This picture would convey an entirely different feeling had it been photographed in color. The black and white brings a calmness, and also echoes the dirtiness of the situation that these children are living in.With children running and smiling throughout the frame, the pure joy and excitement that they are experiencing is perfectly captured. There is a sense of movement in the picture, even though the image is clear and nothing is blurred or in motion. I like the look of the raindrops

I am now using this as my digital photo blog!

Braces, Pajama Jam, Brown's, and Retreat

This is a longgg post!! That seems to be how I've been doing it lately. Not write for a while, then post something super long :)

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So I know that my mom has posted photos on Facebook, but I wanted to post a few of my own as well. It felt pretty weird for the first day, but today it already feels normal. So glad that I don't have to deal with those rubber bands anymore.

The old bands

Silly Sisters

Close-up of my straight teeth!

Trying out a background

Nice face Jolee... 

Clouds...

Love it.

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Also, on my last blog post I mentioned about Doernbecher Week. Well, everything went well with that and so far our school raised about $2500 for Doernbecher. It's just a tiny amount compared to high schools around the state that have raised tens of thousands of dollars- but our teacher told us that it's not about how much we make, but how much effort, time and care that we put into it. We still will have the car wash this Saturday and I'll be sure to post photos of the fun! We raise around $900 from that. 

The people who organize the Kids Making Miracles* foundation selected certain schools from around the state and each school got to choose 2-4 kids to ride in a "party bus". (See the video below) As a reward from all of our hard work, Naivit and I were chosen to do this for our school! :) The bus came to pick us up from school on Friday and drove us to some Doernbecher offices along with 6 other high school students. (Not Newberg High) It was a TON of fun :) The radio was blasting and we stuck our faces out these tiny windows at the top, screamed the lyrics, and waved at random people on the streets of Portland. Yep, it was pretty awesome. When we got to the offices, we met with about 40 other students who had driven there in different party buses. We all split up into different cars from there. My group got to ride with Myron Child! The founder of Kids Making Miracles. We all went out to a free dinner at Stanford's, and from there we were driven to Doernbecher Children's Hospital. This is where everyone else comes as well, to the "Pajama Jam". Even more different schools and kids come at this time. Our school brought around 30 kids, and there are at least 25 schools participating that all bring around 10-40 kids. Everybody that comes receives a free t-shirt. There is a candlelight ceremony in the auditorium at which patients, doctors, students and teachers speak to everyone there. Then, we walk down to the Eternal Flame in the front of the hospital (even if it's raining!!) and certain kids carry torches on the way down to "re-light" or "add" to the Eternal Flame. We wave at the kids in the windows of the hospital as we go along. When we get there we all cheer as they touch their torches to the flame. After all that and group photos we drive with our school in school buses over to Bullwinkles and have a lot of fun until 1:00am. :) I'm sure that was super confusing, as it is to most people that I try to explain this to. But hopefully you understood a little bit of it. To sum it up, it was a great night!!! And Naivit and I hope to bring Doernbecher to Newberg High next year since at this point, the high school doesn't do Doernbecher fundraising. 

       *Kids Making Miracles (KMM) is the organization through which our school gives money to Doernbecher.

Here are videos/photos of that night:

On the bus!! 

 Relaxing at Doernbecher

 Some of the high schoolers that rode the party bus with us

Cute picture of us :)

 Walking down to the flame (Dallin)

 Walking...

Some of the huge group walking down together :)

Naivit in the crowd

 The Eternal Flame (built by the Kids Making Miracles foundation) It never stops burning to remind the kids at the hospital that there are always people out there who care about them and are supporting them.

