Tilly and the Wall

Hallelujah for KD Lang

We were fortunate enough to see K.D. Lang perform this song live in concert... there aren't words to describe, but luckily there's you tube!

Write to Marry: Our Illegal Marriage

This blog post is an effort to raise awareness and rally around LGBT families in California as same sex marriage goes up for a vote. Here's hoping that people vote NO on Prop 8 and that our sister state to the south continues to sanction same sex marriages!

My partner and I were married on March 4, 2004, (march forth!) in our home state of Oregon. At that time, Multnomah County Commissioners (Portland) deemed it unconstitutional to deny lesbian and gay couples marriage licenses and so, same sex couples were granted marriages for a short time. We were one of 3,000 couples to be married in Oregon. Sadly, the following November, Oregon voters passed an amendment to the constitution defining marriage as between one man and one woman. We received a refund of our $60.00 license fee and still have a copy of our defunct marriage certificate... a keepsake of sorts reminding us of the historic moment.

On February 1, 2008, Oregon's Domestic Partnership Law went into effect, legalizing Domestic Partnerships . Domestic partnership in Oregon provides my family with some of the rights and protections otherwise afforded by marriage. These rights are outlined by Basic Rights Oregon, a state organization "committed to ending discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity". I appreciate all of the hard work done by the staff and volunteers as they represented the LGBT community throughout the legislative process, ultimately contributing to our state's passing of domestic partner legislation. We same sex couples living in domestically partnered bliss, exist in a separate (and unequal) category and are afforded no recognition on a Federal level. While Oregon's domestic partnership law remains a gain to be celebrated, legalizing same sex marriage in the state of California would be a wonderful step toward equality for all of us whether we reside within state boundaries or beyond.

Marbled Murrelets and Mama

Mama, aka Amy has been busy doing Marbled Murrelet surveys. Every morning at 3ish AM, she leaves the family bed to journey into the forest and hike, climb, scramble, slip, and slide across hills, streams, and rough terrain to watch and listen for the seabirds that may be nesting in the area. The multitude of ways this endangered species has created upheavel for the logging industry is nothing compared to the ways it has turned our family schedule on its head!! Its been great for Amy to get out into the field. She has had two flat tires (good thing my woman knows how to change a flat!! unlike myself I admit with shame), and one puncture wound to the butt cheek, and lots of stinging nettle. She is currently reading "Women Who Work in the Wild".

Trashing It

"I went to the store. I bought a wastebasket. The cashier put it in a bag. I brought it home. I took it out of the bag. I crumpled up the bag and tossed it in the wastebasket." –Lily Tomlin

When we throw something 'away', the thing doesn't really go away.. and the realization that there is no such thing as 'away' is a necessity for the survival of our planet and health. I was thinking this after hearing an update on NPR about two men, Dr. Marcus Eriksen and Joel Paschal who are sailing a raft made of old plastic bottles from Long Beach, Ca to mainland Hawaii. Check out their adventures here!

More about Pacific Ocean Trash Patch of the North Pacific Gyre.
About the seacraft

California... Happy Marrying!!!

Happy Blogging for LGBT Families!

The Top Ten Reasons Why I Love Lesbian Mommyhood

10. Our son learned the word softball before the word baseball.
9. Family friendly drag shows put the F in FUN!
8. Babies give another reason to buy bags with lots of pockets.
7. Jodie Foster in Nim's Island, definitely offers something for both kids and moms!
6. Involving our son in political and community events that foster solidarity among the LGBT community.
5. Queering up the heteronormative family model and making room for otherness.
4. I have gained a keener appreciation of the fact that (in the words of RuPaul), "we're born naked and all the rest is drag!"
3. "Whoa, a big mama one!" For our son, the biggest things are mama things.
2. Our son gets to watch not one, but two women mow the lawn and use power tools on a regular basis.

AND THE #1 REASON I LOVE BEING A LESBIAN MOM IS...
1. My partner and I are able to share our love and lives with our sweet son!



The Top Ten List of Statements/Questions That Most Ruffle This Lesbian Mommy's Feathers
(or at least make me squint, cock my head to the side and think "what the *?@!")

10. When co-workers wish me a happy father's day.
9. Straight people asking my partner and I if we're married.
(umm, can you elaborate on that question? What exactly do you mean by the word 'married'?)
8. The jaw dropping that accompanies others' reactions that we conceived our son at home (without a doctor, a backless gown, or any other medical accoutrement)
7. The title of Peggy O'Mara's magazine "Mothering: Natural Family Living".
(Anything else is simply... unnatural?)
6. Artificial Insemination
(need I say more?)
5. "Your son is all boy!"
(and any or all related comments)
4. "He's gonna be popular with the girls!" *nudge, wink*
(hey, what about the boys?)
3. "All of the only children I've known are .... "
(you fill in the blank)
2. "I don't like kids."
(studies show 87% of adults were kids at some time or another)

AND THE #1 THING YOU CAN SAY TO RUFFLE THIS LESBIAN MOMMY'S FEATHERS IS
1. "So, when are you going to have a baby?"
(exactly what part of "I have a son" didn't you understand?)