Here's seven things that happened this week and/or were on my mind but didn't get mentioned in previous blog posts.
1. Meet the Mormons. Tuesday night Ben and I had a wonderful date. Why Tuesday? Well, we're cheap and Tuesday night is $5 night at our local movie cinema chain. Meet the Mormons didn't actually come to our city, but it did come to one just 25 miles north. Which also happens to be the same city that has the nearest Indian Restaurant. So we made a night of it, heading out right at 5:00 when Ben gets home from work. The food was great. The movie was uplifting. And the date night was needed.
As we pulled up to the theatre Ben noticed a long line at the entrance, so he dropped me off to go buy our tickets. "I doubt the line is for Meet the Mormons, but I'll drop you off anyway," he said. But the moment I swung those double doors open I immediately knew, "These are all Mormons." And they were. Youth groups from three nearby congregations were meeting in the foyer to go attend the movie together.
It's hard to pick a favorite individual highlighted in the 70 minute long documentary, but I went in with a bias toward the Candy Bomber and the Humanitarian. I'm a sucker for "changing the world" stories. However, I wasn't expecting to be so moved by the teen-mom story. And her's reminded me just how much each of us can change the world. We don't need a huge moment (WWII) or a fancy degree (Engineer) to make a vast impact in someone's life. Her experience deeply touched my heart.
I definitely recommend watching the movie once it is out on Netflix, or checking it out at your local theatre. It was such a hit at ours that they are actually keeping it another week and adding it to Green Bay.
2. Ebola. I haven't been following the Ebola thing too closely, but I have gathered some points I think a lot of people are missing. 1) You can't get the virus unless you come in contact with an affected person who is showing symptoms. 2) We can't expect the government to protect us from outbreaks like this (I could go on and on here, but I won't). 3) Individual accountability is what will stop the spread of Ebola in the US. Several Doctors and Journalists came back to the US after being in parts of West Africa that are affected. Those people quarantined themselves for 21 days when arriving home. We all owe them a HUGE THANK YOU. Personal responsibility people, it saves lives. Not the government. 4) Several hospitals in the US have treated Ebola patients in recent months without having a single staff member catch the disease. Obviously Dallas did something wrong.
3. Journalism. I've come to the realization that I'm a Journalism nerd. I've always loved News. My first write up in the local paper was at the young age of 10. I was the editor of my High School paper for two years (and we won lots of state awards). I love, love, love the News. I credit my father's dedication to daily reading the Salt Lake Tribune. We knew we weren't suppose to touch it until he'd looked through every page (okay, we could usually get away with stealing the Sports section, but that's it). I think a lot of people mistake my love of News and Journalistic Integrity with love of politics. I do enjoy politics. But honestly, if it weren't for my love of News I probably wouldn't even know half of what I do about politics. This isn't a chicken and egg thing. My love for News is older, deeper, and grander than my love of politics.
4. 4-year-olds. This week marks the beginning of a new phase in parenting. I am officially "the worst mommy ever!" and "the meanest mommy ever!" I must admit that the meanest mommy ever comment made me feel like I was doing something right.
5. Fred Rogers. I love Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Words can't describe how wonderful the series is. Fred Rogers was an amazing human being and it shows by the legacy he left behind, a legacy that is still in motion today. Emotional intelligence is so crucial for developing minds and the impact he has had on millions of children is profound. Even now, as a parent, his lessons on feelings help me almost everyday. Nell is obsessed with the show. She loves all the characters and sings all the songs. It's a great reminder that there is so much good in the world.
6. 31+ weeks pregnant. I was super exhausted today. At nap time I told Reid I was going to sleep with Nell and he'd be on his own. He didn't love that idea, and I figured it wouldn't actually work. "Mommy, we have to have our special preschool time!" he pleaded. I conceded. But I knew I couldn't sit at the kitchen table and supervise a craft without falling asleep on the spot. So our preschool took to the outdoors.
First we put some fencing around our fruit trees so the rabbits won't nibble at them during the frosty evenings. Then we dug all the row markers out of the garden. By this point I'd found all my missing energy and Reid and I both entered the garden, shovels in hand, prepared to work. We dug trenches and buried weeds. I dug up all the plants and he ate the last tomato. We found a few random potatoes and ooohed and aaahed at various different worms. Reid was in heaven and he was truly helpful. He found great pride in his own little trenches and even stole a few of my dug up weeds so he could turn them upside down and bury them. It was probably my favorite hour of preschool we've had all Autumn.
Once he started talking about how tired his belly was, we headed to the front porch. There we each found a strong stick and began picking the mud off our shoes. He did not want any help and insisted he could get it all off by himself.
Inside we enjoyed some hot chocolate, and just as we finished the last drop Nell woke up. At this point I was finally geared up for the craft/learning activity I'd prepared for the day. So I gave Nell some crayons and a coloring book and Reid and I went to work making this 3D pumpkin, which shows all the life cycles of a pumpkin. He thought that was pretty neat.
7. Mom's Night Out. This evening I enjoyed a Mom's night out with a few friends. We just met at someone's house and played games and ate yummies. We kind of joked that trying to meet other mom's feels like dating. But we all acknowledged the importance/need to connect with women who have children similar ages of our own. It's just nice to get together childless every now and then and realize we are all going through the same stages and struggles. Together we can laugh about all the ridiculous things our kids do. It was a great night and I stayed up way past my bedtime.
