Single digit weeks!

I cannot believe that tomorrow I'll be 33 weeks pregnant! First thought - thank goodness; I cannot wait for the baby to be here! Second thought - I can't believe it went so fast and I lived through it! As I've said before, being pregnant isn't for me. The first 2/3rds of this whole thing was really painful and tried me to the core. I've been feeling pretty good lately and now am just excited.

A before picture (June 2011) and new picture (24 Feb 2012).


It seems our boy already has quite the personality. He wakes up with the alarm and promptly starts kicking to let me know it's time to eat! After breakfast and a shower, we relax for a bit and this seems to be his playtime - bumping around my belly (kicking and punching). He also seems to like the bus - he moves, kicks the whole ride to work. He knows work is boring already so he keeps quiet until about noon....warning me that lunch better be on the way. Once I eat, he seems to have some energy so spends much of the afternoon exploring - not kicking, but moving around! I can watch his bum move from left to right all afternoon (clearly I've checked out of work since I'm mostly watching my boy). He's quiet for my journey home then starts the food warning again before we eat dinner at 7. Once I eat, he seems happy enough to finish his daily booty wiper dance....left to right until bedtime. He's been pretty good lately and sleeps mostly through the night. Let's hope we can keep him on this schedule once he arrives! Unlikely, but we can hope :) If he is a true Giffrow, he'll keep and like the routine!

He is certainly like me at this point - if I wear clothes that are too tight in one area or that push in on his space, he will punch at it all day long! If I have my blackberry resting on my belly, he punches at that and if his Mama J puts her face on my belly, he'll give her some jabs as well! This boy likes his space - and I can't blame him; I'm the same way.

Like I said - 7 weeks left! Holy cow! I can honestly say in the next two weeks we will probably start freaking out. I did get a bit nervous this last week and ordered nappies (diapers) and wipes to be delivered in our weekly shop; we got them today so I feel a bit more prepared. JaNae thinks we should pack my hospital bag tomorrow, but I think that can maybe wait another week or two (although EVERYONE has told me to have it packed by now). Honestly - I'm sure I can pack it in about 2 minutes if it was really time to go. My instincts are pretty good, so I think we are fine for now. The boy seems happy in there and I still haven't washed any clothes for him - so there's no need for him to come out yet. Although, I think JaNae is freaking, so tomorrow may be the day for some clothes washing - maybe just a couple outfits.

During the first trimester, I honestly thought I wasn't going to make it through. People told me I would forget about all of that and once they place the boy in my arms, I'll forget all about the pain of labour too. I'm happy to say that the worst days of my life (weeks 5-10)seem like a lifetime ago and I think I could actually live through it again. With this, I'm sure that once labour is over I won't even remember the pain. At least, I really, really, really hope so!

We had a 4D scan about a month ago and here's a pic of our little guy:


His arm is up as he was scratching his nose before this was taken and the sonographer said he was practicing his inhaling - you can see the bubbles/lines in front of his mouth. I think he's been practicing a bit more this week as he's had the hiccups quite a few times!

Anyway, keep your fingers crossed the next 7 weeks go fast! Pray that we only have to wait 5 weeks - I'd love to go a little early :)

Home Sweet Home (part 2)

Today  I got exactly what I wanted my sister's basketball game, ESPN, BWW, and Romeo's. What made the day even better was that my grandma was in high spirits because we are all here. It has been almost a year and a half since I last came home and I knew that a trip was going to be needed soon. My thoughts were to come home durin the summer so that I didn't have to deal with the cold weather and snow,but that plan changed quickly when my gma got sick. Whether cold or sunny, I am very thankful to be home with my family, just wish Beth was here. Okay enough of this emotional stuff.....

