Dogs, cats, and other pets can make great playmates for your baby. However, it’s essential to understand that the adjustment period for your pet may be a little difficult.

Prepare Your Pets

When you bring home your baby, there will be a lot of changes for your pet. Experts recommend making the transition as gradual as possible. One way is to start doing things around the home to prepare, such as decorating the nursery to allow your pet time to become accustomed to this room and the new smells. If you don’t want your pets to visit the nursery, putting up a baby gate still allows them to see and hear your baby without feeling isolated.

Even if you don’t plan to use a gate for your baby’s room but around other areas of your home– you may also want to get your dog used to the idea before the baby arrives and use them at regular intervals. Help them understand that gates are not a punishment by placing treats in the area you want them to stay in.

Plan in Advance for Pet Care

Having a newborn is an exciting new experience, but it’s also exhausting. Many new parents need extra help. It’s important to plan for pet care in advance. Having someone who can feed and care for your animals, especially if you’ll be traveling to bring your newborn home with you, can be a huge weight off your shoulders. You may even ask someone to walk the dog for you for the first few weeks of your baby’s life.

Continue to Make Time for Your Pets

It’s important not to neglect your pets when the baby comes.

If possible, you should adjust your schedule before you bring your baby home. If you gradually reduce the amount of time you spend with your pets, having the new baby won’t be such a drastic change for them. If you need to adjust their feeding schedule, it’s also best to do this ahead of time.

If your pet is used to spending more time with one of the partners, it may be a good idea to get them used to the other one now. This gives you more flexibility when one of you is busy with the baby. Either way, it’s good practice to make sure that someone spends at least 10 minutes of quality time with your pet every day. It may help you relax, and it will mean the world to your pet.

Introducing Your Baby to Your Pet

Introducing your new baby to pets is a lot like introducing your pets to another new pet. If possible, you should bring home something that smells like the baby and show it to your pet first. This could be a blanket or burp rag, or piece of clothing. Dogs are especially grateful for exploring new scents.

When you bring your baby home for the first time, someone else should hold the baby while you approach your pet for a warm welcome. Spend time with your pet, talk to them, pet them and give them some treats. If your dog gets too excited, it’s best to take the baby out of the room temporarily and help them calm down and try again. Then you can let your dog approach the baby and allow them to get to know each other. Of course, any interactions between your pet and your baby should never be forced, but they must always be supervised.

How to keep Your Baby Safe

While most dogs and cats are worthy of your trust, you cannot predict what will happen. Babies startle easily and make sudden movements that could seem scary to a pet. A pet could also accidentally hurt a baby by doing what they normally do with you, such as sitting on your lap. A dog may even want to carry a baby around, much like they would with a newborn pup. They don’t mean any harm, but it can put your baby at risk. For these reasons, you should ensure that all interactions between your pet and your baby are supervised. Otherwise, it’s best to ensure there’s a physical separation.

You should keep your pets from licking your baby’s face, since your newborn’s immune system is still weak. It’s important to keep your interactions with your pet positive and not to add new restrictions unless they’re necessary. For example, if your dog has always been allowed to sit on the couch, they should still be able to do so once the baby comes. Don’t forget to enjoy the friendship that is bound to form between your baby and your pets.

When Intended Parents start exploring the option of surrogacy, many questions run through their minds. It can definitely be a confusing process—how to choose a surrogacy agency, how do you get matched with a surrogate, how to get started, etc. In this blog, we try to cover some of the most frequently asked questions.

What is the difference between being a gestational surrogate and a traditional surrogate?

With no genetic link to the baby she is carrying, a gestational surrogate is simply the carrier of the fetus. The intended mother or egg donor provides the egg, and the intended father or sperm donor provides the sperm. The gestational surrogate has absolutely NO biological connection to the child.

A traditional surrogate is where the surrogate uses her own biological eggs. As there are numerous emotional and legal aspects of traditional surrogacy, Shared Conception does not handle traditional surrogacy agreements and exclusively offers gestational surrogacy where the eggs of the surrogate mother are never used.

