GOAL REACHED!!!

Well....did we make our goal of $13,000?  YES WE DID!!  So many wonderful and generous people have opened their hearts to help us reach this big goal. Thank you so much!! It's been amazing to feel so much love coming in so many ways and from so many different directions. We truly are blessed to be part of such great families and have wonderful friends. Again, we are very humbled and grateful. Several donations came in through the blog and it was fun to watch the thermometer grow. Several other donations came through the mail or were handed to us personally.  Now, thanks to such giving hearts, we have the ability to pay for this adventure in full. It's unfortunate that such things are expensive, but it's the option we must try in order to hopefully bring a baby to our family. 

Jerry and I have been given the opportunity to participate in a 'shared risk' program offered through the clinic. The physicians assess a couple's risk VS chances of conceiving. Then, a little bit like the stock market, the risk is shared by the physicians and the couple in a hopeful balance between an increased financial responsibility and an increased guarantee of pregnancy. This program is more costly, beyond the original $13,000. However, it allows us multiple trials, if the first is unsuccessful, and a greater guarantee of having a live birth.  We've chosen to participate in this program and with the generous assistance of one of Jerry’s close friends; we will be able to pay for the added costs required. Hopefully the 'risk' will be in our favor!

I start the first injection medication in one week, and within the week we will be signing all the legal documents required to participate in IVF. There are medical consents, financial consents, documents regarding what to do with your embryos, and on and on. They must be witnessed signatures so Jerry and I will make a trip to the U to do this. This has been a more relaxed week or two and I've not had to see the doctor recently. That will change next week and it will become more involved. I do talk with the program manager, the nurses, and the pharmacist about once a week each. So far things have been pretty manageable. When I really sit and think about what we are about to do, and how our lives might change, I think we must be crazy! But, we know this is the right thing to do, whatever the outcome, and are still excited for the adventure!

Thank you again to each person and family who has sacrificed on our behalf to help us along this journey! In a literal way, you are part of the medical miracle we hope will bring new life to this earth. You've blessed our family already with your love and generosity, and we are forever grateful to you.