Couple Split for 16 Months to Get Sober. When They Remarried, She Adopted His Son Born During Divorce (Exclusive)

Couple Split for 16 Months to Get Sober. When They Remarried, She Adopted His Son Born During Divorce (Exclusive)

Rachel Tucker decided to become a legal parent to her husband’s child, who was born with illegal substances in his system and placed in state custody

Rachel Tucker started raising her son Tommie when he was 11 months old, but
only after she spent many sleepless nights wondering if she was making the right decision. Rachel’s husband, Eric, is Tommie’s biological father, though the baby was born during the year-and-a-half the couple spent apart in a mutual effort to get sober.

Eric wasn’t certain about Tommie’s paternity when the baby first arrived in 2021, and since the infant was born with traces of illegal substances in his bloodwork, he was taken into state custody and entered into foster care. Once Rachel decided she wanted to be a parent to Tommie, she and Eric pursued custody and a paternity test — essentially in that order.

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Couple Split for 16 Months to Get Sober. When They Remarried, She Adopted His Son Born During Divorce (Exclusive)
Rachel Tucker decided to become a legal parent to her husband’s child, who was born with illegal substances in his system and placed in state custody

By Zoey Lyttle Published on September 30, 2024 03:33PM EDT
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Rachel Tucker with her family
Rachel Tucker with her husband, Eric, and four of their kids. Photo: Kendrah Damis Photography
In 2020, Rachel Tucker and her husband, Eric, divorced to get sober separately. During their time apart, Eric welcomed a son with another woman. When the baby was placed in foster care, his biological mother became absent.
After making strides in their recovery, Rachel and Eric rekindled their relationship. Rachel decided to adopt Eric’s son, and together they successfully pursued custody of the child.
Rachel — who is mom to four other kids — posted a trio of TikToks about her adoption journey, though she tells PEOPLE she never expected the videos to go viral as they did.
Rachel Tucker started raising her son Tommie when he was 11 months old, but only after she spent many sleepless nights wondering if she was making the right decision. Rachel’s husband, Eric, is Tommie’s biological father, though the baby was born during the year-and-a-half the couple spent apart in a mutual effort to get sober.

Eric wasn’t certain about Tommie’s paternity when the baby first arrived in 2021, and since the infant was born with traces of illegal substances in his bloodwork, he was taken into state custody and entered into foster care. Once Rachel decided she wanted to be a parent to Tommie, she and Eric pursued custody and a paternity test — essentially in that order.

“Once I set my mind that I could find it in my heart to raise this child if needed, we contacted child services and set up a DNA test,” Rachel tells PEOPLE. “We were prepared to step in for this child and showed up for the court date without even receiving our DNA test results back.”

Rachel officially adopted Tommie, now 3 years old, on Sept. 18, 2023, after his biological mom showed no interest in contact for more than a year. “I just could not stomach the thought of a little child out there not knowing his biological mother or father,” Rachel says.

Rachel Tucker with her family
Rachel Tucker with her son, Tommie. Rachel Tucker
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The adoption only expanded Tommie’s network of loved ones. He immediately gained four siblings: Rachel’s two children from a previous relationship, ages 19 and 16, and the two she shares with Eric, ages 9 and 1. Plus, the mom of five says Tommie’s foster parents have remained in his life as aunt and uncle figures.

“We actually have taken several vacations together now and they are at all our family events. We talk to them almost every day,” Rachel says of her son’s previous caretakers. “They take Tommie every other weekend on a regular basis and they have been such a great support to us during this entire event.”

Earlier this year, Rachel decided to share a snippet about her family’s happy ending on TikTok. The video showed 5 seconds of footage from the official adoption in the courtroom. In overlaying text, Rachel described the scene: “The day I adopted my [2-year-old] son. The judge let my daughter bang the gavel. My newborn came 3 weeks early and I had to go to court only a couple days after giving birth.”

In the caption, she added, “I was exhausted, but I wouldn’t miss adopting him for the world!”

Since she posted the clip in June, it’s reached 4.8 million viewers and garnered more than 288,000 likes. Originally, Rachel had no plans to give further detail online, but after her first TikTok went viral, she felt compelled to tell the story in full.