One would assume that a positive blood test would mean I was pregnant, end of story. Not so much when you are a surrogate. That test must be repeated to ensure that the hCG levels are rising, which is indicative of a viable pregnancy. SO... my first level on 10/7 was 959, wry much pregnant since a level of 25 is the minimum to be considered pregnant. The doctors want to see that number double by the next draw. On 10\7 my level was at 4,551 and on 10/10 it was 9,059, hormones are needless to say, rising nicely. Now the not so good part. Because this is a surrogate pregnancy the doctors are extremely cautious about everything. Did any one with a normal pregnancy every hear a word about estrogen or progestrogen levels? Me either! This time it is something they watch. My first draw everything was great, but the second time my progesterone dipped to 23.3 and they want it above 25. Now I consulted Google and found that my level is still "normal" for a pregnancy, just not where HRC likes it so I had to increase my progesterone injections to 1.5cc daily. No big deal, right? WRONG! See I had some mild nausea by this point, after the increase that turned to daily vomiting. And the knots from the injections got bigger, so big that it was uncomfortable to wear jeans! I tried everything I could think of to get them to go away. TONS of heat, George massaging them like crazy and Tylenol. I finally broke down and asked my nurse for help. Now that the pregnancy is confirmed (I'll get to that later) I can switch to an oral progesterone lozenge! Such a relief. Well, except for the fact that they are the consistency of slightly hardened jello with a wax coating. They also taste horrid, something like a crayon dipped in grape cough syrup. BUT choking that down for 4 more weeks is way better than the knots from the shots!! Now, I am not shot free, I will still do estrogen injections every 3 days, but they are nothing! Aside from the last week and a half that was rough, I feel good. I have not vomited in 3 days and can wear pants again! I am tired though, as to be expected. I schedule in my daily naps! My family has been a huge help. George is picking up my slack and massaging knots like crazy! The girls are helping out as much as possible too. One morning they even got Noah dressed, fed and in the car for me so we could get out the door on time!
Now the fun part! We had our first ultrasound on 10/18. It was so cool! Kaylee (my 10 year old) got to go with me. The doctor was great at explaining to us both what we were looking at and the most exciting part.... We got to see the tiny little heart beat! Fetal development is so amazing! I am 6 weeks pregnant and the baby is the size of a lentil, but we could see that little heart beating away! Everything looked good and the doctor confirmed that there is only one baby, so good news all around. We will have another ultrasound on 10/31 to check development.
Another fun fact..... with my last pregnancy my niece Dallys would say that I was not having a baby, it was a squid. So after the first transfer she decided that this pregnancy was a snail, or escargot. Just the idea seemed gross! At the ultrasound Kaylee thought that the baby looked like a little potato so our official nick name for this little one is French Fry! Nick names are something that everyone on my mothers side of the family have. My grandfather, who passed away 15 years ago, used to give everyone their names. After his passing the names stopped, except for my kids and the names Dallys gave them, so this little nick name is our family's contribution to the baking of this baby!
So I leave you with French Fry's first photo! It is a bit blurry because it took quite a bit of zooming to get it big enough to see, but you get the idea. The arrow is pointing at it's little heart! It is so amazing to finally be on the way to helping my IPs have their family! I love hearing how excited they are and how they are already preparing for the baby! This little French Fry will be so loved!!
