Cetera & Zack's Fertility Journey

Hi, my name is Cetera and I'm fundraising to help us on our journey to have another kid. My husband and I got married 12 years ago and have always dreamed of having a large family, the more kids the better. Well, when we first started on this path I was always told that I could never conceive naturally, due to PCOS. I'd have to have medication to get me there. We tried with my primary doctor on metformin, but that did not go well, it got us nowhere with terrible side effects. After 4 years of marriage and no luck, we thought we would give it a break. We quit trying only to have ended up pregnant! Oh how thrilled we were! It was a joyous occasion and a very long pregnancy! I was sick throughout the whole thing. Morning sickness was an all-day sickness and it lasted throughout all nine months, then in the winter of 2015 we had a beautiful baby girl. She's everything we ever could have hoped for and more. In late 2017 I got pregnant for a second time. It was a shock, to say the least!

We were not actively trying to conceive and I was still breastfeeding at the time. I don't remember much of that pregnancy to be quite honest with you, it feels like it was over in the blink of an eye. I did all the right things and went to every appointment. I

remember the excitement of making our little girl a big sister and having a baby at the same time as our cousin, my best friend and my sister-in-law. We went into our 20-week ultrasound on March 19th, it was a beautiful sunshiney day in Seattle. The ultrasound tech got quiet and excused herself to find a doctor on duty to come in and chat with us. The only thing I heard were the words "There is no heartbeat." everything else became white noise. We went home to pick up our then 2-year-old and cried. We spoke with my doctor who explained to my husband what happened and figure out how to proceed. I opted to deliver my girl. We then went into Swedish hospital a few days later and went through the process of being induced into labor and delivered the tiniest baby I have ever laid my eyes on. Tiny little Violet had a true knot in her cord, her chest cavity had not developed properly and we got to hold her and grieve her with the kindest hospital staff.

Since then we decided to wait a little while and enjoy the moments we had with our firstborn. In 2019 we sold our home, bought a new one and purchased a business. What a whirlwind that was! In early 2020 we tried again, but with no luck, we started our journey with reproductive medicine. I did the medication, the injections, the ultrasounds all while trying to manage a business through a global pandemic. To say it has been a long journey would be an understatement. Now here we are in 2023 asking for your help on our IVF journey. IVF has always been our last resort, a back-of-the-burner scenario. One we hoped we would never have to come to. Yet here we are.

We greatly appreciate your donations and prayers for us and hope to one day have a new bundle of joy to celebrate life with.