Neil Patrick Harris and celebrity chef, David Burtka, are two celebrity love birds who make just about everyone swoon with their adorable relationship. Harris and Burtka met, married, had children, and remained being just as successful in their similar, yet separate careers in the industry. Burtka and Harris take “family goals” to an all new level with their style, food, and extremely adorable twins, but not everything is as perfect as it may appear in the magazines. In fact, there is a lot of method behind their madness when it comes to keeping their family happy and healthy.

With rumors flying about the status of their relationship and how things are going at home, Harris and Burtka continue to be honest with themselves and the media about their lives, without feeling the need to validate their every move. Celebrities or not, relationships are complicated, but finding that special someone to fight through it all with is a blessing.

From the first time they met to the day they got married and beyond, Harris and Burtka have shown the world what it means to love so deeply. Whether it’s between each other or their twins, Harper and Gideon, the bond is fairly strong in the Harris - Burtka family.

Here are 15 Secrets Behind Neil Patrick Harris And David Burtka’s Relationship.

15. Neil and David met in New York City

The concrete jungle where dreams are made of got romantic one night, when Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka had plans to meet up with some friends, says Bustle. Harris met his friend, Kate, on Ninth Avenue between 44th and 45th street, who was accompanied by her friend, David, who wasn’t single at the time.

A week later, the handsome man who had sported the leather jacket under the New York City lights was suddenly available and ended up dating Harris. Before meeting Burtka, Harris was convinced he was going to roll solo for the rest of his life. As for Burtka, he recalled meeting Harris and recognizing him, but was dealing with a long-distance relationship at that moment.

He never thought he would end up dating Harris – their first time actually hanging out was at an American Idol viewing party.

14. They also got engaged in New York City

Although Harris was the first to admit he was interested in pursuing a relationship, Burtka was the first to propose to Harris, according to Equally Wed who reported on the story shortly after Burtka and Harris were featured on the cover of OUT Magazine.

The first proposal took place in New York City in the exact same location where they had first met.

Ninth Avenue between 44th and 45th could become an international tourist attraction because of the popularity surrounding this love story. A year after Burtka got down on one knee, Harris also proposed to Burtka in Santa Monica on Valentine’s Day.

Burtka commented,“…we talk on the phone at least eight times a day and text at least 25 times a day. We are, in a way, very codependent." And adding, “without him. I can’t breathe.”

13. Italian Marriage

As per Daily Mail, it was 2014 when Harris and Burtka got married in Italy, becoming one of the most favored Italian romances and giving Romeo and Juliet a run for their money. They already had four-year-old twins and 10 years with one another under their belts, making this celebration more special than ever. Among the guests was talk-show host Kelly Ripa, who recounted the wedding on her show, saying it was “quiet” and “private.”

They married inside a castle, with Elton John serenading them and their guests. They even included their twins in the ceremony, having Harper as the flower girl and Gideon as the “orange boy.” Yes, orange boy. Gideon refused to be the ring bearer and would only participate if he could walk down the aisle and hand oranges out to the guests, so that’s just what they had him do.

12. The Long Road To Marriage

Taking it slow must still be cool because it took Harris and Burtka an entire decade of love before they decided to get married. Marriage wasn’t the first big step for Harris and Burtka, who had four-year-old twins at the time of the wedding.

Getting married just months before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled gay marriage to be legal, Harris posted a picture on Instagram showing off their wedding rings captioned, “Love Wins.”

They may have beaten the Supreme Court and declared their love when they wanted, but they certainly took their time in doing so.

DailyMail.comshared the post Harris put up for his and Burtka’s one-year anniversary, “One year ago today I had the pleasure of marrying David Burtka, I’m so happy that I did - he’s a truly wonderful man. Here’s to many more laughs and adventures..!”

 11. First Date Discussions

Harper and Gideon were really planned out, without getting into the science behind them being conceived. It was the first date for Harris and Burtka when they discussed the want to have kids – something both of them had in common and something they ended up achieving together.

