OUR LITTLE MIRACLE
Chris and Liam first met in 2008. In 2010 they moved in together and in 2013, Chris proposed to Liam. Everything was going to plan, the next stage in their lives would be to start a family. In 2015, Chris and Liam bought a house together in Sutherland Shire, close to Chris’ family, and were married shortly thereafter. Together, they created an ideal home for a young family and set out to bring a baby into the world.
Chris and Liam’s journey to parenthood began in 2018 when Liam’s sister agreed to donate her eggs to create embryos through IVF. The couple also registered with a Canadian-based surrogacy agency and began the search for the ideal surrogate. They encountered numerous obstacles along the way. After two grueling years, many failed rounds of IVF, miscarriages, and surrogates withdrawing, Chris and Liam’s friend Sarah, based here in Sydney, finally gave them hope.
Sarah generously offered to be their surrogate with the support of her beautiful family. Soon, all the relevant legal and medical processes were underway and in January 2022, the first embryo was successfully transplanted. At 12 weeks into the pregnancy, Chris and Liam found out that they were having a baby girl and they were over the moon with joy. After everything they had been through, they finally were going to have the family they had always longed for. From that moment, Chris and Liam knew that they would call their daughter, Amelia.
Six months into the pregnancy things began to change. Sarah started experiencing complications such as excessive bleeding and was then diagnosed with placenta previa, a condition where the placenta develops across the cervix and causes bleeding as the uterus expands to accommodate the growing baby. Due to the severity of her complications, Sarah was transferred straight to The Royal. Sarah’s condition was deteriorating, and to achieve the best outcome for both her and Amelia, doctors needed to perform an emergency caesarian at 30 weeks. On August 11, 2022, Amelia came into the world and after years of waiting, Chris and Liam finally had their little girl.
Their first moments with her were not what they had pictured as Amelia was rushed straight to The Royal’s Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The road ahead was to be rocky and arduous for Amelia. For four weeks Chris and Liam drove from the Sutherland Shire to The Royal to be at her bedside while she received around-the-clock care from the dedicated team in the NICU. The road ahead was to be rocky and arduous for Amelia. For four weeks Chris and Liam drove from the Sutherland Shire to The Royal to be at her bedside while she received around-the-clock care from the dedicated team in the NICU.
Each year, The Royal’s NICU provides life-saving care to over 1,000 premature and critically-ill babies from across the state. Each baby is unique and the care that is provided is highly specialised. In some cases, babies are born at just 23 weeks and can weigh as little as 400 grams.
“The staff at the NICU were absolutely amazing.”
During this time, they reached out to Liam and Chris to involve them in the care planning for both Sarah and Amelia. They met with senior representative from The Royal’s midwifery department and a social worker who stayed in contact with them the whole time.
On Chris and Liam’s first Father’s Day, they arrived at the NICU where they received cards made by the nursing staff acknowledging that it was a special day for both of them. This day was made particularly memorable by the fact that Amelia was transferred closer to home for the remainder of her hospital care.
“The nursing staff and medical team worked miracles and went out of their way to ensure that our unconventional family was valued and respected.”
Finally, on 20 October 2022, one day after Amelia’s predicted due date, Liam and Chris were able to bring Amelia home to start their lives together. Amelia has been met with overwhelming love and joy by their family and friends. Liam and Chris couldn’t be happier that their dream finally came true.
Chris and Liam do hope to find another amazing lady to help them bring a brother or sister for Amelia into the world, for now they are simply enjoying being a family together and their home is filled with happiness and love, an ideal place for Amelia to grow up surrounded by their friends and incredible extended family.
Like Amelia, Chris and Liam, The Royal is truly there for every family and every newborn. A donation to Heart for Her before June 30 will ensure staff can go above and beyond for every patient and family when they need it most.
