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Mum Will Have My Baby ..
Chris Greene went along to meet Annette Edwards and one of her elder daughters, Jody Bray. They're closer than most mothers and daughters,
Annette is 48 and along with her 25-year-old daughter, Jody, enjoys a thriving business career as mother and daughter models. But there's a sadness at the heart of their relationship. Annette is the mother of ten children, but Jody has endometriosis severely enough not to be able to conceive and have children of her own.
Annette, as much as Jody, is trying to accept the fact of her daughter's infertility, "I find Jody's illness very very sad. We've only known in recent years. But if my daughter wanted a baby, I'd have one for her …" Annette doesn't falter when asked by Chris about the ethical and medical aspects which need to be borne in mind, " "It's the greatest gift a mother could give her daughter. I don't think it's such a big issue. I just think it's a natural thing to do, as a mother."
Jody is well aware of the possible conflicts of interest in such a course of action. "I've got my brothers and sisters to think about - I would never put an unborn child before any of my family or my mum. Obviously it's something I want, but it's not as important as them. My mum would never do it for a stranger - as fertile as she is and as big hearted as she is, she could not give a child away … and I would never ever have asked my mum. She offered. It's her body. If there ever is the slightest problem, medically wrong, I would never put my mum's life at risk. I don't want people to think, 'She's a bit selfish', I'm not. It's just the closest I'm going to get."
Jody is very realistic about her mother's offer to bear a child for her, "If everything works, it'll be a miracle, and that's great. If it doesn't, then that's the world we live in. Maybe we'll find another option further down the road. But this has still got a long way to go."
Annette too, won't be pressurised, "Gynaecologists have told me I'm very fit for a 48 year old, so I think we've got a couple of years yet. We'll see how it goes."
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