Transfer

March 23rd could not come fast enough.

By that point, we had already booked all of our gestational carrier’s flights and hotel accommodations. Her monitoring appointments showed everything was lining up perfectly for transfer, and for the first time in a long time, it finally felt like things were truly moving forward.

I was in the room with our GC and her partner while Rich waited outside in the parking lot.

He had just recovered from a cold, and we didn’t want to risk him potentially exposing anyone or jeopardizing the transfer in any way. Even though he couldn’t physically be inside the room, he was very much part of every moment emotionally.

We waited for about an hour before it was finally time.

Once things started, everything moved surprisingly quickly.

The embryologist came into the room and pulled our embryo up onto the screen for us to see.

This was our little boy.A 5AA day 6 embryo.

When you go through IVF and choose to have embryos PGT tested, you receive information about the embryo quality as well as the sex of each embryo.

A 5AA embryo is considered the highest quality grading possible, but because ours was a day 6 blastocyst rather than day 5, our odds of successful implantation were estimated around 65%.

IVF statistics and embryo grading are honestly far more complicated than they initially sound, but that’s the simplified version.

Thankfully, our embryo thawed beautifully.

And somehow, in one of the sweetest little moments, it even appeared to be shaped like a tiny heart ❤️

Before the transfer itself, our doctor performed a mock placement to ensure everything looked clear and positioned correctly inside her uterus.

Then, once everything was ready, they transferred the embryo.

On the ultrasound screen, you could actually see a tiny white dot appear inside the uterus, and suddenly this microscopic little thing represented every hope, dream, and prayer we had carried for years.

And just like that, it was done.

The actual transfer procedure itself lasted less than a minute.

Afterward, our GC rested for about 15 minutes before we were allowed to leave.

Five days post transfer, our GC took an at home pregnancy test.

There was a faint second line.

It was impossible not to feel excited, but after everything we had been through, I also knew better than to become too emotionally attached before the beta bloodwork.

The beta test measures HCG levels and is what truly confirms whether the pregnancy is progressing appropriately.

Our first beta was done 8 days post transfer, and thankfully the results were incredible.

The clinic called us and said:“She is very pregnant.”

I will never forget hearing those words.

March 31st8dp6dtHCG: 181.2

April 3rd11dp6dtHCG: 684

The second beta is important because doctors want to see the HCG levels rising appropriately, ideally doubling every couple of days during early pregnancy.

Watching those numbers increase gave us our first real sense of hope that this might actually be happening.

Our first ultrasound was scheduled for April 19th, when our GC would officially be 6.5 weeks pregnant.

One thing many people don’t realize with IVF pregnancies is that by the time the embryo is transferred, it is already technically considered around 3.5 weeks gestational age.

Based on transfer timing, our estimated due date became December 9th.

Then came April 9th.

Our GC messaged me saying she was experiencing significant bleeding.

Even though bleeding can apparently be relatively common in IVF pregnancies, no one had really prepared us emotionally for that possibility beforehand.

We were terrified.

She ended up spending about 6 hours in the ER while they evaluated everything, and honestly those hours felt endless.

Thankfully, they confirmed that the pregnancy was still progressing and that it was not ectopic.

The relief we felt in that moment was indescribable.

Our little embryo was already proving to be a fighter ❤️

At the April 19th ultrasound, we were finally able to see the heartbeat for the first time, even though we couldn’t hear it yet.

Then on May 3rd, we finally heard it 💓

That appointment felt incredibly emotional.

At that point, baby was measuring 8 weeks and 6 days, and every milestone somehow made this journey feel more real.

We’ve been so grateful to be included through FaceTime during all of these appointments. Even though we aren’t physically carrying him ourselves, those moments have still allowed us to feel deeply connected to the process.

By the 10 week mark, our GC was finally able to begin weaning off her IVF medications, and from there we officially transitioned into care with her OB moving forward.

Our first OB appointment was scheduled for May 31st, when she would officially be 12 weeks pregnant.

This entire experience has honestly been such an emotional rollercoaster.

For so long, it felt difficult to fully allow myself to feel excited because fear always lingered quietly in the background.

Of course there is always still a risk of miscarriage, especially early on, but with every passing week the chances continue lowering more and more.

And honestly, that alone feels like such a blessing ❤️