After Jeana's game, my little sisters and Bobby (Jasmine's 8 foot boyfriend whom played football at Michigan State) headed to Buffalo Wild Wings. If you have been to Buffalo Wild Wings, you have got to try it. If you haven't already guessed, they are famous for their wings!! They have over 15 different sauces to choose from. Sweet, tangy, spicy, herby. The other best part of this place is they have 20 different flat screens in different sizes all playing sports. So today they had 5 different basketball games being played at the same time. Oh it was great. I think during March Madness I will have find a buddy to hit the sports cafe, eat wings, and watch basketball. I have the missed the last two tournaments since I have moved to London. It has been mostly my fault because it is not easily accessible. 

When we leave BWW, we had to run to Panera so my mom could eat. Let me say that I totally forgot about Panera! Um, hello, broccoli cheese soup in a bread bowl!!!!!!! Yum! So I have added that to my list. Jasmine then tells men that we have to go to Walmart. I know that this is a bad idea for me considering I haven't been to Walmart in ages. I told her I wanted to walk around but she pulled a mommy-Tude and told me we were only getting water. Ifnyou know the Mosley's, you know that we easily get distracted in large places like Malls, parking lots, Walmarts. as soon as we walk into Walmart I am stunned at just how big it is. We walk down the aisle and see baby clothes and I immediately make a detour. Jasmine follows but gets distracted by the lullaby sing along kiosk. She calls me over and we start singing along to the Sunday School songs. They were all songs were used to sing from summer bible scoop and Sunday school when we were kids. After spending twenty minutes in that area of the store we finally decide that we should get what we came for: the water! Per mom's request we ended up getting two 24 packs of water and realize that we can't carry it. So we get a cart. This was where went wrong. We ended up getting almond bark, puffy popcorn, crescent rolls, doritos, orange juice, shelled in peanuts, and ready to bake pillsbury chocolate cookies. So much for just getting water.

Home Sweet Home (part 1)

Today I am making my way back to good ol Nebraska. It has been almost a year and a half since I have seen my family. Words can't express how excited I am to see my family. I feel like I have missed so much on my little sisters' lives and I dint really like it. I haven't really seen them grow up, only far from afar. It's not until the last couple years that our relationships blossomed. This weekend I will be able to watch Jeana play basketball for the first time in a high school game. But my main reason for coming home is to see my grandma. I am not going to go deep into details but I feel that the good Lord will take her soon. I wanted to be able to see her before that time came and I'd been praying everyday that he wouldn't take her before I came home. Praise God he hasn't. So with all these mixed emotions, it is still good to be home. 

With an eight hour flight from Londin to Detroit I couldn't contain myself when I saw the movies available on the flight.  I started off with columbiana ( who would've known that the girl from Drum Line could be such a bad ass!). Then it was on to Drive with Ryan Goslng, boy was that gory. And I finished my movie marathon with Happy Feet Two, but by that point I was so anxious for the movie to get over because it meant my flight was almost over. So I didn't really enjoy the movie that much. 

When I arrived to Detroit I was so happy to be on US soil. I don't know why but it felt right. Listening to the American accents, watching CNN, and then seeing the restaurants at the airport. First it was Eintein Brothers, then Wendy's, and Fuddruckers (I had no idea they were in airports now!) I was on overload with just those three places and it was so hard to pick. Wendy's was the choice cause of the frostys. I had a choice of vanilla or chocolate. I only remember there being one kind of frosty- chocolate. It was a great frosty. After eating my frosty and junior deluxe cheeseburger I began thinking about all my favorite restaurants back home that I will hit: Runza, Imperial Palace, Buffalo Wild Wings, Romeo's and yes, Taco Bell! The airport had a Taco Bell, but it was in a different concourse and I didn't feel like walking that far. Why walk, when I can have drive thru!!!!

I am going to gain about 50lbs in 5 days!

My first stop in Omaha is Jimmy John's. One of the best sub shops around! I forget what the menu is like, but know that I like their food. As soon I read through the menu, it's like second nature. I would always get the turkey Tom without sprouts! And that's exactly what I got. Tasted just like I remember. 

We headed to my little sister, Jeana, basketball game against our rival Bellevue West. Watching her play was a joy to watch. She has good court vision and great at rebounds. And yes, we won. 

