Our Story

Onesie | Daddies Little Love

PeaTree’s origins are told from our point of view, as supportive nieces. Rafael & Steve could describe this experience in greater detail with all the bumps, bruises and successes. Maybe one day they will write a book to share their story and give hope to other couples, until then, allow us to share our version.

Emma is pregnant….with her brother’s baby.

This was Uncle Brian’s favorite way to share that Auntie Emma was a surrogate to Rafael’s baby. Almost 10 years ago, Uncle Raf & his partner Steve, started the journey of adding to their family. As same-sex partners in need of an egg donor and surrogate, they were simply denied or rules applied differently so options were limited. While sharing their journey, Raf & Steve found a surrogate in the most unexpected place - family. Auntie Emma, nominated herself as the host the bun in her oven. By this accomplishment she would now be deemed Nina Emma, because what better gift to give than life itself. You may have some questions but don’t worry, that reaction is quite normal. A sister was carrying her brother’s child that was the product of an egg donor, Steve’s genes and a petri dish, we pronounce it as PeaTree.

Emma’s gift of surrogacy has been one of the purest forms of love I have witnessed. She has children of her own to love and cherish. By acting as a surrogate, she was able to gift her brother that same experience of being a parent. When we say we have a family of unconditional love, this is what we're talking about. The support goes beyond our immediate family. The support pours out from friends and coworkers who have seen us along the way. Raf & Steve lived in Chicago when they started the process, while Emma lived in California. The love of our family is not constricted by distance or sexuality. Love is Love. We truly believe that love made Miss O, our new baby cousin, possible because from our standpoint, it was effortless. They were lucky enough to have successful IVF(In Vitro Fertilisation) on the first try! Miss Olivia was officially a bun in Nina Emma’s oven. This act of love is a true testament of what a loving family can accomplish. Love surrounds us. We are the products of love and in being a product of love we have the ability to showcase it in its purest form. Marital love. Sibling love. Universal love. Untethered by societal norms, our family could not be more happy to have welcomed Miss Olivia into this world 9 months later.

Shopping for this new baby was all Sam could think about. At the time, She was living in London on a student’s budget and would browse all the window displays. Infant wear often came in 3 packs of “Mommy’s Angel,” “Daddy’s Princess” and other kitschy sayings. It was a heteronormative shopping experience and a defining moment when she realized the need for same-sex parent representation. All families are created equal because they come in all different forms; two dads, two moms, one dad, one mom, adoption, surrogacy. Here she was, standing at a popular baby store, with nothing to buy that represented the labor of love that brought Miss Olivia into this world. She continued to search, thinking European stores may have a more progressive assortment. Maybe a local boutique will have something… nothing. She even tried searching on Etsy but nothing was the quality she was looking for. She simply wanted to buy a onesie for a baby with two daddies, that was preferably made locally and of sustainable organic cotton. Although she was disappointed in her endeavor to find a onesie that read I <3 My Daddies, an idea was born alongside Olivia… Peatree.

PeaTree was ideated almost 10 years ago and we are unbelievably excited to be live with our product!