I’M EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE THAT THE HUBBY AND I ARE EXPECTING A BABYCAKES THIS WINTER!
EXPECTING A BABY!
Three generations now become four. Just like my family recipes, the legacy of raising daughters is being passed down too! I’m so grateful for the strong women that surround me and will surround my baby girl coming soon!
THANK GOD FOR THIS PREGNANCY
BEING READY TO BE A PARENT
For the longest time, part of the problem was me. I will be real. Mentally, I just didnโt feel ready. I kept feeling like there was more I needed to do. I needed to be more stable as an entrepreneur. I needed to feel more accomplished. I knew that when I stopped to have a baby, I didnโt want to regret a thing.
When I turned 35 last year, something magical happened. Iโm not sure if it was a hormonal change or the clock finally started ticking but I wanted a baby. The craving was real, and I couldnโt deny it.
FERTILITY ISSUES
We tried and tried month after month. I bought the ovulation kits and all that jazz but I started to feel nervous because I have a history with endometriosis, which started when I was a teenager. I had the most severe cramps and menstrual cycles that sometimes required me to be hospitalized. After a laparoscopy surgery in my mid-20s to remove ovarian cysts and continuous birth control pills since that time, I wondered if my eggs were any good. In fact, I had a doctor test them when I turned 32. The results at the time stated that my egg quantity and quality were that of a woman in her 40s. Talk about a downer. But I refused to believe that. I knew I was going to be a mom one day.
FERTILITY DOCTOR: LET THE TESTING BEGIN
When we didnโt get pregnant by the end of last year, I started looking up fertility doctors since being pregnant was a major goal for me in early 2017. Thatโs how I work. I figure out what I want and then I go get it, even my BabyCakes. We found a clinic in downtown Chicago with a doctor that had amazing credentials. My doctor, Dr. Cohen, sat with Frederick and I for a consultation back in January and explained the pros and cons of everything. I felt so comfortable as soon as I met him and knew we were in good hands. The first thing we would do is start a ton of testing, and I mean a ton. He was initially alarmed by the test scores I presented him from the previous doctor so testing started with me three days after I received my cycle.
FERTILITY TEST RESULTS
Welp turns out doctors and tests can be wrong yโall. God is the only one that has the answer. It turned out that I had a plethora of eggs in there. They did a few tests such as an amh which for my age group they wanted to be over a 1.00. Mine turned out to be over a 3.16. Then they did an ultrasound to count the number of resting follicles I had. The resting follicles helped them determine how many eggs they could possibly stimulate during IUI or IVF. Well I had a bunch of eggs on each of my ovaries. Seriously they counted something like 30 total. It was such a magical moment to experience knowing that the previous assessment was all the way wrong.
MALE FERTILITY ISSUES
Next it was time for Frederick to test and that was where we ran into a few issues. As I’ve mentioned before on the blog, my husband had a kidney transplant several years ago that didnโt help with his testing if ya know what I mean. His daily medications had a cumulative effect which made the doctor say we need to skip IUI altogether and go straight to IVF.
IVF requires a great deal of patience, testing, blood draws, hormone shots and emotions over the course of several months. It’s definitely no joke so I plan to share the nitty gritty of it all in the next post! Stay tuned!
Here’s to the next generation, whether it’s another beautiful girl (y’all are too cute in your white outfits) or a handsome boy. Blessings!
Awww thank you so much! We are having a little girl!
Congratulations on your pregnancy. Life will never be the same. What a beautiful picture of ya’ll, the women in your family are beautiful!
Thank you so much Dee! It was a dream come true to take these photos!
Congratulations to you and your family thanks for sharing your story!
Thank you so much Angela!
Congratulations mom and dad! I pray for a safe delivery and healthy baby girl. Children are a blessing from God!
Thank you so much Stacey for your prayers. We appreciate them so much.
Thank you so much for sharing. Congratulations. My blessings for you and your family. God with you!
Thank you Diana! We appreciate it so much!
Jocelyn, I am so thrilled for you and your family, and with all those women, this little ‘bin in the oven’ will be spoiled rotten when she makes her appearance. We have 9 great grandchildren, with more on the way, and I can’t tell you how excited we both get when another one gets added to the family.
Didn’t know you were from Chicago, as are we, but now reside in Yorkville, a small town 16 miles due west of Naperville.
We will all look forward to the birth of your little girl, and pray all goes well and you have an easy delivery.
YES we are from Chicago! I definitely know Yorkville. Hello strange. Thank you so much for your sweet comment. We are all so super excited about this baby and the blessing she will be to all of us.
Congratulations! You are adorable and I am so happy for you and your husband!
Thank you so much Merralyn for the sweet comment.
Much love and blessings to you, your husband and to your family!!!
Thank you so so much Phyllis!!!
Congratulations to you, husband and family on the news of this precious little one. God works in many mystrical ways. My son and wife was childless five years before having Ava who will be 8 in December and Archer will be 3 this Sunday. My youngest son and wife has issues to and knew this when they got married, but, like you they are still young and God will provide what they need. Looking forward taking this journey with you!
Wow thank you for sharing this story. I’m so glad that I can share mine with you.
Congratulations…
Thank you so much!!