Matt.Laura.Tyce

"A Threat to the Status Quo"

2009-03-02T07:00:00.000-08:00

10 things you should know about Obama's plan (but probably don't)

The plan:
1. Makes a $634 billion down payment on fixing health care that will go a long way toward paying for a more efficient, more affordable health care system that covers every single American.
2. Reduces taxes for 95% of working Americans. And if your family makes less than $250,000, your taxes won't go up one dime.
3. Invests more than $100 billion in clean energy technology, creating millions of green jobs that can never be outsourced.
4. Brings our troops home from Iraq on a firm timetable, finally bringing the war to a close—and freeing up almost ten billion dollars a month for domestic priorities.
5. Reverses growing income inequality. The plan lets the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans expire and focuses on strengthening the middle class.
6. Closes multi-billion-dollar tax loopholes for big oil companies.
7. Increases grants to help families pay for college—the largest increase ever.
8. Halves the deficit by 2013. President Obama inherited a legacy of huge deficits and an economy in shambles, but his plan brings the deficit under control as soon as the economy begins to recover.
9. Dramatically increases funding for the SEC and the CFTC—the agencies that police Wall Street.
10. Tells it straight. For years, budgets have used accounting tricks to hide the real costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Bush tax cuts, and too many other programs. Obama's budget gets rid of the smokescreens and lays out what America's priorities are, what they cost, and how we're going to pay for them.

This is the change we voted for. President Obama has done his part, now we need to do ours.
Can you pass this on to your personal network and then click here to let us know how many people you told, so we can track our impact together:
http://pol.moveon.org/budget10/?id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=1
Thanks for all you do.
–Daniel, Tanya, Peter, Justin and the rest of the team
P.S. Turns out there are way more than 10 amazing things in Obama's budget and we couldn't resist sharing just a few more.

1. Stops unnecessary government subsidies to big banks, health insurance companies and big agribusinesses.
2. Expands access to early childhood education and improves schools by investing in programs that make sure every child has a qualified, strong teacher.

3. Negotiates for better prescription drug prices using Medicaid's tremendous bargaining power.

4. Expands access to family planning for low-income women.18
5. Caps the pollution that causes global warming, and makes polluters pay to support clean energy innovation.

Sources:
1. "Climate of Change," The New York Times, February 27, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/opinion/27krugman.html?em
2. "Obama Calls His Budget Sweeping, Needed Change," The New York Times, February 28, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51201&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=2
3. "Obama Offers Broad Plan to Revamp Health Care," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51202&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=3
4. "Obama Expects Fight Over $3.55 Trillion Budget Plan," Bloomberg News, February 28, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51203&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=4
5. "Energy Budget Is Sunlight After Eight Years of Darkness," Center for American Progress, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51204&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=5
6. "The Economic Cost of War in Iraq and Afghanistan," The New York Times, March 1, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/01/weekinreview/01glanz.html
7. "Tax Cuts," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-tax.html
8. "Energy Budget Is Sunlight After Eight Years of Darkness," Center for American Progress, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51204&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=6
9. "Student Loans," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-edu.html
10. "Obama unveils budget blueprint," CNN, February 26, 2009 http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/26/budget/
11. "Obama budget would boost SEC, CFTC, FBI," Reuters, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51205&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=7
12. "Obama's budget," Los Angeles Times, February 27, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51206&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=8
13. "Student Loans," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-edu.html
14. "Health Insurance Stocks Dive on Medicare Advantage Cuts," The Wall Street Journal, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51207&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=9
15. "Agriculture," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/washington/27web-agri.html
16. "Investing Wisely in Our Children," Center for American Progress, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51208&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=10
17. "Obama Offers Broad Plan to Revamp Health Care," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51202&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=11
18. "Obama Offers Broad Plan to Revamp Health Care," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51202&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=12
19. "Setting 'Green' Goals," The New York Times, February 26, 2009 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51209&id=15687-8056669-KUGPgXx&t=13

Jazz game and Walking with the Dinosaurs

2009-01-22T07:28:00.000-08:00

Working at MediaOne has some good perks! Last Monday I got to go to the Jazz game in the MediaOne suite with some co-workers and Matt. Grammy Lur and Pops watched Tyce so Matt and I could have a date night- thanks you guys!! We had an awesome time, and the suite was center court! Angelise, Tara, and meOur view from above

As I mentioned in a previous post, I also got some tickets to Walking with the Dinosaurs through my company. Tyce and Jake had such a fun time and loved the big dinosaurs! They said the cutest things throughout the show, and Tyce would clap and say "yay" during the weirdest parts. We had such a fun time and I'm glad my big sis was able to go with me!

It was almost impossible to get a good picture, so unfortunately this is the only one that turned out decent. Thanks for the pic Angelise:)

Barack Obama the 44th President of the U.S.

