My Favorite Disney Movie

I love a lot of Disney movies, and as far as animation and great stories go, almost no one can beat Pixar. However, we were watching a DVD today, and I was reminded of my very favorite animated movie—The Lion King. The more I thought about it, the more I realized how much I love it. So in no particular order, here are the many things I love about it.

1. So many great voices like Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Rowan Atkinson, Robert Guillame, Jeremy Irons, Matthew Broderick . . . of course, no one can compare to James Earl Jones. His voice alone would make this my favorite.
2. I have always loved African music, and the partnership between Hans Zimmer and Lebo M (who also did The Power of One) produces some of my very favorite.
3. It emphasizes the circle and balance of life. That idea is so important, both in the natural world and in our own.
4. “Remember who you are.” Mufasa’s advice translates so well to real life; we need to remember who we are and where we have come from (and where we’re going) in order to make the very best choices we can.
5. I love the allusions to Hamlet on the savannah. The storyline of the uncle killing the father and son having to deal with the consequences is so classic and resonates through our great literature.
6. A couple of years ago, Nate and I were able to go see the musical based on the film. It includes more amazing music, and the combination of sophisticated puppetry, masks, and dance turn it into stage magic. I would definitely pay to go see it again.
7. The opening sequence/closing sequence is not only gorgeous, but beginning and ending it the same way also drives home the idea of life being an eternal round.
8. There is at least one homage to another film style: during the “Be Prepared” sequence, as the hyenas all march by Scar, there are a lot of techniques used from Nazi propaganda films. It creates the perfect feel for the scene.
9. I love that this movie was the underdog the year it was made. It was considered Disney’s B movie (the A movie was Pocahontas). In my opinion, it is so much better than Pocahontas. It’s always nice when such an underdog can do so well.
10. “He Lives in You” is a song not from the movie, but it was included in the musical. It talks about how Mufasa ‘s (and all the elders’) influence can be felt through everything. It has the same feel as the “remember who you are” sequence. We are not alone and we have a purpose.

What is your favorite Disney movie?

The Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt

Some neighbors held an Easter egg hunt for the neighborhood and a potluck breakfast afterwards. Most of the pictures aren't great because it was challenging to take pictures and help Ryan hold the basket at the same time. But he figured it out really quickly, and we all had a great time!




As much as he enjoyed collecting eggs, he was most pleased with the soccer ball "egg" he found in their backyard during breakfast. We had a hard time getting him to let it go!

Planet Earth

I don't often tout TV shows, but I have loved watching Planet Earth on the Discovery Channel (premieres are on Sundays). It took five years to film, and they filmed it in HD, which gives all the detail amazing clarity. And not only do you get to see the nature footage, but they also show how the film makers got the shots, the technology they developed, and the close calls they almost had. Nate's not a huge fan of nature documentaries, but even he has found things that are interesting.

There are so many things in this that make me appreciate how amazing the world is and how it contains so many more wonders than I could ever dream of. It's so hard to pick favorite moments, but I'll try. They spent a number of weeks over 3 years to capture the snow leopard on film. They couldn't find it, and then once they did, they couldn't go in for a year because the Marines were still coming the area for Osama bin Laden. Once they found it, though, they were able to film it hunting, something never before captured on camera. They showed part of the Kalahari Desert that floods every year and the mass migration of animals from hundreds of miles around: elephants, monkeys, giraffes, and others all wading through high water and flowing grasses. Besides the breathtaking photography, I have learned so much, and Ryan loves watching the animals (even if he calls them all dogs).

How Not to Talk to Your Kids

A special thanks to Jenny for sending me the article and discussing it with me!

This will be a long blog, but this is an article that totally affected the way I think about parenting and praise, so I thought it was really important to share it. You can find the complete article at http://www.nymag.com/news/features/27840.

Abstract of “How Not to Talk to Your Kids: The Inverse Power of Praise” by Po Bronson in the New York Magazine:
In an experiment, 400 students were given a verbal IQ test. All did well, but half were told that they were smart (praised for intelligence) and half were told they worked hard (praised for effort). In subsequent tests, those praised for intelligence opted to take easier tests or, after failing a test that no one could pass, did 20% worse on the tests they had already passed. Those praised for effort were more eager to take tests that were challenging and, after failing the test that they couldn’t pass, still improved by 30% on tests they had taken previously.

According to Dweck, the researcher, “Emphasizing effort gives a child a variable that they can control. They come to see themselves as in control of their success. Emphasizing natural intelligence takes it out of the child’s control, and it provides no good recipe for responding to failure.”

