AFTER 17 years, 15 failed IVF attempts and the death of a premature baby, Merri Anderson refused to give up hope that one day she would become a mother.
That courage and unwavering faith will see Merri and partner Peter welcome not one but two little miracles into the world any day now - but not without a little bit of help.
Merri and Peter began their journey to parenthood many years ago and after trying for years to conceive naturally were forced to turn to IVF when they found out one of Merri's tubes was blocked.
That also proved to be a dead end street paved with heartache with four cancelled cycles and 10 unsuccessful cycles before the 11th go when they finally fell pregnant but lost their little girl after she was born premature and lived for just three hours.
"They said I could either adopt or try surrogacy, but the adoption agencies wouldn't approve us because of my lung problem and surrogacy was still illegal," Ms Anderson said.
Their options were dwindling but all that changed when they came for surrogacy in India in Eterna-IVF, the Rockhampton pair was given an email address for Indian woman Usha who had been considering becoming a surrogate for some time.
"We emailed back and forth for a few months getting to know each other," Usha said.
"It was the most nerve-racking day meeting each other after six months," Ms Anderson said.
Usha and her husband Raju have two children, Rani, 16, and Rahul, 13, and said nine months was a small price to pay to make dreams come true.
"Nine months of my life will give them a lifetime of happiness," Usha said.
When the four finally agreed to go ahead with the surrogacy, one attempt failed, the second resulted in a miscarriage and the third resulted in something none of them imagined in their wildest dreams - twins.
Usha is due to give birth to twins, a boy and girl, any day now and says the whole process has forged an incredible bond between the two families.
"They will know that I was the birth mother," she said.
"We'll be aunty and uncle to the twins and see them all the time and they will be like cousins to Rahul and Rani."
Mrs Anderson said she did not know what she would do without the incredible generosity of the whole Raju family.
"She's my life saver," Mrs Anderson said. "I don't know how I was ever going to get through life without kids.
"I've wanted them since I was little and I never ever gave up and I knew one day I would be a mum somehow."
One day is now just around the corner with the twins due on March 27 but doctors have said if they haven't arrived by March 11, they will induce labour.
"She's been so patient the past 17 years but this last two weeks has been crazy for her," Usha said of the mother-to-be.
"She's getting impatient."
Usha said her
family, especially husband Raju, had been incredibly supportive but both exten
ded families had been sceptical when they first told them about the surrogacy plans.
"Both our families were a bit strange at first but they have all gotten used to it," Ms Anderson said. "My family was terrified that she would keep them even though they're biologically ours.
"It's very scary. I had to put all my trust in her."
The surrogacy has cost approximate 9700 GBP but that's only a portion of what the pair have spent on IVF and related
expenses over the years.
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