Summer Pennell

Nov 11, 2024 | vermontmoms.com | Summer Pennell

Fingers crossed that these Legal protections for queer families get us through this upcoming hellscape. If you are married, and one parent carried the child(ren), the other parent should adopt the child(ren) through a second-parent adoption (sometimes called co-parent adoption). Do this even if both parents are on the birth certificate. Legal protections for queer families are critical at this time and this is absolutely where I would start.

Oct 9, 2024 | vermontmoms.com | Summer Pennell

If you’re a child of the 80s like me, you probably never heard the term perimenopause until your friends started warning you about it. I didn’t know the phase before menopause had a name, and that for a lot of us with two X chromosomes, it lasts four to eight years. WTF. I’m not even a year into this and the thought of another 7 is just agony. As my wife said recently, perimenopause is proof that intelligent design in human evolution is not a thing.

Sep 16, 2024 | vermontmoms.com | Summer Pennell

Tl;dr: It will be bad. Right now, Project 2025 is theoretical. It is not policy, it is a guideline for conservative Republican elected officials and policy-makers. It is a guideline for how to undo the social, political, and environmental gains we have made as a nation in the past half-century. It aims to bring the U.S. to a place where only conservative, cisgender, heterosexual white men have freedom. Many (MANY) parts of Project 2025 make me feel alarmed.

Sep 5, 2024 | vermontmoms.com | Summer Pennell

Now that I’m a mom and in my 40s, Pride is a lot less about late-night dance parties and drag shows and more about daytime fun. While rights and positive representation for queer and trans people have improved exponentially in my lifetime, our rights are always under attack. Pride is important to share in community and solidarity with other LGBTQ+ people, to celebrate where we are, and to work together towards a more inclusive future.

Jun 17, 2024 | vermontmoms.com | Summer Pennell |Malinda Lo |Tiffany Jackson |Angie Thomas

I love Young Adult (YA) literature, and can’t wait till my kiddo is old enough to read and talk about books with me! YA books are about, and written for teenagers, and reading them gives me hope for the future. Young people like the characters in these books, are working towards a better world that is inclusive and kinder. Their imaginations and curiosity are inspiring. Now a few caveats before you read my list of 5 inspiring YA books to read with your teen.