When children are consistently told they are smart, they see less reason to make an effort: they can either do something or they can’t. If they can’t do it right away, they have no motivation to try again because it shows they weren’t smart enough to do it the first time. Students praised for intelligence also become more concerned with appearing smart to others (and in comparison to others) than in putting in extra effort. Those praised for effort are less concerned with how they appear.

In another study, 700 students were separated into two groups: one was taught study skills and the other was taught study skills and about brain development. The second group did consistently better in their classes afterwards because they were taught that the brain is a muscle that grows and creates new connections with effort and that intelligence is not necessarily innate. You become smarter the harder you work your brain.

Almost all parents think it’s important to praise their kids on their intelligence to build their self-esteem. Baumeister, another researcher, believes it’s because that praise is tied to parents’ pride in their children and that praising the children reflects well on the parents.

This is not to say that all praise is bad: specific concrete praise aimed at actions that one can control is a positive motivator that produces results. These actions might be being persistent, concentrating, sharing, helping someone else, asking insightful questions, practicing a skill, having a discussion about something. And all praise must be sincere; otherwise, eventually children will stop listening to it altogether.

Praising effort gives children a strategy to deal with failure—work harder and try again. Those who develop this persistence are better equipped to deal with life. They are able to delay gratification and rebound from failure and difficulty. Instead of children who are “praise junkies,” motivated only to get more praise for doing well, we will have children who have learned how to be successful through their own actions.

Personal Reaction:
Holy cow! First of all, I can say that I am a recovering praise junkie. For years, I lived for praise . . . I was (and still sometimes am) risk averse and mostly interested in doing those things that I already knew I did well. I resisted practicing the piano because I could often pass my lessons without doing it, until high school when I couldn’t get away with it anymore. I wasn’t sure what to do with myself when I started college because school had never been so hard for me before. Over the course of a number of years (especially since I’ve been married), I have worked hard to try to do things that I’ve never done or that are hard for me to do. But it’s still a real struggle.

So as a parent, I’m hoping to be able to praise those things that will help my children later. It’s hard not to tell them they’re so smart, especially when you really think they are . . . but I’m trying to keep the greater perspective to raise independent children who will make wise decisions.

Pics of Ryan

Stacy, these pictures are for you! (And for anyone else who'd like to see.)


Ryan is intensely curious. Here he is investigating a neighbor's yard; they have a plastic bird with twirling wings. He also really likes real birds. We watch them out of the windows for hours and even put up some bird feeders to encourage more of them to stay.


Ryan loves playgrounds now: tunnels, stairs, slides. We went to the park frequently while the weather was good; we'll both be happy when it clears up again, so he can go back to playing with the "big boys."

Ryan loves music--listening to the radio or CDs, playing the piano with Mom or Dad, singing at the top of his lungs, and dancing away.


One of Ryan's new activities is building nests out of blankets and pillows. He settles himself in with a book and reads to himself, as long as I am sitting on the floor right next to him.

Our Big News!

We found out last Wednesday that Nate and I are pregnant again! We are very excited! I am especially looking forward to Ryan having someone to play with, so he doesn't need my attention constantly. (Actually, he's been doing a lot better at entertaining himself, at least for a little while.)

The first question everyone asks is about the due date: honestly, we have no idea when to expect the bundle of joy. As Nate says, my biology is not reliable enough to determine a due date, so the good OB will have to divine it from ultrasounds, etc. We're pretty sure that it'll be around November/December, though, so Ryan and the new baby will be two years apart. Just right!

This preganancy is already a lot different than the last. I had no clue I was pregnant until I threw up all over the bathroom one night. (Nate's parents apparently guessed long before I did that I was pregnant.) So I'm not nauseous all the time like I was with Ryan, but when I get sick, it's a lot more violent. And the supersmell has returned--Nate says he wishes he had a super power, but it's more a curse than a blessing. :D

Anyway, I'll keep the site updated as we learn more.

Welcome to my blog!

At the request of my friend Megan, I have started a blog. I named it after a quote from one of my favorite Shakespeare plays, The Winter's Tale. (It also happens to be the title of my master's thesis.) At the end of the play is a series of miracles that, when I first saw the play, took my breath away.

I realized that I feel the same way about a lot of things in life--what a miracle it is! I am so grateful to watch Ryan look at the world to remember how amazing a leaf or the lines on your hand are.

So I guess the title sums up my philosophy of life: Life is amazing and truly wonderful, and I am so lucky to be here participating in it!!

So welcome and thanks for coming!