Joy

Yesterday was a big day in this surrogate journey: THE BIG ultrasound. 5:00pm found me waiting in the doctor's office both for my appointment and for the parents to arrive. They live about 2 hours away. Right before the nurse called me back, I got a call from them saying they had been stuck in traffic and were about 30 miles away. I explained the situation to the nurse who was super excited about our situation and agreed to do all the preliminary stuff until the couple could get here. For those who have never had this experience, this midpoint ultrasound measures everything on the baby; arms, legs, heartbeats, amniotic fluid, weight. That takes a while with one baby, let alone two! So the whole time she was taking measurements, we were chit chatting about this journey. She was fascinated and we had a great talk. But when she was done except for all of the good stuff (the sex of the babies), the parents still weren't there. I didn't want to know without them being there.
At that point, her next appointment arrived early, so she offered to take them and finish up with them quickly so we could kill some more time. Perfect!! I had been in the waiting room again for about 5 mins when the parents finally walked in the door, tired and apologetic and excited. As we waited, the second family in the ultrasound room walked out: a husband and wife and their 5 children. The mom is expecting her 6th child. Yep, 6th. Their youngest looked to be about 2, their oldest maybe 9. Only one girl, the rest boys. Now I know plenty of people think it is crazy to have that many kids. I myself marvel at the organization and financial planning that must take. But the parents that were waiting with me had nothing but smiles and love on their faces. Imagine what they must have been feeling to see this beautiful happy family; nothing but appreciation for their dedication to family as far as I could tell. Perhaps deep down there was some envy or longing, but I couldn't see it.
So now it was our turn! The nurse asked if anyone had any ideas or feelings as to what the sexes were. The mom said her mother (who STILL doesn't know that I am pregnant!) had a dream where the father was walking and holding the hands of two little girls. The father said he was sure it was two girls. And he was right. It is two beautiful, big, perfectly healthy girls! What a joyous feeling it was that filled that room! I just can't put into words how it feels to experience pregnancy this way, very much a part of it but still a bit of an observer of the emotions that these parents are feeling. It is amazing.