Best of 2012 According to My Daughters

Having two adolescent daughters is challenging on many levels.  One obstacle that pops up is their lack of willingness to answer my questions, such as, "How was school?"  Their never-fail answers are always something like, "It was fine, but I don't feeeeeel like giving you all the details."  End of discussion.

Last week after I composed and posted my list of 2012 Favorites, I thought it may be a good conversation starter with my girls.  I was right.  At first, they begrudgingly read it.  But after one simple question from me-What were your favorites of 2012?-they miraculously opened up.

I found out there was a group of girls on Twitter cutting themselves due to the horror of Justin Bieber smoking weed (truly shocking).  I found out that my 14 year old has quickly moved on from thinking pop music is cool to thinking it's "stupid" and helped her choose different words to express this opinion in order to not hurt her 12 year old sister's feelings.  We talked drugs, the objectification of women in videos, the good and the bad of pop culture.

I am not certain if they realized we were talking about such significant topics.  That was not the point. For me, the priority was and is to be available in the moment, when the important emerges.

Out of our discussion came their willingness and desire to share their favorites from 2012 here.  Of course, I was and am willing to do so.  And of course, I am hoping this post will spur even more conversation.

2012 Favorites

                     Antonia                                                              Sophia
                     (age 12)                                                               (age 14)

Movie:        
                    Pitch Perfect                                          Perks of Being a Wallflower


Album:        
                    Red, Taylor Swift                                   Centipede Hz, Animal Collective


Song:          
                    Boyfriend, Justin Bieber                       Myth, Beach House


Tweeter:      
                    N/A                                                           N/A


Blog:          
                    Sperk*                                                      "I don't read blogs."


TV Show:  
                    Arrested Development                           Arrested Development 


Instagrammer:
                    Boo the Dog                                            Pudge the Cat


Moment:      
                    "Having a facial                                     Tie between trip to D.C. -
                     on my birthday."                                   performing in spring musical                                                                                                                                                    


Conference:
                    Junior Winds Camp                                Ohio Junior Thespians


Viral Video:  
                    Star Wars Kid (not from 2012,                 Gangnam Style
                       but still her favorite)



What were some of your kids' favorites from 2012?
How do you start conversations with your kids?


                                                                                                                                                                       
                                                                                               

Sperk* 2012 Favorites

The 2013 clock is ticking, I know.  

It’s always a good idea to reflect on the past in order to change the future.  However, some things get etched in the mind as our favorites, things we wish would never change.  These are the snapshots we print on acid-free paper and tape into the scrapbook.  If I still did scrapbooking, the following are the things you would find in mine from 2012: 

Favorite 2012 Movie: I see movies late, when they enter the realm of cable television.  For that reason, my favorite flick of 2012 was released in 2011: The Big Year.  It’s charming, funny, hopeful and I can watch it with my kids.

Favorite Album: Pound of Dirt by Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds - I came across this band while perusing Songkick for an opportunity to go out on a Friday night.  This band is hot and I predict they are going to blow up.  Meaning, if you can see them in a small music venue near you, do so, and soon.  If you wait, you’ll be smooshed in a crowd of sweaty people at a summer music festival, unable to see who’s tearing up all those instruments.

Favorite Song: We Are Never Getting Back Together - I’m a closet Taylor Swift fan.  Yes, I am.  It helps me relate to my tween and provides good conversational material for my teen: “Mom, how is it that Taylor Swift can be such a player and not get any flack?  I mean, if I went through that many boyfriends. . .”

Favorite Tweeter: @brainpicker – Maria Popova – Because her tweets contain the most interesting links.

Favorite Blog: Angela Shelton – Inspiring, creative, funny, intelligent.

Favorite TV Show: Enlightened – I watched the entire first season two times while the kids were gone over Christmas break.  It’s the first show I could relate to as a 40 year old woman.  Love it.  Season 2 begins on HBO in three days.  

Favorite Instagramer: @northwestmommy  - That boy, that dog and that scenery, oh my.

Favorite Moment: Too many to choose from.  I consider myself lucky and easy to please.  However, if I have to choose, the first day of school (pictured above) was pretty stellar. My oldest went to high school.  I think we are going to make it.

Favorite Conference: AFC North – I’m a die-hard Steelers fan.  (You know I’m talking NFL, right?).

Favorite Viral Video: Felix Baumgartner’s supersonic freefall from 128k – How can one not be inspired by this?

Save It for Later: BlogHer '12, Reality TV, and Back to School

In Save It for Later you’re getting a brief run-down of each week's stand-outs from around the Web.

BlogHer ‘12

"Opportunity often comes disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat."

Napoleon Hill

Voices of the Year

Thanks to the kindness of Ashley Taylor and Stacey Gill, I had the opportunity to go to BlogHer ’12 and celebrate my VOTY honor.  Thanks to my inability to overcome the fear of the dentist, I missed it.  Also, dentists are expensive--more expensive than what I had saved for a flight to NYC.  I was faced with deciding between a cracked front tooth and lost crown being fixed and attending the conference.  The situation depressed me.  And I still haven’t found an affordable option for fixing my teeth.  I’m in a funk and hoping to overcome it by continuing a fearless examination of what it means to be me:  Sperk*, a human, mom, friend, and one who sometimes loses sight of the fortitude I already hold (that was in no particular order).

Did you go to BlogHer ’12?  How was it?

What Are You Watching?

I’m into the new HBO series The Newsroom.  I like its intelligent take on the media, challenging viewers to be critical thinkers as they take in the news and other forms of entertainment.  In episode four, I'll Try to Fix You, viewers got a fictional and yet impactful look into gossip magazines’ “takedown” stories.   Regina Kulik Scully and Jennifer Siebel Newsom, who write for the blog at Miss Representation, recently wrote an article related to the episode, asking us to take into consideration why we watch reality television.  Although I do not view most reality shows as “takedown” stories, they have a similar trashy feel.  The article, The Toxic 'Takedown' Fast, raises interesting questions related to both tabloid 'takedowns' and reality shows.  

With the premiere of TLC’s new show, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo , premiering on Wednesday, I have to ask, “When will we say ‘enough!’ to reality television?”  And, "Who are we taking down with these shows?" 

I’m grateful my own reality TV guilty pleasure, Pawn Stars, is not in the TLC, but airs on The History Channel.  I’m afraid Honey Boo Boo is going to cause me to boycott TLC.

Back to School Shopping

My kids start school earlier than usual this year—August 15^th.  That means school supply shopping is not right around the corner.  It should be happening now.  I’m unprepared.  And both of my girls have long lists of items that need to be purchased in order for them to be prepared for learning (insert a hint of sarcasm here___).

According to a CBS News story, Americans will spend on average $689 per family on back to school shopping.  Here’s some sound advice from J.J. Montanaro, who writes at USAA, on how to make it a little less painful: 

5 Back-to-School Shopping Tips You Won't Want to Miss

Find something interesting while surfing the Web this week?  Let me know in the comments. 

photo credit: Thomas Hawk via photo pin cc
photo credit: Sarah Deforche via photo pin cc