I let my other sister,Jessica,drive me from the game to grandma's. She actually a good driver. Just a little bit of road rage which reminded me of Beth. It was really good to spend time with her. She is going to Liberty University in Virginia. Can't believe she is going so far away, but I am extremely proud of her. I am so thankful that our relationship has blossomed. 

Can't wait for my Romeo's, BWW, Runza, and Chinese from Imperial Palace. 

Less than 4 Months to Go!!!

Whew! What a ride this has been. Oh this is the Non-bio Mom writing, aka Ja'Nae`. The last 5 months went by so very quickly. From the insemination to watching the pregnancy test tell us we're pregnant to the times when Beth's best friend was the toilet. She says this is something that she will not go through again, but I think I could change her mind because I am not doing it. Not after everything I have seen her go through. Yes, I know....'Every pregnancy is different.' Sorry, that just isn't helping. Beth tries to bribe me by saying ,'Oh, Ja'Nae` you will have very cute kids. I can't wait!' She's talking like I have already decided that I will carry the next one. Um, she's going to need to bribe me a bit more.

The baby sure is growing and getting stronger each day. For the last couple weeks I have actually felt him kick and even seen the kicking. When I first saw him punch/kick it was as if I was watching the segment from the movie Alien when it bursts the host's stomach. Seriously though, it did look like he was going to bust out of Beth's stomach at any second but then he stopped. He has been doing this quite a few times. (Oh, I guess I should also mention to you that we are having a boy!!! We found out earlier this month. I am so excited about having a boy. I can't wait to dress him.) Just a couple days ago he was kicking and punching like he was having a fit, and just like any other kid he soon settled down and was either sleeping or was bored of his fit. This makes us a little nervous as to how he will be when he is actually here. Will he keep Beth up all night and give her trouble? Or will he let her sleep and be calm. (Notice that I didn't mention he would be keeping me up. I love my sleep and if he disrupts it, he will be put in the naughty chair for 1 minute. Each minute for how old they are. Oh yes, I've learned quite a few things from Jo - the Supernanny.)

To help overcome the lack of sleep, Beth and I have a plan once little man is born. One of her co-workers suggested that during the first four days I have night duty and Beth has the day duty. So as long as I can keep him asleep that means I will get to sleep. Bring on the Brandy!!!!! Her co-worker has four kids, so I trust that he knows what he is talking about. Come to think of it, I don't even know if my mom and dad had a plan like that one. But I rarely remember my sisters (I have three younger ones) crying in the middle of the night. Oh well. We have plenty of resources at hand. The internet, books, family, and friends. I am sure that we will receive plenty of advice from those with more experience. It reminds me of when we had the dogs. Other dog owners were more than willing to share their experiences and tell us what works and what doesn't.

Beth's energy has increased the last few weeks, which I am thankful for. There was a time when we didn't think she would ever get it back. She has been able to walk home from work a couple times and feels good enough to get out of the flat. This has been nice for me as I don't like to go to places without her. What's even better about her lack of energy is that she sometimes lets us take a cab home!!!! Sounds a bit lazy, but when it is 30 Farenheit at 10:00 pm and you have to walk 15 minutes home sometimes a warm cab ride is the best thing on Earth!!!! I'm just saying.

We purchased a 4D ultrasound scan and should be doing that around 30 weeks (end of January). Excited to see what the little guy looks like and confirm if it is really a boy. I understand that sonographers are apparently experts, but I am sure they have been wrong before. Look at the weathermen. They are expereienced and how often are they wrong?? But for some reason we will check back with them for the next day's forecast. With a 4D scan, you really can't mistake a willy for a vajayjay now can you?

This is Beth:
There are a few things I know at this point -
JaNae and I will be great mommies.
You can be completely, totally, head-over-heels in love with a little being you've never met.
Pregnancy is not necessarily something I enjoy (that sounds terrible, but it's true).
This baby is hard wired like a Giffrow - he likes routine already!
I love when he kicks, but it DOES feel alien and is really weird to see my belly move.
I don't like when people ask me if I'm nervous about labour; I'm not thinking about it as I really have no choice. It will happen and we will make it.
I never thought I would miss my 'pre-pregnancy' body this much.

