Things to Remember for the Contract

I am learning, here, and just want to keep this stuff in mind.
Fees, etc.

1. Base Comp (Unsure on this yet, most for first time I've seen has been $15-25,000)
2. Multiples Comp (+$5,000 for twins, paid in installments on confirmation of heatbeat, as carrying multiples puts an immediate strain/risk on the surrogate mother. This is based on opinions from other GS's that have previously carried twins. The comp rate runs from 3-5,000 depending.)
3. Monthly Allowance (Usually a set amount, sometimes a reimbursement deal where receipts are provided and the surrogate is reimbursed for travel, copays, childcare during appointments, "extra protein"/specialized dietary needs, maternity clothes, etc.. the point is that the surrogate should not have to spend any of their own money things they need during the journey)
4. Insurance Clause? (One of my biggest fears is that sometime down the road my insurance company will decide to bill me for something for the pregnancy or birth and the IP's will refuse to pay it and leave it for me to deal with. This has happened to other surrogates and something I'm wary of. I'd like something in the contract covering any medical bills relating to the pregnancy and birth if not covered by my insurance or their insurance if they choose to take out a policy for me which is also apparently common? Either way, everything will be the IP's responsibility... from denied claims to loss of insurance, etc.)
5. Uterine/loss of fertility/life insurance.
6. Bedrest comp.
7. My lawyer's fees.
8. Loss of wages (if working) for bedrest, medical appointments, and postpartum. No cap, based on hours lost (I currently don't work so this doesn't apply, but if for some reason I need to work to support my family and this is interrupted, this makes sure we are alright financially, covering all bases. I have heard that some (most? still learning) ask the IP's to reimburse a week of the surrogate's sig. other's pay so that the GS has someone to take care of her and her child(ren) (as reimbursing the husband is sometimes less expensive than reimbursing for a week of childcare or for other postpartum help. This would be the case with my husband)

more musings later.

Going through my mind.

A few things going through my mind to jot down-

-I'm an intactivist. This means that I am against routine infant circumcision and I'm rather vocal about it. There are so many horrible things associated with RIC (I won't go into them now, but I will later!) and as a doula, I do not offer services to families who plan on circumcising their babies (male or female). I won't carry a baby who will be circumcised, either. It's just something I won't do, period.
-Twins! I expect to carry twins. I would love to carry twins. I'm meeting with my midwife next week to talk to her about her thoughts on homebirth/natural birth and twins and increasing the chances for a vaginal birth with twins.
-That brings up the natural birth thing. I am absolutely willing to do a natural birth and would loooove to have a homebirth. I had my son at home and am very close with my wonderful midwife who just delivered a surrogacy baby!!! Very exciting.
-Fees. Not sure what to charge. Thinking about it hard.. I want enough left over to put into my son's college fund and to pay for some schooling for myself, but I'm not going to charge an arm and a leg. I'm well aware of how much money IPs sink into every transfer and surrogacy in general and I'm not in it for the money. The money matters, but it's not the reason why I'm doing this.

More later. Its almost 1AM! Agh! Baby went to bed late!

A lawyer! Very cool!

So another big thing down.. I found a lawyer through word-of-mouth who will do the contracts for AZ GS! Woohoo! That means all I have left to do is work on losing some weight, getting healthier, and enjoy my time nursing my baby before I find a match and hopefully get pregnant later this year. I am so excited!!

The Beginning, and a Short Hello!

My Journey begins soon.

This fills me with such wonder and anticipation, I can barely stand it. I have been fascinated by pregnancy since I was a little, little girl. I remember staring at big round pregnant bellies and wanting to reach out and touch them, admire the wonders within. What an amazing thing, babies.. how they are made, how they come out, how tiny and spectacular they are.

I wanted to be pregnant from my late teens. I knew I was not ready for a baby, but when I read about surrogacy I remember wishing that I could be so blessed to give that gift to someone. I kept the idea tucked away in my heart to be explored later in life, when things were more stable and I had a better grasp of the enormity of it. I read about the requirements and kept them in the back of my mind.

I got engaged when I was eighteen to my high school sweetheart. I was upset with the skepticism and reluctance from our parents and knew that our marriage would have to wait. We lived together for several years before moving to Arizona. We got married in 2006. I got pregnant in 2007 and gave birth to my amazing, beautiful, wonderful, life-changing baby boy in March of 2008.

My devotion to pregnancy and birth, however, began in 2005 when my best friend got pregnant unexpectedly. Even though I had just moved across the country, I wanted to be there for her. I took doula classes to prepare me for her labor.. I didn't know where that would take me. What began there turned me into a "birth junkie"! I was obsessed with learning more and more. The amazing woman who taught me how to be supportive of laboring women became a certified midwife and helped me catch my baby boy. Someday, I hope to be a midwife... someday when I have more time!

I will not really start searching for IPs until my son weans, which I am hoping will be later this year. I have a lot of research to do, and a lot of preparing, and I would like to chronicle this on a blog separate from other blogs. So, here I am.

Hello!