Marie Claire Magazine - “What Does Your Family Look Like?” by Alison Tait

From “Families of Friends” to living with the in-laws, our home life has never been more diverse.  Allison Tait talks to seven Australians about the most important people in their lives.

(Ed: One of those couples is Ben Hall and Arthur Thomson and their four children, Brooke, Emma, Aiden and Ashton)

Gay couple Ben and Arthur say having their children through surrogates was difficult – but definitely worth it.

“Arthur and I went to great lengths to have our children – and we love and appreciate them so much.  A year after we met, in 2000, we approached an American agency that matched us with a surrogate and egg donor.  It was the only option; in Australia, single or gay men can’t adopt.

“For three years, we went through the heartache of failed attempts – either the pregnancies didn’t take, or donors pulled out.  It was a stressful, emotional – and expensive – time.  But I believe in chasing what you want.  You only get one shot at life.  We were there, in South Dakota for the birth of the girls, and the experience was sheer happiness.  I was in awe of, and in love with, these babies.

“All our children are biologically the kids of one of us, but we don’t talk about who.  We’d prefer they were viewed as ‘ours’. We’ve never had a negative response to being two gay dads.  Kids at creche have raised it, but our children just say, ‘I’ve got two daddies’.  We’re mindful the girls need female influences, and they spend time with our female friends.  The kids do ask about their mum, and we say they don’t have one; an egg donor is not a mother. We tell them they have two dads – two dads who love them to death”.

[Link: Original Article]