~ From Olivia ~
Nearly 37 weeks!
This is starting to
feel like the longest pregnancy ever, so its great to be so close to the
end. I will miss being pregnant, but I’m
excited to see Leo as part of Mark and Bernice’s family. Part of what is making this feel so long now
is that I have been sick for a couple of weeks with a really bad throat
infection and double ear infection. I’ve
had 2 lots of antibiotics which have helped heaps, but the cold part is hanging
around and feels like it is getting worse.
Hopefully I’ll be over it all soon.
A high point for me at the moment is counting down the number of sleeps till
c-section. I pulled a muscle in my tummy
which was agony, especially with such a ‘wide load’ on board. We had another growth scan the other day and
Leo is measuring big still, and was looking to be around nearly 8 pounds
already! That’s a lot of baby to carry
around with still several weeks to go - so definitely counting down to D-day
lol.
The
pelvic pain has increased significantly and everything is really a big effort
now. Biggest hassle is that I can’t go
shopping for hours like I used to – my limit is about half an hour now! I’m getting short of breath a lot with my
lungs being squashed.
It’s exciting having weekly midwife appointments now as that seems to make the
time go quicker. Only a few more
appointments until he arrives!
I had a nice catch up with a fellow surrogate the other week which was
great. It was really good to share
thoughts and feelings, things that only another surrogate can really
understand. We also realised how
different our journeys are, each situation is so unique to the people in
it.
I went in for a 3D/4D scan too. It was a bit sad because it was the first
scan that Bernice hadn’t been able to make it to, but she had already been up a
couple of days before hand for Midwife, growth scan and OB appointments. Afterwards I raced home and emailed her the
pictures straight away and she was over the moon. It was great to see Leo’s chubby cheeks! After having that scan he’s more like a
little person now seeing him in 3D. The
lady that did my scan was so lovely. We
weren’t getting very clear pictures on the machine we were using so we were
able to swap rooms and use a better machine.
All up I was in there for close to an hour and got lots of lovely
picture for Bernice, Mark and Ysabellah.
Now that
all the legal stuff for the adoption is sorted it is a great load off my
mind. It all ended up being very
simple. Nothing else needs doing till
the day Leo is born and I give the Social Worker a call. I am so relieved that Mark and Bernice can
legally care for Leo from the day he his born and not have to wait the normal
12 days!
My hospital bag is all ready to go now. I have just finished putting all the items in, and top of my list were coffee sachets and jaffas!
Not
long now. I’m looking forward to feeling
lighter and sleeping better!
From Bernice ~
Bags
are packed. Plans are made. Accommodation is booked for our stay in Palmy
after Leo is born so that we can spend special time with Olivia and her family.
Lists upon lists upon lists have been made, crossed out, rewritten and changed.
Most of the ‘i’s’ are dotted and ‘t’s’ are crossed…. I think?
Things
have been pretty busy, thankfully. I think
the time would be dragging otherwise. It
has been very exciting having all the appointments - More opportunities to pop
up and see Olivia and Leo.
I can’t believe what a wee pudding he
is! The 3D scan was amazing! His big chubby cheeks and his little fist up
on his forehead just melt my heart. It
will be interesting to see if he does this when he is born too, as on most of
the scan’s he seems to have his hand up near his face. The 3D scan was a big indulgence, but gosh
I’m so glad we did it. Having those
photos here at home with us while he is living with Olivia (so to speak lol)
means the world. I have them stuck to my
computer screen so I can see him all the time and it makes it that much more
real for Ysabellah too to see photo of her baby brother around the place. When Olivia emailed them through I printed
one off and had it on the front door waiting for Mark to come home.
Olivia
has been doing such an amazing job, and with such graciousness with all the
illness and pain she has had to deal with.
I am in awe of how she is handling it all!
I
have wound down my internet work and as of the end of this week will simply be
a mummy awaiting the arrival of her baby… but I have the easy part of it that’s
for sure! I don’t have to deal with the
aches and pains of late pregnancy!
Funnily enough though I have been very emotional lately. I cry at everything! When we had the last growth scan I started
crying…. And it caught me quite by surprise the big feelings I had. Part of it could be that it is most likely
the last time I will see him on the screen before I see him in person? I will of course be seeing Olivia and the
bump before birth day, but even so, there was something that really triggered
at the scan. My arms got that “I just
want to hold you” ache, it’s a feeling that sits very deep in the heart and I
guess I had kept that at bay all this time in case something went wrong, which
can so easily happen.
I
think there is also a part of me that will be sad when the pregnancy is over,
even though I am so excited about meeting Leonardo and holding him, I have
loved this pregnancy so much. It will
take some adjustment to him being on the outside and finally with us, and in
our arms and home and not in Olivia’s tummy.
So there is an element of that too I think…. Although I know Olivia is
well and truly ready to hand him over and get some sleep LOL.
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