Fritz and Benjamin

Medical Information:

General Health:

Thankfully, both of us are very happy and healthy! We love being active. You will probably find us either outside or in the European Alps on the weekend. We take care of each other, especially with cooking good food - Ben’s homemade Veggie Lasagna can cure any flu instantly. Mental health is key and we are sparring partners! Our relationship is rooted in a deep connection and mutual respect. Just like any other couple, we do have discussions, but we always remain respectful and resolve our conflicts before going to bed.

Fertility Information:

We have 16 embryos!! While this could bring us a whole team- we can make more embryos if necessary.

We found a fantastic egg donor in Canada! A known donation was one of our key requirements to ensure our kids can explore their roots later in life. This journey would not be possible without an Egg Donor or the Surrogate. We want to establish a deep connection that is rooted in mutual trust and full transparency to ensure our baby is born into the best surrounding possible. We are so excited and grateful that two strong women are making this dream happen together with us!

Fertility Clinic:

We are working with CReATe clinic in Toronto. Our doctor is Dr. Librach who has been an incredible support so far.

Why are you looking for a Surrogate?

Because we have tried it on the natural way multiple times - no chance as a male couple! :D

Tell us about your family & loved ones.

We wish we could insert audios in here. When we told our parents about our plans:
Fritz’ Mom (mother of 4): “AAAAAAH OH MY GOD YES YES YES THIS IS THE BEST NEWS EVER”
Ben’s Mom (mother of 7 - Yes, 7): “ready to move in for the first weeks to support you!”
Dads less vocal, but equally happy and on board!

We cannot list them all, we have 11 in total and both of us were the youngest. We have a strong connection to every sibling including yearly family vacations, shared Christmas etc. We are blessed as all of our siblings fully support our journey and show great interest. While we have plenty of siblings, we have even more nephews and nieces. The number keeps on growing every year and they can’t wait for a new play buddy. Our meetups are just like cheaper by the Dozen- very chaotic but wholesome.

We are fully open with our friends and colleagues and are surrounded by a very supportive environment. Many of our friends have kids already or plan to start a family soon. Our colleagues are close to our heart as well and fully support this decision.

Would you like to attend appointments with your Surrogate?

We would love to attend all obstetrical appointments, but only if the Surrogate feels comfortable with having us there. Since we are in Germany, we would join mostly virtually. However, we plan to visit you during the pregnancy to support you personally and make sure there is nothing you’re missing.

What are your thoughts on termination of a pregnancy due to genetic abnormalities or complications related to the pregnancy?

We were thinking a lot about this. First of all, this is a very difficult topic. We came to the conclusion that we would want to terminate a pregnancy if the baby has a severe illness. Of course there is a huge spectrum between healthy and severely ill. In every decision we would have profound conversations with our Surrogate and the doctor to ensure we have a full understanding of the situation of the newborn. Every opinion will be heard. As soon as we see a severe risk for the long-term health of the newborn or the Surrogate, we would like to terminate the pregnancy.

If the Surrogate becomes pregnant with multiples, how would you feel? How do you feel about the possibility of selective reduction being recommended due to a multiple pregnancy?

The wellbeing of our Surrogate and the babies will always come first, without question. If everything is healthy and feels right for everyone involved, and our Surrogate is fully comfortable with it, we would be open to the possibility of welcoming two little ones.

Are you vaccinated for Covid-19? Do you have a preference for a Surrogate to have been vaccinated for Covid-19?

Both of us are vaccinated, but we don’t have a preference for the Surrogate.

What kind of relationship do you want to have the your Surrogate during the pregnancy?

The process is very exciting for us and we want to support wherever we can. We value regular check-ins and messages so that we can also document this time for our baby as well. However, we fully respect our Surrogate’s privacy and would take her lead on how to communicate in the future.

Do you want to be in the delivery room when your child is born?

We would love to be there in the room, but we understand that giving birth is a vulnerable moment. If our Surrogate prefers having only her family & friends in the room, we fully accept and support this decision.

What kind of relationship do you hope to have with your Surrogate after the birth of your child?

We will take the Surrogate’s lead here as well. Our baby is in this world because of her and the strong support she receives from her support system. We would like to have a lasting bond and we want to tell our child from the start about how important the Surrogate was for us and provide full transparency. Of course Europe and Canada are far away and the connection will be unlikely to be very frequent over the years, but we would love to maintain a special bond between our families.

Would you be open to a home birth?

We are open to this option. However, we would feel comfortable if there is a hospital nearby so that both the Surrogate and the baby are safe in case of an emergency.

Are you open to midwifery care?

As long as we can guarantee a strong health support for the Surrogate and the baby, we are open to it.

Would you like your Surrogate to provide breastmilk?

If possible in the early days or weeks after birth, yes! :) But this of course has to fit into her life.

What will you tell the child about the Surrogate, and the circumstances of their birth? If the child asks to meet the Surrogate, how will you feel?

100% honesty and transparency. We luckily have friends who are also in the Surrogate process (expecting their child in October 2026!). We will tell our kids how their fathers are meant for each other and have so much love to give, that it was clear very early on that they wanted kids. Things work differently for same-sex couples but there is a way. We thought this process through a lot and can say our kids are 100% planned and wanted.

If the child asks to meet the Surrogate we will feel PROUD! Because that means we did a great job telling them about our Surrogate :) Ideally they will grow up with some kind of regular touch points (e.g. meetings when we visit Benni’s brother in Calgary, Christmas cards...).

If the transfer is unsuccessful, will you want to try again? If so, how soon after?

