Gender reveal!

The big day finally arrived when we would share the news with our family and friend... the baby's gender! We waited a few weeks before Charles' family was up from Texas to share the news. We had a small reveal with just our immediate family at my parents' house. I purchased a HUGE confetti balloon from Etsy that had either blue or pink inside. I also had a beautiful cake made with our baby's name to share his/her name. Our family cast their votes and then it was time to share our BIG news!

We are excited to announce we will be welcoming a girl in December! Her name is Haven Rose and we couldn't be more excited to give Brielle Ann a little sister. She will be the best gift this coming Christmas!

Keep following along for more pregnancy updates and family fun this Summer!

Boy or Girl? And genetic screening

Before my 11 week ultrasound I received a call with my recent blood work results. All of the genetic screening came back normal which was wonderful! They also had the results of the baby's gender. :) It's amazing that we could find out the gender so early in the pregnancy. When I was pregnant with Brielle we had to wait till 19 weeks. Now they can tell the gender with the baby's blood that crosses over the placenta. I had the nurse write down the gender on a card that I could pick up at my appointment that day.

Charles was able to make it with me to my ultrasound appointment and I was beyond excited to see our baby again! Our little one was quite stubborn at first but with a little help from the ultrasound tech the little one began squirming all around. Our baby appeared to look healthy and we received a call later from my OB that the ultrasound results showed no concerns.

The envelope with our baby's gender sat on the dinner table for a few hours. It took some major willpower not to open the envelope! Once Charles got home he went straight for the envelope. It wasn't exactly the plan but I figured we could find out together before our reveal. It was so funny to watch him try to sneak a peak through the envelope before opening it. We opened the envelope and..... stay tuned for the gender!

Our little bun!

We had our initial OB appointment on May 16, 2016. All I remember was it felt like my heart was beating out of my chest. The nurse took my blood pressure which was extremely high due to my nerves. I waited patiently to have my ultrasound. After a few minutes the doctor came in. He could see how stressed I was and immediately started the ultrasound. Within seconds that sweet little heartbeat was up on the screen. I had never felt so relieved. Our little baby was a fighter and had made it to almost 8 weeks. The doctor told me the heartbeat looked very strong and not to be concerned. He suggested I come back in two weeks for a follow up ultrasound.

I had my next appointment a little over two weeks later and I was 10 weeks. The doctor made sure I was doing alright since my last appointment I was a little bit of a nervous wreck. I had my ultrasound and the baby was moving all over the place. It was such a joy to watch and I could look at the screen forever.

After making it to this point we felt it was time to share with the world our wonderful news! Our little bundle of joy is due in December. Brielle is getting the best gift for Christmas this year! Thanks for all the love,support, and prayers throughout our journey. God is good!

Our fourth embryo journey begins..

Our next embryo transfer was scheduled for April 12,2016. Still feeling a little defeated we decided to proceed and started shots and patches. Things seemed to be going well for the most part. At one of my ultrasound appointments I received the news that my lining was not thickening. My heart sank because this was the exact news were received before we lost our last baby. I was given an increase of  hormones to help my uterus lining thicken. The days that approached our embryo transfer were long and I tried to focus on other things. To be perfectly honest I did not feel like this round would work but still held onto that small glimmer of hope. I returned to Seattle for another ultrasound which showed the lining thickened but not much. This was just more bad news. The doctor felt confident in proceeding with the transfer despite the small increase. We really didn't have much of a choice but to put our faith in the doctors and in God. Our transfer day came and everything went according to plan.

Now came the long two week wait before my blood pregnancy test. These two weeks seemed to drag on forever. After about 5 days I had decided to take a home pregnancy test. I had taken them in the past because let's be honest I was so impatient. The test came back negative and I had convinced myself I was not pregnant. Since I had taken the test early there was still a chance it was too early to detect HCG. The day of my blood test rolled around and I prayed to God for a miracle. My nurse called with my results and by the sound of her voice I couldn't tell if I would get bad or good news. She then gave me my number it was in the 160's and I was pregnant! I took a minute for it all to sink in. I was actually pregnant and this baby would be our other miracle. All I could do was thank God and I couldn't wait to tell Charles the good news.

After three weeks we were able to go to Seattle for our first ultrasound. As soon as I saw that tiny heartbeat tears streamed down my face. We were going to be parents again and Brielle would get to be a big sister. As wonderful as it was to see that little heartbeat I knew we weren't completely out of the water. But we made it this far and I was so grateful to God. I couldn't wait to watch our family grow.

Our IVF Journey continues...

                 I thought I would update the blog with our recent embryo transfer.

We started to prepare for our second embryo transfer the beginning of January. I was hopeful for our next embryo transfer. We started shots, patches, and progesterone. Everything seemed to be according to plan. However, after one of my ultrasounds they found that my uterus lining was not getting as thick as they would have liked to see. I returned in a little less than a week for another ultrasound. I was told that my lining was probably the thickest it would get. We had the option to continue with the transfer or start all over again preparing my lining to thicken. I was told "this is just your body", the doctor referring to my uterine lining. That was hard for me to hear especially since its my body that is holding us back from having babies. My lining in the past had been thick both times with both Brielle and the baby we lost. So knowing that I had some concern. We drove down to Seattle for our transfer on February 5th. We met with the embryologist who told us that an embryo was lost in the thawing process. This was very disappointing news to hear that we had only one embryo left after this transfer. We went ahead with the transfer and everything went smoothly. We went on with our usual life after I rested all weekend. That following week we would have family in from Texas. I tried to keep myself distracted as much as possible. I ended up taking a pregnancy test at home a few days before our blood test which was a faint possible. I tried not to get my hopes up but I'll admit I was a bit excited. A few days later my blood test came back positive but just a little lower than where they liked to see it. It made us feel a little doubtful and I tried not to think about it. I had another test scheduled three days later to make sure my levels were increasing. I waited what felt like all day for my test results. I had a pit in my stomach all day and just had a bad feeling about it all. The moment my nurse called and I picked up the phone I just knew something was wrong. I was told this was a biochemical pregnancy and I should be expecting a period soon. Again, I was crushed. I felt my heart shatter again in a million pieces and I couldn't keep it together. I felt the need to share my story and though my husband was hesitant, I knew we needed the prayers and support. It's been difficult dreaming of our large family and then never watching that come true. I've always wanted to be a mom more than anything in this world and feel like I have so much love to give. I know we'll get there eventually and it will all be worth it.

