Today is the 15 week milestone. And…finally! After a weekend of talking to the triage lady every day, they let me come to the hospital for an ultrasound to make sure everything was ok!!! I went in this morning and both the kiddos were moving around with normal heartbeats. My cervix was closed and long and they did not see any reason why I would have been bleeding. So the reason remains unknown. I’m still having some brown spotting but I think it’s going away. I’ve been advised to take it easy and refrain from doing anything other than swimming in terms of exercise for the next two weeks. Gentle swimming. Huge relief that everybody in there is ok and now just hoping the spotting ends soon and that it doesn’t happen again.

p.s. I’m no ultrasound technician but I swear I saw a penis on Baby A.

Ack. The spotting continues. Today there were what looked like tissue particles when I peed and more brownish blood on the toilet paper. The after hours medical triage lady doesn’t seem to think this is a big deal. Brown blood is old blood, she says. And the particles might not be tissue. They might just be blood clots. No cramps worth mentioning…maybe a little more pressure in the lower abdomen but that could also be my imagination. I’m on “pelvic rest” for now. I was sort of hoping she would send me to the OB/GYN emergency room but she just told me to call my doctor’s office first thing in the morning tomorrow. I hate this! It’s stressing me out! I’ll be 15 weeks tomorrow.

15weeks4days

In Canada, the laws of surrogacy fall under the”Assisted Human Reproduction Act”. This act covers everything from cloning to surrogacy.

Here is a quick synopsis of The Assisted Human Reproduction Act  states the following:

1. We, Canucks can not pay a fellow Canuck to carry our baby, it’s illegal.
2. We can not pay an intermediary to “arrange” a surrogacy.
3. A surrogate MUST be 21 years of age or older.
4. We can pay all reasonable expenses to our surrogates.
5. We can pay for loss related income (provided an OB says that they can not work).

So, what does this really mean, I’m not quite sure. There are agencies in Canada, some of them with fabulous reputations (note I have never worked with an agency – so can not personally vouch for anyone. I have worked with a “fertility coach” and that will be a whole other feature in a future post). As far as I know, none of these agencies have been prosecuted.

For the low down on IPs work with this legislation email me at speculumstories@gmail.com.

My only other tip on this legislation is that it is currently being examined by the Supreme Court of Canada. From what I understand Quebec is challenging the Federal Governments ability to write legislation that addresses Human Reproduction. Because of this challenge, and fear that if overturned the Quebec government will make Surroacy illegal, most clinics in Quebec are recommending that IPs work with surrogates from any other province, afterall no one wants to be mid- journey and realize that surrogacy is illegal.

A little request for some good thoughts.

There is a little baby fighting to live. He’s 2 weeks old and he has H1N1, he stopped breathing a few days ago, and has been in ICU ever since. It must be such a nightmare to see your little one fight to survive (and I can not imagine the mother’s pain, simply wishing she had taken the shot when pregnant).

OB Update

For those that like details, check out M’s post on her blog about the OB appointment! Also she is hosting a poll, so please add your guess to who is growing!

Stay tunned for Friday Surrgaocy Blog…

Today, I really feel like I’m missing out, and not just me, I feel like M is missing out too.

Work pisses me off.

Because they threatened to fire me, I’m now literally tied to my desk, I am there BEFORE 9am every single day and leave after 5pm every single day. Often later.

And because they threatened to fire me, and because we are infertile and therefore need every single cent we can earn, I can’t risk getting fired.

So what does that all look like?

It looks like me, missing the first OB appointment.

And I’m really upset about it, M had to go by herself, which annoys me because she shouldn’t have to be at the OB alone with our babies!

So, today, I’m pissed at my work, that I got to miss out on yet another part of becoming a mother.

i have no idea how I am possibly going to wait 10 more sleeps before seeing the babies (or M!).

Updated:

For those who like the details the apt was pretty standard, the chances of downs are significantly low, so we are v. happy with that (M got a copy of all the reports so we can see!). She got the req for the next scan and our next apt is on January 6th at 430pm, so hopefully  we can go next time!

15 weeks 1 day

Mr. Pump is traveling UPS, which means I can track it’s movements, which I happily do several times a day, because I am a freak like that.

The wee pump started his adventure in Sunny Anaheim California on December 2^nd .From there he went to glitzy LA and then directly from LA to scenic Windsor Ontario where the pump went into a “brokerage” to pass through customs. He landed at the brokerage on Friday and spent a weekend on a shelf in luxiourious Windsor.

