I’ve had several friends reach out to me privately since my last blog entry and Grey’s recent coming out post on Facebook which I included below.

And this is my response to those beautiful friends who are concerned.

Thanks for reaching out. Our journey with Grey has definitely been one of twists and turns. And I’ve learned so much about being an advocate and an ally, about fighting like hell to get what’s needed and celebrating the seemingly small things. This revelation from Grey was not surprising. It’s something his birth(sister)sibling is going through as well and Grey has, for the past few years talked about lgbtq+ issues and thoughts with regularity.
I don’t let it bother my religious stances. To be honest I have several gay and lesbian friends and they all believe in and love God and I figure it’s not mine to judge, God will take care of that. And I know that if I were to go all “God talk” toward Grey I would lose him.
I have worked nearly 14 years to learn the language that Grey speaks. And I’m fairly proficient in it. Ive learned that NOT hugging or NOT talking can be hard for me, but forcing those things on him would be devastating. I am Greys person in this world and I have to support him in this. He needs me to do that. And if I don’t do that, my past 14 years of advocating for him would have all been false. Do I think that this is a forever decision, that this will be his forever chosen path? I don’t know. But I do know that this is where he is currently and I will meet him there.
Am I struggling? Yes. Sometimes. Talking about binders and pronouns and gender types and all those flags and future surgeries and hormones etc literally terrifies me. But I have to put my trust in God and take it one day at a time.
So keep me and us in your prayers and lift that heavy heart that you’re carrying about this. I’m ok. ❤️

And to my two amazing friends who sent me the following texts…what would I do without amazing cheerleaders for me and my Grey?

I welcome your questions and concerns and yay-rahs! It helps me feel even more ok, and very loved.

I’ve opened and closed this blog post over and over for days. I have so much I want to say… so much of it is not mine to say aloud, but permission has been granted. With Iz as our tour guide, we have entered a new world, a new reality. In this reality there is fear and grief, and pride and support, and questions and education. It is a reality full of pronouns and flags, acronyms and unknowns. New words like gender fluidity, trans, binders; new names, dead names.

We’ve joined many “worlds” in our 14 year journey with Izzy. Adoption, Adhd, anxiety/depression, Autism, Trich. And now LGBTQA+. As we have approached each one, they’ve all seemed foreign and scary from the edge of the world…and they’ve never come with a map….but we’ve always found our way.

This is a hard world to enter, but at the same time it also isn’t really. The parent support groups I’ve found are wonderful to be part of. The people there are understanding and helpful. They know what we are going through because they’re in the same place or were there not too long ago. It’s a place I can go to for advice because I don’t have any friends I know of who are in this same world we find ourselves in.

My family and the few friends we’ve shared with have been amazing. Very supportive and full of love. And Brad is helpful in keeping me focused and keeping my severe anxiety of screwing this up at bay. He listens and loves. He uses the correct pronouns and name. He puts it all in perspective for me.

Our next hurdle in this new world is school. Landing on a gender neutral name that Iz likes and that we and the school can use. And then making it known to those that need to know at NWMS. I feel more confident in her decision to be at NWMS this upcoming year bc I feel it will be a more diverse and accepting place for her. That is my fervent prayer.

If you could keep us all in your prayers as we explore this new world, it would be greatly appreciated. I don’t know if we will become permanent residents of this world, but for now we are at least long term visitors. 🌈❤️🌈 As long as Iz feels loved and safe, then we know we are on the right path in our new world.