Blog Hopping

I’ve come full circle in my attempts to figure out my blogging style.  I’m going back to my first and original blog.  KISS-keep it simple stupid… right?  so if you are a friend, reader… you can find my blogging updates in the future at my family blog:

www.brighamandkarmel.wordpress.com

I’ll try to stay there with just one blog so as to not confuse the matter any further.  Merry Christmas!

Family Work & Fall Leaves

After our November American Mothers meeting, one of our presenters, Tamara, posted to our AMI blog a fantastic article on family work and it’s importance.  Here’s a link so you can have a look-it is sooooo worth your time to stop and read for a few minutes!  FAMILY WORK (read it-read it-read it)

Here’s the family raking a few leaves yesterday.  Brigham saw a professional leaf removal crew using this method of dumping the leaves into buckets and stomping them down prior to dumping into leaf bags.  We tried it and it is an amazing trick-and lots of fun too!  We love our family work time!  Check out my family blog for more photos.

American Mothers November Meeting Notes

Here are some things that we talked about at our November meeting: (thanks Danielle for the great post to our AMI BLOG!)

-Rachelle is starting a White Ribon Week at her school. Yeah! She got a standing ovation from all of us there.

-We had three new members come and receive orientation binders.  Welcome!

Sack Lunch Ideas

Last night my ward had an enrichment night on sack lunch ideas.  Here are the notes from the meeting.

A few things to consider…

• Will they have a microwave?
• What can they open? (Paper bag, lunchbox, Tupperware?, Thermos?)
• What can they eat? (Choking hazard? Allergies?)
• Are you looking for… health? Convenience? Saving money?

Presentation

• Smaller can be easier to eat; less intimidating (Can I eat that WHOLE apple?)
• Orange cut up “soccer mom” style
• Ants on a log: celery, peanut butter, raisins
• Carrot curls (after the peel comes off, keep peeling and pile the peels into a baggie-great option for braces)
• Peanut butter in apple core
• Cut out sandwich with cookie cutter (special occasions)

Freedom of Choice Act

Thanks to my good friends, Ingrid and Michelle, for both sending me information on FOCA.  I do like Obama’s energy and charisma, but his liberal views scare me just a bit.  I’m very concerned about how the tides will turn with abortion beginning January 20th.  Follow the link below and let your voice be heard to support Life!

For those of you who don’t know… the Freedom of
Choice Act (FOCA) is a piece of federal legislation that
would effectively eliminate every and all bans on abortion,
nationwide. This includes parental notification and
partial-birth abortion. The FOCA even leaves the door open
for legalizing live-birth abortions. President-elect Obama
has made it clear that one of the first things he intends to
do as president is sign the FOCA, (see the following link
for more info). Please take the time to go to the website
below and sign the petition to fight this act.
http://www.fightfoca.com/

Take action against “Zac and Miri Make a Porno” in local family theaters

Action Alert from the Communities For Decency Website:

Speak Out Against Zack and Miri Ask your local theater to remove this movie from their lineup!

As you may already be aware, a movie recently released, “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” is in theaters throughout the state.  As a result of the controversy that the title has raised, the title has been modified to “Zack and Miri.”

This film was originally deemed as an NC-17 film and was to be restricted from local theaters as an NC-17, but was reduced to an “R” rating by the persuasion of the director without any editing or censorships to scenes.

