Are you done with your holiday shopping yet? I handmade elaborate gifts based on inspirations from Pinterest for everyone on our list. I lavishly wrapped them and have had them nestled under the tree since December 1.
I’m kidding. The only reason why I’m even halfway done with my shopping is because I can do it in my jammies from the comfort of my couch and laptop. How did people do it before online shopping?
Here are some of my suggestions for gifts and giving, in case you have half your recipients to shop for, too.
Donate to GLAAD: My friend Jennifer Finney Boylan serves as GLAAD’s national co-chair (she’s the first transgender person to do so, FYI). GLAAD is a nonprofit organization that fights for LGBT equality through media advocacy.
Like Jennifer and me, GLAAD believes that the most powerful way to improve the lives of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender adults and children is through the power of stories. And, it’s by amplifying the stories of families like mine on film, in print and online, that GLAAD helps to change the world.
Through the rest of 2013, the Gill Foundation is matching all donations made to GLAAD. You can donate in honor of or tribute to someone and that could be a great holiday gift. GLAAD and my family are welcoming donations in tribute of “Lori Duron and Family.” To get giving click here: www.glaad.org/donate. On that page you’ll be asked to fill out the usual info; there’s also a button marked “Make a Tribute Gift” and if you click there, you’ll see the place to write down the name of the person you are making the donation in tribute of. You can even set it up for them to receive an email letting them know that you have made a donation in their name.
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Buy My Book: Look at the fabulous books that my friends, readers and supporters have created for you to give as gifts to the people you love! pleasure.
She’s Not There by Jennifer Finney Boyle
Stuck In The Middle With You by Jennifer Finney Boyle
The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap by Paulette Mahurin
Gender Born, Gender Made by Diane Ehrensaft
My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis
The Boy Who Cried Fabulous by Leslea Newman
Roland Humphrey Is Wearing A What? by Eileen Kiernan-Johnson
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Camp Aranu’tiq sent me an email this week. Over the summer, they served a record number of campers and in 2014 they expect to serve more than 300 campers and families through their summer camps, brand new leadership camps for ages 16-18 and a new weekend family camp! You could consider a holiday gift to help their campers have the best possible experience.
$600 covers tuition cost for one camper
$350 covers camp’s costs for having one camp volunteer
$100 is a big help toward food and supplies camp programs
You can donate here: camparanutiq.org/donate.
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In non-holiday related news:
If you live in the UK, there is a network and production company putting together a film about parenting a gender nonconforming son.
They are looking for gender nonconforming boys and families who are interested in learning more about the film and possibly participating in it.
They assure me that their approach is supportive, not judgmental. They are a well-established, award-winning science and factual independent TV production company with worldwide experience supplying to the main channels in the UK.
If you are interested in learning more, email me at raisingmyrainbow@gmail.com.
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And, finally, if you’ve made it this far in this loooooong post, read this amazing essay that was inspired by one of my recent blog posts.
Raising My Rainbow 
Hey there! I’m studying to become a teacher in kindergarten/primary school teacher and I was wondering if you could point me in the direction of some resources for teachers to make their classrooms more gender-neutral, especially in a climate that has rather strict genderdivisions? I’d love to use those books you posted above in the classroom, unfortunatly English isn’t the language used in schools, so I’m already struggling to find any appropriate Dutch-language books that deal with gendercreativity (a minor shout out to the others if they happen to know some titles).
You are the best! Your book was great and I love your blog! Thank you for the links I love feeling supported by reading others stories! I have learned it is so important to donate $$ for/to advocacy groups!!! Being heard makes a difference! These groups (GLSEN) have helped us recently the gave us great info to fight a school battle… My heart breaks for the fight you have with the school for CJ. It is so hard to get schools to do the right thing. I just don’t get it, but please keep “fighting them” “speaking up” and making CJ’s needs known to them as it paves the path for the next child and gives others that are complaining credibility!!! My (gay) son is in HS and just as I thought we were making progress bam the school goes backwards. (The school showed a 42 min extreme hate speech Westboro Baptist church video without warning to his AP gov class- 42 mins of god hates F-Gs F-g’s deserve to die they are c-cks-cking pieces of sh-t that f–king deserve to have their sex organs lopped off with barbed wire etc.. obscene, vulgar, prejudicial biased hate speech that terrorized my son in class… the school said “no policy was violated because the teachers intent was to teach “free speech” “so what if your son got hurt in the showing of the film. Intent to educate is all that matters… besides no one else complained…” My son can’t even go to an R rated movie but he can be demeaned and degraded and dehumanized in school in an offensive vulgar manor and it is ok for “educational Purposes” … But the more people speak up and out the less chance they can get away with this… Knowing there are other moms trying to make school’s safer for LGBT kids means so very much!!
That, tea, is so unacceptable. I hope you live Ina place where you can go to their media and make the biggest stink about it as they deserve it, momma bear. By the way, did my posts get deleted prior to this?
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and your colorful family! 🙂
Thanks for the book ideas. My son enjoyed My Princess Boy, so I’ll have to look into getting the other two for him. Also, I loved your book, and want to thank you for sharing your family’s story with all of us. I no longer feel alone in this journey of raising a gender creative child, and am so glad I happened to watch “The Doctors” t.v. show the day you and your husband were on it.
So, Lori and family, I’m wondering what has changed for you and your family as a result of your book, your openness and the appearances? I’ve noticed a definite shift in your writing style over these last two years. More markedly in the last 6 months. Certainly not in any negative way – just different.
This blog has been about personal and familial growth that you have graciously shared. I hope my question is not intrusive in any way. But how do you think you’ve changed, have your interactions with others changed and what have been your observations of all of this?
It would be interesting to know your observations about how others have changed toward you, your family et al. Better, easier, worse?
What you’ve done here is to raise an awareness of roles and judgments that frankly most people have never examined. Maybe this has gotten them to think about other autopilot assumptions and beliefs. It’s just something that interests me having had an opportunity to hear it directly from one who has expended so much of themself. Thank you so much.