Playing nice in the sandbox!

Ok. So I have been listening to all of the news reporters and tv commentators discussing how amazing it will be tonight to have the "blue" sitting with the "red" during the Presidents speech.  The more I hear about it the more I started thinking how utterly crazy it is.  This is something that we ourselves learned way back in elementary school. "Now Susie, I know that you don't really like or agree with Tommy.  However, you can sit by him during the assembly or at lunch and be respectful to him."  Seriously! It makes me crazy that we DEMAND more of our children, than we do the adults who make up our government body! And the scary thing is, the children do a better job than the adults!  We tell our children that they don't have to like nor agree with everybody, they just have to be respectful.  We also tell them that if they don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.  Then why on earth should we accept less from those who WE elect to office?  Why can't adults behave half as kind and respectful as children?  The saying, "Are you smarter than a fifth grader?" should be echoed with "Are you as kind and respectful as a first grader?"   No, we all don't and won't agree, that is fine; but we can be respectful in our disagreement! I don't care what "color" you are when it comes to politics, you can be respectful of those who are different, just as they can be respectful of you!  I think it is high time that we, along with the elected officials do better!  Just as we tell our children, you can do better! 

Ok, my rant is over. It's just that after spending the day at school dealing with kids, telling them that they can do better, be nicer, be respectful... I felt the need to vent!

2011...

Ok. So I have been thinking a lot about the new year. It is always exciting to set new goals for changing aspects of our lives.  And for the most part, easy to start.  However, when we suffer a set back of some kind or another and fall short of our goals, it can be very stressful.  Which can often lead to set backs in other areas we are trying to change as well.  I found myself thinking and praying the other night and the idea of "Do Better," came to me. Simple. We can all "do better" in nearly all areas of our lives.  Whether finance, eating habits, exercise habits, prayer & meditation, organization, relationships, volunteering....the list goes on and on.  I am hoping that by simply trying to do better in these areas rather than meeting an "all or nothing" mark,  I will stay focused on the big picture and have a more positive and productive outcome.  By taking "chewable bites" rather than a whole plate full. The idea of saying:

Positive:  "I exercised more this whole year, doing it here and there, than I have in years past!"

VS

Negative: "I only made it 3 months exercising 4 days a week. Then I dropped off to only 2 days a week. And when things were really crazy I didn't even get to it."

     ~OR~

 Positive:  "I reduced our overall debt this year! We owe less than we did at this time last year!"

 VS

Negative:  "I was going to be debt free by the end of the year, but didn't get one bill paid off and then had to repair___"

     ~OR~

Positive:  "I cut out so much junk food this year. Instead of nearly every evening at home, I only had it once or twice a week."

VS

Negative:  "I was going to cut out all junk food, but I didn't make it. We went out on a date and I had to have the cheesecake...then we were at a birthday party and there was homemade ice cream I had to try. And there were a few times I had a treat in the evening."

So here's to a year of doing better! I can't wait!