Road Trip!

There's one person we still have to tell-- and the only reason he doesn't know yet is b/c we really want to tell him in person. Its M's youngest brother. Since we already had a trip planned to NYC to see him (within a week of when we broke the news to everyone), we thought that it would be cool to share the news in person.

So that's what we're doing this weekend. We're off to NYC....driving with 2 of our friends and hitting the Big Apple. Its about a 7 hour road trip. I have my fingers, toes, arms and legs crossed that I don't get sick being in the car for so long. I'm a tad bit concerned since we're travelling at night and that's when my "morning sickness" (how ironic a name) hits.

Regardless, I'm getting good at being a trooper, so I'm sure it'll be fine. I'm taking a year's supply of Jolly Ranchers-- I may get a cavity, but in mind, it would be a fair tradeoff for not getting sick.

Should be a really fun trip--- we're catching a game at Yankee Stadium (before they tear it down :() and will do some fun sight seeing too. Should be a great trip-- fun time with little bro & our friends. Nothing beats a little extended weekend road trip....except maybe flying (kidding)...it'll be a trip (get it, a trip). Here's to good weather!!!

Giddy

That's the word of the day. I have been blown away by the fun conversations we've been having over the phone and via email with family and close friends. SInce sharing the news, we've gotten the nicest outreaches of excitement and support from you--- and that just makes me flat out giddy.

We knew as we went through this that it wasn't just the two of us on this "trip" to develop our family...there are lots of people rooting us on. M & I have always commented on what great families we both have... I know that this is rare, and will never take it for granted.

In fact, when we told my parents at dinner on Friday, my brother and dad made the nicest toasts on this subject. I'm not going to go into specific details, but what was said was incredibly special and made us feel like real champions. The meaning of their toasts is simple and very worth sharing: We're very fortunate to have the familes we have (and we consider our close friends to be a part of this family). And Family is something you can never take for granted. Its a special gift...one that makes me GIDDY!

So thanks for the kind and excited messages---they really mean a lot :)

Welcome! The "news" is out!

Now that the news is out, this online journal really gets to come to solid light. See, I've been channeling all my thoughts in here as I've been waiting eagerly to share the good (I mean great) news. Because we kept this so hush-hush, I needed an outlet to express all that was going on.

I kept this blog for many reasons...
1) To remember every detail of this process, as we hope it ends up with an amazing finish that makes Cinderalla's fairytale pale in comparison. I'm kidding, but you catch my drift

2) To one day show our child, so they know exactly how they came to be...and could understand that a very nice woman gave us a gift that allowed us to start a family. We're going to be very open about the donor IVF with he/she about all of this. M & I feel its very important not to keep secrets and to be open about this with our child(ren).

3) To keep those close to us continually updated on our progress. I realize that this is not just a journey for M & I, but also a trip for those close to us. Feel free to check back and see what's going on....as I'm finding out, there are many fun quirks about being preggo. Its fun to share them.

4) Then finally, I'm hoping that someone may stumble upon this site who is undergoing fertility challenges. I want to share hope. I was fortunate to go into this process with a lot of hope (along with some other choice emotions- hah!) but mostly with hope. If just one person finds hope from my writing of our experiences, I'll be incredibly grateful. I know what its like to be willing to do just about anything to start a family...and realize that I'm not alone. So, if you come across this and feel it might help someone else who's in a simliar scenario, I encourage you to share this site with them. Its absolutely amazing what medical advances there have been. I am a firm believer that anything is possible as long as you believe.

Now that the news of this pregnancy is out, this site is open to keep everyone who'd like to be kept up date on the happenings of the Foley Family as we work to grow... 2 adults, one baby on the way, and one very special dog.

I've opened up the ability to post comments to any of the postings that you'd like. Its pretty easy to write them, so feel free if you'd like to do so. Welcome aboard :) No need to feel like you have to read this or post on this-- just wanted those close to us to have the option to do so if you please :)

The Academy Award Winning Secret "I'm not pregnant act" is now OVER! Yay!

