DADsquared℠

Another Mother’s Day is right around the corner. Our fourth since our son was born. As any writer will tell you, especially a gay dad writer, this day gives birth (pun intended) to many articles about how our types of families handle this yearly event. And let me tell you, that there are countless scenarios playing out all over this great big world of ours, this is just humbly.. mine. Read full article  HERE

I recently read a comment about a truly important world event, the wedding of Lance Bass to now husband Michael Turchin. Okay, so world news might be a bit of an overstatement but the comment was extremely interesting and got me thinking. The commentator basically stated, and I paraphrase, that he found the fact that E News was going to be airing a show called “Lance Loves Michael: The Lance Bass Wedding” not merely nauseating but he also referred to the happy couple as “Assimilation Gays,” a term that I have seen popping up all to often. Read the full article  HERE

By Henry Amador Tired, irritated, angry, distant, envious, tired, overwhelmed, tired, judgmental, did I say tired? These are some of the ways I have been feeling lately and that really has me feeling, well... tired, irritated, angry, distant, envious, overwhelmed, judgmental and tired, really tired. I was recently featured in an article on  Buzzfeed  about how dads balance work and family. I apparently wrote my contribution under the influence of an alter ego or perhaps a nice Riesling or through a pair of rose colored glasses or a sunny day in Winter, I'm not quite certain, but it made me feel like a fraud. Read full article  HERE

By Dara Fischer Henry Amador recently wrote an excellent article for The Next Family entitled, "Eight Things These Gay Dads Don't Want To Hear"  The article was so clever and hit the nail right on the head.  After reading the blog, I got to thinking about all the questions I have been asked over the years being raised by gay parents, yes, a gay mom and a gay dad! I have picked just a few to share. 1. Are you adopted? No, I am not adopted.  I am genetically 50% my Mom and 50% my Dad.  Though depending on which parent I had ticked off that day, those percentages would increase or decrease.  I also have two non-biological parents, my Terri, whom I have written about before and my Mom’s partner.  I do not differentiate between my parents.  Though I will admit to liking Terri more than my Dad most of the time.  Dad can cook but Terri was a hairdresser who could not only perm my hair but brush it without ripping it out....

Dear little man, It will soon be 2015, and although your little mind can not understand this yet, we are on the edge of some exciting and momentous of things. read the full article  HERE

As the new year approaches we often find ourselves feeling a tad overwhelmed, frustrated and oh so weary. It’s as if we are looking at life, at ourselves and all the people we encounter with those horrible magnifying makeup mirrors.  Every flaw, every nuance is exaggerated and every feeling seems designed to personally attack and put us on the automatic defense. We want things to be perfect.  We need things to be perfect and quite frankly we are setting ourselves up for disaster. I learned a long time ago that are some simple, yet powerful actions I could put into place to avoid heartache, disaster and allowing the Grinches in. Here are three. Read the full article  HERE

Working as a Holistic Parenting Coach and especially working with LGBTQ families, I have learned that while many parenting issues are universal and effect all parents, there are indeed issues that arise that are unique to gay parents, and deeper still to gay dads. The following list was compiled from some of that work. It is not meant to be a definitive “how-to” list. There are some lovely treasures here. Take what resonates with your heart and remember to love one another fully, passionately and knowledgeably. Read the full article  HERE Photo “ Love Is What Really Matters ” by  Purple Sherbet Photography  is licensed under  CC BY 2.0

This time of year always finds me giving thanks. I give thanks for the life I have, the family and friends I have and for the moments that define me. I wanted to reach out to just a few of the dads in my life, a few heroes that have pursued their dreams to become fathers. They have pursued those dreams against great odds and are opening doors, minds and hearts so that others will follow. All around this world, the number of gay men choosing to become fathers is increasing, rapidly. They are setting goals, taking out loans, loosing friends, family and sometimes faith in order to have the honor and the privilege to raise a child. This journey is aw inspiring and at times emotional beyond comprehension. The journey, the destination called parenthood comes at a great cost for many of us and yet gives birth to moments of both sheer beauty and devastating pain. Moments that at their finest and at their saddest, take our breaths away. Read the full article...

My husband and I recently celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. Our son and I share a birthday around the same date as well, so my family likes to plan a fun and special getaway to commemorate it all. This year we decided to visit our nation’s capital, Washington D.C. It seemed fitting, based on the fact that our marriage is now,  finally , legally recognized in our home state of North Carolina and also because of the enormous strides that marriage equality has been making in recent days. read the full article  here

I am happy to say that as I write this articles my husband and I have completed the required classes in the MAPP program, Model Approach to Partnerships in Parenting for North Carolina. We received a lovely certificate as our class mates cheered as each of our family names were called. I am also happy to say that ALL three of the same-gender families that started the program were among the recipients of the coveted certificate. So what does that mean? Do we now get down to the business of meeting children and growing our families? Well....... not exactly. read the full article  here

So we began our MAPP classes this past August 26th, 2014. MAPP being the State-required class to license as a Foster or Adoptive parent, Model Approach to Partnerships in Parenting. In part one I shared how my husband and I were a part of a very special group when we licensed in our old home State of Florida. We were a part of the State's first all (openly) gay and lesbian. Going into this again here in our new State of North Carolina had us curious. How would this class look? How welcomed might we feel? How diverse would it be? Read full article  on The Next Family here. Photo  Beau Rogers

Once a year, here in Durham NC, we have an amazing event called the  Noth Carolina Gay and Lesbian Film Festival . It is held at the beautiful  Carolina Theatre of Durham , a theatre that was built in 1926 and that has seen so much, not just in the name of art and history but in the way of civil right's movements and the blur of faces, causes,  triumpths and injustices, all that have played out not just on it's screen or stage but on its sidewalks and walkways. What should have been a lovely morning took a turn. Another moment in history was about to be played out. Read full article here  The Next Family Henry Amador is a husband, father, writer and  life coach . Henry founded  DADsquared  where he continues to provide love, support and resources to gay fathers and those on the road to fatherhood. He lives in North Carolina with his happy tribe and hopes to grow old on the family ...