2009-01-20T10:00:00.000-08:00

(This picture was taken on a beach in India)

Barack Obama took the oath of office today as the nation's 44th president, then delivered a sobering assessment of where America stands and a hopeful vision of what it can become. "On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord," he said.
He is such an amazing speaker, I get the chills just listening to him. This is going to be such an historic day for the U.S. I am so glad I was here to witness this moment.
Good Ridance President Bush! :)

Walking with the DINOSAURS!

2009-01-14T14:28:00.000-08:00

Tonight is opening night in SLC for Walking with the Dinosaurs, and through my company I scored some tickets! I'm going with Tyce, my sister, and her son. I am so excited about it! (Perhaps even more so than Tyce;) ) I will post some pictures later from the event, and maybe I will catch up on Christmas and New Years as well. I know, I suck at blogging!!

Catching up...

2009-01-11T10:53:00.001-08:00

Halloween was a ton of fun this year. Matt decided to turn our yard into a cemetary, where he put a ton of gravestones, a fence with 'keep out' signs around our entire yard, fake rats, spiders, etc., spooky music, a fog machine, and black lights. It turned out pretty awesome! Both Matt and Tyce were pirates this year, and Tyce even went around the house saying, "Arr, matey."Tyce also turned 2 on November 27th. We celebrated his birthday at Matt's parent's house a few days early, where he got lots of fun presents. He got the new Elmo Live, a Batman tricycle, coloring books, lots of Elmo stuff, and tons of other fun toys. He definitely got spoiled by his parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles.Tyce with his balloon hat that Matt made for him. Matt thought it would be fun to learn how to create balloon animals, etc. for the party.

Here is Tyce at my parent's house for bday party #2. He got a Radio Flyer scooter, along with a helmet and some knee pads.

Pooped out after too much partying. He loves his Dewalt drill we got him, he helps daddy in the basement all the time:)
Party #3 came with a Spongebob Squarepants cake that Aunt Denise made for Tyce and Jake. They both loved it! We were in San Diego over Thanksgiving and celebrated both boy's birthdays there as well.

Blow hard boys!
Mmmm, Spongebob cake (Jake looks a little like Jack Nicholas in The Shining, right?) Where's Johnny??

Going to Sea World was by far the most fun thing we did while we were there. Tyce loved watching the dolphins and Shamu doing their shows. We will definitely be coming back here soon!:)

We couldn't get Tyce to stop looking at the shark, so this is how the picture turned out.

He was so mesmerized by the 'big fishies' at the show. We sat up really close in the splash zone, but luckily didn't get too wet.

Tyce dancing at dolphin show

Bet you can't guess which one of us liked Sea World the most...;)

Tyce and Jake giving each other big hugs

The last day we were in San Diego we decided to take a trip over to the beach. The kids loved playin in the sand and chasing the seagulls. The waves would push the water 50 feet or so onto the beach, so one of the times that Tyce and Jake were running around, they both got pushed down by the water and ended up getting soaked-It was pretty funny! San Diego was so gorgeous; we all decided we want to move out there one day...

Tyce playing in the sand. He loved San Diego so much, that he still asks me, "Mommy fly on airplane to San Diego?"
Matt collecting shells for Tyce
Me, Nat, and Denise relaxing on the beach (I had no sunglasses and the sun was right in my eyes.)

VOTING DAY!

2008-11-04T06:53:00.000-08:00

Voting day is finally here! I am so excited!! I haven't gone to vote yet, b/c I figured waking up at 5:30 is early enough, so I'm planning on going after work. I'm crossing my fingers that I won't have to wait for hours! I tried voting during early voting, but the wait was 45 minutes long and I only had a 30-minute lunch. So, today is the big day!!

Some Good Websites

2008-10-15T19:05:00.000-07:00

I am obviously a Democrat, so my choice for the next president is clearly Obama. I honestly believe that he is the best candidate regardless of my beliefs and my political party. I have found a couple websites that are out of the norm, however, for those of you to check out that see things differently than I do. One is Rebublicams for Obama and the other is Mormons for Obama. Since the majority of people that read my blog probably fall into these 2 groups, I decided to put the websites on here for your enjoyment.
REPUBLICANS: http://www.republicansforobama.org/
MORMONS: http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/MormonsforObama
Obama would be such a great leader; I can't wait until November when I can cast my vote!!

On a side note, this post is not meant to offend anyone.