PTC Ranks the Broadcast TV Shows Children Watch Most

Yesterday the Parents Television Council released its annual ranking of the 20 most popular prime time broadcast television shows among children ages 2-17 based on Nielsen Media Research data. Reality and game shows continue to grow in popularity and are often the most family-friendly fare for children to watch. Each of the Nielsen top 20 ranked shows with children ages 2-17 was rated according to its suitability for that audience based on the presence of foul language, sexual content and violence, along with the overall themes of each program. It’s impossible for the networks to ignore that reality shows centered on charity, talent, or just wholesome fun rather than ruthless competition, seem to win ratings-wise as well as with family audiences. Unfortunately, the networks are still failing to meet the demand for programs that the entire family can watch together; and scripted programs have all but disappeared from our list of recommended entertainment choices. With the growth of contest-driven shows, the networks appear to be pandering to a lower level by pushing the limits of what’s appropriate. Parents should be wary of new offerings such as Fox’s Moment of Truth which incentivizes contestants to reveal salacious truths about their past that often devastate their friends and family members. Fox’s Hell’s Kitchen is another example of a reality program that kids should avoid; the show is replete with foul language and abusive remarks directed at the aspiring chefs. Still, neither of these programs holds a candle to Fox’s Family Guy. The animated series naturally attracts young viewers, but its storylines focus on everything from bestiality to pedophilia. The broadcast networks are fully aware of the positive returns that family-friendly programs provide, but they insist on pushing the limits at every turn. We encourage more family-friendly content and ask that networks use discretion in promoting and re-airing adult shows when children are most likely to be in the viewing audience. Advertisers also have a responsibility in ensuring the content they underwrite is a reflection of their corporate image. ► more

Thank you to our Veterans

Here is a photo of my wonderful brother Mike, who just welcomed his sixth child last week.  Luckily, he was home for the event.  Thanks Mikey for serving in the Military and for all of the sacrifices that you and your family make for me and my family and our nation.  Love you!  Thank you!

Latest Op-Ed

Here’s the latest op-ed I sent to local newspapers on behalf of the Parents Television Council.  They are avid news and media advocates as a way to spread their message.  Let me know if you see it printed in any newspapers because they frequently print it and don’t let me know.  Luckily I have friends and neighbors who read the editorials and let me know when my name pops up.

Fox, Foul Language and the First Amendment

On October 21st Peter Chernin, President and Chief Operating Officer of News Corp.,was given the Media Institute’s “Freedom of Speech” award. In accepting the award, Chernin boasted that Fox will “fight to the end for our ability to put occasionally controversial, offensive, and even tasteless content on the air.” He also claimed that fining indecent content on broadcast TV will somehow automatically lead to the overthrow of the democratic process in American politics.

Limiting political speech is not what is at issue. What Chernin and his fellow media bosses truly oppose are any limits whatsoever on indecent broadcast TV content. This was made manifest back on August 1^st, when ABC, CBS and NBC filed briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court to defend Fox’s claim that airing the “F-word” and “S-word” during two Fox awards show broadcasts was not indecent and should not be fined.

With the Supreme Court scheduled on November 4^th to review a lower court’s ruling that the use of the”F-word” is merely a “fleeting profanity” and that the networks should not be fined for airing such language, the broadcast networks are doing everything possible to ensure that their “right” to blare offensive programming over the publicly-owned airwaves into American homes meets with no opposition.

Unlike many other nations, in the United States the government does not monopolize control of the airwaves — nor does it require TV networks to pay for their use of same. The broadcast networks are allowed exclusive use of a public utility, for free, and use it to make billions of dollars a year in profit. All the American people have ever asked in return is that the networks use the airwaves in the public interest. But now, the networks arrogantly claim that their alleged “right” to spew profanity, graphic sex and heinous violence trumps the best interests of America’s children and the desires of the American people.

It is common sense that trashy TV leads to undesirable outcomes in our society.  This last week we were provided with some research to confirm the obvious.  Researchers at the RAND research organization said their three-year study was the first to link viewing of racy television programing with risky sexual behavior by teens.  “Our findings suggest that television may play a significant role in the high rates of teenage pregnancy in the United States,” said Anita Chandra, a behavioral scientist who led the research at RAND, a nonprofit research organization.

Our nation’s media is on a slippery slope.  As we watch to see what the Supreme Court’s ruling is on the “fleeting profanity” case, we should also continue to vigilantly watch what is being absorbed into our family’s daily diet of media.

Karmel Larson

Utah County Director of the Parents Television Council

Mapleton, UT

Shiny Sink

My shiny sink!  I had to take a photo because it only looks like this for a quick second about once a week…. and to recommend one of my favorite websites: www.flylady.net.  Check it out as well as the book, Sink Reflections.  I’m a fan of flylady’s methods and ideas although I’m usually a failure at applying them.  Leave me a comment with your favorite home organization, cleaning or mom in general website! (then go shine your sink-it feels soooo good!)