The Huffington Post says that Harris and Burtka could be considered one of the highest-profile gay couples in Hollywood, but now they are also two of the highest-profile parents in Hollywood, having welcomed twins in 2010.

According to The Huffington Post, Burtka had said, “If he [Harris] hadn’t wanted kids, I don’t think we’d be together. I always thought that family was the most important thing in life, and no matter what I do, whether being a chef or an actor or a dancer, being a dad is what I do best."

10. Surrogacy For Harper And Gideon 

According to People, Burtka and Harris stopped by the Wendy Williams Show to talk about their twins. Harper and Gideon were born on October 23, 2010 via surrogate, involving two embryos, one for each of the kids. Burtka and Harris had both wanted kids their entire lives, but the two still took their time to think this decision out financially and emotionally.

The donor who gave two of her eggs through a bank, remaining anonymous, but Burtka and Harris say they know the woman who carried Harper and Gideon.

They mentioned that the twins brought nothing but love into their lives and they were lucky both of the embryos took. Burtka says that their son, Gideon, is the shy one and Harper is a little more outgoing. Burtka told Wendy Williams that he is convinced Harper is biologically his because of her flashy personality.

9. David’s Troubled Past

Daily Mail reported that Burtka had made the decision to quit drinking alcohol for his kids, Harper and Gideon. He said he didn’t like the effect it was having on him anymore and he owed the twins to quit. He’s made it quite clear in the past that being a father is extremely important to him, and he wasn’t okay with anything getting in the way of that, especially something in his own control.

‘That’s a big thing … I didn’t like the way I was acting and I think it was affecting me and I thought, “You know what? I owe it to myself, I owe it to my kids, to be there, 100 percent,” Burtka told the NY Daily News. “I just think that, I’m not one of those people that can just have one drink or two drinks,” he added.

8. Say Hello To Gidget!

The Burtka-Harris family grew a little larger when they decided to adopt a dog, named Gidget – a white terrier mix. According to TODAY, Gidget was a gift for Harper and Gideon’s sixth birthday. As if this Hollywood family wasn’t cute enough, adding a fluffy feline friend into the mix sure set the bar a lot higher.

Harris shared an Instagram post featuring some adorable pictures of the new pet, proving that even their dog is naturally photogenic.

People says Burtka and Harris adopted Gidget from the North Shore Animal League, the world’s largest animal rescue and adoption organization. The animal shelter helped the Burtka-Harris family pick Gidget. The same source reports that Gidget was rescued as a part of North Shore’s partnership with Project Street Dog Thailand, a nonprofit that helps stray dogs and cats in Thailand.

7. Two Is Enough

Harper and Gideon are enough for Harris and Burtka who have openly expressed that they are not interested in having any more kids, as reported by Hello!

Harris and Burtka have a lot of fun with their kids, dressing them up and taking extremely cute family photos with them, but they say that two is enough. They also mentioned that they aren’t interested in sticking them in the business yet, stating to Hello! that neither of the kids have showed much interest in acting or singing at this point.

As for whether they plan on adding to their family, the father-of-two admitted, “No! We just got a puppy. That’s enough. That’s enough.” Burtka told Hello!

Two kids, a puppy, and high-profile lifestyles, it sounds like their hands would be a little too full to welcome any other babies into the Harris-Burtka household.

6. Trials And Tribulations

Swooning over Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka’s relationship is easy, but the couple commonly lets fans know that it’s not all that it appears to be online and on social media. While the two have confirmed, on more than one occasion, that they are madly in love with each other, they have also made it quite clear that love is not all fun and games.

The Huffington Post wrote about how Harris admits there have been times where he has wondered if their relationship was going to work to OUT Magazine.

Burtka added that “A relationship is work and it changes. And you go with the changes. It’s more good times than bad times, but it’s not always good."