So I better head off to bed (it's now Saturday) so I don't make the same mistake today!
1. Meet the Mormons. Tuesday night Ben and I had a wonderful date. Why Tuesday? Well, we're cheap and Tuesday night is $5 night at our local movie cinema chain. Meet the Mormons didn't actually come to our city, but it did come to one just 25 miles north. Which also happens to be the same city that has the nearest Indian Restaurant. So we made a night of it, heading out right at 5:00 when Ben gets home from work. The food was great. The movie was uplifting. And the date night was needed.
As we pulled up to the theatre Ben noticed a long line at the entrance, so he dropped me off to go buy our tickets. "I doubt the line is for Meet the Mormons, but I'll drop you off anyway," he said. But the moment I swung those double doors open I immediately knew, "These are all Mormons." And they were. Youth groups from three nearby congregations were meeting in the foyer to go attend the movie together.
It's hard to pick a favorite individual highlighted in the 70 minute long documentary, but I went in with a bias toward the Candy Bomber and the Humanitarian. I'm a sucker for "changing the world" stories. However, I wasn't expecting to be so moved by the teen-mom story. And her's reminded me just how much each of us can change the world. We don't need a huge moment (WWII) or a fancy degree (Engineer) to make a vast impact in someone's life. Her experience deeply touched my heart.
I definitely recommend watching the movie once it is out on Netflix, or checking it out at your local theatre. It was such a hit at ours that they are actually keeping it another week and adding it to Green Bay.
2. Ebola. I haven't been following the Ebola thing too closely, but I have gathered some points I think a lot of people are missing. 1) You can't get the virus unless you come in contact with an affected person who is showing symptoms. 2) We can't expect the government to protect us from outbreaks like this (I could go on and on here, but I won't). 3) Individual accountability is what will stop the spread of Ebola in the US. Several Doctors and Journalists came back to the US after being in parts of West Africa that are affected. Those people quarantined themselves for 21 days when arriving home. We all owe them a HUGE THANK YOU. Personal responsibility people, it saves lives. Not the government. 4) Several hospitals in the US have treated Ebola patients in recent months without having a single staff member catch the disease. Obviously Dallas did something wrong.
3. Journalism. I've come to the realization that I'm a Journalism nerd. I've always loved News. My first write up in the local paper was at the young age of 10. I was the editor of my High School paper for two years (and we won lots of state awards). I love, love, love the News. I credit my father's dedication to daily reading the Salt Lake Tribune. We knew we weren't suppose to touch it until he'd looked through every page (okay, we could usually get away with stealing the Sports section, but that's it). I think a lot of people mistake my love of News and Journalistic Integrity with love of politics. I do enjoy politics. But honestly, if it weren't for my love of News I probably wouldn't even know half of what I do about politics. This isn't a chicken and egg thing. My love for News is older, deeper, and grander than my love of politics.
4. 4-year-olds. This week marks the beginning of a new phase in parenting. I am officially "the worst mommy ever!" and "the meanest mommy ever!" I must admit that the meanest mommy ever comment made me feel like I was doing something right.
5. Fred Rogers. I love Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Words can't describe how wonderful the series is. Fred Rogers was an amazing human being and it shows by the legacy he left behind, a legacy that is still in motion today. Emotional intelligence is so crucial for developing minds and the impact he has had on millions of children is profound. Even now, as a parent, his lessons on feelings help me almost everyday. Nell is obsessed with the show. She loves all the characters and sings all the songs. It's a great reminder that there is so much good in the world.
6. 31+ weeks pregnant. I was super exhausted today. At nap time I told Reid I was going to sleep with Nell and he'd be on his own. He didn't love that idea, and I figured it wouldn't actually work. "Mommy, we have to have our special preschool time!" he pleaded. I conceded. But I knew I couldn't sit at the kitchen table and supervise a craft without falling asleep on the spot. So our preschool took to the outdoors.
First we put some fencing around our fruit trees so the rabbits won't nibble at them during the frosty evenings. Then we dug all the row markers out of the garden. By this point I'd found all my missing energy and Reid and I both entered the garden, shovels in hand, prepared to work. We dug trenches and buried weeds. I dug up all the plants and he ate the last tomato. We found a few random potatoes and ooohed and aaahed at various different worms. Reid was in heaven and he was truly helpful. He found great pride in his own little trenches and even stole a few of my dug up weeds so he could turn them upside down and bury them. It was probably my favorite hour of preschool we've had all Autumn.
Once he started talking about how tired his belly was, we headed to the front porch. There we each found a strong stick and began picking the mud off our shoes. He did not want any help and insisted he could get it all off by himself.
Inside we enjoyed some hot chocolate, and just as we finished the last drop Nell woke up. At this point I was finally geared up for the craft/learning activity I'd prepared for the day. So I gave Nell some crayons and a coloring book and Reid and I went to work making this 3D pumpkin, which shows all the life cycles of a pumpkin. He thought that was pretty neat.
7. Mom's Night Out. This evening I enjoyed a Mom's night out with a few friends. We just met at someone's house and played games and ate yummies. We kind of joked that trying to meet other mom's feels like dating. But we all acknowledged the importance/need to connect with women who have children similar ages of our own. It's just nice to get together childless every now and then and realize we are all going through the same stages and struggles. Together we can laugh about all the ridiculous things our kids do. It was a great night and I stayed up way past my bedtime.
So I better head off to bed (it's now Saturday) so I don't make the same mistake today!
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