Body Image and the Disney Princesses

Kate is a typical little girl, in that she LOVES the Disney princesses. We had them too when I was young, but now they're everywhere. We were walking through Walmart the other day, and you can find Disney princess toothbrushes, clocks, bikes, and even Ravioli. Kate will point to these in wonder and I'll say, "Yes, they make these because they know little girls like you will ask their Mommies to buy them." I don't mind princess chairs or sweatshirts or books, but I'm not paying twice as much for canned ravioli because the label has princesses on it!

Since I was a girl, they've added the Middle Eastern Princess Jasmine, the mermaid Ariel, and the historical Indian princess Pocahontas (my favorite part of studying Virginia history in 4th grade). There's also Mulan, who isn't actually a princess, but a really cool Chinese warrior. And Barbie, who isn't a princess either, but is adored by little girls just as much. Kate loves them all! I think it's a positive thing that the princesses are of different ethnicities these days. And there are many attributes to admire about them: Pocahontas can canoe and survive in the wilderness, Belle loves to read, and Snow White loves to sing. They all do brave things, and are kind to their friends.

But on the other hand, of course, they are all conventionally beautiful, and super skinny. Hmmm...sounds like a lot of Hollywood celebrities. There was a display I saw the other day at Briercrest showing that if Barbie was a real woman, she would not be able to walk! Most of the Disney princesses become royalty by marrying princes, although some were born princesses. Before deciding to marry, there's little exploration of each other's character, values, or faith. I know, these are children's stories, but it reminds me a lot of the reality show "The Bachelor"! Today Kate wants to be Cinderella, tomorrow will she want to be Britney Spears? I think it's sad that so many women hate their bodies or feel depressed at falling short of whatever they perceive as the ideal. It's just as sad if a woman who does meet that ideal thinks that her worth comes from her beauty. I want to encourage Kate that it's good to look your best, but that it's not necessary (or desirable!) to be as skinny as a Disney princess! Beauty comes in many diverse forms, and a woman's physical attributes are just one part of her overall beauty. She gets a kick out of the Bible verse I recently taught her: Like a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman without discretion. (Proverbs 11:22). I'll point out that if Sleeping Beauty was not a kind person, it wouldn't matter that she's beautiful.

I'm also careful about the words I use. I've been trying to avoid sugar, and when she asked me why, I talked about my "eating plan" rather than use the word "diet." Of course, then she told me she too has an eating plan and it involves lots of cookies! If she sees me on my scale, I'll say I want to see how healthy I am. I talk about the benefits of exercise--stronger bones, more flexible muscles, a healthier heart. I really never want her to have an eating disorder of any kind. I believe that if a woman is active and eats nutritious food, she is likely to end up at the weight that's right for her.

I've been happy to see how much Kate is intrigued by the women of the Bible as well. There's Queen Esther--I just picked up a CD at a secondhand sale about her story. We've been enjoying the animated movie "The Prince of Egypt" which has the amazing Miriam and the brave Zipporah. I hope to find more books and videos about the women of the Bible.

Right now, the Disney princesses seem like innocent fun. But on the other hand, I wonder if it's the beginning of a lifelong female experience of trying to live up to an unrealistic ideal. What do you think?

Congratulations to all the Briercrest graduates!

We have now been at Briercrest for 3 full school years. This means we have the joy of having seen some students through their programs from start to finish. Last night, Eric and I attended the Briercrest Seminary graduation banquet, and I was struck once more by the high caliber people who choose to study here. Here are a few of these spiritually and academically sharp graduates:


Eric at the banquet with Jim Paulson, who works as an academic advisor and professor at Briercrest College. Eric worked particularly closely with Jim, as his focus is Old Testament.


With Dale Harris, this year's valedictorian--he will be moving to southern Ontario to pastor a church there.




Eric with Terry Jackson, who received the Seminarian For Life award.




With Jon Coutts and his twin baby boys. Jon graduated last year, but came back for graduation this year. I've been following his blog with interest as he and his wife, Angie, decide between three UK schools for doctoral work.


We enjoyed seeing our friend, Larry Armstrong, graduate (Haiti is no longer the plan, but pastoring a church in a remote, First Nations area of Northern Ontario).

I've mentioned Carol Heynen's blog before, and we were proud to see her graduate and receive an award at the banquet.

I got to meet fellow American expats, Donnie Scearce and his wife. Donnie is the Executive Director of Pioneers Canada and just graduated from Briercrest Seminary. We enjoyed talking with them about the missions projects they have going all around the world.

Brian Delamont and Abraham Jolly are two more graduates who won awards at the banquet. As you can see if you click on my links, Briercrest Seminary attracts many students who are already quite seasoned in ministry. I'm sure it helps that seminary classes run in modulars, thus enabling people who are working full-time elsewhere to come join us as their schedules allow.

We are so grateful to God for allowing us to serve here, and can't wait to see how He uses all these amazing graduates! I haven't even gone into all the wonderful college students who graduated this weekend as well.

I know I've only mentioned a few people--those I had photos of, or those I know have an online presence. Feel free to send me more photos or links of other graduates and I will add them.

Listen to this!

In January, I was able to attend a concert in Caronport given by Colleen Taylor and Dara Hallett. I love Colleen's music (and Colleen herself!), which was why I made sure to attend. So it was no surprise that I loved her performance and eagerly look forward to her next CD!

