Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Meeting the new parents

Well, Sunday evening began the trip up to Connecticut to meet the Intended Parents and do all the necessary screening.  I know I was nervous and I'm sure they were nervous, too.  The trip started in Orlando International Airport, where I learned my flight was running 40 minutes late.  Of course, that's pretty normal for Delta, especially considering we were flying into La Guardia Airport.  So, instead of leaving at 6:40 p.m., we flew out at 7:20 p.m.  Apparently, it was windy in NY, which caused Air Traffic Control up there to bring flights in slower.  The flight itself was pretty uneventful.  When we landed,  since I didn't have any checked luggage, I was able to quickly find my driver.  Yep, they hired a DRIVER since the hotel was in Connecticut.  So, around 9:30 at night, I got into a car and got prepared to be driven an hour to another state.

I made it to the hotel and man, was I impressed.  The hotel is absolutely gorgeous.  It's called Hotel Zero Degrees and they have a hotel in Norwalk, CT (where I stayed) and in Stamford, CT.  I really wish I had taken pictures of my room.  It was amazing.  It was luxury without being overbearing.  There was even a robe in the bathroom.  It was one of the best nights' sleep I've gotten in awhile.  I had an alarm set for 8 a.m. because I wanted to get a quick run in before I met the parents.   I woke promptly at 8 and ran almost 2 miles.  I wasn't prepared for how cold it would be and wore just a tank top and long pants.  I was freezing, considering it was 43 degrees.  Anyway, I finished my run and got a quick little bite to eat at the continental breakfast they had available at the hotel.  I quickly showered and got ready to meet the parents.

At 10 a.m., the parents showed up in the lobby of the hotel to take me and my husband to breakfast.  I probably should've mentioned earlier that he came with me.  Lol.  We both had to do the screening.  Anyway, we immediately realized they were a very nice couple.  We all piled in their SUV and drove to the diner to eat.  It was a little Venezuelan place and the food was excellent.  Everyone else got omelets and I got a wrap.  We were all stuffed when we finished.  Then, we all headed off to the clinic to have all our appointments.

After finishing all the new patient paperwork, my husband and I first spoke with the doctor regarding the previous surrogacy and making sure we were aware of all the risks and the entire procedure.  Then, it was time for a sonogram for me to make sure my body was normal.  It is, in case you were wondering.  We also had to have blood work done.  They took 5 vials of my blood and 3 vials of my husband's.  We were also supposed to have a group session with the psychologist, but she had a family emergency and was unable to be there.  So, instead, my husband and I had to fill out a 344-question psychological test.  We took the same exact test last time and it was just as tedious this time around.  All of that took about 4 hours, then we were done.  The parents dropped us back off at the hotel where the car service would pick us up to take us back to the airport.  We all parted ways amiably and are all very excited to continue moving forward.

We got home late last night, but we did make it home safely.  Now, it's just waiting on test results to say everything is hunky dory, then we'll continue moving forward.  While we were up there, we did find out that the couple has been through this before, but for whatever reason, it didn't end up working out on the gestational carrier's end.  All of a sudden, a lot of the stuff we'd been wondering about made sense.  The process has been much speedier this time around than last time.  We also found out that the first time we did it, it took much longer than normal.  Apparently, going this quickly is fairly normal.  Once all the legal issues are done, records have been obtained, and test results have been returned, we'll be able to set a transfer date.  I'll make sure to keep you all updated!

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