On Monday March 25th, 2019, 61-year-old Cecile Reynek Eledge, gave birth to her granddaughter. Married couple Matthew Eledge and Elliot Dougherty considered getting an IVF (in vitro fertilisation) 2 years ago so they could have a child. However, Matthew’s grandmother, Cecile, offered to be a surrogate. In their hometown of Omaha Nebraska, Matthew went to a reproductive endocrinologist to test if his mothers “crazy” idea was possible. Having determined that it was, the process began.

After Cecile was tested to make sure all of her health was in order to determine that she was medically able to carry the baby, they had to decide who would donate. Elliot’s sister, Lea Yribe, offered to give the couple her eggs, while Eledge used his sperm. While Cecile had hormone treatments done, doctors implanted the fertilized sperm into Cecile’s uterus, where she got pregnant on the first attempt.

The couples daughter, Uma Louise Dougherty-Eledge, was born at 6:06 am, weighing in at 5 pounds, 13 ounces. Cecile, decided to have the baby without a C-section and was able to do it successfully. She is healthy, and the family couldn’t be happier. Eledge commented, saying that “”More than anything, we feel lucky to have women selfless enough to do this.” The couple announced their daughter on Facebook to their friends and family saying “What an honor it is to have these two women in our life. Life is a dream.”