I lied. One more post =)

I am in awe at how many people have viewed my blog since I first created it back in September. It's amazing to see that not only are my friends and family following (yes, I can tell who's checkin' out my blog--i see you!), but people from all over the world have been reading my posts, too! Very cool.


Here's a screen shot I took today that shows how many viewers to date and from which Country. Neat! 

United States 2,377

Canada 39

Germany 10

Malaysia 10

United Kingdom 7

Australia 6

Netherlands 6

Russia 4

Slovenia 4

Iceland 2

I hope that my blog (thus far) has provided even the slightest bit of support to other surrogates and IP's out there who are searching the web as I did, and still do, for support. If it wasn't for other surrogacy related blogs that I have come across (and so very thankful for!), I wouldn't have the knowledge and support needed to get me through this journey. I wanted to take a quick moment to say THANK YOU for following my blog and THANK YOU for your comments. Your thoughtful and encouraging words truly mean a lot. 


For those of your who are "silent" viewers/followers, please don't be shy; introduce yourself. =) I'd love to know what brought you to my blog.


One last thing. To all my new surro-friends---YOU ROCK!! You "get" what I am going through like no one else does. You help to calm my nerves when I'm starting to freak myself out over nothing (most recently, my upcoming medical eval.). Your blogs have provided so much support for me and I just LOVE reading all about your journeys and viewing picture updates of growing bellies and babies.


Well that's it. My final and last post of the year--For real this time, haha! Happy New Year everyone. May this upcoming year bring you all Peace, Joy, Love, and Happiness.

My last post of the year

It's kind of weird saying that this will be my last post......of the year! I'm am sooo ready for 2011. It's going to be a great year, that's for sure! I am very excited about whats to come in this surrogacy journey.

Here's what I am looking forward to:

• A smooth, stress-free medical evaluation with nothing but GOOD results.
• The signing of our contract.
• Building a great, solid friendship with Eleazar and Angeline.
• Starting injections. 
• Successful 1st cycle and a positive pregnancy test.
• Meeting up with other local surrogates.
• Attending doctor appointments with Eleazar and Angie.
• Witnessing the joy and happiness that Eleazar and Angie share together during our first ultrasound of their baby/ies.
• Introducing Eleazar and Angie to my family and possibly meeting their family as well. (their family are all up North, so might not be possible) 
• Carrying their baby/ies to full term with no complications.
• Handing their baby/ies over and witnessing the instant love and overwhelming happiness that Eleazar and Angeline have been longing for.
• Watching their baby/ies grow up. 

That's a lot to look forward to.....and I'm ready for every bit of it!!

A quick, short and sweet update on my journey:
My medical insurance has been approved and will go ACTIVE 1/1/2011!!! I have scheduled my medical evaluation with Eleazar and Angie's Fertility doctor for Wednesday, January 12th @ 2pm. Eeeek. Nervous!!! I have been waiting for the day that I finally had this appointment scheduled. But, now that's it's scheduled, I don't want to go, ha! And to top it off....i'm going by myself (Hubby has to work). Maybe I'll have my Nana come with me to help ease my nerves a little. I'm sure she'd enjoy a trip to Los Angeles for the afternoon. Maybe we can even grab lunch together.

Last but certainly not least, I wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!! Christmas for the Muehlhaus' this year is going to be big. We went above and beyond for your kids this year and are anxious to watch them as they tear through all of their gifts. Our son, Aiden, has been counting down the days---"4 more days, Mom!!!!!!!"

Another beautiful birth story to share

Congratulations to my surro-friend, Ivy, on the birth of her surro-daughter, Taryn, last week!! What an amazing accomplishment--I can't wait to be in her shoes very soon!! Ivy wrote a beautiful birth story on her blog and also shared some pretty amazing pictures. Get your tissues ready!! My favorite picture is the one of  the IM (Intended Mom) showing her oldest daughter their newest addition (baby Taryn!), and in the background the grandparents' faces are priceless!!


WELCOME TO THE WORLD, BABY TARYN!!! You are already loved and adored by so many.  


Birth story, CLICK HERE.
Pictures, CLICK HERE.

Meet my IP's!!!!

I am so very excited to introduce to you,

Eleazar and Angeline
My Intended Parents! 

