Every baby is a miracle gift from God! However, sometimes when you've been through significant struggles to conceive, a pregnancy and a healthy baby can be even more meaningful.

I want to share a little piece of my heart with you.

We spent nine years praying, hoping, and dreaming of a pregnancy. We tried almost everything medically to conceive, including surgery for endometriosis, IUIs, and multiple rounds of IVF. After the third round of IVF, we decided to start our family through adoption. Our adoption process was rapid, and I credit the first five years of struggling with God's speed in bringing Brynlee home with only three weeks’ notice. Brynlee completed our family in a way we never could have imagined. She looks like her daddy and her cousins – a true Craig, if I say so myself!

Once we decided to adopt, we stopped all medically driven attempts to conceive. Early skin issues with Brynlee led me to a more natural approach to our health, as I didn't want my newborn to be exposed to steroid creams. I found through much research that she had an issue breaking up the proteins in her formula, which we changed, and the skin issue disappeared.

Health can improve significantly when we are more aware and eat a healthier, God-given diet. After being off the hormone medications for so long, my body changed, and I felt completely different, which drove my belief home even more.

We never stopped believing in the possibility of conceiving naturally – we longed to give Brynlee a sibling. I did much research. I read a ton. This was when I learned about Mercier Therapy, a non-invasive, manual manipulation of the lower abdomen and pelvic areas to increase blood flow, improve circulation, break up endometrial tissue, and reduce scar tissue. It was proven to result in pregnancy within one year at a much higher rate than IVF.

To us, Mercier therapy was such an inexpensive option compared to everything else we'd been through, so the decision was easy. My therapy with yinRoot included health coaching, counseling, supplements, and treating mind, body, and spirit. Part of the mind and spirit discovery was to admit that some changes needed to take place to free my mind from the negativity I'd been feeding it for so long regarding my body's abilities to conceive and carry a baby.

At one of our sessions, I vividly remember Joelle asking me how I could create more space in my life. She recognized that things were really busy for me. I was trying to balance all the things: being a wife and a mom, dabbling in multiple side businesses, working full-time at an accounting firm, and trying to make time for myself so I could focus on improving our chances of conceiving naturally. She encouraged me to slow down. I knew my career was a big part of what was dragging me down and holding me back. So, I quit all my side gigs, and on the first of January, I told my boss I needed him to find a replacement because I was resigning. I became pregnant the following week!

Our mind is a powerful tool. We create blockages unknowingly and unintentionally, but when we seriously change our thinking (positivity) and get rid of the things holding us back (very stressful job), we can make great strides in our lives and health. These decisions were by no means easy. Adjusting to being a stay-at-home mom and giving up a successful career (and salary) were hard choices, but ultimately, I knew that God was leading our decisions. He clearly spoke to me the week after ovulation and told me that this was our turn – that it would finally happen!

A week later, we had our first-ever positive pregnancy test! We know those hard decisions led us to our baby, and we've learned so much about what is essential to optimizing our wellness. We still have a lot of learning to do, but I am so thankful for the guidance and support that Joelle provided to me during our time together. She was a pivotal part of our journey to conceiving naturally after all of those years of fertility treatments!