For many former couples, once a relationship ends, that's the end of the chapter. But for one Michigan mom and her ex-husband, they've built a new relationship co-parenting their two daughters, and in the years since their divorce, they've remained close -- so close, in fact, that two weeks ago, they were together again for a proposal, this time between the ex-husband and his girlfriend.
Leah Bourdo recorded her ex-husband Steve Bourdo proposing to his girlfriend Shonda Betz on April 1, and as they assured "Good Morning America," it was no joke.
Since sharing the heartfelt video on April 3, Leah Bourdo's TikTok post has quickly gone viral, garnering more than 6.5 million views.
"This weekend I got to be there when my ex husband proposed to his girlfriend…. (I was the one videoing)," Leah Bourdo wrote in text overlaid in the video. "She is the kind of woman I have prayed would come into his life. She is incredible with our daughters and they love her so much. Not only is she good to our girls…she respects the coparenting relationship we have for our children. On top of all that …she has become my friend… my family even. I love her with all my heart❤️."
The nearly two-minute video post was set to a cover of Christina Perri's "A Thousand Years" and at the end, Leah Bourdo made sure to thank her ex-husband.
"And to my ex: thank you for letting me be a part of this moment and sharing her with me ❤️," she wrote. "Welcome to the home team Shonda…we love you ❤️❤️❤️."
Leah Bourdo and Steve Bourdo told "GMA" everyone in their blended family was in on the big secret that day.
"While we were out, Leah happened to bring the girls over. She went and got flowers and a card for the girls and all that and so they were here, which Shonda didn't think much of it because they come here a lot," Steve Bourdo recalled of the lead-up to the "wonderful moment."
"When we came in, they had some candles lit and they're sitting on the couch, which was different and abnormal but still, Shonda didn't think much of it until she hugged everybody and then saw the candles and it clicked with her. And that's the moment you see her hands in her face," he continued.
Along with the millions of views, Leah Bourdo has received tens of thousands of comments on the video as well.
"A lot of the comments on the TikTok were like, 'How could you do this? I could never be that woman. How could you watch him propose to somebody else?'" Leah Bourdo said, adding that for her, it has been a natural progression after she got sober.
"This is what I always say to people: It was two best friends who never, never should have gotten married," she added, referring to her eight-year marriage to her ex-husband.
The two divorced in 2015 and Leah Bourdo said she sought help for her alcohol addiction afterward. Both she and Steve Bourdo also noted they went to counseling and worked on rebuilding after what they described as an "absolute train wreck" of a partnership.
"Eventually, we were lucky enough to have the friendship that we used to have come back," Leah Bourdo said. "And we were able to be around the girls and get along great because we didn't have marriage hanging over our head … we just figured it out and put our kids first."
Leah Bourdo and Steve Bourdo's daughters Harper and Kennedy are now 11 and 13, respectively. Steve Bourdo said they are just as excited to welcome Betz into their family as he is.
"They just love Shonda to death and they just embrace the heck out of it," he said.
As for Betz, she said getting to not only marry Steve Bourdo but be a part of his family has been nothing short of receiving "the gift of life."
"I grew up as the only child and so this is my family, be it a little unconventional to some people," Betz said. "But Leah is never going anywhere. She's always always going to be a part of my life in some way and I can't express the gratitude that I feel, just the support that she gives to me to love and care for her children as if they were my own. It's the gift of life, honestly, I don't know how else to put it."
