Saturday, March 10, 2012
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Ready. . . Or Not. . .
We've worked hard getting ready for the weekend's quiz meet. Tomorrow and Saturday we will welcome more than 200 people into our church and our homes and even our mall. Are we ready???
I guess we'll find out soon enough. . .
I guess we'll find out soon enough. . .
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Politics. . .
I'm pretty sure this post is a first for discussing my political views. I don't affiliate with any party in particular and mostly keep my views to myself. I suppose if I had to name my party I would say Independent. However, Zach has some pretty strong political ideals and he is continually wrestling with where he stands on political issues. He wisely realizes that his views are subject to change as he investigates information and receives education. But he's processing these things all the time which causes me to also process these things all the time because I am his sounding board. It also puts me in a position of re-thinking things that I've taken a position on because I'm given new or different information. On the other hand, I think I've influenced some of his thinking in a direction he might not have gone in as well. I don't like to talk about politics. I don't like to debate. I don't like to have my opinions challenged. But I do like talking with Zach. So I've been willing to listen and think about things I might not otherwise have taken the time to process if it weren't for Zach bringing them to my attention.
A couple of months ago, while I was out of town, Zach and his grandpa went to a political rally for Ron Paul. Zach seemed to resonate with much of the things that Paul represents and filled me in on his views when I got back into town. Some of the things I agreed with, too, and some of the things I didn't agree with at all. So Zach and I have been talking about these things together, deciding what we agree with and where we disagree. Yesterday two very interesting things happened.
First of all, we were asked by the Civic Center to provide camera work for an event. Turns out it was a Ron Paul event, with Ron Paul, himself, presenting his political positions. Zach had to miss a class to attend but decided it was worth it. During the event, we learned more about Super Tuesday and the fact that this would be an historic event for Idaho. Honestly, this wouldn't normally be my cup of tea. However, I really wanted to experience this with Zach so we made plans to go to the Taco Bell Arena and do our civic duty.
This leads to the second interesting thing. In order to vote for Ron Paul, who I had decided I agreed with enough to get on board, I had to make a declaration. Even though Ron Paul considers himself an Independent, he has to run as a Republican in the US election. I won't go into all of that because I don't fully understand it but what it meant for me was that I would have to align myself with a party. In this case, the Republican Party. It hurt. I don't consider myself a Republican. I had to really wrestle with signing the form and I told Zach it felt dishonest. Sure, there are some Republican issues that I agree with but there are many that I don't. It felt like I had to choose the lesser of two evils.
I've already said more than I intended to because what I really wanted to say was that it was all worth it to have this experience with Zach. We were taking part in an historic event. Despite parking half a mile away and waiting in 30 degree weather outside of the arena for 45 minutes, once we were inside, it was pretty amazing.
Each candidate's representative had 5 minutes to talk about why we should vote for that person. It was interesting to see and hear all of the reactions as each person spoke. Gingrich seemed to have very little support and even got quite a few boos. Romney was represented by Gov Butch Otter who seemed more interested in presenting himself to the nation than Romney. Santorum had a video which seemed really cheesy to me but presented his views in a clear, concise way. And Ron Paul was represented by the same woman who spoke at the Civic Center earlier in the day. She was very passionate about his beliefs and referred to him as a Christian man with great integrity. He's dedicated to balancing the budget and following the constitution.
When the speeches were done, we all filed out into the hallways in as orderly a fashion as 9000 people can and dropped a penny into a bucket behind a curtained off area for the candidate we had chosen. I had already registered as a Republican so I dutifully dropped my penny into the Ron Paul bucket still feeling twinges of regret. We then had over an hour to wait in our seats while they counted the votes to see if we would need to vote again. If a candidate received 51% of the votes, they would win and we could go home. If no one received over 51%, the candidate with the lowest amount would be eliminated and we would vote again. This would continue until someone reached the 51% mark.
While we waited, we were "entertained" by a band that was probably playing for free. We talked about politics, Legos and Star Wars. He bought me a pretzel and we shared a bucket of popcorn. He showed me the games he plays on his Ipod and I showed him how bad I am at playing them. We participated in a 10 minute crowd "wave" with over 9000 people. It was good.
Before the votes were tallied, we were getting reports on our cell phones that Romney would be the clear winner. People started to trickle out of the arena but we decided to hold out hope and continued to wait. Shortly after 10:00 p.m. they made the announcement that Romney was in fact the winner with 4,223 votes followed by Santorum with 1,866, Paul with 1,766 and Newt Gingrich with 307. Zach was very disappointed to say the least. I half-jokingly told him that I declared myself a Republican for nothing and that now I would have to live with that decision for the rest of my life. Or at least a year.