I didn't actually get any photos at Bullwinkles... Haha! What a great night!!! :) 

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Also, the Brown's came to visit a couple weekends ago, and it was sooo much fun getting to play with their kids again. They are super special to me. Here are a few cute photos:

Anna

Smiles :)

Aiden

 Anna, Brynn, and Aiden. Oh how I love these kiddos :)

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This is the last section :) This last weekend (same weekend as the Pajama Jam) there was a Mother/Daughter retreat out at Tilikum at which my mom was the speaker. (Not Twin Rocks) I was able to be there for Saturday and Sunday morning and enjoyed listening to my mom speaking, eating good food and hanging out with our friends the Sommervilles. (Grace and Sarah) 

 Walking on the gravel path to the big swing

 Grace and I in the room

 :) Mother and Daughter

 Grace on the big swing

 Jolee on the big swing (it actually goes out a lot farther and higher)

 Frolicking in the meadow :)

A posed "hike" ... Yeah, we're cheesy like that. 

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Well there's that! Hope you enjoyed this long update, as it took me a while to put it all together :)

Brynn

I know it's been a while since I posted on here... I'm just lazy :) Don't worry- I haven't abandoned this little blog! Here's what's been going on in my life lately:

- Doernbecher Week!! During this week our school raises money for Doernbecher Children's Hospital through raffles, selling paper "dolly heads" that are hung around the school to show our support for Doernbecher, a car wash, and with a dance at our school on Friday where all proceeds go to Doernbecher. For the past two years I have been extremely involved with all of this organization, and this year is no exception.  This year, my best friend Naivit and I have been put in full charge of all Doernbecher events and organization as the 8th grade co leaders of it all. This is a huge job and although it is completely volunteer work, it is something that I take great responsibility and pride in doing for Doernbecher. 

-Braces!! Today at an orthodontist appointment I got new rubber bands to wear for two weeks... They are insane! Can't open my my wide enough to barely stick my tongue out. They are sore right now, but at least it's only for two weeks and then... Off with the braces!! YAY :) I'll post pictures when they're off.

- In Social Studies we just finished off our unit on the Civil War, and I'm more than happy with my final test grade of a 49/50. The whole test was short essay form. Yuck. Now in Core we are moving on to immigration and family history. (So grandparents, if you know of anything "shocking" or exciting, or dramatic, or interesting information in our family history- leave it in the comment box!)

-Our really good family friends (the Brown's) who now live in Grants Pass are coming to visit this weekend, and so I am super happy for that!!! Their 4 little kiddos are some of my absolute favorites :) I'll post photos later.

That's all for now!

Thanks for stopping by at this blog :)

Monsanto Paper

I hope you will take a few minutes out of your day to read my research paper! Thanks, Brynn

Monsanto Changes the Food Industry for the Worse

“The way we eat has changed more in the last 50 years, than in the previous 10,000.” (Schlosser) In the past, Americans planted crops using their own, natural seeds, we raised our own cattle, and fed them with grass, and we got eggs from our backyard chicken coops. Since then, the food industry has changed rapidly through the use of GMOs, the patenting of seeds, and huge companies, who plan to control our entire food system such as, Monsanto.

GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism. They are often referred to as simply GM or GE foods. GM foods are created when DNA from a different plant, bacteria, virus or animal are put into the genes of food cells. They are put in to make certain crops resistant to drought, disease, or cold temperatures. Injecting new DNA into the genes of food cells is a difficult process. Scientists first pick the section of DNA that contains the desired trait that they want to appear in the genes of the food. Using either a stream of electricity to make holes in the cell wall, a gene gun, or the help of soil bacteria, they are able to get the desired DNA trait into the genes of the food. This lengthy process makes the seeds unaffected by certain pesticides, disease, or insects. Monsanto uses bacteria found in soil (Bt) and injects it into the cells of their seeds to make their seeds resistant to their pesticide, RoundUp. This way, a farmer can kill all the weeds in his field effectively by simply spraying RoundUp over his entire crop without killing his GM plants. Another example of the use of genetic modification is when genes from an arctic fish were put into tomato cells, which made the tomatoes impervious to cold temperatures.

GM foods may sound like a great thing; they are making it possible to kill weeds without killing your crops, and to fight off temperatures which certain plants cannot bear on their own. Those are the pros that Monsanto tells the public about. When the idea of GE foods was brought to the FDA, they were considered GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) so they were exempt from testing, despite many safety concerns. But, there is more to genetic engineering than just that. Scientists who thought the idea sounded skeptical, took it into their own hands to see what negative effects GM foods could actually have. 

