Miracle Baby Eve

I haven't seen my cousin, Adrienne, in almost two decades.  We recently got the opportunity to reconnect and share an amazingly miraculous occasion.  Adrienne, who has been trying to have a baby for twelve years, is finally a mother.  On June 17, a beautiful, 7 pound 12 ounce, healthy baby girl, Evelyn Blacker, was born to Adrienne and Jared Blacker just after noon in Lexington, Kentucky.  But keep reading; the manner in which Eve arrived is the truly miraculous part...

The baby was delivered by a “gestational carrier”—an exceptional, married mother of two boys who agreed by contract, through a very reputable agency, to carry Adrienne’s and Jared’s implanted embryo that had been collected earlier through an in vitro fertilization (IVF) process in North Carolina.  In other words, Adrienne and Jared are the biological parents of this beautiful child.  After 13 years of marriage, three last-minute adoption failures and many failed IVF implantations that Adrienne was unable to carry much past implant, they sought out this agency and found an ideal gestational carrier. 

Below: My Aunt Carol (Dad's older sister), Adrienne with Evelyn, and me.  

She's got the trademark Hardy red hair! 

Adrienne seems like a natural mother and incredibly happy.  She has struggled with serious health problems (she had a heart attack last year) and we pray that her health will improve as she cares for this new little one.

This is a wonderful, miraculous event and we are so happy for Adrienne and Jared, who have been blessed with this precious child.  My cousin Rex Hardy and his wife Lisa, hosted a post-sealing reception at their home, after which Jared, Adrienne and Eve traveled back to their home in Concord, North Carolina (a suburb of Charlotte), where Jared has a brisk orthodontics practice.

Liam and Aiden had a great time playing with their cousins (Rawson, Camden and Elle) and meeting some of their distant relatives.