Good News!

Do you like roller coasters?  I don't.  I hate them and would much prefer to stay safely on the ground.  I'm not liking this roller coaster ride we're being put through: the up's and down's that seem to happen every two days when Jenn gets bloodwork done!

Yesterday's report brought some very good news!  Jenn went in for bloodwork again yesterday and the beta level has almost tripled!  As of yesterday it was 26.9.  That is great news!  We are back in the game, and it is looking less like this was a chemical pregnancy.

Why did this happen?  Well, one possibility is that our little embryo took awhile to hatch and implant- it took longer than the 36 hours it usually takes.

Contemplating our Situation: Life, God and the Power of Prayer

Although our circumstances are unusual outside the world of IVF, and in regular life a woman would not even know she was pregnant in two weeks time (today our embryo is 17 days old- 5 days in a petri dish, then 12 days since transfer).  She would not know or worry about her hCg levels or worry about numbers increasing or doubling.  She would not know which day her baby was conceived, but only have a vague idea later on.

There is one woman in history who was aware, before any reproductive technology was invented, the day (or very close to the day) her baby was conceived.  That woman was Mary, the mother of Jesus.  In the angel Gabriel's explanation to Mary's question "How will this be, for I am a virgin," the angel explains, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.  So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God" (Luke 1:36).  Soon after this, Mary made the trip to see her cousin Elizabeth.  The journey was about 60 miles, and it is estimated that travel time was roughly one week.  Elizabeth greeted Mary when she was at a very early stage of pregnancy (possibly two weeks), carrying "only" an embryo. Elizabeth said to her, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!  But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord shall come to me?" (Luke 1:42-43).

Mary, in this very early stage, was recognized as a mother, and Jesus is recognized as her son, a baby. Knowing what I know now about embryo development, I am in awe of what is probably less than a 1-2mm in diameter embryo.  So tiny yet so miraculous.  Marc and I believe life begins at conception.  Insight into this story reinforces our view.  We call this embryo our baby.

Also, for all those who have been praying for us, and we feel truly blessed to be included in your prayers, we believe the Beta numbers are going up because of you.  I believe the numbers are being "prayed up."  God has a sovereign plan in all of this, and that plan includes prayer.