Surrogate mother gives birth to own granddaugther
PLANO, Texas -- Kelley McKissack calls the birth of her daughter Kelcey a little miracle. The 28-year-old shared the moment in the operating room with her mother Tracey on Wednesday.
"They pulled her little head out and that was the most amazing thing I've ever seen in my life. Ever."
Kelley and her husband Aaron tried for years to have a baby on their own, but repeated infertility treatments were unsuccessful. They experienced three heartbreaking miscarriages.
Kelley said not having kids just wasn't an option for them.
They had four remaining embryos from their final round of in vitro fertilization when her mom offered another option: to act as a surrogate and give birth to her own grandchild.
"She was like 'I think I need to do this,' I said 'I think you need to think about it.'" Kelley said she was mostly concerned about her mother's health.
Tracey was actually in excellent health, but at 53, she was already seven years into menopause. So doctor Joe Leveno put her on hormone therapy to enable her to carry a baby again.
"She was a star. She exceeded all of my expectations by a mile. In other words she complained probably a fraction of what my average patient does in terms of aches and pains," Leveno said of Tracey.
"When I was in my 20s and pregnant with [Kelley] and her brother, it was easy," Tracey said. But in her 50s, not so much. "It was difficult. It was just exhausting."
On the big day, Tracey had a c-section and gave birth to her granddaughter. Baby Kelcey headed home on Friday, proving a mother's and grandmother's love knows no bounds.