In Conversation with Mike & James
In episode four of The Family Compass, we sit down with Mike and James to talk about their experiences as a same sex couple and their journey to becoming parents to their daughter, Ava.
Mike was born and raised in South Australia while James grew up in Norfolk, England. The couple first met in Melbourne before they both moved to the UK for work. An English wedding followed, in 2019, bringing family and friends from around the world together to celebrate. Both had successful careers; James is a teacher and a qualified meteorologist, Mike is a social planner and events management specialist, but there was something missing in their lives; a child.
After enduring a complicated process, Mike and James finally became parents, welcoming a fifteen-month-old girl, Ava, into their home and hearts in 2020. Wanting to raise their daughter in a more relaxed environment, the lure of the Australian lifestyle was too strong to resist. So, two years later Mike, James and little Ava relocated to Australia, settling in Mildura to be close to Mike’s family.
In a wide-ranging conversation, Mike and James share their stories, individually and as a couple, from coming out, embracing their identity and the impact of the same sex marriage debate to the challenges of adoption and navigating the complexities of family life.
Mike and James remind us that family is what you make it and that sometimes, the things in life that are the hardest to achieve are also the most worthwhile.
