We might not use the best language...
And we might be a little slothful...
But we are still righteous sometimes!
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Rachel's Turn
Rachel's Special Day was Wednesday, the 1st. I'm sorry to say it was not even with Adam's in terms of documentation, or fun, but they'll have to get used to it right?
We had chocolate cheerios for breakfast, which she was soo excited about. I tried to get her to say it on video, but that didn't work of course.
We went to the park for playgroup and it's finally not unbearably hot! (don't get me wrong--it's still plenty hot). Apparently she has decided that she needs to dangle from every place she can.
And...she has conquered her fear of swinging (mostly)...
We got some more stuff from our neighbors, so Rachel got to open those as her "presents". She now sleeps with her xylophone. Adam demanded a turn though so she had to settle for the Jack in the Box kids' meal prize...
Good thing she doesn't know the difference. The kids' also inherited a kitchen set from our good friend. I haven't taken any pictures of it yet, but we considered this her big present and we're grateful to have it for awhile. Mostly because it fit into their room without too much trouble. Always a plus.
And we finished their "growth chart". Rache has Adam beat by about 2 mm. Although it could be an error in measuring :). They LOVED putting their hands on the wall and the next morning the first thing I heard Rachel say was, "Rachie-hand!"
There's not much to do in Vegas that's cheap and for kids so we headed to the mall. Despite a not so fun See's Candy line, it was great! We went to the Toy Store and managed to get out of there without any complaints or purchases. Same with the pet store.
It's hard to do anything special these days because A and R are never far apart. And even though it's frustrating sometimes that I don't have enough hands or enough patience, I wouldn't have it any other way!
And...she has conquered her fear of swinging (mostly)...
It's hard to do anything special these days because A and R are never far apart. And even though it's frustrating sometimes that I don't have enough hands or enough patience, I wouldn't have it any other way!
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
What Else We've Been Up To
Happy end of summer!
Take Me Out to the Ballgame
This is the kids' new favorite song, so we decided to listen to them. We went to the local AAA team and lasted until the 7th inning stretch...
Now every time they play with a ball they say, "Catch, daddy"
Now every time they play with a ball they say, "Catch, daddy"
Monday, August 23, 2010
Sunday, August 22, 2010
All About Adam
Friday was Adam's Special Day...remember this? Well, it's been two years--wow! So we decided to celebrate...
A woke up to "pictures' on his door. Aren't they great? Don't you love how I made them about 2 seconds before they woke up.
I was surprised to get his present in the mail since it wasn't due to arrive for another couple of days. But, someone must have known that this boy really wanted this. He was so excited to open his present. Now, if he wants to play with it he says, "present? cars?" I love it. And yes, that is Rachel checking out her diaper in the background.
It was my intention to let Adam do everything he wanted--and he did. But not alone. He played outside by himself for all of 10 seconds before he came in and asked, "rache?"
What you can't see in this picture is the mark we made on the wall signifying that he is 33" tall. That's shorter than the pediatrician says. I measured at least twice. But who knows. 
I still made them nap in their cribs, but isn't this cute? If only they understand that you're supposed to SLEEP in a big bed :)
We got an extra surprise...our neighbor is moving and dropped off this train set--almost brand new! Cars and trains in one day? This guy was in HEAVEN! And my pocketbook is super grateful I didn't have to buy this set myself!
In true Adam fashion, he did not want to stop playing to get ready to go in the car to dinner. It took my whole strength to pry his fingers off the trains (only to buckle him in--I let him bring them in the car). But he forgave the intrusion when he saw we were at Chuck E Cheese! At the beginning we were not sure it was worth the cost, but when they proudly handed their 22 tickets to get their lollipop, it was priceless.
To everyone else, this boy is just two. He acts the same and does the same things as a lot of two year olds. But that's to everyone else. To us, he's-well, you know--THE best, smartest, nicest, happiest, cutest, and most loved two year old EVER! But seriously, Adam always surprises me by how smart, helpful, nice and happy he is! He really is a great boy!
It was my intention to let Adam do everything he wanted--and he did. But not alone. He played outside by himself for all of 10 seconds before he came in and asked, "rache?"
What you can't see in this picture is the mark we made on the wall signifying that he is 33" tall. That's shorter than the pediatrician says. I measured at least twice. But who knows. 
In true Adam fashion, he did not want to stop playing to get ready to go in the car to dinner. It took my whole strength to pry his fingers off the trains (only to buckle him in--I let him bring them in the car). But he forgave the intrusion when he saw we were at Chuck E Cheese! At the beginning we were not sure it was worth the cost, but when they proudly handed their 22 tickets to get their lollipop, it was priceless.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Ground Zero Mosque
A great benefit of my refusal to permanently affiliate with any political party is that I’m free to use common sense. I can make up my own mind, without preconceived notions that one party is always wrong, and another always right.
