Just Wanted to Share

So, I wasn't going to do a blog post this week, but I found this video and so I thought I'd share.

If you're not familiar with The Fine Bros on YouTube they do some very awesome web series.  One of them is a show called Teens React where they show a group of teenagers a video from YouTube and then ask them their opinions on it.

So just today they posted a video where they had the teens watch that Rick Perry ad that I talked about a couple weeks ago.  I figured I'd share this because it's funny and insightful.

Hope y'all are having a good Holiday!  And we'll be back to regularly scheduled blog post (aka every Monday) starting Jan. 2, 2012.  So Happy New Year!

I'm getting political...

**I would like to preface this post by saying I generally hate talking about politics.  It does nothing but cause arguments and most politicians are shady characters. I almost always find going to the voting polls a decision between one evil or another.  But this topic deserved discussion.**


I'm a conservative by nature, not a crazy one (at least I don't think so) and any views that I have that might be seen as pretty far right winged, I mostly keep to my self.  And even though I am a Republican and all that, there are some candidates running right now that make me roll my eyes and seriously worry about this election year.  And today's eye roll goes to Rick Perry.


Yesterday he released this ad for his campaign.

Now, my dear husband ran across this article from TheBlaze.com this morning that showed the above ad and then a few spoofs.  After laughing at the very well made spoofs, I re-watched the ad and really listened to what Perry was saying.


I am appalled.  Did he really just bash the military?  I mean, really?  In essence I get the message, I get what Perry is trying to say here, but damn man, you a dumb-ass.


I'm proud to admit that I was glad when the Don't Ask Don't Tell thing was repealed (and if you know me, you know I'm not exactly pro-gay).  The way I see it, if men and women are willing to put their lives on the line to protect this country, it's citizens and it's freedoms then they have the right to sleep with who ever the hell they want.


And they also have the right to be treated well by the military.  The last thing someone needs is to be out in the field everyday, risking their lives, and then have to worry about being harassed at night in their barracks.  And for Rick Perry to say, "there's something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military..." is just wrong, and ignorant.


Now, as I said before, I get what Perry is trying to say here.  There is a "but" at the end of that phrase and Perry tries to compare the discrimination that gays go through to the political correctness that has been put into our schools.  I see the basic point here, he's trying to say, "Why is one group being protected and helped and yet another group is being put down?"  He just chose a really piss-poor way to say it.


Of course, I've never been a Perry fan, there's a couple other times he's been incredibly stupid, but there's really no need to go into that here.  My point in this post today is to speak up for the part of the conservative/Republican party who do not agree with this kind of ignorant dribble.  Who are aware of some of the social issues in our great country but who know that pointing the finger at unrelated parties and issues is not the solution.  Comparing apples to oranges does absolutely nothing but make you look like a fool.


So tell me what you think.  Do you agree with Rick Perry?  Do you understand his overall message?  Is he just an idiot who really thinks this way or was this just some seriously bad word choice?  Give me your thoughts and opinions, I love to read them. :)  Oh, and don't forget to take a look at some of those spoofs, they'll make you laugh, promise.


Thanks for reading!  Happy Tuesday!

Book Review: Tell Your Time

A couple weeks ago I was looking at books and planners that could help me manage my time and get the most out of my day.  I looked through a lot of them, mostly through Amazon.  I was looking for something that was focused on stay-at-home moms, or even working moms.  But I found a lot of them to be a little too complex, or they were focused on people with lots of kids or a super demanding career.

I realized that I needed something simple and basic.  I only have one child right now, and he’s just two.  So there’s no school or extracurricular activities yet.  And since I’m a stay-at-home mom there aren’t a lot of demands on my time.  But I still have a problem with being focused and getting all the things I want done in a day.

Then I stumbled upon Tell Your Time: How toManage Your Schedule So You Can Live Free by Amy Lynn Andrews.  Here is the description on Amazon:


There's one thing I've never understood about time management books, and that is, why do so many of them take so much time to read? Have you noticed that? It seems to me a book about time management should be, well, short. To the point. Efficient.

So that's what I did in Tell Your Time. 

I distilled all of the time management, organization, scheduling and goal-setting tips I've gleaned over the years (that's a lot) into one easy-to-read, easy-to-implement, straightforward, no-nonsense ebook.

Remember, time management is like weight loss. There's no magic bullet. The basic principles in weight loss books are all variations on the same theme: eat well and exercise. Consume fewer calories then you expend. 

The same goes for time management books. There's no magic bullet. The basic principles in time management books are all variations on the same theme: make sure all your to-dos fit within the 24 hours allotted.

This book will walk you through a process—the one I personally use—that has helped many others. And it will do it in a fraction of the time and at a fraction of the cost.

Because I think you should live life living, not just reading about it.

Tell Your Time will help you identify the most important things—and the most important people—in your life. You will easily set goals and learn how to manage your time efficiently so no *thing*—or no *one*—falls through the cracks.

Oh, and by the way, during the writing of this book I finally figured out the answer to my question, you know, the one about time management books being so time consuming. A traditional publisher contacted me and offered to publish Tell Your Time as a "regular" book. But there was a catch. In order to justify the cost of publishing, I had to beef it up...and make it about 7 times longer. I was very grateful for the offer, but I declined. (By the way, if you want to hear that full story, find the Tools page I reference throughout the book.)

