Paralyzed Bride Welcomes A Baby Girl

A bride became paralyzed from the neck down five years ago when she was pushed into a pool at her own bachelorette party. Rachelle Friedman-Chapman became known as the “paralyzed bride.” Rachelle is now a new mother. Last month, she welcomed a baby girl named Kaylee Rae Chapman, according to Today Parents.

“Having a baby is what I’ve always wanted. It is a dream come true. She’s adorable, she’s super expressive, and she sleeps a lot, which is great.”

In 2010, just weeks before she married her husband, Chris, one of her guests playfully pushed her into a swimming pool. In an instant, she was paralyzed, and her whole life changed.

“Everything changed. Everything that I have to do, I have to do differently than I did before. I had this life planned, where I’m gonna graduate college, get married, have a baby, and I was totally on track. And the accident just threw my whole plan off course.”

With the help of a surrogate, the North Carolina resident was given the gift of motherhood. Because of medications she must take, carrying a child was not considered a healthy option. That’s when Rachelle and Chris began searching for a surrogate. Laurel Humes, a distant friend from Rachelle’s college days, contacted the couple on Facebook. Humes saw this as a great opportunity to get to help another family and see their joy.

Humes got pregnant on the first attempt. In January, Friedman-Chapman announced she was expecting a girl. On April 26, Kaylee Rae was born, weighing in at seven pounds, 11 ounces.

People reported that Rachelle, 29, and husband Chris Chapman, 33, will document their lives as first-time parents for a TLC series that’s currently in production. Rachelle is thankful to her surrogate and considers her new daughter a blessing from God.

Rachelle did not listen to people who told her she couldn’t take care of a baby. Despite her limitations, Rachelle says her love has no limits to what she can do. Even as a quadriplegic, there are a lot of things she can do. In addition to taking care of Kaylee, she’s blogging, working as a motivational speaker, and playing wheelchair rugby.

“I wish I wasn’t paralyzed; I wish there was a cure. But in the meantime, I have to focus on the positivity and the fact that I have an amazing husband and I now have an amazing daughter. Hopefully one day I’ll be able to run around with her, but for now we’ll take what we have and be happy for it.”

[Photo via Helen Joy]