Great Is Thy Faithfulness

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Both of my grandfathers had the same favorite hymn: “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.”

Lately I’ve been contemplating how remarkably fitting this little family factoid is. See, one of my favorite things about hymns is their endurance. When I sing hymns, I feel connected to the generations of the faithful who have come before me and will come after me.

This particular hymn especially connects me to the faith legacy of my family.

Because my faith, no matter how personal it seems to me, did not start with me. The story of my relationship with Christ started generations ago. It’s the great faithfulness of the God my grandfathers trusted that has led that faith down to me. Continue reading →

Stephanie Overanalyzes Children’s Entertainment: Toy Story (Part 2)

Part 2 – All About The Ladies

If you haven’t read Part 1 of Stephanie Overanalyzes Toy Story, you may want to do so before continuing.

I’ll Take My Feminism Where I Can Get It

Let’s face it, the Toy Story universe doesn’t have an abundance of female characters. The first 2 movies can’t even pass the Bechdel test. Toy Story 3 adds at least 5 named female characters, and really builds on the strong characterization Jessie got in Toy Story 2 by giving the girls crucial, if not major, roles in the story. Continue reading →

Stephanie Overanalyzes Children’s Entertainment: Toy Story (Part 1)

As a mother of 2 small children who experiences repeated viewings/readings/etc. of the same kids’ media ad nauseam, I have found myself growing overly critical of what is meant to be simple, innocent entertainment for small children. I share my sarcastic analyses of harmless kids’ entertainment in this ongoing feature: Stephanie Overanalyzes Children’s Entertainment.

Toy Story

Toy Story is a Disney-Pixar animated film from 1995, directed by John Lasseter and written by… a whole bunch of famous screenwriters. Wow. It was followed up with sequels: Toy Story 2 in 1999 and Toy Story 3 in 2010. Toy Story 4 is set to be released in 2019, and my family is really excited! Because for a solid 2 years Toy Story was my oldest son’s favorite thing in the whole wide world. My house is littered with Toy Story paraphernalia, and there’s at least 1 Toy Story article of clothing in my laundry every week. I have seen and listened to the 3 Toy Story movies + 2 holiday specials SO MANY more times than I ever would’ve imagined. Don’t get me wrong; I like Toy Story. This trilogy was among my favorite of Pixar’s films long before I had children. Isaac only fell in love with Toy Story in the first place because I got him hooked on them. And even after an unfathomable number of viewings, I still think these are great films. Continue reading →

Stephanie Overanalyzes Children’s Entertainment: Curious George and the Bunny

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As a mother of 2 small children, I spend a lot of time around children’s entertainment in many forms: movies, TV shows, songs, books, etc. Most children’s entertainment is at worst mildly irritating while mostly harmless, and at best able to make you, a grown adult, openly weep from 2 rooms away. (Why am I never prepared for the end of Inside Out? That movie WRECKS ME.) As I experience repeated viewings/readings/etc. of the same kids’ media ad nauseam, I find myself growing overly critical of what is meant to be simple, innocent entertainment for small children. (I’m sure no other parent can identify with this.) I figured if I’m going to be this sarcastically over-analytical about harmless kids’ entertainment, I really should share it with the world. So I am introducing an ongoing feature for my blog: Stephanie Overanalyzes Children’s Entertainment.

Our first installment features everyone’s favorite trouble-making monkey

Continue reading →