Says Em, after I’ve berated her for over an hour via IM on everything I’ve learned so far about sperm banks.  I guess it was a hint. I’d had the idea before she said something; I guess I just needed a push.

I like the idea of my future offspring reading this (years from now when they’re able to read) and gaining insight into the exciting and scary journey in which Lesa and I am about to embark. I want my child(ren) to know how much I want them, and how much I love them, even now, when they’re only an idea. I also like the idea of our friends and family being able to follow our journey. And since we’re not telling anybody, lest we jinx ourselves, I think it will be neat for them to be able to look back and see where this all began. Finally, I can count on one hand the number of lesbians I know who have children. And NONE of these people are “the other mother.” So, since we’re helping to pave the pathway in same-sex parenting, I feel like it’s important to keep a record of our journey.

If you know me at all you know I like projects. Project Baby will likely be the most time consuming, scariest, quite expensive, very emotional, and best project I’ve ever undertaken.  Thank God I have Lesa as a 50/50 partner is this one. Like any project I start, I lay out the goal, plan to achieve the goal, and materials and costs -

• Goal: Make a baby

• Plan: (This isn’t your normal sex ed class) The plan is for Lesa to carry the little bundle. After a lot of thought on various options we feel like buying sperm from a sperm bank is the best choice for us. And as far as methods of hooking up the sperm and the egg we’ll know more once we talk to the baby doctor.

• Materials: baby oven, egg, sperm

• Cost: At this point all I know is it’s going to cost A LOT.

From what I know about projects and myself, I’m projecting a few things. First, I have no doubt we’ll experience bumps along the way and have to adjust our plan accordingly. Second, almost all of my projects end up taking more time and cost more money than originally anticipated. I’m keeping my fingers crossed Project Baby will prove otherwise.

For now I’m focusing on what we need to do to get this ball rolling. That means I’m spending all of my free time reading and using my very best research skills scouring the internet for information. Looking through all this information leaves me feeling like the whole thing is a crap shoot. You have no idea when/if you’ll get pregnant; you have no idea if the baby will survive pregnancy; you have no idea what the baby will be like if it does. AND that’s just the start of being a parent. I have to say the task seems a little more than daunting. I’m excited though.