How do you match couples and surrogates?

The information gathered from our initial meeting, and your application is vital to the matching process. After professionally reviewing your needs and circumstances, we immediately start the matching process and will find the ideal surrogate for you. The process of finding the right surrogate mother can be quick or it could take some time, as we are looking for someone whose needs, expectations and views are similar to yours.

Once we have a possible match, we will contact the surrogate and you. If both parties are interested in moving forward, Shared Conception will arrange a conference call between you, the potential surrogate, and a member of the Shared Conception team. If everyone is in agreement, a video will occur, and you and the surrogate-to-be can start building rapport and determine if you want to journey through this surrogate process with each other. A Shared Conception representative will always attend this introductory meeting.

What is our first step in retaining your agency?

We look forward to hearing from you! Simply call or email us. We will promptly contact you so that we can get started on your journey to parenthood!

How much contact will we have with our surrogate throughout the process and after the birth?

The amount of contact between you, the intended parent, and your surrogate is completely based on both of your comfort levels. The majority of surrogates want to develop a comfortable rapport with the intended parents because they realize that these soon-to-be parents want to be a part of the pregnancy.

Shared Conception understands the sensitivity of the overall situation. We will be sure to take both sides’ thoughts, feelings, and wishes into consideration BEFORE making a match.

When do I pay the Surrogate?

After Shared Conception custom matches you with a surrogate and all legal paperwork has been prepared and approved, you will deposit monies into an escrow account managed by an independently-owned escrow agency. These funds will be used to pay for mutually agreed-upon fees including the surrogate’s compensation, medical premiums, travel expenses, etc. Payments typically begin the month following the confirmation of pregnancy.

What happens if my surrogate wants to keep the baby?

It’s important to remember that all parties are psychologically screened and that legal contracts are created to protect everyone’s interest BEFORE we start the surrogacy process. Based on our research, most surrogates want to ensure that YOU, the intended parent, are committed to moving forward as they are not interested in having any more, kids-especially one that is not theirs.

 

For more FAQs asked by our intended parents, visit our Surrogacy FAQ page here.

Interested in Surrogacy?

If you are interested in learning more about surrogacy options or are interested in becoming a surrogate mother, please contact us at 713-622-1144, and we will be here to help you with any questions.

 

 

At Shared Conception, we know the holidays can be extra rough when you are trying to start your own family. Every holiday commercial shows happy families celebrating, and that can be especially hard to watch.

Of course, every family member, friend, and co-worker will have advice that they will want to share with you, which, even though they mean no harm, can really bum you out.

Unfortunately, not everyone understands the sensitivity of the matter. They will tell you stories of others who just had a baby and ask if you have tried this method or that method to get pregnant. While difficult, it’s important to let others know when they are upsetting you. Let them know what topics are ok to talk to you about.

Here are some tips that can help you get through the current Christmas season:

1. Again, set those boundaries, so others know what you feel comfortable discussing.
2. Laughter is great for the soul—do you have any funny holiday photos or memories? Maybe pictures from when you were a kid. We all know how much everyone loves to see those embarrassing family photos, so share them on social media with your friends so you can all share a laugh. Hopefully, it will encourage them to share some of theirs too!
3. Do fun holiday things to keep your mind off being a bah humbug! Drive around neighborhoods, look at all the amazing Christmas lights, and see a play such as the Nutcracker. Think about past holiday traditions you had growing up and relive some of those now that you are older. This could include anything from attending church and meeting with friends and family (the ones who won’t give you that unsolicited advice!).
4. Treat yourself to massages, pedicures, and going out to a nice restaurant; whatever helps make you feel at peace. For some, this is working out, while for others, it’s just taking a nice walk alone—whatever it may be, it’s ok to indulge every now and then.
5. Find ways for you and your partner to be good to each other during the holiday season. It’s not uncommon for couples to take out their frustrations on each other, especially with the added stress of the holiday, so stay connected. Do things together, such as a couples massage.
6. Don’t be afraid to say no to party invitations. There’s no reason to overcommit, overspend or overcompensate!
7. Know that being infertile isn’t a cruel life sentence. There are many options available, surrogacy being one of them.

