Uplifting Footage Captures Moment Of Two Fathers Becoming Parents For The First Time

Jun 04, 2021 by apost team

Family means different things to different people; for some, a family consists of their best friends, for some family means their blood relatives, but at the end of the day, it is clear that love is what makes a family tree. As society progresses forward, families of all types are become more visible and are showing that love is love no matter what. In celebration of Gay Pride Month 2021, fathers Ben and Aaron Ptashinsky-Skinner from Florida uploaded a heartwarming and emotional video of them meeting their daughter, Charlotte, for the first time in 2017, and it has since gone viral. 

The video shows both of them as they are presented with their newborn by a nurse, and it is sure to melt even the hardest of hearts. Holding their child is one of the most euphoric moments in every parent's life, so naturally, this is a moment that the two proud parents recorded to remember for the rest of their lives. The video was first widely shared on Good Morning America's Instagram account and has been lauded for bringing more visibility to gay parenting and how beautiful it can be. 

The now-5-year-old Charlotte has completely changed and enriched the lives of her dads, who have an adorable story of how they met and fell in love. Unfortunately, too many LGBTQI+ members of the society have been persecuted just for being who they are born as, but as society continues to progress today, fathers like Ben and Aaron are showing that they are like any other heterosexual parents and that their family is just as filled with love if not more. 

The parenting blog Gays With Kids reported that Ben and Aaron met in an unusual way; Aaron posted a "boyfriend application" to his MySpace page in 2006, and Ben saw it and became curious. "I was very interested, so I filled it out!" Ben said. Ben may not have realized that he had just started the process of meeting his future husband! When you know, you know, and Ben and Aaron knew they were meant to be together. 

Ben and Aaron were engaged by 2011 and in 2015, they married. The blog reported that the couple lived just outside of Orlando, Florida, in a suburb called Windmere in 2018. Their relationship began blossoming when LGBT rights in the United States were also being recognized, and this led to the couple seriously think about parenting and fatherhood. For them, adoption was the best path. 

"In our particular case, we wanted to provide a life for a child who would not be given the opportunities we could give them, without adoption," they said. They began their search for adoption agencies and landed on Heart of Adoption, whom they loved. Although it took them some time to get all their documents together and submit them, the process went quickly after submission. 

They were matched with a woman looking for parents within a month of submitting their papers. "[Our birth mom] was 6 months pregnant when we were matched," Aaron told the blog. "We were able to attend the gender reveal a week after being matched and the room was filled with tears and love. [She] was so amazing to let us be a part of that. Treated us as if we were actually the biological fathers of our baby."

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While they were chosen to be parents, Aaron and Ben reported that the process was still an emotional rollercoaster ride as they did not always have control over external circumstances that would take the birth mother far away from them. However, it was all worth it when they were able to have their daughter in their arms. Charlotte Ptashinsky-Skinner was born on July 28, 2017, and her dads fell instantly in love with her. 

"As cheesy as it sounds, my life has been enriched," Ben told the blog, "We still are able to do everything we did in our old life - dinners, travel, movies, etc - however, we have this beam of light who gives us purpose everyday."

The fathers also feel extremely fortunate to have such a loving and supportive family system around them – from a mother-in-law who watches Charlotte three times a week to an incredible nanny who now feels like a member of the family.

They are just like any other family when it comes to dealing with stress, but their love and support for each other keeps them going. "There are times when Daddy is frazzled and Papa jumps right in and saves the day!" Aaron explained. "We always work hard to be great husbands which makes us great dads."

Becoming parents has been a gift in many ways for the dads, one of which is that they are closer to their own individual families. "It is truly a blessing seeing the family come together and just love," Ben said. "Our sexual orientation isn't ever the topic of conversation; we are just a family."

What do you think of this heartwarming video? Do you or someone you know have any adoption experiences? Tell us your stories, and be sure to pass this story onto others as well.