There are a few things that I suspect -
Our little man MAY be stubborn.
I don't think he will like fruit (he won't let me eat hardly any now).
He may be afraid of Chirstmas lights (we've put them on my belly to see if he will react and he WON'T move).
I am starting to believe the women who say I will forget all the bad times during pregnancy. During the bad times, you are LOW (this is an understatement on my part); but looking back it seems like I could survive it again.
My final and most important suspicion - JaNae is VERY likely to be the next one pregnant! She will forget too ;-)

Today is 14 Weeks

Earlier today we posted our blog that I wrote when Beth was only 6.5 weeks pregnant. Of course at that time we only told a few family members and friends. But now we are in the 14th week and can't believe that we are going to be parents. It has been Beth and I for so long and now a 3rd member of the family will be here. It will be interesting. People acting like they care about us but really only care about the baby. We know how it is....we were those people once. Visiting friends to see how they are, but really our intentions are to visit the new member of the family. But it's alright though we will love having visitors!

Two weeks ago we went to shopping for maternity clothes and ended up purchasing the crib and changing table. Both are made by Stokke and will last for a good 10 years or our money back. That's how much Stokke believes in their product. The crib can later convert into a bed for an 8 year old child!! Check out their website - http://www.stokke.com/en-gb/nursery/stokke-sleepi-bed.aspx?_s_icmp=s12cB948 The changing table changes into a desk when the child has grown out of the need to be changed. I saw these products in the store and wanted to have them. So wifey let me!!! Now I am trying to research the best stroller. This is doing my head in considering there are soooo many out there. I don't even know where to begin.

Beth has slowly been doing better. Since she is in her 2nd trimester, we hoped that the nauseated feeling would go away. Unfortunately, it is still here. She has good days and bad days, but at least we are now able to leave the flat for a bit. I just worry about her as I know that she feels like total crap and there's not a whole lot that I can do for her.The nice thing about it is that we are eating alot and have an excuse to go to the pub. Seems that chips (french fries) and a coke from the pub are the only remedies for her upset stomach!!! That's just a solid excuse for me to get a bit of some alcohol!!! It's a win-win situation for everyone. I just don't want my baby addicted to french fries when it gets older. Oh, wait I forgot...there's McDonald's. I am telling you now, that our kid will NOT be allowed to eat at McDonald's. I will just have to sneak it or sit in my car in a parking lot and stuff my face so there is no evidence that I went to McDonald's. Anyways, as long as Beth has found something that makes her feel better then that's what's important to me.

At our 12 week scan, it hit us a bit that we are really having a kid. We were able to hear the heartbeat and see the baby kick like a maniac!!!! The baby wasn't moving around at first but the sonographer was able hit a good spot for us to see lil Mofrow kick. We are just anxious for the 20 week scan as they will be able to tell us if it is a boy or a girl. However, we have been told that the sonographer will not try to get the baby at the right angle for us to know. If the baby is not in the right spot for our appointment, we will not find out that day. But we are thinking about taking up the offers on Groupon and doing a 4D scan and finding out the sex if we don't already know. It does seem a bit creepy though, right.

Do we have names?? Yes we have names but we can't decide on one. We're two women! We can barely decide what we are going to eat for dinner!!!! We will probably take the advice of going into it with two names. Now I am starting to get nervous. I am going to be a mom. Wow!! My life couldn't be more perfect.

6.5 Weeks Pregnant!

(This is an old post written when she was 6.5 weeks. This will give you an idea of how the process started. I will also let Beth tell her side of things)

Yes, you read that right. Beth is 6.5 Weeks pregnant! Well by the time you read this, she will be at least 12 weeks. I wanted to provide a bit of hindsight of our experience the last couple weeks. For you moms, you may be able to relate or maybe not at all. This is how it all began....

