y friend Anna Bartolotta recently welcomed two additions to her household -- twins named Kate and Ben. I've had plenty of friends who became parents, but this time it challenged everything I've ever believed about relationships and parenting.

You see, Anna wasn't exactly the mom of the newborns, and she's not the dad either. She's the same-sex partner of Shayna, who legally changed her last name to Bartolotta in 2005 and who gave birth to the children.

Christianity tells me that gay relationships are immoral. But that has turned out to be a lot easier to accept in the philosophical sense than in reality.

Anna and Shayna are celebrating their fifth anniversary next week. Both discovered their sexual preference after dating men earlier in their lives.

They discussed the possibility of children about three years ago and advertised for a sperm donor. Their immediate reaction was disappointment at the 50 to 100 "perverts" who responded. But even worse was the hate.

But eventually, they got the response they were looking for from a 24-year-old man -- "no drinking, no smoking, and he must look Italian" so the baby might resemble Anna.

A doctor's exam and two ovulation cycles later, Shayna was pregnant. That was the easy part, especially when many people remain intolerant toward gay couples.

Shayna once felt the same way about her own sexuality. Childhood thoughts of bearing children gave way to "I'm not going to do that to my children. People are mean," she thought.

Both Anna and Shayna know there will be difficult days ahead. They'll have to explain to Kate and Ben why they have a "Mommy" and a "Mumma" instead of Mom and Dad, and the kids could face teasing in school.

Both Anna (an agnostic) and Shayna (a one-time Baptist) know of the stigma attached to the gay lifestyle by organized religions and say they will allow their children to choose their own faith when they grow older.

"You don't choose to be (gay). I never would have chosen this. God wants me to be happy. I live a healthy, good life. I don't hurt people. I believe when I die, I'll go to heaven," Shayna told me.

The couple is already planning another pregnancy, this time for Anna. "It's a way for me to actually breathe blood and life into our child," she says.

For most of us, our upbringing and religious teachings suggest we should not approve of what Shayna and Anna have done. But try convincing yourself of that when Ben paws at your chin and you witness the joy of two women who are as devoted to raising their own children as any straight couple.

This is cache, read story here