I am so glad that the secret is now out...as this has been such a hard thing to keep to ourselves. Its really hard to act like everything is normal in everyday life when in reality, there are a lot of changes going on. I feel so different-- mostly in good ways, but having to act like I'm not preggers when I truly am, was getting a little tedious. I will not miss the nights of going out and having to pretend to drink when I wasn't or trying to inconspicously run to the bathroom at work when I was about to get sick. Then there's the 5 second delay I've been trying to stick to when talking to people who don't know...petrified that I was gonna slip and say something I wasn't supposed to. We kept this quiet for good reason, but I'm so over being quiet about it!!! I'm eager to hang up my acting cap for a bit.

We told our parents on Friday -- it was pretty neat. The reactions were priceless. We called close friends and the rest of our family members over the weekend--- and their reactions were also wonderfully sweet. Now work knows too. So, now we can just be ourselves and not have to keep up some silly act. I'm not very good at hiding the truth, so looking back, I'm flat out shocked that we could keep this secret for so many weeks.

Its funny, with all the symptoms I've been having so far in this pregnancy, I find it amazing & amusing that it hasn't really hit me until now that we're gonna actually have a baby. I think its because it didn't seem real until we told all of our family and those close to us....that's what makses all of this totally real.

No More Secrets! Today's the Day!!!

NO MORE SECRETS...
The cat is about to be out of the bag....mums no longer the word.

I am so excited to get this news out, as its driving me crazy keeping in quiet. 10 weeks to have your mouth stapled shut about such great news is a long, long time.

I've been watching every word...afraid that I was gonna slip. But after tonight, the secret will be completely out.

I'm grabbing my megaphone....can't wait!

These are a few of my favorite things...

My how things change when you're a human being that could have a "Baby on Board" sign attached to your forehead. I've discovered some things that I temporarily cannot live without, so I thought I'd share. Whether these items are too help keep my stomach at ease or just to help me feel comfortable, they're on the list

THE FAVES:
- Root Beer
- Canada Dry Root Beer
- Mornings (its when I seriously feel the best)
- Whole Wheat English Muffins
- Vanilla Yogurt with fresh berries
- Carryout (i.e. me not cooking)
- Sleep (lots of it... as in "I turn into a pumpkin at 9pm)
- 70 degree weather with the sun shining...it puts me in my happy place
- The cleaning people who come once a month. That speaks for itself
- Hugs from Mike. (Cheesy, yes, but totally true...I require more of them now)

As for cravings.... I really don't have any yet. But I will tell you that my fondness for Italian foods has definitely increased. Pasta seems to be the best thing I can stomach right now. They say that a baby sometimes gets their favorite "tastes" from what their moms eat when they are pregnant...its that's the case, this child is going to love pasta...just like me.

Anyone Got a Megaphone?

We've got less than a week to keep the secret...and I'm not gonna lie, I'm just about ready to get a magaphone out. In fact...we're within the 5 day countdown of when we'll start to go public with our good news. My parents are coming out from Maryland this weekend and we're having a draft party at our house for the NFL (its actually the 2nd Annual and we'll have 6 teams well represented this year).

We wanted to wait until we were well into our 10th week before we told our families and close friends. The logic being that by this time, we would feel fairly confident that we'd be pretty much out of the dangerous time. We've seen the heartbeat twice now, which looks very healthy. Now its just about finding the right way to break the news. We would really like to find a way to do it in person with both of our families, but also want them to find out at the same time...so some phone calls may be going on this weekend as we break the news.

I can't wait for it to be Friday. This has been one of the hardest secrets we've had to keep. Even though I say that, I'm still very glad that we decided to do it this way. It was a solid decision. Im just glad these 10 weeks have finally gone by. Its seems like its been 10 months, not 10 weeks!

The Olive, The Grapefruit & The Pot-Bellied Pig

I love reading books on this new-found, life-changing, incredibly unchartered territory called "pregnancy." I'm rather fascinated by what I'm discovering. For example, right now Little B is about the size of an olive and my uterus resembles the size of a grapefruit. Very interesting stuff I must say.

Then, many of these books continue on to go into great detail about how you shouldn't be showing yet at 9 weeks. They flat out say that you really won't be showing at ALL in the 1st trimester. Well, to that I say "B.S." Although my "All Day Sickness" (I'm calling it that b/c morning is actually the ONLY time I feel ok) is in full force, I am most definitely sporting a new thing.... a pot belly. Granted, its a little one, but it is oh-so-there. I don't know if I'd classify it as "showing" or not, but its definitely something worth describing. Because its totally here.