When rats were fed with GM foods, they were shown to have heavier and altered livers that suggested toxic insult. The changes were reversed when the rats were switched back to non-GM food. Also, in rats being fed GM soy and corn, it caused reproductive problems and higher infant mortality rates in the rat babies. In addition to the lab rat testing, Filipinos in at least five villages became sick when living next to a Bt cornfield — the same bacteria that Monsanto uses in their GE products. They began to have skin, respiratory and intestinal reactions. Blood tests on over 30 Filipinos showed an antibody response to Bt-toxin. Besides all the possible health risks that come with eating GM food, many people consider genetically modifying food to be morally wrong. Nature obviously did not intend for fish DNA to be mixed with a tomato.

Along with using genetic modification to make their seeds, Monsanto patents each new variety of seed that they come up with.  A patent gives you, and only you, the rights to make, use, or sell an invention. This invention must be original, and unique in some way. The patent office believed that these GE seeds were original enough to be patented, yet surprisingly when they were brought to the FDA, the were considered to be equal to their non-GM counterpart, (GRAS) and testing was not necessary. Originally, food crops were excluded from patenting, on moral grounds. But in 1930, the Plant Patent Act was passed, and plants were officially allowed to be patented, though the patent did not extend to the next generation of seeds. But since 1980, seeds are allowed to be patented, with the patent applying to the next generation as well. Americans have never voted on whether this should be allowed, or has Congress. As Andrew Kimbrell said in “The Future of Food”, "It actually means giving corporations incredible power to own, control the species of the Earth."

             Monsanto patents their genetically modified seeds so that no one else will be able to copy their "inventions". In addition, when buying RoundUp Ready seeds, you must sign a contract saying that you will not save the seeds and use them for the next year's crop. This requires farmers to buy new seeds year after year. All of this insures that Monsanto makes the most money that they possibly can.

The story of Percy Schmeiser is one of many that shows just how much control Monsanto has over farmers. Percy Schmeiser has been a canola farmer for 40 years. He lives in Bruno, Saskatchewan, Canada, keeping the family business running along with his wife, Louise Schmeiser. He grows canola using his own seeds, developed over many years. He has never signed a contract with Monsanto and is not a customer of them, except to buy RoundUp. He sprays the RoundUp not over his entire crops, but around posts, and where weeds grow abundantly.  After several years, he noticed that some of the canola seemed to be resistant to the RoundUp. Schmeiser says in The Future of Food, “I thought initially that some of those plants didn’t die because I had been spraying year after year after year wth RoundUp in the same area.”

Then one day, Monsanto representatives came onto his land and took samples. They claimed that it was their RoundUp Ready Canola that he had been saving. Monsanto told him that, “It didn’t matter how the seed got on to his land, he had still infringed on their patent.” (Schmeiser) Because of this, Monsanto sued Percy Schmeiser for planting RoundUp Ready Canola without a contract and for saving their seeds. Unlike many other farmers, Schmeiser refused to simply give into Monsanto; he took them to court.

At the end of the case, the judge ruled that Monsanto's patent was valid, but that Schmeiser didn't have to pay them anything. At this, Percy Schmeiser was more than happy, but there were other parts of the ruling that upset him. In “The Future of Food”, Schmeiser sums up the judges words: “Any farmer, that has a regular, conventional plant it doesn’t matter what kind of plant if it’s a tree, if it’s a seed and it gets cross pollinated with Monsanto’s gene against your wishes and destroys your property that plant becomes Monsanto’s property.” That shows how much control that one company has over all people.