Truthfully, the statistics aren't the important thing here. What counts for me is that I was part of something BIG with my kid. We were part of a process that he's been learning about and investing himself in for the last several years. It was worth it. It made me think. It made me get out of my comfort zone. It made a great memory. If it takes being a Republican to have this connection then that's the sacrifice I'm willing to make.
A couple of months ago, while I was out of town, Zach and his grandpa went to a political rally for Ron Paul. Zach seemed to resonate with much of the things that Paul represents and filled me in on his views when I got back into town. Some of the things I agreed with, too, and some of the things I didn't agree with at all. So Zach and I have been talking about these things together, deciding what we agree with and where we disagree. Yesterday two very interesting things happened.
First of all, we were asked by the Civic Center to provide camera work for an event. Turns out it was a Ron Paul event, with Ron Paul, himself, presenting his political positions. Zach had to miss a class to attend but decided it was worth it. During the event, we learned more about Super Tuesday and the fact that this would be an historic event for Idaho. Honestly, this wouldn't normally be my cup of tea. However, I really wanted to experience this with Zach so we made plans to go to the Taco Bell Arena and do our civic duty.
This leads to the second interesting thing. In order to vote for Ron Paul, who I had decided I agreed with enough to get on board, I had to make a declaration. Even though Ron Paul considers himself an Independent, he has to run as a Republican in the US election. I won't go into all of that because I don't fully understand it but what it meant for me was that I would have to align myself with a party. In this case, the Republican Party. It hurt. I don't consider myself a Republican. I had to really wrestle with signing the form and I told Zach it felt dishonest. Sure, there are some Republican issues that I agree with but there are many that I don't. It felt like I had to choose the lesser of two evils.
I've already said more than I intended to because what I really wanted to say was that it was all worth it to have this experience with Zach. We were taking part in an historic event. Despite parking half a mile away and waiting in 30 degree weather outside of the arena for 45 minutes, once we were inside, it was pretty amazing.
Each candidate's representative had 5 minutes to talk about why we should vote for that person. It was interesting to see and hear all of the reactions as each person spoke. Gingrich seemed to have very little support and even got quite a few boos. Romney was represented by Gov Butch Otter who seemed more interested in presenting himself to the nation than Romney. Santorum had a video which seemed really cheesy to me but presented his views in a clear, concise way. And Ron Paul was represented by the same woman who spoke at the Civic Center earlier in the day. She was very passionate about his beliefs and referred to him as a Christian man with great integrity. He's dedicated to balancing the budget and following the constitution.
When the speeches were done, we all filed out into the hallways in as orderly a fashion as 9000 people can and dropped a penny into a bucket behind a curtained off area for the candidate we had chosen. I had already registered as a Republican so I dutifully dropped my penny into the Ron Paul bucket still feeling twinges of regret. We then had over an hour to wait in our seats while they counted the votes to see if we would need to vote again. If a candidate received 51% of the votes, they would win and we could go home. If no one received over 51%, the candidate with the lowest amount would be eliminated and we would vote again. This would continue until someone reached the 51% mark.
While we waited, we were "entertained" by a band that was probably playing for free. We talked about politics, Legos and Star Wars. He bought me a pretzel and we shared a bucket of popcorn. He showed me the games he plays on his Ipod and I showed him how bad I am at playing them. We participated in a 10 minute crowd "wave" with over 9000 people. It was good.
Before the votes were tallied, we were getting reports on our cell phones that Romney would be the clear winner. People started to trickle out of the arena but we decided to hold out hope and continued to wait. Shortly after 10:00 p.m. they made the announcement that Romney was in fact the winner with 4,223 votes followed by Santorum with 1,866, Paul with 1,766 and Newt Gingrich with 307. Zach was very disappointed to say the least. I half-jokingly told him that I declared myself a Republican for nothing and that now I would have to live with that decision for the rest of my life. Or at least a year.
Truthfully, the statistics aren't the important thing here. What counts for me is that I was part of something BIG with my kid. We were part of a process that he's been learning about and investing himself in for the last several years. It was worth it. It made me think. It made me get out of my comfort zone. It made a great memory. If it takes being a Republican to have this connection then that's the sacrifice I'm willing to make.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Favorites. . .
This is pretty much my favorite picture. Ever.
Actually, I guess it's a toss up with this one:
Just feeling a little sentimental these days I guess. . .
Actually, I guess it's a toss up with this one:
Just feeling a little sentimental these days I guess. . .
Sunday, March 4, 2012
A Little Nostalgia. . .
I have a confession to make.
