Emily Davidson Smith and her partner Katie asked their 50 wedding guests to contribute to a baby fund instead of buying traditional gifts, helping them fund fertility treatment and welcome their son Theo. The couple, from Cambridge, had been desperate to have children but couldn't afford the treatment, so they set up an online gift registry asking guests to support their journey to parenthood.
Emily, a teacher, said: "It would have potentially cost tens of thousands of pounds that we simply didn't have. And that's when I came up with the idea of having a gift list of a baby fund. We didn't need any towel sets or scented candles, but we did need help to have our dream baby."
Guests Give £2,000 for Baby Fund
The guests gave the couple £2,000, and they married in July 2023. Six months later, they had their first fertility treatment attempt with artificial insemination using donor sperm at Create Fertility, costing around £2,600. That attempt failed, as did their second try.
Emily said: "We were both devastated when the first two tries failed. Then, the third time I became pregnant we were over the moon but six weeks into my pregnancy, I lost the baby. It was heartbreaking. We were devastated and began to think we were never going to be parents. Katie and I talked about what to do next. But while our hearts were broken, we were still determined to become mums. We knew that we couldn't stop now."
IVF Success After Heartbreak
The couple decided to try IVF privately, at a cost of around £10,000 with sperm, which produced five good quality embryos. Emily had one embryo implanted just before Christmas 2024, and they found out she was pregnant on New Year's Day.
Emily said: "I tested a few days early as we couldn't possibly wait any longer, and we could see a faint positive result. We were thrilled but after going through so much heartbreak, we couldn't allow ourselves to get too excited."
Emergency Caesarean After Sepsis
In September last year, Emily's waters broke a few days before her due date, but labour didn't progress, and she developed a potentially life-threatening sepsis infection. She was rushed to theatre for an emergency caesarean, and baby Theo was born safely, weighing 8lb 12oz, before being taken to intensive care.
Emily said: "Thankfully the doctors acted in time. Theo was born safely, and I was given antibiotic treatment. When they took me down to the ward and I saw Katie there with Theo in her arms, my heart just melted."
Baby Theo will turn one next month. Emily said: "We feel so incredibly lucky to be his parents. And it's all thanks to our amazing wedding guests, as they helped make our baby wish come true. It was the best wedding present that Katie and I could have asked for."
