I finally found some time between all my classes to upload some of the photos we got from our trip to FurFright 2013 -- our very first furry convention and we had a blast! :D I figured this one would be a great one to start with! That's me on the left and my mate  buzzybeak on the right with one of the cutest fursuiters we've ever met (and my husband's favorite by far), Aubrey, worn and owned by the awesome  jesspess! Now I have to say this was one of the pivotal moments of FurFright for us and certainly for my husband! Here is his story:

My mate grew up in a family of very judgmental, standoffish types where no one ever hugged and affection seems to have been a big no no. Now he LOVES to cuddle... me, that is. He's really a big teddy bear, but hugging people -- especially those he doesn't know -- has always been a hard thing for him to do. He always feels weird about it, like it's something he's not allowed to do. He loves animals, but even though I could tell deep down he was a furry, he was too shy to admit it. So we went to FurFright and I could tell right from the beginning he was intrigued -- but he was still uncertain. I'd be hugging fursuiters left and right, having a ball, and trying to encourage him to break out of his shell and join in, but he'd insist on simply watching from behind a camera, unsure. And then, on the final day of FurFright, we met Aubrey -- and she changed everything.

It seems like such a simple story to tell, but it was a life changer for my mate and in turn also for me. We'd watched the Fursuit Games and he'd been rooting for Aubrey (he called her, "Pinkie," not knowing her name). Afterwards we went out to lunch, came back, and ran into Aubrey. I asked my mate to get her picture and she pulled me in for a hug to be in it with her (that picture will be uploaded separately). I could see that spark in his eyes, the one he always gets when he wants to do something but is unsure if he can and is holding himself back, so as I'd done dozens of times that weekend I tried to urge him to hug Aubrey so I could take his picture with her. He tried to say no as usual, but Aubrey did the best thing she could have ever done: she refused to take no for an answer. Still holding onto me, she reached out to him in her adorable manner with her big fuzzy paws, took hold of my husband's arm, and pulled him in for a group hug while her handler took this photo for her and us. We thanked her and went on our way, but that moment, that simple hug from a sweetheart of a fursuiter touched my hubby in a way no amount of encouragement or urging from me ever could. After more than a year of trying to talk to him about furries and getting no response from him whatsoever whether positive or negative, now he proudly calls himself a furry, is excited by it, and wants to go to every furry convention he can! Thank you,  jesspess, for waking my hubby up to the furry I always knew he was deep down! :D

And that's the story behind this photo and why it was such a pivotal moment for us at FurFright! We had such a great time there -- and we can't wait for next year! :D