So, the olive's hanging out in the grapefruit all of which are causing the emergence of the pot bellied pig (that would be my belly). Just wanted to get that straight :)

Fashion

Can I just say thanks to the fashion designers who set the trends for this spring and summer? You totally must have my back, and I'm seriously appreciative. The flowing, loose fitting tops are all the rage...and I couldn't be more thankful. Not that I'm showing, but I'm definately doing the "thinkening in the midsection thing." Pants that were once quite loose are now way more fitted.

But the loose tops and dresses....how do I thank you designers and fashion moguls out there who make wearing these so in? With my normal luck, I would have expected to have my first trimester (aka "the secret" trimester) while we were immersed in a skin tight, corset-inspired leather, skinny jeans, bare midriff fashion trend. Luckily, the fashion gods were looking out for me. I can totally handle the flowy, rather loose fitting, fun-fabric, long-lengthed fairy top fashion trend that we're in right now.

So we're at 8 weeks (possibly more depending on how I keep measuring, which is a little more advanced). There's a lot going on in Hotel W....Little B is about the size of a kidney bean or a rasberry now. Kinda fun. And webbed fingers and toes are a new addition this week. Kinda cool. And its all happening quietly inside as I try to keep this a secret. With the way my brain is operating, every conversation with a loved one is an experience...as it feels like I almost slip and say something about this in each chat. If only this brain would work a little better.

Keeping This Secret

There are so many near slip ups that occur just about every day. This is such an exciting time, and as this pregnancy becomes more and more a part of our daily life, it becomes an even harder secret to keep.

Then there are the times when I just wanna blurt out "B/c I'm prenant, that's why I'm....(fill in the blank with any and all possible ends to this statement):
"tired"
"can't thnk straight"
"comotose at my desk"
"don't want to go out after work"
"not able to remember half of the things I'm currently doing"
"don't want to be up past 9pm"...and that's on a good day...mostly its past 8p"
"getting sick....no, people its not an eating disorder I picked up...in fact I'd very much like it to end"
"not calling as much "just to chit chat" b/c I'm petrified that I'm gonna slip up and blurt out something preggers-related"
"burping incognito all day long"

Its just plain hard to keep this a secret. Someone passed by my office door and asked if I was okay. Internally, I freaked for a moment. Yikes! I'm not acting like myself and that needs to stop until we can let this cat (or in my case, "cheetah") out of the bag. Its a major deal--- and we're so excited...I'm exhausted, but more than that, very very very very excited. But the time isn't right yet to share. Something could still go wrong....so we wait for a couple more weeks.

I just can't wait for this no longer to be a secret....especially from those closest to us who may be thinking something's "just not right," but just can't put their finger on it. In due time, I'll help you put your finger on my preggers belly and everything will make a whole lot more sense. Just a couple more weeks :)

Our 1st OB Appt

My how different an experience it is to actually go into an OB/Gyns office with a happy face on! I've always gone for either the ever-dreaded "annual pap" or the even more dreaded "something is not right with my gilry organs." And, I've never gone to an appointment with my husband right there too.

We had the chance to meet our new OB and I really like him. Thankfully, he comes highly recommended, which is how we found our way to his practice in the first place. He went through our records and took time to get to know us. I knew I would like him (as his patients rave about him) and it was so nice to see exactly why first hand. His office is about 40 minutes from Strongsville, but only about 20 minutes from both of our offices, so that's good. Even though we've been through some very delicate procedures to get here, he 's classifying me as a "low risk pregnancy," which is great news. I'll deliver at Hillcrest Hospital, which is also about 40 minutes away from home. So, fingers crossed that wehn the time comes, baby will give us adequate notice.

I was also really happy to learn that he is present at 95% of his patient's births...which is quite reassuring. He said that circumstances that would cause another doctor from their practice to step in are very rare. That is such a relief-- especially now-a-days when it seems like most practice flat out rotate delivery duties. That may be fine for some, but not me...not if at all possible. I want the Dr checking me along the way to be the one that welcomes me into motherhood. Call me a whimp, but I have to have the trust factor with the doctor who's gonna deliver life out of me.

Something that I totally didn't expect was that they'd do another ultrasound. Mike got to see the heart beating for the first time...it was so cool to watch him watch the screen. I saw such a fond, subtle reflection of pure joy. That's the only way I can describe it. I'm measuring exactly 7 weeks 5 days, which is precisely where I should be based upon the transfer date. So, Nov 19th has officially been listed as my due date.

