Yay!! We finally have a date!

Well, Friday didn't work out but we will definitely be closing on the house on Monday at 2pm. Thank the Lord!! I am so sick of being homeless, lol.

After getting stuck with needles 3 times on Thursday and the nurse not being able to get my vein, she decided to have me come back on Friday. Guess how many more pokes it took to get one blood draw??? 4! So basically it took 7 needle sticks to get 1 blood draw. Egad. They had even tried to get the top of my hand (which hurts wayyyy worse than your arm I quickly found out) to no avail. I ended up having the nurse switch to someone who was better at finding veins. She simply gave up on me, lol. Once that gal got a vein I was thrilled to finally be done. That was my last blood draw for CCRM. They graduated me and I no longer need any meds to sustain the surrogacy. :)

I hope that you all are having a wonderful weekend. We will most likely be getting our cable back at the end of next week and then I will be back on the net. Wish us luck!

Still Stuck in a Hotel...

Can life really be any more exciting than having 2 little kids crammed into a tiny room without their toys for weeks on end?? **Sigh** We arrived here in CO back on the 13th and we have been living at the Residence Inn ever since. Don't you think that the hotel name is kinda ironic? It has served as our place of residence for wayyyy too long. Let me attempt to give ya'll a brief synopsis of our nightmarish move from NC:

13th-We flew out to CO. Sometime into the flight, we realized that 3 hours is just too long for little ones to sit on a plane and be amused.

19th-We were supposed to close on the new house. That got changed when we dropped our initial lender flat on her butt. She disappeared and was impossible to reach 2 weeks before we got out here. Once she finally did call us back, she changed her loan terms and added in all kinds of fees that were not disclosed in her original offer. She purposely waited until we were so close to closing so that we couldn't say no. Well, we proved her wrong and decided to go through the heck of getting another lender. This guy was going to try and get us closed at the end of the week. On another note, our cars arrived.

20th-All of our belongings arrived and had to be put into storage. Thank gosh that Clayton's company paid for that. We were worried about them only paying to deliver it to 1 destination and then we would have to pick up the tab to move it again. Not only did they pay for the storage but they will also pay to have it redelivered to our house once we close.

22nd/23rd/24th-New lender guy can't get us closed that fast. Clayton's loss of his license sure didn't help. He lost it somewhere in the old town section of Fort Collins. Without it, he couldn't easily get a notary to sign a document that he needed so that he could get a certified check from Wachovia. Since Wachovia isn't available out here, we had to have the check overnighted from NC rather than doing a wire transfer. We would have had to walk into a branch to do a wire. Ugh. Anyhow, Clayton's lack of a license also caused him to miss the Fort Collins Beer Fest this weekend which really stunk for him. Lesson learned, lol. Since we missed the festival, we decided to go see my Father-in-law and his wife in Nebraska. It was a wonderful break from hotel living.

25th/26th-We thought that we would close sometime early this week but things went completely awry. It turns out that the guy who inspected our house had his license revoked prior to our inspection. The bank made the inspection company do it again with someone else. Gosh, if it isn't one thing, it is another around here.

27th-Our hotel can't extend our stay any longer so we had to move to another Residence Inn in Fort Collins.

28th-The lender is saying that Clayton has to have his ID at the closing. He ordered it last week and it got here today. Thank the Lord!! I believe that our closing will be Friday at 2pm. I will believe it when I see it.

Today was also the date of my Ultra-Screen with the specialist in Denver. We had an ultrasound and learned that there was 1 healthy baby in there. I had a feeling that I wasn't carrying twins any longer a few weeks ago. It was completely intuitive and I told Clayton that I felt as though there was only one. It's so weird how I knew that. My lack of weight gain was my biggest indicator. I am as big now as I was at 5 weeks. My belly got big really quickly and then slowed down dramatically. If I had of kept growing the way that I did in the beginning, I would be huge by now. Anyhow, the baby looked great and I am so happy for my wonderful IPs. :)

I also went in to do my last blood draw for CCRM. They had me discontinue meds last Monday and they wanted to make sure that my levels were ok without them. I got poked 3 times before the gal gave up on me. She could not get my veins to cooperate and it really hurt. Now I have to go in tomorrow to try again. Sheesh.

I hope to have the internet back on soon. I am so sorry that the wi-fi doesn't work at all in our hotel. 2+ weeks is just too long not to be able to jump on my computer. The only time I can use the hotel computer is to quickly check my email so I haven't been online very much. For this post, I am visiting yummy Panera so that I can use their connection. Like Arnold said, "I'll be back". ;)

SOLD!!

