Most of you have heard the news, we are adopting! We are beyond excited and are doing everything we can to be prepared to welcome a beautiful new life into our home. As part of our adoption process, we have started a crowdfunding campaign. It may surprise you to hear that adoption related costs can easily total up to $35,000 or more. This is why we have set up fundraisers - to help ease the financial burden that often overwhelms adoptive parents. We hope that by inviting you into this process, you will see yourself as part of the community we hope to build around our child as he/she grows up.
Most of you don't know our story but, now that we have grieved our loss, we are ready to share it with you. About ten years ago, I (Ashley) was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and required a life-saving bone marrow transplant. The treatment consisted of very high doses of chemotherapy and total body radiation. We were told that if I survived, I would most likely not be able to have children. We were fortunate enough that I had time to do one round of fertility preservation. The science was very new then, and we were told that eggs would likely not survive the de-thawing process, and were advised that I should also freeze embryo's, as they have a higher success rate. I was then 19 staring at a list of sperm donors. Cody and I had only been dating a few months at the time but thankfully, our families had been close friends for years. He with the support of his parents, offered to donate whether our relationship survived or not. At the end of it all, we had five eggs and three embryo's.
Fast forward nine years, extensive cancer treatments, intense rehab, a move 900 miles away for my dream job, and a fairytale wedding to the man of my dreams, we were ready to use them. It was confirmed that I was in menopause, and that we would not be able to have children naturally but, I would likely be able to carry a child using the eggs and embryo's. It was time to de-thaw. We had them shipped to Memphis, and for a small fortune started the de-thawing and growing process. The whole thing started on a Friday. On Saturday it was confirmed that none of the eggs survived the thaw but, that the embryo's did and they were beginning the growing process. On Monday, only one little embryo remained. We were told that it was growing well, and that the next day it would be ready for implantation. On Tuesday, the worst-case scenario was at our door step, the embryo died over night; none of them survived. Our dream of having biological children died with them.
This was in July of 2019. We took a year to go over our options and grieve our losses. We always knew that this was a possibility but, we had held on to hope that the eggs and embryo's would work out, and their loss hurt. Though unable to have children naturally, our dream of becoming parents remained alive. We both agreed that adoption was the way to get there. There are so many children in need of loving homes, and we have the opportunity to give them one. From the beginning our relationship has been anything but ordinary, and we knew that our journey to becoming parents would be an adventure. We are so excited to see where it takes us! You all have loved and supported us from the beginning and we could not be more thankful for your continued support. We are grateful for each and everyone of you, we know it takes a village and are so happy that you are part or ours!
Much Love,
Ashley, Cody, Sadie, Sophie, and Future Baby C
