About Me

I'm a "deep fried" mama for two reasons: one, I grew up in the South, and two, my three wonderful kids leave me feeling that way a lot of the time! If you feel that way too, then this blog's for you!

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Character Counts

"Character counts" was a favorite phrase for adults to use when I was growing up. I didn't understand for a long time what "character" really meant. I think of it now as being honorable, having integrity, and thinking of others when we make decisions about how to behave in life. 


This morning, one of my Facebook friends, a friend from high school, posted this photo:





I don't normally engage in political discussions on the Faceplace, because it's just not productive, for reasons I'll describe below. This photo, though, really got me agitated. As much as I haven't liked certain Presidents, I wouldn't call them the "s" word, as my kids refer to it. I said as much on my friend's FB page. She replied, "Freedom of speech is very powerful!!" Yes, yes it is. When freedom of speech involves character assassination of our nation's leader, it's very powerful and very damaging to the strength of that nation. Lincoln himself said, "A nation divided against itself cannot stand." The problems that we face as a country--education, health care, unemployment, just to name a few--cannot possibly be solved by one political party or another. Creative and innovative solutions, which are clearly required, can only come from thoughtful discussion of these issues that involves people with different points of view.

Sunday, January 1, 2012

A new day, a new year, a new beginning. My babies all stayed up to ring in the new year last night--that's the first time we've all made it to midnight together. We spent the night with friends at their home, and put the kids all in one bed. They all fell asleep within a few minutes of each other, and I had the immeasurable joy of watching them all sleep near one another. Their little faces become so soft and gooey in sleep that you feel your everyday worried self take a vacation while watching them.