Sorry I haven't been able to update the ole blog. We are still stuck in a hotel at the moment and my wireless connection won't work. I have to use the hotel's computer to check my email for now.

Our closing on the new house is supposed to happen tomorrow but it may be a day or two later. Ugh. Anyway, I have very good news to report. We sold our house in NC this past Friday!! Someone wanted to see our house the day that we were moving out but we couldn't let them due to the movers being there. They ended up coming by that Thursday and loved it. We got the contracts on Friday and I had to negotiate everything from the hotel. Clayton started his first day on the job that day so he wasn't around to agree or disagree with anything. By the time he came home I had already sealed the deal. He was quite surprised and pleased that it all worked out so well and that I had gotten a great price for our house. What a sigh of relief!

As far as communication goes, I have my cell phone still but our minutes have been used up. If you want to chat with us, email me at brandylogan@gmail.com and I will give you our direct number here at the hotel.

I hope you all are having a wonderful week! I will try to update again later this week. ;)

Awwwww man.....

To see some photos that Joanna took of us the other day, check out her awesome blog at: http://www.tuesdaysfrog.com/journal.html

Almost Outta Here!

Well, the packers are here boxing up all of our worldly possessions. I hate the feeling that our stuff doesn't have a home right now. I realllllllly hate that my scrapbooks are going to be baking in the back of a semi for 7-8 days. Ugh.

The cable will be shut off this afternoon so I won't have Internet access for a while. I will try to update when we get to our hotel in CO. We will be flying out on Wednesday.

It's sad realizing that we are leaving so many wonderful friends and my family. My parents brought Hayden home on Saturday and that was the day that we said goodbye. I was fine until my kids wouldn't let them drive away without just one more kiss. I about lost it when we met the Bolicks for lunch on Sunday. Goodbyes are something that I struggle at and this time around seems to be worse than normal. We have made so many true friends, both us and the kids. It stinks to move so far away from them. Tonight will be my last dinner with my best friends Tracy, Kala and Angela. Tracy will be bringing Austin to see Hayden for the last time on Tuesday and that is really going to stink. They are going to be taking us to our hotel since we will be both homeless and carless after everything gets loaded up. Oh man, I dread that like the plague.

10 Weeks Along with Twinkies + Some Updates

I took my first belly shot in the mirror this past week and thought that I would share. I can't believe how fast the twins are growing! My IPs haven't gotten to see my belly yet so I figured that it was about time. I had some redness on the bottom of my stomach from the top of my pants rubbing against it (the band is flipped down for the pic).

Everything is going well and I feel good. I just wish I could hurry up and quit taking the meds. CCRM is working on that by slowly weaning me. I should be done with everything at the 13 week mark or earlier. Yay!!

My parents have had Hayden since I left High Point. They are finally bringing him home today and we are happy to have him back. Emerson is so thrilled to see him again. He can't wait until they get here. We will go out to lunch and then we have a lot of things to do this afternoon to get us ready for the big move.

The movers will be here on Monday to pack us up and then Tuesday is the loading day. On Wednesday, we will be flying out to Colorado. Unfortunately, we cannot close on our house until the 19th, so we will have to stay in a hotel in Loveland until then. Clayton will begin his first day of work at his new job on the 15th and he is pretty excited about it. His new boss sounds like a really nice guy.

Wanna See More?

The front of the house taken from a side angle (the columns should be painted by now)

The Family Room

The Window Wall in the Family Room

My Scrapbook Room

The Kitchen (the tiles on the island and the countertops are the same cool ones that are around the fireplace-the floors and cabinets are hickory)

Master Bath

Master Bath-everything is tiled and the ceiling is vaulted

Master Shower (a better view)

There are a lot of pics that I need to take when we get in there around the 20th-the master bedroom, the boys' bedrooms, the boys' bathroom, the loft, the laundry room and the formal dining/living room. I didn't have my camera with me when we went house hunting. These pics were all taken with the builder's camera and it was about to die on me. I am lucky that I got any pictures at all. :)

I look like a heroin addict, lol

You can just call me a human pin cushion at this point. It's bad enough that I have to give myself an intramuscular shot in the rear everyday but I have also had to have my blood drawn a LOT lately. CCRM is trying to wean me from the estrogen and progesterone slowly so that means that I have to go to the local RE a couple of times each week for level checks. I have several small bruises in the crook of my arm and it looks a bit weird. Hopefully, I will get to stop the meds soon and that will be the end of getting my arms poked so much.

