Many young and newly married couples want to have a baby together. For Aimee and Jake Morrisby of Queensland, Australia, there was nothing they wished for more than to start a family.
But fate can be very unkind.
From the time she was a teenager, Aimee suffered from a painful bowel condition that caused her abdomen to fill up with scar tissue. It hadn’t occurred to her that it would have any impact on her ability to get pregnant, until she was 21 and her gynecologist explained that the tissue had spread to her uterus. If she wanted to have children, she would have to hurry or it would be too late.
So Aimee and her husband tried to conceive — for five years. They even attempted IVF, but instead of a successful pregnancy, they suffered a series of heartbreaking miscarriages. Aimee despaired more and more. Jake was incredibly supportive throughout, as was her younger sister, Shayna Wiffen. But at last doctors confirmed that she would never be able to carry a baby to term: her abdomen, they said, was just one “big ball of scar tissue.” Inconsolable, Jake and Aimee realized they would somehow have to get used to the idea of never being parents.
And then one night at 10 p.m., Aimee got an unexpected phone call.
It was Shayna.
Shayna and her husband already had a son and a daughter, but she was prepared to get pregnant a third time. This time, however, she didn’t intend to carry her own baby. Instead, she made her sister an extraordinary proposal: “Let’s have a baby — together!”
So Aimee and her husband tried to conceive — for five years. They even attempted IVF, but instead of a successful pregnancy, they suffered a series of heartbreaking miscarriages. Aimee despaired more and more. Jake was incredibly supportive throughout, as was her younger sister, Shayna Wiffen. But at last doctors confirmed that she would never be able to carry a baby to term: her abdomen, they said, was just one “big ball of scar tissue.” Inconsolable, Jake and Aimee realized they would somehow have to get used to the idea of never being parents.
And then one night at 10 p.m., Aimee got an unexpected phone call.
It was Shayna.
Shayna and her husband already had a son and a daughter, but she was prepared to get pregnant a third time. This time, however, she didn’t intend to carry her own baby. Instead, she made her sister an extraordinary proposal: “Let’s have a baby — together!”
Aimee and Jake didn’t know what to make of this, until it dawned on them that Shayna was serious. How could they refuse such an offer! An embryo from Aimee and Jake’s IVF treatments was soon successfully implanted and Shayna was carrying her sister and brother-in-law’s child — in her womb, and in her heart. Shayna’s husband supported the whole process, while Jake and Aimee spent as much time as they could with Shayna and the developing baby.
Nine months later, after a healthy pregnancy, the time arrived: Aimee was at her sister’s side, working hard to ease Shayna’s labor and make the water birth as comfortable as possible. And then at last, there she was. A healthy baby girl — their very own child.
Shayna held the baby in her arms for just a moment before handing Jake his daughter. He simply couldn’t believe his good fortune: the tears flowed as he held his little girl for the first time.
Jake and Aimee named the baby Francesca Louise. She’ll always be an amazing sign of the bond between these two sisters, her mother Aimee and her aunt Shayna.
Watch the video for more impressions of Francesca’s extraordinary entrance into the world:
Aimee knows that there was no other way she would have been able to give birth to her very own healthy baby girl. She’s eternally grateful to Shayna for the gift she gave them, truly the greatest gift in the world. What a moving example of family — especially sibling — love!
Source:littlethings.com
