A 51-year-old woman fulfilled her dream of becoming a mother with in vitro fertilization: «I didn’t need a partner».

Kelly Clarke, 51, gave birth to her daughter Lyla Rae Clarke, now seven months old, who was born thanks to an expensive IVF treatment and one woman’s desire to fulfill her dream of becoming a mother.

While Clarke explains that she feels overwhelmed by the challenges of being a single mother, she says the «constant joy of being a mother» overshadows all those worrisome thoughts and transforms them into pure love.

Kelly’s relationship with the children had always been excellent. In fact, she was known for her bond with the little ones. This is something that she herself noticed and that drove her to want to be a mother from a very young age. However, love didn’t accompany that idea, and year after year, she saw that possibility more and more distant.

At the age of 50, she realized that time «was no longer on her side» and decided to make the decision she’d long hoped to make with a partner: have a child. Without love, but with a strong desire to be a mother, Kelly traveled to Athens to undergo the in vitro procedure.

Although her family didn’t support her at first – due to the high cost of the treatment and the fact that she’d be a single mother – Kelly wasn’t interested and decided to go through with the procedure, hoping it would work. 12 days after fertilization, she found out she was pregnant at the age of 50.

«I was met with a lot of resistance from my family for deciding to become a single mother at 50 because they were worried about me and the implications of using a donor, but at that point, I knew I had made the right decision,» Kelly said.

Now, having just celebrated her 51st birthday as a new mother, Kelly said it was the «best birthday ever.» Of course, she owes it all to her great love and pride in her daughter Lyla.

Would you be a mom at 51? We read your comments!