"Are you having a girl, boy or a ze?"

If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and talks like a duck, ITS A DUCK!

The Story

When someone announces that they are pregnant I get extremely excited. I am not sure if I am particularly excited for that person or the fact that a cuddly, adorable, innocent, tiny human is going to be in my presence. My next question is always, "are you going to find out what you're having?" to which it has been, and always will be a 50/50 shot, boy or girl. Well our world is about to be "flipped, turned upside down" (quoting the Fresh Prince). I may be taking this lightheartedly because I am just in shock and awe over our society and am literally "SMH" while I write this...

Ze, Ve, Ne are just a few of the new pronouns in our vocabulary. Yup. You read that right. The University of Tennessee is encouraging students to use gender neutral pronouns to make all their students feel welcome. If someone came up to me and used one of these pronouns I would be offended. I look like a lady, I act like one. I was born as one. I will always be one. 

The Problem

The problem isn't with the wishy-washy people who think "Wow! How great, acceptance of everyone!" it's with the men and women who think that they are the exception and feel that they are offended by the pronouns "he" and "she". News flash, you're not offended, you're confused. You were born a specific way (yes, even Bruce Jenner), you were raised that way (well, you weren't, "Jazz Jennings"), you will forever be that way. 

Lets talk about the word neutral. It is used in may ways; a car gear, how you feel about something, your stance on an argument. 
One definition of neutral is: having no strongly marked or positive characteristic or features. THERE IS NO GENDER NEUTRAL. THERE IS GENDER. PERIOD. FIGURE IT OUT. 

I am not sitting here saying that people can't change their appearance and do what they want. Is it right, no. Is it worth my time, no. But I am saying I will never use those pronouns. Contrary to what they believe at UT, they don't "sound funny because they are new", they sounds funny because they aren't real. 

Read the story and "SMH" with me. 

Here's something fun:

Here s the chart we are supposed to use. Everyone is gender binary, get it together world. 

The Solution

I searched time and time again and they don't mention anything other then men and women in the bible. I know, I am puzzled too. Crazy. 

I Corinthians 11:8-9 

"For a man was not made from woman, but woman from man. Neither was man created for woman, the woman for man." 

How crazy this may sound, I just read a children's picture book my bestie Tami lent me, about being what you're supposed to be. I Don't Want to be a Frog about a frog who wants to be a cat, rabbit, pig or owl, anything but a frog. But his dad tells him that being a frog is what he was born to be. We are all created in the Lords image, and how we are born is what we are supposed to be. Going against that is going against His plan. 

Fashion Fun!

Here I am wearing my I am Polished dress pants from Maurice's, leopard flats from Ashley's grandma and flowy merlot colored shirt from Brina Box :)

Yay! I love my new reading corner! It's perfect and the kids adore it. I am so infatuated with the classroom book we are reading Wonder by R. J. Palacio. It is about a boy who was born with a facial deformity and his first time attending school. My students love our "Wonder about Wonder" time. After pivotal moments in the story we journal and this is what I received on the first day of journal writing, on the third day of school...

The prompt was "Why do people react to August they way they do?"

My favorite part is "He was born with a problem, that doesn't mean that he is a problem"

Bless her heart!

I enjoyed some sunshine with Grigio. You never know when the last hammock days will be. 

Super comfy outfit! My shirt is from my sister and my pants are from Maurice's

So this girl is a doll baby! She helped me pick out my outfit for Luke Bryan. She is the funniest, sweetest, kindest, hippest gal I know. I love being her Aunt!

Here I am wearing another shirt from my sister (from the Gap) and BKE Shorts. I also wore my brown cowboy boots from the boot corral.

My beginning of the year bulletin board. I am going to try and keep that gold paper and boarder up all year. Lets see how that goes! Here I am wearing one of my most comfortable outfits! I got this wrap dress in Texas last year at a second had store, paid $12! So worth it! My flats are from, yup, you guessed it, Maurice's.

Be a Blessing!

Miss Goff