Doctors said the way baby Kelcey came into the world on Jan. 6 was “an extreme miracle.”
Kelcey’s grandmother gave birth to her as a surrogate for her daughter.
“My lovely mom offered to give me the greatest gift I could ever have in my life,” daughter Kelley McKissack told reporters in Plano, Texas on Thursday.
McKissack, 28, and her husband, Aaron, struggled with infertility. She suffered multiple miscarriages. Her mother offered to carry their child.
Tracey Thompson, 54, admits the pregnancy was difficult, but well worth it.
“The first and the third (trimesters) were really tough,” said Thompson.
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Before she became pregnant, Thompson underwent tests and a series of carefully co-ordinated medical treatments to allow her body to carry a baby once again. One of her daughter’s remaining embryos was successfully implanted in April 2015.
During delivery, doctors performed an emergency C-section after the baby’s heart rate dropped. Kelcey weighed six pounds 11 ounces when she was born.
WATCH: Kelley McKissack is thrilled with her new bundle of joy after her mother became a grandmother by acting as surrogate.
“When you really look at the big picture, it was an extreme miracle,” said Joeseph Leveno, an obstetricians and gynecologist at the Medical Center of Plano.
The family spoke about the pregnancy and birth during a media conference Thursday. They urged other couples facing infertility to not give up on their dream.
The McKissacks named the child Kelcey, a combination of the mother’s and grandmother’s names. Grandmother and child are doing well.
With files from AP
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