Although I am in a queer relationship, I am gender-queer-femme while my partner is trans-butch- which makes our relationship feel a bit hetero-normative at times. As a feminist, I have long been against the idea of losing my last name. However my partner and I are hoping to start a family soon, and knowing that our children will have to deal with the social challenges of having queer parents, want to have a single name to clearly identify us a a FAMILY. Since I will be the one carrying the babies and sharing a genetic connection with them, I felt it was only fair that they be given my partner's name. My partner recognized how difficult a choice this was for me and pointed out that we both loathe our middle names- therefore why shouldn't we BOTH change our names, taking my last name as our new middle name. This was the perfect compromise for us, as I will keep my name in some form and we'll both be sharing each other's names. I must say that it is sad that generally speaking, only women are forced to choose between the names while men are automatically assumed to be keeping their names. Has anyone ever met a Mr. HerLastName?

this hits a new level of AWESOME!!

What a great location and perfect attitude!! Sounds like the party was a blast. And the carousel is so timeless and romantic. Congrats!

I have straddled the goth/punk/burner aesthetics for years, and even though I've had to clean up for the corporate world, I still only wear stripy knee socks on my feet!! These recommendations are spot-on for ANYONE who lives outside the box. I'm queer, and can see "the conversation" happening with my ultra conservative catholic family when I bring up my civil union.