Every time I clean out under the sink in the kids' bathroom (at least 4 times/year- honest) I come across these little stacking cups that both of my kids played with in the bathtub during toddler hood. We've lived in this house since Zach was 2 years old (1994) so you can do the math on how long these babies have been lingering here. They now share the space with shaving paraphernalia, curling irons and make up. You'd think I could just toss them away. . .
I always set them off to the side so that I can put them in the attic or sell them at a yard sale or whatever but, somehow, they always end up back under the sink. Every. Single. Time. When I cleaned under there this weekend I didn't even bother to set them aside. I just rinsed them off and put them back. Where they belong. . .
Every time I clean out under the sink in the kids' bathroom (at least 4 times/year- honest) I come across these little stacking cups that both of my kids played with in the bathtub during toddler hood. We've lived in this house since Zach was 2 years old (1994) so you can do the math on how long these babies have been lingering here. They now share the space with shaving paraphernalia, curling irons and make up. You'd think I could just toss them away. . .
I always set them off to the side so that I can put them in the attic or sell them at a yard sale or whatever but, somehow, they always end up back under the sink. Every. Single. Time. When I cleaned under there this weekend I didn't even bother to set them aside. I just rinsed them off and put them back. Where they belong. . .
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Kid Ramblings. . .
It's kind of refreshing to just pull out random pictures and talk about them instead of plowing through three hundred pictures of something and then not having time/interest in saying anything about them!! Hmm. . . Sounds familiar.
So here's this one:
The picture file says it was taken on January 4th, 2012 from my Blackberry.
The kids and I went down to BSU to double check the location of Zach's new semester classes and I remember being struck by several interesting things.
First of all, Zach is very comfortable at BSU. Of course he is. He's been there an entire semester (and then some). He knows his way around, he's made friends with the computer lab, he knows how much time he needs between classes and, most importantly, he knows where the most comfortable chairs are with nearby plug-ins for his Ipod charger. I guess the reason I'm struck by all of this is that before the fall of 2011, Zach spent the majority of his time at home. Getting to class meant wandering into the living room or kitchen. There were no on-line documents or tests to take, no teachers or professors to contact, no dead lines to meet, no campus to cross. And yet, he has come to "own" this new venture. I have very, very little to do with his education. He gets where he needs to go on campus, he completes what needs to be done with time left over, he tracks his grades and his progress. AND he made the Dean's List during his first semester of college. He's humble about it but I'm so proud. I did BAD my first semester of college. I had way more preparation for the "how-to's" of education and I pretty much blew my whole first year of my college education along with a pretty good scholarship. Thankfully I grew up and got a second chance and did much, much better a few years later but that's a story for another day. . .
Second of all, I was struck by how much my kids like each other. They don't get along all the time by any means but on the day that we walked around the campus, they linked arms, they joked with each other and had a sweet connection that comes from knowing someone well and loving them anyway. . .
And, last but not least, that day and just about every day, I'm struck by the fact that my kids are getting older. Zach will be 20 this summer. Gloria turned 13 in December. I'm proud of them both and I'm feeling like I've raised two people who will make a positive difference in this world someday. I've seen them both make really good choices and show wisdom in difficult situations. It's too early to pat myself on the back too heartily but I'm proud of who they are and who they are becoming. . .
So here's this one:
The picture file says it was taken on January 4th, 2012 from my Blackberry.
The kids and I went down to BSU to double check the location of Zach's new semester classes and I remember being struck by several interesting things.
First of all, Zach is very comfortable at BSU. Of course he is. He's been there an entire semester (and then some). He knows his way around, he's made friends with the computer lab, he knows how much time he needs between classes and, most importantly, he knows where the most comfortable chairs are with nearby plug-ins for his Ipod charger. I guess the reason I'm struck by all of this is that before the fall of 2011, Zach spent the majority of his time at home. Getting to class meant wandering into the living room or kitchen. There were no on-line documents or tests to take, no teachers or professors to contact, no dead lines to meet, no campus to cross. And yet, he has come to "own" this new venture. I have very, very little to do with his education. He gets where he needs to go on campus, he completes what needs to be done with time left over, he tracks his grades and his progress. AND he made the Dean's List during his first semester of college. He's humble about it but I'm so proud. I did BAD my first semester of college. I had way more preparation for the "how-to's" of education and I pretty much blew my whole first year of my college education along with a pretty good scholarship. Thankfully I grew up and got a second chance and did much, much better a few years later but that's a story for another day. . .
Second of all, I was struck by how much my kids like each other. They don't get along all the time by any means but on the day that we walked around the campus, they linked arms, they joked with each other and had a sweet connection that comes from knowing someone well and loving them anyway. . .
