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Wales Online
Wales Online
Lifestyle
Joshua Knapman

Couple who will be UK's first transgender parents talk about surrogate pregnancy

A transgender couple appeared on ITV's Lorraine, talking about the surrogate pregnancy of their first baby.

Hannah and Jake Graf are set to become the first parents in the UK who are both transgender .

Hannah, from Cardiff, is the former highest ranking transgender officer in the British Army and the couple are expecting their baby girl to arrive in April.

And they even joked about their baby playing ruby for Wales in the future.

Jake said: "All we want is for her to feel loved, to know that whoever she is, what ever she's into - if Hannah has her way, she'll be a rugby player for Wales - whatever she wants to be, that she's safe, accepted and loved."

The couple have known for a while they wanted children.

Jake said: "About five or six years ago I knew I wanted to be a father.

"I stopped testosterone for about six months, and had eggs harvested. That was quite a difficult thing for me to do, but I knew that for me, the ultimate thing that I always wanted to - my dream - was to be a father.

"Very shortly after that I met Hannah.

"It just feels like a dream come true."

Jake and Hannah Graf (Surrey Live)

He added: "We're lucky that we've got lots of friends giving us lots of clothes for our little girl. They're all giving us lots of girls clothes however we'll be dressing our little girl in whatever she wants to wear.

"We've got so many pink clothes now, you'd be amazed."

Talking about the reaction to news of their baby girl, Hannah said: "It's been definitely positive.

"People are generally very warm and very happy for us. I think they can see how happy we are and therefore they join in that happiness.

"It just feels like a dream. We were on your show like a year ago, we were talking about it and thinking 'how will we ever find someone' and yet here we are, six months into pregnancy. It is crazy."

Hannah speaks about being Britain's first transgender Army officer:

The couple, who've appeared on the show before, thanked the host, who they jokingly nicknamed Aunty Lorraine.

Jake said: "We do have to thank you. Genuinely.

"We were on about a year ago, feeling pretty hopeless, pretty desperate.

"I wanted to be a father. Seeing all my friends have babies, seeing all my friends pregnant, having their first then their second and in some cases their third. That feeling inside, will it ever be me, will it ever be us?

"And then when we did that show we got a call from the National Fertility Society and they said we've got someone who'd like to help you.

"We met a wonderful woman, who was very very keen to be a surrogate, and always had wanted to do that. She was amazing and she wanted to work with us.

"And we couldn't believe it all and amazingly we got pregnant first time which is nothing short of miraculous."

Hannah added: "When I was on the brink of transitioning, I genuinely thought I was making the decision between being myself but also having to give up having love or family or kids.

"The fact I thought that and now, five or six years, later... it's a really powerful message."

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