Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka have two kids together.
Neil Patrick Harris shared that he has no desire to know which of his twins is biologically his.
In 2010, the actor from Netflix's A Series of Unfortunate Events and his spouse, David Burtka, became parents to twins Gideon and Harper through a surrogate.
The pair, who got married in September 2014, have previously shared their experience of becoming parents.
The process included collecting sperm from both future fathers and using them to fertilize two eggs separately.
Following this, the two eggs were transferred to a surrogate for the baby to develop, while the egg donors stayed unidentified.
In the case of Patrick Harris and Burtka, it turned out that both eggs developed into babies. As a result, each of the two men now has a biological child, but they are unsure about which child belongs to whom.
The How I Met Your Mother actor explained that both he and Burtka desired to become biological parents.
Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka have been married since September 2014. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
In 2014, during an interview with Barbara Walters, he mentioned that they placed one of his sperm and one of David's sperm into two eggs, hoping that both would result in pregnancies since they both wanted to be biological fathers.
“Both took, miraculously.”
The twins were born in 2010, and are now both 13 years old.
Patrick Harris has made it clear that he has no interest in discovering which of the twins is his biological child, even though both he and his partner want to become parents biologically.
He told Walters: “I have no interest in [finding out]. We are their parents and I love them implicitly.”
Gideon and Harper are not identical twins, but fraternal twins. Unlike identical twins, where a fertilized egg splits into two embryos, fraternal twins occur when multiple eggs are fertilized during conception and both successfully develop in the womb.
The actor said he is not interested in finding out which twin is his biologically. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival)
Fraternal twins are often seen when fertility treatment is used, although they can also occur naturally.
During In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF), several fertilized eggs are placed in the womb to enhance the likelihood of a successful pregnancy, instead of implanting them one by one.
Sometimes, when multiple embryos are implanted, it can lead to the development of more than one egg, resulting in the birth of fraternal twins.
Patrick Harris and his family often attract attention with their vintage-themed family Christmas cards.
He posted a touching message for the twins' 13th birthday in October 2023.
Patrick Harris captioned, “In an instant, they've become teenagers…”
“Happy birthday, Harper and Gideon.
“You are the lights of my life. I can't wait to watch you want nothing to do with me, and I promise I'll be with you through all of it.”
Featured Image Credit: Bruce Glikas/Getty Images/nph/Instagram
