A 61-year-old grandma gave birth to her own granddaughter in Nebraska on Monday, after volunteering to be a ɢᴇsᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴᴀʟ ᴄᴀʀʀɪᴇʀ for her son and his husband’s child.
Matthew Eledge and Elliot Dougherty of Omaha, Nebraska, needed a sᴜʀʀᴏɢᴀᴛᴇ to carry their baby. They ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ expected she would turn out to be Matthew’s mother.
When Matthew Eledge, 32, and Elliot Dougherty, 29, began ᴄᴏɴsɪᴅᴇʀɪɴɢ IVF as an option for ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇɪᴠɪɴɢ a child two-years-ago, the couple says they were amused by Eledge’s 61year-old mother’s offer that she’d happily be their sᴜʀʀᴏɢᴀᴛᴇ ᴄᴀʀʀɪᴇʀ Cecile Eledge having last given birth more than 30 years ago, who went through ᴍᴇɴᴏᴘᴀᴜsᴇ 10 years ago, assured the couple that she ‘loved being pregnant’, and, if she could, she’d ‘do it again in a ʜᴇᴀʀᴛʙᴇᴀᴛ’. Cecile in for a series of tests, including a Pᴀᴘ sᴍᴇᴀʀ, ʙʟᴏᴏᴅ and ᴄʜᴏʟᴇsᴛᴇʀᴏʟ tests, a ᴍᴀᴍᴍᴏɢʀᴀᴍ and an ᴜʟᴛʀᴀsᴏᴜɴᴅ, doctors ᴄᴏɴFɪʀᴍᴇᴅ her to be in ʀᴇᴍᴀʀᴋᴀʙʟᴇ sʜᴀᴘᴇ and fully ᴄᴀᴘᴀʙʟᴇ ᴏf ᴄᴀʀʀʏɪɴɢ a baby Fᴜʟʟ-ᴛᴇʀᴍ.
Elliot’s 26-year-old sister, Lea Yribe, then also offered the couple her ᴇɢɢs. Cecile, from Nebraska in the US, began ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴇ treatments before her son’s sᴘᴇʀᴍ was ɪᴍᴘʟᴀɴᴛᴇᴅ in sᴇᴠᴇʀᴀʟ Fᴇʀᴛɪʟɪᴢᴇᴅ ᴇɢɢs into Cecil’s ᴜᴛᴇʀᴜs. Cecil then ᴡᴇɴᴛ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀ ᴀ sᴇʀɪᴇs of ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴀʟ ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ to ʀᴇ-ɪɴᴅᴜᴄᴇ her ᴍᴇɴsᴛʀᴜᴀʟ cycle, a prime her for pregnancy. Using Eledge’s sᴘᴇʀᴍ, doctors ɪᴍᴘʟᴀɴᴛᴇᴅ sᴇᴠᴇʀᴀʟ Fᴇʀᴛɪʟɪᴢᴇᴅ ᴇɢɢs in Cecil’s ᴜᴛᴇʀᴜs, and ʀᴇᴍᴀʀᴋᴀʙʟʏ she fell pregnant on the first attempt. And, following a ɢʀᴜᴇʟɪɴɢ nine-months ʀɪᴅᴅʟᴇᴅ with ʜᴇɪɢʜᴛᴇɴᴇᴅ morning sɪᴄᴋɴᴇss and Fʀɪɢʜᴛᴇɴɪɴɢ ʙʟᴏᴏᴅ ᴘʀᴇssᴜʀᴇ sᴘɪᴋᴇs as a result of her age, her pregnancy finally came to an ᴇɴᴅ on Monday.
Happy and healthy Uma was born at 6.06 am on Monday, March 25 weighing 5lbs 13oz. Cecile also sᴛᴜɴɴᴇᴅ ᴍᴇᴅɪᴄs when she gave birth naturally rather than by C-sᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ as ᴀɴᴛɪᴄɪᴘᴀᴛᴇᴅ. Matthew said: “In fact, she was so ᴇxʜᴀᴜsᴛᴇᴅ after the pregnancy and birth she said she was actually glad to hand her over before the real hard work began. She said the whole process was ‘sᴏ ᴡᴏʀᴛʜ it’ in the end.”
Photographer Ariel Panowicz captured the emotional moment Matthew and Elliot saw their daughter for the first time. Uma can be seen ᴘᴇᴀᴄᴇFᴜʟʟʏ ʟʏɪɴɢ on Cecile wearing a knitted hat and swathed in a white blanket. Cecile Eledge cradles and plants a kiss on little Uma’s head while her son and his husband sob with happiness that their dream of becoming parents has come true. The fathers also took it in turns to place Uma on their ʙᴀʀᴇ ᴄʜᴇsᴛs to benefit from skin-to-skin contact as gran Cecile had a rest. Uma is now at her new home and her dads are expecting her to be a ‘little ᴅɪᴠᴀ’ like them.
Matthew said: “Her ᴏʀɪɢɪɴ story is that her aunt Lea provided the seed of life, and her mother provided the loving garden for her to bloom. People are ᴄᴏɴFᴜsᴇᴅ, which is normal. We got a lot of people being like, ‘wait a minute, ᴡʜᴏsᴇ ᴇɢɢ? And ᴡʜᴏsᴇ sᴘᴇʀᴍ?’ As ɢᴀʏ ᴍᴇɴ, we’re so lucky to be having children at a time when people are actually ᴄᴇʟᴇʙʀᴀᴛᴏʀʏ of our relationship and of us being parents, and also at a time when technology ᴀʟʟᴏᴡs us to have this baby, with some of Elliot’s ɢᴇɴᴇᴛɪᴄ ᴍᴀᴛᴇʀɪᴀʟ and some of my ɢᴇɴᴇᴛɪᴄ ᴍᴀᴛᴇʀɪᴀʟ.”
