Despite giving birth to them, Thomas is known as Dad, while his wife Nancy is known as Mum. All three children were born from Thomas’s eggs. Their biological father is the same anonymous sperm donor. It’s confusing to a sophisticated adult mind, let alone a child’s.
Thomas is not the only man to have given birth. It is believed there are at least five male mothers around the world. Last month, a British man who was born a woman — he is not prepared to go public with his identity — confirmed he had given birth to a baby girl.
Thomas became known around the globe after pictures were made public of the world's first pregnant man
On the surface of it, everything seems normal at the Beatie home in Phoenix, Arizona. The family live in a sizeable house on a sprawling estate of near-identical homes, each with a manicured lawn, a tidy driveway and neat fence.
But, inside, things are less peaceful. There is a playroom beside the kitchen, but toys are strewn all over the house. There is a doll’s house in the hall and soft toys everywhere. You can’t go far without encountering a Hello Kitty toy or a Hot Wheels car.
All three children have baby dolls, which, their father explains, they like to push around in shopping trolleys or ferry on board their tricycles.
On the surface, Thomas is like any other proud parent. But it is difficult to disentangle the ordinary from the extraordinary in this household.
He chats happily about his brood. ‘Susan is a mini-me,’ he says. ‘A lot of people think Austin is a girl, because of his long hair, I guess, but that doesn’t bother us.’
It seems to be a happy home, with Thomas and his wife Nancy, 49, coming across as ordinary, harassed parents, desperately juggling work and family life.
At one point, Thomas is brushing Susan’s hair with one hand, while pouring cereal with the other. His wife is changing the nappy of their youngest child on the sofa.
So far, so normal. But then we move on to the delicate subject of the couple’s sex life. Both laugh as Thomas explains: ‘There are physical issues there obviously, but they aren’t the things that get in the way. The biggest problem is that we have three small children. Our challenge is actually getting the bed to ourselves!’
In labour: Thomas gives birth to son Jensen James Beatie with his wife Nancy by his side at Saint Charles Medical Center on July 25, 2010, in Bend, Oregon
Healthy baby boy: Jensen was born weighing eight pounds, nine ounces, and was 22 inches long
Nancy films the special moment as Thomas holds his son Jensen James Beatie for the first time
While Thomas and Nancy are desperately trying to be an ordinary family, it is clear there are issues at play that shall never be resolved. Thomas, in particular, has felt the full burden of the world’s disapproval.
‘We have had a rough ride,’ he says. ‘We have had death threats, crazies. I’ve been called a freak. The really nasty stuff has come online, with email, Facebook and YouTube.
‘Some of it has just been weird — such as people going to Hallowe’en parties dressed as me, “The Pregnant Man”. Some of it has been terrifying. One man has made videos pretending he has kidnapped Susan. He has a Susan doll and he hits her over and over. It’s sick.
‘The FBI have been involved and they monitor things for us. The world is full of crazy people and we have to have our wits about us.’
And while Thomas and Nancy insist they are happy, despite all the criticism they’ve endured, the truth is they are living in an isolated bubble.
The rest of the Beatie family come to see Jensen the day after his birth - and he still looks a little sleepy as he gives a big yawn
Role reversal: Nancy hands their son Jensen to Thomas who is still in a hospital bed after giving birth
Though the children attend the local daycare centre and have been accepted into the local community, the couple are not in contact with any members of their extended family.
The children’s grandparents, aunts and uncles have severed contact because they are so deeply unhappy at the circumstances in which the children were born.
This was not what Thomas had bargained for when he went public about becoming the world’s first pregnant man.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2111259/The-man-given-birth-times-With-broad-smiles-Beaties-look-like-normal-happy-family-Nothing-truth-.html#ixzz1oSsR0FhC
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