Marriage Equality

Today I want to take a moment to express our belief in equality, in every sense. 

Jordan and I both come from different backgrounds, he was raised by his mom, and step-father with 1 sister and 2 step-sisters, on a farm in rural South Eastern North Dakota. I was raised by my parents with one older brother in Madison, WI. Yet, the different surroundings and family make-up mean nothing. Both our families raised us with the same values, ethics, and support to be freely who we are. We both are uniquely individual and love to express this through our clothing, music, the people we are friends with, where we live, what jobs we chose, who we love, and even Jordan's video games say a lot about who he is. Never once in our time together have we ever felt that our family and circle of friends did not love us because of one or all of these characteristics. We are straight, and in a "traditional" marriage, but our sexuality is not something we "chose" or members of our families encouraged us to have.
It is something we were born with, and had no control over. 

I KNOW that if either of us were born gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, or transgender, our families would have still given us the same values, ethics, and support. Our families are also both Catholic, and yet, they step outside of the what the church teaches, and use the god-given free-will to believe, as Jesus did, that all are equal under God's eyes. Neither Jordan and I are practicing Catholics, but I do believe in something, and there is no way God would create gay people to be persecuted and left out of worship in any way shape or form. 

We have many friends and some family members who identify in the GLBT community, and it grieves me beyond comprehension that our government would take the step write a constitutional amendment to strip them of the benefits, both legal and emotional, that come with marrying the person you love and want to spend the rest of your life with. I feel so blessed that Jordan and I were able to take that step in our lives, but I still feel a twinge of guilt because not everyone can have the same joy and support we felt on our wedding day. 

So to all those who live in Minnesota and any other state that is voting on a Marriage Amendment on Nov. 6th, or any in the future for that matter. Please take a moment and think. Think about how you would feel. The strange part is this amendment does not CHANGE anything. Gay marriage is STILL illegal. This is just a complete slap in the face. 

I know this is a heated debate, but I just do not understand why in country that prides itself on its freedoms, and the pursuit of happiness that we would take such drastic measures to ensure a large portion of our population are not able to achieve these. 

I will conclude with the Marriage Equality Statement Jordan and I used in our wedding ceremony this past summer. We felt it was important to take a moment to express these beliefs which we feel so strongly about. 

I would ask you all to VOTE NO, on Nov. 6th!!

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MARRIAGE EQUALITY STATEMENT
As we celebrate marriage today, we’d also like to recognize those of us who cannot, by law, take this step. Natasha and Jordan believe that everyone deserves the right to marry, and the emotional benefits and legal protections that come from it. In a just world, we will all be free to make lawful, lifetime commitments. Hopefully, that day will come soon.

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Our Wedding on Offbeat Bride!!!

Our Wedding was posted to my all time favorite wedding blog today!!  

For those of you who have never heard of OffbeatBride.com, do yourself a favor and check it out! It has created an outlet for us "semi-traditionalists" to the all out crazy goth brides to express our unique and different weddings and ideas. I spent a great deal of time reading the site while planning our wedding and found it to be an invaluable re-source.

They showcase, all types of brides, and weddings. No where else do you see any brides with any types of curves, or Gay/Lesbian/Transgender, or even nerdy Harry Potter themed weddings! I loved that every time I visited the site I felt support for having ideas that were not conventional. Neither Jordan or I are traditional people, and we like to think outside the box. I think sometimes people misconstrue having an "Offbeat" wedding, and expect it to be less meaningful since it steps away from the traditional. It took some convincing for our parents to jump on board with all our "crazy" ideas, but in the end everyone was blown away with how personal, emotional, thoughtful, and FUN it was!

It was so much fun to re-live the day again! I will never forget it! Here is a link to our wedding video trailer for more wedding fun!

Friends!

Summer 2011

Aundrea and I at my Bachelorette party, June 2012 

I thought tonight I should blog about how incredibly lucky I am to have such a awesomely fun, smart, talented, selfless, and diverse group of friends. I think about what my life would be like without the connections I have with these women, and all I see is a black void. I have had great friendships throughout my life, but at this moment in time, I am surrounded by the best yet. Every time we are together, one on one, or in a group, I learn something. Something about one of them, about the world through their eyes, or myself and how I see things. I think the thing I value the most is the unending feeling of acceptance. Never have I felt ashamed to speak my mind, make a mistake. I also really just enjoy laughing so hard we cry! 

Many of us do not have immediate family in the same city or state. We are each other's family. We give each other crap like family, we share emotions and concerns like family, we support each other like family, and laugh like a family. As we have gotten older, and some of us get married, or have a child, or start a new relationship, things inherently change. Our friendships have adapted to these changes, and continue to grow and develop into even deeper, beautiful relationships. 

The picture above is from our recent "Summer Camp" trip. This is something we have all make and effort to ensure happens, despite our crazy busy lives. Between work, husbands, children, volunteer commitments, and grad school, we all have our fair share of crap. But there is nothing like tuning it all out to spend the weekend laughing, and sharing life stories with girlfriends. It is something that I hope we continue to do for many years to come. 

Our group of friends has such a colorful dynamic. We all have very different talents and personalities, but that is what makes it so damn fun! 

Out on the town, Fall 2010

True story: My friends are awesome.