My Gay Heart Always Skips a Beat When...

Picture it: New York City. It’s June 27th, 1969, about 1:20am. Fueled by the recent death of an enduring gay icon, our ancestral Friends of Dorothy dug their heels into the bar floor of the Stonewall Inn and demanded an end to intolerance. Oh yes, it got ugly up in there as our dragmothers and fathers, for the first time on record, fought back against the police raid of harassment and won! The Stonewall Riots gave birth to the Gay Liberation Movement and deemed June the celebratory month for Gay Pride.

My, how far we’ve come!

But we still have a ways to go. So to all (and this goes for our straight allies too!), make our LGBT ancestors PROUD! Bask in gay glory! Many a mascara was smeared, many a homo in handcuffs that hot summer night in ‘69 for your right to express yourself freely in all your fabulousness. This year’s Pride I want to see glitter gushing out of your pores! Be OUT, be LOUD, be GAYER than you’ve EVER been, whatever the heck THAT means for you! If you’re contemplating wearing those assless chaps to the PARADE I say DO IT, and do it shamelessly.

Aaaaaah…the parade. Every year it thrills me to witness our culture represented with a myriad of sub-cultures. Folks, it’s not just chaps in chaps. And there is one group in particular that always puts a smile on my face- BESIDES the scantily clad rent boys. Strutting down the street with a stroller derby of mochafrappulatteccino babies and Prada diaper bags it’s the GAY PARENTS!

To celebrate Pride and these remarkable families we reached out to our blogger friends and asked them two "easy like Sunday morning" questions:

• What is the GAYEST thing you’ve done prior to parenthood?
• What is the GAYEST thing since becoming a parent?

Scroll through the answers below. It's like a virtual Gay Parent Pride Parade! And what’s a gay parade without booty bumpin’ music right? Perhaps a Sesame Street remix would be apropos- a little booty bumpin’ to go with the booty wipin’? Click on the video if you want some tunes while you read. If you're skipping this "parade", oh jaded homo, then scroll down to the end, but do tell us YOUR gayest, most lesbionic, bisexualist, trannyfantastic thing YOU'VE ever done.

Now let the GAY PARENT PRIDE PARADE begin!

David @ Bella Daddy with Vince and Bella:

Pre-Parenthood: My partner Vince, is a lifelong fan of Kylie Minogue. Having lived in London, he essentially, "came out to her music"...Me? well, I am OK a fan...not obsessive like he is. To make a long story short, he wanted to see her live, in concert, before we had our kid...figuring we would not have the chance to travel much after she was born...so...we did. Arranged to stay and pretty much immerse ourselves in gayness in London. Attended the hot spot "Gay" and of course, the highlight, the concert. We were center stage, 4 rows back and sat right behind Dolce & Gabbana...and in Europe, they allow cameras into concerts, so yes, we have great pics of them, and the concert.

Since Parenthood: When arranging our trip to Europe for our little one's second birthday...we had my niece tag along, for a vacation of a lifetime (she had never been to Europe). We stayed in an amazing 17th Century Villa (used to be a chapel - ironic eh?) in Tuscany, right outside Siena. Bella had a wonderful time and my niece? Well, we needed her so she could take care of Bella that one night. One night that we ventured to The O2 Arena, for yes, another Kylie concert.

Hutch @ Mommy with a Penis
with partner Michael, Sebastian and Maxie:

Pre-Parenthood: When I lived in New York, a friend of mine asked me to be the lead dancer in Jesus Christ Superstar, which he was directing. Now, I wasn't much of a dancer, and I had only one day of rehearsal, so I treated it like an acting exercise: I would play the diva. In one scene I was dressed in pretty much nothing except what looked like an Ace Bandage. I undulated and writhed all over that stage and when the show was over, I received a handful of phone numbers.

Since Parenthood: Our son Sebastian was dressed as a fireman for Halloween, but half way through trick or treating he insisted on changing into the Dorothy dress he borrowed from school. My husband Michael, an ex drag queen was secretly thrilled, but the gingham needed to be accessorized. You never saw two gay dads run around the house so fast. Michael found a pair of afro puffs in the wig bag and I tied red and white checkered ribbon around each puff. Small basket and stuffed dog and my son was the perfect Dorothy, well...Dorothy as a black girl. I couldn't have been prouder.

Rick @ Phat Phreddy with Jed and their boyz:

There’s one thing you should know about us. We’ve never been accused of being gay! When we were recently interviewed for L-Style/G-Style magazine for our gay family, we warned the publisher in advance that we were both more L-Style than G-style. We’re often mistaken for lesbians. My finger puppet has an old (straight) friend from college. He was in town one day and wanted to hook up with us to see the kids. Unbeknownst to us, he had contacted another friend of his…let’s call her Mona. He was also trying to hook up with Mona, but she kept insisting on the time period that he was going to be meeting us. He finally said, “Look, I can’t do that time, I’m meeting up with some gay friends of mine who just adopted some kids and I haven’t seen them for a while”. She said, “Oh, are their names Rick & Jed”? And he said, “YEAH! How the hell did you know that”? She said, “They’re my next door neighbors. Are you SURE they’re gay? I mean, have you ever seen their house?”!!! HOW DARE SHE! Huh?!? I mean, PUH-LEEZ! So yeah, that’s how the general public sees me and the finger puppet. “NOT.GAY.ENOUGH”!

