Blogging for LGBT families

Dana at Mombian has organized the third edition of Blogging for LGBT Families Day, which takes place between Mother's Day and Father's Day, on June 2nd, to honour both, but also to indicate that not all families fit the traditional model of one mother and one father.

Blogging for LGBT families day is upon us and I am struck by writer's block.

Not because I have no idea what to write about (I am a member of a LGBT family, doh) but because when you are fortunate enough to live in a happy family, surrounded by a pleasant environment at all levels, with people who are even encouraging you to have another peanut, it's rather hard to write about the complications.

After all, at the end of the day, just like other families, we deal with all the same issues: food battles, bedtime battles, contention and clashes (especially with toddlers who can act like teenagers), buying new shoes, clothes, books, toys, pondering whether you are going to let your child watch TV and what to watch on TV, asking yourself if your child should be allowed anywhere near a PC for the next twelve years (the answer to that is yes, but you will understand why in a second), searching for a good school and making sure that she develops friendships, surrounding yourself with the right people, and so on.

After having spent the last week on our own, and as we head into our second week, I have come to realise something extremely important, though. Every morning, the munchkin dutifully trots downstairs, and I open my laptop to dial Mama on Skype. The webcam on both sides allows us to function more or less like we would on an average day, having breakfast together, as a family.

Our strength lies in the fact that we are such a strong nucleus, that over the past 11 years SO and I have grown a powerful bond, and that the munchkin has cemented that bond. That precisely allows us to get out there every morning and deal with all that I mentioned above. It is also why we reach out across the web, talking to and reading about other families, learning from their experiences.

This, in future years, I hope, will serve us well, as the munchkin grows up and we may or may not have to face issues that will test that relationship.

To sum it all up, I believe that there is strength in numbers. And as long as we all remember that, especially on a day like this, we grow stronger and move forward. Like any other ole family. Albeit one big LGBT family, pursuing exactly the same goal: happiness together.