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The family with three parents

The family with three parents

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 Dr. Markus Harwood-Jones went viral on Instagram for explaining his family in one minute, and I needed to hear the WHOLE story. Markus and his husband are raising two kids with their roommate turned co-parent, Hannah. Their second baby was made with Markus’s own eggs and carried by Hannah. It all started in a university library, where Markus met Andrew, the guy who would become his husband. Markus introduced Andrew to his friend Hannah, who needed a roommate, and a few years later she asked Andrew to be her sperm donor. That one question turned into a plan for the three of them to become parents together, and after years of planning, their first baby arrived in 2022. For baby number two, born in June 2025, Markus paused the testosterone he’s taken every day since he was 18 so he could do an egg retrieval. Ontario lets all three of them be listed as parents, and at home they go by Daddy, Papa, and Momo. Before anyone got pregnant, they wrote a co-parenting agreement modeled on Ontario’s guidelines for separating parents. Holidays, schooling, discipline and money all got hashed out while everyone still liked each other, and that document has shaped every big decision since, including their IVF budget and where they moved. They’re also raising their kids with gender-neutral language until each child tells them who they are. A fascinating conversation! In our two-parent house, a friends’ dinner for one of us and a tennis game for the other means a round of texts to see which grandparent is free or if childcare can cover. In Markus’s house, there’s a third adult for that! I loved this episode and hope you do too! Follow Markus: https://www.instagram.com/markusbones/?hl=en Buy Markus's book: https://link.amazon/B0cv1eooT Sponsors: Ladder: If you have an iPhone, head to https://www.ladder.fit/REALSTUFF and get a free 7-day trial with no credit card and $10 off your first month. Anthropologie: Shop must-have holiday gifts at https://www.Anthropologie.com/all-gifts Sandals & Beaches Resorts: Visit https://www.sandals.com or https://www.beaches.com for the best all-inclusive value in the Caribbean. Vinted: Download the Vinted app for free to start listing with no seller fees. Target: All that’s new and uniquely you. It’s in the bag. https://www.target.com Watch this episode in video form on Spotify or YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjmevEcbh5h5FEX0pazPEtN86t7eb2OgX To apply to be a guest on the show, visit luciefink.com/apply and send us your story. I also want to extend a special thank you to East Love for the show's theme song, Rolling Stone. Follow the show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therealstuffpod Find Lucie here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/luciebfink/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@luciebfink YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/luciebfink Website: https://luciefink.com/ Subscribe to my free newsletter "The Lucie List" here: https://thelucielist.beehiiv.com/subscribe Executive Producer: Cloud10 Produced by Dear Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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