The gayest thing I’ve done post-kids is the baby Bjorn thing. GOOD GOD that thing is gay. It wasn’t enough to just wear it when I’d, say, walk the neighborhood with the kids. But I totally Bree VanDeKamp’d it up and wore it all day, every day, when my sons were infants. I did the dishes, laundry, “house cleaning”, etc. the entire time with my kids strapped to my gut. That’s, honestly, the gayest thing I can think of that I’ve ever done.

Myla, Tracy and their mini-stud @ Mommies to the 2nd Power
(haha...cats outta the bag now!)

Pre-Parenthood:
Myla: Watch "Showgirls" so many times that I had actually memorized lines and dance sequences. :)

Tracy: I spent untold hours on the Club Universe (gay club that used to be in SF) float in the 1995 SF Pride Parade. I can't vouch for it being 1995 since I spent the surrounding years with my friends of the alphabet (you know, K, G, X and let's not forget Tina). The rest of the weekend was filled with lots of clubbing and time with friends. Oh! A stereotypical lesbian thing: I moved in with Myla after 2 weeks of dating.

Since Parenthood:
Tracy: Hmmm, aside from the obvious (sleeping with someone of the same sex) the only thing I can come up with is I stopped coloring my hair and wearing make-up. Even though I would love to do it, I seem to have re-prioritized where my time and money goes.

Myla: Attempt to cut my son's hair to look like "Brad Pitt". That's pretty gay right? If that's not gay enough, well, I work out every single day so that I look good in summer outfits (that's pretty gay man mentality right?) LOL.

Paul, Chris and Kensington @ It’s Daddies.Plural.:

Pre-Parenthood: In 2000, we participated in the Millennium March On Washington and was able to walk with Ellen DeGeneres. On our way to the HRC's Equality Rocks concert, we noticed members of the Westboro Baptist Church, and other anti-gay groups, picketing with their "God Hates Fags" signs. Chris and I jumped over the yellow caution tape that was holding them back, and in front of media cameras everywhere, stunned - and angered - the protester by embracing and kissing. Now that's a way to come out of the closet.

Since Parenthood: Chris and I were the only two guys that attended the NJ National Scrapbooking Day event. As we enter with our bags on rollers we heard a gasp, heads turned, and someone said, "Yeah. We finally have some men here", and I replied in my queeniest voice, "Oh honey... we're not real men. We're scrapbooking homos" and swished all the way through the building.

Steve, Larry and their little buddy @ The Hygiene Chronicles:

Pre-Parenthood: Going out to bars, drag bingo, dancing etc. We would attend theme night like “shirtless men drink free” etc.

Since Parenthood: The Rainbow Families picnic. Each year, families with kids get together at a local park and play games and share stories about how they became a family.

Holly @ Two Mommies and a Shmoo with wife Lois and Shmoo:
(They have another one in the oven!)

Pre-Parenthood: Spending the whole weekend celebrating Philadelphia pride (one day I wore my law school softball jersey) and hanging with some drag king friends (my partner, Lois, was not as into it as I was).

Since Parenthood: Going to Provincetown for "family week" when our son was 6 months old and meeting a bio-sibling on the trip.

Mark @ ProudParenting.com with Jeff and their lil' princess:

Pre-Parenthood: In 1994, prior to becoming parents, Jeff and I acquired the gayest web domain in the world and built a web site to connect the gay community together. At at that point in our lives, we were "24/7 gay" everything was over-the-top gay; from living near the Castro to working on our first "baby" we called Gay.com.

Since Parenthood: Over the past two years, we have started a couple of new gay business ventures. When we aren't driving to pre-school, swimming lesson, dance class, gymnastics camp or piano lessons, Jeff produces ProudParenting.com which is a popular web site for gay and lesbian parents. Our second gay business is Gay Ad Network. We sell online advertising on behalf of hundreds of gay and lesbian publishers and bloggers. Parenthood hasn't made us straight, nor has it slowed us down. But we are much better at juggling schedules and setting priorities.

Ed @ Guy Dads with his husband and their 6 kids:

Pre-Parenthood: Until we came out of the closet, almost none of our family and friends had any idea. Nevertheless, there were signs. I was a theater major in college. I bought my wife a subscription to Playgirl. I had no interest in sports. I secretly loved disco and show tunes. Before kids, the gayest thing I did was to go on double dates: my wife and I and my best gay friend and his partner. We would go dinner and dancing a lot. We even did a camping trip together. (All very proper, no open relationships).

Since Parenthood: After coming out, all the kids have been great about accepting their gay dads. The two youngest grade school kids have marched in at least 3 pride parades. We both believe in giving back to the community. While we were closeted and trying to be straight-acting, we lived a privileged and safe life. Today we feel obligated to help those that did not have that opportunity. We volunteer and donate to a variety of GLBT organizations. We have made a commitment to learn about gay history, culture, arts, politics, and personalities. We also mentor others, both young and old, who are just now dealing with coming out issues.

