Baby Time

It wasn’t long after our wedding that both Andrew and I started dropping hints of wanting children. We didn’t want to rush anything, but the large house suddenly felt empty without children.

We considered adopting a child, but when I told Andrew about my grandfather’s legacy dream, we agreed that it would be better to have me father an heir. We talked about finding a surrogate, and chose that as our path to fatherhood. We liked the idea of experiencing the pregnancy and birth and being there every step of the way.

There was only one problem, we didn’t know where to start looking for the perfect surrogate mother. We began by calling up the hospital’s OB/GYN and birthing unit. The ladies there were very helpful and gave us a website where we could go to check out potential surrogates in our area.

Of course, when Stella found out, she had to be right there with us, judging every woman who popped up on the computer screen.

All of the women that we came across were from surrounding cities, and most of them said on their profile that they were willing to travel. Every time we found one that sounded interesting, Stella had some complain as to why we couldn’t choose that particular person.

“Her nose is way to big.” “Ew, look at her teeth!” “That lady sounds like a bitch.” “Oh no, she is way to ugly! You must have cute children Raven!”

It became apparent that none of the women would be good enough for Stella, so we quit searching. Andrew and I would look later when Stella wasn’t home.

After a few days, we convinced Stella to go out to the spa and get some groceries afterwards. She loved going to the spa, so it really didn’t take too much convincing. It gave Andrew and I the time to find our surrogate alone.

We searched for about an hour before finding a woman who sounded exactly like what we were looking for. She was also very beautiful, which was a bonus.

Luckily, she was online at that same time, so we messaged her right away. She instantly began replying to us, and seemed to be very polite and well-educated. We talked about her and her history and family background. The more we messaged each other, the more she seemed perfect for us.

She unexpectedly asked me what my situation was that I was looking for a surrogate. It was her right to know, but I felt uneasy about answering it. I replied that I was recently married and my husband and I were looking to start our family. She asked if I was a woman, and I told her no. To that she replied with, “Sorry, but I refuse to have a child for a couple of gay dudes. I don’t want my child growing up gay. People like you don’t deserve to have children. Your kind creep me out.”

She went offline, leaving Andrew and I hurt and discouraged. We left the study and went into the living room. Neither of us really talked, we just watched the boring romance movie on the television. When Stella got home, she sat down with us, instantly noticing my pained expression.

Of course, I had to tell her what happened. She became very upset. “This is why I didn’t think you should find a surrogate. I know that you want a child that is your kin, but the world isn’t very accepting of male couples. Listen, if this is really something you want to do, then let me carry your child. I won’t even charge you like those other bimbos will.”

Andrew and I looked at her in shock. “Would you really do that for Raven and I?” Andrew got excited.

“Well, of course. You guys are my best friends and I love you like crazy. I never plan on getting married or having kids of my own, so why not?”

After that, it didn’t take long for us to meet up with the OB doctor and discuss our options. Even though it was a bit pricey, we chose to do artificial insemination, that way Stella and I would not have to have any physical contact. I’m not going to lie, it was a bit awkward knowing what I was doing and where the contents of the little cup were going. Andrew fully supported me, and it kept me looking forward to the birth of my ‘hopefully’ son.

Sadly, month after month passed and Stella had still not gotten pregnant. Something just wasn’t working right. Our doctor decided to put Stella on Clomid to give us more of a chance at having a baby. She was to take it for three months and if she still had not fallen pregnant, we would have to turn to invetro fertilization.

Amazingly, it did not take long after starting on the Clomid for Stella to get a positive pregnancy test. Due to the problems she had getting pregnant, the doctor kept a close eye on her. She went in every week to be tested for HCG levels and to make sure she was staying healthy.

On her two month check up, the doctor decided to try to hear a heart beat since the baby should be big enough by then. Sadly, I wasn’t there; Andrew had an award ceremony to attend at the police station and I wanted to be there to see him get him medal of honor. After the ceremony, though, we raced over to the OB clinic. Stella was waiting for us outside. She looked worried, but also very excited. She had been crying, I was afraid to hear what she was going to tell me.

She ran over to us, without giving us a chance to speak she shouted, “We’re having quadruplets!”

We both hung our jaws in shock. I managed to stutter, “And how many babies is that?”

“Four! We’re going to have four babies! I’m so scared, but it’s so exciting too!” Stella was nearly jumping around.

It took a moment for the news to sink in, but we were both very happy. It was scary though, how would we manage four babies at once? Andrew suggested that we all go out to celebrate the wonderful news, so we headed over to the theater, where we let Stella pick out the movie she wanted to see.

It was some action flick about the world almost ending. I was too excited to really stay focused on the movie. All I could think was, four babies. I’m going to be a daddy to four babies?

After the movie was over, we went out to eat at Stella’s favorite restaurant. The sky grew dark, and as we were about to head home, I ran into my mom. Of course, I had to tell her about the good news. She took it very well and said she hoped to see her grandkids when they were born.

I was still apprehensive about my mother, she always seemed to have something she was hiding. I tried my best to shrug it off, but it was like trying to shrug off your skin. I really didn’t want my mom to meet my kids until they were older.

Weeks flew by, Stella’s tummy growing bigger every day. She was going to have a cesarean section at 35 weeks. They were afraid of the impact that the babies would have if she carried them any longer.

At week 31, Stella began to have severe pains in her back and stomach. She was in the study when they occurred, and she began to scream, putting Andrew into an absolute panic.

We rushed her to the ER, where they performed and emergency c-section. That day, our four sons were born.

The first-born was Cole Finch. Followed by Colton Jay, Caleb Wren, and lastly Chris Robin. We gave them all bird names as their middle name in honor of my father, Crow and myself, Raven.

They were all very premature, and had to stay in the NICU for their first two months of life. It was hard having them so far away from us, but I knew it was better for them to be there. It also gave Stella time to recover in quiet at home. She was very sore and cranky, but I know deep down she was happy.

When we were able to take them home, it was very intense. Having four babies at once is no easy task, and it took a long time to get used to all the work. We went through money insanely fast, and it seemed at times that we didn’t have enough to keep up.

Two years passed us in the blink of an eye, and it was amazing to see how different each of our boys were. Not just in appearance, but also in personality. They were each an individual and each had their own likes and dislikes. I had a photographer come over one evening to try to get a good picture of all my boys together, but it proved more difficult than one would have imagined.

We also had single shots of each of them done.

Cole Finch Greymane.

Colton Jay Greymane.

Caleb Wren Greymane.

And lastly, Chris Robin Greymane.

Life was crazy busy, I could only imagine what the future was to hold for my family and I.

I know you all love babies, so here are some Bonus Pictures!!

Continue to Chapter Seven: Bumps.