And, last but not least, that day and just about every day, I'm struck by the fact that my kids are getting older. Zach will be 20 this summer. Gloria turned 13 in December. I'm proud of them both and I'm feeling like I've raised two people who will make a positive difference in this world someday. I've seen them both make really good choices and show wisdom in difficult situations. It's too early to pat myself on the back too heartily but I'm proud of who they are and who they are becoming. . .
Friday, March 2, 2012
Quiz Ramblings. . .
Next weekend is the weekend I've been dreading and looking forward to all at the same time. Boise Friends is hosting the third quiz meet of the season and I've been attempting to pull it together. I've had help and I don't feel like I'm alone in this by any means but it's a lot of work. But it will also be a lot of fun and very rewarding, I'm sure. Right? Right. Besides, just look how ready we are to stomp the competition:
I also have one weekend (starting NOW) to whip my house into shape to host some of the Newberg peeps right here. In my house. And I use the term "host" very loosely. I have "issues" when it comes to having people in my house but I DO love the people that are coming to my house so I'm planning to just get over it already!! See? I'm already over it! Yay! One. More. Week. . .
I also have one weekend (starting NOW) to whip my house into shape to host some of the Newberg peeps right here. In my house. And I use the term "host" very loosely. I have "issues" when it comes to having people in my house but I DO love the people that are coming to my house so I'm planning to just get over it already!! See? I'm already over it! Yay! One. More. Week. . .
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
A Little Inspiration. . .
This is just a snippet of a blog post by my very favorite blogger, Mir from Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda. When I read her writing it makes me want to write more and reminds me why I've been blogging for the last five years. I wish I could be a little less private sometimes and a little more "real" like she is but even if I can't get there from here, I can still take her advice and make sure I have a record of my life- good and bad. . . (You can read the whole post right here).
"We went in, picked up our food, and headed back to the car. As we drove home, I said, “You know, you’ve had a tough run this year. No one would blame you for focusing on the hard stuff, and for feeling like life is just more difficult for you than for most other kids, and like that’s totally unfair. But you just had this incredible weekend—one that YOU MADE HAPPEN because you are smart and strong and a hard worker—and that’s the sort of thing I love to write about, do you know why?”
“Because it’s happy?” she guessed.
“Well, partially, I guess,” I said. “But it’s more than that. It’s because how you feel when this stuff happens, it fades. You’ll have another bad day, and you’ll feel like you always feel that way, discouraged and sick and powerless. But if you take the time to write about how you felt when your name was called on Friday, how you felt when you realized your team took first on Saturday, it makes it easier to remember. It gives it some permanence and power. It forces you to really know that the bad stuff isn’t all there is. You know?”
I've had thoughts lately about just letting the blog end with, "And they all lived happily ever after. . . " and leave it at that. I can't/won't write about personal stuff and so it's tempting to just sign off but it's still a memory bank of how I live and someday I will look back on it and think that, all in all, I had a pretty interesting life. Mir inspires me to keep writing . . .
"We went in, picked up our food, and headed back to the car. As we drove home, I said, “You know, you’ve had a tough run this year. No one would blame you for focusing on the hard stuff, and for feeling like life is just more difficult for you than for most other kids, and like that’s totally unfair. But you just had this incredible weekend—one that YOU MADE HAPPEN because you are smart and strong and a hard worker—and that’s the sort of thing I love to write about, do you know why?”
“Because it’s happy?” she guessed.
“Well, partially, I guess,” I said. “But it’s more than that. It’s because how you feel when this stuff happens, it fades. You’ll have another bad day, and you’ll feel like you always feel that way, discouraged and sick and powerless. But if you take the time to write about how you felt when your name was called on Friday, how you felt when you realized your team took first on Saturday, it makes it easier to remember. It gives it some permanence and power. It forces you to really know that the bad stuff isn’t all there is. You know?”
I've had thoughts lately about just letting the blog end with, "And they all lived happily ever after. . . " and leave it at that. I can't/won't write about personal stuff and so it's tempting to just sign off but it's still a memory bank of how I live and someday I will look back on it and think that, all in all, I had a pretty interesting life. Mir inspires me to keep writing . . .
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
In The Meantime. . .
So I've been working on the post about the crazy-busy three weeks we had in January but everytime I start to work on it, I get cold and tired and give up. When I eventually post it, you'll understand why. In the meantime, the photos are backing up in my picture file and this one was just begging to get out. It's pretty sweet, if you ask me. . .
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Update. . .
So it turns out that I won't be posting the message from last week or my song with Steph. In order to post them to the blog I would have to turn them into slide show videos and even then I'm pretty sure that Zach's message, at least, will be too large. If anyone who reads this would like me to email it to them, that's easy. And if you're a blogger who can tell me an easier, less time consuming way to post them, that would be welcome, too!!
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