Meeting the Parents

Its a funny thing when you talk about meeting someones parents...its really sort of crazy when that someone hasn't been born yet, but you are meeting the people that want them here so badly.  I met a great couple yesterday.  A couple that technically are parents, to four embryos carefully frozen at their RE's office.  Four beautiful embryos (they would only transfer 2 at at time) that are ready to be given a chance to grow in the right environment...my environment.  I got the thumbs up with the "A+ Uterus" seal of approval from the doc, so we spent most of the evening talking and getting to know each other in person.  There have been lots of emails over the last few weeks, a few texts and a single voicemail.  It is amazing how you can hear kindness instantly in some people.  And it is wonderful when your gut is right and you meet two people and instantly have to hug them.

The thing about meeting two people in this particular situation is that the actual meeting is something like a job interview and something like a first date.  You want them to like you and you want to like them, but you also want to make sure that everyone is comfortable enough to be honest.  This whole process requires people to really get down to the nitty-gritty and think of things they would rather not.  Some pretty dire situations have to be discussed and everything spelled out because it all has to be put into a contract. You have to agree to worst case situations before there are any situations--because later on hormones are involved and no telling how rational anyone will be then. 

The other part is that they have been through so much.  I am excited to help and eager to see the whole process unfold...but they have been repeatedly broken hearted and have to be cautious.  I have seen that look before and know it well, and fortunately I was able to watch as the caution slowly melted away into excitement.  God has a plan for us all and I think being an experienced surrogate is exactly what this couple needs.  They need a little hope and I hope I can give that to them.

I had been worried that after knowing J&M and working with them so closely since they were local, that it would be hard to connect with anyone else.  I know this experience will be very different, yet I think it will also be just as wonderful.  I met two people yesterday that need to be parents.  You could see in their faces and hear it in their voices when they spoke of how far they had gone just to get to this point. They need to have a child of their very own and this is the path they must take to make it a reality.

Oh and on a positive note already, the doc has a different protocol that uses less injections (no lupron this time) and estrogen by mouth instead of a million patches all at once.  We will even be going into this process with higher odds than the last go round--and we got pregnant the first try!