Yep. I have two moms. My mom and my step mom live happily not far from me. My daughter has two grandmothers and she could care less. It is our normal.

Growing up, I had the typical family life. Mom, Dad, little sister, dog. We drove around in a station wagon and went to the cottage on weekends. When I turned 14, my parents split because my father was a verbally abusive alcoholic, and my mother refused to take the drunken mess and nasty words anymore. It was just a few years after that, we moved into the same building as the woman who would eventually be my mom’s wife.

They hung around a lot. Knowing that this woman was an open lesbian, I questioned my mom many times as to whether she was in a relationship with her or not. My mom always denied it, and although I understand her not being ready to come out, I was pissed that she was lying to me. She said they were just old friends catching up (they went to little school together so they have known each other a long time).

This went on for a long time. Many times, I found future step mom drunk as a skunk and not aware of where she was (she was just beyond the parking lot of the building). I would run home and tell mom I found her, again, and I couldn’t get her home. Mom would go get her, take her to her apartment, get her in bed, and come back to our place.

Eventually the time came. My mother admitted to me that she and future step mom were in a relationship, and they were planning to get a place together. I was fuming. Everyone thought I was mad because my mom was gay. Family members would call me, pleading with me to understand that she is happy regardless of the sex of the person she loved.

No one could understand that I didn’t care if she was gay. If you are happy, that is what counts. What ticked me off something fierce was the fact that my mother went through hell leaving my alcoholic father. Yet here she was getting right back into the same situation, just with another person.

It took me having to write a letter to my mother to get it through her head that I didn’t care if she was gay. I just hated that she left one drunk to be with another. When she finally understood, she came to me and we had a good talk. Future step mom was drinking a lot because she was ticked my mom was lying about their relationship. Now that it is out, she had cut down to just a few weekend beers and it has changed. I wasn’t going to believe it until I saw it with my own eyes, and sure enough it was true. Now that this was not another alcoholic relationship for my mother, I could be happy.

In 2002, they had a union in a friend’s back yard. Friends and family gathered. There was a huge party. It was a wonderful time. A year after that, the legalization of gay marriage was passed here and they quickly planned a ceremony in case it got overturned. My mother called me to dinner and asked if I would stand for her in two weeks time. The ceremony was small, maybe a dozen of us in a United church downtown, and off to drinks afterwards.

I often talk about my mom and step mom and I get the weirdest reactions. “Your mom and step mom hang out? That is a weird situation. It must bother your father.” It is like in this day and age people still cannot process a gay couple as my parents.

We are one big happy family now. Although those two old ladies drive me batty sometimes, I love them dearly. My daughter is proud that she has two grandmothers, and she is not afraid to tell anyone about it. We all live life and have fun, and I wouldn’t change life with my two moms for anything.