This Wouldn't Happen to a Mother: Two Dads Raising a Son

Abstract

For most of his life, Mason had wanted to be a dad, but he also knew that as a gay man he would probably never have that opportunity. When he first met Zachery, his now husband, one of the first serious issues they discussed was having kids. At the time, Mason said, “Well sure, but I’m not sure how that will ever happen.” Eight years later, Mason and Zachery were planning on traveling to another state to get married since it was not legal where they lived . . . but then the Supreme Court made marriage a right for everyone. They were excited to be able to have a ceremony and marriage in their home state that was on the same legal footing as their straight friends. Over the years, they had discussed having children. Many adoption agencies in their state were religiously based, and they assumed they would have challenges in that system. Many international adoption options also precluded same-sex couples. They entertained the idea of asking a female friend about surrogacy, but they knew that even if someone would agree to do it, it would probably be cost-prohibitive so they decided to just be happy with their upcoming nuptials and their life together.