahead with a heart rate of 169. We met with the Nurse Practitioner for my intake, and next time I get to see my OB for the first time. That appointment is Feb 4th.

I'm feeling good, still having some morning sickness but it's much less than it was a couple weeks ago. I'm starting to get a bump and my pants definitely don't fit. My extreme tiredness is fading away and I have more energy, thankfully!

I'll try to do better keeping this updated, but everything is still pretty boring right now!

No More Meds!

Big milestone for us today! We are 11 weeks today, which means last night was my last dose of meds. I was really hoping that no more meds would equal no more (or at least decreased) morning sickness, but this baby let me know very quickly that that was a silly idea. I spent the first 15 minutes of my day hugging the toilet bowl getting rid of everything I had in my stomach, which was only that awful tasting neon-yellow stuff. FUN!!!

But, I am NOT complaining! I know Heather would give anything to be puking up acidy highlighter yellow liquid every morning, and it took us a lot to get where we're at. I'd much rather be hugging the toilet than gearing up for another transfer because the last one failed. See, always a silver lining!

Only one more week until our first OB appointment and ultrasound. Heather is flying in to be there, too! I am beyond excited and so ready to see how the baby is growing. I'm predicting he/she is already measuring waaaay ahead, since my pants don't fit, and that SURELY cannot be from all the cupcakes I've been craving.

Update of Sorts

Exciting news! I talked to Heather today, and she is going to come up for my ultrasound/OB appt on January 14th! Yaaaay! She's going to take a short flight to DFW, rent a car, and make the 2 hour drive to Wichita Falls in time to have lunch before the ultrasound. I can't wait! When she texted to ask if it was ok, my only response was, of COURSE it's ok! I mean, it's HER baby. If she were the one pregnant, she'd be at every appointment. 

I want this to be as much "Heather's" pregnancy as it can possibly be, as hard as that is to manage when we live about 7 hours from each other. I tell her all of my cravings, like the other day it was lemon everything. Lemon gummies, lemon cupcakes, lemonade... Today it was Long John Silver's fried clams, and those little bits of fried batter that fall off the fish. Oh Em Gee. I'm planning to take belly pictures every week, as soon as I have a belly. Well, I have a belly now, but it's just a food-baby belly and no one wants to see that. I've been meaning to find a doppler on Amazon so I can record the heartbeat and send it to Heather so that their kids can hear it. Even better, maybe I can get one in time to take with me to Houston next week!

Which reminds me... Only one week until I go spend the weekend in Houston!

8 Weeks!

*yawn* I am SO tired. If I weren't pregnant, I'd swear I had developed a sudden case of narcolepsy. I'm so ready for this phase to be over with, I need my energy back!

In other news, I got a prescription for Zofran and I've managed to set a record on the least amount of times I've vomited in the first 8 weeks (go me!) although I still have the weird, random gagging reflex throughout the day. I look like I cat trying to get up a hairball. Brandon happens to think this is HILARIOUS and will do whatever he can to induce this hysterical event. He'll make me smell his arm pits, talk about gross things, but the worst is when he mimics my gagging. I told him, he's going to think it's funny until I puke on him. It's all in good fun, and I always laugh & he always apologizes for using me as cheap entertainment. But I still hope I vomit on him someday.

I'm flying down to Houston on December 28th thru the 30th to see Heather & Brandon, and meet their awesome kiddos. I am beyond excited! I think we'll be getting together with some of the Houston ladies Friday night, and then Heather & Brandon are taking me to the Rockets vs. Thunder game on Saturday night. Can't wait!