I have tried to stay out of the gun debate since the shootings in Connecticut. . Knowing that what I say will very likely make many friends and some family very unhappy, but the NRA has pushed too far. There is no way in hell I want people armed with weapons wandering around my children's school. I want them to be gun free zones, and if school districts and the government can find money to put an armed guard in my school then they can certainly find the money to put the counselors and psychologists back into the schools so young people don't reach their 20's before someone starts questioning their behavior. The NRA wants a data base of "mentally ill" people what right do you have to make a data base of people with a medical problem when you oppose a data base of people who own weapons. You want a data base then pass a law that says if you want to own a gun you get a license, and just like a drivers license you have to take and pass a test before you get it proving you have a clue about the laws around guns and that you can operate the stupid thing, and that you understand how to store and secure them when they are in your home and your possession. You want to own an assault weapon in case of the zombie Apocalypse( because I see no other use for them) then you get an additional endorsement on the license. To the NRA do a quick Google search and you will find that there was a mass killing on a military base, having good guys armed will not prevent a mentally unstable person from killing, any more than making weapons illegal will. We need to deal with the issues that make them think that a murder suicide is their only way out.We need an open debate on this and one that does not start with either "take all the guns" or " you can have my gun when you pry it from my cold dead hand". What is it going to take, a shooting at a school where the armed guard is the first one taken out, duh even I know that is going to be the plan.
It is time for new gun control laws and yes laws will not prevent someone from doing something evil but it will make access more difficult. Honestly do you really feel safe with Walmart selling assault style rifles, you want to sell you get a license every associate who works in that section gets trained on how to talk to someone who wants to buy a gun. You want to sell at a gun show get a license. You want a gun register it just like I register my car,
The loudest voices in this debate should be the responsible gun owners, you should be shouting for ways to make sure irresponsible people never have easy access to a weapon, and stop complaining about the fact that when irresponsible people do get access you get blamed. Of course you get blamed, when we are shocked and hurt we lash out. In the same way you blame my liberal thoughts for the same tragedy. How are we supposed to know that your facebook ranting isn't going to turn you into the next lunatic with a weapon?
I understand that some will not like this, it is not a personal attack. I grew up with weapons in my house and enough rifles at my high school to deal with the invasion in Red Dawn (they wouldn't have made it out of the parking lot let alone into the city), but now it is time to deal with this issue to really talk and really listen.

The indoctrination speech that wasn't

OK, I wanted this to be about everyday joys but something has been going on that is making me angry and confused. So here goes. Please remember as you read the following that I am a liberal Democrat, mom of 2 who are currently waiting for school to begin while our teachers strike.

President Obama addressed the nation's school children today. We have known this was coming and since it was first announced conservatives have been saying that children should not be made to listen to the speech because it is President Obama indoctrinating our children into his socialist agenda. This viral completely inaccurate statement perpetuated by the idiotic ramblings of people like Glenn Beck prompted the White House to release the text of the speech prior to the president giving it. In all of the ramblings not one of them had even seen what the speech was about, and since they had no facts they did what seems to be their forte, they made up facts.

The speech was wonderful, telling students to not decide you are a failure or that it is OK to fail because of your life circumstances. That is an indoctrination that I give my children all of the time. He said giving up on yourself was giving up on your country. How can we even begin to argue about this when we ask our children everyday to pledge allegiance to that same country. Pledging and allegiance without understanding what it means IS indoctrination. Yet if I were to ask that my child be allowed to leave the classroom during this I am considered a bad parent and un-American and a few other things that I don't believe should be written.

Our teachers are on strike now taking a stand for our children in our district, asking for more time with the students and smaller classes. Other districts think that telling children that what the leader of their nation has to say is somehow bad is taking a stand for the children, it is not, it is using the children as a political pawn.

The Arlington Texas school district elected not to show the speech. A parent even handed out fliers at his child's school telling parents to oppose children watching the speech. After the parent watched the speech he admitted that there was no socialist indoctrination in the speech. Maybe waiting until you have information and facts before speaking is a lesson that he and his child can learn together. The Arlington District on the other hand, I believe, is a lost cause, they stopped students from listening to The President of the United States, but will be busing 5th and 6th graders to Dallas Cowboy Stadium to listen to former President Bush. Where is the copy of the speech he will give, and are provisions being made for parents to opt out of that one?

Learning about our government and that you have a right to disagree with what is said should be in every school curriculum. Learning that a few loud mouth people get to make policy for everyone should never be part of the curriculum.

So my soapbox rantings are over, I expect that many will disagree with me, possibly even those in my own family, and I welcome that as long as they are respectful of my right to have my opinion.

