Andy Cohen introduces his baby son to the world
In December, we learned that Bravo host and author Andy Cohen was expecting his first child. (See Andy Cohen reveals he's expecting his first child via surrogate.) On February 4, he welcomed Benjamin Allen Cohen into the world.
Cohen, posting on Instagram, said, “WOW! This is my son, Benjamin Allen Cohen. He is 9 lbs 2 ounces !! 20 inches !! Born at 6:35 pm, PT. He is name after my grandfather Ben Allen. I’m in love. And speechless. And eternally grateful to an incredible surrogate. And I’m a dad. Wow.”
The post was accompanied by a picture of Andy and Benjamin, but didn’t show the son’s face. But this week, Cohen and the baby are featured on the cover of People, showing Benjamin’s face and a really full head of hair.
Cohen opened up with People about the birth of his son, saying, "I was in the delivery room. I had been hoping that he would have a full head of hair, and he really overdelivered. That was the first thing you see, the head of hair coming out. And I was amazed."
Cohen, who cut the umbilical cord, went skin-to-skin with his baby boy shortly after his birth, according to the People interview.
It didn’t take long for dad and baby to bond. He talked with NBC’s Today show about going skin to skin with his son. “"I was in the delivery room. They cleaned him [Benjamin Cohen] up little bit, I took my shirt off, and they put him right there, and he was so alert," Cohen went on to share. "He wasn't crying. His eyes were open, and we just stared at each other for about two hours, just looking at each other, and he was touching my face….it was just incredible….”
Cohen worked with a surrogate to bring his son into the world. He shared with People, "I worked with an incredible surrogate. She was in California. Surrogacy is illegal in so many states, including New York. I don't understand why. It's a voluntary process, obviously. My surrogate just viewed it as, she was giving me the ultimate gift. She gave me life. So I'll be forever indebted to her."
The surrogacy program, according to Cohen, “helps you find the egg donor and the surrogate, and you kind of package the whole process.”
Cohen acknowledged in the NBC interview the difficulties of being a single parent: “It's not that easy for a single guy to do this on his own. It takes a village, as they say so I really wanted him, and the fact that he's here and he's so perfect and he's in wonderful health and I have great gratitude for my surrogate and all the people who helped me get to this place and I'm just thrilled."
We wish Andy and Benjamin all the best as they share their lives with each other.
Copyright The Gayly – February 13, 2019 @ 12:25 p.m. CST.