Saying Goodbye to Grandma Izzy

Today we laid my Grandma Izzy to rest. 

Izzy passed away a few weeks ago.  I happened to be in Portland that weekend for a writing conference and was fortunate to be able to spend the evening with her before she passed.  She wasn’t conscious and I knew she was in pain.  The hospice staff were great and worked hard to keep her comfortable.  While there, I held her hand as she slept, kissed her head, and said goodbye from my family. I also told her that I wouldn’t remember her that way; I would choose to remember all the amazing moments we’d had together.

Read more ›
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: , ,

Coming Out as Pan-Demisexual

In my book, I don’t talk much about intimate relationships, outside of my first one.  And people often assume that I am straight, because that’s the conclusion I came to at 12 years old when I asked myself “If my dad was gay, then was I too?” But as most things in life, there’s much more to the story and you won’t find all of it in my book.

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Free books for schools

Are you a teacher, counselor or student at a middle school, high school or college in Idaho? Does your school have a GSA, Diversity Club or LGBTQ+ section in the library?

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: , ,

Launching Artwork for LGBTQ+ Families

Today is LGBTQ Families Day! This is the 3rd year that I’ve participated in this event.  It’s one of my favorites as it’s a time mid-year for me to reflect on my advocacy work. Every year I think long and hard about what I want to share out.

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: , , ,

Giving Tuesday

Today is #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving which is celebrated annually in the U.S on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving.  Usually at this time of year, I’m deciding which charity I want to support and writing my post on Christmas Giving.  I’m a minimalist, which I’m aware can make me difficult to shop for.  Every year I put one nonprofit on my list and add a note, “Please make a donation in my name.”

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: ,

Sneak Peek-Dad #1, Dad #2: A Queerspawn View from the Closet

Today is the 12th annual Blogging for LGBTQ Families Day.  I participated last year through my travel blog.  This year I’m releasing a sneak peek of my upcoming memoir.  Enjoy!

My mom has always said when my dad came out of the closet, we stepped in. I was only twelve, and it had already been a difficult year with several family illnesses and deaths. School had just ended, and we were enjoying the first days of summer in June of 1996 when I found myself sitting at the dining room table with my sister and parents for another family meeting.

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: , , , , ,

My ‘Gay’ Family

To be queerspawn is different for each of us.

The one thing I consistently hear in our community is that when we meet each other there is a sense of deep understanding and camaraderie.  For me, there’s something comfortable about meeting another person who understands my upbringing and family; someone who I don’t need to explain terminology to; someone who doesn’t have to ask several questions so they can categorize me.

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: , , ,

Gender Revolution

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to watch National Geographic’s Gender Revolution.  For those that aren’t familiar, this is a documentary evaluating the complexities of gender identity and our ongoing changing environment.

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: , ,

Intent vs. Impact

Over the past few months I’ve heard a lot of conversations regarding discrimination where people have made statements that a person didn’t ‘intend’ to be prejudiced or cause someone harm.  They simply didn’t know their words or actions were racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, etc.  This got me thinking about these situations and whether intention has an effect on impact.

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized

Welcome!

It’s been a year and a half since I started this journey. When I went to my family during the summer of 2015 and told them that I wanted to share our story, I was terrified that they would say no. After all, we’d spent 2 decades hiding. But my dad was retired at that point and my dads had finally legally married. And I was pleasantly surprised when they all gave permission.

Read more ›

Posted in Uncategorized