Country music star Shane McAnally and his husband, Michael Baum, are sharing some joyful news about their expanding family. They are welcoming their third child, a boy, via surrogate, per Country Now. They already have adorable twins who are 12 years old.
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McAnally is 51, but he is not allowing his age to prevent him from becoming a dad again. He is also not willing to be hemmed in by outmoded societal expectations. Per People, he said, "I know things are changing all the time. And of course, since ours is a nontraditional family anyway, we don't feel like those rules apply."
McAnally Is Making a Major Career Shift
He has crafted a glittering career in the music business. According to People, McAnally has landed a quartet of Grammys, co-wrote a Broadway show, and has dozens of chart-topping tracks that he produced and/or penned. But McAnally is not content with all that. He is also breaking out as a stand-up comic, opening for Walker Hayes on tour. He acknowledged, "I'm really starting to get the whole idea of a second act."
Domesticity Agrees With Him and Baum
A couple of years ago, they decided to forsake Nashville for sunny Santa Barbara in California. "We have really nested. Our kids have found an incredible rhythm here. It's just been a really good thing for our family. Michael always says, 'Things grow here,' and so we just wanted to expand the love. I've wanted to have another baby a lot through the years."
Their Twins Balked a Bit at the Prospect of a New Sibling
McAnally and Baum's kids, a son named Dash and a daughter named Dylan, were hesitant about a third child in the family. McAnally said, "They were just like, 'Absolutely not.' 'We're good. We love the number four, and everything's great.'" He concedes, "We've given our kids such license to speak their minds." When the twins saw a sonogram of the baby, they still were not quite won over, McAnally added.
Dash, however, is showing signs of thawing. McAnally mentioned per the outlet, "He's already asking, 'How old would he have to be before he could sleep with me?' and 'When will I get to show him basketball?'"
As for McAnally, being a dad who is present and attentive is his top priority now. It's "what I look forward to most and where I find the most joy. I feel purposeful when I do that."