Park City

2008-10-06T21:25:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago Matt and I celebrated our anniversary in Park City (as I mentioned in a previous post), and I finally uploaded the pics onto my computer. I get so behind on this blog stuff, but I have such a busy life! So, we got to PC in the afternoon and had lunch at Ruby Tuesday, where Matt had been craving to go all week. It was yummy! Then, we went shopping at the Tanger Outlets. Later that night we went to Tropic Thunder at the movie theatre, then went back to the condo we rented for the night. Sunday morning we ate some breakfast on old Main Street and did some shopping there as well. It was a fun little vacation and it was nice to get away and be alone for once;)

Matt and me at the restaurantDoesn't he look thrilled?!

Here are some pictures of our little condo

Tagged by Stacey

2008-09-23T20:58:00.000-07:00

3 Joys
1. My awesome family: Matt, Tyce, and Split
2. My outside family and friends
3. Money (who doesn't enjoy money;)?)

3 Current Obsessions
1. Politics
2. All my shows on t.v. that are starting up again
3. Playing/shopping on the internet

3 facts about myself
1. I bite my nails (It's a habit I can't break!)
2. I love to listen to heavy metal
3. I am a speed demon when it comes to driving, and have no patience. Get outta my way!! :D

I am now going to tag my sister, Nat, Angie, Katie, Allie, and Rachelle. This is an easy one guys... But, I won't feel bad if you aren't up for the challenge, ha ha...

3 YEARS

2008-09-22T07:24:00.000-07:00

Today is our 3 year wedding anniversary. To celebrate, Matt and I went to Park City for the weekend and rented a condo. Grammy Lur and Papa watched Tyce and Split for us, so we were able to have some nice alone time. It was so fun to be alone together, it is such a rarity for it to be just the two of us. We went to the Tanger Outlets, went to Tropic Thunder (super funny movie), and then on the last day, we walked around the shops on Historic Main Street. When I get to spend some time with Matt alone, it reminds me of why I love him so much. He is such a fun, crazy guy to be around. He always keeps me smiling and can make me happy when I'm sad, just by being his goof-ball self. For those of you who know Matt, you will know exactly what I'm talking about- Matt can be a total weirdo at times;) That's what made me love this guy!

Some interesting info on Sarah Palin

2008-09-14T10:42:00.000-07:00

Who is Sarah Palin? Here's some basic background:
She was elected Alaska 's governor a little over a year and a half ago. Her previous office was mayor of Wasilla, a small town outside Anchorage.

She has no foreign policy experience.1

Palin is strongly anti-choice, opposing abortion even in the case of rape or incest.2

She supported right-wing extremist Pat Buchanan for president in 2000. 3

Palin thinks creationism should be taught in public schools.4

She's doesn't think humans are the cause of climate change.5

She's solidly in line with John McCain's "Big Oil first" energy policy. She's pushed hard for more oil drilling and says renewables won't be ready for years. She also sued the Bush administration for listing polar bears as an endangered species—she was worried it would interfere with more oil drilling in Alaska.6

How closely did John McCain vet this choice? He met Sarah Palin once at a meeting. They spoke a second time, last Sunday, when he called her about being vice-president. Then he offered her the position.7

This is information the American people need to see. Please take a moment to forward this email to your friends and family.
We also asked Alaska MoveOn members what the rest of us should know about their governor. The response was striking. Here's a sample:
She is really just a mayor from a small town outside Anchorage who has been a governor for only 1.5 years, and has ZERO national and international experience. I shudder to think that she could be the person taking that 3AM call on the White House hotline, and the one who could potentially be charged with leading the US in the volatile international scene that exists today. —Rose M., Fairbanks, AK
She is VERY, VERY conservative, and far from perfect. She's a hunter and fisherwoman, but votes against the environment again and again. She ran on ethics reform, but is currently under investigation for several charges involving hiring and firing of state officials. She has NO experience beyond Alaska. —Christine B., Denali Park, AK
As an Alaskan and a feminist, I am beyond words at this announcement. Palin is not a feminist, and she is not the reformer she claims to be. —Karen L., Anchorage, AK
Alaskans, collectively, are just as stunned as the rest of the nation. She is doing well running our State, but is totally inexperienced on the national level, and very much unequipped to run the nation, if it came to that. She is as far right as one can get, which has already been communicated on the news. In our office of thirty employees (dems, republicans, and nonpartisans), not one person feels she is ready for the V.P. position.—Sherry C., Anchorage, AK
She's vehemently anti-choice and doesn't care about protecting our natural resources, even though she has worked as a fisherman. McCain chose her to pick up the Hillary voters, but Palin is no Hillary. —Marina L., Juneau, AK
I think she's far too inexperienced to be in this position. I'm all for a woman in the White House, but not one who hasn't done anything to deserve it. There are far many other women who have worked their way up and have much more experience that would have been better choices. This is a patronizing decision on John McCain's part- and insulting to females everywhere that he would assume he'll get our vote by putting "A Woman" in that position.—Jennifer M., Anchorage, AK
So Governor Palin is a staunch anti-choice religious conservative. She's a global warming denier who shares John McCain's commitment to Big Oil. And she's dramatically inexperienced.
In picking Sarah Palin, John McCain has made the religious right very happy. And he's made a very dangerous decision for our country.
In the next few days, many Americans will be wondering what McCain's vice-presidential choice means. Please pass this information along to your friends and family.
Thanks for all you do.
–Ilyse, Noah, Justin, Karin and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "Sarah Palin," Wikipedia, Accessed August 29, 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Palin
2. "McCain Selects Anti-Choice Sarah Palin as Running Mate," NARAL Pro-Choice America, August 29, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17515&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=1
3. "Sarah Palin, Buchananite," The Nation, August 29, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17736&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=2
4. "'Creation science' enters the race," Anchorage Daily News, October 27, 2006 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17737&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=3
5. "Palin buys climate denial PR spin—ignores science," Huffington Post, August 29, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17517&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=4
6. "McCain VP Pick Completes Shift to Bush Energy Policy," Sierra Club, August 29, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17518&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=5
"Choice of Palin Promises Failed Energy Policies of the Past," League of Conservation Voters, August 29, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17519&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=6
"Protecting polar bears gets in way of drilling for oil, says governor," The Times of London, May 23, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=17520&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=7
7 "McCain met Palin once before yesterday," MSNBC, August 29, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=21119&id=13661-8056669-7nTzR_x&t=8

