New 3rd Party Repro Weekly Check-In!

2MamazInSeattle

Hi all,

Let's start a new 3rd party repro weekly check in since our friend JM1977 had to end the last one while she is busy growing a new baby boy while raising DD and working!

I'll take it on as I need some things to occupy myself and I like doing this kind of thing. If anyone else would like to help/rotate doing it let me know!

Cross-posting to IF, and IFV (I know I'm not a qualified/official poster on IFV but  I'm only posting b/c a lot of 3rd party people are ).

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3rd Party Repro Check-In

This check-in is for anyone considering, using or who have used a method of 3rd party reproduction including donor egg, donor sperm, both DE/DS, embryo adoption, gestational carriers or surrogates. It is also open to anyone who is a donor, GC or surrogate.

Please respond with this information and I will compile the check-in weekly. If you have a preference for day of week, let me know, otherwise it'll likely be Monday or Tuesdays. If you don't check in for 4 weeks in a row you'll be removed from the check-in history/list, but you can always re-join when you're ready!

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1. Where are you in your process?

a) Considering DE, DS or DE/DS, or embryo adoption (specify if you know), a surrogate or GC

b) Waiting to cycle using DE, DS or DE/DS, or embryo adoption (specify), a surrogate or GC

c) Currently cycling using DE, DS or DE/DS, or embryo adoption (specify) a surrogate or GC - where are you at in your cycle right now? (Meds, 2WW, etc.?)

d) Currently pregnant with DE, DS or DE/DS or adopted embryo baby (specify), or your surrogate or GC is expecting - EDD? Boy or girl or Team Green?

e) Parenting a DE, DS or DE/DS, adopted embryo or surrogate/GC child (specify), - boy or girl? Age?

2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!

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Any other ideas or suggestions for the check-in are welcome! Just thought it'd be nice to have something regular again so hope it's ok I just jumped in here to do it!

 

 

Kaf8278

Hi! I will be 9 weeks tomorrow with donor egg. I feel good and pregnant! However, I have had spotting every day since April 22. I have a subchorionic hemorrhage have been on bed rest since April 22. I am slowly weaning off vivelle patches, endometrin suppositories, and daily POI shots. I pray every single day to make it through the first trimester!!!! My due date is 12/31.

I have nothing planned for this summer because we didn't know if our first DE cycle would work. Now, even though it did, bed rest is still keeping everything else on hold. No worries thoughIt will all be worth it at the end of December!

JM1977

Thank you for starting the check-in again!   

1. Where are you in your process?

d) Currently pregnant with DE, DS or DE/DS or adopted embryo baby (specify), or your surrogate or GC is expecting - EDD? Boy or girl or Team Green?

20w5d with a baby boy from a FET (DE/DS) 

e) Parenting a DE, DS or DE/DS, adopted embryo or surrogate/GC child (specify), - boy or girl? Age?

21-month-old daughter from our first DE/DS cycle 

2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?

I'm doing pretty well.  I am a little worried about maternity leave for this baby since I used up a lot of my leave when I had my daughter and then more when I had major shoulder surgery last summer.  I'm hoping I can get vacation/sick time donated so that I don't have to have very much time off without pay.  Overall, doing well, though. 

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!

We are going to Chicago in June to visit some friends.  We are looking forward to that! 

kflynn81

Hi there,

::waves:

I've popped in over here on and off and was on the checklist before in the researching category. I'm still in a holding pattern. I'm gearing up for my 4th and most likely final OE IVF cycle either June or July. I'm hopeful that a complete change of protocol plus a new lab will be what I need to be successful. However, should this IVF fail again then MH and I have talked about moving on. Its a tough choice for me though since I'd have to choose between donor vs. adoption. I'm technically not guaranteed a baby either way but I feel that the odds are in my favor for DE and I just want to be pregnant....is it so much to ask for swollen ankles?       so I'm leaning very much toward DE but scared to have to make that decision in case that fails too. Oh why can't things be easy??!!

GetwickMom

Hi!

1. We're in between considering and waiting to cycle. FI is working with our RE to try to see if they can get him to produce sperm on his own. We're also exploring DS options and meeting with GC attorney.