Today,after his weekend getaway in Windsor, he turned around and went back to the states.

Which is where I started to panic, why is my wee little pump making a run for the border? He is oh so close? Why turn back now?

Today he went from Windsor, Ontario to a place called Hodgkins outside of Chicago (please correct me if I am wrong). After much googling I discover that this is UPS’s giant hub where packages go to get re-routed… very odd to leave Canada to come to Canada.

Regardless, wee pump went from Hodgkins Illinois to Maumee OH, which according to Google is 488 Kilometres away from my house, and isn’t Ohio like right next door to Michigan , which is right next door to Windsor, that wee Ontario town where he started the day?

The poor pump must be exhausted from his very long trip, but the good news is that apparently he will arrive safe and sound into my arms tomorrow! A full day earlier then anticipated despite his little tour of the states.

Tomorrow also marks the very first OB appointment!! Yea! Maybe if M is feeling up to it, she may even blog? But the twins (oh and her own kids!) do tend to wear her out – not sure how she finds the time to fit it all is.

15 week 0 days

Today marks the week of the navel orange. Apparently our 2 little ones have graduated from being lemons to oranges!

Moving up the citris ladder.

This week is also the first OB appointment week! So exciting, even though I don’t get to go(the doctors still have me on a tight leash) and MR Duck will be traveling again (no i did not marry a travelling salesman but sometimes it does feel that way) so sadly M will be on her own. Sad for us, but, I know that M will give up a full update on Wednesday night of all the happenings at the OB! It’s also the very first appointment, which are super hard to get with this OB so the rest will hopefully be at the end of the day so at least Mr. can go (and maybe even me!). It feels like FOREVER since we have had any doctor contact ( 6 weeks is forever in my world).

The one thing I did learn this week from my blogging-buddy Sarah (thanks!!), is that the 18-20 week scan can be done on the weekends! How exciting that Mr and I will be able to go!! Also such a relief, I hate the idea of sending M all by herself to these things, that anything that can be done after 5pm  or on weekends the better for everyone!

Questions for the experts… yeah that’s you!

What do they usually do at first OB appointments anyway? Would someone like to share with the pregnancy ignorent?

And how does it all work for surrogacy – will they need me and Mr duck’s medical history?After all that will have a large impact on the babies health….

What about frequency – how often do women have to go to OBs? And twin factor – does that increase the time?

More Diapers

I recently won 3 bids on 3 sets of New in packaging diapers off ebay. Yes, I know it’s early to start gathering items, but, with twins and infertility we want to save every way we can, so through winning these ebay auctions I just made some BIG savings (I love saving, really I’m one of those people that clips as uses coupons).

And I know someday that it’ll all turn out

You’ll make me work so we can work to work it out

And I promise you kid that I’ll give so much more than I get

I just haven’t met you yet

Thanks for all the help about the swine flu vaccination. I still haven’t made my mind up fully, which is good because my doctor hasn’t been in touch with me yet (they have them in, but haven’t decided how to roll them out yet!). So I think I have a couple more weeks before I need to make a decision.

Mr BTC and I have been on holiday from work this week. Normally, we’d be jetting off to some sunny shores, but I don’t want to fly while I am pregnant (yes I know it’s safe, it’s just a personal choice based on 7 IVF’s to get this far!).

So, Mr BTC has been decorating, painting mainly and I have been wrapping Christmas presents, writing cards, doing housework and generally pottering about. It’s been lovely.

He’s painted what will (cough) hopefully be the nursery. It was a nursery when we moved in, and it was a bit of a junk room to us, so it was time to sort it out. Gone are the vile lilac and green walls and in are the very boring cream walls. Call me boring, but I like, no LOVE neutral.

Before:

After:

The room will stay furnitureless (think I just made a new word up!) until about 3 minutes before the baby is due, if I have my way.

Oh and the paint, I HAD to have it when I saw it:

He then went on to paint our bedroom and now I can hear him rollering the living room walls within an inch of their life. Here’s our bedroom as it is now (minus curtains):

All that effort, and guess what? I think we are going to move in the next year or so, but that’s a whole new post of its own.

P.S Not yet ‘out’ on Facebook (after a close shave this week..wink wink!) so FB ‘friends’ please help me keep undercover for a few more weeks.

