Originally appeared on E! Online
Not many pregnant women have a partner who can say he's been there, done that—and really mean it.
But as Francesca Farago knows, it's a wonderfully supportive dynamic if you can get it.
"It's been a dream," the Too Hot to Handle alum, who's expecting twins with fiancé Jesse Sullivan, exclusively told E! News of being with someone who has experienced pregnancy. "Because I'm just like, 'Is this normal?' 'OK, did you feel this?' He's like, 'Yeah.' And he's been through it, so he's been the most amazing support system."
Sullivan, 34, is dad to 15-year-old Arlo from a high school-era relationship. He was raising Arlo as a single parent when he transitioned, documenting his story for his now 3-million-strong TikTok following.
Farago, 30, met Sullivan in 2021, the couple immediately feeling that zsa-zsa-zsu over Zoom when she sat down to interview him for a TikTok Pride event, and they announced their engagement in April 2023.
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So, it was hardly a stretch for the media-savvy pair to share the at times very raw details of the IVF journey they embarked on last year, starting with Sullivan having his eggs retrieved and frozen, after which Farago did the same. Using sperm from a donor they know but whose identity they're keeping to themselves for now, the plan was to use her embryos for their first child and Sullivan's for a second—unless she got pregnant with twins the first time.
Which, reader, she did.
And together they've been rolling with the highs ("buying baby clothes is how I wake up in the morning") and lows (a "brutal" first trimester) ever since. Going on a tip from a Snapchat commenter, Farago also found out she had a short cervix. When she spoke to E!, she was expecting to undergo a cerclage—getting temporary sutures to help shore up tissue in the uterine cervix—and was coming to terms with having to throw her birth plan out the window.
"Originally my plan was 'just don't die,' make sure the babies are here safely," she said. "I really wanted to give birth naturally and vagin*lly." But in light of her condition, "I'm most likely going to have to get a C-section and I'm really bummed about it."
And not only because the bikini-loving Farago the Label founder is admittedly "just vain" and doesn't want the scar. "I really wanted to experience birth," she explained. "It's just something I've always wanted to do. But maybe if I have a single baby in the future, I'll be able to do that naturally."
At least, Farago added, a planned C-section would be "a little bit less stressful" and she won't be in labor for an unknowable number of hours.
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But in any and all cases, she's got Sullivan by her side and he's been her rock.
"He doesn't want me to cook, he doesn't want me to clean, he wants to just love me and support me and make sure I'm comfortable," Farago shared. "I don't think any other male, especially, would ever be able to understand like Jesse does, because he's done it and he's raised a child."
Since Sullivan was just 17 at the time, she continued, "I don't think he was thinking about what could go wrong. He was just thinking about how he was going to have a baby. But having him has been amazing. Like, 10 out of 10, highly recommend being engaged to a trans man who has given birth."
Meanwhile, being so online, Farago is obviously aware of just how much judgment awaits everyone on social media, let alone a modern family such as hers. But she knows what's in her heart, and that's all that matters.
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"I've seen people comment on other queer people's posts, as well, like, 'That baby needs their biological father,' or, 'That baby needs their biological mother,'" Farago said, "failing to realize that the people that do IVF—queer or straight—want these babies so bad, and are going to love these children so much. And they are probably in one of the most loving households that there can be because of how much time and effort and money people put into having these babies. They're going to be so loved."
Moreover, she continued, "People focus on biology and DNA so much that they forget babies don't really care about that."
Her kids may have questions when they're older, and Farago said they will eventually know the identity of their sperm donor.
But, she added, "when they're kids they just want to be loved. We can provide that for them, and that's the most important part. That's all that matters."
Keep reading for more on how Farago and Sullivan went from meeting cute to planning their family:
June 2021: First Meeting
Summer 2022: Social Media Official
May 2023: Engagement
March 2024: Baby (Soon-to-be) on Board
April 2024: Double the Love
