Journey To Baby Furnas

I am starting this fundraiser on behalf of my best friend but she is really more than a friend she is my sister by choice. We have been friends for 28 years and this has been the hardest journey for me to ever see her struggle with.  The struggle to  complete their family with a baby. They have spent over 5 and 1/2 years trying to have a baby and have endured many many medical procedures ,  a failed adoption and a miscarriage. 

Their journey is not over they are still pursuing more medical intervention. I have designed this 1000 piece puzzle to represent their journey. I would like to sell the pieces to this puzzle. Each puzzle piece will cost 10.00 and on the back of each puzzle piece you purchase will be your name. We want to represent all who helped bring this miracle to the world. The puzzle will be hung in the nursery for the baby to have to remember just how special and loved he/she is.

If you would like to read more about their journey please read below.

Allison and Jeremy have been on the journey to start their family for about 5 ½ years.  They spent the first year of their journey going through a battery of testing with lots of negative news and less invasive fertility treatments including medication cycles and 3 IUI (intrauterine insemination) cycles. With no success and lots of disappointment they decided to pursue their first round of in-vitro-fertilization (IVF). IVF is a very intensive process that requires lots of doctors visits, blood draws, ultrasounds, physical exams and injectable medications. They first must grow eggs have them removed surgically, the doctors then fertilize them and they grow into embryos then the embryo is transferred back into the uterus via a medical procedure. Unfortunately the IVF was unsuccessful and not only did they not get pregnant but none of their embryos survived long enough to be frozen so they could try again. These procedures are emotionally, physically and financially exhausting.
After this loss Jeremy and Allison decided to pursue adoption. They went through the process of getting homestudy approved, finding an attorney, and after a few months were matched with a birth mother.  The birth mom was due shortly so everyone hit the road planning for a baby. They were supporting the birth mother and her family through bills , medical costs and went as far as buying Christmas gifts for their current children. Allison had created a personal bond with the birth mother and her other children and even named the little boy the birth mom was carrying. In the months leading up to the delivery Allison would drive her places and make sure she was getting everything she needed. The birth mom would text and call to check in with Allison and Jeremy. If felt so secure no reason to believe it wouldn’t go through. A little baby boy would be coming home to a beautiful nursery with his name on the wall. Turns out the birth mother was a habitual liar that led Allison and Jeremy on throughout the whole process with the intention of never placing the child for adoption and stealing all their money. She didn’t inform them when the baby was born and after days of not hearing from the birth mom I called the hospital and found out the baby had been born. This was devastating. It was like grieving the loss of life. The little boy named and planned for was now gone. After this fell through Allison spent time working on her own health and losing weight in hopes of helping with their infertility.
Once Allison had lost about 55lbs they began doing fertility treatments again with the less invasive procedure called IUI . This time after 2 cycles Jeremy and Allison found out they were pregnant. We thought it was a miracle we were due 5 weeks apart. We were excited! Our biggest dreams coming true! Unfortunately about a month later this pregnancy ended in a miscarriage.  We couldn’t understand why this was happening. Everything was lining up and now it was all crashing back down again. Usually after miscarriage pregnancy comes easily again so they went right back to trying more IUI’s. They completed 4 more cycles all ending in disappoint month after month.
They decided it was time to go back to the fertility clinic to see what was the next step they should take. The fertility doctors recommended Allison spend the next three months focusing on losing as much weight as possible and then they would move forward with another IVF.  Allison lost another 30lbs and they went forward with a more aggressive treatment and added additional medications in hopes of a better outcome. This included three timed shots daily in her back and stomach that were painful as well as lots of doctor visits , exams and blood work. At the egg retrieval a similar number of eggs were retrieved as during their first IVF however this time six embryos made it to freezing. This was amazing for sure it was going to work this time. At the doctors recommendation the embryos were biopsied for genetic testing to ensure they were suitable for a healthy pregnancy and baby.  This type of testing is not usually recommended for someone younger than 35 as typically your eggs are healthier the younger you are but due to Jeremy and Allison’s first IVF failure and the miscarriage it was the best next step. Unfortunately all six embryos came back abnormal and were unable to be transferred resulting in another failed IVF. This journey has been exhausting in all aspects. They deserve a baby and have given their everything to try to start their family.

Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying “I will try again tomorrow”.

Allison and Jeremy have showed more courage than I ever thought possible in this journey. If you would like to be apart of bringing this so very loved baby to this world our hearts will forever be touched.