2. I'm feeling so much better now that we have a plan. The biggest challenge right now is waiting and not being able to personally do anything to move the process along faster.

3. We we live in the southern hemisphere so it will be winter here : FI's nephew was born on May 21 and my neice is due August 1, so we're enjoying being aunt/uncle for the first time. Oh, and planning our November wedding !

LittleLady77

We are doing a fresh DE cycle via an agency. We are paying for it by doing a documentary on the DE process called Egg Factor. I have to carry a small video camera with me everywhere and a film crew follows me to my dr. Appointments. It's weird but kind of therapeutic. 

We have our donor, she's almost done with testing and we are just waiting... And waiting... And waiting. I'm so sick of waiting.  I'm really hoping we get our official calendar this week so I at least have a timeline to obsess over.   

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!

my brother in law and his family are coming to stay with us for 3 weeks. They currently live in China and we have never actually met the kids.  we Skype with them almost every weekend but I cant wait to actually give the little guys a hug! During that time we are renting a cabin on a lake for the 4th. Other than that we can't afford any other trips with all the IF costs.

DoublePortion

1. Where are you in your process?

b) Waiting to cycle using DE, DS or DE/DS, or embryo adoption (specify), a surrogate or GC

2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share? I'm mostly ok, but am so tired of feeling like my life is in a constant holding pattern. I called my RE's office last week to see if they've had any embryos donated but haven't heard back from them. I looked at newborn pics of my niece the other day (she's almost 2 now) and just cried and cried. Somedays it seems like I'll never have a child of my own to watch grow up. Wow, sorry didn't mean to be such a downer!

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more! Nope, no plans yet. I was laid off in April so if we do take a trip it'll be a small one.

JM1977

LittleLady77:

We are paying for it by doing a documentary on the DE process called Egg Factor. I have to carry a small video camera with me everywhere and a film crew follows me to my dr. Appointments. 

This is fascinating!  I think it's wonderful that you're doing this and I hope it brings some more awareness to third party reproduction options. 

brooklynesque

Hi, ladies! 1. Where are you in your process?I'm waiting to cycle with donor eggs; my transfer should be in mid-July.  I'm just patiently waiting, hoping nothing goes wrong in the meantime.2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?I'm doing fine.  No real regrets for having gone this route.  I'll just be so happy to have a baby, when and if it happens.  If it doesn't happen it's really going to be tough, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. 3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!No big summer vacation planned at this point.  Cycling in July throws a bit of a wrench in things from that perspective.  But my husband and I should be spending a long weekend on Cape Cod and a lot of weekends out in the country nearer NYC.

BeckyP005

Hello!

Well my 6 month wait on DE list is now pushed until maybe July or August. 3 more months and MH is not happy with this.

Biggest challenge is like everyone else...the waiting and putting our life on hold for almost 2 years. Oh well...you girls know that one. I sound like a broken record...I'm sorry. That's been rough for MH. Another challange is I will be turning 45 this Wed and this freaks me out more than DE. Really didn't want to be an "older" mom. That's a whole other complaint...lol.

I am going to Belgrade,Yugoslavia for 10 days with my parents next week!! I am SO excited to see family I haven't seen since I was 18. Very grateful my parents are paying  my way. Both my parents are from there and Bosnia. Sad that I wont see everyone though. I can't stay a month like my parents!

Hugs to those that need some

jcath

Hi all!

I'm parenting DE identical twin girls who are 20 mos old.  I also have two biological teenage sons from my first marriage so we are a pretty chaotic household

Good luck to those cycling and new BFPs. Hugs to those who need them. 

LittleLady77

JM1977:

LittleLady77:

We are paying for it by doing a documentary on the DE process called Egg Factor. I have to carry a small video camera with me everywhere and a film crew follows me to my dr. Appointments. 

This is fascinating!  I think it's wonderful that you're doing this and I hope it brings some more awareness to third party reproduction options. 

Thanks, I hope it brings awareness to TPR too.

indianasunshine

Hi!

