Rachael Ray has a long list of titles, but Mom isn’t one of them. She has been a mainstay in our homes for decades, teaching us how to cook simple meals through books and TV shows. And that’s why she doesn’t have any children. Her days are too busy as it is. Luckily, Ray’s longtime husband, John Cusimano, was on the same page. By their own admission, Ray and Cusimano have a pretty strange marriage — but that’s exactly what they were after.
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Because she has an unconventional career, Ray needed a partner who was on board with its demands. And Cusimano was that person. “I am very wildly, wildly, wildly lucky that I have my husband,” she said in an October 2024 episode of her podcast, “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead.” “But he understands I need my space. He needs his space.” That liberty and independence from each other have allowed Ray to take her career further. “I thought this person could be a true partner in what I believe in and helping people and building, not a business, but a community,” she said in a later episode.
Their relationship dynamics were shaped by their circumstances. They met when they were in their 30s and tied the knot when they were almost 40. They already had careers and lives of their own by then. “We’re very good with giving each other space to work on our passions,” Ray told People. With such a well-oiled system in place, Ray and Cusimano never felt they could fit kids in it.
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Rachael Ray didn’t think she could be a good mother
Rachael Ray dedicated most of her life to her work ventures, and her priorities didn’t change when she met John Cusimano. Instead of shifting their focus, they joined forces to continue to advance their career ambitions. Amid that reality, Ray decided she didn’t have time to give any prospective kids the dedication they deserved. “I work too much to be an appropriate parent,” she told People in 2007.
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Her choice wasn’t always well-accepted, though. “Boy, did I get bashed for it over the decades,” she said in a November 2024 episode of “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead.” Instead, Ray gives her maternal love to the fur babies she has had over the years. “They never talk back, they always want to hug you,” she joked. But jokes aside, Ray always relies on her pups to help her after a hard day. “The thing that makes me feel best is to go home and literally climb into bed under a blanket with my dog,” she said.
She now has Bella Boo Blue (seen above), who was adopted a month after Ray experienced the tragic loss of her beloved pit bull Isaboo. Even though she has no human children, Ray still gets hit by mom guilt with her dogs. “I feel like a bad mom to my dog some days because I’m just not here enough,” she told People, further explaining why she felt she would be doing everyone a disservice by bringing children into the world.
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