Dan’s twin boys having a Tupperware party.
Dan @ 2Dads2Be:

Pre-Parenthood: Hmmm...I guess attending a drag show while sipping Mai Tais,

Since Parenthood: Is there time to be gay now?? I'd say the gayest thing since becoming a father would be keeping an immaculate home that doesn't look like a daycare center with a perfect lawn and landscaping. The key inside the house is creating lots of attractive storage for toys and baby things so the mess can easily be hidden!

Brian, Steven and their lil’ man @ Book Dads and Green Dads:

Pre-Parenthood: Read every single 1980's trashy gay romance novel written by Gordon Merrick, starting with The Lord Won't Mind.

Since Parenthood: Read our son The Sissy Duckling by Harvey Fierstein as a bedtime story.

Dana and Helen with their newborn @ Mombian:

Pre-Parenthood: Going to the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival.

Since Parenthood: Aside from launching a blog devoted to lesbian moms--going on an R Family cruise with my spouse and son.

Jay, Wim and Luke @ Jay & Wim’s Blog:

Pre-Parenthood: Stayed a week at a gay resort in Australia. We had a great time there and met some good friends who we met several times since. However, we haven't stayed at a similar resort or hotel since.

Since Parenthood: At our son's first gay pride parade, we made t-shirts for ourselves that said "proud papa" and "proud dad" and a t-shirt for Luke that said "I love my two daddies"

Wendell @ Bulgy the Blog
pictured with David and their stork delivery:

Pre-Parenthood: Have sex with men. Is everyone saying that? If so, then I say, dressing up as Jennifer Hudson and Queen Elizabeth for an Oscars Costume Party. And if everyone is saying that, then, Traaaannyshaaaaaaaaack!!! (in an extended high pitched voice)

Since Parenthood: Taking our baby to an Anti-Prop 8 Rally...OR learning how to make a roux.

John @ Gay Dads in Munchkin Land
John and his husband have two boys:

Pre-Parenthood: Hmmmmmmm does being a drag queen count?..lol. Actually, its not what you might think. I was 'edna, the toast of poukepsee'. I was an ugly frumpy drag queen with cat glasses (look at Susan Boyle’s dress) who was trying to make it to the top. (that was my gimmick) . I would bring her out for fundraisers and if you can believe it, I started to get a following. People would come up to me and asked if I was performing at such and such fundraiser. I was pretty over the top and I had the audience dying laughing. I was a sight.

Since Parenthood: Hmmmm, not sure if I even do anything gay...lol. Well, I still dance around the house and sing and bother my kids. Not sure how many straight dads do that. Does that count? Seriously, I do nothing remotely gay since becoming a parent. I do however still have 'edna's' gear stuffed in a bin in the attic. My kids have seen the videos, but they think I was a clown, not a drag queen...lol hmmmmm kinda like the same thing. They thought I was funny anyway...lol

Vikki @ Up Popped a Fox with her partner and lil' tykes:

Pre-Parenthood: I came out in 1990 and didn’t have kids until 2001 so I had 11 years to hone my lesbianism. I played rugby, wore flannel and Doc Martins, bought a truck and listened to the Indigo Girls way too much. Let’s not even get into the various power tools I had to use over time to keep my lesbo street cred. Despite all of that, I’d have to say that the most lesbian thing I did before having kids was joining the Lesbian Avengers. It’s hard to get more lesbionic than hanging out downtown, handing out lollipops that say “Lick Homophobia!” or Atomic Fireballs that say “Lesbians are hot!” Fun times. I’ll have to write all of those Avenger stories down so I can wow my fellow nursing home residents someday.

Since Parenthood: The most lesbian thing I’ve done since having kids is to be visible as a lesbian parent. Before having kids, there were times when I might have passed as straight, when people might have assumed that my partner and I were simply “good friends”. There is no passing now. Families’ interactions are like a dance. Sometimes, it’s a beautiful waltz and, sometimes, it’s more like a confounding modern dance performed in someone’s dirty warehouse. Regardless, each person has their place and the connection between all of the individuals is undeniable. When we are out with our kids, we are both doling out love (or gentle correction) and it quickly becomes clear to others that we are The Parents. I know this because of The Staring. In our visibility, we become walking billboards for GLBT families which is why there is a new stereotype sweeping the nation – the belief that all lesbians have Goldfish Crackers in their stylish bags that aren’t purses.

That's it! Thanks to all the parents who took time out of their busy schedules to play along! Happy Pride everyone!

*Special props to Joe.My.God. whose brilliance sparked the idea for this posting. Check out his award winning blog!

Do you clean glory holes for a living? Have you earned special Black Card privileges for doing God knows what in the showers at Splash NY? Or maybe you’ve snorted ecstasy off the ass of a Liza Minelli impersonator? Tell me the GAYEST thing YOU’VE ever done- whatever THAT means. Straights, you’re not off the hook. Think college!

Post your answer in Comments. We ALL want to read your story cuz we’re nosy like dat!