Friday Fragments

Friday Fragments are bits and pieces of your week that are usually brief; too short for a stand-alone post, but too good to discard. Collect humorous observations, "Heard" items, and other small gems and put them together in a Friday Fragments post.

Friday Fragments are the brainchild of Mrs.4444 and you can find more at Half Past Kissin' Time.


~ Are you reading ZooBorns? It is THE go-to source for pictures of baby animals that will make you feel awesome and smile even when it's not the best day. This week there were some really good ones, including one of my favorite animals ever, the pygmy marmoset.


~ Last night Justin and I went and saw "It's Kind of a Funny Story." It was a really good movie. Sometimes everything in movies seems incredibly contrived, and every once in a while it's nice to go see one that seems a little bit closer to something that could actually happen. It was a NICE movie, sure there is subject matter in it (depression/mental illness) that is sad, but all in all it was an uplifting movie about figuring out how to live your life and appreciate what you've got. Zach Galifianakis is in it, and even though he appears as hilarious and quirky in movies like The Hangover, he plays serious so well and his character was wonderful. I'd highly recommend this one to just about anyone.

~ So we are in the midst of potty training AND sleep training all at once. Our house is just a big ball of fun these days... Sam's teachers are wonderful and asked us to start sending him to preschool in underpants so they could help and so we started wearing underpants at home during the day. So far, he is still mostly having accidents, but we've got our fingers crossed. And despite the fact that experts say one thing at a time, we are also trying to get Sam out of our bed. With him it seems the best way is laying down the law. So, it's cut off cold turkey. He can either sleep in our bed, or we've set up a crib sized mattress in our room on the floor and he can sleep there if he gets too scared/lonely, but not in our bed. Danny also slept a good portion of the night in the bassinet last night so Justin and I actually had the bed all to ourselves! YAY!

~ Danny started eating actual FOOD this week. We started Sam on rice cereal at 4 months, and Danny is 5 months as of last Sunday. Man, was he ready! He ate like a champ even the first time and now after less than a week of 1-2 times a day feedings he is keeping almost all the food in his mouth and is a super eater. So far we've been giving him oatmeal and he's had that mixed with bananas as well. He is spitting up less and sleeping better at night since he started food, so we're pretty happy. I had worried it might make his constipation worse, but so far so good on that front. Well, as good as it can be - there are still issues, but it's not making anything worse. Here are a couple shots of him enjoying his first baby oatmeal meal.







More photos of this and other random October adventures are here.

~ I posted on Tuesday seeking advice about getting my first DSLR camera. I got some great feedback and am planning a followup post soon with the great tips that people gave me. I've created a wish list on Amazon and am SO excited about finally learning more about photography! Now I've just got to be patient, I'm going to be asking for contributions to this as part of my birthday and Christmas gifts from family and we'll have to see what I can afford after that.

~ Recently, there has been an awful epidemic of teens committing suicide partially as a result of anti-gay bullying. It absolutely breaks my heart that these kids are being made to feel worthless for what they are, or what they are perceived to be. These are our CHILDREN, they are young children, and they need to know that this is not how life is going to be. We need to support these kids. If you haven't heard of the It Gets Better Project, you should check it out. What is it? From the website:

Many LGBT youth can't picture what their lives might be like as openly gay adults. They can't imagine a future for themselves. So let's show them what our lives are like, let's show them what the future may hold in store for them.

Justin Aeberg. Billy Lucas. Cody Barker. Asher Brown. Seth Walsh. Tyler Clementi. All the names of American teenagers who in recent months have taken their own lives after being bullied in school.

For too long, LGBT youth have been forced to struggle through their formative years suffering from bullies in their schools, churches and homes — and with no support system to provide them any help.

Noted writer and media pundit Dan Savage founded the It Gets Better Project in September 2010 as a unique way for supporters everywhere to tell LGBT Youth that — it gets better.

Closed-minded school administrators and parents may not let LGBT adults talk directly to their children about their futures, but we don’t have to get permission to tell kids that life gets better. That’s why we’re compiling a video archive to share the stories of people overcoming bullying and finding happiness.

ItGetsBetterProject.com is a place where young people who are gay, lesbian, bi, or trans can see with their own eyes how love and happiness can be a reality in their future. It’s a place where LGBT adults can share the stories of their lives, and straight allies can add their names in solidarity and help spread our message of hope.

How You Can Get Involved

Many LGBT youth can't picture what their lives might be like as openly gay adults. They can't imagine a future for themselves. So let's show them what our lives are like, let's show them what the future can hold in store for them.

They need to know that it gets better. Submit a video now. Give them hope.

I've watched several of the videos. I love Tim Gunn, he made this video:



But the best I've seen so far was this video of Fort Worth City Council Member Joel Burns. It is heartbreaking and incredibly touching. It's long, but worth the watch.



~ Speaking of all the bullying etc, this post from Maria at Immoral Matriarch says it pretty well. As parents, we need to make sure that we are talking to our children, not assuming they know, teaching them right from wrong and setting the example.

~ I arranged some things for my birthday weekend. I told Justin what I wanted this year was a weekend for myself. We're going on a dinner cruise on Thanksgiving to celebrate the holiday and my Mother in Law's 60th birthday with family, then we'll spend the night at her house. Friday I'll head to Seattle and Justin and the kids will stay there to keep visiting. One night I'll have to myself, and stay in a hotel and the other I'll have a girls night out birthday dinner with my friends and stay at my best friend's house. I am SO looking forward to this...

~ Here's a random shot of one of my favorite areas in my house. This is the dining room and the doorway into the TV/toy room. The top half is my photo wall - one of the first things I did when we moved in. The bottom half is Sam's art gallery where we hang art he brings home from school. I rotate as new stuff comes home.



Hope you all had a wonderful week, and have a great weekend!