Monsanto is not only an independent company, but has close ties with the government. This makes it possible to get specific rules passed in their benefit. Many people throughout the existence of Monsanto, have gone back and forth between working for Monsanto, and working as a part of our government. This is known as the revolving door. Margaret Miller, worked for Monsanto as a Chemical Lab Supervisor then as an FDA Branch Chief. Marcia Hale was a former assistant to the President, and now is the Director of International Government Affairs for Monsanto. Clarence Thomas was an attorney for Monsanto and is currently a Supreme Court Justice. Michael Taylor worked for Monsanto, and then for the FDA as a Deputy Commissioner for Policy, then back again to Monsanto as the Vice President for Public Policy. These are just a few examples of the many people that are part of the revolving door. Margaret Miller and Michael Taylor played a primary role in reviewing the rbST hormone for safety—a genetically engineered hormone that is put into cows to increase milk production. The hormone was approved. Through these multiple connections to the United States government and FDA (Food and Drug Administration) Monsanto is able to create and make new laws that our country will be run by. They are able to approve unsafe scientific ideas of theirs and take control of the government that is supposed to be run by the people of U.S., not huge companies such as themselves.

It is clear that Monsanto intends to take over our food industry. In fact, when asked where they want to be in 20-30 years, they said they want to be in charge of the global food supply. Should we let them? With their GM food that is being shown to have many health risks, the point that they are in essence patenting life, and suing innocent farmers, they should not be allowed control over all our food. They are making huge scientific leaps. But our bodies were not made to consume food with soil bacteria in it, or to eat a tomato created using fish DNA. America is supposed to be a free country, where all people have an equal say. With Monsanto taking over our government, they are making it nearly impossible.  What can we do about this? We need to take a stand for what we believe in. We have to choose to eat only organic foods. Eat food that is in season. Buy our meat from local farmers that don't feed their animals with Monsanto's genetically modified corn. Together, we have the power to stand up to Monsanto, and to tell them that we don't approve of, nor will we tolerate the ways that they want to change our diet.

  

Spring Break and Such

Haven't posted here for a while, sorry! ):

I was inspired this last week by my mom who has been "off" extra sugary treats for quite some time, and also while writing my paper on Monsanto for a school research project. (full essay to come!!) So, I have decided to exclude a select number of foods from my diet! I'm not going totally off sugar, but won't be eating candy, ice cream, cakes, breakfast cereals, or pre-made storebought treats. Also, pizza is off, unless homemade (: I was thinking to boycott Tyson, and any "unorganic" meats, but it would be so difficult. Anyways, I'm choosing to eat organic, natural, GMO free, and to support small farms whenever possible! Can't wait to share with you my research paper on Monsanto.

Last night I had Naivit and Zoë over, and we had a blast!! Naivit and I gave Zoë a makeover, and the results were stunning! She let us straigten her hair, and put on eyeshadow, mascara, lipstick, and we gave some color to her cheeks (: Pictures to come!! Sleepovers with the bestfriends are always wonderful!

On Tuesday we leave for Yachats-- so fun! It will be great to spend some time just with the family. Then on Friday, it's off to Eugene. Yay!! I'm psyched to be finally able to see grandparents, aunt, uncle, and especially Abigail(: It's gonna be an amazing week- I should probably get packing.... (:

Bible Quizzing Results

Well.... Didn't get first place. (: Competition was tight, and everyone studied well for that last meet. I think I ended up with 4th place for the last meet, as well as 4th overall for the year out of about 50. I wasn't too dissapointed— I still got a medal! Anyways, the meet was a LOT of fun! We (Newberg girls) ended up getting to stay at a Bed and Breakfast owned by some that attend the Friends church in Hayden, Idaho. That was really nice. We all had beds with sheets and blankets and had two showers for us to use. We definitely lucked out (: We enjoyed way too many banana chocolate chip muffins by my mom, and tons of pudding and regular chocolate chip cookies throughout the long car rides and during the day.

School was fun today... Principals and counselors from the high school came over to help us forecast for next year, which brought nerves and excitement. I will be in S.I.LV.E.R. (I have yet to learn what this stands for, but it's how "silver" is written on all the papers) school in the fall at NHS, and I am for the most part, excited. It's weird to think about starting high school- when I can still remember going into fifth grade. Life is too fast.

Also, last week after cleaning out Jolee's desk and shopping, my mom and I got new curtains for our room, so hopefully I'll post pictures later. I'm hoping to get a more defined color scheme in our huge room, to really tie the whole space together- from our desks to our beds.