Some Match Details

We have officially moved into the contract stage of our match.  Hopefully we will have a signed contract by the end of July and the embryos will officially be our children!  We are adopting a set of four blastocysts (frozen on day 5 or 6 - not sure yet) that were probably created and frozen two years ago.  They are not genetically related to the couple that has them right now.  A 24 year old egg donor and a 30 something year old sperm donor were used to create our embryos.  The couple that has them right now used the same egg donor to have their own child so our embryos have a half-sibling as well as two half siblings from the sperm donor.  We feel so lucky that the donor family has chosen us and we are looking forward to moving onto the shipping of the embryos stage!

A Roman Holiday

Well since our embryo adoption plans were delayed four months when our first match fell through in April, we decided to squeeze in one last adventure before kids arrive.  We picked Italy and a Mediteranean cruise!  As we began to plan for Italy I realized that when our last round of infertility treatments failed we planned our trip to England and France; when we had our miscarriage we planned our trip to Aruba and Puerto Rico; and now when our first adoption match fell through we are planning a trip to Italy.  I suppose our wonderful travels have been a positive side effect of infertility.  There is something satisfying in saying, "If we can't have kids then we are going to do things that people with kids can't do!"  But more than that there is something therapudic for us in planning a big vacation. It is like a giant jigsaw puzzle that you have to piece together carefully as you work towards the final product-especially since we use our timeshare points with Marriott to pay for a huge portion of the trip.  We have decided to fly into Venice where we will board Holland America's brand new ship The Nieuw Amsterdam for a 12-day cruise to Croatia, Greece, and Turkey.  After the cruise we will take the train from Venice to visit Florence in the Tuscany region, Naples and Pompeii, and finally Rome.  So here is our Italian puzzle so far:

Matched Again!

Yea!  Good news again!  Yesterday we were matched with a new donor family that has selected us.  We will provide more details once our match is official.  If the typical time line holds the contract should be done by the end of July, the embies shipped by the end of September, and the transfer will happen in October.  Praying for a smooth process this time around.  I DO NOT want to go through the emotional rollercoaster that we went through with our last two matches. 

Lucky number 7!

Happy 7th anniversary to us!

It seems like it was yesterday. . . and on the other hand it seems like forever ago.  We have been through so much this year and it has only brought us closer to each other and to our family, friends, and Savior.  

Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at ALL times, and a brother is born for adversity. (emphasis mine)

Keeping hope while hope is fading.

Thinking about our little ones out there where ever they are tonight!  We are still waiting to be matched.  Hopfully soon!

Hope is Fading from Allan Rosenow on Vimeo.

Did you know that we are Dutch?

 (Dan cheering on his Dutch brethren against Japan in the World Cup!)

Well. . .Dan is anyways.  His Grandma Lena Chessie (Dykstra) Shackleton was from Holland.  Ironically, Dan has never been to Holland but I have in the mid 90s.  Dan has always embraced his Dutch heritage and has recently been sporting his Dutch soccer threads to show off his Dutch football pride!  I think he looks naturally good in orange.

Nederland Gaat! 
(Go Netherlands!)

One Year Anniversary!

Today marks one year since I began to change my lifestyle and work for a healthier version of myself.  Here are some of my celebrations:

- I have lost 60 pounds ( 21% of my body weight)
- A quick and easy run is a 5k
- I no longer snore!  (Dan really likes this one.)
- My cholesterol is 151
- I am down almost 10 points on my BMI and have lost at least 12% body fat
- I can wear my wedding dress again (and yes I really did try it on the other day- silly but fun!)
- I've learned that going for a long walk, doing yoga, or going to spin class is a much better way to de-stress than sitting on the couch eating junk food.
- I can sit at an Angels baseball game and in an airplane seat soooo much more comfortably.
- I have muscles. . . that you can see!

While I still have some work to do I take joy in the small victories along the way.  Thank you to my family, friends, and training partners who have encouraged me and worked out with me.

Blessings Abound

In these last few weeks I have been reminded of the good things in our lives as Dan and I have had wonderful time together with friends and time alone on several special dates.  We have been the recipient of words of encouragement and love.  We have been reminded of the blessing of friends, family and community.  Thank you Jesus for these blessings and for reminding me that a joyful heart is a gift and happiness is a choice.

(Me and my favorite blessing.)