Brian Dowling has shared a moving tribute to his sister Aoife who was the surrogate for he and husband Arthur Gourounlian.
The couple welcomed their baby daughter on Thursday, September 1, revealing her name to be Blake Maria Rose Dowling Gourounlian.
Brian’s younger sister Aoife acted as the couple’s surrogate and Brian took to Instagram to thank her for giving them the "gift of life".
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In a loving tribute to Aoife, Brian described her as "an absolutely incredible human".
He wrote: "From our first jokingly conversations about [surrogacy] back in 2015 when you moved in with us in London, to our more serious chats about it in January 2021 in the middle of the pandemic when we would go on our daily walks.
"This has been in the works for YEARS. But everything happens when it’s supposed to and for us, everything really clicked. Your dedication and focus has been out of this world. You have also put yourself out there publicly for everyone to voice their opinions about this & you never faltered.
"Even the vile/disgusting messages we all received just encouraged us to be more open regarding our surrogacy journey. From dramas regarding trying to get you on hormones, especially here in Ireland where there’s no legislation regarding surrogacy and the lack of any real information and guidance."
"To numerous conversations about your cycle and when you would or wouldn’t get it. To the night of mum’s birthday dinner last December when we made it by minutes to the pharmacy and purchased the very last ovulation test."
Brian then recalled when they found out Aoife was pregnant: "Then there was the situation of getting you to ‘hide’ the pregnancy until a time when it was safe and we were happy to reveal the MOST AMAZING NEWS."
He added: "You glided through your pregnancy with such joy and elegance, and overcame obstacles in your way medically or other wise. Just when we thought we couldn’t be in awe of you anymore, you handled our delivery day last Thursday, September 1, like a BOSS."
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