I hope everyone will do their research this year before deciding who to vote for. I have noticed that most people I have talked to don't even know why they chose the party that they are voting for. I wish people would actually do their own research and think about what's best for this country, and not what their parent's have told them to choose, or what is the "popular" vote in their state. If people had thought more about it 4 years ago, then we wouldn't have been stuck with Bush again. I know this is a heated topic, but I thought I would get my opinion out there...

Splish Splash Jake and Tyce are Taking a Bath!

2008-08-17T08:22:00.000-07:00

Jake and Tyce are beginning to understand friendship. They love playing with each other and enjoy giving each other hugs and kisses. It's so much fun to watch them! They are best buddies right now. I just wish we lived closer so they could see their favorite little friend every day;) When we were up in Saratoga last time, they decided they wanted to take a bubble bath together. Here are some of my fave pics...

Jake and Tyce in the tub

My fave one of Tyce being silly

Jake with a cute "big boy" smile

They love giving each other kisses, muah!

Discovery Gateway

2008-08-06T20:55:00.000-07:00

We all went to Discovery Gateway a week ago with my family, and the kids (Tyce and Jake) had a blast! There is so much stuff for little kids to do there; you could be there for hours and not get bored. We went a month or so ago with Matt's family, and Tyce had so much fun that I wanted to go back again with my nephew, Jake. Tyce and Jake are best friends, so needless to say, they had a super duper fun time!

Family pic:)

Cute Tyce-man

They loved the see-saw Tyce and his BampaGetting comfy in the bird house
Uh-oh, watch out or Tyce will write you a ticket!
Um, Jake, are you sure you want to rear end a cop??

Matt is so proud of his paper airplane he designed.

Maybe I need to look into architecture as a major;)

And after all the fun at Discovery Gateway we took the kids to the fountain. As you can see, Tyce had tons of fun getting wet.... NOT!!

Tyce's "mow mow"

2008-07-21T21:55:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we were all hanging outside in our front yard. Matt was mowing the front lawn and Tyce and I were just enjoying the sunshine. Well, Tyce dissapeard into the garage for a little while. I decided after a minute or two, to check on him, and I found that he had opened up the gas cap on his fake lawn mower, and grabbed Daddy's gas can to 'fill 'er up'. It was so hillarious to see him trying to be a big boy. I yelled at Matt to come look at his son, while I hurried and got a pic with my cell phone. Matt hadn't ever actually taught him to fill up his lawn mower. It just shows how smart little kids really are; they catch on to everything so fast!!

Tyce the Nerd

2008-07-20T13:37:00.000-07:00

From time to time, we like dressing Tyce up really nerdy, and Matt and I just sit and laugh our butts off because he has no idea he looks so funny. Two nights ago as I was putting Tyce's pajamas on, I decided to put the shorts that came with the "jammies" on him, and pull them up really high. He looked hillarious and just went about playing like there was nothing wrong. One day, when he is older, he will look at these pictures and will be like, "What the heck were you guys doing to me?" Hopefully he'll have a good sense-of-humor and thank us;P Ha ha ha...

The Cook's blog is finally here...

2008-07-20T13:00:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! So, I finally broke down and decided to start our own blog. I guess it's only fair, since I like surfing other peoples blogs, to have our own blog. I will try to post updates of our lives frequently, but with a 20-month-old son, it may get kind of hard to keep this updated very often. Anyways, enjoy the Cook's blog and add us to your list!!