BOOM! Hunger Games!

I can remember reading the first book of this series and wanting Gale and Katniss to be together so bad (although after reading the entire series, I am team Peeta)! I also remember staying up late for the midnight showing with my roommates and wondering how the film was going to portray this idea that pre-teens and older teens fight one another to the death. Although a creative and moral building plot, should we pay money to go see so much violence in our younger generation? I mean, if you take a step back...would we have ever agreed to see this movie 10 years ago? Does the overarching moral of the film outweigh the violence we witness in it? What do you think?
On another note, the first part of the last movie came out today--yeah! ...right? Actually, for the first time with these series, I'm not really that excited to see it. If it's like the first part of the book, it will be slow and repeatedly show Katniss suffering from PTSD and losing her mind!
It's interesting that I don't want to see that (which I believe most movies cut out the consquence of violence), but isn't it kind of cool that the writers of the book and movie include this to show a more realistic view of the effects of violence and war? Just a thought :)

Anyway, I haven't seen it yet, but if you have...please give me a review! I would love to hear what you think!

P.S. I just watched this video with Sofia Vergara (Modern Family) for Hunger Games and couldn't stop laughing! Enjoy!


Esquete Hunger Games Com Sofia Vergara [LEGENDADO] from JogosVorazes.Net on Vimeo.

7 Tips For Better Sleep

This is the first semester I haven't been able to fall asleep easily! After a week of observing my bedtime habits, I realized I was on my iPhone or computer until I went to bed. So I searched online and found this article called, "7 Tips For Better Sleep." This article shares some great tips and research on varying factors that can help aid or keep us away from sleeping.
Cellphones and other screen time forms are definitely on the top of the list:

"A National Sleep Foundation poll found that 95 percent of Americans use electronic devices within an hour of going to sleep at least a few nights a week."
"Artificial light exposure between dusk and the time we go to bed at night suppresses release of the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin, enhances alertness and shifts circadian rhythms to a later hour, making it more difficult to fall asleep," Charles Czeisler, Ph.D., M.D.

 So my husband and I made it a goal this past week to stop using our cellphones at least an hour and half before bedtime. It was amazing how much faster and better we fell asleep. It was also nice to use our paper-scriptures and read non-screen books before bed. Lastly, we found that we were able to have better conversations together during those hours before bed--instead of sitting in bed together on our devices, we read books or talked about cool things we learned that day.

Overall, if you're having a hard time falling asleep or having quality sleep, you should try these tips out (I know it worked for my family):

1. SET AN ELECTRONIC CURFEW
Make a rule to keep technology out of your bed, and turn off all devices at least an hour before bedtime.

2. KEEP A WORRY JOURNAL
Set aside time during the evening to create a to-do list, fill in your calendar with upcoming events, or write down any thoughts.

3. SET AN ALARM (reminder for BEDTIME)
Decide on and stick to a regular bedtime.

4. LEAVE WORK AT THE OFFICE (or school)
Set a time in the evening to power off--and leave your H.W./emails/texts for the next morning.

5. EXERCISE EARLIER IN THE DAY
Working out at least 4 hours before you go to bed can help you feel naturally tired at the end of the day and sleep faster.

6. START A ROUTINE
Get ready for bed earlier in the evening.

7. GO TO BED WHEN YOU'RE TIRED
"Do not push through and catch your second wind -- it will keep you up for three hours"

Taking a moment...

Phew...we just finished our Media Mock Trial! I feel so relaxed and relieved to have that finished! I do want to write about the actual case that did occur years ago (it's super interesting to listen to the differing points of view and see how research can be used to make policy changes), but for now I want to take a moment to relax and think positively.

I am very grateful that I have the opportunity to attend Brigham Young University and to take important classes like Family Media-- which has been life changing for me! I am grateful for a wonderful professor who feels passionately about what she studies, what she is becoming as a person and shares her gifts with all of us. I don't think I've ever left her class feeling like a failure or that I learned nothing. I always go away feeling empowered to change the way I live and how I can help teach others (particularly my own children).

I am grateful for a husband that chooses every day to love me and help me develop my own gifts and talents. I can be stubborn, a poor communicator and passive aggressive...and not only does he understand that about me, but accepts me for everything that I am (weaknesses and all). I love him and I hope I can remember that it's a choice to love and give of yourself.

Wow, that moment felt great. I didn't really know what I was going to say...but I'm glad that I took a moment to write about things I don't talk about or sometimes fail to see every day. I hope I can learn to take some time every day to appreciate the influences in my life that at times, I put on the back-burner.

Take time today to feel at peace and think of the good influences in your life :)

HaLlOwEeN & MeDiA!

For Halloween this year my husband and a few friends and family got together at my parent's house to have a fun party. We carved pumpkins, played Mario Chase on Wii-U and watched a scary movie. Not to mention, we had delicious hot apple cider, cinnamon cake donuts (my absolute favorite!), pumpkin seeds, sloppy joes and of course, candy. It was one of the best nights I've had this last year!

One of the best parts was playing on the Wii-U (Mario Chase, Sweet Day and Luigi's Haunted Mansion)-- we had about 7 people playing, screaming, cheering and creating strategies to beat one another. I am usually critical about newer game systems, but this one was amazing as it brought us all together! It was so fun :) 

Lastly, another fun part of the night was watching a scary movie! We finally decided on "When A Stranger Calls," the newer version. I hadn't seen it since I was in middle school and so all of us got pretty scared! After we watched the movie and talking about how the stranger got into the house, how dumb the teenagers were, etc.. we all talked about how less thrilling it would have been if the music hadn't been there. It turned into a great discussion as we talked about other factors that increased our fear, such as the fact that most of the girls in the room had had experiences babysitting at night time. Also, we all wanted to be scared, so we were more open to the emotions and plot in the movie. 

All in all it was a great night and I'm grateful for good media activities that can help bring people together---In fact, I saw some snuggling from my sister-in-law and her date...so literally, it can bring people together ;)

P.S. Enjoy this funny Halloween commercial that makes fun of the stupidity in scary movies :)

USU Speaker Cancels Due to Threats

Anita Sarkeesian is a feminist speaker that has become well known by her blog videos: "Feminist Frequency." In her videos (I've personally only seen one), she discusses how women are portrayed in video games. I believe she had really good points that showed that women are highly sexualized and that they usually play the damsel in distress. In fact, this video made me think of the one we watched in class about the portrayal of women in movies.

This past fall she was invited by Utah State University to be speak on her thoughts, research, blogs, etc... on women in video games. However, the week before she was to speak she received messages from a USU student saying that he would kill her if she spoke on campus. I read through the article and he has many more explicit, gross and violent things to say to her. In response, the university added more security, but after more and more threats came in Anita cancelled.

I looked her up online and she is the target of much hate mail, memes, youtube videos, etc...
In fact, it's really the only thing that pops up when you search her name. It's crazy how hateful people can be towards anyone sharing their observations of video games. Does she make a great point? Yes! Do I agree in every example she brought up? Not necessarily (which I've discovered is how I feel about a lot of radical feminist ideas). Nonetheless, no one should ever have to experience such backlash! People need to be respectful, even when they disagree with an opinion.

With the increase of video games and their popularity, I hope that more research on how women are portrayed in them stems from this woman's ideas. I hope that in the future we can make changes that will influence how we see women.