We went to the doctor this morning for our monthly check-up on our little one and just wanted to fill everyone in on how things are going!

The doctor had a little trouble finding the heartbeat, which about stopped MY heart. But then there was our little one, hiding from us and the doctor jumped she was so alarmed at how strong the heartbeat was! Uh oh…we already have a little trickster on our hands. Still in the womb and already playing hide and seek!

As of today, I am 15 weeks 3 days. We will find out the sex of the baby on October 20th!! I’m soooooooo excited and ready to know if we have a boy or a girl! I’m ready to SHOP

Here I am at 15 weeks…finally starting to look more pregnant than bloated! (And yes I look exhausted because this child is already wearing me out!)

Thanks to our family, friends, and blog friends for your prayers! We so appreciate them, and we are so thankful to have a healthy, growing baby & mama! Keep them coming!

This is me at 15 weeks pregnant.  Still too early to really tell but I keep hearing I should be feeling the baby kick any day now, which is not happening.  My baby is lazy, surprise, surprise.  They say they can sometimes tell the baby’s sex by ultrasound this early but my Dr. hates me and won’t do an ultrasound at this appointment.  boo.  ALSO – morning sickness, so over.  We kung fu fought and I kicked its ass and now I can eat all the donuts I want! word.

The lil’ baby is 4 inches big!

Here are some pictures of the tiny bump! Can’t wait until it is bigger and doesn’t look like a beer belly! Hehe.

(Don’t pay attention to the messiness!)

11weeks:                                                        15 weeks: starting to fill out a little more

How far along? 15 weeks

Total weight gain/loss:I don’t even know. I’m probably the same since I’m still in my regular clothes.

Maternity clothes? Nope. Sundresses are great though!

Sleep: Sleeping great. I’ve put a pillow behind me at night to help me sleep on my side. It’s been working except for when it falls off the bed and the dogs use it as their pillow.

Best moment this week: People telling me that I look great.

 Movement: Can’t feel it.

 Food cravings: Starbucks Frappuccino!! I was able to enjoy my other 2 cravings!

 Gender: 30 days!

Belly Button in or out? In.

What I miss: My long runs and intense workouts. 

What I am looking forward to: Feeling some baby movements.

Weekly Wisdom: If your baby shower isn’t a surprise, start thinking about when it will be, especially if you have lots of family out of town. It’s good to let them know as early as possible so they can make arrangements! 

Milestones: Figuring out the nursery and baby shower date.

Continuing the march towards normal proportions, baby’s legs now outmeasure the arms. And, finally, all four limbs have functional joints. Your fetus is squirming and wiggling like crazy down in the womb, though you probably still can’t feel the movements.

Well, Jack’s fifteen week birthday is nothing less than weary.  Despite Mommy and Daddy’s best efforts, our illness spread to our darling little boy.  He has been nothing short of miserable these past few days and Mommy and Daddy have never felt so helpless.  However, prior to getting sick, Jack had been trucking right along.

Friday was quite the day for milestones.  Friday afternoon, Mommy and Jack were spending some time together, listening to “Toddler Tunes” on the XM music station.  We were having some tummy time, back time, and we even practiced rolling over and hand eye coordination.  Then, while he was sitting up and Mommy was walking around the room, Jack began to track Mommy with his eyes, for the very first time!  This was very exciting.

Later that night, Jack had his last bath in his little blue bathtub.  Jack is growing so quickly that he no longer fits in his bathtub.  Considering it seems only like yesterday that little Jack seemed to be swallowed up by this blue bathtub as Daddy bathed his tiny little hands and feet having arrived home from the hospital, this growth milestone elicited many a tear from Mommy.  It goes without saying that the entire last bath was recorded and plenty of photos were taken.

So, given Jack being too big for his blue bathtub and being too small for a normal bathtub, Saturday included what is now becoming a weekend tradition, a trip to Babies R Us and Target.  The objective?  To procure a large, yellow, inflatable ducky bathtub.  Mommy and Daddy were definitely looking forward to giving Jack his first bath in this tub.  It even has a bill that quacks when squeezed.  Mommy and Daddy also picked up a couple of onesies, Sesame Street and zoo animals, as well as some much needed socks and bibs. Finally, to finish up our shopping trip, we picked up an air purifier for Jack’s room because we noticed the night before he had been coughing a little bit and we wanted to make sure there wasn’t anything unusual in the air agitating his little lungs.