We would care about the Surrogate’s wellbeing first as we believe that having an unsuccessful transfer can be draining physically and mentally. However, we hope to try again as soon as possible and as soon as she is ready.

If this surrogacy journey is successful, would you want to complete a sibling journey? What do you envision that looking like? (timeline, same Surrogate etc.)

We would love to repeat the journey, ideally with the same Surrogate as this would establish another strong connection between the siblings. Timing wise, we would love to have it as close to the other sibling as possible.

What are your plans for childcare once the child is born?

We thought this through a lot. We will both take 1 shared month of parental leave to ensure we have enough time and flexibility to adjust to the new situation. Fritz will take the first 6 months off (has the Go from his work already) and Benni takes the next 6 months. We still have the flexibility to take up additional time if needed, depending on our child's development and needs. We are flexible and one of us can stay up to 3 years at home. Both of our mothers offered strong in person support for the first weeks. Once we think our child is ready (after ~1.5/2 years), we would enroll them in a half day nursery to get them used to other children as well.

What does a typical weekend look like for you?

Where do we even begin? Our life together is shaped by the little rituals that make everything feel calm, safe, and connected. Every day ends the same way - with us cuddling in bed, talking about our day, and falling asleep close to each other. And no matter how early the morning comes, even if one of us has to get up at 4 a.m., we always make time to share breakfast and dinner together. It’s our way of staying grounded in each other.
Weekends have their own gentle rhythm. We still start with cuddles, but our idea of “sleeping in” looks a little different: Fritz is usually up around 8am, while Benni happily enjoys another hour or so of sleep. Fritz takes care of the morning coffee, Benni handles the dishes in the evening. Small things that somehow say a lot about how we take care of each other.
As soon as the sun comes out, we are drawn outside. We love starting the day with a relaxed breakfast on our balcony. From there, the day often unfolds spontaneously, maybe a peaceful paddle on the Isar with friends, exploring Munich, or ending the day at a concert or the movies. Benni has a special love for stand-up comedy (even if he’s not quite ready to be the one on stage yet ;-)).
We also enjoy being active together - going to the gym, joining yoga classes, or simply unwinding at the spa.
At the heart of it all, we love trying new things together, our next shared goal is to become better tennis players. But more than anything, it’s these shared moments, big and small, that make our life feel so full.

What are some of your interests/ activities?

We share many of the same passions, which makes life together feel easy and full of joy. We both love staying active, whether it’s going to the gym, running, or swimming. But just as much, we love slowing down in the kitchen, cooking together and turning meals into something special.
And yes, we might be a little bit cliché German - because we absolutely love hiking. Luckily, the Alps are less than an hour away from our home in Munich, so we often escape into the mountains for a day or even a weekend. Being surrounded by nature is where we feel most grounded and connected.
Travel has always been a big part of our lives. Some of our most unforgettable memories come from our road trips through Australia and Costa Rica. Adventures that shaped us and brought us even closer together. Over the years, we’ve both lived abroad (Fritz in Iceland and Singapore, Benni in Australia, Poland, and England), which has given us friendships all over the world. Our home is often filled with guests, laughter, and shared meals. We truly love bringing people together.
At the heart of it all, we just love to laugh and experience life fully. Benni has a passion for comedy and magic shows and regularly convinces Fritz to join, although somehow Fritz always ends up being “randomly” picked to participate on stage. Don’t ask, he hates it :D On the other hand, he loves singing and often goes to karaoke with friends (even if his talent is… questionable :P). Benni is a deeply creative soul and is currently working on his first novel, while both of us enjoy painting and expressing ourselves in creative ways.
Life with us is a mix of movement, creativity, laughter, and connection, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Fun Facts:

Benni grew up on a farm as the youngest of seven siblings, basically a built-in chaos coordinator, surrounded by animals (including 30 horses at one point…).
Fritz has three siblings and is a twin which comes with a slightly spooky superpower: sometimes we swear twins can read each other’s minds. It’s impressive… and occasionally a bit unfair.
We also love the simple joys like picking strawberries in summer (and eating half of them before they even make it home).
Childhood highlight from Fritz: sitting on the stairs with his twin before birthdays, trying to spy on the kitchen while the family secretly prepared surprises.
Adult reality: still just as excited..
Games are serious business in our families. Fritz grew up with Sicilian Rummy, Benni with Carcassonne and let’s just say… there is strong photographic evidence of Benni winning by completely destroying Fritz’s strategy :D

When it comes to food- Lasagna, Lasagna and Lasagna! Apart from that, Pasta (Fritz’ grandfather is Italian and taught him a lot about the art of cooking) and no-bake Brownies - happy to share an amazing recipe.

“Life is beautiful! We came up with an idea to cherish the (smaller) moments of happiness and be appreciative - our very own “Glücksglas” (English jar of luck). Whenever one of us feels happy, content or joyful, he secretly grabs a note, marks the day and describes the situation. On New Year's Eve, we open all the notes together and read through them again. It’s fun and incredibly rewarding. Last year, we had plenty of notes around how we felt about starting our journey of becoming parents.
We are both very optimistic and know how much of a lucky shot our relationship is. Fritz is a hopeless romantic character, he created a 9 minute long video of their relationship on how they met, their first vacations, the moment when he knew he would propose. He can’t wait to capture moments of the kids, too.
Our aspiration is to be happy in life. We have the right partner on our side and look forward to raising kids into loving, kind and polite human beings. Although we are fully aware of all the challenges ahead, WE ARE SO READY FOR IT!”