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E and B
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<h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large">OUR STORY</h2> </div>
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<div class="bb-theme-elementor-wrap bb-elementor-custom-family bb-elementor-custom-size bb-elementor-custom-line-height"> <p>We <strong>first met</strong> in Washington, D.C. when B was in <strong>law school</strong>, post-deployment to Afghanistan, and E was working at a<strong> law firm</strong>. A mutual <strong>friend</strong> connected them so E could give been career advice, but the <strong>rest is history</strong>! We<strong> always knew </strong>we wanted children. B’s siblings have kids, so our<strong> son</strong>, M has four cousins. E comes from a <strong>hugeextended family</strong>, in addition to her siblings, and grew up surrounded by 18 cousins. We had always hoped for<strong> multiple kids</strong> since we both<strong> loved</strong> growing up in a <strong>home with siblings.</strong></p> </div> </div>
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<h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large">Our Interests</h2> </div>
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<div class="bb-theme-elementor-wrap bb-elementor-custom-color bb-elementor-custom-family bb-elementor-custom-size"> <p>We enjoy <strong>outdoor</strong> activities (hiking, camping); running; college football; E is a big theatre buff; music of all kinds (we just saw Brandi Carlile at Red Rocks in September and <strong>love</strong> taking our <strong>son</strong> to kids’ day at the symphony); we both love <strong>reading</strong> (E loves all fiction and was an English major in college, she also loves memoir; B likes sci-fi, a hard pass for E)</p> </div> </div>
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<h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large">What led us to Surrogacy</h2> </div>
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<div class="bb-theme-elementor-wrap bb-elementor-custom-family bb-elementor-custom-size bb-elementor-custom-line-height"> <p>Due to a previously <strong>undiagnosed</strong> placenta accreta, E had to have an <strong>emergency hysterectomy</strong> during the birth of her son. It was a <strong>harrowing delivery </strong>and both E and their son are lucky to have survived. E had <strong>multiple blood transfusions</strong> and their son faced some challenges as a newborn due to her blood loss. He spent <strong>three weeks </strong>in the NICU but is now doing <strong>GREAT! </strong>We are so grateful for our <strong>incredible</strong> medical team at UNC. E still had her ovaries, so we were able to<strong> pursue surrogacy</strong> to try to <strong>grow</strong> our family.</p> </div> </div>
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<h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large">Our Hopes & Dreams for Our Future Child</h2> </div>
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<div class="bb-theme-elementor-wrap bb-elementor-custom-family bb-elementor-custom-size bb-elementor-custom-line-height"> <p>We want our child to feel <strong>happy</strong>, <strong>safe</strong>, and <strong>loved</strong>. We want to create an environment where our child can <strong>explore</strong> all kinds of interests and learn about the world around them. We love being <strong>outside</strong> with our son, taking him to music class, storytime at the library, and seeing the world <strong>through his eyes</strong>. We would do the same with our <strong>future </strong>child.</p> </div> </div>
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<h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large">FAMILY TRADITIONS AND VALUES</h2> </div>
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<div class="bb-theme-elementor-wrap bb-elementor-custom-color bb-elementor-custom-family bb-elementor-custom-size"> <p>As with our current son, we would <strong>encourage</strong> a lifelong love of <strong>learning</strong> and <strong>exploration</strong>. We want to foster the child’s curiosity and creativity. We also want our children to treat everyone with <strong>kindness</strong> and <strong>compassion</strong>. We want them to <strong>appreciate the good things</strong> in their lives and to express gratitude for the <strong>people</strong> and <strong>opportunities</strong> they have and to help make the world a better place. We don’t have a ton of special traditions. We are not religious, but we celebrate Christmas and always have a<strong> large gathering</strong> with E’s family over the Christmas week. Our <strong>Saturday</strong> “tradition” is walking to the<strong> farmer’s market</strong> in town with our son and our dog, Max, and getting <strong>coffees</strong> and enjoying some fresh air and<strong> family time</strong>.</p> </div> </div>
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<h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large">What we are looking for in a Match</h2> </div>
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<div class="bb-theme-elementor-wrap bb-elementor-custom-color bb-elementor-custom-family bb-elementor-custom-size"> <p>We would <strong>enjoy</strong> as much contact as a GC would be open to. Essentially, it would be up to the <strong>GC</strong>, and what they are comfortable with. We would <strong>love</strong> to keep a lasting relationship post birth.</p> </div> </div>
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<h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large">Extra Information</h2> </div>
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<li>Names: E & B
Location:North Carolina currently, but moving to Charlottesville, VA in June.
Number of Embryos: 3 PGS Tested
Agency/Management Team: The Biggest Ask
Fertility Clinic: Shady Grove Fertility
Surrogate Compensation: Medium/High
Requirements: Must fulfill ASRM guidelines, must have or acquire TDAP vaccine
The Biggest Ask Says
The American Society for Reproductive Medicine provides the following recommendations for evaluation of gestational carriers (i.e., many fertility clinics will require the following for their gestational carriers):
- Carried at least 1 child without complications
- Fewer than 3 deliveries via c-section
- Be within the ages of 21 and 45
- Body mass index in between 19 and 32
- No smoking, abusing drugs, alcohol or prescription medications
- Not receiving welfare, public housing or cash assistance from the government
- Has a stable home life with emotional and child care support
- No mental health conditions requiring the use of medications within the last 6 months (including depression)
- No criminal record
Watch the following video to review the Medical and Psychological Clearance procedures that surrogates must complete.
No one likes to talk about surrogate compensation, but it is an important factor in any surrogacy agreement. The following is how we classify high, medium and low compensation (excluding the value of any benefits). Many factors affect surrogate compensation including surrogate experience (e.g., has the woman been a surrogate before?), whether the surrogate is signed up with an agency and surrogate preferences.
- Low = surrogate compensation less than $30,000
- Medium = surrogate compensation between $30,000 and $45,000
- High = surrogate compensation greater than $45,000
You can learn more about how much surrogates get paid in our surrogacy guide’s module: “How much does surrogacy cost?”.
Could you be their surrogate?
If you're interested in learning more about John & Laura, send us an email at hello@thebiggestask.com - subject line "John & Laura".
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