An American grandmother has given birth to a baby but in an unusual twist of fate, it’s not just her daughter — it’s also her granddaughter.
Julie Loving, 51, acted as a surrogate mother for her daughter Breanna Lockwood, who has been struggling to have a baby of her own.
The baby, born earlier this month, soon became an internet sensation.
Named Briar Juliette Lockwood as a nod to surrogate Julie, this baby girl can boast two mothers — one of who is also her grandmother.
“My mum was an absolute rock star through a difficult delivery,” Ms Loving posted on Instagram, a post which soon became viral.
“The sacrifices she took to bring this little slice of heaven into our world takes my breath away.
“Holding my daughter in my arms my heart is bursting.
“The feeling of how I would do absolutely anything needed for this child is radiating through me when I look at her, and reflects back on what my mom did for me.”
Breanna Lockwood and her partner Aaron were struggling to have their own child, experiencing four failed embryo transfers, two miscarriages and an ectopic pregnancy.
One medical procedure had left Ms Lockwood with problematic scar tissue in her uterus, making a normal pregnancy near impossible.
The Fertility Center of Illinois helped Ms Lockwood’s mother become a gestational carrier for their baby.
However, the entire process was not without its difficulty.
The Lockwood’s fertility specialist, Dr. Brian Kaplan of Fertility Centers of Illinois said it was an expensive procedure.
“Most Americans cannot afford a gestational carrier,” he said. “It’s over US$100,000 ($146,000).”
On Instagram, the Insta-famous Ms Loving outlined the many steps it had taken to reach this happy ending.
“1311 days. 476 injections. 64 blood draws. 7 surgical procedures. 3 rounds of harvesting eggs. 19 frozen embryos. 8 IVF frozen embryo transfers total. 4 failed embryo transfers. 1 singleton miscarriage. 1 twin miscarriage. 1 ectopic pregnancy. Countless tears.”
