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Help Carly and Erik Give Axel a Sibling

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Thank you for taking a few moments to read our story. Having your time and attention as we share this chapter of our lives means a lot.

I have known since childhood that I cannot have children. As a baby, a hernia led doctors to discover that my reproductive organs never fully developed. Thus, a hysterectomy was advised to avoid a possible cancer risk as an adult.

My husband Erik and I just assumed we would be "pet parents" for the rest of our lives, but when I turned 40, my heart desired to mother a child. I wanted to love a child unconditionally and raise an outstanding human being with good morals, values, and character. When Erik and I discussed this further, we realized that becoming parents would not only enrich our lives but also allow us to help shape the next generation.

In early 2021, we started looking into what our options were. Thanks to advances in reproductive medicine and the selflessness of surrogate mothers, the possibility of having a child was within reach. However, the financial cost was daunting. It took $40,000 for our doctor at Oregon Reproductive Medicine to create our embryos. We ended up with 12 healthy embryos, three boys and nine girls. We were so grateful for those results.


Next came the year-long wait for an agency to match us with a surrogate mother willing to carry our child. God brought an amazing couple into our lives. Cadi and her husband live in South Carolina with their two sweet children. Cadi had felt it in her heart to help someone grow a family who couldn’t do so on their own. From our very first conversations, we knew we were the perfect match for each other.




A cash-out refinance on our home, grouped with other money we had, allowed us to fund both the embryo creation and the surrogacy. We spent almost $100,000 on the surrogacy alone. It was well worth the investment. It brought two families close together and our precious son Axel into this world. It's the best gift we have ever received!


Now, we’re facing a new decision: what to do with the remaining 11 frozen embryos. We have several options—dispose of them, donate them to research, or gift them to other families. But we feel called to bring one more life into this world and give Axel the gift of a sibling.


We’re incredibly blessed that Cadi is willing to help us with this second journey. To save on costs this time, we’ll skip using the surrogate agency to guide us through the process. Even so, we estimate it will cost roughly $80,000 to complete another surrogacy journey independently. That amount covers the surrogate’s allowance, medications, insurance, doctor visits, legal fees, travel, and other expenses.

We’ve saved $20,000 toward this next journey, and with Erik and me now in our mid-40s, we are hopeful to welcome a baby girl in the next couple of years. It would mean the world to us to have the opportunity to begin this next chapter in 2026.

We have always believed in figuring things out on our own, but we realize sometimes we need the support of our community to bring something beautiful to life. We are deeply grateful for the love and support from family and friends as we’ve embraced parenthood. Becoming a mother is more beautiful than I ever imagined, and it warms my heart to see our parents become grandparents.



Thank you for taking the time to read our story. If it resonates with you, we would be grateful if you shared it with others. Your love and support mean so much to us, and we wish you many blessings in the year ahead.

With love and gratitude,

Carly, Erik, and Axel
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    Organizer

    Carly Reumann
    Organizer
    Beaverton, OR

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