"Unfortunately because we don't have federal rights, I have to
adopt my own son," said Nikki. "I don't want to be challenged on
being his parent." The interview with the social worker didn't
exactly start out pleasantly, "with me being fingerprinted and her
asking a lot of questions about our relationship, when we've known
each other since we were children," Nikki said. " Then she asked us
how our family felt about our relationship. I think Expedia had
just come out a week before. We looked at each other, played it for
her and she was just in tears. I don't think there were any more
questions after that."
Turns out, both Nikki and Jill Weiss-Goldstein are from the ad
world. Nikki reps directors out her own company, Nikki Weiss &
Co., while Jill is a copywriter who's worked at agencies like
Goodby, Silverstein
& Partners and Y&R. But they made their way onto
the spot via reality TV. Both had appeared on Showtime's series
"The Real L Word," which documented their road to marriage. "We
were very apprehensive to do it, but going through the process of
me asking Jill's father for her hand in marriage, Jill and I
thought, maybe we should do this, maybe it will help partners
struggling with their children. So we did, and from then, our life
became public. We chose not to do season two because we did not
want to be reality TV stars."
But then Expedia came calling. A friend had hooked the pair up
with a casting agent on the job, looking for a gay couple to tell
their wedding tale. "We felt that we had already told our story,
but the more interesting story was my father-in-law," said Nikki.
"So, if they're open to that, we're happy to chat." They were, so
"we called Dad and asked him how he felt about being vulnerable and
honest about his feelings about when I asked for Jill's hand. It
didn't even take him a minute. He said, 'It's important and I want
to do that for you.'"
Mr. Goldstein's revelations have had significant impact, and
Nikki will be adopting Adler on April 17th. "But it's really
bittersweet for me," she said. "Everybody might see it as a
celebration, but I just see having to do it as an insult."
Also bittersweet is the fact that Mr. Goldstein won't be there
to join in his family's next landmark moment. "The film in the end
turned out to be an amazing love letter from my father-in-law, who
passed away in January," said Nikki. "He left such a legacy."