ST YLIST: ELISE GROSSMAN PHOTOGRAPHER M ELISSA TON KIN WORDS NICOLE R AY
MINTY
The Great Gift of Life
We catch up with long-time friend of Minty, Elise Grossman, in their beautiful 100 year old cottage in the Perth Hills, Western Australia. As a single mother of Peyton who is 7, Xander who is 5 and Willa who is 3, Elise has just begun an incredible journey of surrogacy. LET’S CHAT SURROGACY. I can’t think of a more selfless gift to another family than carrying their baby. How did you come to find yourself on this journey? I first heard about surrogacy when I was in my teens. I was watching a reality TV show with a celebrity couple that had a baby via surrogate and it really stuck with me as something I wanted to do some day if I could! Fast forward a few years and I struggled in my own way while trying to conceive. After a miscarriage, misdiagnosed PCOS and nearly a year of trying to fall pregnant, I became very familiar with that "desperately wanting a baby" feeling so many women have! When I finally fell pregnant and then
very easily with my second and third, I knew I wanted help a couple to fulfil that ache of wanting a baby. I was first introduced to my Intended Parents (IPs) through a mutual friend online. We chatted a lot and quickly realised we were on the same page when it came to surrogacy. After meeting in person, I knew straight away they were the couple I wanted to do this for! I had been told you would "just know" and that was definitely the case. What is the process of surrogacy in Australia? The laws in each state vary slightly. Here in Western Australia, the main laws are focused on the intended parents (IPs) who have to be in a heterosexual relationship, which means single people and same sex couples cannot legally use a surrogate in WA. The process of surrogacy is quite long. I met my IPs a year ago and we are only just about to do transfer! About half of IPs in Australia use a family member or friend and the other half meet through agencies or
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