Victoria Collier - Getting to Baby: Creating your Family Faster, Easier and Less Expensive through Fertility, Adoption, or Surrogacy

Creating your Family Faster, Easier, and Less Expensive Through Fertility, Adoption or Surrogacy

Victoria Collier & Jennifer Collier

an imprint of Morgan James Publishing

NEW YORK

Creating your Family Faster, Easier, and Less Expensive
Through Fertility, Adoption or Surrogacy

by Victoria Collier & Jennifer Collier

2011 Victoria Collier & Jennifer Collier. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical or electronic, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from author or publisher (except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages and/or show brief video clips in a review).

Disclaimer: The Publisher and the Author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the Publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither the Publisher nor the Author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an organization or website is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the Author or the Publisher endorses the information the organization or website may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that internet websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.

ISBN 978-0-98285-909-4 (paperback)

Published by:

an imprint of

MORGAN JAMES PUBLISHING
The Entrepreneurial Publisher
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www.MorganJamesPublishing.com

Cover Design by:
Rachel Lopez
rachel@r2cdesign.com
Interior Design by:
Bonnie Bushman
bbushman@bresnan.net

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We lovingly dedicate this book to our children,
Katherine and Christopher.

Our children, our joy, and this book would not have been possible without the love shared by others.

We specifically want to thank and acknowledge our surrogate, Brittany, who gave of herself selflessly and who endured such a difficult pregnancy. Words are not adequate to express just how grateful we are. We, as well as the children, will always love you.

A special thank you to Mike Prieto for sharing his surrogacy experience with us. Without the willingness of others to share their pain as well as their joy, we would have never known about or considered surrogacy.

Our journey was a long one and we had many loving supporters travel it with us. We thank our friends and family who were strong and supportive of us as when we lost our child, had two failed adoptions, and ultimately celebrated the birth of our children. We know it was emotional for all involved and we could not have done it without you.

As an adoptive parent and an adoption attorney for over 35 years, I find that my clients have so many questions about how to create their families and are interested in what experiences other couples have had. Getting to Baby shares the personal experiences of Victoria and Jenniferthrough disappointment to success. It tells it like it was for them and includes very practical pointers that can be helpful to others. The authors became champions of surrogacy and encourage others to be successful in creating their families. A must read for anyone experiencing challenges in creating their family.

James B. Outman, Fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, Fellow of the Georgia Council of Adoption Lawyers, Law Office of James B. Outman, LLC, Atlanta, GA

Getting to Baby provides a unique and fresh approach to creating a family. Victoria and Jennifer Collier share their vulnerabilities sincerely to guide others through their own journey to have a family. After having gone through my own processInternational AdoptionI can say with certainty that I would have benefited by having and reading this book before and during my own journey. This is such an important and beautiful story to help others see through many different options.

Susan Kovac Sanders, CRNA, Mother of John Gray Timur Sanders (adopted from Russia, 2009)

We are Victoria and Jennifer Collier. If you are reading this, you want to create a family or have a loved one who does. When we set out to create our family, we followed the typical roadmap many couples take on their journey. It was a long and at times heartbreaking journey for us. We started with fertility, specifically In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF). We suffered a miscarriage, two subsequent negative pregnancy test results, and broken hearts. Whats next on the roadmap? Adoption. So, we began the adoption process. We had some close calls and two failed adoptions, once again breaking our hearts. We began to feel this was the end of the road for us. Then we learned of surrogacy. This proved to be the fast-lane getting us to baby. We want to share our experience with you to help you find your fast-lane. Knowledge is power and having the knowledge before you begin can help you streamline your process, making your journey one of triumph rather than heartbreak.

Disclosure: The information in this book is not intended to substitute for medical or legal expertise and advice. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with your healthcare provider and legal issues with an attorney. The attorney you use should be experienced and knowledgeable about assisted reproductive technology, adoption, or surrogacy. To find such attorney, search attorneys who are members of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys (AAAA) and the American Academy of Reproductive Technology Attorneys (AARTA).