Baking bread, bettering bipartisanship

I'm currently waiting for my banana bread to finish baking, so I thought I'd take a minute (or 55 at 350 degrees) and jot some thoughts down. 

The Supreme Court ruled on healthcare today. Not surprisingly, it was a subject of much debate over the last year and a hot topic for discussion this week.  But regardless of what you think of the ruling and/or the Justices personally, I'd like to broach a larger thematic topic: Principles, rather than parties.

  

See, regardless of who is President or which majority party controls Congress, the American people feel that it is the role of the government to fix the problems of the nation.  They will demand that Congress fixes everything. Then, when little change happens, the people place the responsibility on the President to fix the problems. When that also fails to solve everything, the people turn to the last branch: the Judiciary. Yet when they are unsatisfied with a ruling and seek to overturn it by appealing to Congress. And the cycle begins again.  Parties might want to blame each other and swing the pendulum of power back over to their side by claiming the ability and know-how to fix all of America's problems, but in the end the parties each want the same thing: control of the three branches of government.  Neither the Democrat nor the Republican parties can ever be in complete control for longer than a decade, the Constitution prohibits such a thing. So why not try an approach that will have a longer, more lasting impact?

There is one source of information that I think (and my mentor has repeatedly suggested) is overlooked is Academia. It is the professors that can influence the largest number of people, for the greatest good, over the longest period of time. Everyone sends their children to school, telling them to "go learn something". But what are the children learning about their country, their government, and their obligations and options as citizens? It's the teachers that are able to impact the next generation by teaching them the principles on which our country was founded. With the tried and tested principles firmly in place, the next generation can govern themselves and change the world for the better.  Professors and mentors in Academia have the opportunity to teach the rising generation of inquiring minds each side of an argument and let the students reason out their own opinions and ideas.  By giving the students the tools they need to study things out in their minds, and apply the knowledge they've gained to better society, we are able safely assume that the next generation will be able to preserve the principles that were cherished by previous generations. Therefore, equipping the future leaders of the country with the ability to balance self-interest with virtue will not only empower the the individual, but better the communities and countries in which they live.  All this is best nurtured within Academia.

If I were a professor, I'd want to make sure that my students not only knew the material presented to them, but also understood why they should even care.  What good is teaching a topic, if the students can only regurgitate the information back to the teacher? A far better approach, I think, is to put the responsibility on them to tell me how they would apply the knowledge gained to a real-life problem.  Then education means more than just books and papers, tests and tuition. It means learning how to think, reason, and above all, to not throw out an opinion to anyone who would listen before carefully studing out the many different sides of a particular argument.  The classic principle of preparation before presenting an idea or opinion should be taught.  It's easy for someone to tell you how they feel about a certain topic, political or otherwise, it is much more difficult to get someone to tell you why they feel that way and what evidence they have to back it up.  Even more difficult is getting someone to tell you what they are going to do about it.  I hope to one day have the opportunity to impact the rising generation, whether they by my own children or someone else's, for good. Even if I have to force them to do something that is uncomfortable, such as using their own brains to find out information, and not just accepting what the media or anyone else says as fact. :-)

Well, the timer just beeped. Time to end this discussion, bring out the baked goods, and then go to bed.

Thanks for putting up with my political musings.  While politics will never go away, we can arm ourselves against the confusion through education.  I'm so grateful that I live in a country where people can disagree without fear, without bloodshed, and without lifelong dictators.  I can rest easy knowing that so long as the American people are willing to uphold the Constitution, nothing will jeopardize the people's right and privilege to become a more perfect union. 

Life... as it's blogged

We're three weeks away from our son's Grand Entrance. The girls are learning more everyday (read, learning how to create havoc more effectively). My husband is three-fourths wonderful, and one-fourth frustratingly annoying. My part-time job is part dream come true and part gray-hair inducing. My house is affectionally known as "organized chaos".  I generally refer to myself as a well-put-together-insane woman. This is my life: a balance of polar opposites. Like eating ice cream while drinking hot chocolate. Not much to blog (or brag) about, but it is nice to update occasionally. :-)

Spring is in session

Some people know it's spring by the warm weather, others by the official "Day of Spring" on the calendar. My girls know spring is upon us by a much more nature-inspired method. They have named all flowering trees "popcorn trees", because the white blossoms look like balls of popcorn. As we drive by the newly-budding trees, they will shout from the backseat, "Pink popcorn tree!" or "Look Mom! More popcorn trees!"

Since the last post, we've found out that we have a healthy boy arriving in July! Paradigm shifts seem to be a common occurrence in our family. As soon as we get really good at pink, Princesses, and sparkles, God sends us a boy. (I think my husband needed an excuse to play with small cars and trucks again.)