Like every couple out there, they’ve had their ups and downs, and being in the public eye can make that even more difficult to figure out, but the honesty surrounding their relationship and personal struggles has strengthened them for the better.

5. Couple’s Therapy

Daily Mail  reported that Burtka and Harris confirmed they go to couple’s therapy, but not because they need to. They feel that going and speaking to someone, having a mediator to their problems, helps them lead happier lives and have a healthier relationship with one another. Harris told Life and Style that the two went to couple’s therapy saying “We go to couple’s therapy, not that there’s anything wrong, but it’s nice to sort of just talk to someone who is a mediator. That’s helped our relationship.”

It seems to be working because Burtka also added that Harris is always doing romantic things for him and the two appear to be very happy with their tight-knit little family. Their Instagram pages are also always full of pictures from all the fun adventures they go on with one another.

4. Taco Tuesday 

Taco Tuesday just got a lot more intense, all because of some taco-themed apparel. Burtka and Harris are really into celebrating Taco Tuesday as proven by a blog post written by The New Potato, a dinner guest at the Burtka-Harris house. Their kids, Harper and Gideon also get in on the fun, wearing their own taco graphic tees and helping their dads chop lettuce with plastic knives.

In a house co-led by a professional chef, every meal is high-class, even tacos.

Harris and Burtka are not shy about sharing their taco-making secrets, telling The New Potato that they make their tacos in a hard shell, but then wrap a soft tortilla around the hard shell before enjoying. What makes their tacos even better is that the spices they use come straight from their rooftop.

Taco Tuesday may sound a little involved for any average parent out there, but this family does not mess around when it comes to meal prep.

3. Halloween

Halloween gets just as intense as Taco Tuesday in the Burtka - Harris household. These Hollywood stars really know how to whip up the perfect group costume, even including twins Harper and Gideon. This past year, the family went with a circus theme.

Not only are their costumes perfect, but the pictures they all model for are incredible. Even the kids have the poses down and are really able to get into character. Seems like the two are pretty well set up for a potential acting career one day, even though Burtka and Harris had previously comment to Hello! that they hadn’t shown much interest in joining the industry just yet.

“Our daughter just got a pink karaoke machine for Christmas so she’s been belting out some tunes at home, but she gets a little stage fright" Harris told Hello! So for right now, it’s just going to be more impressive Halloween costumes for the Butka-Harris twins and everyone is pretty okay with it.

2. Gilmore Girls Loves NPH + Burtka

Harris and Burtka were glad to be referenced in the Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life reunion series, Cinema Blend reports. Their shout-out came when Paris Gellar, friend of Rory on the show, said that her surrogacy services were responsible for the birth of Burtka and Harris’s twins, Harper and Gideon. Paris brings this up when Lorelai and Luke are exploring the options on how to have children at an older age. Cinema Blend reported that Gilmore Girls originally could not mention Burtka and Harris due to contract restrictions.

The reference was made and Harris was pretty happy about it, responding, “I love that. Well, [Paris] did a good job. I’m a fan of our kids.”

Cinema Blendsays that Gilmore Girls has always been known for making references to pop culture and that “Nobody is safe from being referenced and/or mocked by the denizens of Stars Hollow.”

1. They bought out theaters showing Love, Simon

Burtka and Harris have always been a rather popular couple, constantly showing everyone that love really does win over all. They did it again when new movie Love, Simon, a story about a teenage boy trying to come to terms with being gay. The couple loved the movie so much, they decided to buy-out the theater for people to watch the movie for free at Harris’ hometown AMC in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Entertainment Weekly reports.

Harris took to Instagram saying, “So my husband David (@dbelicious) and I enjoyed @lovesimonmovie so much, we wanted to pay it forward. Others are doing this, and I’m so on board.”

By “others” he was referencing Kristen Bell, who also paid for people to go see the movie in Minneapolis, Minnesota.


What was your favorite detail about Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka’s relationship? Let us know in the comments!