The 1st Visit

As I laid in bed the night before the first visit, I was so nervous. It's the unknown that is difficult. What would they ask at the psychological evaluation? Would the mock trial IVF hurt? The thoughts ran on and on. The morning came real early that day, February 20th. Abby and Aaron showed up at 3:45am. We headed down to Jacksonville,FL to the Florida Institute for Reproductive Medicine (F.I.R.M). Our appointment was at 7 am and it was a long drive.

When we arrived, I had to fill out the usual new patient paperwork. Then they called me to the back. It was time to give blood.  I am pretty sure they took 6 or so vials to check for every disease imaginable. Next, I met with the nurse coordinator. She ran through my list of medicines and how to administer them. I'll give you the list and their purposes in another post.

Next I had the mock or trial invitro and an ultrasound. During this process, the doctor is looking at the uterus. He wanted to make sure everything looked good. I was worried this would be painful, but it wasn't. A little uncomfortable, but nothing terrible.

The last step was the psychological evaluation. I sat in front of the psychologist as she asked about my family history, my life, and my relationship/friendship with Abby and Aaron. I think her goal was to find out how I would react with the change in control after the birth. Near the end, the psychologist asked me a series of questions that were required. I have to admit they were strange. For example, "Fold this piece of paper and put it on the floor"  " Write a sentence" "Count backward from 100 by 7s".  Next, Abby and I were brought in together and we discussed many aspects of the pregnancy and post pregnancy.  Everything went great I think.

Then we left, had a great lunch at Cheescake Factory and drove home.  We are looking forward to the next step. Next up.... Medicine



Kristi

Aaron, Kristi, Abby

In The Beginning...

Welcome to my new blog! 

To give everyone an idea of what this blog is about, I will give you some information about myself and the journey I am embarking on. 

I am Kristi Gonzales. My husband, Eric, and I have been married for 10 years.  We have 4 beautiful daughters.  We live in a small town in south Georgia.  I work as a Pre-K teacher in our local school. 

In December 2012, I was in the computer lab at school working.  Abby's mother, who is also a teacher, came into the lab. I had heard about Abby and Aaron's story, but I didn't know about it in great detail.  I knew that she had lost 2 babies in a short period of time.  It had to be the Lord working, because I asked Abby's mother how they were doing.  She began to tell me that Abby would have to have a gestational carrier due to her medical condition.  I told her that I had always liked the idea of surrogacy and that I was interested.  A few days later, I received an email from Abby.  After a few emails and telephone calls we decided to have dinner.

Eric and I met Abby and Aaron for dinner a few days after Christmas.  I had never met either of them, so I was quite nervous.  Lets just say... we had a great dinner full of laughs.  For 4 people to meet for the first time and be able to communicate openly was amazing.  It was like we had known them for ages.  Abby and Aaron took us down the agonizing story about their babies, Jonah and Harper.  My heart ached for them. 

At this point, I believe we all 4 began to pray for guidance from God. It has been the most amazing process to see God working.  If you have never researched the IVF and gestational carrier process, it is extremely expensive.  Abby and Aaron's friends and family began to find ways to raise the money for the process.  It began with a benefit sing. In January 2013, Three for One performed for the benefit sing and it raised $7,000.  Next Abby's family and friends worked together to put a cookbook together.  It sold many copies and raised nearly $10,000. So in a matter of 2 months, family and friends raised $17,000.

So here we are... the process begins.  Stay tuned for the rest of the story.

~Kristi