And what a blessing it was to discover Dara's music! Here's her site on MySpace Music. Make sure to go to it and listen to the songs featured there--even if you leave it as background music as you surf on other sites. I'm sure you'll find Return to You to be as hauntingly beautiful as I do--it's a reassuring reminder that we will see our loved ones again in heaven someday. Legacy is about the lives of many of the First Nations people Dara lives near in Pelican Narrows, Saskatchewan, where her husband is an RCMP officer. She told us that she has written songs for each of her three sons, and you can hear God Bless You My Dear on the MySpace site. Somewhere in the Middle is a sweet song she sings with her husband about marriage. I bought her album at the concert--I'm not sure how you can get a hold of one--maybe Colleen or Dara herself will read this post and tell us how.

Enjoy!

A few spring photos

A few photos from the last couple months...



Will is still our little explorer, and developing more and more of a personality every day!




He shows no interest in potty training, but he frequently takes off his diaper. One day I found him sitting naked in Kate's princess chair, much to my amusement.




We're really seeing his sense of humor come through!




And Kate remains as impish as ever!



Here we are with Dwight and Denise Friesen. They met as Briercrest College students, and worked here for several years, before heading off to doctoral studies in Scotland, where they lived next door to us. When Eric accepted his Briercrest professor job, we picked their brains about what to expect in our new life in Caronport. They are now living and working in Calgary.



Kate goes to a wonderful preschool a block away, taught by the creative and energetic Marilyn Wiebe. Recently, the kids put on a circus show for the parents, complete with circus acts and songs. Here Kate is lifting some barbells.





The kids on Easter Sunday. Kate loves to pretend to be a Mommy to her dolls. Will usually has a car or toy airplane in his hands. The words we hear most often from him are "Big Truck."




Our friend, Judy, invited the kids over to dye Easter eggs




Kate dyeing hers.



Easter eggs in a basket

Babiesknow

Here's an interesting new website from the UK, all about how babies develop and thrive. It looks like it's similar to a much-loved book I've blogged about before, Why Love Matters: How Affection Shapes a Baby's Brain by Sue Gerhardt.

How can we renew Kate's passport without driving to Calgary?

Kate's US passport expires in October. We will be in Montana this summer so I thought about renewing it there, however even with expedited service, it likely wouldn't be back in time. There are private companies that can expedite it faster, but it looks like you have to prove you require it for travel reasons, and since hers doesn't expire until October, would that be acceptable? Also, these private services are expensive.

Eric and I can just renew our passports by mail through the US consulate in Calgary when the time comes. But for security reasons, children need to be seen in person. Calgary is 8 hours away, and we do have friends there, but does anyone have any other ideas for me?

*Updated to say, we applied for her new passport in Shelby, Montana on our trip there. We were able to keep her current passport and just send off her consular report of birth abroad. Although, I think the requirements for children are different and we could have crossed back into Canada without her having a passport. They said the passport could be mailed to our Canadian address so there was no need to expedite it, which saved money and meant we didn't need to go back to the Shelby Town Hall to pick it up.

What the World Eats

Here's a fascinating book! A husband and wife team traveled to 21 countries around the world to find out what people eat. From France to Turkey to Kuwait to Mali to Australia to Ecuador, they accompanied one family on a weekly grocery shop, and then did photos of the families at home with the various foods. They tally up how much one week of food costs for the family and also show the conversion into US dollars. Additional photos and stories explain more about the families' lives, and there's one recipe per country as well. We learn about a Sudanese family living in a refugee camp in Chad. A family in Greenland supplements their diet with hunted meat from walrus, arctic geese, and polar bear. But Kate and I agreed that it was the Chinese family who had the most interesting fare--their weekly shop included pig's elbows, pig's feet, and baked eel strips. Mmmm....

Check it out! Kate and I enjoyed looking through it together, and Will was drawn to the photos. This is the juvenile version of the book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats. Time magazine has a photo essay here, featuring photos from the book.

Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet

I've been trying to use up the fruits and vegetables in the deep freeze, and today we focused on using up the frozen rhubarb. We'll have fresh rhubarb again before long, so it's silly to let the frozen stuff sit there. We made Rhubarb-Raspberry Jam, and froze several containers of it. But we still had quite a bit left so I found this recipe for a Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet on the Canadian Living website. I just used my stick blender instead of a food processor and it worked well. It was delicious! I'm not sure why the recipe says it's good for only one day in the freezer though--I have found that it keeps well.



Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet

Ingredients:
3 cups (750 mL) chopped rhubarb (fresh or thawed)
1 cup (250 mL) granulated sugar
2 cups (500 mL) strawberries (fresh or thawed)

Preparation:
In a saucepan, cook rhubarb with 1/4 cup (50 mL) water over low heat for about 10 minutes or until juices are released. Stir in sugar. Increase heat to medium; cover and cook for about 5 minutes or until tender. Let cool.

In food processor, puree rhubarb with strawberries until smooth. Pour into shallow metal pan; freeze for 3 to 4 hours or until almost firm.

Break up into chunks and transfer to food processor; puree until smooth. Place in chilled airtight container and freeze for 1 hour or until firm. (Alternatively, freeze in ice-cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.) Store in freezer for up to 1 day. Servings--4 cups.