Lucy Devine
A woman stepped in to have her best friend's husband's baby after the couple struggled to fall pregnant with their second child.
Alicia Ward, 34 and husband Austin, 33, from Ohio, desperately wanted to give their six-year-old son Declan a sibling, but struggled to conceive.
But when best friend Danielle Blair, 28, heard of their difficulties, she stepped in to make their dreams of having a second child come true.
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Danielle fell pregnant with Alicia's daughter in January 2019 via IUI - a fertility treatment that involves directly inserting sperm into a woman's womb - and Maisie was born on 1 October 2019.
“I was shocked someone was willing to do such an amazing thing for us," says Alicia.
“I was worried about bonding with Maisie and worried that she would miss Danielle. But when I first held her that all washed away.
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“This was my child and I felt the connection instantly. Now she’s a mummy’s girl, she definitely prefers me over her dad.
"Danielle was already my best friend, but her doing this incredibly selfless act for us has brought us so much closer together.
"We can't thank her enough for making our dreams come true."
After giving birth to her son, Alicia - who suffers from polycystic ovary syndrome - and Austin were unsure whether they should have another baby.
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Explaining how Danielle ended up offering to carry their child, Alicia adds: “She phoned me and said: 'Let me have your baby for you'.
“At first I laughed, I didn’t really think she was serious. But a few weeks later she called me again and said: ‘I’m serious about this. If you want to let’s do it.’
“I was shocked but of course I said: 'OK, let’s do this.'”
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Danielle was a 'traditional surrogate', which is when the surrogate's egg is fertilised by the father's sperm.
“I was really nervous,” says Alicia. “This child was only going to be a half-sibling to my son and might not look like him. But I was extremely thankful for Danielle.”
On the day of the birth, Alicia got a call from Danielle to tell her she was having contractions and Alicia immediately rushed to UPMC Women’s Hospital with Austin.
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The doctors had to induce Danielle and break her waters and little Maisie was born an hour later.
“I was holding Danielle's leg and all of a sudden I could see the baby's head,” Alicia says.
“Then in one push she came right out. It was magical, it felt no different to when I held my son for the first time."
Alicia says Danielle will always be in her little girl's life, and that she will tell Maisie how she was made from an early age.
Danielle adds: “There was never a doubt in my mind that this was something I wanted to do for her.
“Seeing her reaction to the positive test and seeing Maisie for the first time on the ultrasound was so indescribable.”