Although Kevin Costner has seven children as of right now, he wasn’t always sure he wanted more after having three children with his first marriage.
An ultimatum was made to Kevin Costner. He needed to either move on and stop squandering their time or decide whether he wanted to have kids with his girlfriend Christine Baumgartner.
Everyone has some relationship requirements that are non-negotiable. For others, it’s integrity, while for others, religion ranks highly. The subject of children is also often up for discussion. While some people could be certain of what they want, others might still be hesitant.
Uncertainty or conflict between partners can break up relationships. After they couldn’t agree on whether or not they should have children together, it led to a gap between Kevin Costner and his then-girlfriend Christine Baumgartner.
Only after Baumgartner issued an ultimatum did Costner alter his mind about wanting additional children.
When they were both in college in 1975, Costner met Cindy Silva, who would become his first wife.
“She was beautiful, she was sweet, she was smarter than me. She represented everything about women that I like,” Costner told Closer Weekly about his first wife.
After three years of dating, the couple got married.
The couple’s first child, Annie, was born in 1984 thanks to Silva. In 1986, they welcomed Lily into the family, and in 1988, Silva gave birth to a son named Joe, expanding the family once again.
Costner loved being a father. He said “being a dad is the most important thing in my life.”
Silva stayed at home to take care of their kids as Costner continued his job as they grew older.
His absence, though, caused his marriage to suffer because there were allegations that he was having an affair.
Silva put up with Costner’s “sexy roles” and the gossip, but the pair announced in 1994 that they were divorcing after 16 years of marriage.
After getting divorced, Costner started dating Bridget Rooney. A son was born to the couple in November 1996.
Two years later he met Christine Baumgartner, a handbag designer, for the second time – they first met a decade earlier while golfing. The two began dating in 1998.
“We exchanged numbers, and I told her that I would – did she mind if I called her in two weeks. I did not realize that was like an insult to a woman,” he told People in 2003.
The couple got along despite their 20-year age gap, with the exception of kids. Costner, who was in his 40s when he met her, did not want any more children, whereas Baumgartner desired to have children.
“Fear kept me from marrying Christine,” he exclusively told Closer Weekly in June 2018. “[She] wanted a child, but I was afraid I couldn’t be an effective father.”
Costner said Baumgartner gave him an ultimatum.
“I’m going to wait for you, but not long. When you come to your senses, come back to me.”
Kevin Costner & Christine Baumgartner (Photo by Toni Anne Barson/WireImage)
The couple briefly split while Costner took his time to rethink his future.
Eventually the couple got back together.
“I woke up and thought, ‘Am I going to lose a beautiful woman who is willing to be with me to my very last breath because I am afraid to say yes to a child?’” he said at the time. “That’s all it took. Sometimes you learn the thing you’re most afraid of will save your life.”
The two married in 2004 on their property in Aspen, Colorado.
Three years later they welcomed their first child together. They added to their family with the addition of a son in 2009 and a daughter in 2010.
Although Costner was hesitant about having more children, he’s come to love being a father to his seven children.
“You get to play heroes in the movies, but there’s a moment in time where you’re just a father and you get to go home. I have played two roles in my life, one I get paid to do, which is the movies, and the other one is being a father, for which I’ll be rewarded my whole life.”
It’s crucial, in my opinion, that both parties agree on the matter of having kids or not.
It’s wonderful that Christine Baumgartner and Kevin Costner had some time to reflect, and it looks like Costner made the correct choice!
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