Anonymous

For years we waited and longed for our family to grow, but month after month it did not happen. We saw many doctors, were told we could not have children, and rode the turbulent roller coaster of infertility. Finally, we found our answer through the grace of God, who led us to Dr. Donesky, Dr. Bird and their amazing staff.

At other fertility offices, we sometimes felt like cattle – herd ’em in and herd ’em out. But, at Dr. Donesky’s office, we found such a caring and compassionate staff. Pat, Sandy and Shelley celebrated our successes and called just to see how I was doing after our disappointment. They understood the difficult journey of infertility, and that meant the world to me. I believe this deep level of caring, the massage before the transfer, and the current medical knowledge all contributed to our beautiful, growing family.

After being married almost 14 years, we were able to hold our newborn baby boys (one for each of us!). These miracle babies were given to us through another couple’s generous gift of their embryos. We are admittedly biased about how perfect and wonderful they are. We are also amazed that their appearances and personalities fit into our family perfectly, as much as if they were our naturally conceived children. In fact, people comment on who they look like all the time, and we just smile. We were so grateful to have children that this honestly was not that important to us, but it has been a wonderful bonus.

Now, we rejoice in another successful pregnancy. This is also a donated embryo and a full genetic sibling of the twins. We still look at our children or at my growing belly and say, “Thank you!” all the time. Thank you to the donors who were willing to let someone else have their embryos and all the hopes and dreams they represented. Thank you to the caring office and transfer staff who walked us through the process. Thank you for these wonderful babies.

Infertility is hard. It brings disappointment, pain, shame, discouragement and hurt. On this side of the challenge, though, I can now say that I am very grateful for those empty years. They shaped me into a parent who knows every day that my children are precious gifts. I strive to enjoy every minute with them, to make sure they know they are loved, and to rejoice in their development. I am a different kind of parent than I would have been if we had had children easily and on my schedule … and my children and the lives they will touch are better for it.