not much going on here. getting lots of mommy, daddy, and ava time in before daddy has to go back to work.

tuesday night, along with the rest of the country, we hung out with some close friends and watched with anticipation as the election votes came in. to quote the next first lady, "for the first time in my adult life, i am proud of my country." i have never felt so optimistic about the future of america as i do now.

while i wasn't around to hear Dr. King's epic "Insufficient Funds" speech, better known as "I Have a Dream", in person, it's the only one i'd ever heard that moved me to tears every. single. time i've listened to it. [i encourage anyone who stumbles across this page to listen to that phenomenal man and his words in its entirety.] barack obama has delivered many great speeches over the course of his campaign, but it was his acceptance speech tuesday night that filled me with a great sense of pride, joy, and achievement for my fellow americans, and actually moved me tears. specifically, this piece:

"To those -- to those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright: Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.

That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we've already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight's about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons -- because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America -- the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that We Shall Overcome. Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination.

And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change.

Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves -- if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.

This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can."

yes, we can.



here's my sweet little baby face sleeping with her little butt in the air while we all watched as the results come in. look at my fatty littleface. oh, those cheeks! and those legs! i just wanna eat 'em up! okay, let me stop. just a few minutes after taking this picture, barack leaped past the 270 mark. i screamed, ava screamed, we all screamed for BARACK O-FUCKING-BAMA! well, ava screamed because mommy scared her half to death. my bad, dollface.

so yeah, i'm just all kinds of happy right now. although i'm not really looking forward to my hubby going back to work in less than 2 weeks.

Labels: littleface, my president is black

--i refused to spellcheck @ 2:44 PM | |