I will no longer refer to them as "E & A" on my blog (although it is easier and quicker..hehe). They have gladly given me permission to use their full name going forward.  :)


For those of you who may have noticed: YES they are Filipino....like me!! 


We have reached another big step in this surrogacy journey: The exchange of information! We now have each others contact information (address, phone, email) and we have been emailing back and forth for a few days now. It's been nice to receive emails from them. I have given them the link to this blog and they have already shared with me that they've thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I am so glad. I've heard of other IP's not wanting their surrogate blogging about the surrogacy for privacy reason, so I am relieved to know that Eleazar and Angeline are ok with it. Blogging about our journey not only helps to keep my family and friends up to date with the latest, but also allows their family and friends to stay connected as well. 


A little bit about my Intended Parents: 
Eleazar and Angeline are high school sweethearts. It was love at first sight when they met during high school and while working at a local K-Mart in Northern California, about 20 years ago. They went on to attend different colleges, but their relationship continued to flourish since both colleges were local. 


Soon after graduating college, Eleazar accepted a full time job with a major aerospace company here in California. This meant relocating to Southern California and eventually settling down with Angeline in Orange County (side note: They are only about 15-20 mins away from me, which I think is fantastic!!). Eleazar has been with the same company for just over 16 years now and is once again back in school pursuing another graduates degree! In his free time he enjoys going out with Angeline or just spending quality time at home with her. 


Angeline suffered complete kidney failure as a teenager, which required her to have a kidney transplant. Since then, she has had 3 more kidney transplants. For this reason, Angeline has decided to be a Homemaker. Her last kidney transplant is doing very well, thanks to the advances of modern medicine. However, carrying a child is not an option for Angeline due to potential risks associated with her transplant and the medications she takes on a daily basis to prevent rejection. In Angeline's spare time, she loves to cook and try new recipes (this could be good because I love to eat!). Angeline also loves to decorate. 


Well there you have it--my Intended Parents!! They are wonderful. I am very much looking forward to getting to know them more. I am honored that they chose me to be their gestational surrogate. I am honored that they have chosen me help make their dream come true of one day (very soon!) having and baby.....or two. ;)

A+ Psychological Evaluation!

I just got off the phone with the therapist for my psychological evaluation. The call went smoothly and quickly; only lasted about 17 minutes and ended with "....everything looks great!....". :) Some of the questions that were asked were very similar to the ones that are included in my profile. She had to ask me these questions in order to build knowledge of me as she will be seeing me through this entire surrogacy journey. She will also be checking up on me on a monthly basis to offer support. 


Here is what she asked me: Name; age; birth place; hometown; my parent's background; family medical history; siblings; relationship status with family members (Mom, Dad, Sister, Husband, Children); when/how did my husband and I meet; how long have we been married; my character strengths and weaknesses; my hobbies; why I want to be a surrogate; how do I feel about selective reduction, amniocentesis, and carrying multiples; do I have support from family if I have to go on bed-rest; how I will feel after delivery and handing the baby over; what I plan to do with the money that I am compensated for being a surrogate; what type of relationship I would like with my IP's; and would I want a continued relationship with my IP's after the birth.


This psych eval was nothing compared to the written test that I had to take during my home visit a few months ago. There were over 300 questions; and silly ones at that! Example: Do you like to collect stamps? Umm, no.

No Crazies Over Here!

I am scheduled for a psych eval tomorrow morning. This will be handled over the phone and should last about 30mins. I am confident that this will go smoothly. 


After that, paperwork will be filled out to apply for medical insurance. Once my insurance is activated, I will then have an appointment scheduled to see E & A's doctor for a medical evaluation. This part I am nervous about, as I mentioned in my previous post. It will most likely be another few weeks until I go in for the medical eval, so until then, I don't want to think about it and get myself all worked up.


In the meantime, I have been spending a lot of quality time with my family. We took the kids to San Diego Zoo this past weekend and also spent time visiting with my Husband's Aunt and Uncle while we were in the area. With Christmas coming up (so quickly!) I am looking forward to many more memories made with my family. This is our favorite time of the year! Happy Holidays, Everyone!!

I Am Thankful

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I'd like to share what I am most thankful for this year.

