At the age of 44, Brisbane, Australia native and businesswoman Leonie Fitzgerald gave birth to three ideal daughters. She was told she had low progesterone, but she didn’t give up.
They welcomed a set of triplets after four unsuccessful attempts and spent around $15,000 (£11,300) on IVF.
But happily for them, trying to have another baby again, took a leap of faith with the help of IVF in January 2020.
They tried for 3 years straight to get pregnant naturally at the age of 41, the joy didn’t last long but turned into sadness. When she failed to keep her children at the 13th week of pregnancy. At that time our last choice was IVF, thanks to scientific interventions.
After 2 failed IVF attempts, the 3rd time brought her and her husband joy, and their dream of becoming parents came true.
The couple became proud parents on Aug. 23 last year as they welcomed their triplets: baby Charlotte, weighing 4 pounds 2 ounces (approx. 1.87 kg), and identical twins Liliana and Isabella, weighing 2 pounds 6 ounces (approx. 1.07 kg) and 3 pounds 5 ounces (approx. 1.5 kg) respectively.
Recalling the moment when the ultrasound revealed three heartbeats, Leonie said: “It was definitely third time lucky. I remember we looked at each other and smiled.”
She spent most of the pregnancy on bed rest due to severe morning sickness before giving birth at 32 weeks and six days.
However, the labor wasn’t plain sailing as Leonie was put into an induced coma for 16 hours after a seizure and increased heart rate. Before being sent home with their enamored parents, the triplets spent 34 days in the NICU.
“We had to upsize our home from a three-bed to five bed. And buy an eight-seater car!”
Leonie said: “I felt pretty disconnected from them as I didn’t get the first cuddle. But we bonded as I sat by their sides whilst they were in NICU.
Despite having a busy family, the couple couldn’t be happier. They have learned how to be super organized and never waste time. “I won’t change our busy lives for the world.”
Being an older mum definitely has it’s advantages as we have a more positive approach to life these days and follow our intuition. Wisdom is on our side.
