Sunday, March 15, 2009

Things That I Am Good At.

Our Weekly Blog Challenge: Things That I am Good At

So most people don't like talking about themselves. Not me, lol. I am as insecure as most people, but I am also confident in my abilities. It also helps that I like to talk about anything and everything including myself. So here goes my list of things that I am good at.
1. I think that I am a pretty decent photographer. I like the pictures I take, and I think that others like them as well.

2. I am an incredible mother. I know that there are so many great mothers out there, and kudos to you chicas! But, I am a much better mother then I ever thought I would be. I am patient (mostly), and I do what is best for my child. Granted he is only one right now, so things are a bit easier then dealing with a teenager!
3. I am good at math. I love math, especially algebra. Math problems are just fun problems to solve.
4. I am good at being a friend. I really think that my friends are as lucky to have me as I am to have them.
5. I am really good at shopping. Seriously, I can buy scrapping supplies like no other, lol.
6. I am really good at writing poetry. Trey (my hubby) is a writer, and he is amazing at poetry. Sometimes I read his stuff, and I really doubt my abilities. But if all else fails, I could definitely get a job at Hallmark.
7. I am really good at being a leader. I organize myself and others well.
8. I am really good at scrapbooking! I mean I know there are amazing scrapbookers out there, but art is subjective. So I may never be published or famous, but my family really enjoys the photo art that I create.
9. I am really good at making people laugh! I have the best sense of humor. Seriously, I feel like I'm bragging here, but sometimes I am so funny that I can't breathe from laughing so hard. Okay, so maybe everyone else is staring at me like I'm crazy, but it's funny stuff! They just don't get it..... lol.
10. I am really good at arguing with people. I am so passionate about the things that I believe in, that it is hard for me to let sleeping dogs lie. I will argue until I am blue in the face, hoping that maybe someone might change their mind and their views. So I guess that makes me really good at being stubborn. On another note, I am also really good at listening to other people's point-of-views.
It's 3 a.m., and I am pretty tired. I think that I have bragged on myself enough for one night, lol.
Here's a LO I completed last week, I think it fit really well into today's blog considering the topic.

We've been taking Liam to Lake Junaluska every chance we get. Here are some photos from our recent lake trip, last Sunday.

Liam's doing pretty well. He still has a seriously stopped up nose, and a lot of phlem, but it's getting better. I think he is so close to talking he cannot stand it. He recognizes both of us when asked, "where's mommy/daddy?"

He started temper tantrums this week. When he doesn't get his way, he falls to the ground and kicks his feet and cries. We try very hard to ignore him (and hope that's what we're supposed to do), so that he knows we won't let him have his way. He also started hitting last night. When I tried to get him to lie down, he got angry and started hitting me on the head! When I put him in a mini time out, by himself, he started hitting the pillow in anger.

On a good note, he's as loving as ever. He likes to stick his tongue out, and give us kisses (open mouth, kind of gross, lol), and he loves wrapping his arms around our necks and saying "aaaaaaaaaaa" like he's consoling us.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Are You Freaking Kidding Me?

Okay, I'm gonna start this out by saying that the following passage was not wrote by me. It was posted by a fellow student, and I had to share it (I'm sure it's probably plagiarism), because it is unbelievable...... It is offensive, rude, and ignorant....

"I think that the africans were better off as slaves. Yes they were mistreated and yes it was hard on them but look at what they ame from. They were living in aweful living conditions with who knows how many diseases and were going to sold off by their OWN people to other countries if we didnt take them. Now im not condonig slavery but it was the way of life then and it wasnt a big deal, kind of like having kids when your 12. For slaves, although they were mistreated, at least they had a roof over their head and ha a slim chance of being free, where in Africa they would be sold off anyway. And in the end they gotnthe best deal. They got to become citizens and live in the best country there is." - student in my American History class

Can you believe that? I am so fuming mad right now! Are you kiddin me? Is this the 1940's? Maybe I just got zapped into the past.

First off, I did post a response to this student's posting. I cannot believe that we live in the land of the free, and some people still think that people were better of as slaves. I know this kid has obviously quite a few misconceptions. I really don't care about the other parts of this paragraph. The first line just burns me up. No one should ever be forced to be a slave to someone else. No one should ever be denied the rights that we Americans have today. Every single person in this world should have life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They should be able to practice any religion they want without fear of persecution of others. They should be able to speak out against their government or anyone doing them wrong, without fear of retribution. They should not have to live chained like dogs. They should be able to get up in the morning without having to worry about their house getting bombed, or their children dying from terrorist attacks or roadside bombs.

