PREGNANT AT THE SAME TIME AS MY SURROGATE

Katlyn Sparks-Haught, 34, fulfilled her motherhood dream twice over - with help from a friend

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Sitting at the kitchen table, I opened Facebook on my laptop and stared at the blinking cursor. Finally I typed, 'Is there anyone who could help us? We're looking for a surrogate.'

It was September 2023, and my husband Joseph, then 33, and I had started IVF a month before we married, two years earlier, knowing my polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) might make things difficult. But after a heartbreaking seven miscarriages, each loss had broken us a little more. When doctors discovered I had an autoimmune disease that made maintaining a pregnancy nearly impossible, they suggested trying different treatments, but my body and spirit were worn out, so Joseph and I had decided to try surrogacy instead.

We were temporarily living with my parents to save money, only we didn’t know where to start with the surrogacy.

To our surprise, within 24 hours of posting on Facebook, a message popped up from someone I'd gone to school with - Kaitlyn Frey. We'd never been particularly close, but tears sprang to my eyes as I read her message; 'I'll carry your baby for you.'

Kaitlyn, then 32, told me how she already had two young children with her husband Eric, 35. Their family was complete but she'd always thought about being a surrogate and, after seeing my post, she took it as a sign.

Joseph and I were overwhelmed by her generosity. She told us her husband was fully on board and, after a flurry of messages and phone calls discussing the process, the four of us met for dinner. It almost felt like a first date as we chatted for hours about life, travel, kids and high school memories. We'd already had serious conversations about surrogacy, so we just enjoyed getting to know each other.

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