A GIVE AWAY FROM PVED!
Don’t we all love “give aways?” I know I do, and so I decided that PVED needs to be entering into the give away business!
I have a set of 3 books I am going to send to 3 lucky winners. They will come as a set.
The first books is “Creating Life Against The Odds” By our own PVED Mom Dr. Lonny Higgins. Most prospective parents, when arriving at the decision to have children, presume their journey will be an exciting and rewarding one, resulting in the birth of a healthy baby. When those dreams are shattered because they cannot conceive or miscarry, they ask, “Why me? What did I do wrong?” The trauma of infertility is as devastating to one’s self-esteem as any other life crisis, it can destroy intimate relationships–or it can bring out the best in us.
In her book, Creating Life Against the Odds, Dr. Higgins, an obstetrician/gynecologist, describes her own experience becoming a mother by ovum donation. She also shares the first hand accounts of dozens of others who have turned to assisted reproductive technology (ART) in order to realize their dreams of becoming parents. These are stories Dr. Higgins has heard from her patients and from hundreds of women (and men) she has counseled or communicated with through confidential Internet support groups. The stories of these courageous individuals became the inspiration for Creating Life Against the Odds.
Dr. Higgins takes us along on their journeys as they struggle with infertility, as they explore the options that medical science now offers, as they meet obstacles, and as they adjust to repeated loss. She also takes us into the minds and hearts of sperm and ovum donors, surrogates, and gestational carriers, looking at what makes them want to lend such an intimate, helping hand. Are they like organ donors? Do they do it for financial gain? When ART enters the picture and donors or surrogates are used, how should we describe their relationship to the children they helped create? And what about the children? Are they like adoptees? How do they understand their birth origins? And what should their parents tell them?
Our second book is from the great team of Sears and Sears – The Pregnancy Book is an excellent all-in-one guide to pregnancy from William and Martha Sears, creators of the concept of “attachment parenting.” Each of the book’s chapters represents a month, and deals with physical and emotional changes, describes the growth of the fetus, and discusses common concerns. The authors also focus on nutrition, exercise, information and support for home births and birthing centers, traveling while pregnant, how to avoid episiotomy, and so on. The approach is gentle, thorough, and includes more information than some month-by-month guides, which makes The Pregnancy Book an excellent choice for pregnant couples.
Our third book is another hit from Sears and Sears titled “Everything You Need to Know About Your Baby From Birth to Age Two. William and Martha Sears, a pediatrician and a registered nurse respectively, team up with two of their doctor sons to update their 1993 guide to “attachment parenting.” Advocating a “high-touch style of parenting to balance the high-tech life of the new millennium,” the authors teach new parents how to bond with their babies through seven fundamental behaviors, including breastfeeding, “babywearing” and setting proper boundaries. When parents keep close to their babies by bringing them into bed at night and picking them up when they cry, the infants develop better, the authors argue; rather than becoming spoiled, they become more healthy and independent. From tips for a healthy birth, getting your baby to sleep and feeding him the “right fats,” to information about early health concerns, the major steps in infant development and troublesome but typical toddler behavior, the authors of this comprehensive volume (who share their own parenting experiences along the way) are assured and reassuring experts.
The RULES:
In the comment section please answer the following question:
How long have you been on your fertility journey?
One entry per person, please. Please do not post personal information we will contact you if you win.
No entries after midnight Pacific Time Sunday June 6th, 2010.
Winners will be selected at random and announced Monday.
Good luck!
Anonymous
Yay, a give away! 🙂 Looks like some great books that could help us, so here I go:
I am in my 6th year of my fertility journey..
– the victrix
M.
Forever and a day.
Anonymous
I am in my 3rd year of my fertility journey.
Zazu
13 months.
D
Almost 2 years (and countless procedures)!
Anonymous
Since July of ’09 officially…feels like an eternity at my age.
-AustinSuz
NAS2
I’ve been on this journey, in my heart, for years and years. With doctors, drugs, etc. 4 years.
You are the best!!!
Anonymous
3 1/2 years which is 3 1/2 years too long 🙁
Michelle D
We have been on this journey for 2 1/2 years since before we got married.
gopanthers14
I’ve wanted to be a Mom ever since I had my first baby Alive doll placed in my arms….Fast forward 35 years later….Too long!
Sue
In total – about 20 years if you count when I first tried. I had a a big break in the middle. About 8 years trying this time.
Love the give away idea – thanks for that!
Anonymous
I have been on this journey for 5 years.
Anonymous
TTC since 2005, this is an awesome give away, something that is useful, thank you. Good luck to everyone on their journeys.
Hope
Began in 2005, miracle daughter in 2006 and still trying for another miracle.
Anonymous
Since we got married in 2004…it seems forever…
Poshkers
Marna, you are amazingly generous!
We have been struggling through this fertility journey for 8 years. If I only knew then what I know now!
Nancy
It’ll be five years since our first appointment with an RE right around the time our DE son is born
nope
8 years and counting! Hoping 2010 is the year!
clautex
Since 2007 when I met my husband… 3 entire years.
Dreams and False Alarms
Oh How exciting!
I’ve been trying to get pregnant, one way or antother, for 4 years in August (3 years 9 months?). Tomorrow is my embryo transfer!
mariatherese
Its been 6 years for me now… but still hoping. 🙂
jbexpat
4 years, 7 OE IVF cycles, 3 miscarriages and 1 DE cycle currently a work in progress
Suzan
I have been TTC for 4 years and started visiting RE’s for consults about 18 months ago. Took awhile to wrap my head around DE as that seemed to be my only option – no OE IVF or other procedures.
Debbie
I spent 4 years trying before turning to donor eggs. Just gave birth to a beautiful baby boy.
Jennifer
Been trying since 2007 but wanted to be a mom as far back as I can remember!
Thanks Marna.
Mindy
Longer than I ever expected when I decided I was ready at age 27 in 2001. Remain officially “unexplained, probable egg quality” after 5 IVFs with many eggs, but few embryos to transfer, so moved on to donor eggs at the age of 33 in 2007. I have a beautiful little girl who was born in 2008, but have been trying again for the last 18 mos (I stopped breast feeding when daughter was 6 months to try again), most recently with a new donor/RE. Keeping my fingers crossed that all is well as I’m currently 8.5 weeks PG.
Lisa from CT
I have been trying for 4 years and am FINALLY 5 weeks pregnant!
Anonymous
5 years and am in the middle of a DE cycle now.
Sian
I don’t know if I have missed the deadline, but here goes…..
Seven years we have been at this. We’re currently doing our last DE cycle.
Beth
I guess since I was about 18 or so and started to absorb that I wasn’t going to have a baby without some form of help, even though it wasn’t clear to me what kind of help would really exist for someone who didn’t appear to have functioning ovaries. That makes it about 20 years…and I’m just now getting started on the practicalities of DE.
But in the past few months of lurking I’ve learned so much from the women (and men) of this community, and am so grateful to all of you and especially to Marna who is so generous with her time.