I am most Thankful for my Husband, Eric. 

Without him, I wouldn't be where I am at today. Without him, I wouldn't be in love and happily married. Without him, I wouldn't have the most amazing, beautiful, happy, healthy children. Without him, I wouldn't have such an awesome set of in-laws. Without him, I wouldn't have a beautiful sister in-law that I adore. Without him, I wouldn't be an Auntie. Without him, I wouldn't be able to stay at home with my children. Without him, I wouldn't be able to sleep soundly at night. Without him, I wouldn't know what true love really is. Without him, I wouldn't have enough support be a surrogate mother. Without him, I wouldn't be me.  My husband completes me. I am so very blessed to have him in my life. I love him dearly. He is an amazing father to our children. He supports me. He loves me unconditionally. He makes me laugh. Eric, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for supporting me. Thank You for all that you have blessed me with. I love you.

Surrogacy Support Group

While I'm waiting to fill out insurance paperwork to begin my surrogacy journey with my IP's, I thought I'd do a quick informational post. :)

Most of my online surro-mom friends already know about Surrogate Mother's Online, LLC, but for those of you who are new to surrogacy--whether you are the Surrogate or the IP's--I encourage you to check out Surrogate Mother's Online, if you haven't already done so. This website is FILLED with a TON of information to include but not limit to:

• Surrogacy Articles
• Birth Announcements
• Message Boards
• Classifieds
• Surrogacy, infertility, egg donor, pregnancy, postpartum, ect. links
• Sample contracts
• Success stories
• And much more!

To be redirected to Surrogate Mother's Online, please click HERE. 

I am new to the Surrogate Mother's Online Message Boards and still familiarizing myself. I plan to use it to the fullest during my surrogacy journey for support from other surro-mommies. 

Bellybuds

I just purchased my first little gift for my soon-to-be surro-baby/ies. :) 

Bellybuds

Play music and voices to the womb!

You can share loving messages with baby from parents, grandparents, other relatives and friends. This way, when baby meets the person who recorded the message for the first time, their voice will already be familiar. 

Military moms are playing recorded messages from husbands overseas.
Adopting couples are sending their voices for the birth mom to play to her belly.
OB/GYNs are helping turn the baby “toward camera” for ultrasound pictures.
Surrogacy couples are familiarizing their baby-to-be with their voices.
Moms with breech babies are helping turn the baby downwards.

I can't wait to share this with E & A and have them record themselves maybe reading a book so that I can play it to their baby/ies while they are growing in my womb!

Surrogacy Insurance

We are waiting. Again. I'm starting to get used to this whole hurry-up-and-wait game.....But, that doesn't mean that I like it. I know that once things start to get rolling; once I start my injections; once I see two pink lines; it's all craziness from then on...and I'm excited about that! I am thankful though that I get to take it easy and focus on my family during the upcoming holidays. This is my favorite time of the year!


My IP's (E & A) are in the final stages of choosing an insurance company that will cover me through the surrogacy and allow for me to deliver at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach. Being that I will have a c-section and will be spending a few days in the hospital, this was important to me--I wanted a room with an ocean view while recovering from my battle wounds!! Hoag Hospital is a perfect location for the delivery and equal distance for us all--about a 15 to 20 minute drive. Hoag's Women's Pavilion is also home to an expert Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) staff of highly trained nurses and neonatologist who provide specialized, around-the-clock care for infants born prematurely, or with complications.


While the insurance paperwork is about to be filled out by all parties and then processed by the ins. co. (this will probably take another few weeks *deep sigh*), I will (hopefully) in the meantime take care of speaking with the psychologist to get that part out of the way. Once my insurance coverage goes active, we can then schedule my appointment and physical with E & A's fertility doctor, Dr. Paulson. This part worries me a little. I'm worried that Dr. Paulson will find something...maybe a tumor, or a cyst, or find that my uterine lining is too thin, or something that will no longer allow me to be a surrogate for E & A. I would be devastated. I know E & A would be devastated. This just would not be good. So, prayers please!!! Please, please, please, please pray that my physical with Dr. Paulson goes smoothly and we receive great results and are given the thumbs up to move forward with the contract and finally start injections....YAY!!! (ouch!)