The Beginning...

Most of you know a lot of what our journey has entailed, but here is a brief(ish) history for those of you who may not know.

I have had multiple miscarriages over the last several years, and had a stillborn son at 7 months pregnant in 2008. I never knew a reason for any of the problems my body would face with pregnancy, but thanks to a super amazing doctor I met in 2011, we have had a lot of answers.

The following part is medical info-feel free to skip ahead for those who do not want to read it!
In 2011 I was diagnosed with poly-cystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). PCOS causes lots of really unpleasant symptoms: obesity, acne, depression, and even infertility. Women with PCOS also have a much higher risk of miscarriage. Things started to make sense.
Around that same time, my doctor found a lesion and a lot of irregular cells on my cervix. After two biopsies my doctor referred me to a specialist to have a third of my cervix removed as the cells were cancerous. Fortunately, after my procedure they got all of the cells, and none of it has come back since. The downside, is that after that procedure most women have to have C-sections with delivery as their cervix no longer functions properly during labor, and can even cause premature labor.
We were feeling hopeful because we at least had answers, and when you know what you are facing at least you can work toward the right direction. After rounds of hormones and other fun medications, I ended up having all of my cysts (about 30) burst at once, sending us to the ER.
At my next follow up my specialist put me on a new kind of hormone at a lower dose. She also put me on a medication used to treat infertility in women with PCOS and gave us some real hope at getting pregnant.
Unfortunately, within two weeks I was having some very abnormal pain and my body was not responding to the hormones in the way it should have. My specialist sent me to the hospital for an internal ultrasound where it was discovered I have a bicornuate uterus. What that meant for us is that even if we were able to get past the huge challenge of actually conceiving, now we had this understanding that there was a very good chance I would just miscarry or even worse, have another situation like with my son. The probability for mothers with a bicornuate uterus of having a live birth (assuming I did not have the other issues going on) is 62.5%. 25% of those live births end in preterm birth which causes a whole other set of problems for baby.

Back to the non-medical side of things! Duane and I have been looking forward to expanding our family, and with so much love to give we have always considered adoption as an option. We had a few hurdles, but we are getting on track! We have started a plumfund (far less fees than GoFundMe-and the same company we used for our honeyfund, so we trust them!) for anyone who would like to contribute. Unfortunately, adoption does come with a hefty price, and we're looking at around $14-20 thousand when all is said and done. We have already had wonderful loved ones offer to help with fundraisers, which we are so excited for!

We'd love for you to follow our journey with us, and when the time comes, celebrate the addition to the Parker family with us! We have an appointment with our adoption advocates May 14th, and we will have more information at that time!

Follow us at:
www.facebook.com/theparkersadopt
http://parkersadopt.blogspot.com
www.plumfund.com/pf/theparkersadopt

Thank you all so much for your love and support!
Love,
The Parkers