Blog a la Cart

I’m not going to get all, “I have a dream” on you. Much.

It’s tempting on MLK day to reference snippets from the “I have a dream” speech, to grab sound bytes from King’s most inspirational moments and plaster them in our Twitter streams and Facebook walls.

But today I went to a lecture about Dr. King. A lecture that focused on a man who was not a glorified figure of hope and inspiration, but a man who pushed boundaries, scared the leaders of our society by challenging the status quo, and a man who shook the core of this country so much that he was assassinated for his beliefs.

A man who was considered dangerous. An enemy of the state.

And so today, I want to pull words from Dr. King that are less inspirational and more grounded in action:

Let us be dissatisfied.

As today’s lecture reminded me, the most powerful learning comes when we step outside our comfort zones. The best piece of advice I received from a teacher when I graduated from high school was this:

“Make yourself uncomfortable. That’s where the learning really happens.”

And I’ve treasured that advice ever since I first saw it make a concrete impact on my life and the person I am today.

And so, remember that change does not come from the content. Conflict and tension and dissatisfaction invoke change. We live in a society that wants to fix discomfort instead of allowing it to fuel actions. We want to be safe.

But instead, let’s be uncomfortable.

Let us be dissatisfied.

Obsession.

Some of Addison’s latest antics are making me melt with the cute.

Example #1:

James had to wake Addison from her slumber to take her to daycare last week. She only goes twice a week, and is always very disgruntled when she has to be out of bed prior to 8 am (much like her mama). She cried and cried when James pulled her from her cozy crib, and as she gasped for breath between sobs, she looked at him and pathetically whimpered, “Sunny. Bed. Pwease.”

HEARTBREAKING! What parent forces his child to be awake when she is ASKING, nay BEGGING, for sleep?

James Cart, ladies and gentlemen.

Example #2:

Sunny loves to point out her anatomy and James has been teaching her where to find her clavicle, and femur, and scapula, and cranium. Very important things for a one and a half year old to know.

She now also delights is pointing to other people’s body parts, like mama’s BOOB! for example. (I take full responsibility for this display. Oof!) Or to her stuffed animals’ anatomy. The other day I heard her mumbling, “Elmo, clavicle! Elmo, eyes!” Since she was engaging in this way, James turned to her and said, “Where are Elmo’s ears?” She looked around to where one would expect to find ears and then gasped in shock, “OH NO! ELMO NO EARS!”

I. Died.

The same thing happens now if you ask her where Elmo’s bellybutton is, “Oh no! Elmo no bellybutt!”

Example #3:

Since introducing the potty, Sunny has taken to forcing her stuffed animals to use the potty regularly throughout the day. She herself is terrified to put her bare bummie on it, but she is more than happy to sit on it with a diaper on, and say “Pee! Pee! Pee!” or “Sunny, poopie!” I think, sadly, she’s missing the point, but we’re working on it.

This imaginative play with the potty has now slipped into other parts of our life, as just the other day at dinner, Elmo was sitting at the table with us, as he always does per Sunny’s request, and out of no where, Addison put down her fork and shrieked, “OH NO! ELMO POOPIE! ELMO POTTY!”

I think that she was just using it as an excuse to get out of her high chair and rush Elmo to the potty.

Perhaps she’s more with it than we think.

Sunshine.

We went to a Colonial Carriage Fest this weekend. Obviously. Didn’t everyone?

I know, we are so country.

Sunny fell in love with “horsies!” and we froze our butts off.

Totally worth it.