1) Please introduce yourself and your babies:
My name is Maggie, my husband is Kyle and our babies names are Forest and Fern. We also have a six year old named Hazel.
2) How would you describe your surrogacy experience?
I would have given anything to be able to carry my babies myself but due to a life threatening medical condition I could not. I was so nervous to ask such an enormous thing of another woman and I had no idea what to expect. Our experience with surrogacy was nothing less than magical. When we were paired with our surrogate everything felt so “right”. She was so calm and confident and she just gave us this sense of comfort.
3) What is the best thing about parenthood?
My favorite thing about parenthood is watching my children reveal themselves to me. I love the challenge of finding the best platform to give to my kids to help them thrive. I love being in the mess of it all, it forces you to live moment by moment and to let all of the “non problems” as I call them, fall by the wayside. I love introducing them to new things and seeing the world through their eyes. Being a mother is the best gift I could receive and it has made me a better person. All Families, ORM, our surrogate, my husband and I gave our children life, but they gave me a sense of purpose greater than myself and an abundance of love and joy that I’ve never known before having kids.
4) How is/was your relationship with your surrogate?
Our relationship with our surrogate is so good. She is very easy to talk to and very respectful of our family and our journey. We still talk about every couple weeks and we see each other every few months. She is Auntie to our kids and her husband is Uncle. She’s made this process as easy as it could be by being honest and open with us and she always makes us laugh! She has a heart of gold and I have learned so much from her selflessness, openness and ability to trust the process so entirely. She has made me a better person, without a doubt.
5) What would you tell other parents considering surrogacy and working with AFS?
The support that All Families gave us allowed us to trust the process. They had thought of everything and we felt like our needs and our surrogates needs would be taken care of in totality. We needed to know that our surrogate wouldn’t have to worry about anything other than her health and the health of our babies and that she had everything she could possible need. They did that and more! The best advice I could give to potential IPs is, to trust the system and to trust your heart. Be kind to yourself, there is nothing you can do to prepare yourself mentally for this journey. Look for the life lessons and the growing moments. Support your surrogate in whatever way possible and take one day at a time. If having a baby is in your heart, you won’t regret choosing this process, not in a milllion years. It was the best decision we’ve ever made.