Tell Your Time packs a huge practical punch. Small time commitment, small price tag, huge benefit.

The description sold me pretty well and then I read some of the glowing reviews.  I decided it couldn’t hurt to buy it on my Kindle.  It’s only $3 and 30 pages long.

Well, the book delivered.  I read it in one sitting and then went on to the website TellYourTime.com to get the worksheets that are referenced through out the book.  The worksheets helped me a lot to figure out what were the most important aspects of my life and how I could be better at all of them.

Andrews is very encouraging as well as straight forward.  She tells you what to do, shows you how to do it and then tells you to get it done.  Plus, the way she presents it makes it very individualized and easy to adapt no matter what your life situation is.

I’ve been using these tips for a couple weeks now and I’m already seeing improvement.  I’ve already established some good routines and have found plenty of time in my days to get chores done, take care of Will, spend quality time with Daniel and even write.

So, if you’re looking for a short, simple time management plan I highly recommend Tell Your Time: How to Manage Your Schedule So You Can Live Free by Amy Lynn Andrews.  It’s available on Kindle, Nook and as a downloadable e-book, you can find all the information at TellYourTime.com

5 out of 5 Stars!

As an ending note: I really enjoy doing book reviews, so if you have any suggestions, please tell me.  Depending on what kind of volume I get will determine how often I do this.  I’m not trying to become yet another book review blog, but I do like to share those things that I love or are interested in.  So if you’d like to know my opinion on something, just comment here.

Thanks for reading!  Happy Monday!

I Return to You with Pictures!

So I really wanted to get some pictures of me and Will today but I can't find my camera, so I had to settle with my web cam.  Not the best pictures, but here you have it.

Aw, ain't I cute with flat hair and no make-up? Yay for lighting!

The necessary pregnant belly shot. I'm 20 weeks today. 

Will wanted to play with the camera too.

And the Happy Puppy

That's all I've got for today.  I'm working on a book review that I'll either post tomorrow or Monday.  I like doing book reviews, I'm thinking about doing more of them.  What think you?

Happy Friday y'all!

What I Am Thankful For

So, as most of you know, yesterday was Thanksgiving.  I got to spend it with my sister and some of her in-laws and we had a great time.  But, because we were there most of the day I didn't get to say what I was thankful for, so I'm going to take that opportunity now.

I Am Thankful For...

• My husband Daniel.  He spoils me rotten and takes such good care of me and Will.  He really is the best husband/father ever.
• My son William.  He is the joy of my heart.  He is so sweet and funny and he is growing up so fast and gets smarter everyday.  I can't believe he's two years old already.
• Being pregnant.  I know I complain about it a lot because I've been pretty sick this go around, but over all, I'm excited and happy to bring this new little life into our growing family.  I feel it is an honor, given to us women by our Heavenly Father, to have and bear children.  I am proud and grateful that I can.
• Our new life here in Colorado.  Daniel has a great job, we live in a decent area and we are in love with our new ward family here.
• My family.  My siblings both near and far who I can talk to and who I know, despite everything, love me.  And my parents, who did a great job raising me and are always there with advice and laughter.
• My membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  I'm grateful for the peace that the Gospel gives me and the truth it teaches me.  I know I'm not always a perfect example of my faith, but I do try.
• Being a stay at home mom.  After having to work for the first year of Will's life, being able to stay home has changed me.  I'm happier and more at peace with my self and I love spending everyday with my Little Man, no matter how many times he makes me watch Cars with him.
• Being a writer.  I love to create new worlds and characters to populate them and then write fun stories about them.  The act of writing is exciting and frustrating at the same time, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 
• All my friends, both in real life and those I've met on the internet *coughAWcough*.  My life just wouldn't be complete without y'all.  You teach me, keep me grounded and make me laugh.
• And finally, I'm grateful for all those little things that we take for granted everyday.  Like having a car or electricity, the internet or food on our table.  There are a lot of people either in this country or around the world that don't have these comforts and we must never forget that it is a privilege to have these things, not a right, and we must strive to be worthy of them.

And that's all folks!  Well I guess I could go on and on, but I'm sure you have better things to do right now.  So thank you soooo much for reading and I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and continue to have Happy Holidays this year. :D

I'm A Pimp For What I Love

So I thought now would be a good time to pimp something that I've fallen in love with over the past few weeks.  I've been a big fan of Felicia Day for a while now and I am amazed at this new web series she's doing called Dragon Age: Redemption.  Now I'm not familiar with the Dragon Age franchise (as of yet) but this is one of the and well made web series I've ever seen.

If for some reason you've been living under a rock and haven't seen this yet, here's a link to the 1st episode.  There are now 3 episodes but each is only about 9 or 10 minutes.

And that's all I've got for now.  Happy Tuesday!

Because I'm tired of the last post

Because it's depressing and has a sad title. :)

Not much has been going on. I'm finally out of the first trimester and not feeling sick 24/7. Life is finally settling down into a nice routine that I can handle.

I had some ideas for a nice, long, somewhat controversial post last week, but I decided to scrap it. I've had enough discussions and stuff lately that get my blood pressure up.

But, if the idea of not hearing/reading from me terrifies you (come on, you know it does ;) ). Then go check out my writing blog, Kricket Writes. I'm going to seriously throw my self into NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, click the link to check it out) this year and I'll be posting much more regularly on my writing blog.

That's all for now. Have a good Monday. :)