If you are interested in learning more about surrogacy options, please contact us at 713-622-1144, and we will be here to help you with any questions.

Out of all the reasons to become a surrogate, helping a couple become parents is one of the most rewarding. For many people, it is often impossible to conceive naturally. When everything fails, surrogacy comes as a ray of hope for such couples.

People who opt for it become intended parents, and the women who become the source of delivery are surrogates. Once a surrogate matches with intended parents, the process of surrogate pregnancy begins, and a poignant relationship takes shape.

A woman who wants to become a surrogate, needs to apply at a surrogacy agency, such as Shared Conception to start her journey. The process that follows, features several milestones, but it is an exceptionally exciting period for all involved.

Let’s take a look at how a surrogate picks the intended parents for the process of surrogate pregnancy below.

The Matching Process

All the surrogate agencies in Texas  are testimony to the poignant happiness and excitement of watching surrogate mothers match with intended parents. However, there are several key factors that play a critical role in the match process of surrogate mothers with intended parents.

Just when the process of surrogate pregnancy and matching is about to begin, it is natural for surrogates and parents to feel nervous and apprehensive. While they have all the reasons to do so, what’s more important is to enjoy every moment of the extraordinary experience.

The surrogacy agencies in Texas, like Shared Conception, do their best to hand-select surrogates and intended parents, so they can be matched with due consideration to all their preferences. For this purpose, they take into account the following considerations.

The prescreening coordinator asks for the preferences of surrogates and matches her criteria based on the following:

• Considerations of the views of termination and selective reduction
• The appropriate number of embryos to implant in the surrogate
• Where the intended parents reside and whether they are locals or foreigners
• The extent of communication necessary for the entire surrogacy journey

At this point, the surrogates must also take advantage of the opportunity to seek guidance from the experts at the agencies for any questions they may have.

Just as the surrogate mothers have to work closely with the agency to stipulate their preferences and enlist their criteria, the intended parents have to do the same. The agencies take careful notes of the needs, specifications, and criteria of the intended parents. The agencies then match them on the following preferences:

• The views of the intended parents on termination and selective reduction
• The total number of embryos the intended parents wish to transfer
• The preferred location of the surrogates,
• the level of communication they wish to maintain during the process of surrogate pregnancy and the relationship they want to have after the surrogate gives birth

Essential Criteria for Matching Surrogates and Intended Parents

There are three determining factors in this regard:

1.      Legally Suited

The legal rules for the matching process of surrogates and intended parents vary per state within the U.S. Hence. A surrogate must get assurance from her attorney her home state laws and the laws of the intended parents’ home state complement.

Legal departments must bless a match from a legal standpoint before the team can represent the surrogate’s profile to the intended parents. In case a legal team finds a match between a surrogate and intended parents unsafe legally, they will not allow an agency or surrogate to proceed with the match.

2.      Compatibility between Surrogacy Expectations and Personalities

The matching agencies must then ensure that the personalities of both parties must fit too.

Surrogacy is a life-changing decision and journey for all parties involved, having an understanding and a comfortable relationship is a priority.

The intended parents and surrogates must have either an in-person or virtual meeting to see how they connect with each other and whether they find one another a good match. The agencies also consider the hopes, expectations, and preferences of the intended parents and surrogates.

Based on all these factors. The surrogacy agency determine how appropriately matched they are.

Final Thoughts

Surrogacy is a unique and sensitive journey. For the parties involved, there is a great deal of giving and taking. They must provide compassion, empathy, understanding, and support to reach the mutual desire of bringing a new life into the world.

The process of surrogates picking the intended parents is a long one because the legal and matching authorities must consider several factors.

For any further assistance you may need for your process of surrogate pregnancy, feel free to reach out to us. Shared Conception wants to help you find your perfect match!