November Baby of the Month: Meet Jude

My wife Christen and I met in 2012 and were inseparable from day one. I knew early on in our relationship that she was the one I was going to marry and spend the rest of my life with. We got married in November of 2016, this weekend is our 5th wedding anniversary!

Over the years we talked about having children one day but were waiting for that “right time” that everyone talks about. We began the conversation more seriously in late 2019 and started looking for donors through California Cryobank. The pandemic hit shortly after and put a hold on pretty much everything. After a few months, we decided that this was our “right time” and we started to investigate some options. We chose our donor, and we were ready to roll. Laurel Fertility was recommended to us by Christen’s coworkers. They had a successful experience and have an adorable little boy of their own.

We started the process in September of 2020. When I met with Dr. Ekpo for the first time Christen joined us via FaceTime. She was so knowledgeable and answered all our questions with confidence. We were given our options and we decided to try a natural cycle IUI. I have had regular periods my whole life, so we wanted to see if this would happen unmedicated. We did bloodwork, and I monitored my cycle in October. We were given the green light for an IUI in November.

I got that positive ovulation test and called to schedule our IUI. The procedure was scheduled the next day, on Election Day. We got up that morning, voted, then headed to San Francisco with high hopes. The staff at the SF office were so friendly. They had everything prepared and the procedure went smoothly. As we drove home, we excitedly daydreamed about this whole process and talked about how exciting it would be that the IUI worked on our first try. IT DID!!! We got our first positive test just before the two-week wait. We couldn’t believe it!

We messaged the team of nurses at Laurel and had my HCG testing done right away. They confirmed that we in fact were pregnant! I remember my first ultrasound with Dr. Ekpo at around 6 weeks and seeing that tiny heartbeat on the screen. We felt like we hit the lottery!

Fast forward to July of 2021 and our little boy Jude joined our family. The entire experience was so fast and so smooth. We couldn’t be happier and have the amazing team at Laurel Fertility to thank for everything. They really know what they are doing, and they do it well. We are so beyond grateful to them.