A gay single dad who spent $125k to “fulfil” his dream of having a baby has found love and plans to have a second child.
Matt Bonnen, 32, had always dreamed of being a parent and when his relationship of four years broke down he worried it wouldn’t be possible.
But after a cancer scare and losing his brother, Christopher, 31, in a drowning accident, Matt realized life was too short and decided to go it alone.
Matt found a surrogate – a 30-year-old woman – and she fell pregnant in February 2023.
He witnessed the birth of his son, Noah Christopher, now 14 months old, on October 14, 2023, and feels so “grateful” to have him.
Matt has since found love with a new partner, but doesn’t regret doing it by himself – saying it’s the “best decision” he’s ever made – and he plans to give Noah a sibling in the not too distant future.
Matt, who owns a restoration company, and lives between Miami, Florida and New York, US, said: “He’s so big. He’s 14 months old now and walking and talking.
“I want to invest in my happiness.
“Noah was so wanted. I feel that is beautiful.
“It’s the best decision I have made.”
Although Noah has been a “huge joy” for Matt, the dad-of-one says he’s been having “health problems” since June.
“I’m taking time off from work,” he said.
“It’s been really, really difficult. I have kidney failure, so I’m on dialysis as we speak.”
Since Noah’s arrival, Matt has found love with Thomas Bloecker – a TikToker and real estate agent.
“Once I get all this situated with my transplant, then I’ll have another kid,” Matt said.
“We’re going to do the surrogate option.
“I already have embryos created and am going to do it with my sperm and then, hopefully in the next couple of years, Thomas can have his own embryos and we could expand the family.”
Matt always wanted to be a dad, but when his long-term relationship of four years fell apart, he almost lost hope.
He began researching agencies to assist with surrogacy and selected an egg donor who shared similar physical characteristics with him.
After an initial unsuccessful attempt, Matt learned in February 2023 that his surrogate was expecting.
He was able to attend all the scans, either in person or via FaceTime.
“All my life I had this idea of having a family,” he said at the time.
“I played with Barbie and made them have kids. I always aspired to be a parent.
“I thought ‘why can’t I do this by myself?’.
“Why do you have to wait for someone else to fulfil your dream?”
In December 2018, Matt was unexpectedly diagnosed with astroblastoma — a rare brain tumor — but underwent surgery to have it removed that same month.
“Three years later when I was ready – I knew I wanted to be a parent,” he said.
“I didn’t find another person but I thought ‘I think I can do this by myself’.
“I was missing that one thing.”
Before donating his sperm, Matt underwent six months of psychological testing to ensure he was “fit to be a parent.”
After choosing an egg donor that looked similar to him, he knew he was on his way.
“It’s like a catalogue,” he explained.
“I felt most comfortable with how my family looks.”
The agency froze eight embryos, and Matt selected a surrogate through them to carry his child.
After some initial struggles with the pregnancy — which “devastated” him — Matt received good news he would become a father and stayed along for the whole journey.
“It was amazing,” he said of Noah’s birth.
“It was a beautiful experience. As soon as he came out I saw myself in him.”