Our next appt is May 12th...and we'll get an ultasound then too.

Sleeping Not-So Beauty

I'm totally amazed by the way Little B is changing me. I'm sure anyone who's already a mom could read this statement, laugh a little, and say in your head "Just you wait, Kris, you have NO idea." And they'd be correct, I don't have any idea...but I'll adapt when that comes as best I can.

But for now, I'm talking specifically about the physical changes that are happening to me. I'm sleepy ALL the time. Particularly from 2 in the afternoon until I go to sleep, which is now at about 8:30 or 9pm. This is the girl who pratically used to brag about how I could totally function on 6 1/2 or 7 hour of sleep per night. Not so much anymore. Now I need no less than 9 hours. Go figure.

So that would make me Sleeping Beauty...except for the tiny fact that I don't at all feel like I'm encompassing the "beauty" part. I'm quite a bit bloated and gassy. I don't at all look preggers-- not saying that I'm showing or anything-- I just don't look cute in any of my clothes at the moment. And all of this is still a secret, so I can just imagine the thoughts going through people's heads..."Geez Kris, lay off the junk food." When in fact I am (very unintentionally) laying off a lot of food becuase Little B likes me to see a lot of food twice if you catch my drift. Not nice...but as the books say, a sign of a very healthy pregnancy.

All if this is a transition. I just can't wait for the time when I actually have a belly that looks like there's something other than a double whopper with triple cheese (which I would never eat) in it. But this will happen in due time. I just want wait to let the secret out of the bag and stop pretending like there's nothing going on inside me...when there totally is ;)

Its Amazing What Medicine Can Do...

We also found out that our shot days will soon be coming to an end. Yep, that's right. Thanks to a quickly-growing placenta (thank G-D), I'll only need to be on meds and shots until 4/9. Wow. That will be my 8 wk mark, which is the earliest they would take a patient off meds. Given my history, I really thought that I'd be on much longer, as did my doctor, but the body's kicking in to action. I think my organs forgot that those ovaries have been gone for quite some time.

I find all of this truly fascinating...and quite inspiring when you think about it. Here I am, a lady sans ovaries, which are kinda a big deal for women. They control many female hormones as well as the reproduction process. Thanks to medical advancement, we've successfully-sythetically convinced the organs that would be interacting with my ovaries to create a pregnancy, that nothing is out of the ordinary. My uterus is acting just as if this egg came from my ovary and isn't rejecting it. Instead, its making the Little B feel quite comfy and welcome (my plush, couch-like lining prooves this little fact). Together, they're producing the hCG hormone, which is alerting the rest of my body that there's a Little B on Board. When I say alerting, I think they are practically screaming it throughout my body, as the symptoms I'm feeling are intense. I feel preggers in many parts of my body--especially in my chest, my upset stomache, and my brain that just can't concentrate. Then there's the incredibly sleepy factor. My body has even communicated that message loud and clear.

Little B's Got a Beat!!!

Very very very very very very very exciting day. We had our ultrasound and saw exactly what we wanted to see.... a little fluttering heartbeat going very fast on the screen. Instantaneously, it went from being a blob-o-cells to a baby-to-be...just by seeing the heartbeat for the very first time. I thought ahead of time that I would totally cry when I saw the heart moving on the screen, but I didn't. Instead, I giggled like a 5-year-old. Go figure.

On the way home, I was magneticly pulled towards the Carter's Outlet that is along the highway. I stopped and got some really cute stuffed animals...a duck (shocking), a dog (again, shocking), and a giraffe (surprise). Anyway, they are super cute and will be fun furry friends for this little bundle of baby once they arrive. In the meantime, they can amuse me, which they do quite well. I look at them and just smile.

We realize that there are still many more steps to come, but even my Dr said that this is the biggest obstacle we'll need to hurdle, and we did it. In other exciting news, there is no sign of the other Little B roaming around where they shouldn't be (i.e. no ectopic pregnancy), which is also great. They did a very thorough ultrasound and are confident that there's only one, which I am super happy about...twins would have been great in their own way, but I am so happy that we'll get to have a singleton for our first pregnancy. We've got lots to learn!

We're on track to have a little baby around Thanksgiving. Isn't that just so appropriate?!?! Talk about something to be thankful about!