I had my first and last OB appt. with my favorite doctor ever today. It was pretty sad. He delivered both of my own children and I so wish that he was going to be the one to deliver these sweet twins. He is a wonderful man and has always been there for me throughout my pregnancies. If any of you gals ever move to Asheville and need a good OB/GYN, look up Dr. Robert Wright at Asheville Women's Medical Center. I highly recommend him. :)

We got our plane tickets today. We will officially be leaving NC for CO on June 13th. Unfortunately, our house will not be ready until we do a walk through and give the builder 7 days to fix any problems. That's okay though. It will definitely be worth the wait! We are counting down the days now. We have the movers packing it all up on the 11th and then loading it all up on the 12th. It seems so close now. Wow!!

June TSR Layouts

Stupid me forgot to take photos to my Aunt's house this past weekend so I had to borrow some of hers to scrap. Renae, I thought that you would appreciate the top one. ;)


My Uncle David (Renae's Dad) with Christian and Joshua (Renae's little guys)

Me when I was 2 years old

My cousin Natalie when she was 14 (she's 20 now)

My cousin Jeff when he graduated high school back in 1985

I can finally spill it...

I know I have been kinda cryptic around here and couldn't talk alot about what all is going on. Now that Clayton has put in his 2 week notice at Kimberly Clark as of last Friday, I can finally say it-WE ARE MOVING!!! He took a new job with Kodak in Windsor, Colorado. The house that I posted earlier is indeed ours. We will be living in a small town outside of Windsor called Johnstown. Fort Collins is really close and has tons of cool places to eat and shop. We are so excited! Our move date still isn't set in stone but it will be in the next couple of weeks. :)

Can you guess who this new house belongs to???

And yes, I am aware that the columns need to be painted, lol.

On a sidenote-I have decided to take a trip home today and I will be back next Wednesday. I hope that you all have a great weekend!

Last Day of Preschool and My Independence (what little I had, lol)

I have been dreading today for a while now. It was the last day of the kids' preschool program at First Presbyterian. I was so sad to see the teachers say goodbye to my kiddos. They had tears in their eyes as they hugged H & E. They have been absolutely wonderful this school year and I hate to think that this is my last year with that preschool. For reasons unmentionable, we will be on the hunt for a new one over the summer. I totally hate that. Anyhoo-I will post some pics of the kiddos today or tomorrow.

Another bad thing about today is that it was my last time to chill with my best friend Tracy at the local coffee shop without kiddos. We like to hang out at Terra Nova on Tuesday or Thursday mornings after dropping the kids off. After that we usually run around and do all the errands that we can get done in those 3 short hours. Boy, I am going to miss those 3 blissful hours. Independence is something that you give up once you become a Mommy and so I have always tried to make the most of my free time.

On the pregnancy front, I went to another ultrasound on Monday and everything looked great. My hormone levels were also great so now the clinic is going to try and wean me from all the meds that I have to take. I can't wait to stop taking the intramuscular shots. Hopefully it will only take a few weeks.

May layouts for 3 Scrappy Boys

Word of Warning

I am experiencing horrible problems with my laptop right now. If I don't post in the next week or so it is because my computer is being fixed.

On a sidenote-
We accomplished what we set out to do last week. If you know what I mean and are curious, shoot me an email and I will try to send you a sneak peek. ;)

Sooooo, do you guys want to know what we saw this morning???

I went in for the ultrasound this morning and was a bit nervous. My mind kept racing and all I could think was that there had to be a bunch of babies in me. The ultrasound tech immediately found a baby and I wondered if it was the only one. As soon as she started to move around we could see a second one. My tension rose sky high as I was afraid that she might find a 3rd, 4th or 5th baby, lol. Two was the magic number though and I am completely relieved. Two babies I can handle. Three, now that is a whole 'nother story. So congrats to my IPs, you guys are having double the trouble!! :)



Clayton and I are about to head out to Charlotte to catch a direct flight to Denver. We will be back next Wednesday. I hope that you all have a great weekend!

Eventful Weekend Ahead

I will go in on Friday at 10am for our first ultrasound. I will try to update the blog as soon as I get home to report what we saw. Everyone is excited to see how many babes hung around (I feel like it could be a litter, lol). My tummy is already sticking out and I am noticeably preggo. It's a bit ridiculous to look preggo at only 6 weeks. :P

Clayton and I will be flying out to Denver on Friday evening and then we will head up to Cheyenne, WY to see his family. His sister Stephanie will be getting pinned that day. She is getting her nursing degree and she already has an awesome job lined up. Congrats Steph!! We will be going out to dinner with Steph, Tom, Christie and possibly Jack that Saturday night to celebrate. I can't wait! We will be flying back on the 16th. In the meantime, my Mom and Dad will be watching the kiddos for us.

