Christmas Miracle: From Tears to Cheers in just a year!

Okay...I said I would introduce you my family. So here goes: For starters, I thought I'd give you some background info. My husband David and I were married May 24, 1997. He was the perfect answer to a very fervent prayer that God would not send me any more 'frogs' to kiss. I wanted my prince and nothing less! Well I got him! David is the smartest, sweetest, most conscientious and fiercely loyal man I have ever met. He accepts me for who I am and shows me such love and affection. I could go on and on but I'll spare you any more sappy sentimentality for now. We decided we wanted to start a family but knew we had some obstacles to overcome first. I had a pregnancy that ended in a life-threatening ectopic rupture. (When the embryo implants and then grows in the fallopian tube which in my case, lead to a rupture causing a hemorrage and ending in miscarriage). So I only had one tube to work with but was in faith that it would be functional and that I would conceive and have the babies I was praying for. Well...God had other plans for us!
After lots of tests I ended up in the operating room for a laparoscopy to check out and repair any possible damage to my remaining tube. As I was coming out of the anesthesia, I overheard the surgeon saying this to my husband: "I'm so sorry...it just doesn't look good." Certainly not what we wanted to hear. It turned out that my remaining tube had actually twisted completely and there was a lot of scar tissue as a result. He speculated that this was what had happened to the other tube and that was why I had the ectopic. Final diagnosis? We had a 1% chance of conceiving naturally. Not good. At all. The surgery was on December 23rd and I went home to recuperate and 'celebrate' Christmas. I had been praying for a Christmas miracle...that we would be able to fix my problem and get on with trying for a baby so this news was pretty devastating for me. Christmas came and went and I was feeling better after the surgery but still pretty bummed. While I was putting some things away in David's closet, I saw a wrapped package up on a shelf that appeared to be a Christmas present. When he came home from work that evening I asked him about it and he said that the package was for me but that he was 'not ready' to give it to me yet. Of course I wanted to know when he would 'be ready' because I have a hard time waiting in suspense for anything! So he said "I'll let you know when the time is right." Very mysterious. After a while, I just put it out of my mind.
The Monday after Christmas I woke up with a feeling of resolve and determination. I had been praying about my infertility issues and just did not feel that I should take 'no' for an answer. So I called my OBGYN and said "okay, so now we know what we're dealing with...what are my options?" As it turned out I didn't have option(s) just one option. In Vitro Fertilization. Our only hope. A very expensive option. But all I heard was that there was hope! I began to feverishly (sometimes obsessively) research in-vitro on the internet. I joined an online support group. I investigated success rates and clinics. One obstacle we were facing was the lack of a clinic in Corpus Christi, TX at that time. The closest one was in San Antonio and our insurance didn't cover any of the costs associated with in-vitro. So one night I felt led to check out if there were any states with mandated coverage for infertility treatments. Turns out, there are. Hawaii, Rhode Island, and Massachussetts to name a few. One night David and I were talking about what we were going to do about having a baby and I said "Well...all we need to do is move to Massachussetts and then we can have a baby and it won't cost us anything!" (I cannot stress to you enough how 'out there' this statement was at the time). But God loves to go 'out there' when he answers prayers. A few weeks later, David called me at work and said "are you sitting down?" I sat down. He went on to say he had just received a call from a headhunter who had an interesting employment opportunity but it was in (you guessed it) Massachussetts!! Simply amazing.
The night before David left for Mass. for the job interview, I was helping him pack and he asked me if I wanted him to get this job. I said yes and he said (I'll never forget this) "then it's in the bag!" At that time he went into the closet and brought out that Christmas present he had been waiting to give me. The note on it read "Cathy, this is not to make you feel pressured. Just to let you know that when our hearts are united toward a similar goal there is nothing we can't do." I was already crying before I even opened it! Inside...a baby boy outfit with little lambs all over it!
So David went to Massachussetts and landed the job. We moved into a beautiful house at the foot of a mountain covered with apple and peach orchards. God sent us to the best Reproductive Endocrinologist around and our procedure was completely covered by insurance. On December 13, 2001...Patrick, our little Christmas miracle was born and we brought him home from the hospital in that baby outfit with the little lambs on it. God is so faithful!
2 1/2 years later we did another cycle of in-vitro which resulted in our beautiful and healthy twin babies; Mattie and Michael! Never give up on your dreams. Pray with your whole heart and then give God the gift of your faith. Trust Him to know what the perfect timing is to answer you and be obedient to follow his lead in all things. Surrender, trust, and then wait. That is all that's required. My children are living proof. Be blessed.

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