I have loved Shania Twain since I first heard her song "Any Man of Mine" as a teenager. I loved the sassiness of that song and only grew to love her more as she released a series of albums full of love songs and girl power anthems. She was the first artist I went to see in concert and the woman puts on an amazing show.
I have missed her the last few years while she's been out of the spotlight dealing with things in her personal life. I am so glad she's back with an awesome new single (see below) and the announcement she'll be headlining a show at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. I have never had a desire to go to Vegas before, but with that announcement it moved to the top of my list!
If you haven't watched her docuseries on the OWN Network, "Why Not? with Shania Twain," I highly recommend it. With everything that's been going on in my personal life lately, I could relate to her journey and she truly gave me hope for the future.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Eye to the Telescope (Music Monday on a Tuesday because it feels like Monday)
I know this album has been out for quite a while (like years), but lately I have been obsessed with K.T. Tunstall's Eye to the Telescope.
Every.
Single.
Song.
The lyrics, the music, her voice. Perfection. I highly suggest you check it out...
Every.
Single.
Song.
The lyrics, the music, her voice. Perfection. I highly suggest you check it out...
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Wealth
"There are all kinds of wealth, and while everybody needs to make a living, it’s really poetry that makes me a rich man." - David Kirby, poet and professor at Florida State University
What makes your life richer?
What makes your life richer?
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Thoughts on 30
Top 10 moments of my twenties…
1. The birth of my first daughter, Evelyn Grace (7/31/2008)
2. The birth of my second daughter, Darcy Elizabeth (3/4/2011)
3. Saying “I do” to my husband (11/8/2003)
4. Blake asking me to marry him (5/17/2002)
5. Graduating cum laude from Florida State (5/2/2003)
6. Buying my first new car (10/2007)
7. Buying our first house (7/1/2005)
8. Visiting Disney World with Blake (12/5-9/2009)
9. Starting my first “real” job (Florida Department of State, 7/1/2005)
10. Buying our dream home (4/17/2009)
Top 10 plans and dreams for my thirties…
1. Watching my daughters grow and change
2. Celebrating 10 years of marriage (and 20 years of being a couple)
3. Exploring new career opportunities
4. Possibly living in a new city and discovering its personality and hidden gems
5. Family vacations and getaways with my husband and sisters
6. Finishing my first novel (hopefully!)
7. Learning Spanish and brushing up on my French
8. Visiting New York City and, with any luck, Italy and/or France
9. Owning a car that can accommodate a family of four and all of our stuff on a road trip
10. Planting an herb and vegetable garden and keeping it alive for more than a month
1. The birth of my first daughter, Evelyn Grace (7/31/2008)
2. The birth of my second daughter, Darcy Elizabeth (3/4/2011)
3. Saying “I do” to my husband (11/8/2003)
4. Blake asking me to marry him (5/17/2002)
5. Graduating cum laude from Florida State (5/2/2003)
6. Buying my first new car (10/2007)
7. Buying our first house (7/1/2005)
8. Visiting Disney World with Blake (12/5-9/2009)
9. Starting my first “real” job (Florida Department of State, 7/1/2005)
10. Buying our dream home (4/17/2009)
Top 10 plans and dreams for my thirties…
1. Watching my daughters grow and change
2. Celebrating 10 years of marriage (and 20 years of being a couple)
3. Exploring new career opportunities
4. Possibly living in a new city and discovering its personality and hidden gems
5. Family vacations and getaways with my husband and sisters
6. Finishing my first novel (hopefully!)
7. Learning Spanish and brushing up on my French
8. Visiting New York City and, with any luck, Italy and/or France
9. Owning a car that can accommodate a family of four and all of our stuff on a road trip
10. Planting an herb and vegetable garden and keeping it alive for more than a month
Monday, May 9, 2011
Friday, May 6, 2011
Will reading Pooh give your daughter an inferiority complex?
I read an article this week about a study that found a bias toward male leads in 20th century children's books. The study found that this bias was even worse when the characters were animals. The study's author, Janice McCabe, an assistant professor of sociology at Florida State University, concludes that:
"The widespread pattern of underrepresentation of females that we find supports the belief that female characters are less important and interesting than male characters. This may contribute to a sense of unimportance among girls and privilege among boys. The gender inequalities we found may be particularly powerful because they are reinforced by patterns of male-dominated characters in many other aspects of children’s media, including cartoons, G-rated films, video games and even coloring books.”
As a mother of two young girls, this got me to thinking about the books I read to them. While some of them seem fairly gender neutral ("Goodnight Moon," "The Sneetches" and "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" by Dr. Suess, "The Very Hungry Catepillar"), my daughter's favorites, "Llama Llama Red Pajama" and "Winnie the Pooh," are definitely dominated by male characters. Even her favorite television show, "Go Diego Go," has a male lead.
I consider myself very much a feminist and feel that women's contributions to this world are every bit as important as men's. So, since I know for a fact that my own parents read many of the same books to me that I read to my daughters (that is why I picked most of them), are the findings of this study bogus? Am I just an exception to the rule? What is your opinion? What are some of your favorite female leads?
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| Photo credit |
(You can read the full article here.)
As a mother of two young girls, this got me to thinking about the books I read to them. While some of them seem fairly gender neutral ("Goodnight Moon," "The Sneetches" and "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" by Dr. Suess, "The Very Hungry Catepillar"), my daughter's favorites, "Llama Llama Red Pajama" and "Winnie the Pooh," are definitely dominated by male characters. Even her favorite television show, "Go Diego Go," has a male lead.
So my question is, does this really matter? Will reading too many male dominated books and watching too many male dominated shows really make her feel less important than her male cohorts?
When I think on my own reading and viewing history, I am struck by how many strong female leads there are in my favorite books, shows and movies: Elizabeth Bennett in "Pride and Prejudice" and Anne Shirley in "Anne of Green Gables"; Sidney Bristow in "Alias" and Buffy in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"; Danielle de Barbarac in "Ever After" and Miranda Priestly in "The Devil Wears Prada" (to name a few).
I consider myself very much a feminist and feel that women's contributions to this world are every bit as important as men's. So, since I know for a fact that my own parents read many of the same books to me that I read to my daughters (that is why I picked most of them), are the findings of this study bogus? Am I just an exception to the rule? What is your opinion? What are some of your favorite female leads?
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