Fertility Fund (A Second Chance)

This story started back in late 2012, when we had our first fundraiser. At the time, friends and family helped us raise money for our first round of injections; after 3 years of trying to conceive with no success. The very first round worked! We conceived our twins and all of our wishes had come true.



We were thrilled. Excited and elated each step of the way, as we announced the pregnancy to our families, and then announced that it was twins.

On January 27th, 2014, I gave birth to our boy/girl twins -- Bodhi and Jasper. Unfortunately, it was a preterm delivery. At only 19 weeks, they were unable to survive. They lived just long enough for us to meet them and fall completely in love. That day changed us forever. (You can read their birth story by clicking HERE.)

Being a parent was no longer an idea, or abstract. It was real, and it was amazing. Jasper and Bodhi taught us so much about ourselves, about life, and about love in their unfairly short lives.

I will forever love our two babies, and the memory of watching my husband hold them. He was a father, protective and nurturing, instantly. But we're asking for help in pursuing the part of the dream that we missed out on -- the raising part.

The bedtime stories. The bath time. The Saturday morning cartoons. The first day of school. The driving lessons. All those moments and milestones.

Right now, we are parents without our children. Words cannot give that emptiness justice.

So we met with our specialist, and he is optimistic that we can conceive again. But it's the same costly medication, now with extra check-ups and monitoring.

Yes, it's scary to start over. But going my entire life and never feeling again the way I felt when I first held my son and daughter -- that scares me more.

Since we had done a fundraiser back in 2012, we were unsure of doing another one. If you contributed then, we certainly don't expect or anticipate another donation. But many people have asked how they can help, and this really is it. Anyone who has dealt with infertility knows that finances are oftentimes the biggest hurdle. With so many people now reading our blog (ourlilwish.blogspot.com), we're hoping to reach even more people this time who are willing to help.

So we ask of those who know us, in lieu of birthday gifts, holiday cards, etc., that you might consider contributing to this fund instead. If half of our friends and family donated just $5, we'd be well on our way.

And if you're a stranger or an acquaintance, that was simply moved by our story, any amount would make a huge difference. Even just $1.

If you're unable to donate, we completely understand. You can still help us out by sharing our story and this page on your Facebook, Twitter, or blog. The more people we reach, the better our chances. And even if people don't donate, we want the story of Jasper and Bodhi spread far and wide. They deserve to be known.

We've decided to start this fundraiser on February 21st, the eighth anniversary of Brad's mother passing. Our goal is to have the funds raised by Mother's Day (May 11, 2014). It just felt so appropriate. In that timespan, you can donate in memory of Linda (his mother), Brad's birthday (April 19th), Mother's Day.. or of course, in memory of Bodhi and Jasper -- in hopes that they will have a baby brother or sister that we can tell all about them one day.

Thank you. <3