Paris 11/13/2015

On Friday, many people died due to ISIS-linked terrorist attacks in cafes, a stadium, and the Bataclan concert venue in Paris.

It is so sad.

But does the media make it worse?

I read a blog post from a blog called A Separate State of Mind. It talked about how, yes, the events in Paris are bad, but how these things happen every day lately in Lebanon and other countries where ISIS has a regular presence. It talked about how even Arabs in Middle East countries seem to care more about the events in Paris then they do in their own back yard.

It's a great read:
http://stateofmind13.com/2015/11/14/from-beirut-this-is-paris-in-a-world-that-doesnt-care-about-arab-lives/

I don't doubt that something bad will happen again. But I told my students that, even though it does not seem like our own actions can have an affect on, say, these horrific events, we can control how we treat each other.

We should treat each other with kindness, with patience, and with love. We can't expect these terrible things to change if we do not treat each other with respect.

First post of the 2015-2016 school year!

Wow, so I'm a bit behind in my blogging of late. As ever, I better write down observations of my son because he's growing so fast, and I'm sure I'll forget what he did when he was two.

So...Jackson update 11/3/2015:
- currently weights 35 pounds
- sleeps through the night (mostly) in his TODDLER bed
- loves Thomas and Friends, watching "movies" [on Netflix], Minnie Mouse (i.e. anything Disney)
- just sat through his first movie: Frozen on Halloween
- is obsessed with apples, cheese sticks, yogurt (but only if he can feed himself), toast, and sweets
- is Size 3T/4T in clothes
- loves reading books, specifically Battle Bunny, anything Bubble Guppies, and Good Night, Beach.

- does a stellar job kicking a "tah-ter" ball (with his left foot)