One year ago... the day my dream came true

Brad and I were married on August 9, 2008. We agreed early on that we wanted to be married for a couple years before having children. By September 2010, we knew that it was time to grow our little family. I figured it might take a few months, but surely I’d be pregnant by Christmas. Christmas came and went. No baby.

By February 2011, we were starting to get a little concerned. I made an appointment with the PA at my ob/gyn’s office. She ordered some preliminary lab work, and everything came back normal. She said to keep trying for a while longer. Three months later, I had my annual appointment with my ob/gyn. After talking about our struggle to conceive, she suggested I try a drug called Clomid. We tried that medication for three unsuccessful cycles and then decided that it was time to move on to a reproductive endocrinologist. We called for an appointment in July 2011, but his first available consultation wasn’t until October 2011. So we waited.

After reviewing our medical records, discussing our history, and doing an exam, the doctor suggested a probable diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Lab results confirmed the diagnosis, and we were ready to move forward with treatment. We tried Clomid again, but this time I was closely monitored with ultrasounds and blood work. I also participated in a study that they were doing and was randomly assigned to an alternative administration schedule of the medication. Over the next few weeks, we found out that I was unresponsive to 50mg, 100mg, and 150mg Clomid. On December 22nd, my 30th birthday, I started taking a medication to “reset” my system and get ready for a new treatment plan. Another Christmas came and went. Still no baby. It was a difficult time, but I was hopeful about trying a different medication. In early January 2012, I began my first round using a medication called Femara. An ultrasound a few days later showed that I was responding to the medication. This was my first real opportunity to possibly become pregnant, and we were cautiously optimistic that the cycle would work. But we found out on January 31st that I wasn’t pregnant. Since I had responded well to Femara, we tried it again in February. I responded to the medication, and then we waited. Here’s my journal entry from March 1, 2012...

It's 4:10am. I've been awake for ten minutes. Right before I woke up, I was dreaming that I was at church, and the congregation was singing "Great is the Lord". As I was singing, my right hand was resting on my very pregnant tummy. Oh my... it was amazing!

CHORUS
Lord I want to lift your name on high
And Lord I want to thank you
For the work you've done in our lives
Lord I trust in your unfailing love
For you alone are God eternal
Throughout earth and heaven above

It’s been two weeks and a day since my HCG trigger shot, so I decided to take a pregnancy test this morning. The chorus of that song ran through my mind over and over during the three minute wait. I truly expected a negative test. And that was okay, because through all we've been through, I'm trusting that God's plan is bigger than I can understand. His ways aren’t always mine. After the three minutes, I looked and saw two pink lines! It's positive! We're pregnant!!! Today is exactly eighteen months since the start of our first cycle of trying to get pregnant. I can’t wait to tell Brad when he wakes up! “Lord, I want to thank you for the work you’ve done in our lives”

That was a moment I prayed for and dreamed of but didn't know if I would ever experience. Each of those eighteen months that we were trying to start our family, I had hopes of becoming a mom. Seventeen of those months ended with disappointment and, eventually, renewed hope for the next time. But on March 1st, 2012, my prayer was answered. My dream came true. I was a mom. Brad was a dad. We were proud parents of our precious baby... our Caleb Drew.