 I am 15 weeks tomorrow with a little boy conceived with DE.  Our EDD is 11/20, but I'm hoping for 11/12/13!  This pregnancy is much different than my first.  Our 3 y.o.son has Down syndrome, and we knew by this point in the pregnancy.  I was scared every single day that he wouldn't make it, and I had so many doctor's appointments.  Other than my own anxiety, he was very easy on me.  I was never sick, never in pain, pretty good energy.  This pregnancy, this boy has had me sick, crampy and cripplingly tired.  We had Materni T21 testing, and he is all good with regards to the big 3 trisomies.  Please know I am not complaining, but it is definitely true that no two pregnancies are the same!

No summer plans here.  I have to save all of my time off for maternity leave. 

Firefly062

I am checking in here after a hiatus from this board and IF )

1.  I am currently 20w5d pregnant with our first baby boy, EDD is 10/10/13. We used donor sperm due to DH's azoo/Sertoli-only syndrome. It took a year of us trying on our own, then 5 IUI's, a fresh cycle IVF and then finally on our first FET it took.

2. It's kind of weird being pregnant finally after trying for so long. Every time we have an ultrasound I'm totally blown away that there's something real and alive in there. Now instead of worrying about getting pregnant I'm worried about the realities of introducing the topic of donor sperm etc and how he'll respond/feel about it. But at the moment mostly just happy that we're going to have a baby boy.

3. We're going to head to Seattle in August and visit with some friends, hang out. I've never been so it will be cool to see somewhere new and then come home and get ready for the baby. Mostly this summer we'll be sitting by our pool...providing we can ever get it full/clean/open.  

liz4paws

1. Where are you in your process? We are in the process of adopting five new donor embryos from someone I met through a Facebook group. It will be a "known" donation as opposed to anonymous through a clinic. We adopted five last fall from a different donor, two died at thaw, we transferred two and I became pregnant with a singleton. Sadly, we lost her at 9w1d. We were left with one remaining. But I feel so incredibly blessed to be getting five more so we will have a total of six on ice! I'm kind of in a unique situation lol.

2. Check-in: In a known embryo donation/adoption, the involved parties are 100% responsible for arranging everything from legal contracts, blood work, shipping, etc. In our previous donation, it was so much easier because our donors were not the genetic parents of the embryos. We were able to skip many of the steps. In our new adoption, our donors ARE the genetic parents and the FDA requires a whole slew of extra items in this case. The bureaucracy and hoops to jump through have been much more challenging, but I've been up for the challenge and we are on the very last step. We just signed the contract in front of a notary and I'm shipping it to the donors for them to do the same this week. Then they will be officially ours and we can have them shipped to us. We will be able to put together cycle dates at that point too. I can't wait!

3. QOTW:  No summer vacation planned yet since I don't know what our cycle looks like. But DH and I are in the process of planning a 5 day weekend trip somewhere local. I love weekend trips!

happywifemomofone

1. Where are you in your process?

 

 Currently pregnant with DEembryo baby.  EDD is 12/23/13

 

2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?

Exhaustion mostly, mild nausea and manageable constipation

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!  We just returned from seeing my son in Orlando and then we spent a week in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.  It was a great trip, although I'm afraid that it will be our last until at least mid 2014.

MrsT4

2Mamaz, thanks for reviving the check-in.  I?ve been lurking for a while but haven?t posted much since I?m not currently cycling?but I did want to offer congrats to all of the recent BFP?s!!  And as always, hugs to those that need them! 1. Where are you in your process? b) Waiting to cycle using DE ? hoping for a frozen transfer in July 2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?  Similar to most, I hate that I?m still in the waiting phase of things?but it is what it is.  Biggest challenge so far is looking for a job, since I was laid off about a month ago?not to mention the added stress of being down one income. 3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!  Unfortunately, no summer plans for us because 1) I?m hoping to cycle in July and 2) I don?t have a job, so we need to conserve money for the FET.

hooliface

Parenting an amazing 1 year old daughter with DE.   I would not change A thing about her or our experience.    I was SO worried about bonding with her since I have 1 child that is bio, but I can say with everything that I did the best thing ever by having her.

