Sunday Blogaround- 4.21.13

Hello, lovely readers! And welcome to another edition of the blogaround!

This was a sad week, and a confusing week, and a long week.  I hope you found as much good in it as you did bad. Here is something to help get through until the next week has ended, and then the next, and so on.

All my love,
-L



"Little Mean Girls" - The Writer Revived
What a difficult situation. I think the advice that Elizabeth gave her four year old was wonderful. I think that voicing what behavior actually is ("You're not being nice, I don't want to play with you.") is a great way to handle things. Unfortunately, these sorts of interactions are just more complicated than that. I hope things improve at preschool.


"No Place to Lay His Head: Jesus the Homeless Statue Rejected" - #occupythebible
Okay, I know you might find it weird that I'm posting about Christian blogs, but hear me out. There are a lot of elements of the story of Jesus that have always held appeal. The idea of a man who dedicates his life and death to promoting and assisting the most downtrodden in society... that is something I can get behind. I think this statue sounds both moving and honest, and I would love to see this characterization of Jesus take over from the "Family Values" rhetoric that gets shouted around much more audibly.


"By Trying to Get It Half Right, the BSA Gets It All Wrong" - Ask Your Dad
The Boy Scouts of America came up with a new LGBT policy. And if you want to know what it is, John has a pretty good grasp on the subject.


"Mama's Going Back to Work" - Urban Moo Cow
Deb has a new job, and she's excited. Not just to be working, but because of the frustrations of identifying yourself as a person with career ambitions and daily responsibilities when you are a "stay at home mom."


"Things could be so much worse, that's for damn sure" - Finally Mom
Here in Chicago, we've had some pretty epic flooding. The soccer fields on the Midway, near my house, are lakes with nets peeking out. Finally Mom's street? It's underwater.


"I'm Okay With That" - Mobyjoe Cafe
There are a lot of ways to look at what happened in Boston on Patriot's Day, but this is one of my favorites. Give yourself a little bit of perspective on yourself, and be grateful.


"Today I Am Sad" - Making It Work Mom
I've read lots of posts by Bostonians in reaction to the attack on the marathon. Angry posts, hopeful posts, confused posts... this was the one I thought was the most honest and real. It's worth reading a couple of times.


"Why Dove’s 'Real Beauty Sketches' Video Makes Me Uncomfortable… and Kind of Makes Me Angry" - little drops
I saw the video. I watched it through, to the end. On the one hand, I was moved to tears, but it was with sadness. The whole time I watched, I kept waiting to feel uplifted... but the feeling never came. Jazz put her finger on it- the whole message... while well meaning, it's sort of off. And this is why.


"Conundrum" - Dad of the Decade
Ben is closing in on the deadline for his fundraising. If you haven't heard his story, click through his links. Learn about Relay for Life, and DEFINITELY send his team a few bucks.

"I broke his cheese in half"

Also- a GIANT shoutout to Reasons My Son is Crying. If you haven't seen it by now, you should, and here's why. This blog is two weeks old. That's right, two weeks old. And it has dozens of posts, and is 100% hilarious. But that's not why it's important. It's important because this is a normal, generally well tempered toddler. But like all toddlers, he is prone to melodrama. Now, lots and lots of parents, when their kid cries over NOTHING over and over again, they get frustrated. They get angry. They get exhausted. They feel... like maybe they're doing something wrong. Not this parent. Instead of figuring out what could be the matter with a toddler who's acting, let's face it, like a toddler, instead they post these pictures, hour after hour, day after day, showing how absurd toddlers are. How silly their anguish can be. This isn't about a kid who is fundamentally sad, it's about a parent coping with a toddler with humor and levity. And for that, I salute them.