She never expected two babies in one year, especially not the way it happened. Her husband, Chris, and she had been together for more than eight years. They were settled in their home in Southern California, had good jobs, and felt ready to start a family. She thought getting pregnant would be simple. She went off birth control, expecting it to happen quickly. Instead, she ended up in the hospital with intense pain, thinking it was another ovarian cyst, something she had dealt with before. But this time was different. When she woke up from emergency surgery, she wasn’t sure if she still had her ovaries. The doctor told them both ovaries were there, but he also told them she had severe endometriosis and damaged Fallopian tubes, which would make getting pregnant naturally much harder.
After surgery, she was put on Lupron shots to go into a temporary menopause and give her body a break. Those months were some of the hardest in their marriage. Her hormones made her emotional; they fought more than ever, and she honestly didn’t feel like herself. When the shots ended, they chose not to continue them for the sake of their relationship. Instead, she tried Clomid, another fertility drug, for several months, but nothing happened.
Seven months passed without success, and they went to a fertility specialist. He told them their chances of conceiving naturally were just 2%, that IUI might give us a 15% chance, and that IVF offered about a 90% chance of success. They decided to try IVF.
IVF was nothing short of grueling. There were injections, hormones, bruises, tears, and months of uncertainty. They were able to get seven embryos, but another problem came up: her uterine lining was too thin for a fresh embryo transfer. It stayed stubbornly low, so they waited and tried multiple treatments, even expensive interventions like Viagra suppositories to improve it. Eventually, with a mix of modern medicine and alternative herbs, her lining finally reached a level the doctor was willing to try.
They transferred two embryos and waited with hopeful hearts. When the phone rang that day, the nurse’s voice confirmed something they had prayed for so long: she was pregnant. They cried, hugged, and just held each other, feeling like every struggle had led to this moment. The first ultrasound showed only one baby, not twins, but that didn’t dampen their joy. This single little life was the culmination of years of hardship.
Their daughter Tenley June was born on June 8, 2016. Everything changed the moment she arrived. Becoming a mom was overwhelming in the best way, and raising her was a dream come true after such a difficult journey.
Just a few months later November 2016, she started feeling tired and a bit sick. At first, she brushed it off, thinking it was just normal fatigue. But something in the back of her mind made her buy pregnancy tests off Amazon, almost as a joke. When the tests came two days later, she took one… and it was positive. Then another was positive too. It didn’t make sense. They had just finished one long, painful journey to get pregnant. She called Chris, and even he thought she was joking at first. They Googled whether it was possible, but everything they read said it was unlikely.
A doctor confirmed it with a blood test: she was pregnant again, naturally, with no fertility drugs, just months after having Tenley. With everything they had been told and everything they had been through, a natural pregnancy felt impossible… yet it had happened. It was a beautiful surprise.
Their second daughter, Brodie Mae, was born on July 19, 2017, just thirteen months after her big sister. Watching them meet for the first time was surreal and incredible. Tenley didn’t quite understand at first, but soon she grew into her role as a big sister. Every day since then has reminded her of how fragile yet powerful life can be.
Looking back, she thinks about all the what‑ifs: the surgeries, the lost time, the cost, the emotional toll. She wishes some parts had been easier, but our journey is what made our family exactly who they are. They once hoped for twins, and in a way, the universe gave us Irish twins, two beautiful girls born just months apart.