 I am madly in love with this amazing little baby and she is seriously SO much like me, strange right?    She even looks like me, has the same quirks as me.

good luck to all, I know the road is rough but you will have no regrets!    

No plans for summer....rest and play with kiddos 

Strunella

hooliface:

Parenting an amazing 1 year old daughter with DE.   I would not change A thing about her or our experience.    I was SO worried about bonding with her since I have 1 child that is bio, but I can say with everything that I did the best thing ever by having her.

 

I'm glad to see this as I also worry about it.  DS is bio.

Where are you in your process?  Currently 5 weeks pregnant with DE.  I've had 2 promising betas so far.  Next one is on Friday, and if all is well, first u/s will be June 7.

Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?  I am nervous and still not convinced that this is going to result in a successful pregnancy.   Because of my 2 losses last year, I feel somewhat distant in this process.   I had good betas both times; I saw a hb both times at the 6 week u/s.   And then it was all over by 8 weeks.  I have to keep reminding myself that those were with my own crappy eggs and that this time it's totally different.  I think this might not sink in until I pass the 8 week mark, if I am fortunate enough.  I'm also not really feeling any symptoms yet.  I KNOW it's kind of early.  But I didn't feel much with my 2 losses either, which was the first indication to me that something wasn't right.

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!    No vacations planned.  

AmCheri

2MamazInSeattle:

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1. Where are you in your process?

Currently pregnant via DE with a baby girl, EDD June 16, 2013.  We also just completed a freeze-all cycle with the same donor and are ecstatic to have six 7-day blasts on ice. 

2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?

Overall, we're doing pretty good. Still seeing an IF therapist and fully admit that I still have moments in which I feel disappointed and angry that I couldn't get pregnant with my OE. That said, I love this baby and have no regrets about using DE. She's measuring quite a bit behind, so I'm trying to stay positive and thinking plump baby thoughts. 

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!

Our summer vacation will consist of staying home and trying to keep baby happy and healthy. :-D

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Thank you for starting this check in! 

sammer818

Good Morning Ladies! I'm late to the party but we've been out of town and I can no longer bump at work

1. We will be using a gestational surrogate to start our family...we are waiting to hear back from an agency we applied to last week.

2. I'm doing ok. We had an agency and a potential carrier lined up and everything fell apart. We knew it was a possibility when we started, but we didn't really think it would go like it did. So, we are back at square one. It's hard to keep hoping that someday we'll have a child after everything we've been through. 

3. No summer vacations, but DH and I plan to go to Boston/Maine this fall to hike and see the colors. I can't wait!

ArgyleBride

1. Where are you in your process?

I am signing up to be an egg donor. I already did the two paper applications and the genetic counseling.  I still have the psych eval and the "orientation" left, both of which are scheduled.  I will go live, as it were, at the end of June, and they said to expect a match right away.  So I guess that would be "b: waiting." 

2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?

Doing fine.  The hard part is yet to come.  

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!

My husband is going on a month-long work trip to a beautiful part of Colorado, so I will spend at least a weekend with him there! 

Km672

1. Where are you in your process?

b) Waiting to cycle using DE, DS or DE/DS, or embryo adoption (specify), a surrogate or GC: 

 DEmbryo, we are planning for a fresh DE/DS cycle late this summer.

 

2. Check-in: How are you doing where you are at right now? Biggest challenges or things you'd like to share?

Like others mentioned, the waiting is pure torture. We have been TTC 4+ years and we have definitely had our lives on hold because of cycles, appts and expecting to have been successful by now.

As I had posted before, our donor was MIA and we chose a new donor.    She is not experienced, as we had really hoped for, but we did not really like any of the proven donors. If this donor follows through, she will be perfect for us. We actually like her a lot more than our previous donor. Having just been through the ordeal with our last donor, I am not as excited as I had been. The whole thing kinda deflated my balloon.

3. QOTW: Do you have a summer vacation planned? Where to and when? Tell us more!

I will be taking 2 weeks off after transfer, but it will mostly be time at home and day trips with my H.

I'm sure we will have a few long weekends together and do something fun for our Anniversary, which is in June.