Unfortunately, our great afternoon took quite the turn that evening when Jack began having coughing and sneezing fits.  His eyes, which had been a little red earlier in the day, (we though because he had accidentally scratched himself and looked like he was in a baby fight club), were now puffy and very unhappy looking.  After placing a phone call to the after hours nurse and doctor line at his pediatrician’s office, it was determined that all we could do was wait it out and make him as comfortable as possible.  So, Mommy and Daddy put a cool mist humidifier in his room to make sure his little nose didn’t get stuffy and we took turns running back to his room to help him get back to sleep.  There were definitely quite a few scares with his coughing, but we had been assured he would be ok.

With each day, he just seemed to be getting even more miserable.  Our poor little guy was experiencing sickness for the first time and it broke our hearts.  We tried to let him sleep as much as he needed and weren’t too concerned when he began to only eat four to five ounces at a time as opposed to his normal six, but then Monday rolled around and our darling boy still wasn’t improving.  In fact, he was even less interested in eating and his little coughs were wet.  So, Mommy and Daddy thought it was time to call the doctor back and express our concerns.  The nurse made an appointment for Jack for the very next day, just “to be on the safe side”.

So, this afternoon Mommy, Daddy and baby all made our way to the pediatrician’s office.  We learned that Jack now weighs in at a healthy 16 lbs and 1 ounce, but unfortunately, the rest of the news wasn’t very good.  One full exam, two X-Rays, and a nebulizer treatment later, it was determined that little Jack may have pneumonia.  Jack was such the little trooper though.  He didn’t cry or squirm or complain at any point, not even during the X-Rays.  Although, he did voice his discontent with a nurse who took his temperature rectally without any warning or introducing herself first, but aside from that, he was just the calmest baby. One woman at the radiology check-in even commented on how he is the cutest baby she had seen in a very long time.  Even when he’s as sick as sick can be, Jack is still garnering compliments.

Now, the course for recovery consists of nebulizer treatments every 4 hours, an antibiotic, a treatment to help prevent Thrush as a result of the antibiotic, and plenty of fluids.  Plus, Jack is going back to see the doctor tomorrow afternoon for a follow-up exam.  Jack’s little nebulizer mask is rather cute, it’s a fish face.  So, a la When Harry Met Sally we call him “little baby fish mouth”.  He even seems to enjoy the treatments, which, because his face is so small, it looks like he’s getting a facial.  They also seem to be working since he is coughing less, breathing easier, and eating more.  After his first treatment he ate a full bottle!

We hope this is the beginning of the end of him being sick.  Mommy and Daddy both want to break into tears when we hold him and see his round little face with his puffy red eyes and lower lip tucked into his mouth as if he’s willing his body not to cough.  In the mean time though, we are all extremely thankful that Mommy can stay home with our little sick man and take care of him.  No one likes being sick and neither of us can imagine how unhappy he is right now, but hopefully the comfort of having Mommy and Daddy taking extra good care of him makes him at least a little more at ease.  Hopefully Jack will get to enjoy his new ducky bathtub sometime soon too.

Miserable little guy

Little Baby Fish Mouth

*On a side note, we just discovered that the dates on our camera have been 2 days behind for over a month now.  This has been corrected going forward

Called to check up on the referral and see if the authorization has been approved or denied or whatever.  They gave me a referrence number to call back with and told me my file was under “NURSE REVIEW” so the decision should be made either by tomorrow or couple more days. 

I can feel my uterus getting heavier so gummy bear is growing strong.  Baby should be about 4-5 inches long now, swimming and doing backflips in there. Occasional pulling and abdominal soreness when standing for a while. No spotting or stange discharge.  Bigger boobs than I can handle so I look funny in my regular clothes. I did some shopping for bigger shirts but still gonna need bigger skirts and shorts.

There’s been a weird heat wave over the last couple of days and it’s terrible.  It’s too hot to sleep during the day and too hot in the evenings.  It almost feels like the tropical weather I experienced in Ghana in 2004 and that is tough to match! Stifling heat and humidity make me feel yucky and I spent a large part of that trip sleep deprived because of the heat. Me and the air conditioner have become best friends.  Ice cream is also my new best friend.  Gummy bear loves it too.

