Birth & the first days
The birth plan, the delivery room, and the weeks that follow.
19 articles
Gay Dads' Guide to Being in the Delivery Room with Your Surrogate
Due date is coming closer, and if you're about to join your surrogate in the delivery room, you’re probably feeling a mix of excitement and
A Month in the U.S. With a Newborn – The Guide to Your Birth-Period Stay
Part honeymoon, part boot camp, part bureaucratic race: when to fly, where to stay, and why the sofa matters most.
The Israeli Judicial Parentage Order – Completing Your Family on Paper Too (and Why the First 90 Days Are Critical)
In the state's eyes one of you is still a legal stranger to his child – and a 90-day clock enables retroactive parentage from birth.
From Birth to Registration in Israel – The U.S. Judgment, the Passport and the DNA Test, Step by Step
Parentage judgment, apostille, U.S. passport, ETA-IL and a DNA test done back in Israel – the full route, step by step, no myths.
Vaccinations – During Pregnancy and for Your Newborn in the U.S.: What Differs From Israel and What to Agree in Advance
What a newborn gets at a U.S. hospital by default, how the vaccine schedules differ, and what to put in the birth plan.
The Birth Trip Suitcase – The Complete Packing List for the Most Important Trip of Your Life
What do you pack for a trip you return from as a family of three? What to bring, what to buy there, and why half your suitcase should fly empty.
What Do You Tell Your Child? Building Their Birth Story From Day One
When do you tell your child they were born via surrogacy? From day one. How to build their birth story right, at every age.
U.S. Citizenship for Surrogacy Babies – What Happened and Where Things Stand Today
If you started a surrogacy journey in the U.S. over the past year or two, you almost certainly saw this alarming question in intended-parent groups: "Wait – did they cancel our babies' American citizenship?" I received dozens of worried messages from parents mid-journey. So let's clear things up, because there's good news.
Your Birth Plan
A birth plan is essentially your "calming pill" for delivery day.
Pumping milk from the surrogate or infant formula after the birth
First of all, it’s important to remember that the surrogate will not always be able to pump milk for you.
What newborn stroller should you buy?
The popular question of what newborn stroller to buy or what important things to consider when buying a baby stroller does not have a cut and dry answer, because personal preferences play a huge…
Renting a car while you are in the United States
Ordering a car in advance may lower costs. Note that because we’re not U.S. residents, you should purchase insurance that makes the rental cost a bit higher.
Staying in the United States after the birth
After the birth you’ll stay in the United States for approximately three weeks or so, probably at a rental property rather than at a hotel.
Returning Home After a Surrogacy Journey in the US with Your Newborn
After an amazing surrogacy journey in the US, the time finally came to bring our precious baby home. The idea of flying internationally with a newborn can be intimidating, especially as new parents.
Traveling to the birth - alone or with family?
Traveling to the birth is an extremely significant and exciting moment, albeit also a little nerve-racking. You travel as a couple or as a single and return as parents.
The workplace and flying to the birth
The surrogacy process is a proper pregnancy, one that you prepare for and for the flight back when it’s over.
Do children who are born in the United States get a social security number?
Some of the children born through surrogacy will be born in the United States, where they receive American citizenship because they were born on American soil.
Contact with the surrogate after the birth - is it recommended or not?
The relationship with the surrogate is undoubtedly one of the most sensitive and personal issues in the surrogacy process.
Twins / singleton – What to consider
The hottest question now in the surrogacy scene is whether to go for twins, or just to start with one child and a year or two later expand the family.