Allison, American Intended Parent in Denver, Colorado, USA

Explain your reasons for wanting a surrogate/donor:

My husband and I began trying to start a family in December *** and we experienced infertility and then a devastating miscarriage.We weren’t able to get pregnant again, and we agonized over whether to pursue fertility treatments.I met with a minister at our church and prayed a lot about it, and we then began doing medicated IUI fertility treatments.After more than a year, we became pregnant and then had another heart-wrenching miscarriage and also learned that I have a rare blood-clotting disorder. Our doctor kept referring us to do IVF, and after much soul-searching, we decided to move forward.We had great success creating embryos, and we did genetic testing on the embryos in hopes that this would reduce my risk of miscarriage.We did three IVF transfers of two embryos each time (six embryos total), and I never became pregnant.Our doctor said that my best bet at becoming a family was through surrogacy or adoption.While we were researching these options, my best friend approached me and said she wanted to do surrogacy with us, and she was here for us for as many children as we wanted to have through surrogacy.We had a wonderful experience and a beautiful son, but because of her pregnancy complications, we all agree that we don’t want to put her at risk with another pregnancy. We met with the doctors in October *** to discuss if I could do IVF with the embryos we had, and they said that surrogacy was the safest and best route for us because something is wrong with my uterus, but they don’t know what.Also, because of my blood-clotting disorder, a pregnancy would be high risk. I became miraculously pregnant the next month, and we thought all of our prayers had been answered beyond our wildest dreams.We lost our daughter to miscarriage and now feel called to have another baby because this pregnancy showed us how important it is for us to have another baby and a sibling for our son.Our family is not complete, and we feel called to continue our journey, share our story with others and help other couples suffering from infertility and pregnancy loss. One of my greatest life dreams was to be pregnant, give birth and have children.I have grieved and mourned the loss of my own pregnancy and birth story, and I will forever wish I could know what it feels like to feel a baby kick or watch my pregnant belly grow.If I can’t experience this myself, I’d love to be close to my surrogate’s experience.She will be carrying our most precious gift.

How would you best describe yourself(s):

My husband and I are both from the east coast.My best friends in college were his best friends from high school, so that's how we met.We got married in *** and moved to Colorado in *** had a blast building a life out West, meeting new friends, getting involved in the community and falling in love with Colorado's great outdoors.We wanted a strong, established marriage before starting a family, so we took our time having fun, traveling and being a family of two.(I am 37, and he is 38.) We started trying to have a baby in December of *** and embarked on a journey we never could have imagined.We have agonized, suffered, prayed, celebrated, sobbed and everything in between while walking this path of infertility and loss.It's been the most brutal yet beautiful experience of our lives, and through the pain and heartbreak, we have received love and support like we've never known, we've grown closer in our marriage and in our faith, and we've learned, grown and found strength, compassion and grace we didn't know we had.When my best friend (college roommates) offered to carry a baby for us, we were overjoyed beyond words.The surrogacy journey was a learning experience for all of us, but it was amazing in every way.In the end, my friend had completely unexpected and random/unavoidable pregnancy complications, and our son was born at 28 weeks, three months early.We got to be present for the hospital stay and our son's birth, and he spent four months in the NICU and then came home on heart and oxygen monitors.It was quite an adventure, but there was so much light and love during a pretty dark time.Our son is now 19 months old, and you'd never know he was a preemie! My friend and I remain the best of friends! My husband works in IT, and I am a writer.We spend a lot of our time playing with our sweet son, FaceTiming with our family back east, going on adventures (that usually involve eating) with friends, getting outside as much as we can (hiking, skiing, walks around the neighborhood) and overall, living a simple, happy life.We are really excited about this journey and look forward to connecting with an amazing “tummy mommy.”

Use this space to communicate a letter to potential Surrogates/Donors:

Dear Friend, There are not words to express our gratitude for using your gifts to bring out greatest gift into existence.Thank you for blessing our aching hearts with our greatest dream – a child whom I could not carry on my own.We are deeply grateful for your love, compassion, health and kindness, and we hope that this incredible journey will change your life as much as you have changed ours.Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, and may God bless you always, as you have blessed us.Love, Mommy, Daddy and Big Brother