Myths and superstitions
Now that I’m prego, I’ve been hearing a lot of pregnancy myths and superstitions.

Perhaps the most outrageous and craziest of them all comes from my mom. Basically, I should not look at ugly people so that my baby will be pretty! I swear, I laughed so hard when I heard it.

Here are some other myths and superstitions I’ve encountered:

- Whatever you eat will indicate how your baby will look like. So, if you eat red fruits, your baby’s cheeks will be red … hey, that’s why I’m having strawberries as my snack!

- Wear a red band to protect yourself from the evil eye (jealousy). This actually comes from my Jewish friend and since I don’t have a red band, I’m wearing my all ruby bracelet. It’s red!

- No bathing for 10 days after delivery. Mmm … I’m not sure if bathing here also refers to showering. Perhaps Asians did this in ancient times, but I’m a modern Asian woman!

- If you deny a pregnant woman the food that she craves you will get a sty in your eye. Basically, what the prego woman wants, the prego woman gets! Wouldn’t it be cool if I could have everything I wished for because I’m prego hahaha!

Baby’s first booties and mittens
Anyway, I’m already 15 weeks prego and my husband and I haven’t really bought anything for the baby. When I speak with other pregnant women, they all talk about all the clothes and furniture they’ve bought.

That has all changed! I found this really cute store and got our baby’s first booties and mittens. My husband laughed because he thought I was crazy to buy cashmere booties! I would have gotten cashmere mittens too but since there are more lose fibers in cashmere and the baby will probably lick the mittens, I opted for the merino wool version! =) I think they also make great presents if you have friends who are expecting. If you can’t visit the store, check out the online boutique at http://www.ovale.com

Tingling sensation
Mmm … I’m also having this tingling sensation in my legs like they’re going to feel numb. It started last week and had it now twice during my sleep. It’s very uncomfortable and makes it very hard to get a good night’s sleep. Though I read that it can be normal, I’ll probably ask my OB/GYN at my appointment next week.

Prego outfit
I’m glad I have several loose-fitting dresses as I’m really having a difficult time finding maternity clothes. I’m not a pants and sweater/top kind of gal so it’s not easy finding nice dresses with enough room for my growing boobs and belly bump!

Our tummies have undergone changes recently. See if you can guess whose is whose!

~Eric

I feel bad for not updating more often. Things have been really calm around here, which is a good thing.

We will find out if Tiny is a boy or a girl is 12 days! I am having such a hard time being patient, I’m dying to get in the nursery and get to work! I’m also really excited because it’s going to be a 4D ultrasound, and they are so awesome! When I was pregnant with Nathan, we got some absolutely amazing pictures and video of him when we had his gender ultrasound. Here’s one of my favorites.

I can’t believe he was ever that tiny. It’s funny because I look at them now and I’m like, “yep, that’s definitly my little man”. He still has the exact same features…. nose, forhead, chin, EVERYTHING! It will be so neat seeing what this baby looks like. I can already tell from our last ultrasound that it’s nose looks alot more like mine. Poor baby lol!

 Well, I have finally picked out the themes for the baby’s nursery. I’ve had my girl nursery theme picked out for like 5 years lol, but I was undecided about what to do if it is a boy. We had thought about putting him in Nathan’s nursery and making nathan a “big boy” room… but nathan REALLY likes his room and I don’t want to make him feel pushed to the side, ya know?

So even if it’s a boy we will be doing another nursery. This is what I picked out if it’s  boy…..

 And this is what I’ve chosen if it’s a girl……….

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love decorating, but it’s even better when it’s for a new baby!

Well, on another note, I have been suffering with some really aweful lower back pain. It really freaked me out at first, because it felt alot like “dilation pain”. But everything looks ok, I guess I’m just sore from everything shifting around in there.

My belly has gotten HUGE in the past couple of weeks! I still haven’t gained any weight, but at least I’m not losing it like I was. I was kinda worried, but I guess it’s just less for me to lose once the baby gets here. It is measuring correctly on all it’s ultrasounds, so I guess it’s getting what it needs.

It AMAZES me how much more active this baby is than Nathan! Walter couldn’t feel nathan’s kicks until 18 weeks, but he has been able to feel this baby since last week! It’s funny because the books all say it’s too early to feel it, and at my last dr. appt, even HE could feel it when he was doing the ultrasound! So much for science lol!

I’ll try to write more often…

~Amber