Baby boomer pays $30,000 to freeze her future grandkids

With technology, anything is possible these days. And while fertility and having children has generally been an individual thing, Jenny Hewitt’s Mum and Dad stepped in. Jenny’s mother, Sue, and dad, Kym, are part of a growing number of Baby Boomers making the ultimate investment to put their daughters’ eggs on ice. “This year, at the age of 33, single and facing compromised fertility due to severe endometriosis and adenomyosis, I underwent two rounds of egg freezing, with the financial support of my parents,” said Jenny to News.com.au.

But cryopreservation and fertility, and the hope of having a baby does not come cheap. “In total, we spent about $30,000,” said Sue.

Jenny said, “I’d hoped freezing my eggs would give me piece of mind, but the costly procedure was, financially, out of my reach, with one round alone nearing $15,000.

“As a family, we have always been a tight unit and my mum and dad were quick to step in. “I understand how strong the desire to have children can be,” she told me. I couldn’t walk away from helping you have that opportunity.”

“Despite things not going quite to plan (in the end, I banked two eggs), the journey was as much my mum’s as it was mine. A keen adventurer, photographer and grandmother, she has built her life around the world as the wife of a diplomat, but her commitment to family has always come first,” said Jenny.

But why did Sue do it? “You were always a maternal child growing up. Always the one carrying around other people’s babies. It’s only when confronted with it that those memories pop back into my head,” she said to her daughter.

“We knew that your endometriosis was likely to cause potential fertility problems down the track. As you started to get into your 30s, I know that began to concern you. It’s been clear that you haven’t been ready for a baby or been thinking about it in any serious way, but to be confronted with it makes you stop and think about it.

“I think I asked you if you’d been considering egg freezing and you had been, so we decided to look into it further. The egg freezing became something that was very important to you, but you weren’t in a financial position to be able to go ahead with the expensive procedure.

“Your Dad and I were in a position to be able to help you and we were more than happy to do that.”

Would you ever consider this option with your kids? Should this option be considered by more people?