Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Does Disney have something against me...or all Mom's in general?

OKay, so this isn't really a blog as much as it is a question I've had on my mind for some time. I'm just wondering, am I the only one who has noticed that in a majority of Disney movies the Mom is dead or nowhere to be found? It's hard to think of a Disney movie with a strong maternal presence. Think about some of the most popular movies:

1. Finding Nemo - Mom's dead
2. Ratatouille - Mom's not even mentioned
3. Beauty and the Beast - Again, Mom's never even mentioned
4. Cinderella - no Mom....as a matter of fact the maternal character is portrayed as evil
5. Snow White - same deal as Cinderella
6. The Little Mermaid - Dad only
7. Bambi - Mom's dead
8. Jasmine in the movie Alladin had no mother

I remember Dumbo had a loving mother...GREAT that's one! But really, how many Disney movies can you name that have a Mom only and no Dad, or a Dad that is evil? 101 Dalmatians has a positive maternal presence, but a positive father too, so that's a wash.

I'm just wondering, what's Disney got against Moms? Has anyone else noticed this and have a great reason as to why it is?

Thanks!

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

I Adopted a 5 Year Old Boy - sorta...


That's right, you read correctlly! I adopted a 5 year old little boy. Only, I don't get to see him, but that's okay because I know that I'm helping him and sharing with him the blessings God has given to me, and that's what we should all do! My church, as do many churches, helps needy children and famillies at Christmas time. When you pick a child or family to help, you receive a list of what they have on their wish list and purchase those gifts for them so they will have something to open Christmas morning. I "adopted" this five year old boy because he was the closest to Nic's age. I plan on getting Nic involved in helping share the holiday spirit and using this opportunity to teach him, once again, that Christmas isn't just about receiving presents, to teach him that God has blessed us with so much and the best thing we can do with those blessing is to share them, whichever way we can. Of course, times are tough, but there are other ways we also help that don't cost a dime. For example, I ring the bell for the Salvation Army and have Nic help too. You can also do other volunteer work, if you can't buy presents, help is needed organizing and wrapping. Do what you can so that you don't lose the true meaning of the holidays, it truly does feel better to give than to recieve and makes the holidays so much more special when you do.

Lesson of the Day - DON'T PLAN!

I am a planner. I organize and prepare for everything. Today I learned that I should probably just throw my planning out the window. Actually, this is a lesson I learned when I gave birth to my son (as most women learn when giving birth)....but it slipped my mind until today. Nic's birth went the exact opposite of what I planned. I thought that with all the complications I had and being it was my first child, I'd be in labor for a good 10-12 hours and push for an hour or two to get him out. I had not planned on having some sort of allergic reaction to the epidural that cut Nic's heart rate in half and caused me to pass out to the sound of a nurse yelling, "I need back up! I need back up!" Don't worry, it turned out okay, I was only out for a brief moment and once they stimulated Nic and turned off the epidural, we were back on track. I was actually only in active labor for 1/2 hour and pushed him out in about 10 minutes, NOTHING like I planned. Anyhow, I digress.....the "plan" was to write about what happened today. Nic's very first school pictures are today. As soon as I learned about this day two weeks ago, I began to plan. What should he wear? When should he get his hair cut? I found a cute sweater at Old Navy, put it together with a cute golf shirt and a pair of Levi's he already had. This moring, I waited until the last possible minute to get him dressed to avoid any accidental spills, I scrubbed his face making sure to remove every trace of breakfast or slobber from last night, I took extra time to comb his newly cut hair until every hair was in place and then...oh yes....I used hairspray on it! Everything was perfect, so out the door we went. I opened the door to let Nic in and turned around to pick him up and then it happened....WHAM, Nic ran right into the car door. I had not planned on that. The tears came immediately as did the big red mark right in the middle of his forehead. After calming him down, we proceeded to school where the red mark started to turn into a bruise. So, Nic will have great hair, a clean face, cute clothes and a big bruise right in the middle of his forehead for his very first school pictures....something I had not planned on. But, we have a great story to go along with his very first school picture and no matter what, I still think he is the cutest little boy ever. I know I won't be able to give up planning completely, but I'll try to relax a little more and enjoy even more the little surpises that come along everyday. Even as I was drying Nic's tears today, I was laughing at the irony. Something unplanned can cause laughter, score for the unplanned!