Figuring out the ins and outs of my new job has been a challenge, but I really enjoy the people I work with, the environment, and the opportunities and possibilities it presents. Not many people get the opportunity to hand pick their mentors, but working alongside my mentor (who came into my life by the grace of God) is equal parts intimating and empowering. He is a master of clear expectations and goals, and expects our very best in all aspects of our work. He also balances approachability with the ability to listen, guide, teach, and inspire.

More than ever now, my thoughts have turned towards academia and the great opportunities there to help the greatest number of people better society. Dedication to greater causes is what makes academia flourish where business, governments, and ideologies fail. Dedication to time-tested principles make way for individuals and societies that are revered and emulated. Ideology changes with each generation, but the principles remain the same. We need a world that focuses less on the hows of ideas and more of the whys of the principles that work. It will take years, but eventually I hope that I will be able to empower my own students as my mentor has empowered and inspired me.

I love this rebirth and renewal time of year. Possibilities are endless and whatever life chooses to throw at me and my family, I feel confident that we'll be able to overcome anything... not just survive, but thrive.

Romance Requirements with Offspring

Since having kids, my husband and I rarely celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14th. While he's still thoughtful enough to get me flowers or chocolate/caramel on the official day, we usually go out the weekend before or after to accommodate our schedule and the babysitter's availability. The kids also get a treat and heart-shaped pancakes, but I try to take one day to celebrate the couple who was here before the kids showed up.

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt."

Charles M. Schulz

"I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon. " ~Author Unknown

New Year, New Possibilities

Hello Everyone!

It's been a while, and I hope you all had fantastic holidays, and that you are getting used to writing 2012!

Several new shifts and changes have occurred in our family within the last months:

First off, we are pregnant with our third child and I'm officially in my second trimester! It has a been a bit of a roller coaster these last few months as we struggled to wrap our heads around the reality of being parents of three kids.

Second, my kids are starting pre-preschool and Pre-K programs this week, in an effort to prepare them for school before they start Preschool and Kindergarten programs next fall.

Third, I will be switching my evening part-time job with another part-time day job (hence the reason why the kids are in school). While this is a wonderful opportunity to finally use both my experience and my education, it still requires schedule juggling and logistical tweaking. So trying to get all the ducks in a row to make this work will be a bit of a hassle for the first week or so, but then it should work out nicely.

Lastly, my husband is trying to expand his sphere of influence by broadening his design capabilities and market. He hopes to eventually produce and sell his own designs and products that will elevate his name into larger designer circles.

These changes will better our family, but they also require a significant amount of coordination with a dash of insanity. However, we are blessed with these opportunities and look forward to this next stage in our lives!

Grateful for a paradigm shift

Happy Thanksgiving!
I'm attempting to rearrange my life so that I'll be able to do the things I need to do, while at the same time, be able to do the things I would like to do.   So my husband and I have sat down and prioritized our  obligations and our grand ideas and I think we've come up with a few ideas to make everything work.

For instance, I'm going to get everything done that I need to in the mornings, thus leaving my afternoons to relax and play with the kids. Evenings will be family time (unless I'm working), and weekends will be spent looking for houses and going on family outings.  Work-out times will be scheduled in the mornings (I'm thinking I'd like to do water aerobics again) at 8:30 am after we drop Chris off at work.  That will give me enough time to fit that in, and still go about the rest of the day.

Anyways, we're also looking into getting the girls bunk-beds for Christmas so I can take down their toddler beds. So looking into the types of bunk beds that the girls would need (and also making sure that the beds convert into two twin size beds) has become next on the to-do-list.

Our family has many changes to look forward to, but they are all good changes. Furthermore, these shifts in the status quo can only be good for the kids as they experience changes in school and other areas starting next year.  It will also force me to focus on prioritizing, so I don't push the family too hard, but also effectively manage our time during the week.

I hope that everyone will have a great Thanksgiving and wish us luck as we attempt to navigate through this new paradigm shift!

Domicile Discussion

Hello!
Since Halloween, I have decided that I would like to buy a house for my little family by Spring 2013.  I don't yet know which neighborhoods as of yet, but I do know that I would like at least three bedrooms, and 1100 square feet.  I'm flexible with floor plans, however, my husband and I are torn between buying a cheaper fixer-upper or to buy a more expensive newer home that needs little in terms of repairs.  We of course want to save money, but we would also like to make the best decision for our future, even if that means no longer renting.
Any thoughts?  We're obviously new to this process and want to avoid the pitfalls that happen to first-time homebuyers, but because we're not in any rush to buy a house, I think we'll be able to find the location and style of house that gives us the biggest bang for our buck sometime in the next six to nine months.  In the meantime, I would welcome any advice and suggestions.  Thanks!