We have lots of other things on our agenda to do while we are there. The cool thing is that we will be staying at a bed and breakfast in Windsor, CO. It is a beautiful Victorian home. We chose to stay in the turret part of it (the squared off tower-looking thing) and we get the cute private balcony. Here's what it looks like:

April 3 Scrappy Boys Layout

Off to do the blood test

Wish us luck! I will post the results when I get them back this afternoon. :)

****Results are in!****
The beta revealed that my hcg level is 379!! As long as it is above 5, I am considered pregnant. Whoo hoo!

BTW, I got positive home tests beginning last Thursday. That was just 3 days after our transfer. It's the equivalent of 8 days past ovulation so that is pretty early. The day that most tests say that you can get a positive is 14 days past ovulation.

Soccer Star

Hayden had his first game this past Saturday and it was interesting to watch. Those kids are so little and cute! A few of them are already showing signs of being really talented. Poor H was intimidated and lagged behind the older ones. It will take him a few weeks to get comfortable. It didn't help that his first practice was just the day before the game because he missed practice last week. He looked a little goofy out there because we didn't get his cleats and shin guards in time for it, but he should have them by next weekend.

Home, Sweet Home

I got back from Denver on Wednesday evening and boy was I tired! The transfer was this past Monday and it went very well. I have a beta (blood test) scheduled for this Wednesday and I will know that afternoon whether or not I have any babies in me. I am able to start taking regular urine tests right now but my IPs do not want to know those results so I will not be posting them. Wish us luck!!

Sitting here in Denver

Why, oh why can I not sleep??? I am still on east coast time apparently. I got up yesterday at 6am and today I got up at 5:30am. Ugh! That would be okay if I were at home because the times would have been 8am and 7:30am. By the time I get used to mountain time I will be back in NC and I am sure it will throw me off.

I have great news regarding the surrogacy. We are going to have a 5 day embryo transfer tomorrow around 1pm!! Everyone is excited and the embryos are excellent. I really think that this is going to be a successful cycle. Please send some prayers or positive thoughts our direction. They are much appreciated!

Sunny Day

Hayden got to ride his new big boy bike for the first time today. He got frustrated at first because he kept braking as he was trying to pedal. After a few tries, he figured it out and thinks that he is hot stuff, lol.

I need to go back and crop in on Hayden in this one. I will have to take care of that later.

This pic of E would have been cute if it weren't for the snot rolling out of his nose (he has horrible allergies) and my shadow covering him, lol.

E playing with McQueen

Wish us luck!!

I am not at liberty to discuss my surrogacy journey in full detail but I will say that the embryo transfer will be happening on either Saturday or Monday in Denver. Which day all depends on the quality of the embryos. If they are super then we will hold out for Monday. That is when they will be 5 day blasts (they will be in the process of breaking out of their shells). 5 dayers have a higher chance of sticking around. 3 dayers are good too but the embryologist can't distinguish which ones are the healthiest before transfer. Please keep us all in your thoughts and prayers this weekend as we go through this process to make a baby for some wonderful people. :)

I have other interesting news that I am dying to share but I cannot due to my blog being public. If you are a friend or relative, shoot me an email and I will fill you in. This news is pretty big. ;)

Easter Pics from High Point

Why, oh why can't my kids smile at the same time? In the top pic Emerson is grinning and in the second one Hayden is. Maybe I need to use Photoshop to get smiling kids in the same pics together. Sheesh.

This is my Aunt Judy donning her cute apron as she fries chicken for our Easter lunch. Let me tell you, she is the bestest cook ever!!

Hayden putting together a puzzle that the Easter bunny gave him

Finding eggs

Easter Program

Emerson and a few of his classmates

More kids from E's class sitting in the "buggy"

Hayden is such a cheesehead, lol

H singing and doing hand gestures

The kiddos had their Easter program this past Tuesday morning. They did very well. Hayden knew the songs and did the hand gestures that went with them. My pictures S-U-C-K but that isn't entirely my fault. The lighting in there was atrocious and it didn't help that I was so far away from the stage. Emerson sat in a high chair the whole time and was a good boy.

Fun at Fletcher Park

We met with the Bolicks this morning and went to Fletcher park for some fun and a picnic. The kids had a great time while Joanna and I chatted. Getting the 4 of them to sit for a pic was a bit of a challenge, but it was worth it. :)

Ugh, see how old Big E is beginning to look:

Where, oh where did my baby go???