You may have heard about the recent controversy over Muslims wanting to get a building permit to build a community center/mosque a couple blocks from Ground Zero. To which probable 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin reacted: “Ground Zero Mosque supporters: doesn’t it stab you in the heart, as it does ours throughout the heartland? Peaceful Muslims, pls refudiate.” Her made up word, not mine. And fellow Republican front-runner Newt Gingrich added: "The folks who want to build this mosque are really radical Islamists who want to triumphantly prove that they can build a mosque right next to a place where 3,000 Americans were killed by radical Islamists -- And I think we ought to be honest about the fact that we have a right -- and this happens all the time in America. You know, Nazis don't have the right to put up a sign next to the Holocaust Museum in Washington. We would never accept the Japanese putting up a site next to Pearl Harbor. There's no reason for us to accept a mosque next to the World Trade Center."
Mr. Gingrich and Mrs. Palin, with all due respect, you are idiots. Complete and utter idiots. You are the reason most of the world hates America. And the reason most intelligent conservatives hate the direction the Republican party has veered in recent years.
Conservatives like to bash President Obama and the left for being weak liberals, who are more concerned with political correctness than doing what’s right. Well, whether they’re doing it for the right reason or not, they’re absolutely right on this one. There’s no reason these people shouldn’t be allowed to build a community center (with a pool, basketball court, culinary school, and yes, an area for religious services), on any piece of private property in the United States. Do I like that they’re building there? Not particularly. Does it matter what I like? Absolutely not. This is America. That’s why we’re a Republic, not a Democracy as most Americans mistakenly believe. In a Democracy, it’s majority rule. The many can trample the rights of the few. In a Republic, the rule of law is paramount. It doesn’t matter if 99% of the people dislike what you do. As long as it’s legal, it’s your right. The prospect of an angry majority refusing to allow a minority religious group to build a place of worship out of a mistaken fear that they could pose a threat should strike a chord with many of those who read this. If any group should be able to empathize with the plight of these Modern Muslims, it should be the Mormons.
But I guess that’s the problem with freedom, isn’t it? It’s so convenient when it protects our rights, but it’s so decidedly inconvenient when it prevents us from imposing our will on others. If you truly love liberty, you have to accept that liberty allows others to do things you may not personally like. But if we begin chipping away at the rights of others, our rights are likely to be next on the chopping block.
“First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me.” -Martin Niemoller
Like most educated Americans, I think race-baiters like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are despicable. They over-play the race card like the boy who cried wolf. The worst thing we can do is give these people a real wolf to support their claims. And refusing to allow a law-abiding group of citizens to build a place of worship just because it’s a few blocks from Ground Zero is about as real an example of racism as you can get. This is downtown Manhattan. Do you know how many buildings are within a 2 block radius of the Ground Zero site? There are dozens of other skyscrapers, countless businesses, several churches of various denominations, Wall Street, Broadway, no less than half a dozen Ray’s Pizza joints, and probably 3 or 4 Jewish delis.
The other argument I’ve heard is that the funding for their building is “very questionable.” Implying it must be financed by terrorists. Building planners are being asked (forced) to tell where they got their money from. Unless you work for the NSA or the CIA, it’s none of your business how this church/community organization got its money. Because of the Patriot Act, any American completing a large financial transaction is assumed to be involved in terrorism, unless he can prove otherwise. If a client purchases a life insurance policy that I personally feel is too large, as an insurance agent, I’m now required by law to report him/her to the Federal Government for potential ties to money laundering and terrorism. When I tried to pull all our business money out of Washington Mutual in a single transaction (fearing the bank would soon go under), the teller asked me what I planned to do, and why I needed all that money. To which I responded, “I want it because it’s my money, and it’s none of your d@!# business what I’m going to do with it.” She then explained that for withdrawals over a certain amount, she was required by law (the Patriot Act) to ask what I intended to use it for before she could give it to me. Naturally I refused. So I’m sure that somewhere in Washington Mutual’s report to the Federal Government, there’s probably a footnote in my file stating that my money, like that used to build this mosque/community center, is “very questionable.” But until the Federal Government brings charges of terrorism against one of us, I’m going to assume that these Muslims’ money is just as clean as the money I received in my “highly suspicious” withdrawal.
