We're going all in!: Extra Thankful this Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday, one of the two at least. As kids we would take an extra day of school off and take turns traveling to see family we usually only saw twice a year. One year a 9 hour road trip to see my aunt and cousin and the next year 10 hours the other direction to see my aunt, uncle, and cousins. Then, our college years and since we've usually come home to see other family that live near my parents.

Even two years ago when my grandma was in the hospital over thanksgiving, we were sad, but we were all together and memories were still made. That is a thanksgiving I will never forget. Gavin had seen my sister and I in a very vulnerable spot, crying and asking God to make her well and begging my grandma to be strong and come back to us. That night (I know grandma had a part of this) Gavin and I had a night that brought us closer than any other night I can remember. We laughed, cried, and talked until the morning about everything, including things we'd never said about our miscarriage that summer. I was so thankful to be married to him.

Now, let's take a moment to remember last Thanksgiving, can't forget that one. We had decided to do meds and an IUI that cycle. I had an ultrasound that Tuesday and my follicles were ready to go, but this would mean an IUI on thanksgiving day which the clinic didn't do. So this left us triggering Tuesday night and the doctor recommending timed intercourse (10 am) on Thanksgiving day. We were upset, but didn't have a choice and at least the meds were cheap. We decided to make the best of it and hope to have a funny story someday. So, there we were at my sister's house Thanksgiving morning. I had my mom and sister keeping guard in the kitchen while they were cooking. They were all business beings we had doctor's orders! Unfortunately, we had a BFN (big fat negative). This was our last IUI before seriously deciding to go all in and talk to our doctor about using an egg donor.

What a difference a year makes. This year we have so much to be thankful for. I've been waiting years for a Thanksgiving like yesterday. I got to tell my grandpa that we were expecting, actually I got to tell him several times because he has dementia. Each time, he was so happy and just wanted to be sure that we would let him know and send a picture. I got a few phone calls from people back home who are so excited and happy for us.