After talking about starting a family and the process, when we returned from our lovely Croatia trip we decided to try to make it happen. Beth got on the ball immediately by calling around different sperm banks/fertility clinics in London in search of black sperm. Crazy enough, we picked one less than 10 minutes away from our flat. Total number of black sperm donors willing to donate their 'juice' to lesbians.......TWO! Candidate 1 - medium dark toned, 5-11, cartoonist, enjoys sports, chillin' with friends, and food. Candidate 2- medium toned, 5-8, carpenter. We chose candidate #1 due to height! We'll see just how artistic our kid is. But they better be a darn athlete!!!

Once our donor was chosen, the week before the insemination, Beth had to stick herself with a massive needle filled with drugs. I guess the drugs were to make her follicles bigger. It wasn't very much fun watching her stick herself in the stomach each night at the same time for a week. It made me feel so happy that I was not going through this. (Don't get me wrong, I still felt bad that she was doing it to herself though.) The day of insemination, I was really nervous. I didn't know what to expect and no one really told us about this part of the 'baby making' process. You always hear the stories after one is pregnant and the labor pains.

We sat in the room of the doctor's office staring at one another waiting for the doctor of insemination to arrive. When he comes into the room, he kindly introduces himself and immediately gives us the stats of the sperm. '10% increased mobility. 23 million spermies.' 23 million??? And all it takes is one. The doctor even showed us the container the spermies were hanging out in. When first looking at the container of spermies, well, it's not really a container. It looks more like a test tube....a test tube full of water. And it looks like 4 drops of water were placed in the test tube. Can't believe there are 23 million in there!!! All it takes is one.

All it takes is one. That's all I could keep thinking right after the insemination. We waited two weeks to take pregnancy test #1. Well, almost two weeks. It was more like 1.5 weeks because we just couldn't wait any longer. On the first day, the test result was a bit faint but it looked like it was telling us the test was positive. Day 2, test result still positive but nearly as faint as the first one. We started to get excited but realized that we shouldn't get our hopes up only to be disappointed. Day 3, we used a digital pregnancy test so there was no confusion. After waiting a few minutes on a Saturday morning, it reads ' pregnant 2-3 weeks'. Holy cow!!!!! Our life may be changing forever after today. The first person we tell is my sister Jasmine. It was about 1am in South Dakota and she was 'hanging' out with friends. ('Hanging out' really means drinking). She was a bit tipsy but not to the point to where she couldn't understand what was going on. We have mentioned this moment in our baby book. So when he or she asks who we first told, we'll proudly say Aunt Jasmine!

So, here we are. 6.5 weeks pregnant. The last couple weeks haven't been very fun for Beth. She has been sick ALL DAY long. Constant vomiting. And I mean constant. I have never felt so bad for her. To make matters worse, she has a chest infection that has lasted one week AND AND AND AND received a bite from something nasty because it left quite a mark. On the first day of observing the bite on her arm, it was swollen and red. Second day, it started to blister and was hard around the edges. Third day, the blisters have formed into one big bad boy that just needs to be popped. It is quite a nasty looking thing looking like a grape stuck to her tricep!!! Of course she wants to pop it but the GP said that she should let it take its natural form. The doctor did prescribe some anti-biotics for the bite and it started leaking today. Should be interesting to see how it turns out in the next couple days!!!

How did this happen?

So, (this is Beth), I wanted to write about our process of getting pregnant. Some details may not be that exciting for you, but for others it may be interesting. And, a little shocking, most people that we've told ask 'How did that happen?'. Well, most of you understand the birds and the bees - but I get the question and will answer it :)

