59-yo great grandmother expecting twins

[IowaStatePhiPsi]

um... yeah.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...International/

59-year-old great-grandmother expecting twins

Associated Press


Sylvester, Ga. — A 59-year-old great-grandmother is pregnant with twins and will deliver next month, three decades after she had her tubes tied. “They came untied,” Frances Harris said Thursday.

The multiple birth Dec. 21 would break the purported record set this week by a 56-year-old New York City mother of twins.

Ms. Harris, of rural Sylvester, Ga., said she wasn't trying to get pregnant — and didn't realize she was — until she started gaining weight and went to see her doctor.

“A lot of things changed about me,” she said. “I started craving grapes and apples, things I don't usually crave. By then I was four months pregnant.”

When the doctor broke the news, “They had to sit me down. I couldn't even talk,” she said.

The news was even more shocking considering Ms. Harris — the mother of five, grandmother of 14 and great-grandmother of six — had her tubes tied 33 years ago after the birth of her youngest child.

Ms. Harris had her first child when she was 15; 44 years will separate her first-born from the newborns. She was divorced years ago from the twins' father, 60-year-old Raymond Harris, a heavy equipment operator. She said they will remarry before the birth.

The oldest American believed to have given birth to twins is Aleta St. James, a single mother who turns 57 on Friday. She gave birth Tuesday by in-vitro fertilization at New York City's Mount Sinai Medical Center.

Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show 263 children were born to women between ages 50 and 54 in 2002. The oldest American to give birth is Arceli Keh, of California, who was 63 when she had a daughter in 1996.

Ms. Harris said some family members, concerned about health complications, had suggested she end the pregnancy.

“I couldn't live with myself,” she said. “I pray we all three pull through. When they're so little, they're so beautiful. I think they are God's gift.”

[KSigkid]

Crazy stuff.

Seems to me she's kind of young to be a great-grandmother on top of all that.

[AEPhiSierra]

i rarely rant about anything on GC but these stories about women having children in their late 50's bothers me so much. I know it doesn't really apply to this women becuase it sounds like a freak accident but the women in NY just pisses me off.

I can completely understand the desire to have children but to wait until a woman's lates 50's is selfish. she will be 75 when here children turn 18. It's hard to predict how good someone's health will be in their 70's. If her health declines when she gets older her children, in their teen's or 20's (if not younger), will have the responsibility of taking care of an elderly parent when they should only be worrying about going to school and having fun. Furthermore, I hate to be morbid but life expectancy is 76.5 years for a women today, statistically their is a 50/50 chance she will pass by the time they hit 20. When having kids at that age the probability of not being there for your kids in their teens and 20's is too high. I know after college you're suppose to be independant but think how many people have help from their parents until they are fully established. How can you be thinking about anyone but yourself if you're willing to subject your children to that. And people that selfish don't sound like the best parents to me.

[PenguinTrax]

Originally posted by KSigkid
Crazy stuff.

Seems to me she's kind of young to be a great-grandmother on top of all that.

Not when you consider she had her first child at the age of 15! And did you catch the bit that she divorced the father "years ago" but they will remarry? Evidently sex wasn't the reason for the divorce.

[sageofages]

I love how she said "they had to sit me down when they told me. I couldn't talk" ... couldn't talk...I wouldn't have been able to stop CRYING!!!!

When I had my tubes tied when I was 33 (after birth of #5), all the nurses DELIGHTED in telling me about all the patients who have babies after tubals. A good friend relished in telling me how his brother-in-law was born 15 years post-tubal/6 years post-vasectomy (second marriage for both) WITHOUT help to reverse anything (not a surprise I WOULD want).

Thank goodness it isn't me!!!!

[valkyrie]

Originally posted by AEPhiSierra
i rarely rant about anything on GC but these stories about women having children in their late 50's bothers me so much. I know it doesn't really apply to this women becuase it sounds like a freak accident but the women in NY just pisses me off.

I agree.

[KSigkid]

Originally posted by PenguinTrax
Not when you consider she had her first child at the age of 15! And did you catch the bit that she divorced the father "years ago" but they will remarry? Evidently sex wasn't the reason for the divorce.

Didn't catch that part of the story; now I understand.

[PenguinTrax]

There is a picture of her here:

http://www.news-leader.com/today/1112-Surprise!I-224662.html

[hoosier]

This is quite a change of pace.

Usually we worry about teenagers having babies, and now this.

Instead of the teen making momma or grandmomma raise her kids, now grandmomma will be making her kids raise their little bros and sisters.

There's an article in the paper today about a college football player having to go pro, so he can support his 11-month old daughter.