I know that I am an idealist. I know that I am one of those people who wish for world peace. I know that humans by nature are too greedy, too power hungry to ever make those dreams a reality. I just keep thinking all it takes is one person to break that viscious cycle. It just takes the right "idealist" in each and every family to break that constant cycle of prejudice and hate.

In the Army, I met so many people who were prejudiced against African Americans. They came from small towns, and they did what their daddy or mommy did. They hated who they were taught to hate, because hatred is something that is taught. It is not instilled into people. Anger, maybe. Hatred, no. This small town guys broke that cycle. They finally understood that there is no mold to define a set of people. That regardless of religion, race, and even sexual orientation, they were dependent on that other person for their life. It is a humbling experience. That's why I think everyone should have to do military service for at least 2 years after high school. Everyone should be taught discipline, duty, loyalty, and compassion. Because, unfortunately some people are not taught those things at home (take that person ^ for example).

Do you know that I have noticed that as a country we define ourselves by our race? Think about it, people always say, "I'm African-American, Hispanic-American, or Asian-American." No one ever just says, "I'm American." People don't do that overseas. You don't go to Europe and hear people say, "I'm African-English, I'm Asian-French, or I'm Caucasian-Spanish." They say, "I''m English, I'm French, and I'm Spanish." They have broken the cycle.

But we haven't. Whether it's race, religion, sexual orientation, body weight, height, etc.... We always find a way to judge others. Hatred causes wars. No one likes wars, but no one is ready to give up their prejudices. They just do the things they do, and think that saying, "it's just the times, everyone is doing it" makes it okay. Being rude to an Arab-American after 9-11 was perfectly okay. Telling your kids that the Jewish people killed Christ is okay, because that is what Mel Gibson thinks is cool. Blaming illegal immigrants for our economy is okay. Even telling racial jokes in a tight group of friends is okay, I mean, who are you hurting?

It's not okay. It's never okay. You may think you're joking, or that because you don't really mean it that it is now okay. People we are teaching our children to hate! We are showing our kids through our actions that it is okay to judge someone based on their religion, race, or sexual orientation.

So I completely went into a tangent. I was in total shock that someone would post this, and even more so, because this 17,18,19 year old kid believes this. Someone taught him this.

Please, I'm begging you. Break the cycle. Nothing good will ever come of hatred. Absolutely nothing.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Liam's First Birthday!

So last Sunday we celebrated Liam's first birthday. I wanted to go ahead and record all the events, just in case I forget before I get the chance to scrap them. His birthday was on Sunday the 22nd, but I took off all weekend, so we could spend some time together as a family.

On Friday, we went to Walmart and picked out a birthday cake for Liam. We rented a couple movies, and spent most of our time at home hanging out.

On Saturday, we went searching for party decorations. We decided on a dinosaur theme (based on the cake, lol) and found a home and party store in Waynesville with some dinosaur stuff. Since I waited til the last moment, we kind of had to get what we could get. We then went to Sagebrush for lunch.

Sunday was the day of Liam's party. We got up early and drove to Ryan's for breakfast (they serve the best breakfast). Well we got to Ryan's and realized that they no longer served breakfast (apparently due to the economy). So we were a bit disappointed, but we headed down to the Huddle House. At the Huddle House, Liam got an order of biscuits and gravy for breakfast (I'm trying to fatten him up).


After that we went home and got ready for the party. Here's Liam's Birthday cake, Trey picked it out and he was so proud of himself.

The party started at about 2:30 p.m. Here's Liam in his highchair with all of the fun decorations that his uncle Mack and aunt Stephanie picked up for him.



Here is a picture of the gifts that Liam recieved. He got a ball popper, cell phone, toy cars, and clothes from us. His mimi brought him eeyore and winnie the pooh stuffed animals, and a ton of clothes. Aunt Stephie and Uncle Mack got him some GI Joes. Erin brought him some tub crayons. Jessica got him some clothes. His godfather Alan, got him a vacuum cleaner and some diapers. He got quite a bit of money from some other people, like his other godfather, Pop, and April. He really racked up!

Liam thoroughly enjoyed his birthday cake. He was very timid and particular at tasting it slowly. Kind of like a wine connossieur (sp?) tries wine, but he soon got into it.
He's always willing to share his food, so when Trey and I leaned in for a shot with our birthday boy....

This was the closest thing we got to a family shot. After cake and presents, Liam had a great day playing with all of his new toys and all of the children. Jessica brought her kids, Ansley and Elliot. His cousins, Tyler, Faith, and Cruz were there. Erin brought her baby, Logan. Angela brought her son Aiden.


All in all, it was a pretty good day!