Journey to Baby Seitz!

To Our Dearest Friends and Family,

April 21-27 is National Infertility Awareness Week. Some of you may have been through the heart-wrenching journey of infertility before and have made it through the other side. We covet your advice and prayers. Some of you may be going through infertility now, and we are here to say you are not alone. In fact, one in 6 couples globally experience infertility. Mark and I are here to support you and pray for you. Please reach out. Some of you may face infertility one day, and we want you to know we will walk that journey with you and pray with you each step of the way.

There are moments in life when words fail to express the depth of emotion in our hearts, but today, Mark and I want to try to share with you our journey with infertility in hopes of connecting with others. We hope to convey the rawness of our experiences, the unfailing grace and mercy of our Heavenly Father, the strength of our love, and the profound impact your presence has had on us. Here is our story:

Mark: I’m from Northeast Arkansas, born in 1981. My family moved to Memphis when I was three, and I’ve called it home since. I'm in construction, love music, and nature, and cherish family. Life’s twists didn’t follow my plans; college, travels, and career shifts kept Mrs. Right elusive until I met Kristin on Match.com in 2014. Our chemistry was instant, but the road was rocky with long-distance hurdles. However, we were devoted to each other and making it work. We spent a lot of time talking on our phones and driving I-40.

Kristin: I grew up in the Arkansas River Valley. After graduating from Russellville High School in 2000 and from Ouachita Baptist University in 2004, I opened a photography and graphic design studio in my hometown. I loved getting to know young couples as they started their journey in life together. One day I would be photographing their wedding day, and before you know it, I was photographing their sweet babies. I often prayed for the day I would be on the other side of the lens with my own family. As much as I loved photography, God knew there was another field better suited for me. In his perfect timing, He led me on the path to becoming an occupational therapist, and I met Mark along the way. God knew I needed Mark. He is the kindest, most thoughtful, hardworking, and loving man. He is the answer to many of my prayers. After finally graduating with my MOT, I felt the Lord leading me to move to Memphis, and there I found a wonderful job as a pediatric occupational therapist at Madonna Learning Center. That job and all the wonderful people at MLC have truly been a Godsend in so many ways.

Mark: Kristin’s resilience, relocating to Memphis for her career, and our love and commitment to each other led us to marriage in the fall of 2017. We were married in Kristin’s hometown church surrounded by our closest family and friends. It was a perfect, albeit very windy, fall day.

Kristin: In the month leading up to our wedding, I went to my annual doctor’s appointment. My doctor asked me what our family plans were. I told her Mark and I both wanted children, but we thought we would wait a year before trying. She said at our age, we didn’t need to wait. She wanted to begin testing my fertility health immediately. Those tests unveiled a diagnosis of complex endometrial hyperplasia. I was quickly referred to a fertility specialist and on to an oncologist. We were told complex endometrial hyperplasia is a condition only cured by a hysterectomy. At best, the treatment I would receive at West Cancer Clinic would “pause” the condition long enough for us to hopefully have a child. This diagnosis propelled me into a world of treatments, regularly scheduled biopsies, surgeries, and lots of waiting shortly after saying “I do”. When I was finally released from the oncologist care, COVID-19 had shut down all elective medical procedures, which included almost all infertility treatments. All we could do was wait. In the waiting, the Lord led us to Hickory Withe Baptist Church. As we like to say at Hickory Withe, a church is not a place you go; it’s a family you belong to. By joining, we truly found our church family.

Mark: By the summer of 2021, the world started opening back up. We were able to try two rounds of IUI, but we were disheartened when neither of them took. The challenges of infertility, job loss, financial strain, and watching my mom battle cancer weighed heavily on me, leading me down a dark path. But Kristin’s unwavering love and a wake-up call in March of 2022 set me on a path to healing. We paused our fertility journey, and I sought treatment for an alcohol addiction. I started AA, and Kristin joined Al-Anon. We both joined a D-Group at church, and we were surrounded by friends who had walked a similar path before us. I was 89 days sober when I lost my mom. Had that happened 3 months earlier, that would have broken me, but it was amazing to see our community surround us. They were the hands and feet of our good and gracious God.

Kristin: In the healing and waiting, God surrounded us with so many amazing people to help us weather the storm. He gave us our amazing Faith Walk community, and He reminded me specifically that His delay is not his denial. I drive one of the busiest streets in Memphis to work every day. TDOT reports 56,000 cars travel along that stretch of road daily. For a year, God routinely put one particular truck in my path. This truck had a bumper stick that said, “God’s delay is not his denial.” Something so little gave me so much hope during those dark days. I tried repeatedly over that year to catch a glimpse of the driver, but I could never seem to catch up. Then one day, I was able to see who the driver was. To my shock, I knew him! The driver was Mr. Moses, who works for the cleaning service that tends to Madonna Learning Center. (It figures God would use a man named Moses to deliver a message like that.). I got to thank Mr. Moses later that week. He told me the reason he put that bumper sticker on his truck was to support a family at his church who was facing the giant of infertility. He said, “Our church prayed for them. God is so good! Now, that family has a beautiful child. I will pray for you and your husband as well.” Wow! God is in the details folks! I am so thankful to have a Heavenly Father who sees me right where I am. The love of the Lord abounds! Today, Mark is over 2 years sober and counting. I am so very proud of him. God is now using Mark to sponsor others who are starting on their sobriety journeys. He is also serving in the Faith Walk Community; a member of the church choir; and a part of the Men’s Ministry team at church.

Mark: In the fall of 2023, we felt nudged to revisit family planning. Kristin’s doctors agreed we were at a crossroads, and it was time to act. We faced the decision between IVF or adoption. We have prayed for God’s guidance with this decision. We sought counsel from his word and from those who have been down similar paths. For the past 10 months, we have also met regularly with a financial counselor to help us become good stewards of the resources God has given us. We have worked towards paying off debt as well as saving for fertility appointments, tests, and treatments out of pocket. While we have medical insurance, it does not cover fertility treatments.

Kristin: We are open to God growing our family however he chooses. We have researched IVF, fostering, and adoption. Through our research, we feel God leading us to seek treatment at St. Luke’s Hospital in St. Louis, MO under the medical guidance of Dr. Silber. With 43 years of experience, Dr. Silber is considered one of the world’s leading authorities in the field of infertility and is one of the pioneers in developing and discovering new treatments and methods used around the world today. We are looking to schedule mini-IVF beginning this summer. Mini-IVF does not depend on massive doses of expensive hormones, but instead, it uses a simpler protocol that strives for a smaller number, of better-quality eggs. This leads to increased success rates even in the most challenging cases.

Together: Mini-IVF has an estimated cost of $25,000-$30,000. Putting our story out there is outside of our comfort zone, but it isn’t just our story, is it? It’s God’s. He is writing our story right now, and you too can be a part of it through prayer, support, and/or donation. If you choose to donate, 100% of your financial gift will go directly to making our dream of bringing a child into our family a reality. We humbly ask you to please consider giving and help us bring our sweet child home!

With Love and Gratitude,

Mark & Kristin Seitz