Today, we're starting shots for our last embryo transfer taking place next month. As hard as it is I've been trying to stay hopeful. Its out of my hands and in Gods. Thank you for following along and all the support.

10 things Infertility has taught me

Another post already! We also just got a new desktop computer instead of our laptop which we're had forever. So I'm sure I'll be on here posting more. :)

                                            10 things infertility has taught me

10.) Patience
I never in my wildest dreams think it would take us over 2 years to become pregnant. As much as we wanted a baby we had to wait on God's time. I trusted God even has hard as it was to wait. And now I must have patience again as we wait for our next embryo transfer. I'm still working on my patience and admit it is hard. I have to remind myself all the time that it is out of my control.

9.) Never take anything for granted 
The women who can get pregnant within getting off birth control in a month or two- consider yourself blessed. I never realized how many people were struggling to conceive until I was going through it myself. 

8.) Gratefulness
Once we went through IVF, I couldn't be more grateful to the people who got us to where we are now. I wasn't ever sure if we would get to where we are now but we have. It has been a long road but my heart is grateful beyond words. Thank you just never seems like enough to the people who helped you become parents. And for me becoming a mother has been a dream! 

7.) Some things are worth the wait
It may have taken us awhile to get our little girl but she is more perfect than I could of ever imagined. She makes me want to be a better mom. And I appreciate being a mom so much more because of the struggle. 

6.) Life is not easy
Everyone has struggles in their lives. Ours just happen to be infertility. God gave us this struggle to make us stronger. Not only as individuals but as a couple. My hubby has been my rock in this life and I couldn't of asked for a better man. He's picked me up so many times when I felt defeated. All you can do  sometimes is pick yourself up and give it to God. 

5.) You find out who your friends are
Its hard to relate to infertility unless you've really been through it. Some people just really don't understand. But you find the people that are there to lift you up when you are down. There are people who know you just need a hug or a coffee date. We've had wonderful support from family and friends. Sometimes you just need somebody there to support you and listen. 

4.) To be strong
There were many times I thought I would crumble under all the heartache and struggle.  There were many days when I put on a happy face when I was hurting inside. I saw the hurt on my hubby's face too and it killed me. I felt many times like I had let him down because I was the one with the issues. I realize now God gave us this journey for a reason. I prayed and prayed for a miracle. I wasn't going to let infertility define me.

3.) Never give up
I honestly felt defeated after hearing the news of our infertility and recent miscarriage. The words "You have about 5-10 % conceiving on your own" still echoes in my mind. And after I recent miscarriage all I could hear was "I'm sorry but I can't see anything." Its easy to throw in the towel and give up. Its good to let out your emotions but you cannot let them rule your life. I'm reminded so often by looking at my daughter what a beautiful blessing we have received. She's our miracle. I would never give up on my dream to become a parent. And we will continue on this journey to bring her a brother or sister. 

2.) Be kind to everyone
You never know what anyone is going through. A lot of people have mastered putting on a happy face. No one wants to be know as the weak person who always breaks down. We feel like if we can pretend like nothing is wrong others will believe it as well. People's feelings are very delicate. Just a simple smile or compliment can really change someone's day. Its the little things that can mean the most!

1.) Let Go and Let God
I had to learn to let go of my worries and give them to God. As much as you think you are in control of the situation, you're really not. I was not the one in charge of my future. I kept telling myself and still do that he really does have a plan. Everything may not go according to my plans, but I know there was a reason. He is there to answer my prayers and take care of my worries.  Cherish what you do have and let God take care of the rest. 

Happy New Year 2016

Well, time for another update! I hope your New Year is going fantastic :) Ours started with some sickness right after Christmas but everyone is feeling better now!


We enjoyed the holidays with my family and spent both Christmas Eve and Christmas with them. My husbands' family lives in Texas so we are hoping to spend our Christmas this year with them lord willing. Brielle was very spoiled this year and a little overwhelmed by all the gifts! I tried not to go overboard especially since her birthday is right around the corner. The holidays were a great distraction from our next embryo transfer. And it was a great reminder of how much we were already blessed.

I'm hoping we can proceed with our next embryo transfer in the following months.  I'm beyond ready for another baby and my hubby is feeling the same way! Brielle Ann would be the best big sister! So many of my friends and family have either just got pregnant or had a baby. My baby fever is in full force! In the mean time I'll be enjoying my family and the precious moments with my busy little girl. I'm trying to live in the moment more.  I've found its so easy to get caught up in the calendar looking ahead. It is great to have events to look forward to but not so much that you can't focus on the present. This year I plan on enjoying the little things and living life to the fullest. My daughter won't be little forever so I'm soaking up every minute.

Thanks for following along and may God bless your day! I'll be updating more, I promise :)

xo Debbie