A Busy Weekend

We had a very busy weekend as a family. On Wednesday we took our 2 daughters to my sisters house to stay for a few days. They were very excited about this because my sisters dog had just had puppies and they could not wait to see and hold the puppies. They had a great time they went fishing for the first time each catching 2 fish. They held the puppies and decided on names for them. They came home from their weekend at Aunt Kandi and Uncle Michaels excited, happy, tired and dirty. What more could you want for your children. While the girls were at their Aunts house Chris and I went to Northern Idaho for our nephew Josh' high school graduation. We are very proud of him he worked hard and graduated with and Advanced Diploma. This means he took and passed AP classes. We also went with Josh and his mom the next morning to his college orientation. He will be attending North Idaho college in the fall with the hopes of becoming an architect in the future.
This high school graduation was most likely like many others that same weekend. Chris and I talked about how it made us remember what we had thought and felt on that day so long ago when we graduated.
The long drive aside this was a good weekend we were able to connect with family and our girls were given a chance to build more of a relationship with their aunt and uncle. They are ready to head back. We on the other hand need a couple of days to recover.

A Wonderful Book

I just finished reading "things i want my daughters to know" by Elizabeth Noble. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. The book is about a mother dying of cancer and the letters and journal she left her daughters to tell them things she wanted them to remember and to know. I worried that this would be to sad for me to read because my mom had died of cancer, and I have been known to cry at the drop of a hat as my dad was fond of saying. I found in it though strength, love and somehow joy. The strength that it takes to go on when someone that important in your life leaves you. There is no way to be prepared for this because there is no way to know what it will feel like or when it will sneak up on you and hit you. Each page showed the love this mother had for her daughters, even as she admitted to making mistakes in raising them, or in the way she dealt with her own life. The most surprising part was the joy. The joy of remembering and of being able to go on with your life. This is something that I am learning more and more. Right after you lose someone you feel guilty when you are joyful in time though you begin to remember the joy that person gave you and realize that living your life with joy celebrates that person.

I hope you get the chance to read this novel and I hope you find something in it that speaks to you the way that I did.

Wonder Stitches

I have been crocheting for most of my life. Like most I started making chain stitch bracelets and have since graduated to many other things. I love to make different things but lately I have been making amigurumi animals and finding it so much fun. Each one is small and less than 50 rows of stitches but it is fun to watch as a blob of stitches turns into an elephant or a crocodile with just a few more stitches. I am enjoying sharing photos of my creations with my friends and family through my ETSY and PLAXO site. My children enjoy them as well but there is one person that I wish each day that I could share them with. That is my Mom. She is the one who patiently taught me those first chain stitches. She was also an avid crocheter and famous for her beautiful baby blankets. These small things make me miss her so much. I will continue to stitch for my own sanity and as a way to honor my mom and the things that she taught me.

This week

This has been a busy week at our house, soccer has started again, which meant a trip in to find new soccer cleats, the ones we bought for last season were way to small. Luckily we were able to pass them to a friend on Hailey's team. Then there was the Ridgewood Talent Show, sorry you missed it. There is some outstanding talent in this school. Caitlin and Hailey were in it together performing a small song that Caitlin had written, called Snooty French Dog. Caitlin was so nervous, she told us it took a lot of courage to get up there and perform something that she had written. I am very proud of her for that and of Hailey for helping her with it and supporting her. We have resigned out lease here and one of the main reasons was the school that the girls are in. There school is wonderful and has many programs for them. It also has an active PTA that helps support the teachers and bring in many programs for the students. Chris and I have talked about moving many times but it would be hard to replace the wonderful people at this school. When the girls are off on their own and we don't have to worry so much about where they will go to school, then we will decide where we want to move to, we may just end up staying here who knows. Living where we do has certainly proved to me that it is not the type of house you live in but the people that you surround yourself with. Our girls have made wonderful friendships here and so have Chris and I, Honestly what more could we ask for in a home.

Amazing Week

My family has had an amazing week and it is only Tuesday. Saturday we went to a wonderful concert at the Kirkland Performing Arts center. We were privileged to watch and listen to Mary Youngblood, a two time Grammy award winning Native American Flute artist. We were treated to music by her and her cellist and with stories from her childhood. These stories resonated with me because they could have been my childhood. Spending summers studying jars filled with tad poles. Having blackberry stained fingers from eating blackberries warmed by the sun. The music is that kind of music that speaks to everything inside of you. It makes your heart soar and all of your feelings come alive. We were treated to duets with friends of Mary Youngblood, including Gary Stroutsos. The concert also included Eric Tingstad, an incredible guitar player. Eric played with an ensemble that including his partner Nancy Rumble, on the oboe and French horn. They played music from their album Southwest. Again music that inspires you to want to see the southwest and to learn to play music. It inspired me to pick up my flute again.
Sunday we got up and went to the Kent School District Clothing bank to help out. We were part of a large group of volunteers that included Hailey's Brownie Troop. We had a good time as a family working to help others in our community.
Monday came and the girls had the day off from school, so we had another day together. That brings us to Tuesday. We kept the girls home from school for an extra half hour and watched the inauguration of our new president. Last year we took them out of school for a day to watch hime when he came to Seattle it seemed only appropriate to keep them home to watch the culmination of all of it.

This has been a celebration of music and new beginnings for our family and we are looking forward to what else is coming.