On a recent episode of their podcast, Daddyhood, former The Bachelor star, Colton Underwood, and his husband, Jordan C. Brown, discussed some of the more frustrating parts of being a gay couple with a child, including people’s questions about the child’s mother.
Underwood states frankly, “He does not have a mother.”
In the clip shared to Underwood’s TikTok, Brown asks Underwood if he wants to dive into this topic.
“Yeah. He’s our son, and he doesn’t have a mother. I think that is something– if I could scream it from the rooftop, I would,” Underwood says as Brown holds their son, Bishop.
“Our child has two dads, and he does not have a mother.”
Brown responds, “Sometimes it’s really disrespectful. And again, other times it isn’t. Some people don’t know. There are comments of like, ‘This child was ripped away from its mom.’”
“Not the truth,” Underwood chimes in.
In fact, their son Bishop was made from one woman’s egg and carried by another completely different woman.
Bishop replies, “And by the way, neither of them feels in their heart like he’s their child.”
Underwood goes on, “The term we use is he has an egg donor. He doesn’t have a biological mom. He doesn’t have a mom … he had an egg donor, and he had a surrogate that brought him into this world.”
The comments on the video were a mixed bag with some affirming the couple, including One Tree Hill alum, Sophia Bush who wrote, “The luckiest boy, with the two most loving dads! We love you, sweet Bishop!! 💙”
“Two loving parents, the end. 🥰” another said.
“Surrogate here! Nobody understands because there’s truly not enough education or talking about it in my opinion,” another wrote.
“I am an egg donor and I think about cases like this all the time!! I am so glad that someone like me could help you guys build your family. 🥰” one user chimed in.
Unfortunately, there were others who didn’t share the same accepting sentiment.
“Well that’s not possible,” one user wrote.
“All children have a mother 🥰 hope this helps,” one condescending person wrote.
“Yes he does have a mother,” another replied.
While people will always have their opinions, this situation feels pretty straightforward to me. Bishop was conceived with sperm from one of his dads and an egg donor. Then, Bishop was carried by a surrogate. Underwood and Brown are the ones raising him, nurturing him, and ensuring he has a happy life. They’re his dads.
This article was originally published on scarymommy.com.