Couple In Their 40s It Would Take Them More Than A Decade – And Tens Of Thousands Of Pounds Life Savings To Complete Their Dream Family

Couple In Their 40s It Would Take Them More Than A Decade – And Tens Of Thousands Of Pounds Life Savings To Complete Their Dream Family

A couple who spent their £60,000 life savings on five rounds of IVF say their ‘dream family’ is now complete – after they welcomed triplets.      Rebecca Wooldridge, 44, and her husband, David, 49, began trying for their first baby in 2006, but it would take them more than a decade – and tens of thousands of pounds – to become a happy family of five.  After learning that Rebecca’s ᴇɢɢ count was low, the couple, from Sutton Coldfield in Birmingham, spent just under £50,000 on four rounds of IVF – both in the UK and abroad – before ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇɪᴠɪɴɢ their son, Felix, now four, naturally. The pair were over the moon, but after sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟɪɴɢ to conceive again for their second baby, they flew to Cyprus for a fifth round of IVF at a further £10,000.

And to their sʜᴏᴄᴋ and delight, Rebecca fell pregnant with triplets. The pregnancy was not without its ʀɪsᴋs, ᴀɴᴅ ᴀ ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴏᴜsʟʏ ʟᴏᴡ ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇɴᴛᴀ sᴀᴡ the expectant mum forced to deliver her girls at 29 weeks due to doctors’ fears she might not make it through labour.  The ᴘʀᴇᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ babies, Amelie, Maya-Albertine and Etta, experienced health problems, with Maya-Albertine and Etta born with ʜᴇᴀʀᴛ ᴅᴇFᴇᴄᴛs.

But the non-identical girls are now coming on in ‘leaps and bounds’ at 16 months, say their parents, who decided to share their happy tale to reassure couples sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟɪɴɢ to conceive that ‘a family can happen – even in your 40s’. The Wooldridges decided to share their story to give hope to other couples who are sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟɪɴɢ to conceive. Rebecca, a blogger and full time mum, said: ‘We waited 10 years for our dream family and after spending £60,000 it finally became a reality.

The couple both worked full time to ensure they had enough savings for their IVF ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛs.

‘Now we’ve got the triplets life has been ʜᴇᴄᴛɪᴄ, the triplets have overcome so many ᴏʙsᴛᴀᴄʟᴇs so far and have been in and out of hospital with different illnesses but we’re doing well now. Our family is dᴇFɪɴɪᴛᴇʟʏ complete now we have the girls and I hope we’re helping to show other couples that having a family can happen, even in your 40s.’

The triplets – who are all non identical – were born weighing 2lb6 and 2lb8 and have come on leaps and bounds in just 16 months old.