Embryo development

5-Day Transfer

Days Past Transfer (DPT)	Embryo Development
One	The blastocyst begins to hatch out of its shell
Two	The blastocyst continues to hatch out of its shell and begins to attach itself to the uterus
Three	The blastocyst attaches deeper into the uterine lining, beginning implantation
Four	Implantation continues
Five	Implantation is complete, cells that will eventually become the placenta and fetus have begun to develop
Six	Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) starts to enter the blood stream
Seven	Fetal development continues and hCG continues to be secreted
Eight	Fetal development continues and hCG continues to be secreted
Nine	Levels of hCG are now high enough to detect a pregnancy

Essential oils during pregnancy

Certified Midwife Stephanie Fritz LM, CPM was my midwife for my last baby who was born at home. She is now a very successful Doterra essential oils buisness leader and now author. She has written a book about Essential oils during pregnancy and birth. The cool part is there are pictures of Cole & I during birth and post partum in her book! I am honored. The best part is she introduced me to Doterra essential oils and we have been using them for two years now. I plan to continue them during pregnancy. I have been taking Life long vitality as my prenatal vitamin. Is the very best supplement as in contains whole foods and essential oils. Here is an exert from Stephanie Fritz's book regarding daily routine during pregnancy.

Essential oils for pregnancy, birth and babies
 
EVERYDAY Routine for the Pregnant Women
Morning:
The Life Long Vitality Pack – The very BEST prenatal vitamin
PB Assist+ Balance and On Guard on bottom of feet every morning
Lemon in ALL your water (may use ANY citrus oil)
3-5 drops Frankincense under tongue
10 drops Grapefruit under tongue or in a capsule
Slim and Sassy 3-5 drops 3-5 times a day
Zendocrine oil blend 3-5 drops in a capsule or on liver area

Evening:
Serenity, Lavender, or other oils to help reduce stress 5 drops on bottom of feet before bedtime
As Needed During Pregnancy:
AromaTouch, Cypress, or citrus oils for occasional swelling
DigestZen, Ginger, Peppermint, Fennel for nausea, heartburn, gas or bloating
Deep Blue or Past Tense for headaches
Birth
Helichrysum with Fractionated Coconut Oil on the perineum during crowning and birth of baby’s head for bruising, swelling, and bleeding.
White Fir and Lavender on mom’s tummy for after pains

It's getting CLOSE!!!

Sorry it has taken me so long to update my blog. I have been feeling pretty crummy lately. I had to increase my estrogen, which has made me extremely exhausted and nauseous. For those that know I am a very busy mom, those two are not a good combo. Good news is today was the last lupron injection in my belly! I have a few bruises and tons of little scabs from the injections. Today was the egg donor's retrieval. My heart goes out to her because she has been doing some pretty intense meds to get as many eggs as possible. This wouldn't be possible without her so thank you who ever you are. The eggs will be fertilized and allowed to mature 5 days into beautiful blastocysts. I will be praying daily for very healthy embryos. Whether we transfer one or two embryos will depend on the outcome of the egg retrieval. Tomorrow is a big day for me as a gestational surrogate. I start the Progesterone injections in my derriere. I will be doing those daily for 6-8 weeks! A big 20 gauge needle, about 2 inches long. Those will not be fun. The BIG DAY will be this Monday, August 13. My whole family, including my kids are so excited to be able to do this for such an amazing couple. I pray everything goes smoothly and very soon J & S will be parents! Keep us all in your thoughts and prayers.

Let's try this again..

Sorry it has been a while since I have updated my blog. Let me get you up to date on our journey. After three weeks of Lupron injections I got a call from the fertility clinic that the egg donor wasn't ready, her estrogen level was too low. When doing a harvest you want the most eggs you can get and with her estrogen levels being so low it wasn't a good sign for plenty of eggs. So we had to start the cycle again and pray that this time everything will work out. It was really emotional having to stop the process because we were so close to transfer. I just had to realize that this is not in my hands and I need to be patient. As of now, I have been on birth control pills now for 2 weeks. Tomorrow morning I start the Lupron injections in my abdomen again. We are looking at a August transfer now. I'm really praying that everything goes smoothly so we can be one step closer at making this wonderful couple a family. :)

Location, Location, Location!

Today was day 2 of lupron injections. Lupron overstimulates the body's own production of certain hormones, which causes that production to shut down temporarily.  This is done so I won't ovulate and so the IVF clinic can take control over my cycle. Yesterday my injection didn't hurt at all, I had some soreness later that evening but that's it. This morning my injection stung quite badly. I guess location does matter. My first shot was right next to my belly button, and this one today was below. I will survive and really it's not a big deal at all.

As for prenatals vitamins, I am not taking prenatal specific. I use Doterra's lifelong vitality for everyday vitamin supplement. Lifelong Vitality .

So far, so good! TTFN(ta ta for now).

Intended parents found & the start of meds!

Most know that I have wanted to be a gestational carrier for a long time. About 4 years ago I started casually looking for a couple to carry for. I knew that I wanted this family to meet a specific criteria. This isn't the first couple I considered carrying for, this is the third..I told you I was picky. lol Both myself and the IPs(intended parents) are using a local Surrogacy agency and they are amazing. They cover all legal matters and play the middleman. I am blessed that my surrogate coordinator is also my friend.  In November I was introduced to an amazing couple I will call J & S, they live in Texas about 2 hours away.  I felt an immediate connection and we knew that we had made a match. It took a while as these things sometimes do. 6 months later we are ready to begin the actual journey. For those who do not know about gestational surrogacies, this will not be my egg and I will be in no way genetically related to any child that comes forth from this pregnancy. After tons of different medical screenings, pyschological assessements and counseling we are ready to begin. I received my big box of meds today which includes daily injections in my stomach and bum. If all goes well we will be transferring the embryo(baby) around July 1-5. :) I can't wait to help make this amazing couple a family.