Frozen embryo adoption helps Omaha couple become parents
Carrie and her husband Paul were matched with a couple who already had two little boys and they shared 8 embryos with the Aylwards. The embryos had been frozen since 2013. Carrie had to take medication to prepare her body for pregnancy and they couple travelled to a Colorado infertility clinic for the embryo transfers. Carrie initially became pregnant with twins but lost one in the first trimester. Their son
By Julie Cornell
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OMAHA, Nebraska (KETV) — An adoption agency is helping to build families in a unique way, by adopting out leftover frozen embryos from families who are finished growing their families after infertility treatments. Nightlight Christian Adoptions, operating in 10 states and worldwide, celebrated a milestone recently, with more than 1,000 babies born through their Snowflakes baby program.
They’re babies who grow into toddlers and preschoolers like 4-year-old, Maxen, who loves toy trucks, cinnamon rolls, and the colors orange and brown.
“You’re a sweet boy,” Carrie Aylward tells her curly headed blond son sitting at her counter.
In 1997, Nightlight pioneered the world’s first embryo adoption program. A family member of Aylward happened to hear a radio commercial about the agency, and it changed her life along with her husband, Paul.
“We learned we could not have kids biologically,” said Aylward.
The Snowflakes baby program is created much like a traditional adoption program. Families must be interviewed. There’s a home study and you create a profile. Then the agency helps match you with a family who has the same values. The donor family helps choose the potential parents. Once there’s a match, the donor family agrees to release their leftover frozen embryos which they created through infertility treatments.
“Just go in with an open mind,” said Aylward.
Once an adopting family is identified, the embryos are shipped to a clinic and thawed just before a transfer procedure. Snowflakes is able to provide three generations of health records for the frozen embryos and they keep track of how many babies are born and where they are located.
“I think the most difficult thing for the donor families is grieving the loss of giving birth to those embryos they created. But I try to encourage them that they had the embryos created because they wanted them to become a baby,” said Kimberly Tyson, with the Snowflakes program.
Carrie and her husband Paul were matched with a couple who already had two little boys and they shared 8 embryos with the Aylwards. The embryos had been frozen since 2013.
Carrie had to take medication to prepare her body for pregnancy and they couple travelled to a Colorado infertility clinic for the embryo transfers. Carrie initially became pregnant with twins but lost one in the first trimester.
Their son, Maxen, was Snowflake baby number 634.
“He is laid back, outgoing, go with the flow, along for the ride. Kind of the class clown from the stories I hear from his teachers,” said Aylward, laughing.
The Aylwards have tried a few times to achieve pregnancy with the same batch of embryos and they have one remaining. Sometimes after thawing, the families will learn the embryos are not viable. The Omaha family has contact with the donor family, sharing photos and updates once a year.
Costs to adopt embryos start at about $9,000 for testing, home studies, shipping, and various fees. There are also medical costs associated with pregnancy which are often covered by health insurance.
To learn about adopting embryos or donating them, go to nightlight.org/snowflakes-embryo-adoption-donation
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