I want to wish my cousin Natalie a happy birthday today. She is now 21 and legal. Hope you are having a wonderful day gal!
Last Wednesday, I hit the 20 week mark. I can't believe that I am halfway through this surrogacy. Wow, time sure does fly! My belly is definitely noticeable at this point. I have people congratulate me all the time when I am out and about. They always stop and stare at me like a deer caught in headlights when I proceed to tell them that the baby isn't mine, lol. After explaining that the baby is someone else's genetics and will be going home with his biological parents, people seem fascinated. I get lots of questions and so far no one has freaked out on me. I have heard several horror stories about people getting offended and then accusing the surro as a "baby seller". It's crazy how many people do not understand that the baby can be conceived in a petrie dish using the biological parents' sperm/eggs and then transferred into someone other than the biological mother to grow. My job (besides gestating this sweet little one) has been to educate others on the process of gestational surrogacy and to help them understand that the main goal of this procedure is to help a couple become a family with their own biological child/children. The question that I have been asked alot lately is, "Will you do this again?". So far my answer is yes (barring that I have no labor/delivery complications). If my current IPs want to try for a sibling project, I will be on board. If they don't, then I will refer back to CCRM to see if there are any potential couples in line for a gestational surrogate. We shall see. As long as my hubby continues to support my ventures I will be fine. :)
***I will try to get a new belly pic posted later tonight or tomorrow.***
I also wanted to add to today's post that it is my cousin Rachel's 15th birthday. Happy Birthday gal!!
I just had to personalize it, lol.
We chose to do rounded corners. I think that it looks better than squared off ones.
The weird hole with the wood pieces over it is one of our basement windows. We will have to get a cover for it so that the kiddos don't fall in (or me for that matter, lol).
When I took these photos, the concrete was still wet. It looks as though it had speckles in it because that was how it began to dry. As of 5pm it is mostly dry and the concrete is white like the stairs.
On this day we began the transformation of our backyard desert. I have the greatest landscaper working with us. He works when he says he is going to (I can't say the same for our concrete guy) and he helped us figure out how to cut costs. We can't afford to do everything that we have planned with him but we will be getting the basics taken care of this year. Next Spring, he will come in and do the shrubbery and trees that we want. I can't wait!
I have no pic for the day but the trenches for the underground sprinkler were dug.
A lot of river rock was spread on one side of our house. The concrete guys set up the framing to pour our patio.
Man, it is amazing to me how much we have got going on around here. I had a consult with a landscaper and concrete guy yesterday. Clayton and I are getting ready to throw down a lot of money all at once and it is about to make us sick to our stomachs, lol. We have to do something about our barren backyard though. It is an overgrown weed patch at this point. I had originally sat down with the landscaper and had all of our plans put down on paper but it turns out that we got in over our heads. The concrete guy costs twice as much as one back home to pour our patio. That really sucks. My uncle (who is a contractor back in NC) said that the quoted price for our patio was high but it may just be due to location. It's kinda like buying bread in one state can be dirt cheap and super expensive in another. Dang it. We did look at another guy but his prices were even higher so we stuck with the first guy. No stamped concrete for us though, sigh. We are going to get a basic concrete patio, underground sprinkler system, sod, river rock (for the boundaries), and a fence. Due to severe sticker shock from the patio, we are going to hold off on doing the play area and decorative plants until next year. The play area will be a 20x24ft. area marked with timbers and filled with smooth tiny pebbles. Considering how close we are to the end of warm weather here in CO, that will be fine. We can wait until next Spring.
I am so excited to say that I got Hayden into an awesome preschool. He will be going to one that is held at the local elementary school for, get this, FREE. Yea, I can't believe it either. After paying tuition for him the past 2 years, this is definitely going to be a treat. The state of CO offers the program and Hayden miraculously got accepted. Yay!! He will go 4 days a week from 12:15-3:15pm. Emerson will be going to a different school since he isn't old enough to go to the same one as Hayden. He has afternoon pre-k also so we will get to sleep in everyday. It can't get any better than that!
I am beginning to pack for our upcoming trip. I know I am insane but I just can't wait. Only 44 more days to go!
I woke up this morning at 7:45am to the sound of my doorbell ringing. The stupid plumber wasn't supposed to be here until after 8:30am but he decided to show up before the acceptable time of 8am. Ugh. I had no clothes on and I yelled at the the kids (who were already roaming around downstairs) to not answer the door. After yelling it 3 times while I scurried to find some clothes, Hayden opened the dang door anyway. The 2 guys yelled "Hello?" several times before I rather rudely yelled back "Just a minute". After finally making my way down I told them that I was sorry that I wasn't ready for them but that they should not have been here until 8:30am. They simply said that they were a bit early. Early?! Anytime someone shows up at my door unexpectedly before the hour of 8am it is not okay nor is it respectful. Sheesh.
To add more fun to my day, I am eat up with hives. Last night was pure hell for me becauce my face itched so much that I couldn't sleep. I got a shipment of fruits and veggies on Monday that had a mango in it. I grabbed it with a plastic bag over my hands so that I wouldn't have to touch it. Well, stupid me grabbed the rest of the produce out of the box with my bare hands and I forgot to wash them afterward. The oils from the mango skin must have been on the other produce because I broke out like crazy late that evening. I look like I have a 3rd degree burn on my face/neck/chest. It really looks horrible. Naturally, I had a Ryland Homes manager, tax accessor, cable guy and the plumbers all show up at my house during these past 2 days. I look like a burn victim. I had to explain to everyone why I look like this and it is super embarassing. I just want to curl up in my bed for the day and not get out of my jammies. Why won't they just let me have some peace?
My 29th birthday is tomorrow and I am going to take it easy. I may scrap all day or just stay in bed. Either way, I am calling the shots, lol. I NEED a break at this point. I have been with my kids day in and day out since we moved here (June 13th) and I need to get away from them before they drive me to the loony bin. Soooo, I have a facial and haircut scheduled for myself on Saturday at the local Aveda salon in Loveland. I am debating getting a massage also. We shall see. Hopefully my hives will be better by then. If they aren't, I will have to reschedule and God knows how long it will be before they can get me in again. *sigh*
On a happier note, only 51 days until our family vacation! :)
Happy Birthday to my wonderful friend Natascha back in NC!!
