Thanks to two surrogates and against all the odds, Casey Brady and her husband Mitch are living their baby dream. Photo / Juliette Drysdale
Thanks to two surrogates and against all the odds, Casey Brady and her husband Mitch are living their baby dream. Photo / Juliette Drysdale
Eight years on from a devastating motocross accident that changed her future instantly, Casey Brady’s life is filled with nappies and night feeds.
The mum of two and wheelchair-using former farm girl embraces motherhood with the same determination that has carried her through every challenge since a spinal cord injuryin 2017 left her paralysed from the chest down.
Thanks to advances in medical science and two “incredible” surrogates, she and husband Mitch have welcomed their gorgeous kids, 18-month-old daughter Billie and 5-month-old son Trey, into the world.
“Our amazing surrogates have given us the most precious gifts imaginable,” Casey, 33, enthuses. “Mitch and I are so grateful. I love being a mum! Billie is so cool and full of life, and Trey is a dream baby. He sleeps through the night, then wakes up happy and talking.”
The Te Puke-based couple, who have been together since they were 18, always wanted a “tribe” of kids. But after struggling to conceive naturally, they decided to seek fertility help.
“That’s when we found out I had a blood condition that prevented me from carrying a baby, so we started the process of IVF and surrogacy,” explains Casey, who starred in the TVNZ+ show Unbreakable, featuring extraordinary Kiwis who have overcome incredible challenges.
Casey's first surrogate, Brooke, with little Billie. Photo / Woman's Day
Their first surrogate, Brooke Ernst, was a stranger to begin with, but Casey and Mitch spent a year getting to know her before starting the surrogacy process.
“We had the most amazing experience with Brooke – we love her and her family so much,” gushes Casey. “They moved to Christchurch when Billie was little and when she turned one, we took her down south so we could all celebrate her birthday together.
With more embryos “ready to go”, Casey and Mitch decided to start trying for a second baby when Billie was just three months old. This time round, their surrogate was Casey’s younger sister Jessie Henry.
Casey's sister Jessie with wee Trey. Photo / Woman's Day
“Jessie’s like my best friend,” Casey tells. “She always wanted to be our surrogate, but when we started the process with Billie, the timing wasn’t quite right as she was still having her own girls. There are hardly any boys in our family, so when Jessie heard we were ready to try again, she said, ‘I’m going to carry your boy,’ and she did!”
Refusing to let injury define her, Casey’s applied that same determination to motherhood.
“In the early days with Billie, I worried a lot about holding her safely because of my balance issues, but we figured it out,” she says. “The hardest things are not being able to get up and down on the floor with the kids easily or run to them when they’re crying.”
Casey Brady with husband Mitch and their kids, Billie and Trey. Photo / Juliette Drysdale
“Brilliant dad” Mitch, 33, has adapted the house by doing things like putting sliding doors on the sides of the cots to make it easier for his beloved wife.
Billie, meanwhile, is a daddy’s girl who’s obsessed with her cruisy little brother.
Casey says, “She’s a great wee helper. I was cooking dinner recently and Trey was crying. I said, ‘Bubba needs his dummy, but it’s under his cot and Mummy can’t get it right now.’ I was just saying this in conversation, then two minutes later, Billie comes back with the dummy!”
As well as enjoying the magic of motherhood, Casey is continuing as co-owner of the New Zealand franchise of NextStep, a US gym specialising in helping people with disabilities to regain mobility and function. With three gyms in Whakatāne, Hamilton and Tauranga, the former preschool teacher is working on expanding around Aotearoa so they can help more people.
In a bid to regain as much lower-body function as possible, Casey also remains dedicated to her extensive rehabilitation programme, working tirelessly with trainers and at home with Mitch.
“I’m still putting in the effort and things are slowly improving,” she says. “I have way more feeling now, but I still want more.”
Together the couple are also chasing another big dream – adding a third child to their brood. “I love the chaos of a big family and can imagine all the kids around the dinner table one day,” Casey shares. “Having two babies is the best thing ever and we’re beyond grateful for them, but we’d definitely love one more in the mix!”
