TransPanTastic: Transgender parenting, work, marriage, transition, and life!

We almost split this week's episode into two parts. We considered it for two reasons. George and Jess were in two different places, doing two separate things. Their stories of their time apart are in two contrasting narratives, with two comparable stories of caring for their respective charges. Additionally, the time is almost as long as two of our usual episodes... But in the end, we two can't be...

As often happens after death of a loved one, we got into the topic of spirituality. After exploring our individual histories with faith and religion, we discussed what we believe, why we believe it, and why it's okay that we don't believe the same thing. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gmail.com , and "TransPanTastic" is searchable on mos...

The passing of George's step-dad has offered plenty of opportunity for that unique brand of coping humor we have generally reserved for the demands of dealing with special needs children. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gmail.com , and "TransPanTastic" is searchable on most social networks. We would love to hear from you, so let us know w...

Women are funny. Men are funny. Everyone else is funny too. From the cycling instructor, to the guys in the locker room, to the uber-binary folks of both trans* and cis experience, to the random women who seem to be angry at George just for being a man, to the colleague who commented on George's voice change. People are just funny.  We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can e...

Children are naughty, and as parents we have to set limits and boundaries that will help them grow into adults who learn how not to be naughty. Or at least how not to get caught being naughty... Sometimes that even means enforcing punishments while helping them through trauma, grief, or other negative experiences. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPa...

The holidays are done, but our interruptions are just beginning. Between dogs, kids, and phones, we discuss our holidays, update surgery recovery, and discuss changing brands of testosterone. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gmail.com , and "TransPanTastic" is searchable on most social networks. We would love to hear from you, so let us kn...

At release time, we are probably christmassing with the kids, so our holiday update will come next week. The gym has hot tubs and saunas. They are in the locker rooms. George had not been planning to spend much time in the men's locker room with his shirt off just yet, but his muscles needed the hot tub. Testosterone has been doing good things for him, but is it doing enough for the hot tub? We ca...

Blended families and blended visitation schedules mix with work and school schedules, and it often doesn't quite fit into the 24 hours and 7 days that our culture and place in the solar system provide us. George is a morning person, Jess is a night person, and the kids are sometimes persons, so we all do what we can to make things work. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you c...

George got birthday'd, bought a new suit, and used the men's locker room at the gym. All in the really-freaking-cold weather. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gmail.com , and "TransPanTastic" is searchable on most social networks. We would love to hear from you, so let us know what you think or what you want to hear about!

We occasionally have questions from you, our friends, pop up in our various inboxes. We generally answer promptly, but privately. There are a few questions, however, that have seemed worth answering on-air, for the sake of clarifying any potential confusion or tying up loose ends from previous episodes. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gma...

Parenting is often something of a roller-coaster. And special needs kids may sometimes seem to make things worse, but they really just make the highs and lows more extreme. So after a bit of discussion about our amusingly underplanned thanksgiving prep, we wrapped up some of the loose ends of stories and topics related to kids that are turning out pretty well. We can be found online at  http://Tra...

Back when we were growing up, the only safe social space was with the other queers. Now that we're "socially acceptable", we've found other friends that share our values and priorities but don't share the queer experience. Parenting makes social time hard, especially when much of the queer community choose not to raise children, and "just don't get it". We can be found online at  http://TransPanTa...

We like things that are functional. George's aunt has come to live near us, so we can care for her and she can care for our kids... and for George's ex-wife. And the awkwardness is totally overshadowed by the functionality of it all. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gmail.com , and "TransPanTastic" is searchable on most social networks. We...

So we started out with intent to make a "Six Months on T" update, but we got distracted talking about Child #1's recent arrest. If you missed the link to the SAGE test in our social media last week, it can be found at  http://www.hemingways.org/GIDinfo/sage/ . We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gmail.com , and "TransPanTastic" is searchable...

Jess has always felt rather ambivalent to the concept of gender, but recent changes in George's behaviour and affect have made her realize just how she really is less ambivalent and more oblivious. Close friends and partners of trans* persons have occasionally recognized the social and emotional changes caused by hormone treatment, and remarked "Oh, that's why women/men do that!", validating stere...

George has been changing. That was kinda the idea of this whole adventure. The word "transition" indicates change. This week, we discuss how the changes in his world, both internally and externally, relate to gender both as a biological concept and as a social construct. Information on finding a kinesiologist in your area can is online at icak.com. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic....

When you need to cope with difficult circumstances, it's useful to be able to laugh about them. Raising special needs kids is often frustrating and exhausting, and we occasionally make jokes that would, out of context, be absolutely horrifying. George felt that it would be best to clarify that when we say awful evil horrible things about our children, we don't really mean it, we're just making one...

Now that the question of which bathroom to use is fairly settled for George, he's started researching various Stand-To-Pee devices. Links to the two he's used are up at  TransPanTastic.net . After discussing the specific items he's begun familiarizing himself with, we delved deeper into the topic of gender dysphoria, and George is very thankful that while he would very much appreciate the experien...

Returning to work after three weeks of leave can be daunting, but the results of surgery and changes from five months on testosterone have probably affected that process, and George's colleagues have been, on the whole, supportive and encouraging. Meanwhile, the kids are still extra-special, and Jess is slightly peeved that George made her put clothes on but is otherwise content. We can be found o...

"THE LETTER" has been sent. Finally. Everyone who responded has been supportive, and now George can get back to work, which is a good thing. His boss and colleagues have been covering his workload while he's been out, and they're very ready to be done with that. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you can email us at  TransPanTastic@gmail.com , and "TransPanTastic" is searchabl...

♪♫ Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to schedule a meeting... George's leave time is up, but he's not headed back to work just yet. The letter still isn't approved, and they haven't decided how to handle the situation. They haven't even decided how to go about deciding. The only thing they have decided is that he should stay home until it's decided. We can be found online at  http://TransPanTastic.net/ , you...

George is recovering well from top surgery. If you missed the link on our Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, or Google+, the meditations George used were "Stress Free Surgery: A Self Relaxation Program to Help You Prepare for and Recover from Surgery", by Linda Thomson. As of recording, his work still hasn't figured out the email thing. We still plan on publishing it when it's been sent, so watch the webs...

George has a date for top surgery... next week! We could've announced that sooner, but we didn't want to jinx it. Or spoil the surprise. Or something like that. He has work leave scheduled and pre-operative instructions from the surgeon. While he's on leave, we're hoping that his supervisors will distribute "the letter" via email, but some of them are still confused as to why that might even be ne...

After four months on testosterone, George's body has begun to change. From voice to body hair to skin texture, he's much more manly. Or at least more teenage-boy-ly. Even more interesting than his physical changes, though, is the way his changing appearance changes the way others interact with him. Also, if anyone wants to make a bathroom flipchart like the one we mentioned, send us a picture and...

Child #3 started kindergarten this week. The expected procedure is that on the first day of kindergarten, one parent accompanies the child to school for the morning, to help them adapt (and to fill out paperwork). George would rather have been elsewhere, but none of #3's other parents could make it so he was drafted. The upside: He was completely read as male the entire time. The downside: He was...