"Those who give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary security, deserve neither liberty nor security." -Benjamin Franklin
In closing, I’ll defer to a final quote from Joseph Smith:
“The Saints can testify whether I am willing to lay down my life for my brethren. If it has been demonstrated that I have been willing to die for a ‘Mormon,’ I am bold to declare before Heaven that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination; for the same principle which would trample upon the rights of the Latter-day Saints would trample upon the rights of the Roman Catholics, or of any other denomination who may be unpopular and too weak to defend themselves. It is a love of liberty which inspires my soul—civil and religious liberty to the whole of the human race.” –Joseph Smith
You may have heard about the recent controversy over Muslims wanting to get a building permit to build a community center/mosque a couple blocks from Ground Zero. To which probable 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin reacted: “Ground Zero Mosque supporters: doesn’t it stab you in the heart, as it does ours throughout the heartland? Peaceful Muslims, pls refudiate.” Her made up word, not mine. And fellow Republican front-runner Newt Gingrich added: "The folks who want to build this mosque are really radical Islamists who want to triumphantly prove that they can build a mosque right next to a place where 3,000 Americans were killed by radical Islamists -- And I think we ought to be honest about the fact that we have a right -- and this happens all the time in America. You know, Nazis don't have the right to put up a sign next to the Holocaust Museum in Washington. We would never accept the Japanese putting up a site next to Pearl Harbor. There's no reason for us to accept a mosque next to the World Trade Center."
Mr. Gingrich and Mrs. Palin, with all due respect, you are idiots. Complete and utter idiots. You are the reason most of the world hates America. And the reason most intelligent conservatives hate the direction the Republican party has veered in recent years.
Conservatives like to bash President Obama and the left for being weak liberals, who are more concerned with political correctness than doing what’s right. Well, whether they’re doing it for the right reason or not, they’re absolutely right on this one. There’s no reason these people shouldn’t be allowed to build a community center (with a pool, basketball court, culinary school, and yes, an area for religious services), on any piece of private property in the United States. Do I like that they’re building there? Not particularly. Does it matter what I like? Absolutely not. This is America. That’s why we’re a Republic, not a Democracy as most Americans mistakenly believe. In a Democracy, it’s majority rule. The many can trample the rights of the few. In a Republic, the rule of law is paramount. It doesn’t matter if 99% of the people dislike what you do. As long as it’s legal, it’s your right. The prospect of an angry majority refusing to allow a minority religious group to build a place of worship out of a mistaken fear that they could pose a threat should strike a chord with many of those who read this. If any group should be able to empathize with the plight of these Modern Muslims, it should be the Mormons.
But I guess that’s the problem with freedom, isn’t it? It’s so convenient when it protects our rights, but it’s so decidedly inconvenient when it prevents us from imposing our will on others. If you truly love liberty, you have to accept that liberty allows others to do things you may not personally like. But if we begin chipping away at the rights of others, our rights are likely to be next on the chopping block.
“First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me.” -Martin Niemoller
Like most educated Americans, I think race-baiters like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are despicable. They over-play the race card like the boy who cried wolf. The worst thing we can do is give these people a real wolf to support their claims. And refusing to allow a law-abiding group of citizens to build a place of worship just because it’s a few blocks from Ground Zero is about as real an example of racism as you can get. This is downtown Manhattan. Do you know how many buildings are within a 2 block radius of the Ground Zero site? There are dozens of other skyscrapers, countless businesses, several churches of various denominations, Wall Street, Broadway, no less than half a dozen Ray’s Pizza joints, and probably 3 or 4 Jewish delis.
The other argument I’ve heard is that the funding for their building is “very questionable.” Implying it must be financed by terrorists. Building planners are being asked (forced) to tell where they got their money from. Unless you work for the NSA or the CIA, it’s none of your business how this church/community organization got its money. Because of the Patriot Act, any American completing a large financial transaction is assumed to be involved in terrorism, unless he can prove otherwise. If a client purchases a life insurance policy that I personally feel is too large, as an insurance agent, I’m now required by law to report him/her to the Federal Government for potential ties to money laundering and terrorism. When I tried to pull all our business money out of Washington Mutual in a single transaction (fearing the bank would soon go under), the teller asked me what I planned to do, and why I needed all that money. To which I responded, “I want it because it’s my money, and it’s none of your d@!# business what I’m going to do with it.” She then explained that for withdrawals over a certain amount, she was required by law (the Patriot Act) to ask what I intended to use it for before she could give it to me. Naturally I refused. So I’m sure that somewhere in Washington Mutual’s report to the Federal Government, there’s probably a footnote in my file stating that my money, like that used to build this mosque/community center, is “very questionable.” But until the Federal Government brings charges of terrorism against one of us, I’m going to assume that these Muslims’ money is just as clean as the money I received in my “highly suspicious” withdrawal.
"Those who give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary security, deserve neither liberty nor security." -Benjamin Franklin
In closing, I’ll defer to a final quote from Joseph Smith:
“The Saints can testify whether I am willing to lay down my life for my brethren. If it has been demonstrated that I have been willing to die for a ‘Mormon,’ I am bold to declare before Heaven that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination; for the same principle which would trample upon the rights of the Latter-day Saints would trample upon the rights of the Roman Catholics, or of any other denomination who may be unpopular and too weak to defend themselves. It is a love of liberty which inspires my soul—civil and religious liberty to the whole of the human race.” –Joseph Smith
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