Fertility clinic search...yes, there is one located just 5 minutes walk from our flat! PERFECT! I set up an initial appointment (July 3rd) and...it begins. We first met with a genetics counselor; what is my lineage like and who has what, blah blah blah. Well, I need to be checked early for breast cancer....yea, I know this.....and I should be easy to match to a donor depending on how all my blood work goes. Then, we meet with 'the doctor', a slightly plump Indian (ie from India, not Native American) woman. She goes through all the options with us and explains all the tests I need to get done - 'woman part' scan and numerous blood tests. Now, many GPs (general doctors) won't do the blood tests through NHS (national health system) for lesbians - RUDE! (NHS provides free blood tests whereas the fertility clinic would cost a LOT). Our GP is amazing and literally sets me up with ALL the blood tests that I need - thank you to her by the way! OK - that was a sidebar. Then the doctor tells me that my BMI is too high and I need to take a few months and lose some weight. I calmly (at least I tried to be calm) tell her that I've been eating right and doing personal training for the last 8 months - my body won't get any better so I'm not going to wait. JaNae pretty much thought I was going to take the woman down....the doctor did press it quite a bit.....not smart. She says we can do what we want, but first need to get the tests done and set up the scan.

Right - next morning I head to the GP and get the form for the blood tests. I then head to the hospital and get the blood taken. Right - now I just need to wait for the scan appt to come up, which was only about two days away. So, the scan. No need for details, but the same doctor who told me to lose weight also told me that I was 'beautiful' inside :) Dang right woman! I may be a big girl, but my stuff is all good! The next week I get my blood tests back and set up the second appt with the main doctor. During this time, we are speaking with the cryo bank located within the fertility clinic as well. They can match me with donors once my bloods come back. Alright - I get them copies of the results and they tell me I was missing a few tests! UGH! So, I call the GP and ask why the results that I needed weren't there. Well, they didn't request it! So, back to the GP, get another form, and get more blood taken at the hospital. The woman at the hospital who took my blood (Elizabeth Louise...nice!) tells me she will put a rush on my results. Yea! Once the results are back, the cryo bank can get my matches to me same day. Sweet.

Our second appointment with the clinic doctor. Right, all my tests are back and look good. We go through all the options and decided that assisted IUI is the right choice. Assisted means - drugs; yup, this is where the needles come into play. Anyway, the doctor still thinks I need to lose weight and due to my cycle timing, we would be rushing to get everything in order for this month. I tell her I'm not going to wait and see if I can lose weight and as long as the cryo bank and nurses have time to get me ready, we are GOING to do this NOW!

As a side bar, I was VERY motivated to get pregnant. Something in me was saying 'It HAS to happen now and it WILL happen now.' I was going to do everything in my power to make sure it happened. So, I was on a mission!

After the doctor appointment, I needed to make a nurses appointment so they could go over the drugs with me. SET for the next day! LOVED the nurses at the clinic - so nice, happy and helpful! I call the GP and the hospital lab to get my blood results back. BOOM - donor chosen and ready for our use! Thank goodness they had it onsite! I meet with the nurses and get all my drugs.

3 days later, my cycle starts and the drug use begins. I'd like to say first off - it may sound like I'm a wuss, but I understand there are many women out there who have a very hard time with this whole process. Appointments take forever, tests results are not good, and the drugs are more plentiful! I feel for them and am impressed by their strength! The schedule - days 3-7 take a pill (no this isn't the whining part), then days 6-8 the needle drugs!! AHHH!!!!! I was hoping to get JaNae to do the injections, but got the advice from an IVF friend that I should do it myself. DOH! Fine. I get the needle prepped (keep in mind this is a TINY needle!) and KNOW I have to do this. Phew...I am getting very nervous...sweaty....hot....JaNae is across the room hiding her face in the couch! I stick it in my belly, push the drugs in, and I'm done! OMG - it didn't hurt at all, but I'd made myself so nervous that I almost passed out! I immediately had to set it down and set myself down! I almost puked! I'm not going to lie - I had to do this 5 more times (yes, the days increased because my body didn't react enough) and I was nervous each time. It never hurt, but it also never got easier.

Alright - last scan! My follicle (where the egg is released) is big enough to 'go'. Now, I have the choice of letting my body ovulate as normal or I can trigger it. Well, because I don't want to miss this, I decide to trigger it. One more injection and we are home free! This needle was much bigger, but still didn't hurt. First appointment - July 3rd. Trigger injection - July 22nd, 10pm. Insemination - July 24th. This may have been the fastest fertility treatment in the world!

And, SUCCESS!!!!!